Eagles coach Nick Sirianni said quarterback Jalen Hurts will “without a doubt” be the starter for Sunday’s game against the Las Vegas Raiders. He called the idea of a possible mid-season change “ridiculous” if Hurts continues to struggle.
“I think it’s ridiculous,” he said Wednesday during his weekly appearance on 94 WIP radio in Philadelphia. “I know every time I go on the field with Jalen Hurts at quarterback, we have a chance to win the game. This is something that has been proven. We won a lot of football games.
It’s the ultimate team sport. We win together as a team, we lose together as a team. It is never the work of just one person. »
Hurts threw four interceptions, including the game-sealing one near the goal line in overtime, and committed five total turnovers in Monday night’s 22-19 loss to the Los Angeles Chargers.
Hurts took responsibility for his performance after the game, as did other players such as AJ Brown, whose missed pass at midfield led to one of Hurts’ interceptions.
“When we have the ball in overtime and Jalen Hurts is my quarterback, I’m confident we’re going to win the game,” Saquon Barkley said. “But sometimes it just doesn’t work.” »
Hurts, current Super Bowl MVP, has a record of 54 wins against 25 losses in the regular season and 6 wins for 3 losses in the playoffs. He is one of only seven quarterbacks to play in multiple Super Bowls and win a championship in their first five seasons, joining Tom Brady, Troy Aikman, Patrick Mahomes, Ben Roethlisberger, Kurt Warner and Russell Wilson.
However, he hasn’t had a very stellar season so far and is currently going through a rough patch, with a total of seven turnovers in his last two outings. He has six interceptions this year, already more than in 2024 (5).
Tanner McKee, selected in the sixth round in 2023 out of Stanford, is Hurts’ second. He made his debut in Week 18 against the New York Giants last season, where he completed 27 of 41 passes for 269 yards, with two touchdowns and no interceptions, in a 20-13 Eagles victory.
The Eagles (8-5) have lost three straight games, largely due to an offense that has averaged just 16 points over the last five games.
The Eagles face the Raiders (2-11) at home on Sunday.
“I know we can continue to improve. There were a lot of good things on offense Monday night,” said Sirianni, who became more involved in offensive preparation last week. “The defense was very good, the special teams were very good, and there were a lot of good things on offense. »
