Wild Card Weekend could not have been kinder to the Dallas Cowboys. The Packers' loss secured Dallas the No. 20 overall pick in the NFL Draft, but nothing topped the Eagles' embarrassing home loss at the hands of a decimated 49ers squad.
Speculation is now swirling about A.J. Brown's future in Philadelphia. While Eagles fans can often associate Brown with causing drama, it's quarterback Jalen Hurts' subar play that is creating some friction inside the building, per The Athletic's Mike Silver.
While Nick Sirianni has not hesitated to show frustration with, and even confront, Brown, he doesn't hold Hurts to the same standard.
"For example, though it was understandable that the coach wanted Brown to get off the field after a second-quarter incompletion so the punt team could avoid a delay-of-game penalty, forcefully getting in the face of his frustrated receiver following a dropped pass might not have been the smoothest move.
This is especially true when it’s juxtaposed against a sense inside the locker room that the Eagles’ powerbrokers are reluctant to criticize Hurts. For all that the quarterback has accomplished, including two standout performances on the sport’s biggest stage (one of which earned him Super Bowl MVP honors), he has been the source of much internal frustration, including from teammates other than Brown."
Jalen Hurts being the root of Eagles friction is music to Cowboys fans' ears
While Brown's on and off-field antics are worthy of criticism from Sirianni, general manager Howie Roseman, and even owner Jeffrey Lurie, they consistently turn a blind eye to Hurts' inconsistency. That would frustrate any locker room, and Hurts repeatedly slighting the play-calling and scheme amid poor play has likely exacerbated the problem.
It's no secret that Hurts is a limited quarterback. Even his most ardent supporters within the Eagles' fanbase would admit that. He's not a great processor, doesn't offer much in terms of audibling at the line of scrimmage, and he doesn't think he needs to run to be effective.
Everything about Hurts' season was average.
As far as surface-level stats go, he finished 16th in passing yards, tied for ninth with 25 touchdowns, 21st in completion rate, and 20th in yards per attempt. Digging into advanced metrics, he ranked 21st in passing success rate (46.0 percent) and 15th in EPA per play (0.124).
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As Silver noted, Hurts has played elite ball on the biggest stages, including in the 2024 Super Bowl when he logged a 0.52 EPA per dropback, and last year's Super Bowl when he posted a 91.0 percent success rate.
That obviously can’t be discarded, but this isn’t the first time this season that Hurts’ play has precipitated frustration among teammates. The solution may go beyond replacing offensive coordinator Kevin Patullo with an experienced play-caller or trading A.J. Brown. Multiple reports have claimed that Brown isn’t the only player bothered by Hurts’ play.
The good news for the Cowboys is that Hurts isn’t going anywhere because of his contract, and history suggests the drama will continue as long as he’s under center.