Nick Wright points out glaring flaw in Jalen Hurts' MVP case that benefits Dak Prescott
By Jerry Trotta
The Dallas Cowboys and Philadelphia Eagles Week 14 rematch has all the makings to be another classic in this age-old rivalry. Not only did the Eagles steal Shaquille Leonard from Dallas, but quarterbacks Dak Prescott and Jalen Hurts are two admissible MVP candidates.
After the Eagles' thrilling overtime win against the Bills on Sunday, Hurts' odds to win the hardware skyrocketed up to +125 after he was +300 on Thanksgiving, per DraftKings. Those odds dropped to +350 after Philly was routed by the 49ers on Sunday, 42-19.
Incredibly, Prescott ascended to first in MVP odds at +300 after his heroic performance last Thursday against the Seahawks.
There are admitted flaws in Prescott's MVP resume. Objectively speaking, though, Prescott has played better than Hurts this season. The numbers back it up, but voters seem hell-bent on giving Hurts the award.
FS1's Nick Wright isn't buying the Hurts' MVP hype, however. The "First Things First" gang debated this week Monday whether Hurts is the league's most valuable player. In arguing Prescott's MVP case, Wright identified a glaring flaw in Hurts' resume.
Nick Wright denounces Jalen Hurts' MVP case, argues for Cowboys' Dak Prescott
Wright makes multiple salient points. For starters, Prescott is blowing Hurts away in virtually every passing metric.
Beyond the common statistics (TD-INT ratio, passer rating, yards per game, yards per attempt, completion rate, etc.), Prescott has Hurts beat in EPA per play, big-time throws, completion percentage over expected and average depth of target. Dak also has fewer turnover-worthy plays than Hurts, per Pro Football Focus (subscription required), and five more passing touchdowns.
Beyond that, the flaw in Hurts' resume is that his stats are buoyed by his rushing touchdowns on Philadelphia's panned brotherly shove play. As Wright notes, Prescott's two rushing TDs this year went for a combined 28 yards. Hurts has gained a combined 33 yards on his 11 rushing scores. That's almost unfathomable.
You obviously can't take Hurts rushing TDs away, but his resume is undoubtedly strengthened by several one-yard scores.
As of this writing, Hurts is 11th in passing touchdowns, 10th in passing yards, 12th in completion rate, ninth in QBR and he has the third-most interceptions of any QB and fourth-most lost fumbles. Are those really MVP-worthy numbers?
Conversely, Prescott is first in passing TDs, fifth in passing yards, third in completion rate and second in QBR. He's also tied for first in big-time throws. Those numbers read more like an MVP, do they not?
Dak's resume isn't without flaws, either, obviously. His chances of winning MVP will boil down to how he performs in the Cowboys' upcoming gauntlet of games against Eagles, Bills, Dolphins and Lions. With a masterclass vs the Seahawks already under his belt, momentum is on his side.
All Hurts has over Dak in the MVP race is wins, which aren't a quarterback stat to begin with, and wins against top-tier teams. If Prescott goes 3-1 in this upcoming stretch -- and beats Hurts head to head in Week 14 -- he'll have every edge possible on the Eagles QB.