Following a strong start to the 2023 NFL season, the Philadelphia Eagles are now going through a rough patch as they suffered a third consecutive loss Monday night against the Seattle Seahawks. To make things worse, Jalen Hurts made headlines for his post-game comments.
“I’ve been talking about execution all year,” Hurts said, via ProFootballTalk. “Being on the same page, everyone being on the same page. We didn’t execute. I don’t think we’re, we’re all, we’re committed enough. Just got to turn it around. You know, it’s a challenge that we have to embrace. Just continue to see it through.”
When asked what he meant by that, the 25-year-old mentioned the work “commitment” to address what his team needed to work on. “I don’t have a dictionary on me now. … I don’t know how else to say that. It’s a matter of being on the same page. It takes everyone being all in, in all aspects. And it starts with me.”
Eagles’ Hurts takes blame, says he was talking about his own commitment
As the days passed, Hurts may have noticed that some people thought he was calling out his teammates. On Thursday, the Eagles quarterback set the record straight on this situation, stating he wasn’t pointing fingers on anyone else but himself.
“My mind was in a place of really just trying to challenge myself,” he said. “When you think holistically about the things you want to accomplish and everything that we’re trying to do, that all runs through me. That all starts with me. And so when I say ‘we,’ I mean me, because I’m the point guard out there. I’m the one that makes everything go. And I’m the guy that everyone trust to set the pace for everything. That’s in how I play. That’s in my leadership. That’s in every aspect of the game, and it comes with the shoes that I walk in.“
Eagles need to bounce back
The outlook has changed for the Eagles in just a few weeks. Not long ago, their 10-1 record suggested they were a strong Super Bowl contender. Flash-forward to Week 16 and the team finds itself 10-4, riding on a three-game losing streak.
“You challenge yourself and you challenge the people around you. But I think it’s just a situation where we are. It’s just something we’re going through, not something we’re stuck in,” Hurts said.
Philadelphia still has a relatively easy schedule left to arrive in the playoffs with a better record, but the question now is if it really has what it takes to compete against other contenders in the postseason.
After all, Hurts and company suffered blowout losses to the San Francisco 49ers and the Dallas Cowboys. On top of that, they even failed to beat the Seattle Seahawks, who are not as strong as them on paper. So we’ll have to wait and see if the Eagles ultimately put the pieces together to challenge for the championship.
