When the Philadelphia Eagles selected quarterback Jalen Hurts with the 53rd pick in the 2020 NFL Draft, team fans ripped the pick wide.
Why, they wondered, would Eagles general manager Howie Roseman spend a second-round pick in a position that Philadelphia was slated to hold for seasons to come.
The Eagles had Carson Wentz, the second-picked player in the 2016 NFL Draft, on a long-term contract already taking the quarterback spot, and he had had 81 touchdown passes over the past three seasons.
On Sunday, Hurts matched his record as the Eagles’ starting quarterback to 15-1 this season, including Sunday’s 31-7 win over the San Francisco 49ers in the NFC Championship Game, which secured Philadelphia’s fourth trip to the Super Bowl.
TIED TOGETHER: HEAR JALEN HURTS SING “FLY, EAGLES, FLY”
During his post-match press conference noticed pain “They probably never wanted to move me here.” please explain Hurts said His selection was “a big surprise for many”.
“But my favorite verse – you know, I went through a lot of stuff in college – and it kind of stuck with me – John 13:7.” Hurts said. “‘You may not know now, but you will understand later.’ Hopefully people understand.”
Hurts joined the Eagles from Oklahoma, where he joined Alabama after three seasons.
After winning the SEC Offensive Player of the Year Award and leading the Crimson Tide to the CFP national championship game as a freshman, Hurts helped Alabama reach the CFP title game again in his second season. But Alabama rallied to defeat Georgia in that contest with Tua Tagovailoa at quarterback in overtime.
After replacing Hurts at halftime in the championship game, Tagovailoa took over the seed for the 2018 season. Hurts rebounded in Oklahoma in 2019 when he finished runner-up in the Heisman Trophy.
Hurts will be playing for another championship when the Eagles take on the AFC winners — either the Cincinnati Bengals or the Kansas City Chiefs — in Super Bowl LVII on February 12 in Glendale, Ariz.
“We put a lot of work into getting this opportunity and being here,” Hurts said. “It’s a moment we want to savor as a team and reflect on everything we were able to overcome to have this opportunity in front of us. We want to use that.”
In the NFC Championship Game, Hurts had his least productive game of the season. Hurts completed 15 of 25 passes for 121 yards with no touchdowns or interceptions and 11 rushes for 39 yards and a touchdown.
Hurts notched a 1-yard leap as Philadelphia took a 28-7 lead with 43 seconds left in the third quarter.
TIED TOGETHER: JALEN HURTS TOTALLY OUTPERFORMS CAM NEWTON TOUCHDOWN
“You want to play the big games” Hurts said. “But a lot of it – all of that – boils down to the details. Attention to detail, football IQ and the fundamentals to do the right things – whether you want to keep the clock ticking or not, want to catch the ball quickly or the knowledge of situational awareness.”
Though both San Francisco quarterbacks were injured during the game, the 49ers still had the NFL’s No. 1 defense on the field, led by former Jess Lanier High School and Alabama standout DeMeco Ryans, the defensive coordinator who appears on course to be named NFL head coach now that his season is over.
“They played a really good game” Hurts said. “You have a really good coach. I always talked about that. He does a really good job with them, especially with the guys up front and the linebacker corps kind of rallying around the ball. We ran the ball really well and I don’t think they really gave us a lot of chances to shoot around the field. We kind of had one-on-one shots – kind of hit or miss. But we kind of took what they gave us. It kind of ended up being one of those games.”
Three grads from Alabama were the starting quarterbacks for Super Bowl winners – Bart Starr in Super Bowl I and Super Bowl II, Joe Namath in Super Bowl III, and Ken Stabler in Super Bowl XI.
“We want to go out and play at our level” Hurts said. “That doesn’t change no matter how big the game is. Today was good enough to win and progress, but we still want to go out there and play at our level. …
“I know the work is not done yet. I never knew how far we would get. I never knew how far we would go. But I never said it wasn’t possible.”
FOR MORE OF AL.COMGO TO OUR NFL Coverage NFL PAGE
Mark Inabinett is a sports reporter for the Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter at @AMarkG1.