Jalen Hurts is a bit of a walking contradiction in Philadelphia right now. If you look at the trophy case, he's a Super Bowl LIX champion and a former Super Bowl MVP who just finished a 2025 season with 3,224 passing yards and 25 touchdowns. Not bad, right? But if you tune into Philly sports radio on a Tuesday morning, you’d think the guy was a third-stringer fighting for a roster spot.
The starting QB for Eagles is currently under a microscope that would make most professional athletes crumble. There is a weird, palpable tension between his historic accomplishments—he's the only Eagles quarterback to start in two Super Bowls—and the "what have you done for me lately" mentality of a fan base that just watched their team exit the 2025 playoffs in a 23-19 wild card loss to the 49ers.
The Reality of Jalen Hurts in 2026
Honestly, the stats from this past season tell two different stories. On one hand, Hurts threw only 6 interceptions all year, which is a massive improvement from his 15-pick nightmare in 2023. He finished the 2025 regular season with a 98.49 passer rating and led the team to an 11-6 record.
But there's a "but."
People are worried about the legs. For years, Hurts was the ultimate dual-threat weapon, the guy who made the "Tush Push" a national controversy. In 2025, his rushing attempts dropped significantly. He finished with 421 rushing yards and 8 touchdowns on the ground. To put that in perspective, he had 15 rushing touchdowns in 2023. The explosive, game-breaking runs feel a little less frequent these days. Is he protecting himself? Or has the league finally bottled up the dynamic threat that made him a nightmare for defensive coordinators?
Why the Locker Room Still Matters
Despite the noise from the outside, the guys in the building seem to be holding the line. Mostly. You’ve heard the rumors about "internal frustration," and yeah, some sources say there’s friction regarding the offensive scheme. The Eagles just fired offensive coordinator Kevin Patullo after that playoff loss. That’s the third coordinator change Hurts has had to navigate in recent memory.
It's tough.
Building chemistry with a new play-caller every year is basically like trying to learn a new language while someone is screaming at you to win a championship. Still, veterans like A.J. Brown and DeVonta Smith remain the primary engines of this offense. Smith just turned in another 1,000-yard season, and Saquon Barkley's presence in the backfield has actually taken some of the heat off the starting QB for Eagles, even if it means fewer "glory" stats for Hurts himself.
Contract Realities and the Tanner McKee Factor
Let’s talk money because in the NFL, the "cap hit" is the only thing more important than the "touchdown." Hurts is currently playing on that massive five-year, $255 million extension. His cap hit for the upcoming 2026 season is roughly $31.9 million.
That’s a lot of cheddar.
Because of that contract, Hurts isn't going anywhere anytime soon. Trading him would trigger a dead cap hit of over $117 million before June 1st. It’s essentially a financial impossibility. However, the organization is clearly keeping an eye on the future. Tanner McKee, the 2023 sixth-rounder, has apparently impressed the front office enough that he’s solidified as the QB2. Some folks are even whispering that the Eagles might look at a quarterback in the mid-rounds of the 2026 draft just to keep the room competitive. It’s a move straight out of the Howie Roseman playbook—remember when they drafted Hurts while Carson Wentz was still the guy?
What Most People Get Wrong About the Scheme
There’s a common misconception that Hurts can’t operate a "traditional" NFL offense. Critics point to his reluctance to throw over the middle or his struggles with quick post-snap reads.
But look at the tape.
In Week 15 against the Chargers, Hurts posted a 154.9 passer rating, completing 80% of his passes. He’s shown he can be elite from the pocket. The problem is consistency. When the pressure mounts and the pocket collapses, he still has a tendency to bail early and try to make a hero play. Sometimes it works; sometimes it leads to a sack that knocks the team out of field goal range.
What the Eagles Need to Do Next
The 2026 season is going to be a defining one for the starting QB for Eagles. If the team wants to get back to the Super Bowl, they have to solve the "identity crisis" on offense.
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- Find a Play-Caller Who Challenges Him: The new offensive coordinator needs to be someone who won't just cater to what Hurts is comfortable with but will force him to attack the intermediate parts of the field.
- Manage the Rushing Workload: They don't need Hurts to run 150 times a year, but they need the threat of the run to stay alive to keep Saquon Barkley's lanes open.
- Clean Up the Fumbles: Hurts had 8 fumbles (4 lost) in 2025. In tight playoff games, those are the mistakes that end seasons.
Philadelphia is a city that loves a winner, but they love a "grinder" even more. Jalen Hurts has the rings, the stats, and the work ethic. Now, he just needs to prove that his best football isn't in the rearview mirror.
To stay ahead of the curve this offseason, keep a close watch on the Eagles' coaching hires and whether they bring in a veteran backup to push the room. Monitoring the post-June 1st cap adjustments will also give you a better idea of how Howie Roseman plans to surround Hurts with enough talent to make another run in 2026.