Report: Eagles Owner Wants to Build Team Around Jalen Hurts for 2021 Season

Eagles owner Jeffrey Lurie has reportedly told those within the franchise to prioritize making quarterback Jalen Hurts successful in 2021.

Eagles owner Jeffrey Lurie has told those within the franchise to prioritize making quarterback Jalen Hurts successful in 2021 and not to create a true quarterback competition, according to ESPN's Chris Mortensen. 

Hurts will presumably enter next season as the franchise's starter following Philadelphia's trade of former No. 2 pick Carson Wentz to the Colts. 

“I think it was just an opportunity for me,” Hurts said told Schefter on an episode of The Adam Schefter Podcast, when asked if the Wentz traded surprised him. “I think it shows the trust in what they think I can be as a player. So I want to prove them right.

Hurts, a second-round pick out of Alabama, started the final four games of Philadelphia's season in 2020. He finished the year with 1,061 passing yards, six passing touchdowns and four interceptions. He also ran for 354 yards and three touchdowns.

“I kind of kept the same mentality I’ve had this whole time,” Hurts said about his reaction to the Wentz trade. “Control what I can control and me being the best player I can be. It ain’t too much of my business, so I don’t get into that.”

When asked by Schefter if he had spoken to Wentz since the trade last month, Hurts, 22, responded, "No sir." 

Wentz spent the last five years in Philadelphia after being selected by the Eagles as the No. 2 pick in the 2016 NFL draft. The 28-year-old signed a four-year, $128 million deal in June 2019 and went 35-32-1 as the Eagles' starter. But his 2020 season ended in Week 13 after he was benched during the Eagles' loss to the Packers. 

After firing head coach Doug Pederson early in the offseason, the Eagles subsequently hired Colts offensive coordinator Nick Sirianni as the team's next head coach.

Hurts told ESPN he will work to be more consistent next season and it's possible the team uses the No. 6 pick in the draft on a wide receiver. Two of the top wideouts in the draft class, Jaylen Waddle and DeVonta Smith, were teammates of Hurts's at Alabama.

The Eagles finished last season 4-11-1, missing the postseason for the first time since 2016.