Eagles' 2-Minute Drill: QB Jalen Hurts Ranks Above Mahomes as Elite?

It’s crunch time, there’s less than two minutes left in the half or game to put points on the board, and the Philadelphia Eagles have the second-best quarterback to have on the field.

The Philadelphia Eagles stunned a lot of people last season becoming the second-best team in the NFL. While some thought the Eagles would be good, decent, or even competitive, none anticipated an MVP caliber season from quarterback Jalen Hurts. 

Part of the reason Hurts performed so well was his ability to improvise, but also his calmness under pressure, as evidenced by his second-best-in-the-NFL 82.3 Pro Football Focus passing grade inside of two minutes remaining in the half

You might think it was Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes, or maybe even new New York Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers, that led in that category but it was actually Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen who had an 86.2 PFF grade in the final two minutes.

The two-minute grade is just one interesting data point in PFF’s QB Annual as the stat and grading site also found that Hurts was the third-best when sitting in a clean pocket and fourth-best when not facing a blitz. 

In fact, when pressured, Hurts was at his worst, ranking 21st with a grade of 44. 

“If a defense wants to affect Hurts as a passer, they need to find a way to put pressure on him,” says PFF. “And that’s easier said than done not only because of the Eagles’ offensive line play but also Hurts’ scrambling ability.”

The annual dive into quarterback play also revealed that Philadelphia’s passing game thrived better when facing two-high safety coverage with no rotation, although even when the safeties rotated Hurts still did well. 

Hurts’ best throw leading the Eagles offense last season was the horizontal lead, of which he threw 205 times compared to 53 screen passes which was the second-most throw type he used. 

It all paints a picture of a quarterback in Hurts who thrives when comfortable, has the ability to exploit coverages designed to take away deep passes, and does some of his best work when the clock is against him.

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