Carson Wentz

This Date In Transactions History: Eagles Place QB Carson Wentz On IR

December 12th, 2020 at 9:44am CST by Ben Levine

With Carson Wentz hitting the bench this weekend, it’s only appropriate to look back at one of the first notable transactions involving the quarterback. On this date in 2017, the Eagles placed Wentz on the injured reserve.

At this point three years ago, Wentz hadn’t yet been labeled as injury prone. The 2016 second-overall pick started all 16 games during his rookie season, with Wentz playing the second-most snaps in the NFL that year (per Football Outsiders). The young quarterback was also rolling during the 2017 campaign, helping the Eagles to an 11-2 record by tossing 33 touchdowns through 13 games (a performance that would ultimately garner him his lone Pro Bowl nod).

However, during Philly’s NFC-East-clinching Week 14 win over the Rams, Wentz suffered a torn ACL, ending his season. We all know what happened next; backup Nick Foles took over under center and helped guide the Eagles to a Super Bowl LII victory over the Patriots.

Wentz suffered (pseudo) season-ending injuries in both of the next two seasons. After missing the first two games of the 2018 season as he recovered from knee surgery, the quarterback regained his starting spot. A back injury ended up sidelining him for the remainder of the season and playoffs, with Foles again taking over as the starter. Wentz managed to appear in all 16 games during the 2019 campaign, but during his postseason debut, he suffered a head injury following a helmet-to-helmet hit with Jadeveon Clowney during the NFC Wild Card game. That first-quarter injury ultimately sidelined Wentz for the rest of the game.

Wentz managed to return from his concussion and start each of the Eagles 12 games in 2020. However, the 27-year-old’s performance took a significant dip; Wentz has connected on a career-low 57.4-percent of his passes, and he leads the NFL in sacks taken (50) and interceptions (15 vs. only 16 touchdowns). Doug Pederson ended up benching Wentz for rookie Jalen Hurts during the second half of last weekend’s loss to the Packers, and the 2020 second-rounder will get the start this weekend against the Saints.

On this date in 2017, there was still plenty of optimism surrounding Wentz; NFL.com listed him third in their ranking of the top-100 players heading into the 2018 campaign. Things obviously could have been a lot worse for the Eagles (the team can always point to their Super Bowl rings), but the transaction that took place three years ago today proved to be a sign of things to come.

Eagles To Start Jalen Hurts, Bench Carson Wentz

December 8th, 2020 at 12:44pm CST by Andrew Ortenberg

Well it’s official, Carson Wentz is being sent to the bench. Eagles head coach Doug Pederson has made his decision and he’ll be starting Jalen Hurts under center for their Week 14 game against the Saints, sources told Chris Mortensen and Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (Twitter link).

It’s not a surprising move considering Hurts replaced Wentz during Sunday’s loss to the Packers and moved the ball much better, but it sure is a monumental one. Whether this is the end of Wentz’s run in Philly remains to be seen, as his contract now looms over the franchise. The second overall pick of the 2020 draft is due over $50MM in guaranteed money over the next two seasons after this one.

It’s very hard to envision him not being on the roster in 2021, unless the Eagles are willing to absorb a massive dead cap hit. They could look to trade him, although needless to say it won’t be easy to iron out a deal.It’s fair to say Philadelphia brass brought this quarterback controversy upon themselves by drafting Hurts in the second-round back in April. Whether that pick shattered Wentz’s confidence or whatever else, his play had regressed to atrocious levels. He leads the league in interceptions, and nobody else is even a close second.

It’s anyone’s guess what Hurts will look like in an offense with a shaky offensive line and inconsistent pass-catchers, but he can’t be any worse than Wentz statistically at this point. It’s possible Pederson is making this move now in an attempt to save his own job, as we heard a couple of days ago that the coach who won the Super Bowl just a few years ago is on the hot seat.

It’s a remarkable fall from grace for Wentz, as at this point last year he was being widely praised for helping the Eagles storm back and win the NFC East. It wasn’t too long ago that Wentz was considered an MVP candidate before going down with a torn ACL and LCL. But things change fast in the NFL, and unfortunately injuries robbed Wentz of the chance to have any memorable postseason moments with the team the past few seasons. There’s a lot still left to be written, but it looks like this could be the beginning of the end for Wentz in Philadelphia.

Hurts, the 53rd pick of April’s draft, accomplished a ton in college at both Alabama and Oklahoma. As ridiculous as it sounds, the 3-8-1 Eagles are still alive in the pitiful NFC East. It’ll be interesting to see if Hurts sparks something in this locker room, or if their struggles continue just as much as before.

Extra Points: Sherman, Wentz, Rivers

December 6th, 2020 at 7:42pm CST by Andrew Ortenberg

Richard Sherman made a triumphant return to the 49ers last week, picking off Jared Goff to help upset the Rams in a must-win game. The star cornerback wasn’t basking in the glow of that victory this week though, as he bluntly talked about his future with Matt Maiocco of NBC Sports. In the interview, Sherman said he doesn’t expect to be back in San Francisco next season. “We’ve had brief conversations,” Sherman said about a new contract. “I think that there’s obviously a want from both sides to come back and make this work. Unfortunately, I don’t know that the circumstances will allow it.” Expounding further, Sherman made it clear that the 49ers are going to have to extend a lot of their core guys soon, and there simply might not be enough money left over for him.

“There are a ton of guys that need to be paid and are coming up,” he said. “Fred Warner is coming up. There are, like, 40 free agents who need to be re-signed. At the end of the day, they have to do what’s best for the majority, for the team. And I got to understand that. And so the numbers are adding up to that I won’t be here, unless something miraculous happens, which would be really cool.” Sherman, who serves as his own agent, doesn’t seem to harbor any hard feelings about this potential reality. It’s a mature and nuanced take for a star player to have. The former Seahawks All-Pro has remained very productive since joining the 49ers in 2018, but he’s missed almost all of this season with a calf injury. He’ll be a free agent in March.

The big story of Week 13 so far has been the benching of Carson Wentz. Doug Pederson finally pulled the plug and inserted Jalen Hurts in the second half of Philly’s loss to Green Bay, and the rookie immediately provided a spark. He threw for a touchdown on a fourth and 19, and moved the offense much better than Wentz did even though he did have a game-sealing interception at the end. But speaking after the finish, Pederson wasn’t ready to announce his plans for Week 14. In his post-game press conference, the Super Bowl winning coach declined to name a starter and insisted his mind wasn’t made up yet. That being said, it would be pretty shocking if it wasn’t Hurts. When a coach declines to say his usual starter will be out there the next week, he almost always ends up getting replaced during the week. With more than $50MM in guaranteed money still coming his way over the next couple years, it’s anyone’s guess what the Eagles will do with Wentz, who leads the league in interceptions with 15.
Philip Rivers led the Colts to their eighth win of the season Sunday, beating the Texans and moving back into a tie for first place in the AFC South. But although he’ll continue to play, Rivers is apparently dealing with a very significant injury. The veteran passer is dealing with a “plantar plate rupture” in his foot, which can essentially be described as a really bad case of turf toe, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reports (Twitter video link). Rapoport adds that it’s bad enough that Rivers will need surgery after the season to fix it. It sounds like the kind of injury that could sideline some players, but not the Iron Man Rivers. Incredibly, the signal-caller has never missed a start since taking over the Chargers’ job all the way back in 2006. Considering he once played a playoff game on a torn ACL, this isn’t too surprising. It didn’t seem to effect him all that much on Sunday, as he carved up Houston for 285 yards and two touchdowns with no turnovers.
In case you missed it, Titans first-round tackle Isaiah Wilson’s disaster of a rookie season got even worse this weekend when the team suspended him for violating team rules.

Eagles Bench Carson Wentz

December 6th, 2020 at 5:45pm CST by Andrew Ortenberg

Many Eagles fans have been clamoring for this for a while now, and they finally got their wish. Doug Pederson benched quarterback Carson Wentz during the team’s game against the Packers Sunday.

Jalen Hurts took over under center. At first it looked like Hurts might just be coming out as part of his usual gadget package, but Pederson let him play an entire drive. Then Hurts was back out there to start the next series, confirming that Wentz had been benched. While it’s a move that arguably had to be made, it also raises more questions than it answers moving forward. Wentz has well over $50MM in guaranteed money still coming his way between 2021 and 2022, and there’s no good way out of his contract for a while.

If Hurts is made the full-time starter, Wentz will obviously be an extraordinarily expensive backup. The former second overall pick regressed mightily this season, and currently leads the NFL with a whopping 15 interceptions. Nobody else in the league had more than 11 entering this week. Wentz was once again disastrous against Green Bay before getting pulled, completing only six of 15 passes.

Pederson has clearly been mulling this decision for a while, as we heard before their Week 12 game that Hurts was getting more reps in practice and would see his heaviest usage yet last week on Monday Night Football. That didn’t materialize as Hurts played sparingly in the loss to the Seahawks, but the next week he finally pulled the trigger.

The Eagles are still alive in the race for the pitiful NFC East, but things are slipping away fast. The team is at a crossroads, and it’ll be very interesting to see how the front office manages this whole situation moving forward. We’ll update you as soon as we hear more on the situation, and about who will start in Week 14 against the Saints.

Extra Points: 49ers, Hurts, Gase

November 29th, 2020 at 8:22pm CST by Andrew Ortenberg

The 49ers picked up a huge win over the Rams on Sunday, but they were dealt an unexpected blow earlier this week when Santa Clara County officials suddenly announced they wouldn’t be allowed to practice or play in their stadium moving forward. That’s left the 49ers reeling, with little time to formulate a backup plan. Speaking after the game, head coach Kyle Shanahan said it was “extremely disappointing” that the team wasn’t given any advanced notice, and said “we’re working our tail off” to find new accommodations. As of right now the “most likely” option is for the 49ers to play their remaining home games at the Cardinals’ stadium, sources told Ian Rapoport of NFL.com.

Their division rivals are apparently willing to lend a helping hand to the 49ers. Rapoport also writes that a stadium in Texas is another option, although the NFL would prefer them to play at an NFL arena. The question would then turn into what the team will do for a living situation. Rapoport writes that it’s possible the team just stays in Arizona and lives out of hotels in the area, forming a bubble of sorts. It’s a tough situation that will put 5-6 San Fran at a competitive disadvantage for the rest of the year. We’ll update whenever a plan is officially ironed out.

Here’s more from around the league:

Eagles fans that have been clamoring for more Jalen Hurts are about to get their wish. Philly is expected to give Hurts his most extensive playing time of the season, including plays where Carson Wentz isn’t on the field, for their Monday night game against the Seahawks, Rapoport writes. Rapsheet says it’s unlikely he’ll get a full series, but to expect to see him for two or three plays at a time. Philly inflicted this quarterback controversy upon themselves by drafting Hurts in the second-round back in April. Wentz, of course, has been mostly awful this season. He’s still owed over $50MM in guaranteed money over the next two seasons, but it sounds like things could finally be trending toward a benching if he doesn’t get things turned around soon. Either way, it’ll be very interesting to see how Hurts looks on MNF.
The Jets continued their march toward a potential winless season with a defeat at the hands of the Dolphins. 0-11 aside, there’s now a minor controversy over who is calling the plays in New York. Before the game, Chris Mortensen of ESPN.com tweeted that Adam Gase would re-take play calling duties from offensive coordinator Dowell Loggains. But after the game, Gase insisted he wasn’t calling the plays. Reporters pressed Gase on it, claiming Loggains looked like he was doing nothing on the sidelines and that Gase was the one talking. Gase then claimed Loggains would talk to him before the drive about what plays to call, then conceded he was calling the plays for third downs and two-minute drills. Sam Darnold said after the game that it was Gase’s voice in his helmet telling him the plays. It’s another bizarre situation, but one that is pretty much par for the course for this 2020 Jets campaign.

Eagles HC On Benching Carson Wentz: “Don’t Go There”

September 28th, 2020 at 9:49am CST by Zachary Links

Despite a rocky start to the season, the Eagles are not thinking about benching Carson Wentz, head coach Doug Pederson says. In an interview on 94 WIP, Pederson shot down the notion of giving Wentz the hook in favor of rookie Jalen Hurts.

“You don’t go there,” Pederson said (via NJ.com’s Chris Franklin). “That’s a knee-jerk reaction. That’s a reaction to things that sometimes are the aura that’s out there. That’s not what we believe internally. We are going to continue to get better. Carson is our quarterback. We are going to get it fixed. Listen, we are only half a game out of first place. The whole division is not playing good football. We’re not that far off.”

Wentz hasn’t been all that and a bag of chips through three games, lobbing two interceptions in each contest against the Washington Football Team, the Rams, and the Bengals. After dropping the first two games, the Eagles came out of this week’s game with a tie, leaving them at 0-2-1 heading into Week 4 against the 49ers. On the plus side, the rest of the NFC East hasn’t gotten off to a rollocking start either, as Pederson indicated. Currently, Washington (1-2) and Dallas (1-2) share the divisional lead with the Giants (0-3) in the cellar.

If Wentz’s struggles continue, so will the questions about Hurts. During his lone season at Oklahoma, Hurts ran for 1,298 rushing yards and 20 touchdowns on 233 carries. Wentz, meanwhile, has several years and zeroes to go on his four-year, $128MM extension.

NFC East Notes: Eagles, Giants, Smith

September 1st, 2020 at 6:21pm CST by Sam Robinson

Jalen Reagor will miss the Eagles‘ season opener, and possibly the first two games of the year, with a labrum tear, Drew Davison of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram hears. The silver lining is that Reagor’s shoulder injury is not major and he will not require surgery. Reagor, the No. 21 overall pick in the draft, racked up 2,248 yards and 22 touchdowns over the course of three seasons at TCU. The speedster figures to play a significant role in the Eagles’ offense when he returns.

Here is the latest from the NFC East:

Carson Wentz has missed multiple Eagles practices due to an unspecified soft tissue injury, per Les Bowen of the Philadelphia Inquirer, but Doug Pederson indicated the fifth-year quarterback is not dealing with anything major. While any Wentz injury is notable given his history, he will be expected to be under center in Week 1.
Logan Ryan‘s Giants deal is a one-year pact worth $5MM in base value, Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk notes. The extra $2.5MM in Ryan’s contract comes through incentives. A playing-time structure covers $1.5MM of the incentives, with Florio adding that Ryan can earn up to $1.5MM through these escalators. Ryan would earn that sum if he plays 90% of the Giants’ snaps, however, and it would take an 80% snap rate for him to collect $1MM. The other $1MM in this deal involves accolades, with Ryan receiving $500K for a Pro Bowl honor and another $500K for an All-Pro nod. The seven-year veteran has never made a Pro Bowl.
For the first time since his gruesome November 2018 injury, Alex Smith participated in team drills. The Washington quarterback took snaps in 11-on-11 sessions, John Keim of ESPN.com notes. Washington was not in full pads during this session, but the 36-year-old passer continues to work his way back after what looked like a career-ending injury. Ron Rivera would like to see Smith participate in a fully padded team session this week. Smith’s 2020 base salary ($16MM) is guaranteed. He is set to count $21.4MM against Washington’s cap this season.
Jason Peters has requested a raise to move back to left tackle, and it is not clear the Eagles will oblige. Peters is still working at guard with Philly, which has used Matt Pryor in place of injured left tackle Andre Dillard, per Bowen. A sixth-round pick in 2018, Pryor did not play as a rookie and has seen only 79 snaps of NFL action. Pryor primarily worked as a guard at TCU, though he made six starts at right tackle as a senior. This would be an interesting route for the Eagles to take, however, given their usual commitment to their offensive line.
DeAndre Baker‘s arraignment date has been moved back four months, with the New York Daily News’ Pat Leonard reporting the Giants cornerback is now set to appear in court Jan. 20, 2021. This could potentially close the book on Baker’s 2020 season. A 2019 first-round pick, Baker faces four charges of armed robbery with a firearm. He resides on the commissioner’s exempt list.

Zach Links contributed to this post.

Latest On Eagles’ Plans For QB Jalen Hurts

April 25th, 2020 at 9:55am CST by Ben Levine

The Eagles had the most surprising pick of last night’s portion of the draft, selecting Oklahoma quarterback Jalen Hurts with the No. 53 pick. While Eagles fans were rooting for something other than a backup to Carson Wentz, it sounds like Hurts could be doing more than holding a clipboard during his rookie year.

Head coach Doug Pederson told reports that the Eagles will explore using Hurts similarly to how the Saints use quarterback Taysom Hill.

“I think this player, obviously with Jalen Hurts, he has a unique skillset and you see what Taysom Hill has done in New Orleans,” Pederson said (via Dave Zangaro of NBC Sports Philadelphia). “And now he and Drew Brees have a connection there and a bond there. You look at with (Joe) Flacco and Lamar (Jackson) in Baltimore in the short period of time, how they gelled together. It’s just something we’re going to explore.

“I want to make a point here: First and foremost, Jalen Hurts is a good quarterback. He was drafted as a quarterback and he was a quarterback first. But he has a unique skillset. He’s a great runner, obviously. He throws well on the run. He has a unique set of skills that we’re going to take a look at as well as we keep developing this offseason and this advancement as we get ready for training camp.”

Hurts has the talent in the open field to match Hill’s seven total touchdowns from 2019. During his lone season at Oklahoma, Hurts ran for 1,298 rushing yards and 20 touchdowns on 233 carries. He also had five receptions during his collegiate career, including two for 25 yards and a score during the 2019 campaign.

NFL Network’s Mike Garafolo and Ian Rapoport also provided some insight into the Eagles’ thinking with the pick. Garafolo notes that while fans may be clamoring for help at other positions, this selection may actually help in that pursuit. Instead of spending significant money on a backup for the injury-prone Wentz, the team now has the ability to trust their inexpensive second quarterback. This vicariously allows the organization to go out and spend money elsewhere.

Further, while fans may want a player with more upside than Taysom Hill in the second round, Rapoport notes that the comparison implies the best-case scenario for the Eagles. If Hurts indeed turns into a Swiss Army Knife on offense, that means Wentz managed to stay healthy and/or have playoff success. Alternative scenarios see Hurts emerging as a starter in place of an injured Wentz or the Eagles dealing Hurts down the road (à la Patriots and Jimmy Garoppolo).

Eagles Eyeing Quarterbacks In Draft?

April 5th, 2020 at 2:55pm CST by Marc Delucchi

During the pre-draft process, the Eagles have been doing some due diligence on a number of quarterbacks expected to be late-round selections in the upcoming draft, according to Eric Edholm of Yahoo Sports, and he expects the team to come away with one. Mike Kaye of NJ.com examines four potential fits and what the fallout of their selections could mean for the other backup quarterbacks on the roster like Kyle Lauletta and Nate Sudfeld.

While no Day 3 pick would be expected to compete for the team’s starting job, held by Carson Wentz, his extensive injury history makes questions about the team’s backup a particular concern for the defending NFC East champs. Of course, Philly may be less focused on replacing Lauletta and Sudfeld and more so targeting a raw prospect who can develop next season on the team’s practice squad.

The 26-year old Sudfeld is entering his fourth NFL season but has only thrown 25 career passes. Just a 6th round pick out of Indiana in 2016, Sudfeld at one time, developed a decent reputation with some speculating he could be a starter elsewhere down the road. In fact, the Eagles applied a restricted-free agent tender on him just last offseason. However, this year as an unrestricted free agent his market was not quite as lively and he returned on a one-year, $2MM deal.

Lauletta was selected in the 4th round by the Giants in 2018, but general manager Dave Gettleman and co. waived him after just one season on the roster. The Eagles signed him to their practice squad last season, but their long-term vision for his role remains unknown. With such little proven talent behind the oft injured Wentz it makes sense that the team is looking at bringing in some competition.

Eagles Exercise Options On Carson Wentz, Alshon Jeffery, Others

March 27th, 2020 at 5:14pm CST by Ben Levine

The Eagles picked up Zach Ertz‘s 2021 option earlier today, but that wasn’t the front office’s only move. The NFL transactions report shows that the organization exercised the options on quarterback Carson Wentz, wide receiver Alshon Jeffery, defensive end Brandon Graham, offensive guard Isaac Seumalo, and defensive lineman Malik Jackson.

As Charean Williams of ProFootballTalk.com writes, these moves were merely “procedural,” and similar to the Ertz move, they’re not all that surprising.

Jordan Dajani and Jeff Kerr of CBS Sports provide some helpful insight on these moves. For instance, Wentz’s option had to be exercised by today. Otherwise, his 2020 salary was set to jump to more than $30MM, and the remaining four years of his extension would be void. Instead, the quarterback will earn a $1.38MM base salary with a cap hit of $18.65MM.

The Jeffery move is a bit surprising, as the team was reportedly looking to move on from the wideout. On the flip side, the organization would have been hit with more than $16MM in dead cap by making the veteran a post-June 1st cut. Therefore, it’s not shocking to see the organization make a procedural move until they find a potential trade partner.

Per Dajani and Kerr, Graham will earn a $1.36MM base salary with a $6.28MM cap hit in 2020. Seumalo’s option bonus means the 2022-24 portion of his contract kicks in, while Jackson’s $2.4MM option bonus prevented his base salary from jumping to $10MM.

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