When the Philadelphia Eagles lost Super Bowl LVII to the Kansas City Chiefs in Glendale, Arizona, most of the NFL still saw reason to believe in the championship prospects of the City of Brotherly Love. The primary one: Jalen Hurts, whose four total touchdowns in that losing effort tied a Super Bowl record, and whose sheer willpower nearly helped the Birds upset an emerging dynasty. He and his Eagles would be back someday, the league said collectively.
Except, as many realists soon proclaimed, that’s way, way easier said than done. Reaching a Super Bowl is hard enough. Losing one and then reaching another is an entirely different mountain to climb. Losing one, getting back and winning is even steeper. The Eagles, you might remember, were an utter trainwreck at the end of the 2023 season, their immediate attempt to get back and claim the trophy for themselves.
On Sunday, however, in Super Bowl LIX, only one team looked like it was a trainwreck, and it was the dynastic Chiefs, who had zero answers for both a stingy Vic Fangio-led defense and, in a simultaneously understated but ultra-steady-handed evening, the man at the center of the entire Eagles operation: Jalen Hurts.
This year’s Super Bowl MVP is already etched into the NFL record books thanks to his Sunday night win — a 40-22 rout — during which he became the only player other than seven-time champion Tom Brady with at least three total scores and a 70% passing completion rate in multiple Super Bowls. Accordingly, it’s time we stop playing around when discussing Hurts among the game’s pantheon of most respected quarterbacks. This man is elite.
Patrick Mahomes? Sure, he can remain No. 1, despite his mostly atrocious Super Bowl showing on Sunday behind an overwhelmed front. Three rings will earn you some grace. Joe Burrow? Yeah, he probably throws the NFL’s prettiest ball at a prolific rate, and he’s at least reached the biggest stage once. Who else is ahead of the 26-year-old Hurts right now? Lamar Jackson, who does everything Hurts does with a little more electricity in the regular season, but who’s mustered a playoff record of 3-5 over seven seasons? Josh Allen, who does it all in supersized fashion, but who’s failed to advance past the AFC Championship in each of his seven seasons in the NFL?
Sorry. Allen and Jackson and [insert your other favorite quarterback prototype] are immense talents. In fact, they might even be superior talents to Hurts. But neither of them has won, let alone reached, a Super Bowl. Hurts has made it to two and given winning performances in both. And he’s only been the Eagles’ starter for four (!) seasons. Read that again: four. Philly is 43-13 in Hurts’ starts since 2022, including playoffs. This also isn’t Eli Manning randomly showing up with legendary Super Bowl stops in the midst of otherwise lackluster seasons. Hurts controlled the ball better than almost anyone down the stretch of 2024, while once again dominating as a goal-line rusher, two years after matching Mahomes in title-caliber plays as the MVP runner-up of that season.
His play style and statistics may not always be pretty; depending on the day, Hurts is just as likely to throw for 150 yards and reside in the background as he is to total 350 with four scores. The most consistent part about his game, however, is the most important: He wins. He shows up when the lights are brightest. He weathers the rough days to forge into the light. How else can his 2022-2024 stretch be described, in which he literally vaulted to the NFL mountaintop, crumbled back to Earth, then scratched and clawed until he reached true NFL glory.
Does he enjoy an all-star lineup and coaching staff in Philly? Sure. So did Matthew Stafford with the Los Angeles Rams in 2021. Or, frankly, Mahomes with the Chiefs back in 2019. So what if a quarterback benefits from the supporting cast? Their job is to maximize said talent on the biggest stages, and Hurts has done that exceedingly more than some of his more respected peers … in a smaller sample size! If you’re sitting at home after watching Super Bowl LIX and your first thought about Hurts is that he’s still not among the NFL’s elite signal-callers, then the truth is the problem just might be your definition of “elite.” Does winning pretty, with the kind of superhuman feats that power highlight reels, matter more than winning period? If it’s the latter you want, Hurts is it.
Philadelphia Eagles Super Bowl championship gear revealed
The Eagles have won their second Super Bowl. Celebrate with Eagles Super Bowl winning gear, including jerseys, hats, hoodies, and shirts. Fly, Eagles Fly! Show your love by shopping now.
We may receive a commission for purchases made through these links.
Go to Source
Author: Cody Benjamin
February 10, 2025 | 10:15 am
