Frank Reich Addresses Carson Wentz ‘Tailspin’ After Jalen Hurts Draft Pick
The Philadelphia Eagles‘ selection of Jalen Hurts in the second round of the 2020 NFL Draft turned some heads at the time, given Carson Wentz‘s status within the franchise. Fast forward a year, and Wentz has been shipped off to the Indianapolis Colts.
Wentz had the worst season of his career in 2020, after the Hurts selection. The former Alabama and Oklahoma star eventually took over at QB1 late in the season. In the offseason, the Eagles traded Wentz to the Colts, where he is reunited with former Eagles OC Frank Reich, the head coach of Indianapolis.
It is impossible to tell whether the Hurts selection is really one of the big factors in Wentz’s struggles. He was a second-round pick, but that investment isn’t so big that it was obvious that the Eagles would have Wentz on a short leash. After 12 games with a 3-8-1 record, a sub-58-percent completion percentage, 16 touchdowns, 15 interceptions, and just six yards per attempt, the team didn’t have much of a choice.
Reich isn’t worried about his quarterback’s headspace though. During an appearance on The Rich Eisen Show, he pushed back against the idea that Carson Wentz was put in a “tailspin” by the situation.
Wentz was at the top of his game with Reich as his offensive coordinator. Now, the two hope to ramp things back up together with the Colts, which Reich already has as a playoff squad.
Via ProFootballTalk:
“I don’t think that’s the case. That’s how I feel about it. That’s my opinion, that I don’t think the drafting of another player sent Carson in a tailspin,” Reich said. “I think it’s complicated. I think it was a lot of different dynamics. When you win or lose in this league, everybody should share in the success and everybody should share in the blame. It usually doesn’t work that way. The quarterback, head coach, whoever, GMs tend to be the focal point. So, Carson took his share of being the focal point of the blame, and that’s part of the process of being a quarterback in this league. And you’ve got to be a big boy and you’ve got to be able to take it.
“Now is an opportunity to hit the reset button. It’s an opportunity for the Eagles to [hit] the reset button. And … there’s nothing I want more than to see the Eagles succeed and this be a win-win for both teams — that Jalen Hurts is successful, it’s all good. I love great quarterback play, but I’m glad we got our guy.”
If Wentz can step in where Philip Rivers left off with the Colts last year, the trade is a slam dunk for the organization. If not, it is one of the more precipitous downfalls of a one-time MVP candidate that we’ve seen in a long time.
The post Frank Reich Addresses Carson Wentz ‘Tailspin’ After Jalen Hurts Draft Pick appeared first on The Spun.
