Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts keeps things in perspective
The field general of the defending NFC champions feels that a Super Bowl appearance a season ago apparently means little when it comes to the 2023 Eagles.
“Thinking about it holistically, last year is over. Anything that we were able to do last year…nothing that’s been done prior will get us to where we want to be now…”
Those are the word of three-year quarterback Jalen Hurts (via Kevin Patra of NFL.com). They are in reference to what lies ahead for the team. The Philadelphia Eagles are coming off a 14-3 campaign in which they made their first Super Bowl appearance since 2017. Nick Sirianni’s squad fell short against the Kansas City Chiefs at Arizona, 38-35, in Super Bowl LVII.
Now it’s a whole new ball game for Hurts and the defending NFC champions, who look to become just the fourth franchise to lose a Super Bowl and then win the Lombardi Trophy the following season.
"Every team has their own opportunity to do something special, and this is a whole entire new team. That’s something we’re all embracing. That’s something I’ve embraced. It takes a special type of discipline and work to achieve what you want to achieve. You have to completely reset that but also allow the things you’ve experienced to fuel you, fuel that fire, and grow."
The Eagles have been a playoff club in five of the past six seasons and a large part of the credit goes to general manager Howie Roseman. Sirianni begins his third season as head coach, but the team has a new offensive coordinator in Brian Johnson and a new defensive leader in Sean Desai.
The Birds also lost their share of veteran talent in the team’s top rusher in Miles Sanders, sturdy defensive tackle Javon Hargrave and defensive back Chauncey Gardner-Johnson. The latter was the NFL co-leader in interceptions this past season. Roseman countered by trading for Lions’ running back D’Andre Swift and using a pair of first-round selections on former Georgia Bulldogs defenders Jalen Carter and Nolan Smith.
The level-headed Hurts has certainly emerged as a team leader and is spot-on with his thoughts, especially in this era of free agency. Sirianni and company will first look to do something that hasn’t happened in almost two decades and that is to win back-to-back NFC East titles. Then let the cards fall where they may. For what it’s worth, the last NFC team to make consecutive Super Bowl appearances was the Seattle Seahawks in 2013 and 2014.