Comment from Eagles QB likely 'Hurts' Steelers fans

The truth hurts for the Pittsburgh Steelers.

On the "New Heights with Jason & Travis Kelce" podcast, Eagles QB Jalen Hurts told the hosts that he thought he'd be drafted by the Steelers in 2020.

"Their first pick was in the second round, and I thought ... I was going to Pittsburgh," said Hurts.

The Steelers dealt their first-round pick in the 2020 NFL Draft as a part of the Minkah Fitzpatrick trade. The team's first pick in the draft was at 49th overall, and Pittsburgh selected wide receiver Chase Claypool.

On Nov. 1, the team traded Claypool to the Chicago Bears for a 2023 second-round pick.

Philadelphia drafted Hurts 53rd overall.

The Eagles (8-0) are the talk of the football world. The Steelers are 2-6 and as irrelevant to the playoff conversation as they've been in years. Hurts' comments sting for a franchise that is experiencing growing pains with rookie QB Kenny Pickett leading the charge.

Hurts is in his third NFL season and second as Philadelphia's full-time starter. He has improved across the board in year three, posting career highs in completion percentage (68.2), passing yards per game (255.3), yards per passing attempt (8.5) and passer rating (107.8). Hurts is 17-10 as a starter and on the verge of leading Philadelphia to the playoffs in back-to-back seasons.

Pickett's rookie season has been a mixed bag. He's completing 67.9 percent of his passes, but the team has yet to eclipse 20 points in a game with him under center. He has two touchdowns and eight interceptions. The Steelers are 1-3 in his starts.

To add lemon to the Steelers' many cuts, Philadelphia routed Pittsburgh in Week 8, 35-13.

As Hurts tells it, there's a world in which he spent time studying under Ben Roethlisberger before taking the reigns as the next Steelers QB. Instead, he's operating the offense on the best team in football on the opposite side of the state.

The distance between Philadelphia and Pittsburgh is a long one, geographically and now organizationally. It didn't have to be this way. For the Steelers, that hurts the most.