Philadelphia Eagles owner Jeffrey Lurie took the stage at the NFL Annual Meeting in Arizona and didn’t disappoint. Well, to be fair, he did start by addressing one major disappointment — that annoying 38-35 loss in Super Bowl LVII, marred by a controversial holding call on James Bradberry. Lurie shared what everyone was feeling back on February 12.
“I think about a minute and 43 left in the game, and one timeout, we got the ball at the 25-yard line, what would have happened?,” Lurie said. “I would have liked that opportunity because we were built for it.”
Then, Lurie closed the chapter on a wildly successful 2022 season and moved on to new business. First order? The Eagles need to get a contract extension done for Jalen Hurts. He’s the franchise quarterback. More importantly, Lurie sees Hurts as the captain of the ship — an incredible leader, a special person, and a “grinder” who has a chance to be mentioned in hushed tones.
“He’s got an incredible passion for being phenomenal and you see that in the great ones,” Lurie said. “But the hardest part for sure is the scarcity of really good quarterbacks and we’ve got one. And we’ve got a really special player and individual in that category, in that position. We’ll be working with Jalen I’m sure for a long time.”
Key Takeaways from Jeffrey Lurie’s State of the Team Address
Lurie talked for roughly 28 minutes on March 28, delving into an array of topics from the racial diversity on his coaching staff to paying a franchise quarterback while managing the salary cap. He spoke candidly and progressively, preferring to turn any negatives from last season into positives — and started his comments by granting a popular fan request.
“This is the season we’ll reintroduce the classic kelly green and I’m super excited,” Lurie said. “I don’t know what date that’s going to be but I think the fans will love it. That’s why we’re bringing it back. We really took the feedback seriously over the years, and the first moment we could get the kelly green helmet approved we did and we’ll finally be able to see it on the field.”
The Eagles are ready to pay Jalen Hurts
The Eagles have roughly $11.835 million in salary-cap space (via OverTheCap) but that number is going to fluctuate as details trickle in on free-agent contracts, plus there are bound to be a few more restructured contracts along the way. But, the reality of the situation is it’s a tight bank account, especially with Hurts’ deal in the works. That could reach $265.3 million.
Lurie said: “We’ve seen teams do it. We’re challenged to be one of those teams. I think the most important aspect of that is to have the right quarterback. Assuming you have the right coach, the right staff, the right general manager, their staff, the right culture, all that stuff goes into — all the resources necessary. But then you’ve got to have… I think it’s so helpful to have a dynamic quarterback who’s a great leader, a special person, and someone who is so hungry and not just to win it once, but to win it multiple times and obsessed.”
The Eagles are setting the standard for NFL teams to follow
The Eagles will enter the 2023 campaign with three minority coordinators running the show: Sean Desai (defense), Brian Johnson (offense), and Michael Clay (special teams). It marks the first time in franchise history that this has been the case, and the first time in the NFL since Tampa Bay (2019-22). Don’t be fooled into thinking it’s not a point of pride in the front office.
Lurie said: “I don’t want to take credit for the fact that we have three minority coordinators. They were the best each time they were being interviewed. Brian Johnson, we see as someone who is very talented. Sean Desai, the same, and Michael we’ve worked with before and he’s a very young and developing coach. We’re open to it. We’re color-blind. We just want the best and it just worked out that way. I don’t want us to take any credit for it.”
Jeffery Lurie & the Eagles cross-train…staff?
The Eagles have seen great turnover in their personnel department over the years, with assistant general managers and head scouts leaving to take high-level jobs with other organizations. Credit Howie Roseman. He cross-trains his staff in every aspect of the business. In fact, Lurie revealed Roseman gave a presentation to explain his process in front of the other 32 NFL owners.
Lurie said: “I just want to say Howie, you can’t underestimate the job that he’s done the last few years to elevate from the Super Bowl team to having to deal with every issue you could possibly deal with in terms of trying to get back to the Super Bowl again. His assistant GMs became GMs because they are so well trained … It’s a culture of curiosity and information. And instinct and all that. You’re going to make mistakes but — and you’ve heard me say this before — never be risk-averse. People didn’t want us to draft Jalen Hurts because we had a quarterback. That was, I mean, it’s the most important position in sports, take your shots, those were kind of no-brainers in terms of strategy. Whether it works out, sometimes it’s not going to work out, but take your shots.”
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