Jalen Hurts is enjoying a breakout season for the Philadelphia Eagles and has established himself as an MVP candidate. The support he’s had from his teammates has played a big role in his success.
During the first quarter of “Monday Night Football” in Week 10 between the Eagles and Washington Commanders, ESPN announcers Joe Buck and Troy Aikman shared an interesting anecdote.
According to Buck and Aikman, Hurts told them during a meeting ahead of the game about a meaningful gesture teammate Jason Kelce had for him.
Buck shared the story on the air.
“After their Week 1 win at Detroit, Jalen Hurts told us that Jason Kelce passed the torch to Jalen Hurts and said, ‘This is your team now. You’re breaking this down. You’re going to talk to the team.’ And it was not lost on Jalen Hurts how big of a moment that was,” Buck said.
Kelce, 35, has been the Eagles’ center since 2011. He is a leader on the team and effectively passed that role on to Hurts. Hurts has taken the torch and run with it. His Eagles entered Week 10 with an 8-0 record.
Hurts saw action as a rookie in 2020, but his results were mixed. He looked pretty good last season and made the playoffs. But this season, he has taken a big step forward.
The leadership endorsement from Kelce likely made Hurts feel a lot more comfortable running the team.
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