Former Eagles Super Bowl hero explains why Eagles MVP isn't Jalen Hurts

Former Philadelphia Eagles tight end and Super Bowl hero Trey Burton loves the team's current quarterback, Jalen Hurts, but he still thinks there is one player on the roster more deserving of team MVP honors this season.

It is offensive lineman Jason Kelce.

Burton told TMZ Sports this week that in all of his years playing in the NFL he has never encountered a teammate quite like Kelce, and that he does it all for the Eagles' offense. 

"When you go to your battle you hope you have him standing next to you. And, you can look at him and everything's going to be all right. Just this calming presence that he has," said Burton.

Far be it from me, somebody that has not played in the NFL to question Burton's thoughts, but from an outside perspective there is a difference between leadership and value. And what Burton is describing with Kelce sounds like leadership. Great leadership. And that is not a surprise given everything we know about Kelce over the years with the Eagles. His teammates absolutely love him and would run through a wall for him. 

There is a lot of value in that. 

There is also a lot of value in being a superstar quarterback, and that is what Hurts has been this season to help carry the Eagles' offense to the top of the league. And that is a value we can actually measure. There has been a noticeable drop in the Eagles' play this season when Hurts has not been in the lineup, leading to two of the Eagles' three losses during the regular season. 

The fact is they are 15-1 (including playoffs) with Hurts in the lineup and 0-2 without him. 

That, along with his dual threat ability to throw and run, has made Hurts a finalist for league MVP.

Burton played four seasons with the Eagles and helped them beat New England in the Super Bowl in 2017 by throwing a touchdown pass to quarterback Nick Foles on the famous Philly Special play just before halftime.