National Football League

Is Jalen Hurts among top five QBs heading into next season?

Updated Feb. 16, 2023 10:43 p.m. ET

The average age of the four starting quarterbacks to play in this year's NFC and AFC championship games was 25 years old. In other words, the quarterback position in the NFL is in good hands for years to come.

On Thursday's "Speak," Emmanuel Acho and David Helman broke down their top five signal-callers heading into next year's NFL campaign, with three of the four quarterbacks who played in this season's conference championship games appearing on the list.

Both Acho and Helman had Kansas City Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes and Cincinnati Bengals QB Joe Burrow as No. 1 and No. 2 on their lists, respectively. Hot off his first Super Bowl appearance, Philadelphia Eagles QB Jalen Hurts checked in at No. 3 on Acho's list, followed by Buffalo Bills QB Josh Allen and Baltimore Ravens QB Lamar Jackson, who Acho argued is the most dynamic.

Helman had other ideas, listing Allen at No. 3 on his list, followed by Los Angeles Chargers QB Justin Herbert in his fourth spot. Rounding out Helman's list was Green Bay Packers QB Aaron Rodgers.

Notably missing from Helman's list was Hurts, who appeared in Super Bowl LVII this past weekend and narrowly lost to Mahomes & Co. after a dazzling, record-setting performance.

Hurts completed 27 of 38 passes for 304 yards and a touchdown, while also adding 70 rushing yards and three rushing touchdowns. He became the first player in NFL history to throw for 300 yards, run for 70 yards, complete 70% of his passes and rush for three touchdowns – in any game, regular season, postseason or Super Bowl.

Helman argued that despite an impressive regular season and postseason performance, Hurts hasn't cracked the top five just yet.

"This is the conversation we've been having all week — recency bias," Helman said. "It's not disrespectful to have Jalen Hurts ranked sixth in the league considering where he was when this season started. When this season started, I personally wasn't sure if he was going to be the Eagles quarterback of the future. He was considered the weak link of this team. … That was a pretty common consensus. … This was a wonderful start.

"To be sixth in the league after your third season and your first good season — it's not strange. … You gotta give Jalen Hurts credit for what he did. It's also OK to acknowledge that he had two top-10 receivers, the best offensive line in the game and the best pass rush in the game. Aaron Rodgers didn't have that stuff. A lot of quarterbacks don't have that stuff, and that's why I wanted to see more from Hurts."

Hurts finished the regular season with 3,701 passing yards, 22 touchdown passes and just six interceptions, while adding 760 yards on the ground and 13 rushing touchdowns. The 24-year-old is due $4.3 million in salary and bonuses in 2023, which ranks 20th among NFL quarterbacks.

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