Philadelphia Eagles: 5 signs Carson Wentz can be their new franchise QB
Carson Wentz has the Philadelphia Eagles at 2-0 after his first two NFL starts. Here are five signs that Wentz is the Eagles’ new franchise quarterback.
The Philadelphia Eagles took a big gamble by trading up (twice) to select North Dakota State quarterback Carson Wentz with the No. 2 overall pick in the 2016 NFL Draft. Wentz has a lot of raw talent, but he did play at a run-first FCS school in college.
Wentz joined an Eagles roster that looked devoid of talent under first year head coach Doug Pederson. The Eagles had just undergone a failed culture change under former head coach Chip Kelly. Wentz and the Eagles seemed doomed from the start of 2016 in what should have been a major rebuilding season in Philadelphia.
Instead, Wentz has helped get the Eagles to 2-0 on the season. While the Cleveland Browns and the Chicago Bears are poised to be terrible football teams this season, here are five signs that Wentz is the next franchise quarterback for the Eagles.
5. He’s thrown over 30 times in his first two starts
For a rookie quarterback that didn’t start a full season at the FCS level in 2015, the Eagles have no problem in asking Wentz to throw more than 30 times a game. With Philadelphia winning both of its games by more than two scores, this is a great sign for the Eagles’ new franchise quarterback.
After taking the lead against the Browns and Bears, Philadelphia could have easily gone to an ultra-conservative game plan by having Wentz hand the ball off on every first and second down to eat up some clock.
Having Wentz attempt 30 to 40 passes a week is great for his growth as a passer. He’s not being asked to throw the football every snap on offense, but is able to get the necessary reps to improve as a starting quarterback from week to week.
Philadelphia would be wise to design its offensive game plan to have Wentz in that 30 to 40 pass attempts per game threshold his rookie year. He’ll gain confidence with every pass he attempts, but won’t feel the burden that comes with slinging the pigskin over 50 times a game.
The Eagles are letting Wentz play in a controlled, but still very much an NFL offense. They’re not throwing him out to the wolves with an absurd number of pass attempts, nor are they holding his hand every step of the way with a weak 20 pass attempt game plan.
Sep 11, 2016; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Carson Wentz (11) passes against the Cleveland Browns during the third quarter at Lincoln Financial Field. The Philadelphia Eagles won 29-10. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports
4. He’s staying in the pocket
Wentz has the build of an Andrew Luck or a Blake Bortles. This means he can make plays with his legs, but realizes that he’ll be at his best making plays from the pocket. In two NFL starts, Wentz has only ran the football eight times for 11 yards.
Committing to being a pocket passer this early in his career is the best thing Wentz can do for his NFL longevity. While physically he is the prototype of what NFL general managers want at the quarterback position, the best asset he can have going forward is his health. Wentz will stay healthy if he stays in the pocket.
There were definitely a few plays on Monday night where Wentz could have panicked in a collapsing Eagles pocket but didn’t. He was willing to make throws under duress against a better than average Bears pass rush.
Yes, neither Cleveland or Chicago are playoff-caliber teams in 2016, but the way that Wentz went about handling their defenses shows a solid foundation that will help him in the long run. He is fortunate that the NFC East isn’t elite defensively.
The New York Giants look improved on that end, but Philadelphia might have the best defense in the NFC East under new defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz. Durability isn’t sexy, but Wentz is playing more like Eli Manning than Robert Griffin III in his early career as the Eagles starting quarterback.
Wentz is ahead of the curve in terms of pocket presence for an NFL rookie. We haven’t seen rookie signal callers embrace the pocket like Wentz has since Joe Flacco and Matt Ryan’s rookie years in 2008.
Sep 1, 2016; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Philadelphia Eagles head coach Doug Pederson during the first quarter against the New York Jets at Lincoln Financial Field. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports
3. He can run Doug Pederson’s offense
The Eagles knew what they were doing in trading up with the Cleveland Browns to draft Wentz at No. 2 in the 2016 NFL Draft. While many didn’t see the comparisons to former Eagles great Donovan McNabb, Wentz has shown that he can run the Andy Reid/Doug Pederson offense like McNabb did for a decade in the City of Brotherly Love.
Keep in mind that Pederson is a huge Reid disciple. Pederson was Brett Favre’s backup in Green Bay when Reid was on Mike Holmgren’s staff. After Pederson retired from playing, he joined Reid’s coaching staff with the Kansas City Chiefs.
Though Pederson doesn’t have a proven track record of NFL play calling, schematically he seems to be a great head coach for grooming quarterbacks. Pederson has wisely hired two other strong offensive minds in Frank Reich and John DeFilippo to his 2016 coaching staff. That makes three former quarterbacks imparting wisdom to Wentz.
The Reid/Pederson offense is conservative, but not to the degree of Gary Kubiak’s offense with the Denver Broncos. Pederson will be more inclined to have Wentz make plays with his arm than Kubiak will with Trevor Siemian.
This offense focuses on the short-to-medium passing game. Philadelphia has two solid tight ends in Brent Celek and Zach Ertz. The Eagles also have a gifted young possession receiver in Jordan Matthews.
It will take a few years for Pederson and his staff to eradicate the leftovers from former head coach Chip Kelly’s up-tempo offense. Wentz could end up being a better fit in this offense than Alex Smith in Kansas City or even McNabb in Philadelphia. He’s more dynamic than Smith and more accurate of a passer than McNabb, so we’ll see.
Sep 19, 2016; Chicago, IL, USA; Philadelphia Eagles running back Darren Sproles (43) carries the ball during the second half against the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field. Philadelphia won 29-14. Mandatory Credit: Dennis Wierzbicki-USA TODAY Sports
2. He doesn’t have great weapons yet
The Eagles are 2-0 to start the year for three reasons: 1. They’ve played two of the worst teams in football in the Browns and the Bears. 2. Philadelphia has limited turnovers on offense. 3. It seems that Schwartz has this defense playing elite ball early.
Wentz gets thrust into the spotlight here early because of his high draft selection. He’s not changing the way the position of quarterback is being played, but Wentz is having success in an offense with less-than-ideal personnel.
Philadelphia is going about this offensive overhaul correctly by going with a conservative offense to help bring along their young starting quarterback. Keeping it basic in 2016 will help Wentz gain confidence as a young playmaker before he gets the weapons he’ll need to lead this team on multiple NFC Playoffs runs.
When Philadelphia moved on from Kelly and brought in Pederson, many wondered what the Eagles offense was going to look like. Kelly wanted to go fast and Pederson probably wanted to play with poise like his mentor Reid often does with his football teams.
If the Eagles were going to be good at something in 2016, it would be defense. Though he had an up-and-down tenure coaching the Detroit Lions, Schwartz is a top 10 defensive mind in football. He can get a pass rush and keep opponents out of the end zone.
It’s been only two starts, but Wentz has shown that he can extend drives with his arm and pocket presence without having good running backs or wide receivers. When he gets good offensive weapons in year two or three, look out!
Sep 19, 2016; Chicago, IL, USA; Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Carson Wentz (11) throws a pass during the first quarter against the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field. Mandatory Credit: Dennis Wierzbicki-USA TODAY Sports
1. He’s willing to throw the football down the field
While his yards per attempt wasn’t spectacular on Monday night at 5.59, Wentz has shown that he is willing to throw the football down the field. His eye level is up, as he is looking to move the chains vertically.
Whether or not Philadelphia has a good offensive line, Wentz believes in his group up front. He’s made several throws under duress that many proven quarterbacks wouldn’t be willing to attempt. Wentz has also yet to throw an interception in two games despite wanting to go vertical.
On the season, Wentz’s yards per pass attempt is at a respectable 6.6. The Bears are a solid defensive team under head coach John Fox. Monday night was a less-than-ideal first road game for Wentz, but he still managed to succeed under center for the Eagles.
His pro comparisons to Luck and Bortles are almost uncanny. All three like to show off their strong arms, but Wentz doesn’t feel as inclined to scramble as Luck and Bortles. The more Wentz is willing to go vertical on offense, the more likely he is going to succeed as a starting quarterback for the Eagles.
The NFL stage isn’t too big for him, despite playing college ball in Fargo for the North Dakota State Bison. Wentz seems like he is the real deal for the Eagles at starting quarterback going forward.
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