Eagles OC Kellen Moore’s main job: Keep Jalen Hurts from further devolving into Carson Wentz

Kellen Moore and Doug Nussmeier have their work cut out for them.

They weren’t hired only to refresh Nick Sirianni’s stale offense. They weren’t hired only to soften the blow of losing retired center Jason Kelce, who effectively ran the offense on the field the past three seasons.

Moore and Nussmeier were hired to salvage Jalen Hurts before Hurts completely devolves into Carson Wentz. The Eagles’ fates depend on Hurts; he is, to a large degree, all that matters. And so they were hired to make sure the $255 million quarterback doesn’t become a $255 million bust.

Get on it, fellas.

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Moore is the offensive coordinator. He’s also a former NFL quarterback who helped a fourth-round afterthought named Dak Prescott reach a Pro Bowl for the Cowboys. Nussmeier has been Moore’s top lieutenant since 2018. They’re the main reason why Dak is better than Carson even though Carson has more talent than Dak.

The main reason Moore and Nussmeier are here is to make sure that Jalen becomes more like Dak and less like Carson.

It’s early, but they have done a poor job to date.

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No one is rooting for Jalen to fail; such a thought is, frankly, stupid. He’s a good dude and a good teammate. He’s also a hard worker with a good arm and great feet. Nobody wants him to not reach his potential, which remains elite.

However, in the Eagles’ opener against the Packers on Friday night in Brazil, Hurts threw two interceptions. The first was into quadruple coverage down the middle of the field, staring down his target. The second was across his body into the end zone.

For a guy who reportedly (eye roll) threw 305 passes without an interception at training camp, on Friday, Hurts sure looked like a guy who needs a lot more training camp.

He nearly threw two more interceptions, too. All were bad throws, but worse, all were horrid decisions.

Certainly, he needs more coaching. Harder coaching. More effective coaching. These plays simply cannot happen if the Eagles expect to return to the Super Bowl. He seems to realize this.

“It’s a work in progress,” he said afterward. “I know the notion out there.”

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These plays did not happen when Shane Steichen was the Eagles’ offensive coordinator in 2021 and 2022. These plays began to crop up when Brian Johnson took over in 2023.

Kellen?

Hurts also mishandled two snaps from new center Cam Jurgens. Remember all the snap issues the past two seasons with Kelce? And how Kelce took the blame over and over again?

So, maybe it wasn’t Kelce.

There also were moments of brilliance and signs of improvement. Hurts torched the blitz on Friday, his biggest issue in 2023, but the Pack was a mediocre blitzing team last season, and they didn’t look any better Friday. He also threw two lovely TD passes, and leaned on DeVonta Smith late with some absolute lasers. Wentz rarely did things like this in his fifth season.

Howeve, Hurts also repeatedly lost track of the play clock and probably should’ve been flagged for delay of game three times; once, the Eagles had to use a timeout to avoid the penalty. He often looked confused before and after the snap.

Sound familiar?

Granted, this was the opener. It probably will be the most challenging game for diagnosing defensive looks, since there is no fresh tape of the Packers defense, run by new coordinator Jeff Hafley. But again, the Packers’ defense stunk last season, and very little of what they did Friday night seemed particularly exotic.

The regression of Hurts to Wentz-ian levels of predictability and error is haunting to watch. Consider the raw numbers.

Beginning with Super Bowl LVII, at the end of his third season, Hurts has now thrown 17 interceptions and fumbled 12 times in his last 20 starts. He’s making bad reads, often baited into them. He’s playing Hero Ball, trying for the big strike when the outlet pass is there.

Sound familiar?

It should.

In his last 29 games as the Eagles’ starter, including the playoffs, Wentz, Hurts’ predecessor and former bad teammate, threw 22 interceptions and fumbled 27 times. He made bad reads, often baited into them. He played Hero Ball, trying for the big strike when the outlet pass was there.

Former offensive coordinator Mike Groh and QB coach Press Taylor couldn’t save Carson.

Can Moore and Nussmeier save Hurts?

» READ MORE: Eagles grades: Jalen Hurts with an uneven performance vs. Packers while the D-line struggles

In his third season as a starter, Wentz plateaued, then regressed, after losing his taskmaster offensive coordinator, Frank Reich. Sound familiar?

Wentz never matured past the 1-2-run read: as in, first receiver, second receiver, tuck and run. Sound familiar?

After signing a huge contract extension, Wentz cultivated bad habits that he never overcame. Sound familiar?

As injuries mounted, old and new — Wentz was drafted with a bad back, Hurts with a bad ankle, both of which they reinjured in the NFL — the “run” aspect of Wentz’s game slowed to more of a “trot.” Sound familiar?

Hurts on Friday did not account for easily accountable defenders; that’s how Hurts threw the two interceptions and how he nearly threw two more. These were problems for Wentz. Hurts, like Wentz, is being spied by superior athletes, but, like Wentz, Hurts has yet to recognize he cannot beat them, and they’re running him down.

That’s coaching.

Hurts ran 13 times Friday, five of them on run-pass options or called runs. He gained 4 yards on those five plays. He often audibled to those plays. His scrambles and keepers led to about 16 rushing yards, most of it in the final quarter. He’s getting better at dumping the ball when he runs out of time, but he absorbed about 10 hits he could have avoided had he thrown the ball away more quickly.

That’s coaching.

Unlike Lamar Jackson, Patrick Mahomes, and young Packers starter Jordan Love, Hurts almost never throws once he decides to run. As a result, second-level defenders sell out, confident that he won’t throw over their heads.

Again: That’s coaching.

Or is it?

On his way out, the greatest criticism of Wentz lay in his refusal to accept and implement what his coaches asked him to do.

These aren’t mechanical issues. These are mental issues. These are mistakes of the mind, not the body. They are mistakes that should not be made by fifth-year starters. They are mistakes of arrogance. Mistakes of stubbornness.

His touchdown passes, one to Saquon Barkley and one to A.J. Brown, were beautiful, but he taketh away as much as he giveth.

» READ MORE: Saquon Barkley Show saves Eagles’ putrid defense and Jalen Hurts in the NFL’s Brazilian misadventure

Near the end of the second quarter, Hurts took an unforgivable 6-yard sack on a play that began at the Packers’ 14. The Eagles had to use their final timeout, which ultimately cost them at least two shots at the end zone.

On consecutive plays early in the fourth quarter, he audibled to a failed RPO keeper, nearly threw a pick-six to a receiver in the flat late in a play that had fizzled, then threw an end-zone interception from the Packers’ 14-yard line, erasing a chance at an easy field goal. What should have been a 34-26 lead with 13 minutes to play was a 31-29 lead with about 8 minutes left.

He almost threw a third interception in the next drive; the pick didn’t happen only because of an uncalled offensive pass interference by Brown, who broke up the play at midfield. The Eagles eventually kicked a field goal, and Hurts had a couple of strong runs, but the Birds were bailed out less by his legs and more by the officials, who called two specious defensive holding penalties that ensured the drive continued.

Finally, Hurts fumbled the snap at the Packers’ goal line with 72 seconds to play, forcing the Birds to again settle for a field goal when a touchdown would have emphatically ended the game.

Kellen Moore, Doug Nussmeier, and Jalen Hurts have nine days before the Falcons visit Lincoln Financial Field for ESPN’s Monday Night Football. Kelce will work the pregame and halftime shows for ESPN.

If Moore & Co. put on another show like they did Friday night in Brazil, it will be fascinating to hear Kelce’s analysis.