Eagles’ 5 big questions for the season revisited: Jalen Hurts-Kellen Moore partnership has been a mixed bag

The Eagles enter the bye week on a sour note with an even record.

The first four games were an instructive glimpse of what to expect going into the next phase. The unofficial quarter pole of the season has given added weight to advanced metrics, and the sample size has grown enough to answer some of the biggest questions the team had going into the summer.

We revisit the five biggest questions surrounding the team going into training camp to see how things are progressing in some of the most vital areas.

Entering the bye week, the Jalen Hurts-Kellen Moore partnership has been a mixed bag in terms of production.

Moore was tasked with giving Hurts better answers against the blitz while bringing an element of newness to an offense that had grown predictable. He has accomplished those tasks reasonably well, but elements of the Eagles offense have lingered from last season in a concerning way.

To properly assess how Hurts is operating out of Moore’s newly implemented system, several metrics help paint the picture. As illustrated in the table below, Hurts has made meaningful gains in completion percentage, passer rating, and time to throw against the blitz this season. His yards per attempt have gone down slightly, but the tape shows Hurts has more often been able to operate within the framework of the offense to find hot answers when defenses send extra rushers this year compared with last.

What’s concerning when looking through the numbers is how Hurts has fared commanding the offense in the larger sample size against a typical four-man rush. His passer rating, time to throw, and the number of turnover-worthy plays tracked by Pro Football Focus illustrate his regression.

Even while he was among the league leaders in turnovers last season, Hurts’ relatively low number of turnover-worthy plays may have been reason to believe he’d get back on track in 2024. He has done anything but, and came alarmingly close to matching his tally from all of last season in just four games.

Hurts’ time to throw — and what it suggests about how often he’s in rhythm with the structure of the scheme — helps explain the regression. According to Next Gen Stats, his 3.17-second average is the slowest in the NFL this season and is compounded by how few of those lengthy attempts actually result in his taking shots downfield.

Hurts has thrown short of the first-down marker on 35% of his attempts according to NGS, which is the lowest rate of his career. Translation: Hurts is extending plays only to find underneath options rather than making quick decisions within the framework of his progressions.

That combination isn’t sustainable, given the turnovers. For Hurts to truly regain his MVP-caliber form, Moore will need to find ways to help him work more efficiently within the offense instead of relying on him to make plays out of structure. That should lead to fewer turnovers and a closer resemblance to the version of Hurts who finished second in MVP voting in 2022.

» READ MORE: The Eagles offense has sputtered to start every game. Kellen Moore aims to tune it up.

Not to recycle the term mixed bag, but the play of the Georgia products certainly has been uneven this season as well.

Jordan Davis, Nakobe Dean, and Nolan Smith have each earned meaningful roles on the Eagles defense, but they have experienced some growing pains in their increased exposure. Neither Davis nor Smith has been much of a factor rushing the passer this season; Davis has two pressures on 63 pass-rush snaps, while Smith has two in 43 opportunities, according to PFF. Dean has had some bright moments since earning a starting job with an encouraging training camp, but the former third-round pick is coming off his worst game of the season. According to NGS, Dean had a team-high five missed tackles against the Buccaneers.

» READ MORE: Eagles stats: Missed tackles on defense and pressure on Jalen Hurts were too great to overcome vs. Bucs

Carter has been the most dominant of the group, albeit inconsistent. After struggling against the Atlanta Falcons’ wide zone run plays, Carter flashed his potential to ruin offensive game plans against the New Orleans Saints in Week 3. That likely informed the Bucs’ decision a week later to prioritize getting the ball out of Baker Mayfield’s hands, something for which the Eagles didn’t have an answer.

Carter went into the bye week second on the team in pressures with 13, and it’s becoming clear that the best version of the Eagles defense is one in which he rapidly increases that number more consistently.

» READ MORE: Jalen Carter is his own critic, but the Eagles defense’s turnaround was because he was anything but ‘trash’

The first four games of Quinyon Mitchell’s career make the conversations about who would start opposite Darius Slay seem like it always was a foregone conclusion. But it’s worth remembering that Isaiah Rodgers took more first-team reps outside than Mitchell for most of the summer.

Mitchell has been one of the Eagles’ best defensive players this season and looks well on his way to becoming an impact player in the league. The early returns support taking the former Toledo standout in the first round ahead of Alabama cornerback Terrion Arnold. Mitchell has been targeted 23 times and given up 14 catches for 213 yards with five pass breakups and one penalty. By comparison, Detroit’s Arnold has been targeted 25 times and given up 16 catches for 178 yards and one touchdown with just two pass breakups and a league-high eight penalties.

» READ MORE: Eagles vs. Packers film review: Quinyon Mitchell’s encouraging debut

Matt Hennessy faded out of the competition at right guard remarkably quickly, but a training-camp injury to Tyler Steen opened a large enough window for Mekhi Becton to take the job and run away with it.

Becton has been relatively sound this season after transitioning to guard. PFF has charged him with a sack allowed in each of the last three games, which is tied with Landon Dickerson for the most on the team, but his pressures conceded are middle-of-the-road among starting guards in the NFL.

Steen’s ankle injury early in training camp was costly, but his relief duty against the Saints might be reason for encouragement that the 2023 third-round pick eventually could be a more regular contributor. Steen has played 43 snaps this season and hasn’t given up a pressure or quarterback hit in that time.