Jalen Hurts is adjusting to an Eagles offensive scheme that is ‘probably 95 percent new’

Getting acclimated to the unfamiliar has become a familiar process for Jalen Hurts.

Dating back to his college career at Alabama and Oklahoma, the 25-year-old Eagles quarterback has had the same offensive player-caller and quarterbacks coach in consecutive seasons only once. That came in 2021 and 2022 with Shane Steichen as the signal-caller and Brian Johnson as the quarterbacks coach, offering Hurts a sense of continuity within Nick Sirianni’s scheme.

This offseason brings an added layer of unfamiliarity, as Sirianni and new offensive coordinator Kellen Moore mesh aspects of their offenses from years past to form a new system for 2024. After the final session of mandatory minicamp on Thursday, Hurts reflected on an offseason program characterized by learning a mostly new offense.

“It’s been a lot of new inventory in,” Hurts said. “Majority of it, probably 95% of it, being new, and so it’s just been that process, and it’s been a fun process, because you get to see what works for other people. And the number of coaches that I’ve had since I’ve been here, I’ve been able to take in a lot of new knowledge and new understanding.”

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But new doesn’t mean completely foreign to Hurts as he enters his fourth season as the full-time starter. Sirianni explained that while there are entirely different concepts being introduced there are also similar ones with new responsibilities for Hurts.

For example, the new offense might run a similar play to one of the past, but Hurts’ progression may be different. No matter the scope of the difference within any given play, Sirianni has been impressed with how Hurts has handled learning the scheme.

“There’s similarities in everybody’s offense across the NFL,” Sirianni said. “There’s differences in everybody’s offense. But I think that’s a really important thing that his job responsibility has changed a little bit on some of those things. I think he’s doing an excellent job of adapting to new schemes, reading the old schemes a little differently, and mastering the stuff that he’s already done so well.”

Between a pair of organized team activity sessions open to the media and the three-day mandatory minicamp, the Eagles have offered glimpses of their new-look offense over the last three weeks. Moore’s penchant for using pre-snap motion in his past stops reared its head throughout team drills, involving receivers, tight ends, and running backs alike.

Hurts refrained from detailing the specifics about what has stood out to him within the new offense. However, he acknowledged that Moore and new quarterbacks coach Doug Nussmeier “had a plan from the jump” and have been very structured and organized within that plan.

When it comes to digesting a new system, Hurts said it’s been crucial to take the process day by day. The goal for Hurts embarking upon the offseason program was to “learn Kellen’s offense and master it.” Hurts aspires to make the offense his own.

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“It just comes with time,” Hurts said. “I think that’s the overall goal in the end. Everybody in the building knows the game, knows who the game runs through.

“So the goal of it is to learn as much as I can and master and see how they look at these plays and what’s your intentions behind this? What are we trying to do? What are you coaching me to do? And then over time, it’ll naturally take over itself.”

That process will continue through the beginning of training camp in late July. As in years past, Hurts said he plans on spending time outside the NovaCare Complex with his receivers, continuing to develop the chemistry necessary to form an offensive identity.

After all, mastering a new scheme isn’t the only learning required of Hurts this offseason. While he will enjoy some continuity among his receivers in A.J. Brown and DeVonta Smith, the new league year has ushered in a new crop of players at various skill positions, including running backs Saquon Barkley and Will Shipley and receivers Parris Campbell, John Ross, Ainias Smith, and Johnny Wilson.

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“Every team is different,” Hurts said. “I have the approach of treating every year like I’m a freshman, like I’m new to it. Like I’m a rookie and being diligent and patient in everything that I’m doing.

“I think that requires you to learn the individuals that you’re going to be going out there to bat with. See what they’re good at. See what they’re not. See where their head is, for better words, and get to know them.

“It consists of spending time in the summer throwing, checking up on folks, and just building that rapport.”