Hayes: Assessing Eagles' Wentz after 1 season

SEVENTEEN WEEKS later, what do we really now about Carson Wentz that we didn't know in September?

We know he likes shotguns and Mike Trout; but, really, who doesn't?

We know he has the makings of a franchise quarterback.

For the Eagles, in a league legislated to promote quarterback production, that's all that really matters. They have their guy, and he has the chance to be amazing.

It's tempting to dwell on his shortcomings, and we will, later, but consider this succinct and accurate summation of Wentz by coach Doug Pederson:

"He's really seeing the field. He's surveying the field. He's using his legs. He's a gifted runner. He knows where everybody is going to be. He's got great dialogue and communication on the sideline, on the football field. In his rookie season, to do the things that he's done just is amazing."

Amazing, indeed. Though Pederson omitted two relevant points.

Wentz has a strong, resilient arm. He completed 379 passes, the most by a rookie by almost 7 percent. He has no trouble delivering the ball, with pace, into small windows. His 3,782 passing yards are fourth in Eagles history; the three previous times it was done, the receiving corps included Cris Carter and Mike Quick; then Terrell Owens; then DeSean Jackson.

Wentz had Nelson Agholor.

Also, Wentz likes to play football. He is the first Eagles quarterback to play all 16 games since Donovan McNabb did so eight seasons ago. Wentz left Game 15 with a possible concussion but quickly cleared the protocol, returned and threw a lead block on a reverse with the abandon of a 12-year-old.

"It's a kid's game that they're paying us way too much to play," Wentz said. "It's a beautiful thing."

Behind the mic, Wentz hits all the right notes. He says that he likes Philadelphia and cheesesteaks and Doug Pederson, any of which might be little white lies. After all, no one could blame a North Dakota kid who hunts for his kitchen table and who is a rising NFL star for resenting an East Coast town, its bizarre signature sandwich and his bumbling rookie head coach.

He's also smart enough to know that there is Cris Carter, no DeSean Jackson and no Terrell Owens on the horizon. He will have to get by with slot receiver Jordan Matthews, tight end Zach Ertz and whatever NFL jetsam the Eagles assemble for 2017, considering their salary-cap restrictions. There's no No. 1 receiver in the pipeline.

"I thought we did a good job of spreading the ball around," Wentz said, politely. "We looked for mismatches."

The problem was that only Darren Sproles and Ertz present mismatches, and then just occasionally. Wentz this season watched Dez Bryant, Odell Beckham Jr., Julio Jones and Antonio Brown in person, so his diplomacy eroded when he was pressed about the value of a go-to receiver:

"That's always helpful," he said.

Wentz also is smart enough to know he's nowhere near a finished product. He starred at FCS (I-AA) North Dakota State despite a tendency to hold onto the ball too long, then to throw off his back foot, mainly because he was big enough and fast enough to elude defenders, and his arm was strong enough to beat third-tier college defensive backs and linebackers. Brett Favre had an arm strong enough to consistently beat NFL defenders with specious footwork, and Favre, the all-time interceptions leader, failed more than anyone in NFL history. Wentz considered Favre his idol entering the season.

Now, having thrown 14 interceptions and just 16 touchdown passes, Wentz says Aaron Rodgers is the gold standard. The all-time leader in interception rate and passer rating, Rodgers has never thrown 14 interceptions in any season. He hasn't thrown more than eight interceptions in any of the last six seasons.

"We got to see Aaron Rodgers on Monday Night Football, firsthand," Wentz said, with boyish awe. "Just the way he controls things. The tempo he plays with."

Rodgers also is technically sound. To that end, Wentz said he probably will seek out an external quarterback coaching expert like Tom House, who helped Tom Brady, Drew Brees and Joe Flacco improve.

There's plenty to improve. He needs to work on the trajectory and the velocity of his deep passes; his footwork; his habit of dropping his arm; accuracy when throwing on the move; recognizing and beating blitzes (especially from the area of their origin); his habit of throwing foolish passes, deep, late and over the middle; proficiency in the red zone.

There's every reason to think Wentz will improve. He improved in every facet as the season progressed. That, indeed, was amazing, considering his obstacles.

He never played FBS (Division I-A) football, much less in a power conference. He started just 23 games at FCS North Dakota State. He rocketed up the draft boards and landed in a big football city whose team mortgaged its future to trade up to get the No. 2 overall pick. He spent months toiling alongside resentful veteran Sam Bradford. He took just 38 preseason snaps because he broke a rib in the first preseason game, but that was OK because the Eagles planned to sit him the entire year . . . until, after the final preseason game, they traded Bradford to the desperate Vikings and made Wentz the starter.

In one heady day, Wentz went from the trainer's table to the starting lineup; from 55 mph to 100 mph. He'd never seen linebackers move laterally so fast; never seen defensive backs so quick that they baited him into bad passes; never seen defensive linemen who could run him down from behind.

"No matter where you come from, everything is just . . . faster," Wentz said. "Every single opponent, every single week, can beat you."

Especially when your team disintegrates around you.

He then lost right tackle Lane Johnson to a 10-game PED suspension; Ertz (ribs) for two games; saw Matthews (ankle) limited for the last five games; lost running back Ryan Mathews (knee) for two games and third-down back Sproles (concussion) for a game. Three of the team's four running backs finished the season on injured reserve.

Wentz played behind seven different starting offensive lines and, due to in-game injuries and adjustments, he took snaps behind at least three or four other versions.

Amazing.

@inkstainedretch Blog: ph.ly/DNL