Philadelphia’s defense could not stop Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs from getting a 38-35 victory in Sunday’s Super Bowl.
However, the National Football League world was blown away by Jalen Hurts’ impressive performance as he gave the Eagles every chance to win.
He totaled 304 passing yards, 70 rushing yards, and four touchdowns — including a Super Bowl record three rushing scores by a quarterback. Hurts led a pivotal touchdown drive in the fourth quarter with the Eagles trailing, 27-35. He finished the drive with a touchdown and converted the 2-point try, tying the game at 35. Hurts proved he could bring Philadelphia from behind and give it a chance.
He made so much growth in year three that fans are wondering if the Eagles will sign him to a long-term contract extension? Kansas City signed Mahomes to a massive long-term deal ahead of his third season.
Mahomes got taken in the first round of the 2017 NFL Draft and sat behind Alex Smith. The Chiefs traded Smith before the 2018 season, making Mahomes the starter. He guided Kansas City to the Super Bowl in his third year, pushing it to an NFL Championship in 2019. Mahomes would sign an insane 10-year extension worth $477 million on July 6, 2020. The deal included another $26 million for potential bonuses, brining the total to $503 million.
Kansas City believed so much in Mahomes that it invested a lot in him. Hurts’ trajectory has taken similar steps. He was behind Carson Wentz in 2020, became the starting quarterback for the Eagles in 2021, and took the team to the Super Bowl in 2022.
Nick Sirianni, Philadelphia’s head coach, has been pushing for the team to sign Hurts to a long-term deal. He has outperformed his rookie contract, taking leaps and bounds of growth in his development. We will see what Philadelphia chooses to do, but it has its quarterback for the future and needs to lock him up.
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Stephen M. Smith is the managing editor and senior writer for Touchdown Alabama Magazine. You can “like” him on Facebook or “follow” him on Twitter, via @CoachingMSmith.
