He’s led the Eagles to a 2-0 record. He’s thrown for three touchdowns without an interception, the only rookie in league history to win his first two starts without committing a turnover. He’s calm, confident and poised, already drawing comparisons to both Aaron Rodgers, by All-Pro left tackle Jason Peters, and Brett Favre, by head coach Doug Pederson. His jersey is the top seller in the country, and he’s already received a shoutout by the most powerful person on the planet.
You really couldn’t have scripted a better start for the Carson Wentz era in Philadelphia. It’s a small sample size, but the number two overall draft pick is already causing Wentz-mania to sweep across a city desperately seeking its first franchise quarterback since the abrupt end of the Donovan McNabb era.
It’s amazing looking back. Just three weeks ago, Wentz was preparing to spend his rookie season on the bench, with money the only reason that the team’s most prized investment wasn’t playing over an inferior player at the same position. Then tragedy, in the football sense, struck for one team, creating an unlikely opportunity for the Eagles to unload a mediocre quarterback for an incredible draft pick haul. And just like that, the Eagles’ season and their entire franchise’s plan for the future changed in an instant.
“It’s only the Browns and Bears” would work if the Eagles had pulled out a pair of sloppy, gut-wrenching one-point wins, like they did at the start of 2012. That was a team that was later exposed, losing 11 of its last 12 to finish 4-12 and end the Andy Reid era. But even though the Eagles have admittedly played two of the bottom ten (five? three?) teams in the NFL, they’ve looked good on offense, at times even really good
They thoroughly manhandled the Cleveland Browns, winning 29-10, and they overcame a sloppy first half to easily defeat the lackluster Chicago Bears 29-14. My twin and co-writer here at SwartzSports tweeted that it took Sam Bradford four years to lead his team to consecutive 29-point games. Four years! And Wentz did it in his first two starts.
The Eagles have Carson Wentz completely set up to succeed. His head coach is Doug Pederson, a 14-year NFL journeyman quarterback who knows the ins and outs of the position and already has Wentz somewhat resembling underrated Chiefs quarterback Alex Smith. His offensive coordinator is Frank Reich, another NFL journeyman quarterback who served the same role for the San Diego Chargers. And his quarterbacks coach is John DeFillippo, who has mentored a number of talented rookie quarterbacks while also serving a stint as an offensive coordinator for a season. General manager Howie Roseman is the aggressive type who would acquire supporting help for Wentz if needed. Just last month, he acquired high-upside receiver Dorial Green-Beckham, and it’s not hard to see Roseman doing the same if the Eagles’ new franchise signal-caller struggles at any point throughout his career.
It’s usually pretty apparent in the National Football League whether a quarterback has “it” and all signs are showing that Wentz will become one of the better quarterbacks in the game. It’s still extremely early, but I don’t think it’s a stretch to already say that Wentz has very low, if any, bust potential, assuming he stays healthy. Look at your recent first-round busts at the quarterback position: Brandon Weeden, EJ Manuel, Jake Locker, Brady Quinn, and Matt Leinart, to name a few. It was obvious their first season, first month, even first game that these guys weren’t cut out for the rigors of playing quarterback at the NFL level. For some, like JaMarcus Russell, the warning signs were there before their rookie season officially even started. We’re seeing it right now with Rams rookie Jared Goff, and there’s very little to make me believe that the league’s number one overall draft pick will put together a productive career.
You’re only seeing immediate success from Wentz. Nobody thinks it’ll be a walk in the park for the Eagles’ rookie. The big question, one that is impossible to predict and will be determined over the next three, five, 10 or 15 seasons, is just how good Wentz can be. He has the skill set to be an elite quarterback. He’s big, strong, fast and intelligent. He’s going to need to learn to protect himself better because there’s no way he’ll last taking six to eight hard shots per game. It’s worth noting that Wentz suffered a broken rib during his first preseason action and he missed the majority of his senior year at North Dakota State with a broken wrist. But if Wentz stays healthy and continues to improve as a signal-caller, he has the floor of an average starting quarterback, a Matt Ryan or Andy Dalton type, and he has the ceiling of, well, let’s just say he has a chance to go where no Eagles quarterback has ever gone before.
