Alabama Players in the NFL Tracker Week 16: Jalen Hurts Continues to Make his Mark

Rookie quarterback Jalen Hurts may be the toast of Philadelphia this week, but the talk is all about what to do about Carson Wentz

Author:
Kristi Patrick
Dec 28, 2020 8:29 PM EST

Even though the Philadelphia Eagles didn't come out on top at Dallas, quarterback Jalen Hurts had another Sunday to remember.

The former Alabama quarterback threw for 342 yards and one touchdown and added 69 rushing yards in the NFC East matchup.

Hurts, who passed for 338 yards and rushed for 63 yards in Week 15, joined Michael Vick (Weeks 4-5, 2011) as the only quarterbacks with at least 300 passing yards and 50 rushing yards in consecutive games in NFL history.

Hurts, who had 106 rushing yards in Week 14 and 63 rushing yards in Week 15, joined Lamar Jackson (first five starts) as the only quarterbacks with at least 50 rushing yards in each of their first three career starts in the Super Bowl era.

Also of note, Hurts had a lost fumble and an interception, which was made by his friend and former teammate Trevon Diggs.

Meanwhile, you may not have noticed that both of Baltimore's starting cornerbacks against the New York Giants were former Alabama players. Marlon Humphrey led the Ravens in tackles with six, and also had three pass breakups, while Anthony Averett was second with five and also broke up two passes.

NFL Week 16 Preview

Jalen Hurts has created quite a stir in Philadelphia.

Last week, while making just his second start for the Eagles, the rookie passed for 338 yards and three touchdowns, and no interceptions. It added up to a 102.3 NFL passer rating.

The quarterback also had 63 rushing yards, and ran in another touchdown while keeping his team in the game.

Here's how remarkable that was:

• Hurts became the first rookie quarterback in the Super Bowl era with three passing and one rushing touchdown in his first career road start.

• He became just the third rookie, joining first-round picks Joe Burrow and Justin Herbert, with 300-plus passing yard, three passing touchdowns and a rushing touchdown in a single game since 1970.

• Hurts was the third quarterback in the Super Bowl era with 50-plus rushing yard in each of his first two starts, joining Randall Cunningham and Lamar Jackson.

• He became the third quarterback with 50-plus rushing yards in each of his first two starts of the Super Bowl era, joining Randall Cunningham and Lamar Jackson.

But the overwhelming talk in Philadelphia hasn't been so much about Hurts' success, but what happens moving forward with Carson Wentz.

The Eagles didn't just make him the franchise player, they mortgaged the farm to get him because he talks up a huge part of of their salary cap space.

When Philadelphia traded up and acquire the rights to draft Wentz second overall in 2016, the Eagles sent the Browns first- and fourth-round draft picks in 2016 and first- and second-round picks in 2017. Then they signed him to a rookie contract worth $27 million with a $17 million bonus.

They got rid of Sam Bradford. They let Nick Foles leave. They signed Wentz to a guaranteed $81 million over the first three years, a contract that hasn't even kicked in yet.

So it's not like the Eagles can simply release him, or trade him without first re-working his contract — something Wertz obviously doesn't have to do.

If you want to understand the ins and outs of the situation, and why it's cheaper for the Eagles to keep Wentz instead of releasing him, check out the lead to Andrew Brandt's latest Business of Sports column to Sports Illustrated.

Brandt used to be a salary-cap expert for the Green Bay Packers and other teams.

"Of the 1,800-plus players in the NFL there is no player into which a team has made more of an organizational investment than the Eagles have in Carson Wentz. There are NFL players for whom teams have invested multiple top draft picks; there are NFL players for whom teams have invested contracts totaling north of $100 million; there are NFL players for whom teams have allowed other players to leave to clear the path for that player to succeed. But there is only one team and one player for whom all of those organizational inputs were made: the Eagles and Wentz."

Meanwhile, look for Hurts to keep starting, especially if he keeps putting up those kinds of numbers.

NFL Week 16 Moves

• LB Mark Barron was released by the Denver Broncos

• LS Carson Tinker was named a protected player on the New York Giants' practice squad for this week's game.

• LB Shaun Dion Hamilton was placed on the Reserve/Injured list by Washington.

• The Jets placed defensive lineman Quinnen Williams on the Injured Reserve with a concussion/neck injury.

• Defensive back Tony Brown had his status changed by the Bengals to Reserve/Injured; Designated for Return. On Saturday, Brown was activated.

• Browns changed Ronnie Harrison Jr.'s status to Reserve/Injured; Designated for Return.

• Raiders activated WR Henry Ruggs III from the Reserve/COVID-19 list.

• Browns placed offensive tackle Jedrick Wills, Jr. on the Reserve/COVID-19 list. On Saturday, Wills was activated.

• Chiefs elevated wide receiver Gehrig Dieter from the practice squad.

• Ahead of Monday night's game, the Bills placed running back T.J. Yeldon on the Reserve/COVID-19 list.

NFL Week 16 Match of the Week

It's hard to tell who's healthy, or available, this late in the season, so we're going with a simple Crimson Tide reunion: the Dolphins at the Raiders, with Tua Tagovailoa facing Josh Jacobs. It's a must-win situation for Las Vegas, in order to keep its slim playoff hopes alive.

NFL Schedule Week 16

Friday, December 25

Minnesota Vikings at New Orleans Saints, 3:30 p.m., Fox/NFL Network/Amazon

Saturday, December 26

Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Detroit Lions, noon, NFL Network

San Francisco 49ers at Arizona Cardinals, 3:30 p.m., Amazon

Miami Dolphins at Las Vegas Raiders, 7:15 p.m., NFL Network

Sunday, December 27

New York Giants at Baltimore Ravens, noon, Fox

Cincinnati Bengals at Houston Texans, noon, Fox

Chicago Bears at Jacksonville Jaguars, noon, CBS

Atlanta Falcons at Kansas City Chiefs, noon, Fox

Cleveland Browns at New York Jets, noon, CBS

Indianapolis Colts at Pittsburgh Steelers, noon, CBS

Denver Broncos at Los Angeles Chargers, 3:05 p.m., CBS

Carolina Panthers at Washington Football Team, 3:05 p.m., CBS

Philadelphia Eagles at Dallas Cowboys, 3:25 p.m., Fox

Los Angeles Rams at Seattle Seahawks, 3:25 p.m., Fox

Tennessee Titans at Green Bay Packers, 8:20 p.m., NBC

Monday, December 28

Buffalo Bills at New England Patriots, 7:15 p.m., ESPN

NFL Week 16 Notes

• Tennessee running back Derrick Henry has recorded at least 100 rushing yards in nine consecutive road games, the second-longest streak in NFL history. With 100 rushing yards on Sunday night, he will match the NFL record held by Pro Football Hall of Famer Barry Sanders (10 consecutive games, 1996-97).

• Cardinals running back Kenyan Drake has five rushing touchdowns over his past five games, and 17 over his last 21. He has a touchdown in two of his last three games against his next opponent, the 49ers.

• Safety Kareem Jackson is a player to watch this week. He led the Broncos with nine tackles during Week 15. The last time he played the Chargers he had a career-high 12 tackles in Week 8.

• Henry is third in fan Pro Bowl voting. His 315,35 votes trail only Patrick Mahomes (342,353) and Russell Wilson (335,156). Free safety Minkah Fitzpatrick tops his position group with 224,017.