Nick Sirianni isn't about to declare Jalen Hurts the Eagles' proverbial Quarterback of the Future.
But it's impossible to listen to him talk about the 23-year-old Hurts without getting that sense from the Eagles' first-year head coach.
"I just see his arrow completely pointed up," Sirianni said. "I think we've all seen the way he's played."
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What would Sirianni say to people who still doubt whether Hurts can be a franchise quarterback?
"Watch the last three games and that's the biggest one right there, right?" he said. "He's started, what, 14 games now? ... And so, to me, he's still a rookie. He's still in his rookie season essentially, if you count the amount of games started. And so all I see is improvement every day from him.
"It starts with the type of person that Jalen is and how much he loves this sport and how much he loves his teammates and how tough he is. And he doesn't make the same mistake twice."
The Eagles' newly discovered running attack has taken a lot of pressure off of Hurts and helped him become a more consistent passer. The first half Sunday in Denver was the best half of his career -- 15-for-20 for 176 yards, two TDs, no INTs, 52 rushing yards and a 10-point lead on the way to a 30-13 win over the Broncos.
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"If you look at that first half, the way he played, he was doing some things yesterday that were really special," Sirianni said. "The play he made to Dallas Goedert is a big-time football play and I think if you look back and you look maybe five weeks ago, I think that he probably tucks that and runs and maybe gets 10 (yards). And (Sunday), he stepped up in the pocket and ... rips through, he slides in the pocket, keeps his eyes down the field, and then he delivers a strike across the middle.
"And look how good he's done taking care of the football just as far as interceptions and fumbles. Again, I just see him making strides over and over and over again."
Hurts' 87.3 passer rating is 2nd-highest in franchise history by a quarterback in his first 14 starts, behind only Nick Foles.
His 3,897 combined passing and rushing yards are 9th-highest ever by a quarterback in his first 14 starts.
He's improved his completion percentage from 52 percent last year to 62 percent this year and has generated 18 touchdowns and just five turnovers in 10 games this year.
The last three games in particular, he's trending in the right direction.
All that said, Sirianni isn't interested in addressing the question everyone else is asking.
Is Hurts the quarterback of the future? All he'll say is he's the quarterback for Sunday.
"My job here and Jalen's job is to not focus on franchise quarterback moving forward," he said. "It's about, 'What can we do today to get us ready for Sunday and what can we do tomorrow to get us ready for Sunday.'
"I say this every week, but my message isn't going to change: 'What can we do today to get ready for the next game?'
"So, I think that's Jalen's mindset, that's my mindset (and that's) how we're going to keep getting better each week. And the rest will take care of itself."
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