It’s not too early to start Jalen Hurts Hall of Fame conversation

NEW ORLEANS — In one way, it seems ridiculous to even mention Jalen Hurts and the Hall of Fame in the same sentence. He’s 26, he hasn’t won a Super Bowl and his passing stats have never been exactly elite.

But there’s a different way of looking at Hurts’ career, and we’re talking about a 26-year-old kid who’s been to the playoffs all four years as a starter, won 70 percent of his career starts and is about to start his second Super Bowl in three years.

And all of that puts him squarely on the path to Canton.

Don’t believe it?

On Sunday, Hurts will become the 22^nd quarterback to start more than one Super Bowl but only the fifth to do it before his 27^th birthday. Of the first 21 QBs to start multiple Super Bowls, 13 are already in the Hall of Fame, five aren’t eligible yet and only three are eligible but haven’t made the cut – Craig Morton, Jim Plunkett and Joe Theismann.

Hurts has already won as many playoff games in five years as Morton won in 16 years, he’s already had as many winning seasons as Plunkett had in his 16-year career and he’s taken more teams to the postseason than Theismann.

So you see why Hurts is already in the conversation.

It's incredibly rare for a quarterback to have this sort of success this early in his career.

Fifty-one wins before your 27^th birthday? Only Patrick Mahomes, Ben Roethlisberger, Lamar Jackson, Josh Allen and Drew Bledsoe have more.

Five playoff wins before your 27^th birthday? Only Roethlisberger, Mahomes, Tom Brady and Russell Wilson also had that many.

Two Super Bowls before your 27^th birthday? Just Tom Brady, Roethlisberger and Hurts.

Hurts just wins football games at a rate almost unprecedented in the NFL, and if you don’t like the way he wins, if he doesn’t throw enough for your tastes, that’s your issue, not his. He plays football for one reason. To win. And last I checked a one-yard touchdown run counts just as much as a fancy 48-yard touchdown on a go route.

It's not how you win, it’s if you win. Do you really think if the Eagles beat the Chiefs Sunday people will be complaining during the parade that they didn’t have enough passing yards?

Since Hurts became a full-time starter in 2021, only Mahomes and Allen have more regular-season wins. And only Mahomes and Allen have accounted for more combined touchdowns.

And if you still don’t think Hurts is a good enough pure passer to be considered elite, consider this: He’s got the 5^th-most 40-yard completions in the league since 2021 (37 of them), he’s got the 9^th-best interception ratio in NFL history (one every 53 attempts), he’s got the 5^th-most games with a passer rating over 100 since 2021 and he's completed at least 70 percent of his passes in four of his last five postseason starts.

People will always criticize Hurts because he doesn’t play the game in a conventional way, but two trips to the Super Bowl in three years says pretty resoundingly that he plays the game the right way.

I know it sounds crazy to bring up the Hall of Fame when Hurts is just finishing his fourth season, but he’s off to exactly the type of start that places quarterbacks in the conversation.

Do you know how rare it is to do what Hurts is doing?

Stay in the game with the latest updates on your beloved Philadelphia sports teams! Sign up here for our All Access Daily newsletter.

The body of work he’s put together in just four years as a starter is astonishing, really.

And there’s no reason to think it’s going to stop now. Everything is in place for Hurts to have sustained success for the near future. An owner willing to do anything to support his general manager and coaches. A G.M. who’s built three Super Bowl teams in eight years. A coach with the 5^th-highest winning percentage in NFL history.

There will be challenges. Lane Johnson will retire at some point and make his own way to Canton. There will probably be more nagging injuries because of the way Hurts plays the game. Maybe Jeff Stoutland will retire, which would change everything on offense. Maybe the next play caller – which will be his sixth in six years – won’t click with Hurts.

But the Eagles just lost maybe the best center to ever play the game (and a six-time Pro Bowl defensive tackle) and here we are in New Orleans.

Hurts plays for a franchise that since 2000 has had five losing seasons and reached four Super Bowls.

He’s got DeVonta, A.J. and Dallas. He’s got a next-level offensive line. He’s got coaches who know how to get the best out of him. Most importantly, he has the motivation and determination to continue getting better.

Is Hurts a Hall of Famer if he retired Monday morning? Of course not. But if he keeps playing the way he’s been playing for, say, six more years? If he wins Sunday? (Which I think he will.) If he gets to a third Super Bowl at some point? Or a fourth?

If the regular-season wins and postseason success and touchdowns continue at the same rate as these last three years? Then he will one day be headed to Canton.

He's that good. He really is.