CHICAGO − As it turns out, the persona that Jalen Hurts displays to the media, and thus the fans, is how he really is with his teammates.
So when Hurts had an awful first half like he did Sunday, throwing two interceptions in the first half, or one fewer than he threw in the Eagles’ first 13 games, you might expect him to slam down his helmet, or yell some choice curse words, or maybe give a death stare to a wide receiver who might have run the wrong route.
After all, we have seen Tom Brady do this throughout his illustrious 23-year career, not to mention many other elite quarterbacks.
Not Hurts.
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“He’s the same way as you see him,” wide receiver A.J. Brown said. “He doesn’t show any emotion. I said something to him, and he was like, ‘I’m cool, don’t worry, I got it.'”
There’s a reason Hurts acts this way.
And it was evident in the Eagles’ hard-fought 25-20 win over the Chicago Bears on Sunday. No, Hurts didn’t rally to have the game of his life. But he did complete 22 of 37 passes for 315 yards, all the while taking a pounding when he ran the ball.
After one play, on a run in the third quarter, Hurts was slow to get up. But he did, and kept going. Hurts shrugged that off, too.
“It wasn’t the first time I was slow (getting up), and it won’t be the last,” he said. “They play a really physical game, and it was real cold, too.”
Still, the 2 interceptions left him with a passer rating of 64.6 Sunday, his lowest of the season.
Yet when the Eagles needed a play, there was Hurts. Brown had a career-high 181 yards receiving, including a 68-yard reception on a deep pass perfectly placed over Brown’s shoulder. Or the three completions for 104 yards to DeVonta Smith in the first half, as Smith finished with 126 yards receiving.
It’s the second time this season that Brown and Smith had each surpassed 100 yards receiving in the same game. Before this season, the Eagles hadn’t had two wide receivers do it since DeSean Jackson and Riley Cooper in 2013.
“I want those guys to look me in the eyes and know there’s not a doubt,” Hurts said. “And know that with the preparation we put in together that we’ll find a way. I want them to have that trust in me.”
They have that trust in Hurts, and more.
Hurts threw his first interception, on the Eagles’ first possession, and his second interception later in the half trying to hit Quez Watkins over the middle. Yet Hurts simply did the same thing he did when he threw the 68-yard bomb to Brown.
“He doesn’t say a lot,” right tackle Lane Johnson said. “He goes to the bench. A lot of it is communication. So when something bad happens, he goes and talks to (quarterbacks coach) Brian (Johnson) and (offensive coordinator) Shane (Steichen).
“We’re just trying to regroup.”
But it also sends a message to the rest of the team.
“It’s all about how you respond,” Smith said. “Even after those two (interceptions), he still responded the right way. He came out, didn’t let it get in his head. He kept doing what he had to do, and led us to a victory.”
None of this was easy.
The running game wasn’t working well, except when Hurts needed it the most.
So there the Eagles were late in the first half, trailing the Bears, who came into the game with a 3-10 record, by 3 points. Hurts lined up under center on a 3rd-and-8 from the Bears’ 22 yard line.
Hurts called a quarterback draw and ran untouched into the end zone, giving the Eagles a 10-6 lead at halftime. They made it 17-6 after opening the second half with another TD drive that included Hurts’ 29-yard pass to Brown down to the Bears’ 2.
What did Hurts see on that TD run?
“I don’t want to answer that,” Eagles coach Nick Sirianni said, perhaps fearing that he would give opponents a snapshot into Hurts’ thinking when he approaches the line of scrimmage.
But really, it’s brilliance.
“He checked it, and the safety (showed) blitz,” Johnson said. “Then Kelce (blocked) it off … It was just kind of wide open. It’s good when I see it wide open.”
There are so many superlatives you can use to describe Hurts’ play. He has 35 total touchdowns this season, tying Randall Cunningham’s record for an entire season, which he set in 1990. Hurts also set the Eagles’ team record for rushing TDs by a quarterback with 13, a record Hurts set last season.
And he’s the youngest quarterback to lead his team to a 13-1 record in NFL history.
So no, Hurts isn’t going to be phased by two interceptions on a frigid day when the temperature at game time was 18 degrees with 16 mph winds.
“I’ve known that guy so long,” said Brown, who’s been close friends with Hurts ever since Brown was a high school senior. “I feel like he faced tougher stuff in his life than going out there and throwing two picks. When he does stuff like that, I think that’s simple from what I see from him.
“He’s a tough guy. He’s not going to let bad times crumble him.”
Don’t confuse that with a laissez-faire attitude. Hurts might not have shown much emotion when he threw the interceptions, but Hurts burned nonetheless.
“Everybody’s trying to break it up (this team),” he said. “Everybody is waiting to see you fail.”
With that, Hurts said he’d celebrate like he usually does: ”Listening to my Anita Baker. I’m going to get some sweets on the plane ride home, watch the tape, learn from it, and move forward.”
Ho-hum.
Contact Martin Frank at mfrank@delawareonline.com. Follow on Twitter @Mfranknfl.
