Eagles’ Jalen Hurts gear going on display at Hall of Fame

Hurts’ record-setting gear going on display at Hall of Fame originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia

Maybe one day Jalen Hurts will be enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

Until then, at least some of his gear is heading to Canton.

Hurts’ jersey and game pants from the Eagles’ Week 14 win over the Giants at MetLife Stadium are going on display at the Pro Football Hall of Fame. In that 48-22 win, Hurts rushed for his 10th touchdown in the season, becoming the first quarterback in NFL history with back-to-back seasons with 10 rushing touchdowns.

In addition to Hurts’ rushing stats in that game (7 attempts, 77 yards, 1 touchdown), he also threw for 217 yards and 2 more scores. It was one of plenty masterful performances from the MVP runner-up in 2022.

While Hurts, 24, grew a ton as a passer in his second year as a starter in the NFL, it’s his rushing ability that makes him so special. And he’s such a weapon down by the goal line.

Through three seasons, Hurts already has 26 rushing touchdowns. That’s the second-most ever for a quarterback through their first three seasons behind just Cam Newton, who had 28. But Newton also had a lot more opportunities as a No. 1 overall pick and a Day 1 starter. Newton started 48 games in his first three seasons, while Hurts has started just 34.

Here’s a look at the top five QB rushing touchdowns through three seasons:

Cam Newton: 28 (48 starts)

Jalen Hurts: 26 (34 starts)

Josh Allen: 25 (43 starts)

Kyler Murray: 20 (46 starts)

Lamar Jackson: 19 (37 starts)

After Newton had 28 in his first three seasons, he had 5 rushing touchdowns in Year 4. Hurts would tie that mark through four seasons with 7 rushing touchdowns in 2023.

This offseason, the Eagles are hoping to give Hurts a long-term extension that won’t come cheap. He’ll likely get a deal that will pay him around $50 million per season.

But head coach Nick Sirianni said at the NFL owners meetings that they won’t start using Hurts any differently after he gets paid.

“No. We’ll do … part of what makes Jalen special is everything that he can do,” Sirianni said. “We’ll do what we have to do to win football games no matter what that is. Jalen does a lot of things special and we’ll try to showcase all the things that he does special and we’ll try to recap the things that we did last year with him and add some new wrinkles with different things that we do. We’ll do what we need to do to win games and we have a special quarterback and we’ll use his special abilities.”

Hurts played at a legitimate MVP level in 2022 and there’s no question that his ability as a runner was a big part of that. While he’s great in the open field, it’s Hurts’ tough-nose running at the goal line that has been such a weapon.

In the last two seasons — his first two as a full-time starter — Hurts has 23 rushing touchdowns, tied with Derrick Henry for second in the NFL behind just Austin Ekeler (25). Hurts is the only QB in the top 10 and the next closest is Josh Allen, who comes in at No. 15 with 13 touchdowns.

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