September 01, 2022
Colleen Claggett/PhillyVoice
Eagles QB Jalen Hurts during the team's open practice at the Linc on August 7.
Hey, remember Chris Simms? The former Buccaneers QB turned NBC analyst who isn't too high on Jalen Hurts?
Well, he likes the Eagles. I mean really likes the Eagles... like, he thinks they're going to be the No. 1 seed in the NFC come playoff time.
Said Simms on his latest "Unbuttoned" podcast released Wednesday:
I think the Eagles are going to be one of the best teams in the NFC.
I love Nick Sirianni. I like their defense, [Jonathan Gannon] coaching that side of the ball. They got a support staff of assistant coaches that I like. And then, like you're talking about, the roster is real.
And yeah, I worry about Jalen Hurts. If the run game, they can't play that style, can he dice you up passing the ball? Yeah, sure. But there are only a few teams in football, I think, that can really worry about that, and he's gotten better. I liked the way he looked in the preseason, and I know he's a worker. He's unflappable that way. [NBC Sports]
Simms then went into the Eagles' schedule and how easy it's projected to be, noting that he wouldn't be shocked if they were off to a 7-2 or 8-1 start nine games in.
"That's where I'm a believer in them, and everything on their roster and what they're doing," Simms said.
Simms sparked conversation earlier in the summer, admittedly at the dullest point in the NFL offseason, when he ranked Hurts 25th on his list of top 40 quarterbacks. A definite improvement for sure, after he left Hurts off the list entirely in 2021 – he has since admitted to being wrong on that – but still curious considering he put names like Chicago's Justin Fields, the Jets' Zach Wilson, and Washington's Carson Wentz all ahead of him.
As a whole though, he's high on the Eagles, to the point where he predicts them making it to the NFC Championship Game.
He just has them losing to San Francisco in the end. Has no idea who the 49ers quarterback is going to be by then, but somehow they go to the Super Bowl.
"I'm high on teams and not always making them about the quarterback," Simms said. "That's what I'm high on. Teams win it."
Who will finish as the top seed in the NFC this season?!@CSimmsQB is picking the @Eagles to bring home the top spot. #FlyEaglesFly pic.twitter.com/xOZeNdHDRL
— Sunday Night Football on NBC (@SNFonNBC) September 1, 2022
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