Jalen Hurts was so good in the Eagles’ Week 1 win over the Washington Commanders that he deserves even more attention than he’s already getting. The Philadelphia Eagles’ quarterback silenced critics with his arm, his legs, and his decision-making, and it’s time to put a few tired narratives to rest for good.

The ‘can’t throw over the middle’ myth is dead

Hurts between the numbers in Week 1: six of seven, 71 yards, two touchdowns, 148.5 passer rating. They told us Jalen wasn’t tall enough, that his vision wasn’t good enough to throw over the middle of the field. Wrong. Just another lazy narrative that people parrot without actually watching the tape.

And it doesn’t stop there. Per NextGen Stats, Hurts completed six of nine passes thrown 10 or more yards downfield for 176 total yards and three touchdowns. So that whole lazy narrative about Jalen not being able to throw the ball downfield? Another one bites the dust. Hurts is one of the best deep ball throwers in the NFL, and I honestly don’t understand where this notion comes from that he can’t throw the ball more than 15 or 20 yards. As I’ve been saying all of last year, every time the Eagles open up the offense and give him a chance to take shots, it usually results in a big play. Jalen once again proves the haters wrong.

The dual-threat game changes everything

The biggest takeaway beyond all the passing numbers is that Hurts made plays with his legs. I know we’re early in the season and he hasn’t taken a lot of hits yet, but he looked quick. He looked elusive. And in my opinion, the biggest play of the game by far was a third-and-18 where the Eagles were backed up and the Commanders were building momentum. Hurts stopped it cold with a 22-yard scramble. That play set up the game-winning touchdown from Hurts to tight end Dallas Goedert that gave Philadelphia the cushion it needed.

We said it all of last year. People kept saying Jalen doesn’t want to run the football. Yeah, he does. Give him opportunities and he will do it. Sure, some of it on Sunday was scrambling for his life because he didn’t want to take a sack, but that’s part of the equation too.

He also made up for some of the deficiencies of the offensive line. He extended plays and made things happen in big situations, which he always does in the spotlight. Jalen Hurts in the right system is a problem for opposing defenses, and we saw a lot more of that dual-threat element utilized against Washington.

It’s only one game, but this is what Hurts has mostly done consistently throughout his career when he has a good coordinator and a good system. He was smart with the football, didn’t put it in harm’s way, and made the plays that mattered most. The Eagles are going to benefit from this version of Jalen, the version where the coaching staff trusts him to take shots downfield, trusts him to use his legs, and builds the offense around his full skill set rather than trying to limit him.