Jalen Hurts addresses Eagles massive turnover problems and their commitment to starting games faster on offense

Since the beginning of last season, Jalen Hurts has recorded 27 turnovers, leading the NFL in this category. So far this season, he’s had seven turnovers in the first four games, which include three in the red zone, which have been total backbreakers for the Eagles offense. The only player with more is Will Levis, who has nine.

A large part in the Birds being 2-2 heading into the bye week is for these crucial turnovers. With that said, Hurts is fully aware of this problem, along with the concerns around his relationship with Nick Sirianni in which he touched on.

Jalen Hurts on Philadelphia Eagles Bye Week

Jalen Hurts said this was the most EFFICIENT bye week he ever had #Eagles pic.twitter.com/5rA8bz2P1V

— Philly Talk Podcast (@Philly_Mike25) October 9, 2024

Hurts has been without key weapons and teammates for a large portion of these first four games. A.J. Brown was sidelined for three games with a hamstring injury, while DeVonta Smith and Lane Johnson each missed a game due to a concussion. Though all three are set to return on Sunday, the absence of these three star players has had a noticeable impact on Hurts and the offense.

However, Jalen is clearly not looking to make any excuses from these circumstances.

“I jokingly said it’s nice to see some familiar faces out there, but we trust everybody that’s out there. That’s always the mentality when we’re out there, but you know those guys bring a different level of impact with their presence on the field and what they’re able to do.”

Along with the turnovers, the Eagles offense has struggled to get off to strong starts in their first four games. They rank last in the league in first-quarter yards per game (44.2) and have a third-down conversion rate of just 11.1%. So far, they are the only team in the NFL that has yet to score a first-quarter point this season. That one just stings, doesn’t it?

Jalen Hurts on Eagles slow starts

“That’s something that’s traditionally been something we’ve done well, and we haven’t been able to do it as well as we want to this year,” Hurts said. “We’ve had some good drives early but maybe couldn’t finish or had a turnover or all these different things. 

“I think once we get going, we get going. We just have to be able to do that earlier. It’s definitely a goal. Everybody’s working towards that. We’re just going to continue to take it day by day. I think we’ll get to a point where we get rolling. It’s just about continuing to remain steadfast.”

Well, this is it for the Eagles. A bye-week that initially felt way too early by the schedule makers all of sudden couldn’t have came at a better time. So, for the next 13 weeks, this team better start improving and looking much better on both sides of the ball. There’s no more excuses.

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