December 27, 2024
Philadelphia Eagles starting quarterback Jalen Hurts did not practice on Thursday after suffering a concussion last Sunday against the Washington Commanders. He still has a chance to play on Sunday against the Dallas Cowboys, but it's probably more likely that he won't.
With that in mind, let's take a closer look at how backup Kenny Pickett played in relief of Hurts against the Commanders. I cut up 40 plays from that game, and posted them in long threads on Twitter and Bluesky. There's some good, some bad. Spoiler: He's not as good as Hurts.
For the Twitter folks:
Now that we know there's a decent chance Jalen Hurts won't play against the Cowboys on Sunday, let's take a look at Kenny Pickett's performance last Sunday vs. the Commanders. This will be a very long thread, in chronological order 🧵
— Jimmy Kempski (@JimmyKempski) December 27, 2024
Or if you prefer Bluesky:Â
Pickett was 14 of 24 for 143 yards, 1 TD, and 1 INT. He ran 3 times for 13 yards.
I thought Pickett missed some throws that he should have made, and his INT gave the Commanders a short field and kept them in the game. As a passer overall, he looked a lot like a backup who probably doesn't get much time in practice with the first-team offense. He left his share of makeable plays on the field.
The Eagles' run game was also affected by Hurts' absence. They missed the plays that Hurts could have made with his legs, but just as importantly the Commanders often did not respect the threat of Pickett keeping the ball on zone reads, which often led to negative Barkley runs.
If Pickett has to play against the Cowboys, expect the Cowboys defense to crowd the line of scrimmage, sell out to slow down Barkley, and make Pickett beat them through the air.
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