September 14, 2021
Jalen Hurts and DeVonta Smith might be the two most-popular people in Philadelphia right now, and Eagles fans are showing it with their wallets.
Sales of the jerseys of second-year quarterback and rookie wide receiver have soared since Sunday with the Eagles' dominant 32-6 win against the Atlanta Falcons in the season opener.
ESPN reported that Hurts' jersey sales on Fanatics spiked more than 500%, which was the largest single-day surge of any NFL player on Sunday, and there was more Hurts merchandise sold Sunday than the previous six days combined.
Hurts' midnight green, No. 1 jersey, which he wore while efficiently taking apart the Falcons' defense, is the second-best selling NFL product right now behind the jersey of New England Patriots rookie quarterback Mac Jones. Hurts and Jones were teammates in college at the University of Alabama.
The Eagles starting quarterback wore No. 2 during his rookie NFL season, the same number he donned in high school and at Alabama. But for his sophomore campaign in Philly, he switched to No. 1, the same number he wore during his lone season at the University of Oklahoma.
Smith, the Eagles' first-round draft pick this year, saw his jersey sales spike by 166% from Saturday to Sunday after catching six balls for 71 yards and a touchdown in his NFL debut.
Smith's jersey was the top-selling, non-quarterback jersey of a rookie player during the past two days. Among rookies at all positions, sales of the Eagles wide receiver's jersey only trailed that of Jones and San Francisco 49ers rookie quarterback Trey Lance.
Given how well Hurts and Smith played Sunday, it's understandable why their jerseys are flying off of the racks. Hurts completed 27-of-35 passes for 265 yards and threw three touchdowns, including a beautiful pass to his former college teammate, Smith, on the Eagles' opening drive. It was Smith's first NFL reception and first touchdown.
Expect to see a ton of Hurts and Smith jerseys in the stands at Lincoln Financial Field on Sunday afternoon against the 49ers for the Eagles' home opener.
But high-flying jersey sales doesn't equate to perpetual love from Birds fans or the franchise. Former Eagles quarterback Carson Wentz had the top-selling jersey in the NFL during his MVP-caliber season in 2017, and everyone knows how that ended a few years later.
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