The heavy, silver, spangled chain that encircled Jalen Hurts’ neck late Saturday night would have made Mr. T jealous and sent Lil Wayne to a jeweler with a special request to help him keep pace in the arms race of bling. Dangling from the necklace’s center like a talisman was a fist-sized plate of sparkling stones that spelled out three words: BREED OF ONE. It was no wonder Hurts wore it. He thinks himself that. To listen to the Eagles talk about him in the aftermath of their 38-7 thrashing of the Giants, with the NFC championship game a week away, was to get the sense that they think of him that way, too.
“I know this is high praise, but to have him out there is like having — I’m not sure I should go there — Michael Jordan out there,” coach Nick Sirianni said. “He’s your leader. He’s your guy. Hopefully, that’s the biggest respect I can pay to him, comparing his ability to be on the field to a Michael Jordan-type thing. This guy leads. He brings this calmness to the entire team. He plays great football. He’s tough as they come. To me, there’s nobody playing any better football than him.”
They might have a case out in Kansas City, where Patrick Mahomes suffered what appeared to be a serious ankle injury Saturday afternoon against the Jaguars — so severe that Mahomes could hardly set his foot on the ground without wincing and limping — and still led the Chiefs to a 27-20 win. Hurts, though, took the Eagles to a different place merely through his presence and his return to full health.
