Doug Pederson addresses talk about benching Carson Wentz
Carson Wentz has been alarmingly bad through the first three games of the season, but Philadelphia Eagles head coach Doug Pederson is not ready to entertain any talk of benching the quarterback.
Wentz completed 29-of-47 passes for 225 yards, a touchdown and two interceptions in Sunday’s tie against the Cincinnati Bengals. Pederson was asked during his appearance on SportsRadio 94WIP on Monday if he has considered benching Wentz for rookie Jalen Hurts. The coach emphatically shot down the idea.
“No. No. You don’t go there. That is a knee-jerk reaction. That is a reaction to things that are sometimes, you know, the aura that is out there,” Pederson said. “That is not what we believe internally and we are going to continue to get better. Carson is our quarterback.”
Pederson also mentioned how every team in the NFC East is off to a slow start, which is another reason he is not panicking. No team in the division has a winning record through three weeks.
“We are going to get it fixed, he is going to get it fixed and you know, we got a long season — we are only a half-game out of first place for goodness sakes,” Pederson added. “The whole division right now is not playing very good football. So, we are not that far off.”
Wentz has thrown two interceptions in each game this season. He has completed less than 60 percent of his passes and is averaging just 5.6 yards per completion, which is dead last in the NFL. His passer rating of 63.9 is also last in the league.
Simply put, Wentz can’t play much worse — the Eagles hope. Alshon Jeffery has been out with an injury, so his absence has likely contributed to the struggles. The Eagles also may have won on Sunday if not for a brutal mistake in overtime, but Wentz still needs to play much better.
Wentz signed a huge extension with the Eagles last year, which is probably one of the main reasons they are not thinking about benching him. If the reports we heard about Hurts during training camp are true, Wentz would likely be a lot closer to getting the hook if not for his contract.