Plenty of people believe the Philadelphia Eagles’ decision to bench Carson Wentz is justified. It seems like at least one teammate isn’t in agreement, though.
Eagles defensive lineman Fletcher Cox hinted at dissatisfaction with coach Doug Pederson’s decision to bench Wentz for Jalen Hurts. Cox “liked” a tweet that urged people to retweet if they wanted Hurts as starter and like if they preferred Wentz.
Looks like Fletcher Cox is on Team Wentz. #Eagles pic.twitter.com/Dw0lhr3GJ6
— Eagles Nation (3-8-1) (@PHLEaglesNation) December 8, 2020
On Wednesday, Cox called Wentz his “best friend” on the team, and made clear that he wasn’t walking back his Twitter activity.
“Carson is my best friend. He’s my guy,” Cox said, via Tim McManus of ESPN. “I’ve always had his back since Day 1. Jalen, he’s my teammate also, so you’ve got to support whoever is in there. It’s the NFL and we understand that things happen. It sucks for a guy like Carson to be put in that position because it never just comes down to one guy; there are 11 guys on the field.
“With that being said, my tweet is my tweet and I stand with it.”
Cox has been with the Eagles since 2012 and has been a Pro Bowler the last five years. Wentz has been with the team since 2016.
Cox’s support of Wentz puts Pederson — and some of the other players — in an awkward spot. There’s clearly a lot of loyalty to Wentz in the locker room. However, Wentz just hasn’t been getting the job done. He’s completed fewer than 60 percent of his passes and has been intercepted 15 times. Hurts, meanwhile, looked much sharper in his appearance Sunday. Pederson really had no choice here, even if it’s unpopular in the locker room.
