The problems Carson Wentz had with the Philadelphia Eagles obviously extended beyond his strained relationship with former head coach Doug Pederson. Otherwise, the quarterback would not have wanted to be traded after Pederson was fired. However, it now clearer than ever that the two did not get along toward the end of their tenure together.
ESPN’s Adam Schefter discussed the Wentz situation during a Friday morning appearance on 97.5 The Fanatic. He said Wentz was “done” in Philly and wanted out as badly as Deshaun Watson wants out of Houston. Schefter also described how Wentz and Pederson went extended periods of time without speaking with one another at all.
“There are a lot of things that went wrong,” Schefter said, as transcribed by Bleacher Report’s Tim Daniels. “We have the team drafting Jalen Hurts. We have Carson feeling jilted by that. We have the team trying to reassure him. We have Carson not getting past that. We have Carson struggling. We have Carson and Doug not talking for weeks on end during the season, where the head coach and quarterback are not talking for eight, nine, 10 weeks.”
It’s hard to imagine something more dysfunctional than a head coach and quarterback not speaking for more than two months in the middle of a season. Schefter added that there were “a lot of other people” who contributed to Wentz wanting a trade, but it certainly sounds like his poor relationship with Pederson got the ball rolling.
Wentz and Pederson looked like a match made in heaven a few years ago, but things went south in a hurry. There was a lot of pressure to bench Wentz last season with how poorly he played, and eventually Pederson gave Jalen Hurts the nod. At that point, it sounds like Wentz completely turned on the coach and wanted nothing to do with the franchise anymore.
If you want to know how quickly things turned in Philly, just read this surreal quote Pederson gave about Wentz back in 2017.
Wentz was traded to the Indianapolis Colts on Thursday for draft picks. The deal will set a new NFL record for dead salary cap money.
