Hall of Fame quarterback Brett Favre made a stir last week by suggesting that the Eagles should have kept Nick Foles instead of Carson Wentz after the 2018 season. On Tuesday, Favre explained his remarks, given his friendship with Eagles coach Doug Pederson -- and given that Pederson made it clear that Wentz is still Pederson’s guy.
“Doug and I don’t have a problem with each other,” Favre said on SiriusXM NFL Radio. “It is my opinion. It’s not his. What he said is -- I don’t disagree with him. If I were him, I would have said the same things. They chose Carson Wentz. I’m not saying that’s wrong. I’m not saying it’s right. I’m just saying that based on that year, how Nick played, not just because he won the Super Bowl as a starting quarterback, but how he led that team. And there’s no question to me that the guys like Carson Wentz. There’s no question to me that he has the potential to be that type of player, meaning capable of leading a team to Super Bowl. Will it be Philly? I don’t know. Right now Doug in the organization is committed to him and it was just my opinion that based on just strictly based on how Nick played and the results, I would have stuck with him. Not knocking Carson at all.”
So what’s wrong with Wentz?
“Maybe he’s pressing,” Favre said. “There’s certainly reasons that we’re not privy to, because we’re not in their meetings, we’re not in their day-to-day operations. I look at it from when I evaluate a quarterback, you know, there’s those that when everything is going well you want them in the lineup. They’re not going to hurt you. But then when the chips are down, you need a play, it’s all or nothing, we’re behind, or all of our receivers hurt, we’ve got a Band-Aid group of guys that, when that guy can elevate those players, you know, take Aaron Rodgers – and of course he’s in a different stratosphere -- but it doesn’t matter who plays receiver for them. He makes it look so easy. That’s what you’re looking for.
“And every guy is different, you know? Drew Brees is a different dynamic quarterback than Aaron Rodgers. But when he’s in there, he makes it look easy. And certainly Tom Brady, you know, Russell Wilson, they make the average Joe’s better. They make an average team or maybe an above average team better, year in and year out. And that’s what you’re looking for, to me, that’s what you’re looking for. Because they’ve had a lot of injuries. There’s no question. Carson is not immune to it himself, but they’re just OK, and for a lot of reasons, but can he make us better than OK? Or can someone else make us better than OK? That’s the question.”
Wentz may indeed be pressing. As we’ve said repeatedly on PFT Live, Wentz may be trying in one throw to justify the faith that the team repeatedly has shown in him, from trading up to draft him to picking him over Foles to giving Wentz major contract. Wentz may feel pressure to prove the team right, and it may be too much pressure.