When the Buccaneers and Eagles played on a Thursday night in October, Philadelphia quarterback Jalen Hurts went 12-of-26 passing for 115 yards with a touchdown, an interception, and a pair of rushing TDs.
The Buccaneers won that game 28-22. But a few weeks later, the Eagles started finding something in their rushing attack, fully taking advantage of Hurts’ running ability.
Philadelphia ended the season with the league’s top ground game, and Hurts led the club with 784 yards rushing and 10 touchdowns.
So as the Bucs get ready to face the Eagles once again for Wild Card weekend, head coach Bruce Arians told Philadelphia reporters this week that he’s seen “dramatic improvement” out of Hurts since October.
“Total command of that offense, really accurate down the field, really improved as a passer,” Arians said, via Dave Zangaro of NBCSportsPhiladelphia.com. “Really knows when to pull it down and knows when to throw it. I’ve seen great growth out of him.”
As a passer, Hurts finished the regular season completing 61 percent of his throws for 3,144 yards with 16 touchdowns and nine interceptions in 15 games.