On the scale of how confident any NFL team is in its backup quarterbacks, the Philadelphia Eagles have proven one of the more difficult teams to get a read on.
On one hand, the Eagles have the type of team where you can make an argument the backup quarterback just needs to be sort-of competent to be successful. Such is the greatness of Philadelphia’s offensive line, skill positions and defense.
On the other hand, starting quarterback and Super Bowl MVP Jalen Hurts has a skill set and aura that can’t be easily imitated. There needs to be some nuance to being his backup. It’s something the Eagles didn’t feel like they had in last season’s backup, Kenny Pickett, who was traded to the Cleveland Browns on March 10 in exchange for another backup quarterback, Dorian Thompson-Robinson, and a 2025 fifth round pick.
Thompson-Robinson isn’t the answer, though. Neither is last year’s third string quarterback, Tanner McKee, even though he looked better than expected filling in after both Hurts and Pickett were injured late in the season.
The Eagles would be well served to use a mid-round pick in the 2025 NFL draft and level up at backup quarterback with Alabama’s Jalen Milroe, a player who was once projected as a first round pick.
Bleacher Report’s Brent Sobleski put Milroe at the top of his list of players dropping on draft boards on March 14.
“Alabama quarterback Jalen Milroe is who he is: a tremendous athlete with immense upside who needs significant development with his footwork and accuracy,” Sobleski wrote. “His issues weren’t going to be solved in one offseason, particularly while the 22-year-old works his way through the arduous predraft process. Even so, there was some hope that he’d perform better than expected as a passer at the Senior Bowl. That didn’t happen.”
Milroe, Hurts Both Famously Benched at ‘Bama
Hurts and Milroe have a lot more in common than just their first names.
Both players are electric, dual-threat quarterbacks and both started 2 seasons for Alabama — both were also famously benched by former Crimson Tide head coach Nick Saban during their careers.
While Milroe bounced back from being benched early in the 2023 season to reclaim his starting role, Hurts never got his job back after being benched at halftime of the College Football Playoff National Championship Game against Georgia in favor of true freshman Tua Tagovailoa, who led Alabama to an overtime win.
Hurts spent one season as a backup to Tagovailoa before transferring to Oklahoma, where he led the Sooners to the CFP semifinals in 2019 and was selected by the Eagles in the second round (No. 53 overall) of the 2020 NFL draft.
In their 2 seasons as starters at Alabama, Milroe and Hurts numbers show 2 very similar players, with Hurts going 26-2 as a starter in 2016 and 2017 while Milroe was 20-6 in 2023 and 2024.
In those 2 seasons, Milroe threw for 5,728 yards, 39 touchdowns and 17 interceptions while Hurts threw for 4,861 yards, 40 touchdowns and 10 interceptions. Hurts rushed for 1,812 yards and 21 touchdowns and averaged 5.3 yards per carry while Milroe rushed for 1,057 yards and 32 touchdowns and averaged 4.0 yards per carry.
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