EXCLUSIVE: "I'm now on the Jalen Hurts train" - Mike Smith picks Eagles QB over Patrick Mahomes for MVP award
The Philadelphia Eagles and Jalen Hurts officially booked their playoff berth with a blowout 48-22 win over the New York Giants. The Eagles are 12-1 and could clinch a first-round bye and home-field advantage in the playoffs with two wins and a Minnesota Vikings loss.
Hurts strengthened his case in the race for the MVP award with an incredible outing against the Giants. The Eagles quarterback finished the game with 217 passing yards, two touchdown passes, 77 rushing yards, and one rushing touchdown.
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Hurts is competing with Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes for the MVP Award. The 2018 NFL MVP is leading the league in passing yards and passing touchdowns and has led the Chiefs to a 10-3 record.
Former Atlanta Falcons head coach Mike Smith joined host Reggie Roberts on Sportskeeda's BallFather Podcast to discuss the MVP race between Jalen Hurts and Patrick Mahomes. Explaining his pick for the award, he said:
"I'm now on the Jalen Hurts train. I'm jumping off the Mahomes train for the MVP, Reg. You know, he's playing as well as anybody. He reminds me and I don't know about you, but he reminds me, with a little bit about the way he's playing the game, especially running the football, of Michael Vick. When he was in his prime in Atlanta, Michael was hard to stop. And he's a much more accurate passer."
Mike Smith thinks Jalen Hurts and the Eagles defense will secure home-field advantage in the postseason
Smith believes Hurts' playstyle and the Eagles' defense will ensure the team secures home-field advantage in the playoffs:
"He [Hurts] has only thrown three interceptions this year. Can you believe that? We know now and we've known it for a couple of weeks that the NFC is going to go through Philadelphia and they're built to thrive with whatever and whatever Mother Nature is going to throw at them."
He continued:
"They are set up with their quarterback-centric team because he can truly beat you with his arms and his legs. And that's the thing. I mean, it was a complete domination by the Eagles [against the Giants]. They ran for 253 yards on offense and sacked the Giants' quarterback seven times. That's a combination of success in the playoffs."
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Hurts and the Eagles are playoff-bound and are looking to help the franchise win their second Super Bowl title. There's still some work that head coach Nick Sirianni's men need to do before thinking about the first-round bye and the NFC divisional-round game.
But if the Eagles and Jalen Hurts continue on their current trajectory, the home-field advantage and MVP award will be heading to Philadelphia.
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