UNDER THE INFLU-WENTZ
March 20
Carson Wentz is ready for a fresh start in his new home, Indianapolis.
“It’s an exciting time,” Wentz says. “We’re excited for this new opportunity and hopefully to start building something special here in Indy.”
The Indianapolis Colts signed the former Eagles QB on Wednesday to a four-year deal worth up to $98.4 million, with $40.4 million guaranteed through 2022 as of Friday.
The 28-year-old Wentz spent the first 5 seasons of his career with the Philadelphia Eagles and led the franchise to two playoff appearances and one Super Bowl.
He is first in Eagles history to throw for over 4,000 yards (4,039) and holds franchise records for most in pass completions (388) and pass attempts (607) in a single season. In addition, Wentz is the first QB in NFL history to have a 4,000-yard season without having a single 500-yard wide receiver.
But after 2019, the once top-10 quarterback fell to one of the worst in the league, and his last season in Philly accounted for the worst of his career.
After averaging more than 3,547 passing yards per season in four of his five professional years, he finished with a dismal 2,620 passing yards through 12 games in 2020. Wentz ranks 35th in the QB rankings after the 2020 season with a 57.4% completion percentage, 16 touchdowns and 15 interceptions.
By trading Wentz, the Eagles will now give up $9.3 million in dead cap for the 2020 offseason, bringing the total to a whopping $33.8 million loss in dead money for 2021.
In addition, the Colts are giving up a pair of draft picks to the Eagles as part of the trade, a third-round pick in the upcoming 2021 Draft and a second-round selection in the 2022 NFL Draft with the possibility to turn into a first-round pick.
Frank Reich and his Colts are eager to move onward and upward, and needless to say, they strongly believe Wentz is the man for the job.
Wentz played well under Reich when he was the offensive coordinator for the Eagles during his rookie year in 2016 and again in 2017, and the Colts are extremely confident in their new coach-quarterback pairing.
Colts CEO Jim Irsay believes that a “golden era” is upon the franchise with Wentz and Reich back together once again.
“When you have a coach like [Reich] who really gives a quarterback the best chance to be great in this league, that is really special,” he said. “And I think that’s one of the attributes that I feel make us real Super Bowl contenders is his talent to be able to elevate a quarterback’s play to its very highest of levels.”
Reich was also assured adding that he is “thrilled to have the opportunity to coach Carson again, and he will be a fantastic addition to this organization.”
On “The Herd,” Colin Cowherd further discusses why Colts fans should be thrilled to have Wentz and makes the argument that Wentz just needs the right people around him to tap back into his full potential.
“Nobody can succeed on an island, nobody can succed without really good support,” he says. “But when really talented people do get support, they always succeed 100 percent. … And you don’t think talented Carson Wentz is going to improve? He went four-for-four in upgrades. Offensive line, massive upgrade with the Colts. Culture, I mean the culture in Philadelphia is a wreck, the culture in Indy is great. Defense, weapons. … Of course it’s going to work.”
However, when you look at how Wentz has been performing as of recent, it may not be as smooth sailing as Irsay, Reich and Cowherd say. On “First Things First,” Nick Wright points out that, historically, no quarterback has ever come back from such a lackluster season to be top tier once again.
“I think the Colts might be fine,” he says. “I don’t think Wentz will be. There is no historical precedent in the entirety of NFL history for a quarterback, outside of his rookie season, having a year as bad as Carson Wentz’s was last year, and rebounding to ever be good again.”
If truth be told, both Cowherd and Wright are correct.
Wentz was once considered a top-5 quarterback with an MVP-caliber season under his belt, despite hitting record lows in his most recent season.
The Colts are banking on pulling Wentz out of the rut he’s found himself in, and it’s an exciting time for the franchise all in all.
