Eagles: Wentz is a locker room cancer

[UOK]

https://www.phillyvoice.com/carson-went ... am-player/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

But while the sentiment in the Eagles’ locker room is that Foles is “universally loved,” Wentz isn’t.

His aw-shucks, overgrown-Opie-from-Mayberry routine plays well with the local and national media. Indeed, sources describe Wentz as “incredibly hard working,” “determined,” and “highly intelligent.” But the true Wentz is more nuanced and complicated, with sources describing him as “selfish,” “uncompromising,” “egotistical,” one who plays “favorites” and doesn’t like to be “questioned,” one who needs to “practice what he preaches" and fails “to take accountability.”

Numerous sources confirmed Wentz was once verbally attacked by a highly respected teammate for not being “a team guy.”

“Carson Wentz’s biggest enemy is Carson Wentz,” one source said. “He’s had his ass kissed his whole life, and sometimes acts like he’s won 10 Super Bowls, when he hasn’t played in, let alone won, a playoff game yet. Everyone around him wants good things for him. He did more thinking on the field than he did playing (in 2018). You don’t have to be a brain surgeon or a football expert to see how differently this team plays and reacts with one guy as opposed to the other."

According to multiple sources, Wentz tended to “complicate” the offense. He didn’t let it come organically, as Foles did. According to one source, Wentz could “complicate 2+2.”

Wentz, according to sources, created friction within the offense.

Wentz’s proclivity for playing “favorites” manifested itself in targeting Ertz, who went on to catch a single-season NFL-record 116 passes for a tight end. Over the 11 games Wentz played, he went to Ertz 106 times (an average of 9.6 targets per game), while Alshon Jeffery was targeted 74 times (7.4 targets per game) and Nelson Agholor 60 times (5.4 targets per game). Sources added, without any great revelation, that Jordan Matthews is an Eagle because “of his buddy Wentz.”

This even came out during the year before Wentz got hurt, but the Eagles' veteran leadership and locker room conducted themselves in a way that avoided it becoming a big story.

An unnamed source in a story by ESPN's Josina Anderson said of the Eagles' struggles after the Saints loss, "I really felt like when we came out of camp, we didn’t have that same identity, that same rhythm, that camaraderie that you build on and off the field."

The same source also mentioned that the team was "over-targeting Zach Ertz."

The offensive players primarily felt more comfortable and confident with Foles – again, not a great revelation – because they knew he would get everyone involved in the offense. Foles would check down, if he had to, but he wasn’t going to audible out of running plays, as Wentz had a tendency to do this past season.

Wentz also had a propensity to pull the ball when he was about to hand off to the running backs, and check down to Ertz, despite having one of the NFL’s better offensive lines to run behind. It would frustrate the offensive line, the running backs and the wide receivers — basically everyone on the field at the time, with the exception of Wentz and Ertz. This too came out during the season, as Anderson mentioned it from her source.

Our sources expressed the same narrative: Wentz was so hell-bent on getting back after Foles led the Eagles to the Super Bowl that he risked his own health, the health of the offense and the health of the Eagles in doing so. That translated into a 6-7 season, up until Pederson announced that Wentz had a stress fracture in his back and would be doubtful the final three regular-season games, spurring further questions about Wentz’s long-term health.

Psychologically, Wentz might not have fully trusted the surgically-repaired left knee he injured on Dec. 10, 2017, when he tore his ACL and LCL against the Los Angeles Rams.

Wentz wasn't 100 percent the whole season, sources agreed. Though, actually, that didn’t have to come from people inside the NovaCare Complex, or from those very familiar with Wentz’s game. Everyone could see it. Wentz couldn’t escape the pocket as freely as he did in 2017, getting caught by linebackers from behind. Sources estimated that Wentz was probably at about 80 percent of what makes Carson Wentz the special player he has been and should be.

Most of Wentz’s incomplete passes were low. He wasn’t throwing under a strong base, pushing his passes more from his arm and shoulder than from his strength, his legs.

Wentz also struggled reading defenses this season, according to sources. His eyes were all over the place. Consequently, his scope of the field was far narrower. He pressed. Going into games, the running backs and wide receivers would openly question how many touches they would get, because they felt Wentz wouldn’t look their way. The offensive linemen grew angry because Wentz’s indecision would cause him to hold the ball longer than necessary — resulting in sacks and hits.

To a person, the sources who spoke for this story stressed that they want Carson Wentz to succeed. He’s 26 years old and has played just one full NFL season, and no playoff games. Many would agree the QB wants to be a superstar, and sometimes acts like he is one already, and that’s certainly understandable.

One can only imagine what Wentz went through, ending his likely 2017 MVP season in a gutsy touchdown pass on a torn ACL. The player whom Philadelphia traded up twice to get at No. 2 overall in the NFL draft had seen his squad reach the postseason, and watched them win a Super Bowl from the sidelines.

The subjects interviewed for this story gave the impression that Wentz changed after his injury. With Foles more than likely gone next season and nothing but open space ahead to rehab and spend a full training camp as QB1, there seems to be a good chance he'll be his dynamic self again — both on the gridiron and with his teammates.

“He has to return to who ‘Carson Wentz’ is," a source told PhillyVoice. "That comes with relaxing and not forcing things. It also comes with being able to take constructive criticism. He has to learn that it’s not always about him and that’s partly what hurt this team this year. We know what type of player he can be, and who he normally is. He needs to realize it’s the Philadelphia Eagles not the Philadelphia Carsons.

“A little humility goes a long way.”

[Bears Whiskey Nut]

That’s interesting. It certainly explains a lot. Not sure why the Eagles don’t trade Wentz for a boatload of picks.


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[Otis Day]

Other players call this story bullshit.

https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/n ... 636838002/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

“Reading through this Carson Wentz thing and as a leader on this team none of that is true Carson is a great teammate and great player we are all behind him 100% he’s our guy and will come back and prove the world wrong,” all-pro defensive tackle Fletcher Cox posted on his verified Twitter account. “If you got a problem feel free to @ me I’ll respond”

“Don’t believe everything you read!!!” Ertz wrote on Twitter. “Carson has been nothing but a GREAT person, GREAT teammate and GREAT leader since Day 1. Our locker room stands behind him all the way. We can’t wait to get back to work and be the best team we can be in 2019! #FlyEaglesFly”

Everything I have ever read about this guy has been positive, this goes back to his college days. Sounds like a hack job by someone who wants to create a bigger QB controversy than they have.

[Atkins&Rebel]

Guessing the sources are Alshon Jeffery and Jay Ajayi. Jeffery admittedly had trouble fitting in and making friends here, and Ajayi was traded because he couldn't keep his mouth shut in Miami's locker room.

But this whole story reads of extreme sour grapes from someone in that locker room that isn't "included" in Wentz's "posse" and/or feels that he should be a super star on that offense if only he's force-fed the ball at a higher rate.

[Bears Whiskey Nut]

Other players call this story bullshit.

https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/n ... 636838002/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

“Reading through this Carson Wentz thing and as a leader on this team none of that is true Carson is a great teammate and great player we are all behind him 100% he’s our guy and will come back and prove the world wrong,” all-pro defensive tackle Fletcher Cox posted on his verified Twitter account. “If you got a problem feel free to @ me I’ll respond”

“Don’t believe everything you read!!!” Ertz wrote on Twitter. “Carson has been nothing but a GREAT person, GREAT teammate and GREAT leader since Day 1. Our locker room stands behind him all the way. We can’t wait to get back to work and be the best team we can be in 2019! #FlyEaglesFly”

Everything I have ever read about this guy has been positive, this goes back to his college days. Sounds like a hack job by someone who wants to create a bigger QB controversy than they have.

Yes, but the story passes the eye test. Look at the way that the Eagles responded to Foles last year, and this year. Once Foles took over this year, the Eagles became a different team.

[southdakbearfan]

Sounds like prima Donna bullshit made up stuff to me. Nobody owning up to the comments should be all anyone needs to know.

Foles is the luckiest sob I have ever seen at qb. Average at best and gets away with complete bullshit throws.

[wab]

This is nothing more than Foles' dudes sticking up for the guy that won them a Super Bowl. This reeks of Jeffery. And probably Agholor.

[Otis Day]

Exactly. Most talking head, ex. NFLers I heard this a.m. were calling BS as well. All know him and have talked to those that know him and say this report is about as far off as it could be. They also brought up it being sour grapes from a few. One even said people are probably tired of his devout Christianity, even though he doesn't throw it in the players faces.

Un named sources = pussy

[wab]

Reminds me of when Lions players threw Joey Harrington under the bus for being relentlessly positive.

[BR0D1E86]

This stinks of the receivers not named Ertz, especially ultradouche Alshon. All we heard after Foles came in was how much more he was being targeted.

Also f@@@ Alshon.

[Boris13c]

I would think after Alshon's big drop that became an interception against the Saints that he would be keeping a low profile

[Atkins&Rebel]

I would think after Alshon's big drop that became an interception against the Saints that he would be keeping a low profile

You have a strong feeling that it could be someone else on that team?

[G08]

Wow... did not expect to read this! I'm sure the truth, as always, resides somewhere in the middle.

[Boris13c]

Eagles QB Carson Wentz says he could have been better teammate

PHILADELPHIA -- Eagles quarterback Carson Wentz refuted multiple details in a story critical of him published last month by Philly Voice but did not dismiss the story outright, acknowledging that he could have been a better teammate as he navigated a trying year professionally.

"I know who I am, first of all. I know how I carry myself. I know I'm not perfect. I know I have flaws," he said during a sit-down interview with a small group of reporters at the Eagles' practice facility recently. "So I'm not going to sit here and say it was inaccurate and completely made up. I'm not going to do that. But at the end of the day, I will say our locker room is really close. If there were guys that had issues, in hindsight, I wish we could have just talked about them. But, again, I don't know how that all happened and everything with that."

Wentz was described as "egotistical," "selfish" and "uncompromising" in the story, which cited more than a half-dozen players and other sources, all of whom were quoted anonymously. He was accused of playing favorites and resisting certain concepts because he viewed them as "[Nick] Foles stuff."

Wentz said he was caught off guard by the report.

"It kind of came out of nowhere," he said. "I was literally eating breakfast with my wife, and [a member of the Eagles media relations staff] texted me. Literally, we do, like, quiet time in the morning. We eat breakfast and then I go sit on the couch. So I'm about to go read my Bible and then I get that text and now I'm reading this."

Wentz said he didn't really sense the friction internally described in the piece, but he didn't dismiss the notion out of hand.

"It's never fun to read, but to an extent, you look at it and be like, 'Well, if someone did have this perception of me, why? What have I done wrong? What can I get better at?'" he said. "I realize I have my shortcomings. Yes, I can be selfish. I think we all have selfishness inside of us. There's human elements to that, that I really look at and say, 'Well, I can get better.'"

[Bears Whiskey Nut]

Reminds me of when Lions players threw Joey Harrington under the bus for being relentlessly positive.

Well that, and he was terrible.