Iggles Blitz

by Tommy Lawlor

A Dead Horse

Posted July 15th, 2026 | No Comments »

ESPN released their QB rankings and that means it is time for more arguing about Jalen Hurts and where he is ranked. This can feel like a topic that has been beaten to death, but it continues to pop up.

Here are the rankings for QBs. Hurts didn’t get a write-up since he was all the way down at 17th, just after Trevor Lawrence.

Ugh. That is nuts.

To be fair, here is the description for what the rankings are,

“This was not a five-year projection or a career achievement award, but meant to answer a simple question: Who are the best players right now?”

Hurts is coming off a down year so I get him not being too high on the list. But putting him down at 17 just feels wrong. The argument for Hurts is that he didn’t have good coaching last year and the OL had issues that affected the whole offense. The argument against Hurts is that top QBs should be able to overcome tough circumstances. Older fans might remember the 2000 season. Duce Staley went down in Week 5. Donovan McNabb carried the offense on his back and finished second in MVP voting. Hurts wasn’t bad in 2025, but he sure didn’t elevate the offense.

The funny thing is that I don’t know how you completely separate the man from his accomplishments. We’re judging Hurts on last season, but have to ignore everything before that? I get not focusing on the distant past. You can’t judge Aaron Rodgers on what he did 10 years ago. He’s a different player now. Hurts hasn’t changed significantly from 2024 to now. Or even the couple of years before that.

Not bad for a below average QB, right?

None of this really matters. Hurts was ranked ninth last year. That ranking didn’t help him have a good year or win a playoff game. If anything, the low ranking probably helps since it will serve as a motivating factor for a player who is at his best when doubted.

Here are some discussions about Hurts and his ranking.

Most of the media in those videos acknowledge that 17 is too low. I was surprised at the lack of bad hot takes. These are reasonable discussions.

One key point in regard to Hurts is that he didn’t run as much last year. That hurt him. He isn’t an efficient, polished passer. If you limit his running, he’s not the same quality of QB. It will be interesting to see if he runs more this season, realizing what a key part of his game it is.

*****

Other rankings…

Interior OL

Landon Dickerson and Cam Jurgens didn’t make the Top 15, but did get votes. That seems very reasonable based on how they played last year.

***

WR

DeVonta Smith is down at 21. That is low when you consider he’s below Davante Adams, Tyreek Hill and Zay Flowers. Adams and Hill are rated highly because of their careers, which is ironic since that isn’t what the sources are supposed to use as criteria. Smith should be higher next year. He has a chance to have a breakout season with AJ gone.

There is no question that Smitty has the talent to be a good WR1.

***

Off-ball LB

4. Zack Baun, Philadelphia Eagles
Highest ranking: 3 | Lowest ranking: 10
Age: 29 | Last year’s ranking: 3

Baun is one of the league’s great success stories. Once a part-time player, he parlayed an All-Pro season in Philadelphia into a three-year, $51 million deal during the 2025 offseason. His most recent season showed he was no fluke, producing a second consecutive Pro Bowl performance. Baun was one of two linebackers to appear on every top-10 ballot.

“He’s got lateral quickness and is an incredibly smart player,” an NFL personnel evaluator said. “He’s perfect for Vic’s [Fangio] scheme, can play close to the line and get pressure or can play off the ball.”

Baun was the only player with at least 120 tackles and 10 disrupted dropbacks last season (a disrupted dropback is a sack, interception or batted/defended/tipped pass).

Good ranking. Baun is a Top 5 LB. He does everything well and is very versatile. This is the kind of guy you want in the middle of your defense. He can make plays in the backfield or 30 yards downfield.

I was shocked that Nakobe Dean wasn’t listed at all. Did these people not watch him play last year? Jihaad Campbell even got a vote. Weird.

_