Jalen Hurts says he’s focused on the new and not his Eagles Super Bowl ring: ‘The past is behind us’
The Eagles quarterback didn't confirm if he ever wore his ring, instead saying he's only worried about starting a new journey with a new offense led by coordinator Kevin Patullo.
Jalen Hurts secured two rings this offseason — one to honor his marriage and another to commemorate the Eagles’ Super Bowl victory.
It’s unclear, though, if he’s put the latter on yet.
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The photos shared by the team from Friday’s private ring ceremony suggest he hasn’t. In one image, Hurts posed with the open box clutched between his hands alongside Nick Sirianni and Jeffrey Lurie, who wore the supersized, diamond-encrusted rings on their fingers.
In another photo, the 26-year-old quarterback sat on a sofa with Brandon Graham, who had a Super Bowl ring on each hand. A ringless Hurts simply pointed his left index finger to the Lombardi Trophy in his right hand.
But did he ever wear the ring away from the cameras? Hurts didn’t answer the question directly after the Eagles’ first training camp practice on Wednesday.
“I’ve moved on,” Hurts said. “I’ve moved on to the new year. It’s as simple as that.”
Regardless of whether he’s worn it, the ring and the Super Bowl were distant memories on the first day of camp. Hurts sidestepped an ensuing question about whether he keeps his championship rings accessible (he won one with Alabama in 2017) and emphasized that he didn’t want to engage in continued conversations about past games.
Yes, Hurts seemed to enjoy what he called a “surreal” moment at the ceremony. But it wasn’t a moment he’s dwelling on as training camp begins and the Eagles start from scratch with a different team.
“It was a moment, and that moment’s behind us,” Hurts said.
Jordan Mailata, Hurts’ blindside protector, echoed a similar sentiment.
“We’re not defending nothing,” Mailata said. “We’re not the defending champs. We’re the 2024 world champs. That’s it. We’re not defending [expletive]. Sorry. We’re not. I don’t like hearing, ‘Oh, we’re the defending champions.’ We’re not defending nothing. We just won the title. And now we’ve got to go win it again.”
After all, the Eagles have a new journey ahead of them. They have a new offensive coordinator in Kevin Patullo. New defensive personnel replacing veteran starters who left in the offseason. New challenges to face as defenses scheme to limit the most prolific rushing offense in the league last year.
Amid the new, Hurts values the experienced. This offseason, Hurts spent quality time with Michael Jordan, dining with him in March and attending Jordan Brand’s “Board of Greatness” event in Athens, Greece, earlier this month.
Jordan is no stranger to winning championships and facing challenges that arise in the ensuing seasons. According to Hurts, the six-time NBA champion and six-time NBA Finals MVP refused to use the word “repeat” when discussing his mentality the year after a championship win. Hurts said he can appreciate that approach.
“It’s a blank canvas,” Hurts said. “And we are who we are. We have who we have. And regardless, whether you win a championship or lose a championship, the next year, you have to be able to reset, have the right focus, and pursue it with great intensity, great passion. I think that’s where we are. We have a new team, new individuals, and we have a tight-knit core that’s been here throughout time.”
Going into Year 5 as the team’s starting quarterback, Hurts is the face of that offensive core, which boasts 10 of 11 Super Bowl starters this season. Some faces are newer, such as Saquon Barkley. Others have been around since the beginning of Hurts’ tenure as the starter, such as Lane Johnson and DeVonta Smith.
Together, with Hurts at the helm, the offense has found ways to win. Since his second season as the starter in 2022, Hurts has the second-highest quarterback win percentage (.787, 37-10) in the league, trailing just Patrick Mahomes (.796, 39-10). His career win percentage (.697, 46-20) is the seventh-best since the 1970 AFL-NFL merger.
With winning comes more responsibility, according to Hurts, who has found that his coaches are coming to him more frequently regarding changes to the offense.
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“I think that’s evolved, definitely,” Hurts said. “And it helps when you win. So I do feel a sense of intensity from Coach Kevin and Coach Nick. It’s something that’s great to see. I feel a bit encouraged and pushed to take the bulls by the horn in terms of what we are and who we are offensively. And kind of having a full grasp of it, so everybody’s on the same page and I can represent everyone appropriately in what we are as an offense on the field.”
Last year, the Eagles won in different ways. More often than not, Barkley was the one stumping defenses on the way to his 2,000-plus rushing yards. But in the Super Bowl, Hurts was the star of the offense and earned the game’s MVP honors after amassing 293 yards (221 passing, 72 rushing) and three touchdowns (two passing, one rushing).
But 2025 is a new season with a new offense. Hurts said it doesn’t matter what the latest iteration of the Eagles offense looks like as long as the team keeps winning at the forefront.
“I went a very long time being told that I’ve got to do it a certain type of way,” Hurts said. “That didn’t get me the win when I did it the way that everybody wanted me to do it. That’s something that I carry with me.
“When you put so much energy toward the product and performance, you kind of lose sight of what the main thing is in winning. I think having that [Super Bowl LVII] loss has done nothing but motivate me from that point on, in 2022 to now. Just finding ways to win, regardless of how it looks.”
The Eagles don’t know exactly how winning might look in 2025. Could the offense become more pass-heavy, given Barkley’s success last year? Or could the Eagles find new ways to open up the run game?
For now, Hurts’ focus remains on daily improvements in training camp, not Super Bowl rings, past or present.
“The past is behind us, and the future’s too far away,” Hurts said. “So we have to stay present and worry about right now.”
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