In 2017, Carson Wentz was likely on his way to winning the NFL MVP award before suffering an ACL injury in the Week 14 matchup with the Rams. Nick Foles took the reins from there, and the rest was history, as the Philadelphia Eagles would win Super Bowl LII over the New England Patriots without their former first-round quarterback at the helm.
What Was the Reason Behind Carson Wentz’s Eagles Fallout & His Subsequent Trade?
After Wentz regained his starting spot in the 2018 season, the next few years saw nothing resembling his MVP-level performance. During the 2020 campaign, Wentz would be benched in favor of second-round pick Jalen Hurts. Despite having 21 total touchdowns, he also committed 19 total turnovers, making the move to the young Hurts an easy one.
That offseason, the Eagles would move Wentz to the Indianapolis Colts for a 2021 third-round pick and a 2022 first-rounder. He was reunited with former Eagles offensive coordinator Frank Reich, who was then the head coach in Indianapolis.
Following the 2022 season, reports surfaced that Wentz voiced his displeasure to other injured Eagles about the team’s 2017 success, which he wasn’t a part of. That, coupled with a lack of accountability routinely reported post-ACL, led to many within the organization souring on him.
As the Eagles moved forward with Hurts, it initially left a lot of fans scratching their heads, as the team was just 9-10 in the young quarterback’s first 19 starts. 2022 saw a trade for AJ Brown on draft night, and everything else clicked for Philadelphia as Hurts combined for 35 total touchdowns en route to a 14-1 regular season record and a trip to the Super Bowl.
Hurts would also finish 2nd in MVP voting that year, justifying the switch at quarterback years earlier as the right one.
Wentz’s Post-Eagles NFL Tour
Meanwhile, Wentz would have a productive first season with the Colts, but they failed to make the playoffs, losing their final game of the season. Indianapolis then sent him to the Washington Commanders, where again, a mix of subpar results and a midseason injury led the Commanders to release him after the 2022 season.
Wentz would then go on to back up two future Hall of Fame quarterbacks the next few seasons. In 2023 he signed with the Los Angeles Rams to back up Matthew Stafford, where he started the team’s final game of the season, as Los Angeles had already locked up a playoff spot.
The same was true in 2024, when he signed on with the Kansas City Chiefs, backing up Patrick Mahomes. Kansas City would go on to Super Bowl LIX, where they would eventually lose 40-22 to Wentz’s former team, the Eagles.
Coming Home to Minnesota
In August, the Minnesota Vikings signed Wentz to a one-year deal to be the backup for 2024 first-round pick J.J. McCarthy. After McCarthy suffered a high ankle sprain in Week 2 versus the Atlanta Falcons, he made NFL history by becoming the first quarterback ever to start a game for six different teams in six straight seasons.
With McCarthy still on the mend, he is now set to face his former squad in Week 7, where both teams are at a crossroads. The Eagles are coming off back-to-back losses after beginning the year 4-0 and plenty of off-the-field drama surrounding the aforementioned AJ Brown.
The Vikings are heading into their toughest stretch of the season with a journeyman at the most important position on the field.
Regardless of the outcome on Sunday, the Eagles clearly made the correct decision to move on from Wentz. Hurts has delivered the franchise a Super Bowl title since the switch, while the Vikings are hoping Wentz can find any magic to keep their season afloat until McCarthy can find his way back into the lineup.
