Washington Commanders quarterback Carson Wentz is all too familiar with the Eagles. After all, the Eagles used several assets to trade up and grab him with the second overall pick in the 2016 draft, hoping he would become the quarterback who would be with the team for at least a decade, leading them to several wins.
Two trades later, Wentz finds himself in Washington and preparing to take on the Eagles on Sunday afternoon at FedEx Field in Englewood, Maryland. During a Wednesday press conference, Wentz said he was excited to face his old team.
“There are a lot of really good memories from my time there,” Wentz told reporters. “I’m not going to lie. I met a lot of great friends and had a lot of great relationships that I made. I definitely will have some mixed emotions about those things, but nothing crazy jumps out other than my time there. It was a whirlwind, and it was wild. This NFL is a whirlwind, but I’m grateful to still be playing, and I’m excited for this one.”
Wentz finished his time with the Eagles completing 62.7 percent of his passes (1,941 of 3,095) for 21,024 yards, 147 touchdowns, and 60 interceptions over five seasons. After struggling for most of the 2020 season, Wentz was benched with four games remaining, being replaced by Jalen Hurts, who the team selected in the second round of that year’s draft. After the season, Wentz reportedly requested a trade and was sent to the Indianapolis Colts for draft picks.
Although he will be going against the player who eventually took his job, Wentz said he would only focus on the Eagles defense.
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“They have a good defense,” Wentz said. “I know our defense will be up for the task of stopping him in that explosive offense that they have there, but I don’t put a lot of stock into that. It’s a new team with a lot of new faces over there. It’ll be a fun one either way.”
Wentz added that he had a lot of fun playing for the Eagles, especially when the team won Super Bowl LII, calling it a “special” city. Wentz also talked about the possibility of many Eagles fans traveling south to FedEx Field to go to the game and being loud. Wentz said that it was a good turnout at FedEx field for his first start against the Indianapolis Colts, and he hopes there will still be a strong contingent of Commanders fans in the stadium.
“We’ll find out," Wentz said. ”It is exciting playing at home here. It was fun being at home here at FedEx for Week 1. I’m sure the Eagles fans will travel well like they always do. Hopefully, we’re still dominating the stands there. Either way, it’ll be fun.”
If Wentz wants any chance of defeating the Eagles, he will have to keep his emotions in check, especially in the first quarter after the team comes out of the tunnel. Wentz said the Eagles defense does not run anything “complex,” so he will have to get the ball out quickly, avoid the Eagles' pass rush, and not put himself in situations where he will force the ball to his receivers, creating turnover chances. If not, the Eagles could get a large lead early in the game.
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