Doug Pederson finally couldn’t watch anymore.
After 11 1/2 miserable games by his one-time Pro Bowl quarterback, Pederson benched Wentz for Jalen Hurts early in the third quarter of the Eagles' game against the Packers in Green Bay.
A year ago, Wentz became the first opposing quarterback in seven years to throw three TDs and no INTs in a win over the Packers at Lambeau Field.
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That seems like ancient history now.
Wentz has been terrible all year, and on Sunday, with the lifeless Eagles trailing the Packers 20-3 early in the second half, Pederson finally had enough and yanked him in favor of Hurts.
Wentz was 6 for 15 for 79 yards, with 41 of the yards coming on a completion to Dallas Goedert.
Hurts, the Heisman Trophy runner-up for Oklahoma a year ago, has been playing sporadically since Week 2. He had played 33 snaps all year but only nine in the last four games.
NFL
Before Sunday, Hurts was 3 for 3 for 33 yards passing and averaging 4.4 yards on 12 carries.
Hurts threw 80 touchdowns and 20 interceptions in four years at Alabama and Oklahoma.
Wentz, the second pick in the 2016 draft and an MVP candidate in 2017, came into the game ranked at or near the bottom of the NFL in every major statistical category,
Wentz went 11-2 in 2017 but coming into the Packers game he was 17-20-1 in 38 starts since a knee injury ended his 2017 season two months before his backup, Nick Foles, won the Super Bowl.
Wentz is the first Eagles quarterback benched in eight years, since Andy Reid benched Michael Vick late in the 2012 season.
With the Eagles 3-9 and losers of eight straight, Reid benched Vick for Foles for the final four games of the season. Foles had been starting for several weeks while Vick was hurt, and Reid basically just kept Foles in the lineup once Vick was healthy.
In 2010, similarly, Reid kept Vick in the lineup once Kevin Kolb recovered from a concussion he suffered in the season opener. Vick went on to lead the Eagles to the playoffs and make the Pro Bowl.
It's been 12 years since an Eagles QB has been benched during a game.
In 2008, Reid benched Donovan McNabb for Kolb at halftime of a game against the Ravens in Baltimore, but Kolb did not play well and McNabb returned to throw four touchdowns against the Cards the next week and ultimately led the Eagles to the NFC Championship Game.
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