Sports Writer Race Shames White People Who Said Jalen Hurts ‘Wasn’t an ‘NFL QB’

Jalen Hurts has Eagles fans believing again, after an impressive win over the Saints and a close loss to the Cardinals.

However, an NBC Sports College Football Writer isn’t letting those who doubted Hurts (who is black) forget their earlier takes. Specifically, he’s not letting white people forget their earlier takes.

Thor Nystrom, a Rotoworld and NBC analyst, posted a tweet late Sunday night that contained the words, “Jalen Hurts isn’t an NFL QB,” and an image with over a dozen white people.

While shaming those who got their pre-draft analysis wrong (it’s still way too early to say that Hurts is going to be a successful NFL quarterback, but let’s say he will for argument’s sake) is completely fair game, adding the racial component seems off in this particular case.

Those who doubted Hurts – whatever their race – did so largely due to his reputation as a run-first player and an inconsistent passer. However, plenty of people also doubted Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen (who is white) for the same reason.

In fact, one of the quarterbacks that Hurts drew the most comparisons to in the NFL was Saints backup Tayson Hill, who is white. Hill has played the role of an athletic high-value backup to Drew Brees who could come in and enhance his team’s goal-line and short-yardage situations. Or, add some trickery in the game plan to keep the defense guessing.

While most believed Hurts is a better QB than Hill (and he appears to be) there was a belief that Hurts would at least initially serve in this kind of role with the Eagles. In fact, Pro Football Focus referred to Hurts as a “rich man’s Taysom Hill.”

So, where is the racism?

The concerns about Hurts relying on his athleticism and being inconsistent in the passing game were obvious to anyone who watched him at Alabama or Oklahoma. But, those same concerns have been attached to Josh Allen, Johnny Manziel, Taysom Hill, and other white college quarterbacks as well.

Moreover, the success Hurts has had in the early going here has not just surprised white people.

ESPN NFL analyst Louis Riddick (who is black and smart enough to be interviewed by multiple NFL teams for vacant general manager positions) predicted that Hurts’ first start against New Orleans “could get ugly” because Hurts wasn’t ready to handle the Saints defense.

Is Riddick a racist too?

The concerns about Jalen Hurts as an NFL quarterback were well-founded. He was by no means a slam dunk prospect. Still, Hurts is having success and unless you don’t like the Eagles you should be happy about it. Let that be the story, not needless and inaccurate race shaming.