Looking to build a quarterback room as strong as possible, the Eagles have acquired young veteran Gardner Minshew from Jacksonville for a conditional 2022 sixth-round draft choice, adding Minshew as the third quarterback behind Jalen Hurts and Joe Flacco. As a corresponding move, the team released Nick Mullens on Saturday morning.
A third-year player from Washington State, Minshew enjoyed success with Jacksonville after he was a sixth-round draft pick in 2019. Among the career highlights for the 6-foot-1, 225-pound Minshew:
• Has started 20 of 23 career games and has completed 501 of 797 passes (62.9 percent) for 5,530 yards, 37 touchdowns, and 11 interceptions for a passer rating of 93.1
• His career passer rating of 93.1 is the highest in Jaguars history (minimum 100 attempts)
• His 21 passing TDs and 3,271 passing yards in 2019 were both the most by a rookie in franchise history
• Became the first rookie in NFL history with at least 230 yards passing per game, 20-plus TDs, and fewer than 10 INTs
The Eagles are continuing to address the roster as they eye Tuesday's 4 PM deadline to reach the NFL maximum of 53 players, and they targeted the game's most important position on Saturday morning. With Minshew on board, the Eagles have three quarterbacks who have won at the NFL level. Minshew is a fast decision-maker who has some mobility, a good arm, and toughness. He was a team leader in Jacksonville during a transition period for the Jaguars in the 2019 and 2020 seasons.
In 2020, Minshew saw action in nine games on the season, starting in eight and completing 216 of 327 passes for 16 TDs and a passer rating of 95.9. His passer rating of 95.9 ranks as the second-highest in franchise history by a quarterback with at least 300 attempts. He was voted a team captain by his teammates in only his second NFL season.
Minshew joins a quarterback room that enjoyed success in the preseason. Hurts had a strong summer in Training Camp, the joint practices against New England and the Jets as he took command of the offense and showed the leadership off the field that the Eagles witnessed in his 2020 rookie season, while Flacco gave the Eagles exactly what they expected when they signed him to a one-year deal in the offseason. Flacco's big arm, calm demeanor, and ability to dissect defenses quickly were evident traits he showed in his time on the field in the summer, including an extremely productive preseason performance capped by Friday's two-touchdown, 188-yard performance 31-31 tie against the New York Jets at MetLife Stadium. Both have expressed high levels of confidence in the offense and their understanding of the scheme implemented by Head Coach Nick Sirianni and Offensive Coordinator Shane Steichen.
As for Minshew, he became a bit of a cult hero in Jacksonville during his rookie season as he was a bright spot for a team that struggled from the very start of the season. Stepping in for injured starter Nick Foles in the opener against Kansas City, Minshew became the first rookie in the last 40 years to complete his first 13 passes. He completed 22 of 25 passes for 275 yards, two touchdowns, and an interception in the game, and Minshew Mania in Jacksonville began.
Minshew's path to the NFL wasn't exactly typical, as he graduated from East Carolina in December 2017 and enrolled at Washington State in June 2018. Minshew then finished fifth in the 2018 Heisman Trophy voting and won the 2018 Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award (nation's top senior or fourth-year junior QB) and was named a finalist for the Walter Camp Player of the Year and Davey O'Brien Award (nation's top QB). Minshew was named the PAC-12 Conference Offensive Player of the Year and earned a spot on the All-PAC-12 first team after leading the country in passing (367.6 yards per game). That season, he set conference and Washington State single-season records in passing yards (4,779) and completions (468).
Now he's an Eagle, adding to a room that has versatility, veteran leadership, and experience winning in the NFL.