You can't ask Carson Wentz a question without him praising Nick Foles and Nate Sudfeld. Same with Foles and Sudfeld. Ask them about themselves, and they start raving about their teammates.
From Sept. 4, 2017, when the Eagles signed Sudfeld off the Redskins' waiver wire, until this past Feb. 27, when Howie Roseman announced that the Eagles would let Foles walk as a free agent, Wentz, Foles and Sudfeld formed an Eagles QB mutual admiration society.
They all kind of look the same and they all talk the same and for 17 months they were inseparable.
Now that's all changed.
Foles is a Jaguar, Wentz is the unchallenged No. 1 QB, Sudfeld enters his fourth year as the de facto No. 2, and into that quarterback room comes Northwestern rookie Clayton Thorson.
The new guy.
Thorson, the Eagles' fifth-round pick, said he's heard a lot about the Eagles' quarterback room and how supportive everybody is, and he's eager to find his way into that dynamic.
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I have heard it from the Eagles coaches. Hearing it from them and talking to them through this process, but also from other teams. You hear it in the media, too. It's (mainly) about football for them, and I am excited to be a part of that.
Thorson was the eighth quarterback taken this past weekend, and while nobody expects him to play for the Eagles anytime soon - if ever - as we've learned the last couple years, it's huge to have a healthy quarterback room where all the QBs work together for the common good of the team.
Safe to say without mutual respect, support and communication in that QB room, there is no Nick Foles magic in 2017 and no parade down Broad Street.
And safe to say without Wentz and Foles sharing their knowledge with Sudfeld, the Eagles wouldn't be in a position where they could rely on him as the No. 2 going into a Super Bowl.
"It tells me a lot," Thorson said. "It says a lot about that coaching staff and how they helped develop the guys who aren't the starters. It also says a lot about Carson, too."
Knowing Wentz and Sudfeld, they'll welcome Thorson into that room the same way they welcomed Foles two years ago.
It's kind of just like high school," Thorson said. "Going to college, you come in as the guy and obviously there are other guys there. I learned from Trevor Siemian (now with the Broncos) my freshman year of college. I'm really looking forward to getting in there and learning from Nate and Carson and those great coaches. Just keeping myself ready to go at any moment.
Thorson could end up as the Eagles' starter one day. He could become Wentz's No. 2 if Sudfeld leaves after this year. Maybe the Eagles develop him and trade him for a pick.
Whatever the future holds, Thorson seems like a perfect fit in a quarterback room where working together so everybody improves is a way of life.
It's just getting in there and learning from them. Obviously, Carson has the keys to the car, he knows it all and I'm sure Nate does too. So I'm looking forward to learning from them, but also becoming good friends with them and supporting them and competing my butt off. I've heard such great things about that room, obviously to see Nick go away, I think it's just a great opportunity for me.
Interesting that the Eagles have drafted a quarterback every three years since 2001:
2001: A.J. Feeley, 5th round
2004: Andy Hall, 6th round
2007: Kevin Kolb, 2nd round
2010: Mike Kafka, 4th round
2013: Matt Barkley, 4th round
2016: Carson Wentz, 1st round
2019: Clayton Thorson, 5th round
The only other QB they've drafted during that span is Foles in the third round in 2012.
Doug Pederson - and Andy Reid before him - loves having a young developmental quarterback to learn from the older guys, and by drafting one every few years you keep that cycle going.
You can't ask for a healthier QB situation than the one the Eagles have had the last couple years. It's up to them to keep that going with a new guy in town.
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