Carson Wentz Read online

  Contents

  North Dakota’s Native Son

  Rapid Rise Before the Draft

  Ready to Fly Like an Eagle

  The QB Incubator

  Thrown Into the Fire

  Faith and Football

  Carson Wentz, “The Hunter”

  A Leader of Men

  Wentz vs. Prescott

  A Band of Brothers

  Dressed to Impress

  The Dutch Destroyer

  Suddenly an MVP

  Spreading It Around

  Wentzylvania

  Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Carson Wentz celebrates during a Week 6 game against the Carolina Panthers, Thursday, October 12, 2017, in Charlotte. Philadelphia won the game 28–23. (Aaron M. Sprecher via AP)

  North Dakota’s Native Son

  Carson Wentz’s rise to NFL stardom is as rapid as the growth spurt that he experienced while he was at Century High School in Bismarck, North Dakota. He went from a 5-foot-8 freshman to a 6-foot-5 star senior quarterback.

  He played baseball, basketball, and football in high school. As a junior, Wentz did not play basketball so he could concentrate on football. He played basketball once again during his senior year and helped Century win a state championship.

  Shoulder and arm problems caused Wentz to play wide receiver as a junior. The shoulder injury came from playing baseball, where he was a three-year starter playing first base.

  Wentz used to gather some of his receivers and sneak into the Community Bowl in Bismark and have them run routes for him. He would pick them up in his old 2004 gold Nissan Frontier and drive to an adjacent lot so they could sneak into the stadium and play catch for hours.

  On the football field, Wentz was the 2010 North Dakota Class 3A Player of the Year. The all-conference quarterback and defensive back led Century to an 8–3 record and a state semifinals appearance in 2010.

  Century High School isn’t only known for producing one of the NFL’s fastest rising stars. The high school was also attended by 2017 Miss America Cara Mund, along with Wentz.

  She mentioned her classmate in her acceptance speech.

  “I said, ‘If Carson Wentz can do it, Miss North Dakota Cara Mund can become Miss America.’”

  North Dakota State quarterback Carson Wentz (11) tries to break a tackle by Iowa State linebacker Jared Brackens (14) during the second half, Saturday, August 30, 2014, in Ames, Iowa. North Dakota State won 34–14. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall)

  Becoming a Bison

  Wentz didn’t receive a single Division I scholarship offer despite a stellar career at Century High. The decision to stay in the state and become a member of the North Dakota State Bison football team was a no-brainer. Although he played a different sport, Wentz just followed his brother’s footsteps.

  Wentz’s brother Zach was a four-year starting pitcher and infielder for North Dakota State’s baseball team. Zach set career records for games played, hits, and doubles. He was a vital part of a 40-win team in 2012.

  Playing sports at North Dakota State is a part of life for the Wentz family. His cousin, Connor, was a tight end on his 2013, 2014, and 2015 football teams at North Dakota State.

  The Bison won their first FCS championship in Wentz’s freshman year. Wentz didn’t have a real hand in the team’s championship, but the winning habits that he now shows on Sundays grew from seeds that were planted at North Dakota State.

  Wentz backed up quarterback Brock Jensen as a redshirt freshman. He threw his first touchdown pass against Prairie View A&M when he was able to enter the game in relief of Jensen. Wentz was a perfect 8-for-8 in that game and finished the day with 93 passing yards in addition to his touchdown throw.

  He would have to wait another season to be the starter, as Jensen held onto the job as a senior in 2013. Wentz’s best game that season was against Delaware State. He completed 10-of-13 attempted passes for 105 passing yards and a touchdown.

  Wentz celebrates with his team after scoring the go-ahead touchdown against Illinois State during the FCS championship game, Saturday, January 10, 2015, in Frisco, Texas. North Dakota State won the game 29–27 for their fourth straight national championship. (AP Photo/Tim Sharp)

  Carrying on the Championship Tradition

  Once 2014 rolled around, it was Wentz’s turn to take over under center. The responsibility of carrying on the winning tradition for the Bison was placed squarely on Wentz’s shoulders.

  Their first task was playing against Iowa State, a heavily favored FBS opponent. Wentz was able to efficiently rise to the occasion and come out on top by completing 18-of-28 pass attempts for 204 yards in a 34–14 victory.

  Wentz led NDSU to a 15–1 record in his first season as a starting quarterback. He started all 16 games in 2014, completing 228-of-358 passes for 3,111 yards with 25 touchdowns and 10 interceptions.

  Oh, and, for good measure, Wentz was the Bison’s second-leading rusher, with 642 rushing yards and six rushing touchdowns. North Dakota State’s leading rusher John Crockett went on to the NFL the next season.

  Wentz capped off his junior season with a spectacular performance in the national championship game against Illinois State. He finished the day with 287 yards passing and a touchdown. He also rushed for 87 yards in the win. One of his carries was a five-yard run to give North Dakota State the lead with 37 seconds left in the game. The defense held on to secure a 29–27 win and give the Bison their fourth consecutive national championship.

  Wentz accepts the trophy for the most valuable player after the FCS championship game, Saturday, January 9, 2016, in Frisco, Texas. North Dakota State beat Jacksonville State 37–10 to win their fifth consecutive championship. (AP Photo/Mike Stone)

  It was during his fifth year at North Dakota State when things got tough. Wentz had a career game against Northern Iowa when he passed for a career-high 335 yards. The very next week, Wentz suffered a broken wrist, but still managed to finish the game!

  The Bison lost to South Dakota, and Wentz was out for the next eight weeks. But he didn’t let the injury keep him from having an impact on his team’s success.

  Wentz worked extensively in the classroom with redshirt freshman quarterback Easton Stick. Wentz was a mentor to Stick just as Jensen had been to him a couple of years earlier.

  North Dakota State went on to win the next seven games and earn another shot at the national championship. Wentz returned to practice in December and started the national championship game against Jacksonville State.

  His two rushing touchdowns and a passing touchdown fueled the Bison to their fifth consecutive national title.

  Wentz is congratulated by fans following the FCS championship game against Illinois State, Saturday, January 10, 2015, in Frisco, Texas. (AP Photo/Tim Sharp)

  Leaving a Legacy

  Wentz is only the 52nd NFL player from the state of North Dakota, and only the third from Bismarck. Even though other players have gone on to the NFL from North Dakota State, none took the state by storm the way Wentz did.

  North Dakota is Minnesota Vikings and Green Bay Packers territory, but now there are just as many people who watch Wentz’s Philadelphia Eagles at Bismarck sports bars on Sundays.

  The way the people of North Dakota adopted Wentz as their native son was evident when Eagles head coach Doug Pederson, GM Howie Roseman, and team owner Jeffrey Lurie went there to meet with him at dinner.

  Roseman was astonished by the reactions from people when Wentz entered the restaurant.

  “He walks into the restaurant, just the impressions people have. It was an interesting moment because we walked into the restaurant and I had to step out for
a second,” Roseman said during his press conference after selecting Wentz in the NFL Draft. “When I walked back in, I saw the manager and the hostess talking to each other and saying, ‘Carson is just the greatest guy. He’s always so humble, and he’s always so appreciative of all of us here.’ They didn’t know what we were doing, and it was just—that’s the kind of kid he is.”

  Wentz works out with the North team during practice for the Senior Bowl, Wednesday, January 27, 2016, at Ladd-Peebles Stadium, in Mobil, Alabama. (AP Photo/Brynn Anderson)

  One family traveled more than 1,500 miles from Jamestown, North Dakota, to South Philadelphia to see their favorite player. Chuck and Karen Anderson have been rooting for Wentz since his days at North Dakota State. They wanted to see him in person at Eagles training camp during the summer.

  “It’s just awesome to be included in all this stuff. It’s just great. I get the dream. Once in a lifetime, maybe,” Chuck Anderson said to Channel 6ABC.

  “He’s awesome. Such a role model for our kids and grandkids,” Karen Anderson said as she tried to keep from crying. “Just being here, being away from North Dakota, to get to be here. It’s just great.”

  In addition to the green and yellow Bison colors, fans have taken to the Eagles’ green and gray like proud parents solely because it’s the second home of their adopted son.

  Rapid Rise Before the Draft

  The meteoric rise that Carson Wentz made before the 2016 NFL Draft was unprecedented. He went from a little-known FCS quarterback at the beginning of the year to what many viewed as the best quarterback in the country.

  The hype train really got rolling just before Wentz traveled to Mobile, Alabama, for the Senior Bowl. NFL Network draft analyst Mike Mayock pointed to Wentz as a player to watch as Senior Bowl week approached.

  It all started when Mayock was doing some film prep for the players he was going to see at the Senior Bowl.

  “The way I look at Wentz, the first tape I put in, I went ‘Wow.’ I didn’t even know who he was. He was just a quarterback on my list,” Mayock said. “I watched this big kid sling the ball around a lot, and on top of it, was athletic enough that they planned quarterback runs for him.

  “So you do some homework, and you find out he’s 6-5, 235. And I put the second tape in hoping it would be as good as the first—and it was better. So you start doing homework on the kid, and yeah, he’s only got 23 starts, but he’s 20–3 as a starter at a great program in Division I-AA, [with] five consecutive national championships.”

  Wentz works out during his pro day, Thursday, March 24, 2016, in Fargo, North Dakota. (AP Photo/Bruce Crummy)

  Senior Bowl Standout

  Mayock’s opinion only got stronger after watching him for a week of practice.

  “When I look at him, I see a kid that’s as athletic or more athletic than Andrew Luck,” Mayock said, via Mary Kay Cabot of the Cleveland Plain Dealer. “He’s bigger than Andrew Luck. He’s got arm strength comparable to Andrew Luck. He just doesn’t have the experience that Andrew Luck had at a high level that Andrew had coming out of college. So I see a ceiling for this kid similar to Andrew Luck. That’s why I believe in this kid so much. But it’s going to take a little bit of time.”

  NFL scouts and evaluators learned a lot about Wentz when they saw him in person during the week of practices leading up to the Senior Bowl. Many were enamored with his big frame and the athleticism that he showed. It was the big arm that he displayed that really caught the attention of the scouts.

  By the time the week of practice was over, Wentz was named the starter for the North team in the Senior Bowl game. He came out and completed his first pass, a three-yard completion to tight end Nick Vaannett on the first play of the game.

  Wentz finished the game having completed 6-of-10 pass attempts for 50 yards. The impression was made by Wentz during that week. The momentum officially hit overdrive.

  The Dallas Cowboys coaching staff coached Wentz and the North team during the week. Former NFL quarterback turned Cowboys head coach Jason Garrett enjoy working with Wentz. He came away extremely impressed with him.

  “He responded very well,” Garrett said of Wentz, per Pro Football Talk. “When he went against the guys at the Senior Bowl, I thought he fit in really well. He’s a small-school guy, but he’s a very impressive guy as an individual, just the way he carries himself, his leadership. He’s very impressive physically. He’s a big kid, athletic, and he can throw the football. It was a good week for us to get to know him.”

  Wentz runs the 40-yard dash drill at the NFL Combine, Saturday, February 27, 2016, in Indianapolis. (AP Photo/ Darron Cummings)

  Crushing the Combine

  Next for Wentz came the NFL Combine. His formal interview with the Philadelphia Eagles blew the team away. Quarterbacks coach John DeFilippo asked Wentz how he feels about some of the people who say he will struggle to make the jump from North Dakota State to the NFL.

  “It is what it is. Those things are out of my control. It’s all in the past, but I believe I made the most of my opportunities and then some,” Wentz responded. “If anyone wants to doubt that, I am more than ready to prove them wrong. That’s my attitude, and I am just ready to roll.”

  The answer impressed the Eagles brass that included GM Howie Roseman, head coach Doug Pederson, offensive coordinator Frank Reich, and team owner Jeffrey Lurie. That’s quite a group to have your first interview with!

  Wentz aced the test and impressed everyone as they talked pass protection, play concepts, and more. The Eagles were convinced they had to have him, but only had the 13th overall pick. With the Dallas Cowboys holding the No. 4 overall pick and their interest in Wentz being no secret, it was clear the Eagles needed to jump ahead of Dallas if they wanted to get him.

  Wentz excelled during Combine workouts as he displayed his big arm by putting throws on the money from the hash to the sideline on out-breaking routes by the receivers. That’s a pro level throw that separates the good from the great quarterbacks, and Wentz consistently completed it with ease.

  He showed some touch on deep passes, but the one area that continued to be an issue was his accuracy on deeper crossing routes. Nevertheless, the Combine was another rung on the ladder toward the top of the draft.

  As he continued to rise, Wentz showed the confidence that is fitting for a franchise quarterback.

  “I am not sure how it happened. But I have been in total control of what I can control and focused on that,” Wentz said on NFL Network. “Am I surprised? Not really. I kind of expected this and hoped for it. It was a goal. We are not done and have a lot of work to do. I am looking forward to hearing my name called at the draft in April.”

  Philadelphia Eagles head coach Doug Pederson speaks during a press conference at the NFL Combine in Indianapolis, February 24, 2016. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy, File)

  Passing on Pro Day

  Wentz held his pro day workout at the Fargo Dome in North Dakota in late March of 2016. The weather conditions created flight delays for some NFL franchises that attempted to send representatives to the workout.

  There were 14 NFL teams represented at Wentz’s pro day. That pales in comparison to the 32 teams that attended fellow top prospect Jared Goff’s pro day.

  Cleveland Browns head coach Hue Jackson was one of the higher-ranking personnel people in attendance—in fact, he was the only head coach there! The Browns held the No. 2 overall pick at the time.

  With Cleveland being a city notorious for severe weather, Browns assistant coach Pep Hamilton conducted the workout. They doused the football with water to simulate poor throwing conditions.

  Although he played in North Dakota, Wentz and the Bison had the benefit of playing their home games indoors. But the challenge of throwing a wet football didn’t rattle Wentz, even after his first pass slipped out of his hands and torpedoed into the turf.

  “I just had to get use
d to the first one, and obviously it went right into the dirt. But I got the feel for it after that, and I thought it was all right.” Wentz said on NFL Network. “I mean, it happens. Anytime you’re playing with a wet football, it’s not going to be perfect. It was pretty doused. That would’ve been torrential downpour there. I thought it was all right.”

  According to NFL Media senior analyst Gil Brandt, Wentz completed 63-of-65 passes during the workout, one of which was dropped. Brandt called it one of the best pro day workouts he had ever seen and said Wentz reminded him of Baltimore Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco.

  Wentz runs a drill at the NFL Combine on Saturday, February 27, 2016, in Indianapolis. (AP Photo/Darron Cummings)

  Pepperoni or Sausage? Vanilla or Chocolate?

  Eagles head coach Doug Pederson saw both University of California quarterback Jared Goff and Wentz in person. He put each of them through a pre-draft workout but seemed to be leaning toward Wentz.

  “Carson is a bit of a better athlete right now. He is bigger, more mobile, but both of them have a chance to be franchise quarterbacks. At 218 pounds, Goff is probably the more undersized of the two,” Pederson said during a pre-draft press conference. “I played at 218 pounds as well so I don’t put a lot into weight. They are very similar but have different strengths and weaknesses. I liked working them out and getting my hands on them.”

  GM Howie Roseman coined his infamous “pepperoni or sausage” phrase when he was asked about being able to take one of the top two quarterbacks in the draft.

  “We’re very sure we’re going to get the player we want,” Roseman said. “It’s like vanilla or chocolate, you know? It’s like pepperoni pizza or sausage. What do you like better?”