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          NFL Nation

          Jay Gruden praises Carson Wentz, 'very upset' he landed with Eagles

          • Tim McManus, ESPN Staff WriterOct 19, 2017, 07:10 PM
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              Tim McManus covers the Philadelphia Eagles for ESPN. He joined ESPN in 2016 after covering the Eagles for Philadelphia Magazine's Birds 24/7, a site he helped create, since 2010. You can follow him on Twitter @Tim_McManus.
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          PHILADELPHIA -- It looks like Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Carson Wentz is going to be a force in the NFC East for the foreseeable future, and Washington Redskins head coach Jay Gruden is not happy about it.

          "He's progressed at a rate as fast as anybody I've seen, really," Gruden told Philadelphia reporters in a conference call ahead of Monday night's Eagles-Redskins matchup. "I think he's already proven this short in his career that he's one of the top quarterbacks in the league, quite frankly, and he's going to be for a long time. I don't know how he got to Philadelphia, and I'm very upset about that."

          Wentz got to Philly as a result of the Los Angeles Rams opting for Jared Goff with the first overall pick in April 2016, and the Cleveland Browns agreeing to trade the No. 2 pick in the draft to the Eagles.

          Paul DePodesta, the Browns' chief strategy officer, indicated at the time that the organization didn't see Wentz as a top-20 quarterback.

          It appears they miscalculated. Wentz currently ranks fifth in passing yards (1,584), is tied for second with Tom Brady and Aaron Rodgers in touchdowns (13) and ranks seventh in QB rating (99.6) through six games, guiding the Eagles to a 5-1 record in the process.

          "Obviously he's got the big, strong arm, he's got the big body, he can run through tackles, all that stuff, but his poise under pressure is something that you cannot coach," Gruden said. "And he is very, very good."

          Wentz went 26-of-39 for 307 yards with two touchdowns and an inteception in the Eagles' Week 1 opener at Washington, a 30-17 Philly win.

          Gruden believes his quarterback, Kirk Cousins, is a franchise quarterback, but knows the presence of Wentz in the division will make for some tough sledding for his team moving forward.

          "Every week it seems like we're playing against an excellent quarterback, and knowing that Wentz is going to be there for a long period of time just puts a few more gray hairs on my head," Gruden said. "But love the competition, and it's our job to get after him and make him uncomfortable."