Behind The Curtain

PHILADELPHIA — Outside of normal business hours, Eagles quarterback Will Grier, who each morning arrives early to the NovaCare Complex, has taken it upon himself to prioritize his conditioning, notably testing his limits on the Peloton.

A veteran of six seasons, Grier admits that the mental aspect of the game has become far less cumbersome, prompting an emphasis on honing in on the physical part of the job.

Grier wants to ensure he’s in the best shape possible and ready at a moment’s notice.

“Otherwise,” Grier said, “it’s just about how can I help the Eagles win. How can I help Jalen [Hurts]? My main goal is to help Jalen prepare throughout the week to make it easier for him on Sunday.”

GETTY IMAGES: Not many NFL teams keep four QBs. Even fewer keep a veteran, like Eagles practice squadder Will Grier, as their fourth.

As the fourth quarterback, practice reps are few and far between, inevitably relegating Grier to a glorified coaching role.

But despite miring in relative obscurity, the practice squad signal-caller happens to have one of the more critical roles as it pertains to the game-day operation and overall functionality of the team’s offensive centerpiece.

“I don’t get a ton of reps,” Grier admitted. “It’s really just individual and routes on air. I stay in shape. I’ve gotten a ton of reps in my career, especially in this offense. My role is really to help Jalen [Hurts]. So, that’s really what I do during practice. Help Jalen, help the offense.”

Grier has spent three seasons under Eagles offensive coordinator Kellen Moore – two in Dallas, another in Los Angeles – and has mastered the intricacies and nuances of Moore’s system.

In Philadelphia, Grier has uniquely fulfilled a role akin to acting as an extension of the coaching staff.

The well-traveled 29-year-old serves as an extra set of eyes on the field for Hurts while also aiding in his process on and off the field, preparing him for game scenarios. In many ways, Grier lives vicariously through Hurts.

“All you’re trying to do in the beginning of the season is create a process that will carry you through,” he explained.

That process between the two includes watching film with the offensive line once a week and with receivers once a week.

Grier and Hurts also touch base early in the week regarding the opposition.

While there have been signs of growing pains as the reconfigured Eagles offense gets off the ground, Hurts has seemingly responded favorably to Moore’s system, an offense often considered to be quarterback-friendly and predicated on easier completions, capitalizing on players in space, and mixing tempos.

Grier, for his part, believes the marriage of strengths and ideologies between Hurts and Moore through three games has found the right balance.

“They’ve done a good job kind of meeting in the middle of what Jalen’s done in the past, what he’s been good at,” Grier said. “What Kellen has brought, Jalen has done really well with and he’s still got a lot of room to grow and still cleaning up things.

“But Jalen is doing really well and his process has been really good. So, the process will start to show as we get into the season a little bit more. The process will show up and I think we’re gonna continue to put up a lot of points, a lot of yards.”

Hurts, in his fourth season as a full-time starter, is fourth in the NFL in passing yards (772). He’s far more decisive with where to go with the football, seeing the field with clearer vision, playing without restriction and has seemingly taken command of the offense, making it his own.

And while the turnovers have snowballed – Hurts has thrown an interception in seven consecutive regular season games – Hurts has a rather sizable support team to coach him through it.

But Grier pinpointed one area where he believes Hurts has especially exhibited growth.

“I think just his operation at the line,” he said. “Knowing protections, where the line’s going to in protections and really in the run game. And I think he’s learning and growing over his experience of how teams may play him differently because of his ability to extend plays.

“And his process and his process at the line, I think he sees it really well. I think he’s always kind of seen it, but he has a plan on every play. And it’s starting to show up in games. We had a few big ones this weekend that he saw, he made the right check and executed a great play. That’s playing quarterback in this league.”

Although road travel isn’t typical for practice squad players — especially for those with three other quarterbacks above them in the pecking order — Grier has been with the Eagles on road games, offering a different perspective from the sideline and providing Hurts with another set of eyes and insight.

That the coaching staff, and Hurts, value Grier’s acumen and contributions to that degree speaks volumes about the respect inside the building for the West Virginia alum.

Grier’s game day duties largely mimic his role in practice, serving as an extension of the coaching staff.

“I’m a tablet guy,” Grier explained. “I chart all the coverages with the plays we run and just have it available to him and the coaches that may need it on game day. And then I’m just there as a sounding board.

“He knows what he’s doing, he’s played long enough. He sees it really well, and I’m just there if he wants to [say], ‘Hey, what’d ya see here?’ So, that’s just kind of finishing the process of the week, is making the game day adjustments that maybe we have or haven’t talked about. That’s kind of what game day is.”

The crowded Eagles quarterback room, which also includes Kenny Pickett and Tanner McKee, is close-knit. Grier, who lauded the environment, commended both players for continuing to learn and absorb Moore’s offense, noting that the offense presents the opportunity to learn the full scope of the position, as quarterbacks in Moore’s system are involved in protections as well as the run game.

The ability to process information and pilot the offense is essential.

As for Grier, who still has his eyes on playing and prepares as though he will, it seems as though his wisdom, hands-on approach and trust from the coaching staff forecasts a transition for his post-football career.

While it appears his role as the seldom discussed practice squad quarterback is trivial at best, the journeyman quarterback, who boasts a wealth of knowledge, holds a pretty important position.

Even if Grier doesn’t take another snap in a game setting, his coaching fate that awaits seems inevitable.

“Yeah, I think so,” Grier said with a chuckle. “I don’t know what else I’d do. I have a PHD in football. I’ve played for [Bill] Belichick, and Mike McCarthy and Zac Taylor, Norv Turner and Ron Rivera.

“I’ve been around a lot of good coaches. And now with [Nick] Sirianni here and Kellen, I just know a lot of football and I don’t know what else I’d do.”

– Andrew DiCecco (@AndrewDiCecco) is a Staff Reporter/Content Producer for InsideTheBirds.com.