Jalen Hurts scored a record-breaking deal with the Eagles on Monday, as they locked the 24-year-old quarterback into a five-year deal that will keep him in Philadelphia through 2028.
The nitty gritty details reported reveal that Hurts' extension will pay him upwards of $255 million over those five years, good for an average annual value of $51 million. That will make him the highest-paid player in NFL history.
In fact, the Eagles are so committed to Hurts that they gave him the first no-trade clause in franchise history.
MORE: Jalen Hurts contract details | Jalen Hurts contract breakdown
Hurts' deal is certainly massive and it's one that he couldn't have completed without support from his long-time agent Nicole Lynn, who negotiated it.
Divine timing that, the same morning, Essence released a cover story on Hurts for the months of May and June that featured quotes from Lynn, who serves as Klutch Sports' president of football operations.
Breaking news: Jalen Hurts has just Touched Down as our May/June cover star. #ESSENCE pic.twitter.com/0tYRjqdHE8
— ESSENCE (@Essence) April 17, 2023
One of the biggest takeaways from the story, written by Danyel Smith, was that Lynn sees Hurts in a unique light.
MORE: Who is Nicole Lynn?
Lynn compared the quarterback to not one, but two of the world's GOATs: Kobe Bryant and Beyoncé.
In the article, Smith wrote:
Hurts’s agent, Nicole Lynn, says she doesn’t often post him to her Instagram feed—“because I get all the DMs, and I’m like, Hey, that’s my little bro. Everybody gotta chill.” But Lynn knows what she’s working with. “He’s a mixture of Kobe Bryant and Beyoncé,” she says. An avid Bey fan, Lynn knows she’s said a mouthful, but hear her out. “Jalen gives you so little in public,” she explains. “Even when you’re talking to him, you want more. You don’t really know him. He’s not intentionally secretive but naturally has this elusive I need to know, I need more. That’s Beyoncé. It makes you wanna know them. It makes you wanna root for them.” And as for the late Kobe Bryant? “Jalen’s got the Kobe obsessive work ethic. Shooting for greatness. And never satisfied.”
This comparison shouldn't come as a surprise for people who truly pay attention to Hurts, especially the Bryant part of it. The Texas native has been a fan of Bryant since the late Hall of Famer visited Alabama during Hurts' collegiate tenure.
The Philadelphia Inquirer also detailed that Hurts studied Bryant's work ethic prior to the 2020 NFL Draft, and he's been photographed rocking Bryant merchandise in the tunnels before games.
Jalen Hurts rockin Kobe Bryant Lower Merion jacket arriving in Denver 🔥🔥
— John Clark (@JClarkNBCS) November 14, 2021
Nick Sirianni preached the Mamba Mentality and showed Eagles Kobe video in team meeting this week pic.twitter.com/HyB72HTRkV
So, the comparison may be an apt one, but Hurts will need to win a Super Bowl to get to the level of the five-time NBA champion Bryant and the 32-time Grammy winner Beyoncé. That will give him all the more reason to avenge the Eagles' loss in Super Bowl 57 during the 2023 NFL season.
