Carson Wentz went to a QB guru and the Eagles supposedly aren't thrilled

Wentz's coach and coordinator both are ex-NFL QBs, but he still opted to travel to L.A. to work out at 3DQB

Around this time last year, Carson Wentz was gearing up for his first OTA session as a professional football player. He would head into it as the Eagles' third-string quarterback despite the fact that he was the No. 2 overall pick in the draft. He was expected to continue in that role (third-string) throughout the season, but a training camp injury to Teddy Bridgewater in Minnesota pushed things in a different direction. 

All of a sudden, the Eagles traded presumptive starter Sam Bradford for two picks and Wentz was pushed into the starting lineup right away. He looked magnificent for the first few weeks of the season, throwing five touchdowns and no interceptions while leading Philadelphia to a 3-0 record. He struggled after the Eagles' Week 4 bye, though. His completion percentage dropped from 64.7 to 61.9, his yards per attempt fell from 7.5 to 6.0, his touchdown-to-interception ratio dropped from 5-0 to 11-14, and the Eagles' record slipped from 3-0 to 4-9. 

The Eagles pulled out all the stops this offseason to make the offense as Wentz-friendly as possible, but Wentz apparently felt the need to go get himself right elsewhere. According to Philly.com, Wentz took a visit to the quarterback gurus at 3DQB in Los Angeles... and the Eagles aren't exactly thrilled about it. 

Asked Tuesday what Wentz gained from his time in California, head coach Doug Pederson replied, with tepid and artificial enthusiasm:

"Well, the biggest thing I've seen, No. 1, is leadership. He's come in here ready to go. He's come in here eager, excited about the offseason, working with the new guys and the guys from last year. That's what I've seen. I've seen him come in rejuvenated."

This is faint praise. Wentz could have gotten "rejuvenated" spending time on a yacht in Miami with Odell Beckham Jr. It's true that the QB gurus, Adam Dedeaux and Tom House, incorporate the psychology of leadership and resilience, but 10 days won't turn the Wentz Wagon into Gen. Patton.

Pederson continued:

"Now he's had a chance to just kind of sit back and look at the regular season last year and make the necessary adjustments and corrections and learn from it."

Again: Thanks for nothing. Wentz could have reviewed 2016 on that same yacht as long as he had an iPad.

Usually mild-mannered, Pederson didn't hide his disdain for having strangers tinker with his meal ticket, and that is remarkable. Pederson is as emotive as a turtle.

It got better. Pederson virtually sneered when he was specifically asked if Wentz had made improvements in his mechanics:

"It's subtle. That's the thing. We're going to see it as coaches. You may not see it as a spectator watching the game. It's just, pointing his toe, getting him on his target line, things that we talk about each and every day that coach DeFilippo does a good job with. And those are the things we continue to work on."

Was Pederson damning with faint praise or just giving boilerplate coach-speak responses? Those comments seem like they could be read either way. It's not like other quarterbacks haven't gone to 3DQB and been successful in their careers. Tom Brady and Matt Ryan have made visits, for example. 

But the Eagles did bring in this coaching staff at least in part because of their abilities as quarterback whisperers. Pederson is a former QB himself and was Andy Reid's quarterback coach and offensive coordinator for several years in Philly and then Kansas City. Offensive coordinator Frank Reich has a similar background. To have their franchise QB go elsewhere for tutelage doesn't exactly make them look great, so it wouldn't be a surprise if they were not too thrilled about Wentz doing just that. 

As for Wentz himself, he said he wasn't sure if he'll return to 3DQB in the future.