Philadelphia Eagles

One first-round QB is already being compared to Brett Favre by his coach

Published Apr. 29, 2016 11:20 a.m. ET

Dan Graf

As expected, the Philadelphia Eagles selected North Dakota State quarterback Carson Wentz second overall in Thursday night's first round of the NFL Draft.

What wasn't expected was new Eagles coach Doug Pederson comparing Wentz with soon-to-be Hall of Famer Brett Favre while the rookie's Eagles career was just minutes old.

"A little bit of Brett Favre, honestly," Peterson told reporters, via PhillyVoice.com. "He's got that mentality. He's got that aggressiveness that Brett had. Those are some of the skill sets that I see in Carson -- that aggression, that ability to throw the ball down the field. I love quarterbacks that are willing to take a chance, take a calculated risk down the field. Favre was that way. I see a lot of the same characteristics in Carson."

Doug Pederson spent seven seasons backing up Brett Favre in Green Bay, so if anyone can throw around the Ole Gunslinger's name it's Pederson. And Wentz didn't seem to mind the comparison -- even if it sets a pretty high bar for him in a city known for being particularly hard on players who fall short of expectations.

Hey, they've both worn the same colors.

"Growing up, Favre was always my favorite guy to watch," Wentz told reporters. "His mentality, the way he played the game, his approach, he had fun with it. His grittiness, hard-working attitude, I just loved everything about watching him play. Being compared to him, obviously I have a long way to go, but it's pretty cool hearing that."

Now get started on those 71,838 career passing yards, kid.