Carson Wentz likes to grill.
When the Eagles quarterback hosted his offensive linemen at his expansive South Jersey property in April, he forwent a caterer or hired cook. Wentz tenderized the rib eyes and strip steaks himself and manned the grill for what had to be a feast considering the sizes of the guests.
"They were delicious," center Jason Kelce said.
Wentz had invited his blockers for a specific reason. They were to shoot the shotguns the quarterback had gifted them at the end of last season. There's the adage that if you take care of your offensive linemen, they in turn will take care of you. And Wentz's cooking, along with the Silver Pigeon Berettas, suggested that Wentz heeded that proverb.
But they gathered also in the name of camaraderie. And Wentz's hands-on, minimalist grilling echoed the approach he has taken to becoming a starting NFL quarterback and to the task of developing into a leader.
The concept of leadership is as nebulous as team chemistry and culture. If Wentz is successful on the field and winning follows, so, too, will his teammates. But there is only one position in football in which it is mandatory to lead. And there can only be one cook in that kitchen.
"As the quarterback of this team, you've got to kind of accept that role and run with it," Wentz said this spring. "I'm going to let it all happen organically and just still be myself and it will all take care of itself."
Wentz had a similar attitude after the Eagles had named him the starter just eight days before last season. But the then-rookie had been deferential to Sam Bradford and Chase Daniel throughout that offseason, and his relative inexperience had by nature made it imprudent for him to assert much authority.
This offseason, however, Wentz has increasingly embraced that mantle, according to many of his coaches and teammates. The changes have been subtle. It is not within Wentz's nature to take what has not yet been earned.
But whether it has been breaking down team huddles, or vocalizing his offensive preferences or openly displaying more of his personality, Wentz has naturally become more of a leader. And the NovaCare Complex, at least as it relates to the team, has gradually become his building and has adopted his persona.
"He's the guy. That's the way everybody in this building sees him," tackle Lane Johnson said. "He's the franchise."
Not that Wentz would ever say that.
"That's not his personality and I don't think that you want a quarterback saying that," Kelce said last month. "But I would say that clearly there is only one person on the field that has as big of an impact to affect games.
"The quarterback position is so important in the NFL so when you get a good one and you get a young one, everything in my mind, especially offensively, is built around that person."
The Eagles have been judicious in pushing Wentz to the public fore. They believe they have a thoroughbred, however even a promising first season was hardly enough proof. But coach Doug Pederson had said earlier in the offseason that he wanted Wentz to return in April and accept more of a leadership role.
A month later, offensive coordinator Frank Reid had declared that the quarterback had already taken "ownership of the team." While that may be an exaggeration, at least per defensive players like safety Malcolm Jenkins, who said that Wentz hasn't forced his hand on that side of the ball, he has certainly taken the offense under his wing.
In April, there was the get-together with the offensive line. And earlier this month, Wentz invited the Eagles wide receivers to his home state of North Dakota for informal workouts.
Wentz rolls with a close-knit circle of teammates who mostly share in his Christian faith. The group includes receiver Jordan Matthews, tight end Zach Ertz, linebacker Jordan Hicks, tight end Trey Burton and safety Chris Maragos, among others. They frequently attend Sunday mass together at the Connect Church in Cherry Hill, N.J.
But Wentz's other interests, specifically the outdoors, have opened him up to other players on the team, and the gatherings he hosts at his home or the in-season dinners out that he organizes have been as inclusive as his relationships in the building.
"He treats me the same as he treats everybody else," Kelce said. "I think that's his M.O. He treats everyone with respect."
Leaders have an innate ability to relate and communicate with others despite their differences. Wentz's passions, aside, of course, from football, are his faith, the outdoors and his love for dogs. He will often zealously promote all three on social media. When it comes to his religious beliefs, he may be as forthright as any starting quarterback since Tim Tebow.
Wentz's AO1 ("Audience of One") Foundation, which focuses on his three passions by providing service dogs to Philadelphia-area youths, outdoor opportunities for the physically disabled and military veterans living in the Midwest, and assistance for underprivileged youth living abroad, is to "demonstrate the love of God," according to its initial news release earlier this month.
While there are many Eagles who share in Wentz's interests, there are plenty who do not. And yet many of his teammates, when asked about the quarterback's personality, don't mention his professed passions, but his everyman characteristics.
"I think the balance with Carson is that he can relate with the country boys, but he can also relate with a (Jason Peters) or a Zach Ertz, who grew up in California," guard Allen Barbre said." Different guys from different atmospheres."
It's comparatively easy to connect with the quarterback when he doesn't take advantage of built-in benefits, works as hard or even harder than everyone else, and intermingles with the rest of the team as if he were the 90th man on the roster.
"He's not a prima donna," Johnson said. "He's one of the 'Bros', so to speak."
