Jalen Hurts honored on TIME's 100 Most Influential People of 2025 list
The accolades keep coming for Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts.
Hurts, the Super Bowl LIX MVP and Philadelphia Citizen of the Year, was named one of TIME's 100 Most Influential People of 2025, an annual list that highlights "individuals who are transforming the world."
The profile on Hurts was written by five-time New York Yankees World Series champion and MLB Hall of Famer Derek Jeter, who underscored the quarterback's focus, drive and refusal to settle for anything but winning.
"What Jalen Hurts went through in being benched during the 2018 National Championship game would break a lot of people down. But not Jalen; he focused on what he could control and found a new path to success. In the NFL, Jalen didn't let a Super Bowl defeat in 2023 shake his confidence. He used that loss as motivation and kept a picture of himself walking off the field after losing as his phone lock screen," Jeter wrote.
"This past February, Jalen found himself on the Super Bowl stage again. This time he led Philadelphia to a convincing victory in its rematch with Kansas City. We connected shortly after, and the only thing he asked about was insight on going back and winning again. Sometimes people win, then exhale," Jeter said. "Jalen is not exhaling. He's embracing the next challenge. Win or lose, Jalen's resilience and determination offer all of us something to admire."
Eliot Shorr-Parks, Eagles reporter at 94.1 WIP, called Hurts "the largest star we've had since Allen Iverson."
"What I would say to everybody is you can have a great car with a great paint job and awesome exterior. If your engine doesn't work, it doesn't matter what your car looks like. Saquon [Barkley] is awesome. AJ [Brown] is awesome. Nick Sirianni is awesome. He has tons of talent around him. Jalen is the engine of that team," Shorr-Parks said.
In the 2024-25 regular season, Hurts led the Eagles to a 14-3 record before throwing for 221 yards and two touchdowns, and rushing for another, as the Eagles dominated the Chiefs 40-22 in their second Super Bowl meeting in three years.
Off the field, Hurts has been hailed for his work supporting Philadelphia's youth. In July 2024 he launched the Jalen Hurts Foundation, which donated hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of air conditioning units to buildings in the School District of Philadelphia through its Keep it Cool campaign.
Restaurant owner, actor and Trump cabinet member with Philly connections land on TIME list
Hurts, who signed a five-year contract extension with Philadelphia in 2023, finds himself in prestigious company on TIME's 2025 list, alongside actors, politicians, journalists, business owners, scientists, activists and fellow athletes, several of whom have ties to the Philadelphia area.
Chutatip "Nok" Suntaranon, owner of the popular Fishtown restaurant Kalaya, was hailed by James Beard Award-winning chef Michael Solomonov as "wild and whimsical."
"Nok's Thai cuisine embodies everything she's gone through and everything she's worked for, which means that her dishes are vibrant, personal, and full of flavor... Eating Nok's food—and being her friend—is a very visceral, delicious experience," he wrote. In 2023, Suntaranon won the James Beard Award for Best Chef Mid-Atlantic.
Actor Daniel Dae Kim grew up in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, and graduated from Haverford College, where he studied theater and political science. Kim was a star on hit shows like "The Good Doctor," "Hawaii Five-0," and "Lost." Director J.J. Abrams celebrated Kim's advocacy for equal pay in the entertainment industry and against anti-Asian violence.
"A career like Kim's is rare," said Abrams. "But even rarer is a willingness to use success not just for oneself, but for others—a quality that makes Daniel Dae Kim a leading voice in the fight for change."
Fellow Haverford College graduate, billionaire and current U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnik made his fortune on Wall Street and served as transition co-chair for the Trump administration's second term. Eric Cortellessa, a TIME senior correspondent, wrote that Lutnik "was one of the main officials who urged Trump toward a maximalist approach on tariffs," who at times has drawn ire from White House aides and leaders.
"Lutnick's proximity to power reflects one of Trump's core bets: that success in business can translate into success in government," he said.
