EJ must know that pretty much no commentator on the NFL thinks he is anything more than a scrub. From the day he was drafted, many people were calling him a bust. At some level this has to grind him, and nothing would mean more to him than to show them wrong.
Doesn't mean he will be able to do it, but during the pre-season he did look more poised, more accurate, more aware in the pocket, more willing to take his shots, more able to bounce back from a bad play. Who knows whether that translates, but I hope he gets to start tomorrow, open some eyes, and help us win this game.