Eagles 2019 Roster Preview: Running Back
There are 3 locks to make the team (Jordan Howard, Miles Sanders, and Corey Clement) and then 3 roster bubble candidates (Wendell Smallwood, Josh Adams, and Boston Scott.) For the 3 locks I will list a swing skill that will make or break their season, and the 3 roster bubble candidates I will predict if they make the 53 man roster or not.
Jordan Howard
Jordan Howard, the 4th year running back out of Indiana, came over to Philadelphia via trade with the Chicago Bears. Howards best year in the NFL came in his rookie year, when he ran for 1,313 yards and 6 touchdowns, averaging 5.2 yards per carry (YPC). His stats steadily declined the past two years, though, averaging 4.1 YPC in 2017 and bottoming out at 3.7 YPC this past season. The rumor is that Howard fell out of favor with the Chicago coaching staff as he lacked the necessary pass-catching acumen and agility in the open field to thrive in Matt Nagy’s offense. So, his tenure with the Bears ended in March when he was traded to the Eagles for a 2020 6th round pick.
Howard figures to be the Eagles starting running back at least to begin the season. He is reliable in pass protection, which is important to the Eagles who need to keep Wentz healthy, and at his best in short-yardage situations. He won’t offer much in terms of big plays (plays of 10+ yards), but Howard led the Bears in successful plays, a stat per Sharp Football. Howard had a successful play on 50% of his plays, which ranked 15th out of all RBs with at least 100 touches.
Swing Skill
The swing skill for Howard, which will end up determining how long he keeps the starting job, will be what he offers as a pass catcher. Howard has never been known as a receiving back, and in his last season with the Bears he only had 20 catches. For reference, Howards backup Tarik Cohen had 71. Doug Pederson likes RBs who can threaten the defense via both the run and pass, so when the offense is on the field they don’t become predictable. He’ll utilize his RBs on screen passes and wheel routes. Howard has received good reviews so far for how he’s performed through the air in minicamp and OTAs, but it is hard to trust that until he proves it during a game.
Miles Sanders
The Eagles drafted Miles Sanders, RB out of Penn State, in the 2nd round of this past draft. He is the highest the Eagles have drafted an RB since LeSean McCoy, who was also drafted in the 2nd round in 2009. Make sure to check out Logan Bankers article on Sanders when he was drafted for the deep dive, so I’ll provide a brief recap. Sanders entered the draft after his junior season at Penn State. He was a 5-star recruit coming out of HS but sat behind Saquon Barkley his first two years on campus. Once he got the starting gig on he thrived, finishing the year with 1,274 rushing yards, 5.79 YPC, and 9 rushing TDs. He also showed out at the combine, running a 4.49 in the 40.
Unfortunately, Sanders has been unable to participate in any off-season activities so far with a strained hamstring. So, we have not seen how the Eagles are using him or where he appears on the depth chart. Based on his NFL tape and athletic measurables he offers more in explosive plays than Howard does. The guess here is that Sanders starts off the season as a change of pace back, with limited playing time at first but will eventually take over the starting role as the season progresses.
Swing Skill
The swing skill for Sanders will be pass-blocking and blitz pick up. Most rookie RBs come into the league needing to improve this skill, so this is not unique to Sanders, but if he struggles then he won’t see his playing time increase. The Eagles need to have an RB playing that can protect Wentz, and both Howard and Corey Clement are good in this regard. So, I can see Pederson opting to use them over Sanders in high leverage situations until Sanders can prove himself.
Corey Clement
Ah, the curious case of Corey Clement. Clement was undrafted out of Wisconsin after the 2017 draft but quickly proved himself to make the 53 man roster after training camp. While he was used sparingly his rookie year, Clement provided some memorable plays. He had the game-tying touchdown against the Giants in week 3, the incredible receiving touchdown from Wentz against the Washington football team in the Monday night game, and the 3 touchdown game against Denver in November. Where Clement really came alive was Super Bowl 52, though. Famously, Corey Clement is the answer to the trivia question, “Who led the Eagles in receiving yards in Super Bowl 52?” He finished that game with 4 catches for 100 yards and 1 beautiful touchdown.
So, after Clements performance in the Super Bowl, many were expecting a big season from him in 2018. Instead, he disappointed as he struggled with consistency and injuries. Clement played in 11 games total but never had more than 56 rushing yards in a single game. He ended the season with 2 touchdowns and a measly 3.88 YPC. He also never received more than 10 carries in a game after week 6. He had the perfect opportunity with Jay Ajayi going down with a torn ACL in week 5, but he could never seem to get healthy after injuring his quad in week 3. He missed weeks 4 and 5 with that injury, and his season ended in week 14 when he hurt his knee against the Cowboys.
Swing Skill
This is not necessarily a skill, but the most important thing for Clement is just health and consistency. As I mentioned before, he struggled to get healthy after injuring his quad in week 3, and struggled with consistency the rest of the season. Even when he received big workloads at the beginning of the season, he was never efficient with his touches. In week 3 he had 16 carries for 56 yards (3.5 YPC), and in week 6 he had 11 carries for 43 yards (3.91 YPC). Clement proved during the 2017 playoff run that he can be trusted with a big role, but whatever reason he could not find that magic in 2018.
Wendell Smallwood
Somehow, Smallwood is entering his 4th year in the league after the Eagles drafted him in the 5th round in the 2016 draft. He is the living embodiment of the phrase solid but unspectacular. He does everything at an average level, but nothing above average. It is clear the Eagles lost faith in him in 2017, but he became a necessary piece in 2018 when they had 3 RBs miss significant time.
Roster Prediction
Barring injuries, I think this is the year the Eagles move on from Smallwood. The Eagles entered the 2019 off-season with a goal to upgrade the RB position, and the reason for that is because Smallwood never developed as they hoped. They traded for Howard and drafted Sanders to replace Smallwood, and I do not think he would be a valuable use of a roster spot as he does not offer much on special teams.
Josh Adams
Josh Adams, the undrafted rookie out of Notre Dame, surprisingly ended the season as the Eagles leading rusher and in total carries as well. He started hot once he started getting consistent carries in week 9, but faltered to end the year. In weeks 15 and 16 he had over 10 carries in each game, but less than 2 YPC. In the two playoff games, he only had 1 carry total.
Roster Prediction
I don’t think Adams makes the roster either. It was a fun time when he had 20+ carries in back to back weeks, but he did not show enough as a rookie to deserve a roster spot. Despite being labeled as a big, bruising back, Adams was unable to convert a single 3rd/4th down with 1 or less yards to go, in 6 total attempts per Sharp Football Stats. He doesn’t offer much in terms of passing downs either, as he only had 7 catches on the season.
Boston Scott
Only the true diehards know who Boston Scott is, but he is a name to keep an eye on. Scott was drafted by the Saints in the 6th round of the 2018 draft, but did not make the team and was placed on the practice squad. The Eagles picked him up off the Saints PS in week 10.
After doing essentially nothing his rookie year, Boston Scott gets an honorable mention here because of the praise he received from coach Pederson during one of his press conferences. When asked about who can take over the Darren Sproles role in 2019, Pederson name-dropped Scott as someone to look out for. It is high praise for someone who did not have a single carry or catch in 2018, but he remains someone to keep an eye on as the Eagles head into training camp and pre-season.
Roster Prediction
This is tough to say without the benefit of seeing him outside of minicamp and OTAs, but I think Scott makes the team. I know it is a bold prediction, but Pederson loved Sproles in his 3rd down role. While Scott is no Darren Sproles, he does theoretically offer a similar skill-set. Scott is only 5’6 and lightning quick. He will need to prove himself throughout the off-season, but I can see Pederson having a role for Scott if he continues to impress the Eagles head coach.
Featured Photo: BILL STREICHER/USA TODAY SPORTS
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