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Philadelphia Eagles: A Closer Look At Jared Wheeler

By Anthony DiBona

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Once Philadelphia Eagles head coach Chip Kelly decided to finally cut ties with disgruntled guard Evan Mathis, many assumed the team would use the open roster spot for another offensive linemen. Some, including myself, believed the team would target one of the more known free agents on the market to patch up their unit up front.

But Saturday evening, agent Brett Tessler tweeted out that his client, offensive linemen Jared Wheeler, will sign with the Eagles on Monday, pending a physical.

Now when I initially saw the news, I thought to myself “who in the world is Jared Wheeler?” as many others likely did as well. There were so many other offensive linemen on the market, each with much more experience than Wheeler. But as others have noted, Eagles offensive line coach Jeff Stoutland has experience working with Wheeler during his days at Miami.

Wheeler went undrafted in 2014 and initially signed with the Carolina Panthers as a free agent. But the Panthers released him in July of 2014 and he was then claimed by the Buffalo Bills. Wheeler failed to make the Bills’ final roster and remained a free agent until the Seattle Seahawks signed him in February following their loss in Super Bowl XLIX. But as Tessler pointed out in his tweet, the Seahawks released him following the draft. Wheeler then participated in rookie camps with the Seahawks and San Francisco 49ers but both teams passed on signing him.

Maybe it was destiny that Wheeler lands in the City of Brotherly Love…or maybe he just isn’t that good. Either way, the Eagles are about to find out and reuniting him with his former offensive line coach may be just what Wheeler needs for a legitimate chance in the NFL. With such an open competition at right guard and every back-up spot, Philadelphia may be the perfect spot for any offensive linemen right now. But what can we really expect from Wheeler?

At Miami, Wheeler was mainly a special teams player that started six games as a senior, playing multiple positions along the offensive line. That type of versatility already stands out when analyzing Wheeler as a potential back-up candidate. With three starts at right guard, two starts at center and one start at left guard, Wheeler has been all over the interior of the offensive line. It’s worth noting that right guard is also the spot in which the Eagles currently have an open competition going on as well.

It’s no secret that Kelly prefers to have athletes up front on his offensive line. In a zone blocking scheme, linemen are constantly asked to pull and make blocks at the second level or on the move. Although he’s 6-4, 315 pounds, Wheeler can move well for his size. His pro day numbers don’t really support Wheeler being a great athlete but he will surprise people if given a chance with the Eagles. Here are his pro day numbers via NFLDraftScout.com:

To put it lightly, those numbers aren’t very impressive. Especially when you consider the caliber of athletes the Eagles have along their offensive line in starters Jason Peters, Lane Johnson and Jason Kelce. But when you watch Wheeler on the field, especially on the move, you can see exactly why the Eagles are showing interest in him.

Thanks to the wonderful crew over at DraftBreakdown.com, I was able to watch film of other players to try and get a glimpse of what Wheeler can do on the field. Luckily, they had tape of Oakland Raiders defensive end Mario Edwards Jr. during his days at Florida State against Miami. Wheeler played both right guard and center during this game and went up against a very stout Florida State defense including multiple current and future NFL players.

Although Wheeler struggles at times with his technique, there is certainly potential to work with. He gets sloppy with his hand placement a bit too much but that can all be improved with coaching. But where Wheeler shows the most potential is as a run blocker, especially when he’s pulling and blocking players at the second level of the defense. Here are a couple of plays that stood out, in a good way, against Florida State in 2013.

1) Wheeler (#75) at right guard, starts the game with a bang by pulling to the inside and taking out and turning around the linebacker (#24).

2) On this play, it’s harder to see Wheeler but he takes his man for a trip to the sideline and it looks like he may have thrown him down to the ground to finish it all off as well.

3) Here’s Wheeler on the move again and he comes barreling down the middle of the field and takes out the linebacker creating a huge hole for the running back for a first down.

4) Wheeler on the move, again. This time he creates a hole for the running back for another first down, but makes sure he finishes the play by pushing the pile and some Seminoles as well.

5) Although this doesn’t seem like a very impressive play, here’s Wheeler holding his own against defensive linemen Eddie Goldman, the 39th overall pick in the 2015 NFL Draft.

As you can tell by the film, Wheeler appears to be a logical fit for the Eagles’ zone blocking scheme. He’s clearly at his best in the running game when he’s getting out on the move in space. Although he didn’t test well as an athlete, he obviously moves well on the field and is able to get to the second level of the defense rather quickly.

Although it isn’t official yet, it’s easy to see why Kelly and the Eagles are going to possibly sign Wheeler. Assuming he signs with the team, it’ll be interesting to see if Wheeler can make a run for a spot on the team’s final 53-man roster or at least sign with the practice squad. He’s certainly an intriguing player with upside, given his size and ability to move, which is all the Eagles could really ask for from a free agent signing in June.

Next: Evan Mathis' Release Provides Clarity And More Questions

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