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Into The Depth Chart: The Philadelphia Eagles Running Backs

By Michael Beaudwin

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Dec 26, 2015; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Philadelphia Eagles running back Ryan Mathews (24) reacts to his touchdown run against the Washington Redskins during the first quarter at Lincoln Financial Field. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports
Dec 26, 2015; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Philadelphia Eagles running back Ryan Mathews (24) reacts to his touchdown run against the Washington Redskins during the first quarter at Lincoln Financial Field. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports /

Ryan Mathews

We could pour over stats to make points for, and against Ryan Mathews, but let’s skip all of that. Did you watch the 2015 season? There is a fairly good chance that you did, or you wouldn’t be here, so after watching last season; what did your eyes tell you?

It’s not exactly easy to write an article based on a random opinion, but Mathews is the sum of them isn’t he? His stats aren’t going to wow you, but if you think about it, what you see is typically what you’ve gotten from him. That’s not a bad thing, at all. When healthy, Mathews is a solid runner with a bit of wiggle to his game. Unfortunately, it’s the being healthy portion of that statement that could be concerning.

Mathews has only had one 16 game season in his entire career, and that was in 2013. Now, most players deal with injuries throughout a season, and just as many miss games because of it. Even Brian Westbrook rarely played a full season. Now before you flip out, it’s obvious that comparing those two would be like comparing apples to race cars, and that sort of makes my point. When Westbrook was on the field, he was clearly a difference maker, and that would make some stomach when he was absent. You would deal with it even if it sucked because the positives outweighed the negatives.Mathews, although effective when on the field, hasn’t been consistent enough to lean on, and I’m not sure the positives outweighed the negatives. If anything, it feels about even.

This could be seen as an attack Mathews, but it isn’t. He is truly effective when given the chance and has a shot at returning to a starting role. Much of the time he spent being absent from the field was due to coaches seeming to be confused about the depth chart. New offensive coordinator, Frank Reich will take care of that. Reich worked with Mathews during his time in with the San Diego Chargers, which gives Mathews an advantage in understanding the new direction of the team and assures he won’t be overlooked.

Next: Into The Depths: Philadelphia Eagles Running Backs

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