Jordan Matthews will be better off playing in the slot in 2017

Jordan Matthews will be playing predominantly in the slot this season, which certainly isn’t a bad thing for the Philadelphia Eagles.

Back in 2015, I was under the impression that wideout Jordan Matthews would be better utilized primarily as an outside receiver. At 6’3″ and 205 pounds, you’d think he’d be able to hold his own on the outside. Maybe even dominate.

Well, the Philadelphia Eagles gave him his chance on the outside in 2016 and it didn’t work out too well. Matthews had the worst statistical season of his career last year, setting career-lows in both yards (804) and touchdowns (three). Of course, Matthews didn’t exactly have much help from the rest of the receiving corps, but could it be that Matthews is just better suited to play in the slot?

It certainly appears that way.

According to PFF Fantasy Football, no wide receiver in the NFL over the last three seasons has performed better than Matthews when taking snaps from the slot. Since 2014, Matthews has recorded a grand total of 2,389 receiving yards when lined up in the middle of the field, which equates to roughly 89 percent of his career output.

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Those numbers may be slightly inflated, however. During Chip Kelly’s tenure as the Eagles’ head coach, Philadelphia constantly ran a hurry-up offense, which resulted in more snaps and more yards for the offense. Under Kelly’s regime, it’s possible Matthews would have been able to surpass the 1,000-yard mark for the first time in his career last season.

Regardless of the inflated numbers, though, it’s almost definite that Matthews will once again be playing mainly in the slot anyway. With Alshon Jeffery and Torrey Smith now in Philadelphia, they figure to be the team’s two outside receivers, leaving the slot spot up for grabs, which is basically Matthews’ job to lose.

The additions of Jeffery and Smith were clearly huge for quarterback Carson Wentz. But if Matthews can continue his strong play in the slot, he could also benefit significantly from the fruits of their labor.