Philadelphia Eagles 2017 NFL Draft mid season grades
Donnel Pumphrey, RB, 4th Round.
Donnel Pumphrey is a 5’9″, 176-pound running back out of San Diego State. His ridiculous amount of production over his four years in college has been the key to his draft day interest. During his final season, he rushed for over 2,100 yards, which lead the nation. Obviously, his size was what made scouts skeptical about him, but his speed and ability to take on a big workload were hard to pass up.
It was clear that the Eagles were expecting to get the next Darren Sproles out of Pumphrey. Another undersized, quick running back who can do it all. From rushing inside or outside, catching the ball and fielding punts, Pumphrey looked like the best replacement for a veteran like Sproles. Unfortunately, Pumphrey’s expectations were too high and he did not deliver.
In four games of the preseason, Pumphrey rushed 26 times for only 49 yards. In the receiving game he had 13 catches for 72 yards and in the return game, he had 65 yards off of 13 returns. Out of all of his opportunities, Pumphrey did not see the end zone at all.
His underwhelming preseason had the Eagles fan base expecting him to lose his spot to Clement. Surprisingly, both rookie running backs were spared, and ended up making the roster. The only difference is Clement has been playing and Pumphrey hasn’t. Although he is now on the injured reserve due to a torn hamstring, Pumphrey was still inactive during week one when he was healthy. Clearly, he was not ready to take over the reigns for Sproles just yet.