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Philadelphia Eagles: How will Philly address current running back situation this offseason?

By Alex DeMarzo

MINNEAPOLIS, MN - FEBRUARY 04: Nick Foles #9 of the Philadelphia Eagles hands the ball off to Jay Ajayi #36 against the New England Patriots during the first quarter in Super Bowl LII at U.S. Bank Stadium on February 4, 2018 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. (Photo by Hannah Foslien/Getty Images)
MINNEAPOLIS, MN - FEBRUARY 04: Nick Foles #9 of the Philadelphia Eagles hands the ball off to Jay Ajayi #36 against the New England Patriots during the first quarter in Super Bowl LII at U.S. Bank Stadium on February 4, 2018 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. (Photo by Hannah Foslien/Getty Images) /
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PHILADELPHIA, PA – NOVEMBER 05: Running back Jay Ajayi #36 of the Philadelphia Eagles in action during warmups prior to the game against the Denver Broncos at Lincoln Financial Field on November 5, 2017 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Mitchell Leff/Getty Images)
PHILADELPHIA, PA – NOVEMBER 05: Running back Jay Ajayi #36 of the Philadelphia Eagles in action during warmups prior to the game against the Denver Broncos at Lincoln Financial Field on November 5, 2017 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Mitchell Leff/Getty Images) /

The free agency market is ripe with talent.

There are numerous running backs with a successful track record who are expected to explore the free agency market this offseason.

Jay Ajayi, who we mentioned earlier went down with a torn ACL in Week 5 against the Minnesota Vikings is an unrestricted free agent in 2019.

Since coming to the Eagles in 2017 via trade, Ajayi rushed for 776 yards with four touchdowns in just 14 games, including the 2017 postseason.

Ajayi is still very young, but the glaring concern among Philadelphia and other teams would be the lingering effects of a significant injury such as a torn ACL.

Without a doubt, the most elite running back to enter the free agency market this offseason is Le’Veon Bell.

If you have been living under a rock for the past season, Bell missed the entire 2018 campaign after a lengthy contract dispute with the Pittsburgh Steelers. It’s evident Bell wants to be one of the top paid players in the league.

Signing Bell is most likely not even on Philly’s radar because as we‘ve discussed before The Birds are projected to have the least amount of salary cap space available in 2019. The Eagles currently can’t afford Bell, and they are probably unwilling to pay a running back that much money anyway.

Related Story. Philadelphia Eagles projected to have least amount of cap space in 2019. light

Another big name with a proven track record who may explore free agency is the New Orleans Saints running back Mark Ingram.

Ingram is a powerful running back who is tough to take down. He is coming off of back-to-back 1,000-yard seasons even with sharing time alongside Alvin Kamara. Ingram’s average of 4.8 yards-per-carry within those two seasons is the second-highest in the NFL.

If the Eagles are looking for a reliable and durable back Ingram may be the answer. Aside from missing the first four games of 2018 season after testing positive for performance-enhancing drugs, Ingram has not missed any other games during the past three seasons.

Additionally, throughout his career, he’s had a relatively small workload with an average of 14 touches-per-game.

Other running backs testing the market who the Eagles may consider is Vikings’ Latavius Murray and Atlanta Falcons’ Tevin Coleman.

A dark horse candidate who has been discussed by Eagles fans all over social media is former Kanas City Chiefs running back Kareem Hunt.

Hunt was only in his sophomore season when the Chiefs released him after a disturbing video of him assaulting a female surfaced online. Hunt was immediately placed on the Reserve/Commissioner Exempt List where he still currently resides.

Many fans have made the argument that if any team were to give Hunt a second chance, it would be Philadelphia. After all, the Eagles were the only team to give Michael Vick a second shot at the NFL. The Eagles haven’t expressed any interest in giving Hunt a second shot as far as we know though.

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