Does Jay Ajayi’s deal reveal how Philadelphia Eagles value Jordan Howard?

Can we state that a clause in Jay Ajayi’s contract means the Philadelphia Eagles are banking more on him than they are counting on Jordan Howard?

Wait! Did we all read that correctly? Sometimes things slip past all of us, especially with contracts, so it’s probably a good idea to give Jay Ajayi‘s a more thorough look. One day after the Philadelphia Eagles‘ Week 11 loss to the New England Patriots, NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport dropped a nugget. That isn’t what’s interesting though. He always does that. What is interesting is Ajayi’s re-addition to the Eagles’ backfield might mean something about their feelings about Jordan Howard that we missed originally.

Let’s all back up slightly. According to Rapoport’s Twitter feed, Ajayi’s contract with his new team ‘includes a right of first refusal for the team during the 2020 offseason’, this info via a source. That basically means as Rapoport stated, ‘Philly can match any offer Ajayi receives’ in 2020’s offseason.

That can be taken two ways. One, Philly might just want some insurance just in case Ajayi excels and becomes a hot topic. Second, if the decision came down to Ajayi or Howard, ‘The Birds’ could be leaning toward keeping Ajayi. Then again, it might not mean either theory is accurate either.

Hey, if they both prove to be valuable why not hang on to a backfield that features those two and Miles Sanders? We’ve all seen that it’s wise that the Eagles have a backfield that’s as deep as possible with the way the injury bug typically tends to bite them.

Why is all of this even a valid theory you ask? Unlike Ajayi, Howard’s current deal is for a single season, and he has no ‘right of first refusal’. That might mean Philly values Ajayi slightly higher. So far, no extension for Howard is on the horizon. Much of the reason for that is Philly didn’t want to sign him to a long-term deal this past offseason partially because of fear of injury, a theory this recent injury isn’t thwarted by.

Then, there’s the other thing. It’s not like Philadelphia puts any value on running backs, unless they’re old of course (no disrespect to Darren Sproles, but you all know it’s true).

Neither Ajayi or Howard played in Philly’s Week 11 loss. Ajayi hadn’t been a part of a team practice since his reassertion into the Eagles’ lineup on Friday. Howard, as you know, was dealing with an injury issue.