Philadelphia Eagles: LeGarrette Blount is missing piece on offense
By Jeremy Klump
The Philadelphia Eagles signed running back LeGarrette Blount, who was the missing piece on offense.
It has been a great offseason for the Philadelphia Eagles second-year quarterback, Carson Wentz — and it just got even better. ESPNs Adam Schefter reported Wednesday morning that former New England Patriots running back LeGarrette Blount has signed a one-year deal worth up to $2.8 million with the Eagles. Blount joins former Chicago Bears wide receiver Alshon Jeffery as the two big-name signings this offseason the Eagles added to help Wentz.
Along with Blount and Jeffery, the Eagles signed wide receiver Torrey Smith and offensive linemen Chance Warmack and Stefen Wisniewski. They also drafted wide receivers Mack Hollins and Shelton Gibson while adding running back Donnel Pumphrey.
Before the addition of Blount, it seemed the Eagles had one missing piece of their offense: a running back that can carry the load on first and second down. They have running back Darren Sproles, but he is just an elite third down specialist for them. Pumphrey was a solid draft pick, but he seems to fit more as a replacement to Sproles. Ryan Mathews is currently on the roster, but he is going to be released once he is healthy enough. That is why Blount is the missing piece of the new Eagles offense.
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He immediately fills their biggest hole on offense and will be the guy Philly can trust to pound the rock. Last season, Blount carried the ball 299 times for 1,161 yards and a league leading 18 touchdowns. As a team, Philly only ran for 16 touchdowns in 2016. So, adding Blount certainly will be big for their offense.
Wentz did not have a running back he could trust in 2016. Mathews failed to stay healthy, again, in 2016. He also did not hold onto the football to walk away 4-0 against the Detroit Lions in Week 5. Adding a veteran runner like Blount will give Wentz peace of mind from his running back.
It will also help the Eagles offense that saw Wentz throw the ball 607 times in his rookie season. Matthews only ran the ball a team-high 155 times. Having a running back that can carry the ball 200 or more times a season will take some of the load off of Wentz.
Blount is 30 years old, but he had the best year of his career in 2016. He did so well that he was honored on the NFL Top 100 list, coming in at No. 80. He was also the starting running back of a Super Bowl winning team.
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Singing Blount is a great move for the Eagles. Blount is the missing piece of their offense and will be huge for Wentz and his development. Watch out for Philly to be a sneaky playoff contender with one of the better offenses in the NFL — especially with the addition of Blount.