Philadelphia Eagles: Don’t give up on Donnell Pumphrey
By Jeremy Klump
Philadelphia Eagles fans shouldn’t give up on their 2017 fourth-round pick, running back Donnel Pumphrey.
The excitement was high from the Philadelphia Eagles fan base when they selected running back Donnel Pumphrey in the fourth round of the 2017 NFL Draft. Pumphrey wasn’t your usual fourth-round running back. He entered the NFL with some impressive statistics in college. If you look at the all-time rushing leader boards in NCAA history, Pumphrey sits at No. 1 all time.
It is odd to think that the all-time leading rusher in NCAA history dropped to the fourth round, and even weirder that Pumphrey has no off-field baggage. It’s what he doesn’t have that dropped him to pick 132: size.
The former San Diego State running back stands at 5-9 and weighs in at 176 pounds on a good day. His size was the biggest knock on him entering the league and for a good reason. In college, Pumphrey was not a guy who could run through many arm tackles, and the fear was that the NFL defenses would swallow him up. And so far through three preseason games, Pumphrey has been swallowed up by NFL defenses.
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He has carried the ball 19 times for 39 yards. That gives him 2.1 yards per carry and his longest run of the preseason was five yards. On the flip side, Pumphrey does lead the Eagles with 12 receptions, but he has only gained 69 yards on those 12 touches. His lack of big play ability and not having flashes of greatness have made a lot of Eagles fans turn on him. Some fans are even calling for the Eagles to cut him and keep undrafted free agent running back Corey Clement instead.
As Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers once said and made famous, “RELAX.” Pumphrey is a rookie running back in the NFL. The game is fast for him right now, and you need to give him a chance to slow it all down. Many people, including myself, believe that Pumphrey will be the guy to replace running back Darren Sproles after the 2017 season. If you asked any Eagles fan about Sproles, you would get rave reviews, which is why you shouldn’t give up on Pumphrey just yet.
Sproles has a chance to be in the Hall of Fame one day, and I think he will get there — but if he started his career in Philadelphia; we may not even remember his name. Why? Sproles came into the NFL with questions about his size and whether he will hold up against NFL defenses. He also fell to the fourth round (pick 130). In his rookie season, Sproles wasn’t good.
He played in 15 games, only carrying the ball eight times for 50 yards. He also only caught three passes for 10 yards. He made an okay impact as a return guy, but he did not score a touchdown in his rookie season. Luckily for Sproles, the then San Diego Chargers had patience with him because now he is one of the most dynamic players in NFL history.
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The Eagles and their fans need to have the same patience with Pumphrey. Let him figure out the NFL and get through his rookie season before you give up on a talented player. Pumphrey will be on the Eagles 53-man roster, and he needs to be because you can’t give up on a player with that much talent just because he has struggled in his first couple of preseason games.