The Player

Kenjon Barner is used to being overlooked. Perhaps that's mainly due to standing at just 5'9" and 200 pounds or the fact that he was a sixth-round pick coming out of college.

While there was nothing obscure about his phenomenal college career (2,023 total yards and 23 touchdowns his senior year), much of his success was attributed to the wide open Chip Kelly offensive attack at Oregon and not to the individual talents of the diminutive Barner.

So he has bounced around in the NFL, receiving his first real opportunity at carries last season under his former college coach, who has moved on now to San Francisco. In limited work, Barner 124 yards on 28 carries (4.4 yards per carry) and perhaps turned a few heads while doing so.

He was always a lightning quick athlete, running a 4.39-second 40-yard dash at his pro day and impressing greatly with his 6.87-second three-cone drill, a top-five agility score at his position at the 2013 NFL Combine.

His 20 repetitions on the bench press also demonstrated his strength as an undersized runner, but teams still viewed him as nothing more than a scatback and potential third-down weapon.

The Opportunity

Anyone who has followed football the past five years knows what kind of risk Eagles starter Ryan Mathews carries, having started 16 games just once is his career. But they also likely know the reward that being a starter in a run-oriented Doug Pederson offense carries, a coach whose previous offense was top 10 in rushing the past three seasons (including sixth in 2015 after the Chiefs lost Jamaal Charles to injury).

Many assume fifth-round-pick Wendell Smallwood will be the natural handcuff, with the aging Darren Sproles serving as the passing-downs back, but the rookie has battled injuries and will need to learn pass protection in order to contribute early on in his career.

In his absence, the overlooked Barner has once again turned heads, pacing the team during their opening preseason affair (7 carries for 35 yards) and continuing to make plays during practice. Will it be enough to make the team and earn a backup role behind the oft-injured Mathews? It may require another injury or some additional outstanding work in practice and the preseason, but don't be surprised if Barner sticks.

And if he makes the roster, he is just one injury away from his first significant opportunity.