There are a lot of mouths to feed in the Philadelphia Eagles' backfield, so this one's a long shot, but Donnel Pumphrey is an intriguing rookie.
Playing at San Diego State, Pumphrey set the career FBS rushing mark with 6,405 yards across his four seasons. He had a quiet (but still good) 752-yard campaign as a freshman before taking off in 2014.
| Year | Attempts | Rushing Yards | Rushing TDs | Receptions | Receiving Yards | Receiving TDs |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2013 | 125 | 752 | 8 | 22 | 234 | 2 |
| 2014 | 276 | 1,867 | 20 | 23 | 160 | 0 |
| 2015 | 309 | 1,653 | 17 | 27 | 414 | 3 |
| 2016 | 349 | 2,133 | 17 | 27 | 231 | 0 |
Those stats are eye-popping, and the touchdowns are particularly impressive, considering Pumphrey stands at just 5'8" and 176 pounds.
Pumphrey also posted superb market share numbers, recording 57.95% of the Aztecs' rushing yards and 17.42% of their receptions as a senior in 2016.
It's those receiving stats that make us feel all warm inside, because, let's face it, it's very unlikely a dude his size can carry the mail in a workhorse capacity. However, he can be a weapon in the passing game -- you know, a Darren Sproles type.
Speaking of Sproles, Pumphrey will have the chance to learn from one of the game's best ever pass-catching running backs as he sits behind Sproles on Philly's depth chart.
There's also LeGarrette Blount locked into an early-down role, and Wendell Smallwood in the mix, too. So, again, a lot needs to happen for Pumphrey to see anything close to signifcant snaps, but this is a team that doesn't mind targeting running backs, something they did 107 times a year ago.
It's pie in the sky, for sure, but on an Eagles squad with established wideouts and two veterans at running back, there's not a lot of breakout material from which to choose. There's also the chance that maybe all it takes for Pumphrey to grab pass-game duties is an injury to Sproles, who is in his age-34 season.