The Philadelphia Eagles have many more position battles taking place on the field that could prove to be more exciting than the race to start at quarterback. With the addition of Nelson Agholor, the wide receiver rotation is slightly more crowded while the Eagles currently have three running backs capable of starting a game for the team. With DeMarco Murray the likely starter Week 1, who will earn the backup job?
There is no questioning that Murray is the starting running back for the Philadelphia Eagles. Last year's leading rusher for the NFL did not sign with the team to compete for his job. Murray is the undisputed starter which makes the battle for his backup role an interesting one. Prior to signing Murray, the Eagles agreed to a contract with Ryan Mathews. At the time, Murray was not in play and the Eagles needed to replace LeSean McCoy. Instead of heading elsewhere, Mathews is staying put in Philadelphia, but now has to deal with Darren Sproles who also wants his share of touches.
According to Eagles beat writer Brandon Lee Gowton of BleedingGreenNation.com, Mathews could become the second-half workhorse for the Eagles. He is athletic and extremely difficult to tackle which head coach Chip Kelly will love. However, Mathews is more of a one-dimensional running back. He lacks the versatility that Sproles has which means he could fall to No. 3 on the depth chart come training camp.
According to NJ.com, Sproles will be a third-down back along with a situational rusher. Sproles is known for his great hands and ability to run out wide as a wide receiver. The signing of both Murray and Mathews does nothing to hurt his role on the team. Sproles will be the second most touches in the backfield, but will not be that typical down-field rusher that Murray is.
The running back competition is merely just one of the position battles taking place for the Eagles. According to Mark Sanchez via the Philadelphia Inquirer, he expects to challenge Sam Bradford for the starting quarterback job. Agholor expects to contend for a starting job alongside Jordan Matthews and potentially Josh huff. That pushes Riley Cooper and Miles Austin to the sidelines. The Eagles made plenty of interesting moves this offseason and now it will be fun to see how they all develop.