The Philadelphia Eagles are hosting free agent running back Jordan Howard on a visit and are expected to sign him to their practice squad once he clears COVID-19 protocols, according to reports. Howard signed with the Miami Dolphins this past offseason but was waived earlier in the week and passed through waivers unclaimed.
Howard spent the 2019 season with the Eagles, playing in 10 games and rushing for 525 yards and six touchdowns. He was an effective between-the-tackles runner for the Eagles before suffering a stinger injury and missing most of the second half of the season.
The Eagles reportedly had interest in bringing Howard back after the season, but Philadelphia is somewhat famously strapped for salary cap space for next season and needs to roll over as much as possible. Instead, Howard signed a two-year deal with the Miami Dolphins worth more than $10 million, which the Eagles were never going to come close to matching.
In five games with the Dolphins, Howard rushed 28 times for just 33 yards, though he did manage to punch in four touchdowns. With things obviously not working out and the team not wanting to be on the hook for his large salary in 2021, the Dolphins made the decision to move on from Howard.
It may seem like Howard is an aging veteran since he has been in the NFL for five seasons now, but he just turned 26 years old at the beginning of November. He was never the most explosive runner, but he should have plenty left in the tank and could be a contributor for the Eagles down the stretch if they ever get their offense figured out.
While Howard is only joining the practice squad for now, the relaxed 2020 roster rules mean the Eagles can easily promote Howard two times without using a roster spot. Howard is not eligible to play this Sunday against the Browns, but he could be promoted as early as Week 12 against the Seahawks. This buys the Eagles some time before they have to make any kind of official roster move, which they likely will.
As Jimmy Kempski points out in his story for PhillyVoice about the Howard signing, this does continue the odd trend of the Eagles bringing back former players after they have bottomed out for other teams:
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WR DeSean Jackson
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DE Vinny Curry
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TE Richard Rodgers
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OT Brett Toth
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DE Shareef Miller
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DT TY McGill
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DT Treyvon Hester
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RB Jordan Howard (soon)
Kempski makes the valid point that the Eagles have hit on players unfamiliar to them in the past, such as Travis Fulgham, Boston Scott, and Cre’Von LeBlanc, and shouldn’t be quick to go back to the well of familiar players. But I think this move is different.
Howard had some success in Philadelphia, and he isn’t an aging veteran or an unproven rookie. He looked bad with the Dolphins, yes, but I find it hard to believe that Howard is cooked already at 26 years old. He was never a burner who was going to break of 70-yard touchdown runs regularly like Miles Sanders, but he was really good at finding holes and seams in the defense.
Just take a look at this short highlight video from Howard’s 2019 season with the Eagles. He was constantly finding space and running for eight, 12, 16 yards. Doesn’t that seem like something this 2020 version of the Eagles offense could use?
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Mike Maher is the editor and publisher of The Birds Blitz. Follow him on Twitter @mikeMaher and @TheBirdsBlitz and check out his archive for all of his latest stories about the Eagles and the NFL.
