The Philadelphia Eagles entered the regular season with a game plan for how they would handle their backfield. The team was intent on riding Kenneth Gainwell, who handled nearly all of the running back touches in Week 1 against the New England Patriots.
But, plans change quickly in the NFL, especially when there is an injury. Gainwell was unable to play in Week 2 on short rest as the Eagles were hosting the Minnesota Vikings. In his place, it was D’Andre Swift who took over as the team’s lead back.
Swift played as good of a game as the team could have hoped for. He carried the ball 28 times for 175 yards and a touchdown. He added three receptions for six more yards as the clear leadback in Week 2.
Now that Gainwell is healthy, people were wondering what the team would do at the running back position. Head coach Nick Sirianni revealed what the game plan will be moving forward and it will surprise some people.
“We’re going to ride the hot hand,” Sirianni said Thursday, via the team’s official transcript. “Do I think it’s sustainable? Shoot, his body is ready to go. I don’t ever want to put an expectation on anybody. If he’s got the hot hand on Monday night, we’ll keep rolling with him.
“We feel really good about the work he puts in to make sure his body is right. It’s hard not to — running the ball like that, give it to him 35 times. It’s hard not to do that.”
Riding the hot hand certainly makes sense. Right now, that hot hand is Swift coming off of a dominant Week 2 performance. Gainwell should still get his opportunities as he played well in Week 1, carrying the ball 14 times for 54 yards, and adding four receptions for 20 yards against a stout Patriots defense.
Who this spells bad news for is Rashaad Penny. The Eagles signed Penny in free agency to a one-year deal and many people expected he would take over the early down role from Miles Sanders, who signed in free agency with the Carolina Panthers.
Alas, that does not seem to be the case. Penny was a healthy scratch in Week 1 and it would not be surprising if that continues when Gainwell and Swift are both healthy and in the lineup.
