The Philadelphia Eagles might have something in Matt Pryor
While the circumstances of his playing time were far from ideal, Matt Pryor actually played pretty well in his debut with the Philadelphia Eagles.
Seven different offensive lineman earned significant snaps in the Philadelphia Eagles‘ Week 12 loss to the Seattle Seahawks.
Seven.
While it isn’t too uncommon to see seven lineman suit up for an NFL game or even see the field in a super-jumbo package, it’s pretty, pretty, pretty unusual for that many players to earn 10 or more snaps over a single game.
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Typically, playing that many linemen is a sign that something went very, very wrong, and if you were to look at the stat sheet, that assumption would be warranted. On the afternoon, Carson Wentz was hit nine times for three sacks, and three (should have been four) fumbles. Now granted, some of that directly correlates with players playing out of position, as Andre Dillard played so bad on the right side Doug Pederson had to pull the plug after 36 snaps (more on that here). Still, all in all, the Eagles offense put together one of their most lackluster performances in recent memory when they had every opportunity to win.
However, one player who actually played pretty well in limited action was the seventh man up, Matt Pryor.
A college guard/tackle out of TCU, Pryor has been a member of the Eagles since he was drafted 206th overall in the 2018 NFL Draft. Despite running an absolutely brutal 5.6 40 yard dash at his pro day, Pryor’s versatility, when coupled with his experience playing alongside Halapoulivaati Vaitai, cast the 6-foot-7, 332 pound Californian as a viable reserve capable of filling a versatile role coming off the bench.
So far, so good.
While Sunday’s performance was far from Pryor’s first flashy performance in midnight green, as he played surprisingly well at tackle during the preseason (more on that here), it was the soon-to-be 25-year-old’s first NFL game, and first offensive snaps in the NFL in general.
Filling Brandon Brooks, and then Big V’s role at right guard, Pryor played about as well as one could hope – moving around lineman in the run game, while holding up quite well next to his fellow Horned Frog.
Was he perfect? No, Pryor drew an unacceptable yellow flag for holding that blew up a promising drive in the second half, but for a first-time performer going against a potent Seattle pass rush, you’ll allow such an error.
Other than that, Pryor was really unnoticeable in action at right guard, a major win for an offensive lineman.
Next. Brandon Brooks deserves nothing but respect. dark
Now to be fair, this was just one game – really half a game at 43 snaps – and the supersized guard’s lack of athleticism could get exposed over extended playing time. However, with Big V set to become a free agent at the end of the season, and some lineman hungry team like the Houston Texans all but surely set to award the swing tackle with a big-money deal, Matt Pryor could very well find himself the Philadelphia Eagles’ sixth lineman next season – a role that could lead to his own big payday down the line.