Philadelphia Eagles: Kenneth Gainwell has the makings of an elite RB2

Following a much needed addition to their cornerback room to kick off the action on Day 3, the Philadelphia Eagles turned around and addressed a rather underrated need: their running back room.

While Miles Sanders has flashed “three-down back” potential at times, the reality of the situation is that he hasn’t stayed consistently healthy enough to be considered a reliable option for 20-25 carries a night. Boston Scott is a fan-favorite, but he too has proven unable to provide the Eagles with a consistent threat out of the backfield.

Thus enters Kenneth Gainwell, a player whom many had pinned as a Day 2 selection.

A 5-11, 190-200lbs running back from the University of Memphis, Gainwell had an absurd level of success during his 2019 season. He recorded 2,000+ scrimmage yards, logging an eye-popping total of 16 touchdowns.

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Gainwell was pretty consistently described by draft analysts as one of the more complete running backs in this year’s class, primarily due to the wide compass of skills that he possesses. He’s good in pass protection, he’s a very good route runner, he’s got above average hands, and he’s obviously an impressive runner.

His breakaway speed was a weapon that Memphis pretty routinely used during the 2019 season, working hard to get the ball in his hands via screens, pitches, and quick routes over the middle of the field operating out of the slot.

So not only can Gainwell be an effective mover of the football via the ground game, but he should be able to provide the Eagles with some juice as a receiver as well. Having that versatility is quite important for running backs in today’s pass-heavy league.

Don’t believe the hype? Daniel Jeremiah had Gainwell as a top 100 prospect heading into this year’s draft:

Philadelphia Eagles got themselves a very promising RB2 in Kenneth Gainwell.

Dissecting Gainwell’s “fit” on the Philadelphia Eagles moving forward, he should quite seamlessly slide into a high-usage RB2 role behind Sanders – likely as soon as his rookie season. He’s the type of talent who you’d want getting 10+ touches a night, and Nick Sirianni has a history of successfully running RB rotations at the professional level.

The manner in which Sirianni used Nyheim Hines in Indianapolis feels like a pretty good predictor as to how Gainwell will be utilized here in Philadelphia.

If Gainwell ends up being anything like last year’s Memphis RB draft darling (Antonio Gibson), the Eagles are going to have themselves quite the running back room moving forward. In an offense that will likely be dominated by the ground game moving forward, having two above average backs to rely on would be quite the strength for Philadelphia.

Also, Gainwell is apparently cousins with Fletcher Cox! That’s pretty fun!

Final verdict on the pick? I think it was a pretty good one.