When the Eagles finalized their 53 man roster, they chose to keep five Running Backs on the team heading into the 2017 season.  The expectation is for the Eagles to utilize each player in specific roles, like LeGarrette Blount in Goal Line short yardage and Darren Sproles as the Third Down Back.  As a rookie last season, Wendell Smallwood  tallied 77 Rushes for 312 Yards and One Touchdown; he is viewed as a multi-purpose Running Back who many in the Eagles organization think highly of.  The expectation is for Smallwood to get more opportunities this season to showcase what he can do in the Eagles offense.

Turron Davenport of USA Today Eagles Wire joined The Sports Bash on Tuesday and discussed his expectations for Smallwood's role in 2017:

“I really think it’s going to be a heavy dose of Wendell Smallwood; I know the coaching staff is very high on him, especially (Running Backs Coach) Duce Staley.  When you look at it, Smallwood is their best and most complete Running Back, he can do some of what everyone can do on that roster can do.  He can catch the ball out of the backfield like (Darren) Sproles, he can line up in the slot like (Donnel) Pumphrey, he can run with power like (LeGarrett) Blount or (Corey) Clement, so he brings everything….You look at the Steelers game: 17 Carries, 79 Yards, One Touchdown but specifically on that Touchdown drive they just gave him the ball, they kept feeding him and feeding him and you saw him really get the feel of the running game and you saw him get better with more carries.  That’s how he is, I think he’s one of those guys that the more you give him the rock the better he will be.”

Hear what Davenport had to say about Eagles final 53 man roster, expectations for the 2017 season, and more Eagles talk

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