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If it wasn’t for an incredibly rocky collegiate career, Philadelphia Eagles RB Bryce Brown could have easily been a first-round NFL draft pick.
Brown was an absolute phenom coming out of high school, winning the coveted Hall Trophy in 2008, which goes to the best high school football player in all of the United States, and was also ranked as the single best player in his class by Rivals.com.
Unfortunately for Brown, he hardly even had a legitimate college career at the University of Tennessee or Kansas State University, largely due to Lane Kiffin’s sudden departure from UT.
But the Eagles kept an eye on Brown, and selected the youngster in the 7th round of last year’s 2012 NFL Draft, with the 229th overall pick.
And it took no time at all for Brown to show exactly why he was so highly-regarded as a high-schooler. In his first two NFL starts combined, Brown rushed for an absolutely jaw-dropping 347 yards and four touchdowns. Even though Brown also committed a trio of fumbles in these contests, ball security is something that can be taught, while innate rushing, juking and steamrolling ability can not.
Brown’s upside is completely unlimited, and the second-year player has the potential to be one of the best running backs in the NFL. Too bad he is currently rotting on the bench behind the Eagles’ All-Pro beast who is RB LeSean McCoy.
While I’m sure Birds head coach Chip Kelly loves having this incredible talent at his disposal, I’m sure Brown has bigger plans for himself.
And considering McCoy is only 25 years of age and isn’t going anywhere anytime soon, Brown will need to find a new team if he wishes to be the franchise player he could become.
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