Eagles Coach Nick Sirianni Keeps Bringing Up RB Trey Sermon: 'Really Excited!'

An afterthought to most in the Philadelphia Eagles' running back competition, is it time to pay more attention to Trey Sermon?

PHILADELPHIA - It might be nothing and it might mean everything, but Philadelphia Eagles coach Nick Sirianni sure likes to remind people that Trey Sermon is part of his backfield.

To date, the post-Miles Sanders world in the Eagles’ running back room is generally split into two categories: the incumbent contributors and the cost-effective newbies with upside tied to their question marks.

At the team’s two open OTAs in the spring, Sirianni defaulted to the players that have been with him -- Boston Scott and Kenny Gainwell -- while working in trade pickup D’Andre Swift, a Philadelphia native returning home, and the oft-injured but gifted Rashaad Penny, a one-time first-round pick of Seattle who’s generally produced when on the field.

When it came to the spring reps there was something in between those two duos. However, Sermon, a 6-foot, 215-pound bigger back with some wiggle, is a player Sirianni has brought up unprompted twice this offseason,

The latest instance came on Thursday,  as Philadelphia wrapped up its spring season in advance of a July 25 opening of training camp.

The Eagles coach was specifically asked by Delaware News Journal reporter Martin Frank how the running back competition was going with Scott, Gainwell, Swift, and Penny mentioned by name.

So Sirianni decided to start with Sermon, a 2021 third-round pick by the San Francisco 49ers claimed off waivers on Sept. 1 of last year.

“We have Trey, too, who we're really excited about,” Sirianni said.

To be fair, Sirianni also brought up the team’s RB6, former Oklahoma 1000-yard rusher Kennedy Brooks. Sirianni has a history of talking up his guys.

Sometimes it’s obviously calculated, like the coach’s recent singling out of embattled receiver Quez Watkins in an effort to buoy the confidence of a player coming off a down year. Sometimes, it seems like loyalty to the guys in his locker room.

Last spring before the Eagles brought in second-team All-Pro cornerback James Bradberry, Sirianni would talk up his young players at that position like Mac McCain, Tay Gowan, and Kary Vincent Jr. to the point you thought Patrick Surtain Jr. or Sauce Gardner were in the building.

Fast-forward a year, and McCain and Vincent are looking for work even with the bloated 90-man offseason rosters around the NFL, and Gowan is deep on the depth chart in Minnesota.

The obvious question with Sermon is whether or not the unprompted love is a legitimate hint that the former Ohio State star via Oklahoma, where he was a teammate of Jalen Hurts, is real.

Back at the league meeting it certainly sounded like it was.

“Trey Sermon, I’m really excited about him,” Sirianni told reporters. “... “Trey didn’t get an opportunity to showcase his talents except for that game against Jacksonville [last season] ... but I can’t tell you how many times at practice he made a cut or you just saw him in his pads or he made a play on a screen or whatever it was and you’re like, ‘Man, this guy has a chance to be really good.”

On a team loaded with talent, running back has generally been an afterthought because the Eagles don’t invest significant financial assets in the position.

Sirianni isn’t concerned with the check runs, however, and for those who haven’t noticed the perceived four-way dance of a competition is really a five-man free-for-all.

“We're deep there,” Sirianni said. “It's a good problem to have as a coach. It's just a really good problem. … It's going to be great battles to who makes this football team, and they're all going to be able to contribute in some sort of way.”

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-John McMullen contributes Eagles coverage for SI.com's Eagles Today and is the NFL Insider for JAKIB Media. You can listen to John, alongside legendary sports-talk host Jody McDonald every morning from 8-10 on ‘Birds 365,” streaming live on YouTube. John is also the host of his own show "Football 24/7 and a daily contributor to ESPN South Jersey. You can reach him at jmcmullen44@gmail.com or on Twitter @JFMcMullen