Eagles Wake-Up Call: Doug Pederson Expects Bryce Treggs To Have Bigger Role In The Offense

Bryce Treggs. (USA Today Photos)

It didn’t take long for Bryce Treggs to make an impact. In his first NFL regular season game, the undrafted rookie free agent wide receiver caught a 58-yard deep pass from Carson Wentz. Watch the moment again below.

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All it took was this one play for Treggs to become the Eagles receiver with the longest reception in 2016. Darren Sproles is the only offensive player with a longer reception, but his 73-yard touchdown score against the Steelers was mostly a catch-and-run effort.

Given the fact that it was only one play, it’s hard to say Treggs will be a reliable deep threat for the Eagles moving forward. But for him to at least show the ability to stretch the field is encouraging for Philadelphia. His one deep catch wasn’t the only play he showed off his speed.

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The Eagles’ receiving corps is such a disappointing unit that any sign of promise is not to be taken lightly. It was previously thought the Eagles didn’t have a deep threat at all. Maybe now Treggs can be a weapon for Wentz to work with.

Treggs only played 15 offensive snaps in the Eagles’ loss to the Giants. According to Doug Pederson, the 22-year-old pass catcher could see more playing time in the future.

“I do,” said Pederson when asked if expects more of a regular role for Treggs. “Obviously he went into this game. He was very excited to play, obviously. First time to be active. He had two big catches for us. Obviously the explosive play down the field, and I think you’ll see more of a role for him, at least in the coming weeks.”

There’s no good reason to not give Treggs more of an extended look at this point. Treggs reached a top speed of 21.25 miles per hour on his deep catch against the Giants, which is faster than any Eagles receiver has run this season, per Next Gen Stats.

In addition, Treggs’ 69-yard game against New York has already surpassed Nelson Agholor’s career single-game high of 65 yards. Keep in mind Agholor has played in 20 more games than Treggs. The 2015 first-round pick has played the second most snaps of any Eagles receiver this season but has continued to struggle. If the Eagles are looking to get Treggs more playing time, it could come at the expense of the unproductive Agholor.

Treggs has a long way to go before he can counted on as a consistent contributor on offense. It’s very possible he’ll never reach that level. But at the very least, he’s shown value as a role-player who can stretch the field. In theory, his deep speed could open the Eagles’ underneath passing game for Wentz.

It’ll be interesting to see how the Eagles use Treggs moving forward. His presence should give the team a little more optimism about a receiving corps that otherwise looks bleak.

WHAT YOU MISSED

Who have been the best and worst Eagles, and how will the team finish at the midway point of the season?

Where are the Eagles in this week’s NFL Power Rankings?

“What if? What if? What if? You can play that game all day.” What They’re Saying.

“It’s hard to take him off the field right now.” Doug Pederson says Darren Sproles is the new lead running back.

WHAT THEY’RE SAYING

Although his performances overall have been great, Carson Wentz‘s slow starts in the first quarter have been contributing to the Eagles’ slow opens, opines Reuben Frank of CSNPhilly.com.

Is he pressing early in games? Is he trying to do too much? Is he too amped up?

It looks that way. The numbers say yes. But head coach Doug Pederson says no.

“I don’t think so,” he said. “I don’t think that’s the case. I go back to the Minnesota game, the two picks there – reference those real quick.

“One, he was trying to throw a quick little out-breaking route to (Brent) Celek and was just wide of the mark and got picked. The second one in that game felt like he might have forced the ball, actually just forced it down the field. He threw it into coverage and it got intercepted.

“The ones (Sunday), he had opportunities, whether the progression of the play, to go other places with the ball. I think sometimes, especially with young quarterbacks, these are the things we’re working and dealing with with Carson, is making sure he understands … the whole contour of the play, and what the initial play is designed to do. What is the coverage beater that it’s best against and if it’s not that coverage, where do I go with the football?”

Paul Domowitch of the Daily News writes this season is an investment for the future.

[Sam] Bradford has a $22 million cap number next season. Even though he was the second overall pick in the draft, Wentz’s cap numbers the next three years will be $6.1 million, $7.3 million and $8.5 million.

That creates a lot of cap space for the Eagles to do other things, whether it’s signing young players currently on their roster to contract extensions, such as defensive tackle Bennie Logan, or adding free agents.

That’s why the Eagles also are hoping late-round players like [Halapoulivaati] Vaitai and [Jalen] Mills pan out.

“We’re obviously building something here,” Pederson said. “When you look at some of these games that we’ve been in at the end, the encouraging thing is that we really should have won them.

“As we build this thing, we’re going to win these games down the stretch. And the fact that Carson continues to make plays – yeah, sure. We don’t like the interceptions and all that. But relatively speaking, he protects the football.

COMING UP

Pederson will speak to the media around 10:45 this morning.

Chris Jastrzembski contributed to this post.