Conventional wisdom seems to be that Philadelphia Eagles coach Chip Kelly doesn't think he needs a star back to be successful running the ball, and that, in turn, has led to talk that the Eagles won't be interested in taking a running back with their first pick, at No. 20, in the 2015 NFL Draft, even after trading LeSean McCoy.
But might they be tempted anyway? NFL Media analyst Charles Davis brought up an interesting scenario during Wednesday's "The Rich Eisen Show" -- what if Georgia's Todd Gurley were available?
Gurley is rehabbing from surgery to repair a torn ACL suffered in November, but he still is seen as a first-round pick by most analysts: Four NFL Media analysts -- Davis, as well as Bucky Brooks, Daniel Jeremiah and Lance Zierlein -- have Gurley going in the first round in their mock drafts.
"To me, without the knee injury, there's no question in my mind that he's the No. 1 runner in the draft," Davis said of Gurley.
So, what if Gurley were there when the Eagles make their first selection?
"If (Kelly is) fortunate to get Todd Gurley from Georgia at 20 ... he fits everything that you're going to want," Davis said on Eisen's show. "A heavy, strong runner who can catch the ball out of the backfield and can make any play into a huge one."
Brooks said he doesn't know if Kelly "would value any running back as a first-round talent. He believes his system creates players, not players creating the system." Davis mentioned three other backs who he thought would fit into Kelly's offense, and each could be available in the second round: Nebraska's Ameer Abdullah, Boise State's Jay Ajayi and Indiana's Tevin Coleman. Abdullah and Ajayi are proven receivers, and Ajayi had 50 receptions in 2014. Coleman isn't as productive as a receiver, but he did have 25 catches in 2014 for an offense that was down to its third-string quarterback by the midway point of the season.
Mike Huguenin can be reached at mike.huguenin@nfl.com. You also can follow him on Twitter @MikeHuguenin.
