Adrian Fedkiw
Thirteen months away from Philly and Jordan Matthews is now a father.
I guess there really isn’t anything to do in Buffalo except, you know.
Matthews signed with the Philadelphia Eagles on Wednesday, rejoining the team that sent him to the Buffalo Bills along with a third-round pick for cornerback Ronald Darby. The Eagles placed Mike Wallace on injured reserve in a corresponding move.
With just three healthy receivers on the roster, Nelson Agholor, Shelton Gibson and Kamar Aiken, bringing in a receiver that knew the playbook and could contribute right away was key. Eagles head coach Doug Pederson is excited to have him back.
“We’re excited to get him back. He knows our offense. I think it’s huge. It has a comfort level for the quarterback knowing that you got another receiver that we brought in from the outside who has worked with him in the past. I just think it can be a benefit to Carson.”
Matthews spent four years with the Eagles between 2013-16 and caught 73 passes for 804 yards and three touchdowns during Wentz’s rookie season in 2016.
Wentz is one of Matthews’ best friends and he said that they had been joking for a while about playing together again.
“We were like, ‘Yo lets do this. Let’s have some fun. Let’s have a good time. Let’s make some more memories.’”
Jordan Matthews says he and Carson Wentz had been joking for a while about playing together again, but didnt think it would happen
“We were like, ‘Yo lets do this. Let’s have some fun. Let’s make some more memories”#FlyEaglesFly pic.twitter.com/NjfEdwwmQt
— John Clark (@JClarkNBCS) September 19, 2018
When Matthews was initially traded, Wentz said it was tough to see his friend go to another team.
“It’s tough. There is the personal side of things and the football side of things. The football side, you have to trust what they are doing upstairs. On the personal side, it’s tough. It’s someone that was one of my best friends. Seeing him yesterday, it was tough on him too. I spoke with Howie (Eagles Executive Vice President of Football Operations Howie Roseman) shortly before it was news. He told me is was already done,” Wentz said. “He obviously knew how I felt with Jordan being one of my best friends. On the personal side its tough. He knew that, he was prepared for that and I told him that.”
Matthews had 282 yards and a touchdown on 25 receptions in seven games with the Bills last year. He signed with the New England Patriots prior to the season, but injured his hamstring and was cut in Training Camp. Matthews stated that he’s been humbled the last few months by how free agency can go.
“Free agency can go one of two ways. You can get a contract, get paid a ton of money, get on your high horse. Or you can have injuries, have adversity and there’s the humility aspect of it. I’ve been humbled through this experience. I took stuff for granted. Now I’m being thankful for every single day. I know I can be the bottom guy on the roster and it’s been a real blessing for me.”
We’ll see if Matthews’ signing becomes a blessing for the Eagles.
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