Bears trade runningback Jordan Howard to the Philadelphia Eagles.

3/29/2019

By: GroovNuke

(Getty Images)

Jordan Howard spent three seasons and made a Pro Bowl in Chicago. Now it’s time to move on.

Former 2016 5th round pick Jordan Howard was traded to the Philadelphia Eagles. In exchange, the Bears received a sixth round pick that can be flexed to a fifth round pick.

During his time in Chicago, Howard scored 24 touchdowns and 3,370 yards rushing. I would consider him the best downhill back in the league. Only reason of that is because Ezekiel Elliott, Todd Gurley, and Le’Veon Bell catches the ball better out of the backfield.

Of course this is my reaction to the Jordan Howard trade.

Maybe Howard didn’t fit in to Matt Nagy’s style of play. Howard’s style is suitable for a consistent run, run, then pass. In the Bears offense, Nagy likes to dump the ball off quickly, and explore some read option. Howard isn’t the fastest out of the shotgun position. Also, there’s only one football to go around on a team full of weapons.

Howard gets going downhill, and that’s was the disconnection. In his last four regular season games, he received 72 carries and rushed for 323 yards. That was good enough for 4.5 yards per carry. His first four games of the season, he was averaging 3.1 yards a carry, getting 64 carries for 203 yards. There’s no shaking that Howard gets better down the stretch and by the reps.

Tarik Cohen scatters out of the backfield quicker than Howard, and the Bears will see more of that for years to come. Bears also signed Mike Davis in free agency, and expect the pursuit of a runningback in the draft. Although they don’t have a first or second round pick in the draft, strings will be pulled by Pace some way.

Most rushing yards in NFL since 2016:

Ezekiel Elliott: 4,048
Todd Gurley: 3,441
Jordan Howard: 3,370
— Dave Zangaro (@DZangaroNBCS) March 29, 2019

As for the Eagles, they got a nice pickup that will bring them great gain in the trenches. Howard is also in his contract year, so expect him to come for his pay day. Jordan Howard is a former Pro Bowl player (2016) and he’s only 24 years old.

No more Thunder and Lightening in Chicago (Getty Images).

Chicago was a nice start for Howard, but business is business. He’s still got a lot left in the tank and he’s durable down the stretch. In certain places, those backs are still valued. In his contract year, Howard is on a quest to show his value moving forward and be rewarded for it. May Jordan Howard have much success in Philly.

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