The playoffs are here and it’s the time when players who are not regularly called upon can be remembered forever by fans. Players like Rodney Peete, Freddie Mitchell, Kenny Gainwell and Corey Clement’ are fondly remembered for their contributions in the playoffs. As the Eagles gear up to take on the San Francisco 49ers on Sunday, Tank Bigsby has a chance to join those players if given the opportunity.
His birth name Cartavious was replaced by the nickname “Tank” given by his mother when he was a child. It definitely fits with the running style he showed as a youngster, through his high school days and when he was rumbling his way to end zones at Auburn. The 5-foot-11, 215-pound running back has the power and speed similar to the military vehicle.
It took a bit longer than expected for the Eagles to incorporate Bigsby into the offense after acquiring him in a trade with Jacksonville where Howie Roseman sent a pair of draft picks to the Jaguars to land the former third-round pick. However, in his limited touches, he produced and has drawn the attention of fans clamoring to see more of the backup to help give Saquon Barkley a breather.
The 24-year-old finished with a 5.9 yards per carry average which is the highest for an Eagles running back with at least 50 carries in 64 years and the third-highest all-time according to NBC Sports Philadelphia’s Reuben Frank.
Bigsby, who played in 16 games with Philadelphia rushed for 344 yards on 58 carries. He scored both of his touchdowns against the Washington Commanders in Weeks 16 and 18.
“For one God, but being ready. Being ready for the opportunity,” Bigsby said on what led to his success this season.
“It’s been a long season, but just being ready for whenever my number is called. Credit to my guys, my team, my parents, my loved ones. Just going out there and play.”
There is no argument that Barkley is the cowbell back of this offense, rightfully so. He’s a year removed from his historic 2,000-yard season and quite literally, carrying the team to a Super Bowl victory. However, it was a tough regular season for Barkley due to a combination of inconsistent offensive line play dealing with defenders in the backfield before he could get to the line of scrimmage and playcalling.
Barkley finished the regular season with 1,140 yards averaging 4.1 yards per attempt with seven touchdowns. It was his second-lowest total in yards with at least 240 carries in a season.
Bigsby could be a nice counterpunch to Barkley and in turn keep last year’s leading rusher fresh during the playoffs.
The backup running back had his first carry as an Eagle in Week 7 against Minnesota. The following week against the Giants, he ripped nine runs for 104 yards. Over the course of the next five weeks, his usage in the running game fluctuated and became perplexing. He saw a combined nine carries during that stretch.
In the regular season finale loss to Washington, Bigsby was the best offensive player on the field, averaging nearly five yards per carry behind the backup offensive line finishing with 75 yards and a touchdown on 16 carries.
“He runs hard. He’s got an extremely good ability to make you miss while also putting his shoulder down to finish off runs through contact,” Nick Sirianni said of the running back.
“I thought he did a lot of good things. The way he walks through, the way he practices, it really does show up in the game in how hard he runs and plays.”
Bigsby’s stat line could have been even more impressive if it had not been for the decision to not give him the ball at all over the final 15 plays the Eagles ran on offense.
If you take a look at the playoff landscape, in particular the NFC, there are multiple teams that have had success implementing a two back system.
Seattle perhaps is best known for this, with Kenneth Walker III and Zach Charbonnet flip flopping back and forth with Charbonnet getting the bulk of the red zone carries. Chicago relies on former Eagle D’Andre Swift and rookie Kyle Monangai and the Eagles saw first hand how that duo can work. The duo each went for 125-plus yards and scored a touchdown, totaling 255 yards on the ground on 40 carries.
Even Sean McVay and the Rams are leaning more into the two running back system with Blake Corum getting more touches down the stretch to compliment Kyren Williams.
Barkley and Bigsby should not be in a near equal timeshare, but mixing Bigsby in for six to eight carries could be beneficial for an offense that has struggled with consistency and finished the regular season putting up 22.3 points per game, slightly below the league average this season.
