Eagles 3rd-year Receiver Josh Huff Knows He's Playing for a Roster Spot

Josh Huff knows his spot on the Eagles is not guaranteed.

When Chip Kelly was head coach, a combination of the Oregon connection with the fact he was just recently drafted made Huff more of a lock to make the team. But the Eagles face a tough decision with the third-year receiver in a struggling position group.

Competition might be exactly what Huff needed. Not that there wasn’t competition in the past, but he said this year especially the competition has helped him grow.

“I know what’s at stake, and I know each and every day it’s competition at the position,” Huff said. “So I have to be on my A-game if I want to stay here. And that’s how I look at it, obviously having these guys around, bringing the competition is great. It’s great for the mind, it’s great for the soul.”

In terms of actual production on the field, the competition hasn’t yet bred excellence. Despite Jordan Matthews' missing both preseason games, Huff has just three receptions for 13 yards.

Despite this lack of preseason production, Huff thinks he’s having a good camp.

“I feel like I made some good strides this year in preseason,” he said. “Obviously there’s still some things I need to work on, ball security being one of them. And I’d rather those things happen to me now in preseason. That way in the regular season, I know.”

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The obvious “it’s just preseason” caveat must be noted because nobody really cares about preseason numbers. However, for a player like Huff who could potentially be on the bubble, a strong preseason might help his chances.

Huff’s regular-season highlights include a 107-yard kick return touchdown against the Titans in 2014 and a 41-yard touchdown catch against the Saints in 2015. However, in those two seasons he’s compiled only 35 receptions for 410 yards and three touchdowns, an underwhelming total for a former third-round pick.

Eagles head coach Doug Pederson said the first-team offense will get more reps in Saturday’s preseason game against the Colts, which likely means Huff will have an extended chance to make an impact.

“This week, as I mentioned, is more of an in-season structure, and we’ve got to start getting those players, Josh Huff being in that group, more touches, more reps, both offensively and on special teams,” Pederson said. “So I would expect his workload to potentially increase this week.”

Pederson said he’s not yet sure how many receivers the Eagles will keep — could be four, five or six. Matthews, Nelson Agholor, Rueben Randle, Chris Givens and Paul Turner are all in the mix, meaning the fight for playing time will be tough.

And then add in Dorial Green-Beckham, who the Eagles traded for last week. When they made the trade, some felt like a message was being sent to the wide receiver group about how they’ve performed this preseason.

Huff was not one of those people.

“What message does it send?” he asked. “He’s an outstanding talent, he brings a lot to the table as a receiver, and I’m looking forward to seeing what he can do in the game and how he can help this offense move forward.”

Special teams, especially kick returning, has been one of Huff’s main contributions to the Eagles the past two years, but that might not be enough to keep him around. Huff acknowledged that, saying his main goal is to just do whatever he can wherever they use him.

Offensively, Huff feels like he has built good chemistry with Sam Bradford recently that he thinks could help his production.

“Huff’s obviously one of our more explosive options,” Bradford said. “He’s got a lot of speed, he has the ability to make big plays for us. I think we just have to find the right ways to get Huff the ball because he’s shown that when we put the ball in his hands, he’s a dangerous playmaker.”

Since the starters don’t really play in the fourth preseason game, Saturday should be a big test for Huff, and it may be his final one to show what he can do before final cuts.

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