Hope there is enough time before Sunday's game for Carson Wentz and Jordan Matthews to work on their touchdown celebration.
The Eagles welcomed back wide receiver Jordan Matthews to the team, signing him to a contract Wednesday morning. To make room for him on the 53-player roster, wide receiver Mike Wallace was placed on Injured Reserve after fracturing his fibula early in Sunday's loss to Tampa Bay.
Matthews was the recipient of Wentz's first career touchdown pass in the 2016 season opener against the Cleveland Browns on a 19-yard pass that came on the game's opening drive. The quarterback-wide receiver duo had a touchdown celebration where they pretended to straighten their ties to signal that they're all business. Matthews and Wentz are very close friends. The two traveled together in the 2017 offseason to Haiti on a mission trip.
A second-round pick of the team in 2014, Matthews brings size (6-3, 212 pounds), production, and experience to the table for a wide receiver corps that has been plagued by injury. With Alshon Jeffery "week to week" with his shoulder, and Mack Hollins and Wallace on Injured Reserve, the Eagles had just three healthy players on the depth chart at wide receiver in Nelson Agholor, Kamar Aiken, and Shelton Gibson before adding Matthews.
In his first three seasons with the Eagles, Matthews was a high-volume target out of slot accumulating 225 catches for 2,673 yards, and 19 touchdowns. Only six other wide receivers in NFL history have posted those numbers in their first three seasons. One of them is a Hall of Famer (Randy Moss), one is a future Hall of Famer (Larry Fitzgerald), and the others are the preeminent receivers in today's game.
In August 2017, the Eagles decided to move Agholor to the slot and sent Matthews to Buffalo along with a third-round pick in exchange for cornerback Ronald Darby. Matthews played 10 games for the Bills and had 25 catches for 282 yards and a touchdown. He signed with the Patriots as a free agent this past offseason but was released with a settlement after suffering a hamstring injury early in Training Camp.
Where does Matthews fit into the current offense? Head coach Doug Pederson (10:30 a.m.) and Wentz (11:45 a.m.) will meet the media this morning. We will bring those press conferences to you live on PhiladelphiaEagles.com, the Eagles' app, and our social media channels.
