Coming into Sunday, Josh Huff hadn’t really shown why the Eagles used a third-round pick on him last year.
But against the Saints, fans finally got a chance to see what Chip Kelly has seen since Huff played for him at Oregon (see story).
And that was only half of it.
Huff had four catches for 78 yards — both career highs — and his first receiving touchdown. The 23-year-old showed his dynamic playmaking ability when he caught a short pass and turned it into a 41-yard touchdown.
But Huff isn’t a one-trick pony. Unlike some other dynamic receivers in the NFL (see: Jackson, DeSean), Huff isn’t just a playmaker with the ball in his hands.
Huff can block.
Huff can play special teams.
NFL
Huff isn’t afraid of contact.
He has the potential — and so far it’s just potential — to be a dynamic playmaker and a great blocker. The best of both worlds.
“He can make people miss, but the other thing with Josh is he’s extremely tough,” Kelly said. “He’s one of the better blockers in this league. He’s a tough, physical person at the point of attack. That’s what makes him such a good special teams player and such a good gunner because sometimes there are guys who are good receivers but they’re not good on teams because of the physical nature of things. But I think Josh can do it all.”
So far in his young career, Huff hasn’t lived up to that potential. Even with his breakout performance on Sunday against the Saints, his career totals are modest: 16 receptions for 215 yards.
But against the Saints, he took a step in the right direction.
“Josh, in general as a player, is an extremely dynamic player,” Kelly said. “I think he’s got the ability to change direction, stop and start. He’s really good with the football in his hands; that’s why he’s doing a great job of returning for us.”
Now, it’s just a matter of keeping him on the field. Huff has had injuries early in the season in both of his two NFL years. This season, Huff hurt his hamstring and missed the Jets game. He was healthy by the time the Eagles played Washington but didn’t practice during the week, so he barely saw the field.
Coincidentally, on Sunday, it was an injury to Nelson Agholor (who left the Saints game early) that gave Huff a chance to shine. He played 41 offensive snaps in the Eagles’ 39-17 win.
“There’s some versatility with Josh with what [we’re] doing,” Kelly said. “And he can obviously do some things with the ball in his hands after the catch, which is beneficial to us.”