Why Eagles won't name Jay Ajayi No. 1

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Jay Ajayi has an NFC-best 6.4 yards per carry since arriving in Philly.

What he doesn't have is a full-time job.

Eagles head coach Doug Pederson said Wednesday he doesn't play on making Ajayi the Eagles' featured running back down the stretch and into the playoffs, despite Ajayi's recent production.

"It's a fine line a little bit," Pederson said. "Right now, I don't want to fix something or do something if it's not really broken."

The Eagles have used a running back-by-committee approach all year, and it's served them well. 

But Ajayi has separated himself the last few weeks. He's had a higher average than LeGarrette Blount in five of six games he's played, and his 6.4 rushing average since his Eagles' debut in early November is highest among all NFC running backs during that span (and second only to Cam Newton in the conference).

Overall, the Eagles' running game hasn't been quite so effective the last few weeks.

After averaging 147 rushing yards and 4.7 yards per carry through the first 11 games of the year — both among the top-three in the NFL during that span — they're at 115 yards per game and 4.1 per carry against the Seahawks, Rams and Giants. Those figures rank 18th and 22nd in the league.

Blount is averaging just 2.2 yards per carry in those three games. Corey Clement continues to produce when he gets the ball — he's averaging 4.3 yards per carry — and Kenjon Barner had a big 18-yard gain against the Giants Sunday.

With Ajayi, Blount and Clement, the Eagles are the only NFL team that has three running backs with at least 300 rushing yards.

On Sunday, Ajayi had only six touches in the game's first 38 ½ minutes, then on back-to-back snaps gained 22 yards on a run and 32 yards on a catch and run on a pivotal touchdown drive.

Despite the 33rd-most carries in the NFL during his six weeks with the Eagles, Ajayi has 10 runs of 10 yards or more — 11th-most in the NFL during that span.

"If a guy does get a hot hand, I try to maybe feature that guy a little bit more in each game," Pederson said.

"I still think we've got a great running back room. We've got some talent there. Each one has a different skill set, and we want to make sure we use it all the best we can."

Since Pederson became the Eagles' head coach, Ryan Mathews is the only running back to get 20 carries in a game — he had 22 against the Browns last September and 20 against the Ravens last December.

But the bottom line is the Eagles are 12-2 and on the brink of clinching the No. 1 seed in the playoffs, and Blount, Ajayi, Clement and Barner have all contributed … as did Darren Sproles before he got hurt and Wendell Smallwood before Ajayi arrived.

"I suppose there are pros and cons, but like anything, you play the cards and the hand that you have, and the hand that we've been playing has been working for us, where it keeps them fresh," Reich said.

"I feel like we've built in enough rhythm for them at times. I'm sure every back always wants more carries, but so far it's been working pretty well for us."

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