Chris “Beanie” Wells has barely practiced since being drafted, staying in the news primarily because his nagging injuries and disappointing offseason provided a contrast to second-year back Tim Hightower, who has exceeded expectations in training camp.
On Friday night’s dress rehearsal for the regular season, Wells showed why he’s the back with a first-round pedigree. As mentioned in Josh Alper’s one liners, Wells rushed for two scores and 46 yards on only seven carries in his pro debut.
Wells quickly turned the corner on his first run, an 11-yard carry that showed off his excellent speed for his size. On the same drive against Green Bay’s starting defense, Wells showed outstanding footwork and vision to wriggle free for a 20-yard touchdown run.
It was the type of highlight run that Arizona backs haven’t made in recent years; getting more than just what was blocked. Wells scored again in a short-yardage situation, showing patience as he waited for a hole to develop.
Wells says he isn’t 100% recovered from his ankle injury, but you wouldn’t know it.
“I have to get back out there Monday and get my timing right and get my ankle better,” Wells said. “I felt like I didn’t have a lot of burst tonight.”
If Wells can just stay on the field, he could be pretty scary when that “burst” is back.
