Dameon Pierce is back on the Eagles’ 53-man roster, and with Saquon Barkley out and Tank Bigsby on injured reserve, Philadelphia may need him right away Sunday in London against the Jacksonville Jaguars.
The promotion gives Pierce a real shot at meaningful carries, and he’s hardly hiding why he wanted to come back after being part of the initial cut to 53. When asked what pulled him back to Philadelphia, he pointed straight to his head coach.
“Nick Sirianni,” he said, laughing, before explaining why.
“He’s a great guy. He’s vibrant.
He loves the game of football. He loves what he does.
And this locker room, to gel, we all gotta have good relationships,” Pierce said.
Sirianni, for his part, made it clear the interest in Pierce goes back a while. When asked about their relationship by Eagles On SI, he said the team had been following the running back since his Florida days.
“There’re a lot of guys [in the draft] you end up loving that it’s like, ‘Oh man, he’s going to be good for them,’” Sirianni said. “I think it all started back then, and just like I said, it’s fun being around him.
He brings constant energy to the football team. He’s obviously a very talented player and works extremely hard and runs extremely hard."
For Pierce, this is the kind of chance that has been a long time in the making. He came into the league and made noise immediately in 2022, piling up 939 rushing yards and four touchdowns on 220 carries for Houston while adding 30 catches for 165 yards. That was the version of Pierce that looked like a rising force.
Since then, the production has dropped off sharply. He ran for 416 yards in 2023, saw his role shrink, dealt with ankle, hamstring and shoulder injuries, and managed only 26 yards on 10 carries in four games in 2025 before Houston waived him.
Through all of it, Pierce said he leaned on prayer and toughness to stay steady.
“Being in this game, you gotta have a lot of mental strength, on the field and off the field,” he said. “Just finding that happy medium to where you can go and just control what you can control and be ready when the time is, for sure has helped.”
He described this promotion as the kind of moment he’s been waiting on.
“Just having a lot of the mental toughness I had over the last few years, you know, probably not going the way I wanted it, but I’m all about timing,” Pierce said. “Just making sure I’m prepared on that field, making sure I’m ready to carry the torch for my guy.”
Pierce also gave a simple picture of what he brings, calling himself a down-to-earth South Georgia player with humble roots who wants to be detailed and explosive.
“I just try to bring the game to the defense, not try to let them dictate my game speed. If it’s there, take it. If not, wait on it,” he said.
Whether that turns into early-down work against one of the league’s better run defenses is still to be seen. But the opportunity is there, and Sirianni sounds ready to hand it to him.
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