Dameon Pierce spent enough time on the outside looking in to appreciate exactly where he is now.
That’s why a move to the Eagles’ 53-man roster Wednesday didn’t sound like a burden to him. It sounded like a chance.
“Man, first and foremost, it's always a blessing just to be in the building, be around the guys, and then, you know, it's an even bigger blessing to be on the 53,” Pierce said after practice Thursday. “Anybody working a factory job wants to be in the NFL. So, you know, I ain't doing too bad.”
Pierce will make his Eagles debut Sunday in London, stepping into a bigger role with Saquon Barkley and Tank Bigsby unavailable. Bigsby was placed on Injured Reserve with a core muscle injury that will require surgery, and Barkley is expected to miss the game while working back from a hamstring injury. That leaves Pierce and Will Shipley to handle the load.
For Pierce, the moment has been a long time coming.
He opened his NFL career as one of the league’s most productive rookie backs, finishing third among NFL rookies with 939 rushing yards for the Texans in 2022. But the road since then has been rocky.
His carries fell from 220 as a rookie to 145 in Year 2, then to 40 in Year 3 and 14 last season. He was waived by the Texans last November, then managed just five snaps in a short stint with the Chiefs late last year.
So how did he keep going?
“Just praying and fortifying my mental toughness,” he said. “Being in this game, you gotta have a lot of mental strength, on the field and off the field.
So just finding that happy medium to where you can go and just control what you can control and be ready when the time presents itself. Such as now.”
Pierce’s patience paid off again last month when he made the most of a brief window against the Bengals, running four times for 44 yards. That showing turned heads inside the organization and helped push him back into the picture.
“Sometimes all you need is four carries,” Pierce said last month. “Just tried to make the most of those four carries.”
Nick Sirianni has seen enough to trust the back, and he said the Eagles have liked Pierce for a while.
“Yeah, I think you guys saw when he was in there in the (Bengal) game, he's a good running back,” Sirianni said. “I've been really pleased to have him and so excited that even when he wasn't on the roster with where we were, we were able to keep him.
“Unfortunately, with Tank being down right now, we got a really good back. And you guys saw him run the football when he had opportunities in the preseason, and you've seen him run the football when he's been the lead back.”
Sirianni also pointed back to Pierce’s Florida days, where he averaged 5.5 yards per carry from 2018 through 2021.
“I loved it. I must remember how much I loved his college tape.
And … he's an awesome, awesome kid, man, you know, and great teammate. And he is somebody that's really great to be around on a daily basis, regardless of what his circumstances are.”
Now Pierce and Shipley will run behind an offensive line that’s being patched together, with two players set for their first NFL start and another making his second. Pierce said he still feels good about the group, pointing to the way the young linemen have been brought along and the way Jordan Mailata and Tyler Steen have helped keep everyone aligned.
“They're looking good, man,” Pierce said. “Our o-line coaches make sure we spend extra time (with) the young guys.
And Jordan (Mailata) is doing a great job leading those guys. Before every snap, Jordan is overemphasizing the call.
Make sure he's echoing it. Make sure they're echoing it.
Just trying to lead by example on that end. So kudos to Jordan, bro.
“And it's kind of works out, Jordan's on the left side, but then we got (Tyler) Steen right here (on the right side). So whatever they didn’t get, Steen’s going to reiterate it and then all the young guys are going to be on the same page.”
Asked whether this week feels different from the first four of the season, Pierce didn’t need long to answer.
“Yeah, it looks different,” he said with a laugh. “I'm on the 53, it looks way different. Just got to be ready.”
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