Philadelphia Eagles Blast from Past: Miami Dolphins RB Raheem Mostert Returns to Philly
PHILADELPHIA - ‘What if?’ is a game played in every NFL city, one usually devoid of any contextual substance.
The marquee matchup between the Miami Dolphins and the Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday Night Football at Lincoln Financial this week offers another opportunity to point out that Philadelphia is where speedy Dolphins running back Raheem Mostert started his NFL journey back in 2015 as an undrafted free agent out of Purdue.
Mostert, now 31, did everything he could to open the eyes of then-Eagles coach Chip Kelly with a brilliant preseason, flashing what has turned into home-run ability down the line in other NFL cities.
The Central Florida native led the NFL in preseason scrimmage yards with 351 (157 rushing and 191 receiving) and added five kickoff returns for 162 yards, over 32.0 yards a clip as a rookie with the Eagles.
Fair or not, pedigree matters in the NFL and Mostert was ultimately waived on the cutdown to 53 and brought back to the the Eagles practice squad two days later.
Stashing Mostert proved to be problematic when the Dolphins signed him off the Philadelphia practice squad eight days into the runnung back’s stint, ending the footnote of Mostert in the City of Brotherly Love.
Before you kill Kelly and the Eagles, though, understand Mostert bounced from the Dolphins to Baltimore, Cleveland, the New York Jets, and Chicago before landing as a contributor with San Francisco by 2018, his fourth season as a professional.
Philadelphia Eagles running back Raheem Mostert (48) during the game against the Green Bay Packers at Lambeau Field. Philadelphia won 39-26.
© Jeff Hanisch, USA TODAY
Slow and steady won the race for Mostert, which is ironic because there is nothing slow about the ninth-year star. The Dolphins, who have the No. 1 ranked offense and generated over 100 yards more per game than No. 2 (the Eagles), are known for their team speed.
The top five in-game speeds this season per the NFL’s Next Gen Stats are Dolphins. Miami also has seven of the top 10 and nine of the top 20 with Mostert joining Tyreek Hill and rookie RB De’Von Achane on the relay team.
Mostert, a former track star in high school and at Purdue, is No. 5 at 21.62 miles per hour and No. 14 at 21.27 this season.
Since 2018, when the NFL started compiling the GPS speeds of players Mostert typically dots the list at some point and is the only NFL player to clock in over 23 mph when he reached 23.09 on an 80-yard touchdown run while with San Francisco in Week 2 against the New York Jets in 2020. The week prior he had a 76-yard touchdown reception against Arizona where he reached 22.73.
Yet somehow Mostert is still running away from the undrafted tag on his resume.
Despite rushing for 891 yards at 4.9 yards per carry for the Dolphins last season, Miami was tied to every big-name running back that was supposed to be on the market this offseason from Jonathan Taylor to Josh Jacobs and Miami native Dalvin Cook.
The Dolphins also drafted Achane in the third round and the rookie had been spectacular, amassing 460 yards on only 38 carries before injuring his knee. Mostert, though, has been very effective as well with 429 yards on 75 carries (5.9 yards per carry) and a mind-numbing 11 touchdowns (nine rushing and two receiving).
“Honestly, I just feel like I’m just going with the flow of things,” said Mostert. “Eleven touchdowns is actually a lot of touchdowns, now that you think about it, but I just go with the flow of everything. Right now, we’re doing unbelievable things, especially on the offense and it’s fun to be a part of.”
The Eagles may want to check their rear-view mirror because their past may be racing by them on Sunday night.
“It’s two teams that are 5-1. An unbelievable matchup,” Mostert said. I know the stadium is going to be rocking. Sunday night, they’re coming out with the mean (Kelly) green unis, and I think those are cold.
“It’s going to be fun, man. The atmosphere is going to be great. I know that – me personally, I was with Philly my rookie year, and I know what the fans bring, the energy and the boost that they’re going to have for their team. We just have to be able to control the exterior of everything and handle it well.”
