Matt Pryor will make the first start of his NFL career on Sunday and it’ll just so happen to be in the playoffs against the Seattle Seahawks on Sunday.
Pryor, the second-year guard out of TCU, is starting due to injuries on the right side of the Eagles’ offensive line.
Pro Bowl right guard Brandon Brooks was ruled out for the season in Week 17 against the Giants when he suffered a shoulder injury. Star right tackle Lane Johnson was already out with a high ankle sprain, and he’ll miss Sunday’s game as well.
Standing 6-foot-7 and 332 pounds, Pryor entered the NFL with the reputation that he could play both right guard and right tackle.
With game time upon us, here are 3 things to know about Pryor:
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1. Pryor is massive
Drafted by the Philadelphia Eagles in the sixth round (206th overall) of the 2018 NFL Draft, Pryor is a big, strong, powerful player who can play both spots along the line.
2. Pryor is talented yet inexperienced
Pryor has logged 79 offensive snaps in three games this season, replacing Brooks in two of those contests. In the loss to the Seahawks in Week 12, Pryor played 43 snaps after Brooks was forced to exit due to his anxiety condition. In the Eagles win over the Giants in Week 17, Pryor played 35 snaps after Brooks suffered his dislocated shoulder.
3. Pryor and Halapoulivaati Vaitai were teammates at TCU, and Vaitai joined the Eagles as a fifth-round pick in 2016, two years before Pryor was selected. Pryor is particularly effective in the run game and is overall more consistent as a run-blocker than in pass protection, something that could affect this week’s game plan for the Eagles.
