Rueben Randle ‘confident' he'll be a starter for Eagles

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Rueben Randle put up pretty good numbers during his four years with the New York Giants. 

Good. Not great. 

Randle, 24, was a second-round pick out of LSU in 2012 and played well for the Giants but never rose to the level of player he or the Giants probably hoped he would become. 

Can he pinpoint why he didn’t accomplish all he wanted to?

“I wish I could,” Randle said on Friday afternoon. “But like I said, I just had to do the best with the opportunity I was given. I feel like I could have done more as a player. And hopefully I can get the job done here.”

Randle agreed to a one-year deal with the Eagles last week but didn’t have a press conference until Friday afternoon. 

Perhaps Randle didn’t rise to the level he would have hoped in New York, but upon his arrival in Philadelphia, he becomes the most experienced and accomplished outside receiver on the team. 

And he expects to start. 

“I feel confident that I will be [a starter],” Randle said. “That’s for me to go out there and prove.”

Prove is the operative word. 

Randle comes to the Eagles on a one-year deal that has the potential to be worth just over $3 million if he hits all his incentives, but guarantees just $500,000. Randle said he was surprised about the lack of market for him, but it’s “over with now.” 

For the team, it’s a low-risk, high-reward deal. 

For Randle, it’s a chance to prove he can take the next step in his career. 

“There were [other teams interested],” Randle said. “I just felt like it was a better opportunity for me here to showcase my talents on a one-year deal, to go out and prove myself. New start for everyone here, new coaching staff. New start for me. I figured why not here.”

Randle said in addition to other teams, there were also opportunities for longer deals, but he felt that a one-year deal was the best fit for him. 

Back to those good, not great, numbers. Last year, he caught 57 passes for 797 yards and eight touchdowns. In 2014, he caught 71 balls for 938 yards and three touchdowns. 

With Randle on the roster, the Eagles have him, Jordan Matthews, Nelson Agholor, Josh Huff and another free-agent signing Chris Givens on the roster. While head coach Doug Pederson said last week before the team signed Randle that he wanted to see Matthews on the outside, the third-year Vanderbilt product has been very good as a slot receiver. 

That leaves Randle fighting for an outside job with some talented but very unproven players. That opportunity helped draw him to the Eagles, but he’s also looking forward to taking a mentoring role. 

“Yeah, I can come out here and also help those young guys be better players,” Randle said. “I’m willing to help my teammates out and help those guys get better as well. With my veteran presence, I can help lead the group a little bit.”

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