#36 - Brian Westbrook

#36
Brian Westbrook

Considered too small to be a feature back in the NFL when he came out of college, Brian Westbrook, who has played for the Eagles since 2002, has become one of the best all-purpose running backs in the league as well as one of the most productive in the team’s history.

After playing at Villanova, where in 1998 he became the first college player to ever gain a thousand yards both running and receiving in a single season, Brian was chosen by the Birds in the 3rd round of the 2002 draft. His rookie season was relatively quiet, although he started three games and threw a 25-yard TD pass to WR Todd Pinkston on an option play against the Cowboys. He led the team in rushing in 2003 as part of a running back rotation that included Duce Staley and Correll Buckhalter. He also displayed his game-breaking ability with a 62-yard touchdown run at Buffalo and an 84-yard punt return in the final seconds against the Giants at the Meadowlands that not only won the game but arguably turned the entire season around.

With Staley departing the team as a free agent and Buckhalter lost to injury, Westbrook took over as the feature back and ran for 812 yards while leading all NFL running backs in pass receptions (73) and yardage (703), including a career-high 156 yards (on 11 receptions) with three TDs against Green Bay. In the end, he was rewarded with this first of two trips to the Pro Bowl.

A slashing runner in the tradition of Wilbert Montgomery, Westbrook made up for a lack of size with his quick acceleration, great balance, and ability to avoid tackles in the open field. Lining up occasionally as a wide receiver as well as in his usual position in the backfield, his versatility made him a formidable weapon in both the passing and running game.

Over the course of his career, Brian has amassed a slew of highlights with his all-around skills. As a running back, he has amassed 5721 yards on 1247 carries (a 4.59 average) with 36 touchdowns. He has had 20 hundred-yard rushing games, with a high of 167 yards (on 22 attempts) against Atlanta in 2008, and accumulated a season high of 1333 yards in 2007. With his breakaway ability, he has recorded several long scoring runs, with a long of 71 yards at San Francisco in 2006.

As a receiver out of the backfield, Westbrook has been the most prolific in team history, catching a total of 401 passes for 3609 yards (9.0 yards per catch) and 28 TDs through 2008. His 90 pass receptions in 2007 are a franchise single-season record, and he tied the single-game record (set by Don Looney in 1940) with 14 catches against Dallas that same year.

Brian has returned a total of 39 punts for 498 yards and a 12.8 yard average. 20 of those returns came in 2003, when he became the first Eagle to return two punts for touchdowns in a single season; his 15.3-yard average per return is tied with Steve Van Buren for the best in franchise history. He also returned 23 kickoffs in ’03 for 487 yards and a 21.2-yard average.

Westbrook is the team’s all-time leader in total yards from scrimmage both for his career (9468) and for a single season (2104 in 2007, when he also led the NFL). His all-purpose yardage, counting kick returns, comes to 10,453 yards, placing him second only to Timmy Brown in Eagles history. On two occasions, he accumulated over 100 yards rushing and receiving in the same game (101 rushing and 113 receiving at Tampa Bay in 2006 and 110 on the ground and 111 through the air against Detroit in 2007). With that yardage have come touchdowns as Brian has accumulated 67, with a high of 14 in 2008.

In ten postseason games, Westbrook has run for a team playoff record 591 yards on 129 carries with three TDs and caught 32 passes for 307 yards and another three scores. Both his longest run (62 yards for a TD at New Orleans in the NFC Divisional playoff following the 2006 season) and pass reception (a 71-yard touchdown in the NFC Wild Card playoff at Minnesota following the 2008 season) are team postseason records.

For his efforts, he received 1st team All-NFL recognition from the Associated Press, Pro Football Writers of America, and Sports Illustrated in 2007 and was a 1st team All-NFC selection of Pro Football Weekly in 2003. He was selected as punt returner on the Eagles 75th Anniversary All-Time team.

All of this production has come with a physical cost. The 5’10” (at most), 203-pound Westbrook has missed significant time due to injury over the course of his career. Ankle injuries caused him to miss a game apiece in 2002 and ’03, and a torn triceps tendon kept him out of the playoffs following the 2003 season (he was sorely missed in the NFC Championship loss to Carolina). Brian missed another contest in 2004 due to a cracked rib and chest injuries. His 2005 season came to an end after 12 games as a result of a Lis Franc sprain and he missed a game in each of the next two seasons due to knee and abdominal injuries, respectively. Ankle and rib problems kept him out of two games in 2008.

In spite of the physical toll, Brian Westbrook has consistently excelled and been a key weapon in the Eagles offensive arsenal. Needless to say, he has been a fan favorite over the years and his place in franchise history is secure.

Brian Westbrook's career record:

RUSHING

Year
2002
2003
2004
2005
2006
2007
2008

G
15
15
13
12
15
15
14

Att.
46
117
177
156
240
278
233

Yds.
193
613
812
617
1217
1333
936

Avg.
4.2
5.2
4.6
4.0
5.1
4.8
4.0

TD
0
7
3
3
7
7
9

PASS RECEIVING

Year
2002
2003
2004
2005
2006
2007
2008

G
15
15
13
12
15
15
14

Rec.
9
37
73
61
77
90
54

Yds.
86
332
703
616
699
771
402

Avg.
9.6
9.0
9.6
10.1
9.1
8.6
7.4