Cutdown day is brutal for everybody outside the top of a depth chart, and Dameon Pierce found that out the hard way Sunday. The Eagles let him go as they trimmed to 53, with Saquon Barkley, Tank Bigsby and Will Shipley all sitting ahead of him at running back. For a guy who once carried an entire Texans backfield, that's a rough ranking to land on.
Running back Dameon Pierce is returning to the Eagles via the practice squad, per source. Pierce, who has 1,684 career rushing yards, was released by Philly on Sunday.
But Philly wasn't done with him. Within hours, word came that Pierce was headed right back to the building — this time on the practice squad, according to ESPN's Jeremy Fowler. Aaron Wilson, who covered Pierce during his Texans days, confirmed the same move, noting Pierce was once a Pro Bowl alternate in Houston.
Former #Texans Pro Bowl alternate running back Dameon Pierce will join #Eagles practice squad today, per a league source @KPRC2
The move makes sense once you look at how the 53-man roster shook out. The Eagles kept 4 quarterbacks — Jalen Hurts, Cole Payton, Andy Dalton and Tanner McKee — which ate into the numbers game elsewhere, and running back was one of the spots that got squeezed. Pierce, a 2022 4th-round pick who racked up 1,684 career rushing yards mostly in Houston, was the odd man out on paper but too useful to let walk out the door.
His preseason with Philly didn't hurt his case either — Pierce flashed in his debut for the team, showing he can still move the pile when given the chance. That's exactly the kind of insurance policy a contender wants stashed on the practice squad: a former starting-caliber back who knows the building and can be elevated in a pinch if injuries hit Barkley or Bigsby.
It's also a strange full-circle stretch for Pierce, whose NFL path has been anything but linear since Houston shipped him off mid-2025. Going from a Texans starter to bouncing through the league to now working his way back onto an Eagles gameday roster shows just how thin the margins are for a running back once he's miscast as replaceable.
For now, Pierce stays in Philadelphia's building rather than hitting waivers and landing somewhere else. Whether he ever climbs off the practice squad and into meaningful touches depends on health up the depth chart — but the Eagles clearly like having him around as the emergency option.