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PHI Philadelphia Eagles · RB· #28 · also kick returner

Will Shipley

Age
24
Height
5'11"
Weight
210 lbs
College
Clemson
Drafted
2024, No. 127 overall (PHI)
Experience
3rd NFL season
Compare with another playerRunning backs leaderboard

33

Overall grade

53rd of 54 running backs

Among the weakest

well below average; 50 is average

Grades updated Rechecked every few hours on game days

The read

Will grades well below average among running backs so far, with no number far from the middle.

Role is growing: When he plays he is on the field for about 5 of every 10 plays lately, up from about 3 of every 10 plays before.

Written from his numbers, not from film. 4 games are behind the season figures.

How he stacks up

Every graded stat at a glance, against all the running backs in the league.

  • Stuffed runs20%38th of 54small sample
  • EPA per carry−0.3048th of 54small sample
  • Success rate25%52nd of 54small sample
  • Explosive runs0.0%52nd of 54small sample

Left is the worst at his job, right is the best, and the line down the middle is average. The bubble is his percentile: 90 means better than nine in ten qualifying running backs. Faded bars are still small samples.

How he has progressed

Where he has ranked among running backs after each week, and every game behind it.

WorstMiddleBestrecent12345Week 5: 11th percentile11th

Not enough games yet to draw a line.

The line is his season-to-date rank among players at his position after each week, from 100 (the best) to 0 (the worst). It rises when he passes other players, not when he has one big game. Early weeks are noisier because fewer plays are behind them. The shaded weeks are the recent stretch.

EPA per carry game by game
WeekOpponentThat gamecarriesSeason rank after
1vs WAS−0.432–
2vs TEN−0.217–
4vs LAR−0.156–
5vs JAX−0.53511th pct

One game is a small sample: a single stat over 5 carries can swing on a handful of plays. Shaded rows are the recent stretch.

The numbers, in context

Each one against every running back with at least 20 carries. Right on the strip is better.

EPA per carry

Well below typical

−0.30

48th of 54 running backs · bottom 13%

Expected points added: how many points the play added to (or took from) the offense's scoring chances, given the down, the distance and the field position. A 4-yard run on 3rd-and-8 loses points even though it gains yards.

The box score: Yards per carry credits a 5-yard run on 3rd-and-15 and ignores the goal-line carry that scores.

Does it show up in winning? Across 153 games league-wide, teams won 60% of the time when their running back was in the best third on EPA per carry, and 46% when he was in the worst third.

Last 2 games: −0.33 (11) vs −0.26 before

Small sample: could move a lot · 20 carries · true level likely −0.66 to +0.06

Success rate

Among the weakest

25%

52nd of 54 running backs · bottom 6%

How often a carry gains enough to keep the offense on schedule.

The box score: Rushing yards pile up on carries that did not help.

Does it show up in winning? Across 153 games league-wide, teams won 67% of the time when their running back was in the best third on success rate, and 49% when he was in the worst third.

Last 2 games: 18% (11) vs 33% before

Small sample: could move a lot · 20 carries · true level likely 9% to 41%

Explosive runs

Among the weakest

0.0%

52nd of 54 running backs · bottom 6%

The share of his carries that go 10 yards or more.

The box score: A long run is in the yardage total but its frequency is not.

Does it show up in winning? Across 153 games league-wide, teams won 74% of the time when their running back was in the best third on explosive runs, and 45% when he was in the worst third.

Last 2 games: 0.0% (11) vs 0.0% before

Small sample: could move a lot · 20 carries · true level likely -7.7% to 7.7%

Stuffed runs

Below typical

20%lower is better

38th of 54 running backs · bottom 32%

The share of his carries that gain nothing or lose yards. Fewer is better, and the line shares the blame.

The box score: Hidden inside the yards per carry.

Does it show up in winning? Across 153 games league-wide, a good or bad game on stuffed runs from a running back has not lined up much with his team winning (60% wins in the best third, 53% in the worst).

Last 2 games: 27% (11) vs 11% before

Small sample: could move a lot · 20 carries · true level likely 5% to 35%

How he plays

Tendencies: how his game differs from the running backs around him. These are not better or worse, only different, and often say as much about the offense or defense he plays in as about him.

Carries from shotgun

Style

45%

Runs from shotgun, more than most running backs. A typical one is 34%.

The share of his carries that start with the quarterback in shotgun, a sign of what kind of run game he lives in.

Small sample: could move a lot · 20 carries

Playing time

He has played in 4 of his team's 4 games with snap counts, on the field for about 36% of the team's offensive plays when he plays.

Role is growing. When he plays he is on the field for about 5 of every 10 plays lately, up from about 3 of every 10 plays before.

Each column is a game: the share of his team's offensive snaps he played. 80% means about 8 of every 10 plays. “Out” means he did not play; a question mark means snap counts are not posted yet. Shaded games are the recent stretch.

Game by game

Every game this season: how it ended for his team, how much he played, his box score, and the advanced numbers from that one game. One game is a small sample, so read the right-hand columns as a snapshot, not his level.

Will Shipley game by game
GameResultSnapsCarYdsTDEPA/carrySuccess10+ yd runs
Wk 1 vs WASW 24–2218%240−0.430%0.0%
Wk 2 vs TENW 24–2051%7240−0.2143%0.0%
Wk 4 vs LARL 20–2448%6230−0.1517%0.0%
Wk 5 vs JAXL 17–19–561−0.5320%0.0%

The box score

The traditional totals, with where each ranks among running backs. A total rewards volume, which is why the advanced numbers above matter.

Will Shipley box score totals
StatTotalRank
Carries2054th of 54
Rushing yards5754th of 54
Rushing touchdowns129th of 54

Players with a similar profile

The running backs whose grades are closest to his across the same stats. Similar means similar numbers, not the same style of play.

As a kick returner

Points added and yards gained on kickoff returns.

The read

Will grades below average among kick returners so far, with no number far from the middle.

Written from his numbers, not from film. 3 games are behind the season figures.

How he stacks up

Every graded stat at a glance, against all the kick returners in the league.

  • EPA per return+0.2232nd of 53small sample
  • Yards per return22.3 yds50th of 53small sample

Left is the worst at his job, right is the best, and the line down the middle is average. The bubble is his percentile: 90 means better than nine in ten qualifying kick returners. Faded bars are still small samples.

How he has progressed

Where he has ranked among kick returners after each week, and every game behind it.

WorstMiddleBestrecent12345Week 3: 56th percentileWeek 4: 45th percentile45th

Season rank slipped: 56th to 45th percentile since Wk 3.

The line is his season-to-date rank among players at his position after each week, from 100 (the best) to 0 (the worst). It rises when he passes other players, not when he has one big game. Early weeks are noisier because fewer plays are behind them. The shaded weeks are the recent stretch.

EPA per return game by game
WeekOpponentThat gamereturnsSeason rank after
1vs WAS+0.031–
3vs CHI+0.43256th pct
4vs LAR+0.15345th pct

One game is a small sample: a single stat over 2 returns can swing on a handful of plays. Shaded rows are the recent stretch.

The numbers, in context

Each one against every kick returner with at least 5 returns. Right on the strip is better.

EPA per return

Typical

+0.22

32nd of 53 kick returners · bottom 42%

Expected points added: how many points the play added to (or took from) the offense's scoring chances, given the down, the distance and the field position. From his team's side, for each kickoff he returns.

The box score: Return average ignores the starting field position the team would have had anyway.

Does it show up in winning? Across 82 games league-wide, teams won 54% of the time when their kick returner was in the best third on EPA per return, and 30% when he was in the worst third.

Last 2 games: +0.15 (3) vs +0.30 before−2.5grade points downWithin the noise

Small sample: could move a lot · 6 returns · true level likely −0.32 to +0.76

Yards per return

Among the weakest

22.3 yds

50th of 53 kick returners · bottom 8%

Average yards per kickoff return.

The box score: This is the box score number.

Does it show up in winning? Across 82 games league-wide, teams won 63% of the time when their kick returner was in the best third on yards per return, and 30% when he was in the worst third.

Last 2 games: 21.7 yds (3) vs 23.0 yds before−3.2grade points downWithin the noise

Small sample: could move a lot · 6 returns · true level likely 16.3 yds to 28.4 yds

Game by game

Every game this season: how it ended for his team, how much he played, his box score, and the advanced numbers from that one game. One game is a small sample, so read the right-hand columns as a snapshot, not his level.

Will Shipley game by game
GameResultRetYdsEPA/returnYds/return
Wk 1 vs WASW 24–22125+0.0325.0 yds
Wk 3 vs CHIL 7–27244+0.4322.0 yds
Wk 4 vs LARL 20–24365+0.1521.7 yds

The box score

The traditional totals, with where each ranks among kick returners. A total rewards volume, which is why the advanced numbers above matter.

Will Shipley box score totals
StatTotalRank
Returns641st of 53
Return yards13444th of 53

Players with a similar profile

The kick returners whose grades are closest to his across the same stats. Similar means similar numbers, not the same style of play.

Ranks are among players at the same job who have enough plays to be graded. Grades and rankings come from play-by-play, charting and snap-count data, so they cannot see blocking, route running or assignments. See how the grades work.

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Data: nflverse play-by-play, CC BY 4.0. Also FTN charting, Pro Football Reference advanced stats, snap counts and injury reports, all through nflverse. Calculations and charts by Raiders Rundown.

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