Why isn't Darren Sproles getting more carries?

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His rushing average is the fourth-highest in NFL history by a running back at this point in a season, and what’s it earned Darren Sproles?

Fewer than 3½ carries per game since opening day.

One of the great mysteries about this 2014 football season is why the Eagles are limiting Sproles’ carries so dramatically despite his explosive and historic production.

Sproles has 38 carries this year for 257 yards, a 6.8 average that is fourth-highest in NFL history by a running back with 30 or more carries after 10 games.

Yet as the season has gone on, and with LeSean McCoy’s production dipping precipitously from last year, Sproles’ workload has only decreased.

Sproles had 11 carries for 71 yards and a touchdown in the season opener against the Jaguars, but he’s averaged only 3.4 carries per game since.

And in three games since returning from a mild knee injury, he has just six carries (for 7.7 yards a pop).

Sproles has made the most of his few carries. He turned three carries against the Texans into 17 yards, ran eight yards for a touchdown on his only carry against the Panthers and had runs of eight and 13 yards Sunday against the Packers and their 28th-ranked run defense.

Going back to the Giants game, every one of Sproles’ last 10 carries has gone for at least five yards.

Sproles has 10 carries of at least 10 yards and 18 carries of five yards or more. So 26 percent of his carries have gone for at least 10 yards and 47 percent have gone for five yards or more.

McCoy’s production has been inconsistent but in general much better the last six weeks. The first four games, he averaged 48 yards per game and 2.7 per carry. The last six, he’s at 90 per game and 4.3 per carry.

As long as McCoy is here, he’ll be the workhorse. And he should be.

But why not mix Sproles in more? Why not give him six to eight carries a game to keep defenses off balance?

For the sake of comparison, McCoy has 19 carries of 10 yards or more and 64 carries of five yards or more.

So 10 percent of his carries have gone for 10 yards or more and 33 percent for at least five yards.

The Eagles are 14th in the NFL at 114 rushing yards per game and 19th with 4.0 yards per carry.

Asked Monday why Sproles hasn’t had a bigger role in the offense despite his remarkable production, head coach Chip Kelly said: “Yeah, I just don't think we're running the ball well overall.” 

But obviously that’s not the case with Sproles.

His 6.8 average is third-highest in the NFL, behind only quarterbacks Russell Wilson (7.7) and Ryan Tannehill (7.1). It’s the highest ever by an Eagles running back through 10 games, just above Heath Sherman’s 6.6 mark in 1992.

Asked why he would say the Eagles aren’t running the ball overall when Sproles’ production is at astronomical levels, Kelly said this:

“Again, it just goes into the rotation that we're doing with the running backs right now. LeSean is our guy.”

Asked whether he sees any reason to mix in Sproles more than the 3.4 carries per game since the opener, Kelly said only: “Right now, I think LeSean is doing a good job.”

Sproles also has 23 receptions for 280 yards, a 12.2 average, highest among all NFL running backs this year.

He’s on pace to become the first running back since Keith Lincoln of the Chargers in 1963 to average over six yards per carry and over 12 yards per reception.

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