Sproles carried load in opener

Ever since the Eagles acquired Darren Sproles, coach Chip Kelly touted his rushing - not just his receiving and returning. When Sproles expressed excitement about Kelly's offense, he mentioned that he would be used as a rusher.

So it was not necessarily a surprise when Sproles was used in the rushing game in Sunday's 34-17 win over the Jacksonville Jaguars. But Sproles' 11 carries were more than he has logged in all but four of his 123 career regular-season games.

"Sproles as a running back?" Kelly said Monday. "That's a crazy concept."

Kelly resorted to sarcasm, but that's not the way Sproles has been used throughout a career spent playing for accomplished coaches Marty Schottenheimer, Norv Turner, and Sean Payton.

Sproles has never totaled more than 93 carries in a season, and that was in 2009. Kelly was asked whether Sproles could keep a pace of 10 to 12 carries a game, which would put him at 160 to 192 carries this season.

"I've said since day one, I don't know why" Sproles did not run often in the past, Kelly said. "I think he's an outstanding running back. He proved it [Sunday] and it's nothing that he has not proved from the first two or three days we saw him in the offseason program . . . He's really, really talented, and you have to find ways to get the football in his hands."

Sproles rushed for 71 yards, although 49 came on one carry. He averaged 2.2 yards on the other 10. Sproles also had four catches and four punt returns, finishing with 19 touches.

Sproles said after the game that "it's been a while" since he had that many carries and that he "liked it a lot." The last time he had at least 11 carries in a game was October 2011.

It was an important first impression for Sproles, if not a complete display of what he can do. During the preseason, the Eagles hid much of how they planned to use Sproles, and there is still more they will unveil. But at 5-foot-6 and 31 years old, Sproles sought to answer any questions about whether he still can be an effective player.

"People ask if I still have it, being 30 years old," Sproles said. "I wanted to come out and prove I still have it."

Starting running back LeSean McCoy was impressed. Sproles and McCoy were on the field together just four times, so McCoy watched 29 of Sproles' 33 plays from the sideline.

"I didn't know he had that much fight in him," McCoy said. "His role is bigger here. By committee, we are going to do it together. He looked real good. He gives me that extra push that I like. I know that if I come out or it's his package, he can still make big plays. He is elusive and he's very tough."

Sproles' playing time seemed to come at the expense of McCoy's. The Eagles' two backup running backs combined for only 22 percent of the offensive snaps last season. Sproles played 38 percent of the snaps. McCoy, who rushed for 74 yards on 21 carries and had six catches for 41 yards, played 67 percent of the snaps. Last season, McCoy played 79 percent of the offensive snaps.

A larger sample size than one game is needed to show whether McCoy's playing time will actually be reduced this season. The Eagles can play the two backs together more in the future.

Kelly said that would happen depending on the way defenses play them. The Jaguars did not use much man-to-man coverage, and the point of having Sproles and McCoy on the field together is to find a one-on-one matchup that can be exploited.

"That wasn't the game where you're going to get a lot of crazy matchups, because we didn't see a lot of man coverage," Kelly said.

The Eagles also are still learning about Sproles. Offensive coordinator Pat Shurmur praised the feedback that he offers after plays, and the Eagles could find ways to use Sproles based on what he sees on the field and the way defenses adjust to them.

What the first game proved is that Sproles' presence is one way the Eagles offense has evolved in Kelly's second year. Sunday was just the beginning.

"I think as we go through the year," Shurmur said, "we're going to see and feel his impact even more."

@ZBerm