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Darren Sproles does it all for Kelly's offense

INDIANAPOLIS - Chip Kelly likes to correct anyone who has the gall to call Darren Sproles a receiver. But Sproles is not the running back that the Eagles coach says he is, first and foremost. Sproles is a running-receiving-returning, all-purpose back.

Eagles running back Darren Sproles. (Yong Kim/Staff Photographer)
Eagles running back Darren Sproles. (Yong Kim/Staff Photographer)Read more

INDIANAPOLIS - Chip Kelly likes to correct anyone who has the gall to call Darren Sproles a receiver. But Sproles is not the running back that the Eagles coach says he is, first and foremost. Sproles is a running-receiving-returning, all-purpose back.

And he ran with purpose and willed the Eagles to a thrilling, 30-27, comeback victory over the Colts on Monday night. Sproles ran up and down the track at Lucas Oil Stadium like he was sprinting in the 100-yard dash and everyone else was on Mile 26 of a marathon.

"Darren's a receiver, and I've said that since Day 1," Kelly joked.

Sproles knows how he likes to be described: "I'm all purpose."

There was Sproles sprinting for a 57-yard catch-and-run in the first half. There he was - all 5-foot-6 of him - bouncing off blow after blow before he eked over the goal line for a 19-yard touchdown run.

There he was taking a screen pass late in the fourth quarter, with his team trailing, 27-20, and parting the sea through Colts defenders with a 51-yard pickup down to the 6-yard line. Nick Foles hit Jeremy Maclin a play later and the score was knotted.

And, finally, there was Sproles scooting 17 yards with less than a minute left and putting the Eagles in field-goal range. Two plays later, Cody Parkey ripped not one but two game-winning field goals from 36 yards after the Colts called a timeout before the first attempt.

It was an awe-inspiring performance from Sproles. It was Brian Westbrook-in-his-heyday dominating. Sproles will probably go down as the best fifth-round pick this year. That's right. The Eagles dealt a measly fifth-round pick to the Saints for the 31-year-old Sproles. It has already paid off big-time.

"He's just a special player," Kelly said. "The first day we had him, it was: 'How many different ways can we find to get him the football?' But he's just a dynamic football player. He can run it, he can catch it, he can do it all."

For the record, Sproles finished with seven catches for 152 yards, four carries for 26 yards and a touchdown, and four punt returns that averaged 6.3 yards. All but 4 of his receiving yards came after the catch.

Last week, Sproles ignited a fledgling Eagles offense with a 49-yard touchdown run and two 22-yard punt returns. It was just the appetizer. He delivered a five-course meal on Monday night, and the Eagles moved to 2-0.

But it wasn't just Sproles who helped turn the tide. Kelly stuck with his running game even though it faltered in the first half, and LeSean McCoy (20 carries for 79 yards and a touchdown) had big gains behind a patchwork offensive line.

If there was an area you could blame for the lack of execution in the red zone in the first half, it was the Eagles running game. It just wasn't clicking. Some of it had to do with the new faces up front.

Andrew Gardner and Dennis Kelly were starting at right tackle and left guard for the injured Allen Barbre and Evan Mathis, the first time ever in Kelly's offense. Gardner had some experience after last week's relief appearance, but Kelly was playing cold.

The Eagles went to the break with 46 yards on the ground, but McCoy and Sproles gained only 35 yards on 12 carries for a 2.9 average. The inside zone read wasn't fooling the Colts, who clogged the middle, Stanford style.

Nick Foles tried to keep the Colts honest, once keeping the ball and running for 5 yards. But the running lanes just weren't there.

The Indianapolis offense, meanwhile, tossed the Eagles a change-up and pounded the ball on the ground to nearly everyone's surprise.

It was a topsy-turvy first half with the Colts playing ball control and the Eagles relying almost exclusively on their air attack.

But normalcy was restored in the second half, and Kelly stuck with his ground game even though the Eagles trailed, 17-6.

He called for McCoy to rush left again toward Jason Peters, and the tailback responded with 16 yards. Six plays later, McCoy plunged 1 yard with three tight ends on the field, and the Eagles finally reached the end zone.

A series later, after Fletcher Cox forced a fumble, the Eagles faced third and 15. But Kelly boldly called for a handoff to McCoy, and he delivered up the middle on the bread-and-butter inside zone for 21 yards.

Sproles did the rest and took a handoff, turned the corner, and Mr. Low Center of Gravity pinballed off two tacklers across the goal line.

"When I got close to the goal line," Sproles said, "I was like, 'Man, just finish this run.' "