Veteran free agent running back Darren Sproles has been limited to only nine games over the past two seasons. Therefore, as the 35-year-old continues to search for his next gig, he’s seemingly focused on two things: playing in all 16 games and climbing up the all-time lists.
“That’s my whole thing,” Sproles told Dr. David Chao of the Pro Football Doc podcast (via Dave Zangaro of NBC Sports Philly). “I want a full year. I want to get up to top-four or top-five in all-purpose yards, like ever. Right now, I’m number six. If I would have played a full year last year, I’d be number four right now.”
Sproles currently has 19,520 all-purpose yards, trailing Jerry Rice (23,546), Brian Mitchell (23,330), Walter Payton (21,803), Emmitt Smith (21,564), and Tim Brown (19,682) on the all-time list.
Let’s check out some assorted notes from around the NFL…
- Former first-round wideout Corey Coleman has compiled less than 800 receiving yards since entering the league, and he’s played with four teams in three seasons. However, the Giants receiver remains confident. “You haven’t seen the best of Corey Coleman yet,” the receiver told Art Stapleton of NorthJersey.com. “I feel like I’m getting better and better, and I’m just trying to stay humble and do what they ask of me. I’m happy to be here, and I’m not worried about what happened and didn’t happen in the past. I don’t look back in time. I’m comfortable with this team and in this offense, and I’m excited to show everything people thought I could do and I know I can still do in this league. Nothing’s given to you, and it’s my job to prove it.”
- Ryan O’Halloran of the Denver Post gave his early projections for the Broncos‘ 53-man roster. The writer believes the team will keep a pair of quarterbacks (Drew Lock and Kevin Hogan) behind starter Joe Flacco, forcing Brett Rypien to the practice squad. Other notable predictions include the decision to keep two fullbacks (Andy Janovich and George Aston) and cut former second-round defensive end DeMarcus Walker.
- Raiders first-round safety Johnathan Abram is already making a name for himself in OTAs. As Scott Bair of NBC Sports Bay Area writes, the rookie has been working alongside Karl Joseph as a starter, and his confidence has been noticed by his teammates. “I’m always going back and forth a lot. He likes to talk, and I love it,” linebacker Tahir Whitehead said. “He’s a young guy coming in showing how confident he is. I love that. We can build off of that. We need more guys with belief in their skill set and bringing that attitude to the entire team. That’s going to take us a long way.”
Sproles makes sense for GB. Could return punts/kicks…be the best pass catching RB on the roster…provide leadership in young RB room.