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RB Darren Sproles To Retire After 2019 Season

December 21st, 2019 at 12:17pm CST by Ben Levine

Darren Sproles is set to call it a career. The Eagles announced on Twitter that the veteran running back will retire following the season.

The 36-year-old had previously hinted about retiring following the 2019 campaign. After backtracking out of a potential 2017 retirement, Sproles’ 2018 season was intended to be his final year in the NFL. Unfortunately, that season was derailed by a broken arm and a torn ACL, and the veteran made it clear that he didn’t want to go out like that. He ended up re-signing with the Eagles in July, and the veteran contributed 90 yards of offensive in six games (he also returned 11 punts).

Unfortunately, Sproles suffered a partial tear of his right hip flexor against the Jets on Oct. 6 and, at some juncture, aggravated the injury further. Sproles went through four weeks of rehab after the initial injury against Gang Green and managed to play against the Bears on Nov. 3. However, doctors later found that he had suffered a much more serious tear of the muscle. He landed on the injured reserve back in November, ending his season.

Over the course of 14 seasons with the Eagles, Saints, and Chargers, Sproles has earned three Pro Bowl trips with a strong 4.9 yards per carry average. He’s also been a remarkably effective pass-catcher – in his three seasons with the Saints, Sproles totaled 232 grabs for 1,981 yards and 16 touchdowns through the air.

Fortunately for Sproles, he achieved one of his goals for the 2019 season: he jumped Tim Brown for fifth place on the all-time all-purpose yards list.

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