It’s well known by now that the Philadelphia Eagles are attempting to move on from Carson Wentz, which means that the Jalen Hurts era is officially underway, maybe. The decision to roll with last year’s second-round selection has disgruntled many fans, but there’s one player on the Eagles that should be feeling pretty good about the change.
Last season, Miles Sanders played in nine games with Carson Wentz as the team’s starting quarterback. During those contests, Philly’s star running back averaged just over 83 scrimmage yards per game, reaching the end zone only three times in the process.
While these aren’t necessarily bad stats, both the organization and fans knew he was capable of more. You have to remember, Sanders was one of only seven players in NFL History to eclipse 800+ rushing yards and 500+ receiving yards during their rookie year.
Both the Philadelphia Eagles and Sanders needed a change.
After Jalen Hurts took over as the starting quarterback, Miles Sanders looked like a completely different player. In his first start with the rookie quarterback, Sanders rushed for 115 yards on only 14 carries, 82 of those yards coming from an 82-yard touchdown run (seen below). That one’s courtesy of the NFL’s official Twitter page.
https://twitter.com/NFL/status/1338252097549029376?s=20
Sanders was also being utilized as a receiver once more. In all three games that Hurts and Sanders started together, 26 hauled in at least 20 yards through the air. That’s something he hadn’t accomplished with Wentz since Week 4.
In total, the former Penn State product would average more than 103 yards from scrimmage with Hurts as his signal-caller. His rejuvenated play gave the entire offense a spark, as the unit broke the 400-yard mark in Weeks 14, 15, and 16.
What can the Philadelphia Eagles expect from the running back next year?
Obviously, there are a bunch of moving parts that factor into Sanders’ success next season. The only running backs coach that he’s known during his first two years in Philadelphia, Duce Staley, is no longer here. We also don’t know how Nick Sirianni plans to utilize him in the new offensive scheme. It’s all too early to tell, but if 2020 showed us anything, it’s this. When Jalen Hurts is taking the snaps, Miles Sanders has the best shot to succeed.