Darren Sproles was released by the New Orleans Saints and now the shifty running back is a free agent and teams like the Denver Broncos, New England Patriots, Seattle Seahawks, Washington Redskins, Chicago Bears and Miami Dolphins could be potential options for the Saints RB in free agency, which begins on Tuesday at 4 pm.
The Saints have been making some tough moves this offseason and clearly it is to clear out space to ensure that Jimmy Graham stays with the team. According to ESPN.com, Sproles is getting released and he joins names like Lance Moore and Jonathan Vilma among names of players who helped the team win the Super Bowl (Sproles joined after) and are now gone and that puts Sproles near the top of the list when it comes to free agent backs. Sproles is not like other 30 years old backs, as he has not taken as many hits and he also brings an element that many others do not with his pass catching abilities.
The Saints come into the offseason with a number of questions on offense and defense and now the running back position looks solid with Mark Ingram and Pierre Thomas, but there is a chance that the team could trade Thomas and that makes the Saints possible players for an RB in the draft. Sproles has been one of the most productive running backs in the NFL over the past few seasons and he set a record for All-Purpose yards with 2,696 in 2011. Sproles has put together 1,067 rushing yards, 1,981 receiving yards and 21 touchdowns during his time with the Saints and now he will be moving on.
Sproles has been appearing less and less in the offense for the Saints and now he could end up being a huge signing for a team like the Broncos or the Patriots, as both need work at running back and having a receiver out of the backfield suits their offense perfectly. Last season Sproles played in 15 games and ended up with 220 rushing yards, 71 receptions for 604 yards, four total touchdowns and that was part of the reason he was cut and now he has the chance to add another element to a number of teams.
The move gives the Saints from $2 million to $4 million of flexibility in the cap and that could end up being very important when the team tries to sign Graham. Mark Ingram and Khiry Robinson will now be the main backs for the Saints and Sproles could add some firepower to a team like the Seahawks or the Bears, as both have solid starting running backs but not much depth behind when it comes to backup RBs. Sproles is also an ace kick returner and that could make him an option for the Redskins, as they have lacked there in recent years.
The Broncos are likely losing Eric Decker and Knowshon Moreno and adding Sproles at least takes a bit back from those losses, as he is an RB and catches passes. Peyton Manning would love him in that offense.