Sproles, Carroll Could Be Final Pieces as Eagles Become Super Bowl Contenders

You could argue that they still have to prove they can score like the Denver Broncos, but if the Philadelphia Eagles didn't already have the NFL's best all-around offense prior to free agency, they've moved a lot closer to that throne with Thursday's acquisition of Darren Sproles. 

That deal, which was first reported by Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports, will only cost Philly the fifth-round pick it got from New England in exchange for Isaac Sopoaga last year, according to Pro Football Talk's Mike Florio. 

An easy price to pay in order to add one of the most dynamic backs in the game to Chip Kelly's offensive arsenal. 

Everyone knows Kelly likes to use smaller backs as receivers, and Sproles is the ultimate receiver out of the backfield. Since joining the Saints in 2011, he has more catches, yards and touchdowns than any other back in football, and it's not even close.

Back	Team	Receptions	Rec. yards	Touchdowns
1. Darren Sproles	Saints	232	1981	16
2. Ray Rice	Ravens	195	1503	4
3. Matt Forte	Bears	170	1424	4
4. Pierre Thomas	Saints	166	1292	5
5. LeSean McCoy	Eagles	154	1227	8
6. Chris Johnson	Titans	135	995	4

LeSean McCoy ranks in the top six in all three of those categories as well, but McCoy is a very different player. There's no reason the Eagles can't use both backs frequently—an approach that would give opposing defenses tremendous headaches. 

Of course, that would also help to lighten McCoy's load, which could be a lifesaver. Since 2011, McCoy has had two seasons with 850 or more snaps at running back, according to Pro Football Focus (subscription required). During that span, only two other backs—Jamaal Charles and Matt Forte—have hit that plateau once. 

But back to the offensive arms race. Last year, the Eagles had the league's second-ranked offense and were fourth in points scored, but their offensive numbers were actually more impressive when you isolated games in which Nick Foles was the quarterback.

After eliminating Michael Vick and Matt Barkley from the equation—which is only fair considering he's the franchise quarterback moving forward—the gap between Denver and Philly is minuscule.

	Points/game	Yards/game	TO/game
Broncos, with Manning	38.1	457.3	1.7
Eagles, with Foles only	33.0	436.0	0.7
Packers, with Rodgers	30.6	443.1	2.2
Patriots, with Brady	27.8	384.5	1.3
Eagles, any quarterback	27.6	417.3	1.2
Saints, with Brees	25.4	323.8	1.1
Chargers, with Rivers	24.8	393.3	1.3

Regardless of the quarterback, the Eagles and Broncos each averaged 6.3 yards per play in 2013. Nobody else in the league was above 6.0. 

Now take starters Eric Decker and Zane Beadles away from Denver and add Sproles and Jeremy Maclin to the Eagles and tell me this isn't the league's most dangerous offensive unit. 

This offense is now officially good enough to compete for a Super Bowl. But of course, the offense is only on the field half the time (and in Philadelphia's case, because of their breakneck pace, less than that), and three of the last four teams to actually reach the Super Bowl—Baltimore, San Francisco and Seattle—were there as a result of strong defensive play to more of a degree than strong offensive play. 

So don't overlook what Philly has done to shore up its defensive backfield the last few days, starting with the addition of veteran safety Malcolm Jenkins on Tuesday and peaking with the signing of cornerback Nolan Carroll Thursday, according to CSN Philly's Geoff Mosher. 

Jenkins will start, and Carroll could too. The 27-year-old has started 22 games the last two seasons in Miami and is coming off a career year with three picks, two sacks and an opposing passer rating of just 47.8, per PFF.

Player	Team	Opp. comp. %
1. Trumaine McBride	Giants	43.8
2. Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie	Broncos	44.1
3. Leodis McKelvin	Bills	46.1
4. Nolan Carroll	Dolphins	47.8
5. Johnathan Joseph	Texans	48.3

Carroll should at least push incumbent starters Cary Williams and Bradley Fletcher while giving the secondary some much-needed depth in a league that continues to emphasize the pass (and defense of the pass). 

That's something this team has been struggling with for years. And although it felt as though it was always sunny in Philadelphia last season the Eagles still had the league's 32nd-ranked pass defense. 

That should change this year. Combine a strong D with an upgraded offense featuring new weapons like Sproles and Maclin and there's no reason the Eagles can't win their first championship in half a century.