Josh Jacobs' injury open the door for Miles Sanders to make history

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The Raiders on Saturday ruled running back Josh Jacobs out for Sunday’s game against the Broncos, which opens the door for Miles Sanders to become the first Eagle in 66 years to lead NFL rookies in scrimmage yards.

Jacobs, who will be sidelined because of a shoulder injury and illness, will finish the season with 1,316 yards. Sanders is just 40 yards back with 1,276 yards going into the Eagles’ finale against the Giants Sunday at the Meadowlands.

Sanders has 45 fewer touches than Jacobs and is averaging nearly a yard more per touch (5.9 to 5.0). Jacobs has seven TDs, one more than Sanders.

No other NFL rookie has more than 987 scrimmage yards, so if Sanders totals 41 combined rushing and receiving yards he’ll be the 2019 NFL rookie yardage leader … unless someone like A.J. Brown or David Montgomery gains well over 300 yards. Not likely.

As recently as Week 11, Jacobs led Sanders by 329 scrimmage yards. But with Jacobs missing two of the Raiders’ last three games, Sanders closed the gap, thanks in large part to to huge games against the Redskins (172 yards) and Cowboys (156 yards).

Sanders already has the most scrimmage yards by an Eagles running back since LeSean McCoy had 1,474 in 2014, his last season with the Eagles.

The three leading candidates for NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year are Sanders, Jacobs and Cards quarterback Kyler Murray, the No. 1 overall pick in this year's draft. Murray, who is questionable for the Cards' finale against the Rams because of a hamstring injury, has thrown for 3,397 yards and rushed for 544 yards with 18 TD passes and 10 interceptions.

The last Eagle to lead NFL rookies in scrimmage yards was Don “Heartbeat” Johnson in 1953.

Johnson was a third-round pick out of Cal and had 439 rushing yards (and a 5.3 average) and 12 catches for 227 more yards as a rookie for 666 net yards. Gern Nagler of the Cards was second with 610.

Because of a serious knee injury, Johnson only played eight more games in his brief NFL career and netted just 37 more yards. 

The only other Eagles to win the rookie scrimmage yards title are Don Looney in 1940 and Mel Bleeker in 1944.

Looney led the NFL with 58 catches and 707 yards as a rookie in 1940 — still fourth-most in Eagles history. He had minus-four yards rushing for a total of 703 yards. Banks McFadden of the Brooklyn Dodgers was second with 508 yards.

Bleeker in 1944 netted 315 yards rushing and 299 receiving (on just eight catches). His 614 net scrimmage yards were 21 more than runner-up Bob Margarita of the Bears.

 

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