Former Penn State RB Miles Sanders makes fourth straight start for Eagles

PHILADELPHIA — Fresh off the best game of his young NFL career, Miles Sanders is back in the starting lineup for the Philadelphia Eagles.

The rookie running back out of Penn State made his fourth straight start against the New York Jets at Lincoln Financial Field on Sunday afternoon.

Sanders, a Woodland Hills grad, had two carries on the opening drive, including one on the first play of the game. He finished with minus-1 yard on the drive, which ended on a 1-yard touchdown run by Jordan Howard.

Sanders has carved out a nice role for himself in his first season in the NFL. He’s part of a three-man rotation in the Eagles backfield with Howard and Darren Sproles. Sanders leads the Eagles running backs in carries with 45, and his 178 rushing yards rank second behind Howard’s 186. He’s also played the most snaps out of any Eagles running back with 119 (41 percent of the team’s season total).

The Eagles are one of four teams in the NFL with two running backs with at least 175 rushing yards.

Sanders has also been able to impact games in other ways, too. He has six catches for 84 yards, and he’s averaging 26.1 yards on seven kick returns. His 445 all-purpose yards through his first four games rank second in Eagles history. Wide receiver DeSean Jackson had 532 all-purpose yards through the first four games of his NFL career in 2008.

“It feels good, man, getting loose,” Sanders said after the win. “The thing I really just feel good [about] is just contributing to the win. I told everybody at the beginning of the season, I’m going to do whatever it takes to help this team win every week. They’re going to get the best out of my every week.”