Darren Sproles: I'd like to think I helped open the door for shorter players today

Durability was the main concern. Scouts thought because I was too small, I wouldn’t be able to withstand the hits I’d take at the NFL level. I never missed a game in college, and I was getting the ball over 20 times a game, plus returning kicks and punts. Durability? That shouldn’t even have been a question.

Going into the NFL Combine, I knew my height was gonna be something I’d have to overcome, but I knew I’d ace the Combine drills, and I hope that my performance along with my college resume would be enough to make scouts look past my size. I was definitely wrong. Even at the Combine, my size was all anyone talked about when my name came up.

When they measure height at the NFL Combine, they use a laminated sheet of paper taped on the wall at about head level — well, the average player’s head level. When it was my turn to get measured, they had to un-tape the chart from the wall and move it down just so I could reach it. I hear giggles throughout the room. It was just one more reminder to scouts of what they already had written next to my name on their clipboards.

Too small.

So instead of being a top-five pick, I was projected as a fourth-round pick.

It’s a different game now than it was in 2005 with coaches like Sean Payton and Chip Kelly, who I’ve played for, spreading things out. Teams and scouts see how I’ve been used and now they’re trying to get guys like me — smaller guys who can make noise in space — instead of passing on them because of their size. I like to think I helped open the door for some of the shorter players today.

(h/t Philly)

Photo Credit: David Banks/USA TODAY Sports