Like a Good Neighboor, State Farm is There...With New Running Backs!!!

I prefer young talent at RB. older RBs just leave me paranoid that our starting RB will be on the injury list too much. The exception being if you can grab someone's stud backup RB, who's playing behind another premier RB, e.g, Michael Turner when he was with the Chargers.

 

I'd like Ingram, Leshoure, or Williams please and thank you. Probably in that order too. Then I'd probably pair him up with Ronnie again, and Lex. I think we can let Ricky go elsewhere, it seems he wants to be elsewhere with his post season comments, so with that, and given his age, it's probably the best decision.

 

I'd like the depth chart next year to be Ingram, Addai, Hilliard, Sheets.

No sense in keeping R&R. Ronnie can't stay healthy and Ricky's just about done. I lovem both, but their time is up.

Ingram in the draft because he has the least bust potential. If we DO ditch R&R, runningback is our biggest need, hence we use a first rounder on one. Why use it on another position and then take a lesser back with shortcomings in later rounds? That doesn't make sense.

Addai in free agency, because he will most likely have the highest talent:cost ratio. He's a pretty well-rounded back and would make a perfect complement to Ingram.

Keep Hilliard because he's the best left (and cheap!) after R&R.

Keep Sheets because of his speed and potential special teams value.

 

need to go after Ingram
stable: Ingram, Ricky or Ronnie, Sheets, Cobb with Polite/Hilliard @ FB

 

With comparisons to Emmit Smith, I wouldn't be too upset if Ingram was the pick at #15. Having said that, I'd rather we traded down and recouped our second rounder, and looked for another back later in the draft. With that in mind, I would hope we resign Ronnie Brown and make him more of a feature back. Not an every down back, but stop with this nonsense of switching backs every series. IMHO, a guy can't get into any rhythm when you do that.

 

Thing is though, the comparison with Smith mostly center around a lack of speed, not balance, vision, power etc.

Do not think that is a good thing..

I like:

-Fanin nice measurables good hands can pass block already
-De'rel Scott freakish athlete
-Dion Lewis at 5'6 a surprise but he meshes into what we do as his lack of height coupled with the height of our Oline means he can get lost behind the LoS by defenders.
-Jordan Toddman think he is a late round sleeper
-Taiwan Jones insanely athletic small college player

As for the Running Backs we have or are impending FA's:

-Ronnie B, 29 yrs old, good all around game, low carries
-Lex Hilliard, he intrigues me as Daboll managed to get 1,300 yds from Peyton Hillis, can he do something with Lexxy?

 

State Farm is a truly evil corporation.

 

One of the later round guys that impressed my as well was Alex Green from Hawaii. He is a big back with good speed (I think he ran a 4.52 or something like that) and good hands.

 

That depth chart is cringe worthy. Why replace an injury prone RB with a soon to be 28 year old that has never started a full season before? Addai is a very average back at this point in his career. I like Ingram, but we have no explosive playmakers outside of Kory Sheets on your RB depth chart and Sheets has 1 career rush.

I'd rather go with a combo of 1 vet/1 rookie of any of the following players:

Vets:
-DeAngelo Williams
-Jerome Harrison
-Darren Sproles
-Jerrious Norwood
-Leon Washington

I'm still all for bringing back Ronnie, but only for the right price and only if we let Cobbs or Hilliard go.

Rookies:
-Ryan Williams
-Mark Ingram
-DeMarco Murray
-Kendall Hunter
-Noel Devine
-Quizz Rodgers

 

My goal in this draft is to completely redesign the offensive backfield.

How bout we go ''full ******' , players/hybrid scheme.

Mark Ingram, our feature back

Ckap, our very own big athletic QB.

Dion Lewis, our scatback

Stanly Havili, our multipurpose Hback/fullback

Tyrod Taylor, our WCQBX..



Happy happy happy..

 

Ingram is way overvalued. No way in hell I would go running back that high.
R & R is done here. Ricky wants to leave and Ronnie will demand too much money.
Patrick Cobbs is as worthless as a boner on the Pope.

 

Pat Cobbs presence on the roster just bothers me, BUT there is hope:

"I have not heard a thing about a new contract"

He was recently quoted as saying...now sign Shockey, let JT retire as a Dolphin ala Zach Thomas, and this will be a goood week for me.

 

There is a nice crop of 3rd 4th rd backs like Havili, Green, Fanin, Carter, Scott, that would help the running game tremendously.

Would love Ty Taylor as the WCXQB Deej, not sure if he would want to do it, but man he has the skill set to excel at it, and he would be far cheaper than Brad Smith.

 

I could soooooooo go there with this one, but not gonna do it,.....not gonna do it.

 

I think Toddman has got some nice scatback explosiveness and speed like you said..

Hopefully the combine discouraged Tyrod enough to want to go to his home... WCQBX..lol

 

That deserved a fist pump..err..wait a minute..

 

Keep the name Josh Portis in mind Deej, he was a refugee from UF and wound up at a Div II college, he has Cam Newton's measurables and is a late rd pick.

 

O *** on , go a head ...

 

Eh, I like Shuler, Wallace and Moore, and am intrigued by Daboll+Hilliard, if he can take Hillis and do some things, maybe Hilliard has something as well?

Cobbs just drives me nuts, a draw on 3rd and 14 to Pat Cobbs?

Really? Where is he going?

Captain of the Special Teams?

Really? How did that turn out?

 

What matters is developing a vision and plan for how guys will be used and developed. There are quite a few tailbacks in this Draft that I feel can play in the NFL, one way or another. But they have to be used properly. You have to have the right vision for them.

There are runners I would probably shy away from a little. There are runners I would want to target a little. And then there are runners I wouldn't bother with.

I feel like Delone Carter is worth targeting. I feel like Dion Lewis is as well, as are Allen Bradford, Kendall Hunter, Bilal Powell, Daniel Thomas, Jordan Todman, Johnny White, Brandon Saine and Shane Vereen. Not all of those you target early, some you target as UDFAs, etc. But I like these guys, I lean toward them.

Does that mean I wouldn't want guys like Jacquizz Rodgers, Ryan Williams, Da'Rel Scott, Roy Helu, Derrick Locke, Mikel LeShoure, Mark Ingram, Jamie Harper, Alex Green, Mario Fannin, Demarco Murray, Taiwan Jones, Armando Allen or Anthony Allen? No, not at all. I just don't have as good feelings about those guys, for one reason or another. For instance, I love Mark Ingram but I know we'd have to take him at #15 to get him, and that's not happening with me. It just isn't.

I just have very specific ideas in mind, and vision for how to use the guys in the first group...the things I'd ask them to do. The second group, I'm not so sure. And if I failed to name a guy, it's either because he wasn't at the Combine, or I just don't like him.

 

Todd will definitely like this post!

 

Willis McGahee or Benson would probably be the easiest signs. Williams will be a highly sought back and I don't see Miami paying his price. He would be nice though.

The draft, Ingram is my first choice but not sure if I'd spend pick 15 on him. Other backs that interest me are De'Rel Scot, and Ryan Williams. I'd be ok with Lashoure but would take all three I just mentioned over him....

 

ssssinner..

 

No, I like how Bensons played the last 2.5 years. But I must admit that I wanted Ronnie Brown over Benson or Caddy when they came out. Not that I was wrong but injuries surely made me look it.

De'Rel Scot is one of the most explosive backs in the draft. Running a 4.3 and being 210 pounds tells me he can take a few hits but he has good vision and excellent lateral quickness. When he gets to the second level he is extremely dangerous. Watch a couple of his videos and you'll see him juke some people right out of their shoes and with simple moves like using his body lean. With very little loss of speed so you'll see some ankles tackles. He runs pretty low to the ground but not always and he's had trouble holding onto the ball but he catches well, and I think he could be a late steal.

Here is one video from 2008....

[video=youtube;F6vNu1O6tWA]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F6vNu1O6tWA[/video]

 

I see what you did there.

 

He cannot stay healthy. Has had some nagging injuries and some bigger ones to his knee and wrist.

 

That's a bit hypocritical.

These are the runningbacks you mentioned, plus Joseph Addai, organized into a list of games played over the last 5 years, with carries in parentheses. Conveniently, all but Sproles and Brown (2005) were drafted in '06.

Leon Washington - 71 (397)
Joseph Addai - 66 (977)
DeAngelo Williams - 64 (841)
Darren Sproles - 63 (241)
Ronnie Brown - 61 (921)
Jerious Norwood - 57 (375)
Jerome Harrison - 49 (342)

As you can see, Joseph Addai has played more games than all of those runners you listed, with the exception of Washington, who had less than half the carries and has suffered a severe injury (compound leg fracture)...so if anything, Addai could be considered the most durable of those listed (he also has more receptions (176) than your choices). If you want to go off on a tangent and suggest that this would mean that he has the least tread left on his tires, then sure.... but that's not what you said before (you claimed he wasn't durable; thus far, he has been moreso than all you've mentioned as alternatives).... and I'd simply retort "that's why I suggest getting him as a #2 to complement Ingram".

I've already addressed the fact that all of the backs are from '06 and Sproles is from '05, so I'm sure that you know, using the transitive property, that they're all about the same age.

So my depth chart was cringeworthy? I guess that would make the reactions to yours something like this....

[video=youtube;ZvAES6Y9Kfw]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZvAES6Y9Kfw[/video]

 

Greg Little please. Wait........ is this a RB thread? Sorry, my bad.

Mike Tolbert is a dark horse IMO.

 

The way Mike Tolbert runs is great and very endearing as a football fan, but I'm not sure he's ever going to stay healthy...ever. Marion Barber lost what he had pretty quickly when he tried to get away with running that violently on every play.

 

As for Da'Rel Scott I get that he's a super impressive athlete. What I don't get is attributing great 'vision' to him. I've never really seen that. In fact I think there's not really a big difference between Da'Rel Scott and Brandon Saine, except where they're going to go in the Draft.

 

Cant disagree with that, but how do you feel about him being the 2nd guy in a rotation...... maybe a little thunder and lightening...... or as a compliment to a dual-threat #1 back?

 

If I had to guess, I would say the RBs would look something like this next year:

1. Drafted player
2. Ricky Williams
3. Lex Hilliard

I also wouldn't be surprised if we end up getting rid of Polite and not having a FB on the roster.

 

Yeah, I mentioned he had trouble staying healthy in another thread but man, he has some get up an go, and with a 5th, I'd jump on him.

Too much talent to overlook imo

 

It's not like it'd be a bad thing but if I'm going the route of an injury prone guy then I'd rather check out Michael Bush.