Jump to content
  • Welcome!

    Register and log in easily with Twitter or Google accounts!

    Or simply create a new Huddle account. 

    Members receive fewer ads , access our dark theme, and the ability to join the discussion!

     

NFC South Competes Well Among the NFL's Top Running Games


QuasiYoda

Recommended Posts

NFC South Competes Well Among the NFL's Top Running Games

Another Moniker for a 3 way running back corp

The Triple Tramplers :D

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/213537-nfc-south-competes-well-among-top-running-games-in-the-nfl

"In the precursor to 2008, the NFC South was a division that many experts and fanbases failed to take seriously.

It's a Jekyll and Hyde division of worst-to-first, fans are fair-weather, it's a wishy-washy division; I heard it all. My blood boiled. I even yelled at Adam Schein and Solomon Wilcots on Sirius NFL Radio.

In '07, the South had it rough overall. The Bucs lost Cadillac Williams, while the Falcons were just in shambles without Michael Vick. Then Atlanta head coach Bobby Petrino, who had no business being in the NFL, split on the team like the Colts did when they left Baltimore.

The Panthers had an overrated, overpaid running back in DeShaun Foster, and DeAngelo Williams was having a hard time coming out of his shell. Then of course, the whole team got decimated by injuries, even having to dig Vinny Testaverde out of the grave.

The Saints were the only light of hope for the division in '07, and a dim light at that.

In 2008, the Panthers' tandem of "Double Trouble," Williams and Jonathan Stewart, combined for 2,351 yards rushing and averaged five yards per carry.

This year, the Panthers will meet those numbers with the addition of running back Mike Goodson. I aptly name this group of backs the "Trio of Trouble."

The Falcons unearthed a real gem in Michael "Burner" Turner, signing him from the San Diego Chargers in the offseason.

In 2008, Atlanta's duo of Turner and Jerious Norwood combined for 2,188 yards rushing, averaging a nice 4.8 yards per carry.

Atlanta brings back that same running game, plus a strong offensive line to make way for Turner and Norwood while giving Matt Ryan time to dissect the opponent's defense in passing situations. Atlanta should easily break 2,000 combined yards rushing.

Tampa Bay ranked third in the division with their running game totals. Their three backs, Warrick Dunn, Earnest Graham, and Cadillac Williams, combined for 1,582 yards rushing, averaging four yards per carry.

This season the Bucs are without Dunn, but they have replaced him with the Giants' Fire. Fire, Derrick Ward, the guy who burned my Cats in overtime last December, is among the ranks of division rival Tampa Bay.

For the G-Men, Ward had a solid 1,025 yards rushing, averaging 5.6 yards per carry. Adding his experience and production to the Bucs backfield is an immediate improvement. Tampa Bay easily hits the 2,000-yard rushing mark with Ward, Graham, and Williams in '09.

The Saints finished last in the division in rushing. Their trio of Pierre Thomas, Deuce McAllister, and Reggie Bush combined for a paltry 1,447 yards rushing, averaging a straight four yards per carry.

The Saints cut McAllister this offseason, but they return Thomas and Bush to the starting lineup and have a couple potential bright spots in newcomers Herb Donaldson from Western Illinois and P.J. Hill out of Wisconsin.

Depending on what kind of impact the newcomers make, Thomas should break 1,000 yards rushing, and Bush will probably get between 800 and 900 yards rushing. So effectively, the Saints have the potential to come very close to 2,000 yards rushing, perhaps even break the mark.

The NFC East had monster rush statistics last year, all of those coming from the New York Giants, who fielded two 1,000-plus-yard running backs in Brandon Jacobs and Ward."

Link to comment
Share on other sites

How come these articles always overlook the short-yardage back who's gonna actually make our active roster - Mike Bell.

Because, until proven otherwise, Payton will call a toss sweep or a pass play. Bell hasn't done anything short yardage for the Saints yet, not saying he won't.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.


  • PMH4OWPW7JD2TDGWZKTOYL2T3E.jpg

  • Topics

  • Posts

    • I see they blamed Slavin for the goal like I did. 
    • See this is the problem, you say "can't get off the line quick" and "can't separate quick" but in reality it's "he can get off the line better and create more separation" which are two completely different things. If he couldn't get off the line or separate, he wouldn't have put up the numbers he did and end up a Top 10 pick. But he can get better, and maybe more accurately, consistent with them both, and that will take his game to the next level.  These are things that are also much easier to improve once you get to the NFL than things like being a poor route runner or having bad hands, two of his strengths. Thinking he can't get open in the short passing game also shows you haven't watched enough tape on him, as he was used in that role so much in college with little issue getting open and making plays. And him not using his physicality as much isn't even something that hurts his game because he's so much more agile than a player of his size should be, which he used to his advantage.  Instead of throwing passes where he'd go up and box out a player like a TE or Mike Evans does, they use his athleticism and put the ball in places that only he can get to it, and he usually does (and yes, he'll still be able to do that against NFL DB's with his catch radius). But now that he's in the NFL, I'd like to see him get stronger and add that to his game because it also will help him take his game to another level. As I've said before, if he doesn't improve on those things at all, I think he's a Top 25 WR in this league, he's already that good.  But I think he'll improve on those things and be a perennial Top 10 WR and in his prime is considered and perform like Top 5 guy in some years. My expectations for him this year at 800 yards and 8 TDs (although I do think he'll get to 10 TDs) with a real chance at getting to 1,000.  But those expectations are because I think Thielen will lead the team in yards with close to 1k and XL/Coker each end up in the 500-600 range themselves, just too many mouths to feed this year for a rookie to dominate yardage, especially if we're running the ball well again. But if Thielen can't stay healthy or puts up sub 750 yards, then yea, my expectations for T-Mac likely shift to getting to 1k as a rookie.
    • Svech only 1 goal behind the guy they've pretty much already given the Conn Smythe to...
×
×
  • Create New...