Draft Preview: Running Back
Everyone ready for another season with Correll Buckhalter and Reno “Where the f*ck are my crabfries dammit?” Mahe backing up Brian Westbrook?
No? Me neither. By the way, Reno Mahe is an unrestricted free agent who has yet to be re-signed. Thank the lord.
Enough has been written about this over the past 6 months, but the NFL is morphing into a league where 2 back systems are becoming more prevalent. Which by the way, is damn frustrating when it comes to fantasy football. Washington has two legit backs, as do the Cowboys. The Giants have zero legitimate backs, and as such, Eli Manning’s fraudulency will be exposed in even greater detail this year.
This year’s draft features two elite backs, Adrian Peterson and Marshawn Lynch, and a bunch other solid options. Since the Birds have a zero percent chance of landing Peterson or Lynch, I will focus on the balance of the solid backs.
The options by likely round:
First Round:
None as I see fit. Unless of course Peterson and Lynch decide to smoke some PCP and try to bust Rae Carruth out of the joint. Hey, are the conjugal rooms still green?
Second Round:
Brian Leonard – Rutgers
Ray Didinger is high on the Rutgers tweener RB/FB prospect. I think Ray Didinger is just high. Just a few gripes I have about Leonard:
1. He didn’t even start at RB for Rutgers in 2006. Ray Rice did. Leonard blocked. Granted Ray Rice is a future all world 1st round pick, but its worth noting. Actually, Leonard and Rice split carries in 2005 – the line:
Leonard – 173 attempts, 740 yards, 4.3 ypc, 11 TDs
Rice – 195 attempts, 1120 yards, 5.7 ypc, 5 TDs
So, Leonard hasn’t been top man since 2004, when he averaged 3.7 yards per carry.
2. Dovetailing nicely – Yards per carry in college:
2003: 4.1
2004: 3.7
2005: 4.3
2006: 4.5
And this man wants to be a primary back in the NFL? Please. Top rated RBs routinely average over 5 yards per carry in the college game.
Last year’s top RBs:
Reggie Bush (1): 8.89
Laurence Maroney (1): 5.42
Joseph Addai (1): 5.03
DeAngelo Williams (1): 6.62
LenDale White (2): 6.70
Maurice Jones-Drew (2): 5.17
Brian Calhoun (3): 4.97
Jerious Norwood (3): 6.18
And who among these top rated RBs contributed the least in the NFL in 2006? Brian “under 5 yards a carry” Calhoun.
3. Brian Leonard is a white man. Yes, I said it. Leonard is a Caucasion, just like me. Now tell me folks, in the last 10 years of NFL competition, how many white boys have flourished as a number one running back?
Thinking………..thinking………..thinking…………
ZERO!
Don’t give me Mike Alstott either. The man never even sniffed 1,000 yards.
Antonio Pittman – Ohio State
To be honest with you, I never really remember watching Pittman all that much in college, so all I have to rely on is scouting reports and video provided by SI.com. Pittman doesn’t do all that much for me, he’s a smallish back with so so speed and quicks. However, Pittman was an extremely productive runner in a big time program. Todd McShay of ESPN.com has these concerns:
Pittman has marginal experience in the passing game and wanted nothing to do with special teams at Ohio State. His stock soared after running the 40-yard dash in the 4.4-second range at the combine, but I wouldn’t be willing to sign off on Pittman any earlier than Round 3.
Consensus points to Pittman being selected in the 2nd round. Pittman doesn’t make anything move below the belt for me, not that he should, so I’ll pass.
Kenny Irons – Auburn
Irons was hampered by injuries in 2006, and his overall numbers thus, were affected. After going for 1,293 yards and 13 TDs in 2005, Irons went for 893 yards and 4 TDs in 2006. I’m a sucker for SEC running backs. The numbers don’t lie – Stephen Alexander, Rudi Johnson, Cadillac Williams, Travis Henry, Fred Taylor, Jamal Lewis, Joseph Addai, Duece McAllister, Ronnie Brown, et cetera. At the combine, Irons was in the top 5 of every positional drill except the 20 yard shuttle and the three cone drill. Rankings in parens – 60 yard shuttle (1), 3-cone drill (7), vertical (3), broad jump (5), 40 yard dash – 4.45 (4).
I like Irons a lot, just not in the 2nd round. If Irons is around in the 3rd, I take his shifty ass.
Chris Henry – Arizona
Yawn. Chris Henry = Mike Mamula Junior. Henry never gained more than 600 yards in any season during his tenure in Arizona. However, at the combine, Henry gave every player personnel man the equivalent of a Roman helmet = 4.40 in the 40 yard dash, 26 reps on the bench, top 5 in every positional drill but the vertical. Combine numbers should act as a backing for previous collegiate game performance (Kenny Irons); it should not singularly serve as a true evaluation of a player’s talent.
So yes, I think Chris Henry sucks. Moving right along.
3rd Round through 7th round
Tony Hunt - PSU
His bags are packed – send him home Andy. Hunt flies under the radar. Especially after his subpar combine showing (4.6 40-yard). Perfect, just how I like it. Hunt is the big back that this town has been crying about for the last 5 years (6’2″ 230lbs). Hunt hung the following horses on big name programs in 2006:
118 total yards, 1 TD at Michigan
149 total yards, 3 TDs at Minnesota
178 total yards, 1 TD at Purdue
165 total yards, in the Outback Bowl against Tennessee
Hunt is large and in charge, can catch the ball, and knows how to block. He most certainly will be around in the 3rd round, and he may be heard from in the 5th round as well (Birds lost their 4th in the trade for Stallworth). The Sporting News has him going in the 6th round. I like him anywhere the Birds can get him after the 2nd.
The rest of the crew:
Darius Walker – Notre Dame
Brandon Jackson – Nebraska
Lorenzo Booker – FSU
Michael Bush – Louisville
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Posted on April 23, 2007 by Dave | Filed Under Eagles, Philadelphia
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Don’t hold your breath on Hunt. I’d love to see him in an Eagles uniform next year, but something tells me he fits too good into the Birds needs, and system–so they won’t draft him. My money is on the Birds addressing their LB needs in the 3d round and taking Harold Barton, a 5’8″ 205 lb. all-Centennial Conference LB from Gettysburg College. That way they can move Gaither to MLB and Barton can push McCoy for the starting WILL position with Spikes starting and mentoring Gocong at SAM.
Jay – we all know Gettysburg is the football powerhouse of the mid-Atlantic. My insiders tell me Barton has dropped some weight to help his speed, and at the combine he was measured at 5’6″. So now he’s 5’6″ 185, but the increase in speed will offset any negatives at the LB position.
With those numbers and the increase in speed, could he perhaps be the FS of the future? Dave Spadero either reported or is about to report that McCoy has added some muscle and now compares to Jack Ham.
I really like Lorenzo Booker in the 3-5th round range. He’s fast as %^&* and can be a return man as well. Underachiever in college, BUT so was Leon Washington (a solid rookie year for the Jets). I can remember when he was a freshman at FSU and my man Lee Corso said “he’s biggher and faster than Warrick Dunn already as a true freshman.” Intriguing…….
I like Booker as well. Check out this injury history:
2003: Had a keloid removed from his right ear in January (A keloid is a special type of scar which results in an overgrowth of tissue at the site of a healed skin injury. Keloids are firm, rubbery lesions or shiny, fibrous nodules and can vary from pink to flesh-colored or red to dark brown in color. A keloid isn’t lethal, but a keloid scar exposed to the sun can increase the chance of getting skin cancer. A keloid is benign, non-contagious and usually painless, although sometimes can be accompanied by a sharp pain, but they can be a cosmetic problem.)