Jaguars

You got anybody to fill in for Peterson if he is a no-go for Dallas?

I assume they will either put Griesen there or slide Daryl Smith inside and have Griesen play outside. But Del Rio said he expects him to be ready for the opener.

Bad news, Greg Jones is done for the year (ACL). His speed really improved over the offseason too. Its not the same leg as the one in college so im not sure if thats a good thing or a bad thing. This is a big loss as we have no other big back that can pound the ball. And once Fred Taylor goes down, all we have left his Maurice Drew, Toefield, and maybe Pearman.

Damn. When Pearson hit Jones, it looked bad, but I didn't realize he tore anything. Ouch.

I think that makes it his third major knee ligament pay, and that would be a double on one of his knees. Mo Drew time.

Gotta love Mo Drew! There's pretty much no difference between him and Bush. Drew made just as many impressive plays as Bush over their careers, with far less help and hype. The Jags would have been in perfect shape with Greg Jones and Mo Drew taking over for Fred, but they'll just have to make do. I know they want to make Mo a feature back eventually, like the Giants did with Tiki Barber, but I'm a little skeptical of his ability to do that.

All the same, I'm really looking forward to watching Mo and his shifty hips.

Pete, can you tell me why you hate Reggie Bush so much? I mean...come on bro.

As for Drew, what I think is impressive about him is that he's a much more powerful runner than people realize. He has super thick thighs and calves, and has great leg strength. He's a good receiver too. He's a feature back in the making, he just needs the experience.

As for Greg Jones...this might be the end of the dream of him as the feature back. Too fragile for a guy with a an amazing physique and musculature.

I don't hate Reggie Bush in the least. He's a fantastic player. My problem is with the Reggie Bush Hype Machine, the unreal expecations, the "Greatest Prospect of All Time" type accolades. Yes, Reggie Bush had a fantastic college career and orchestrated tons of big plays for the Trojans over his three year reign. However, as a prospect, he does have flaws, yet the vast majority of fans and "draft gurus" ignored that. I mean, how many times did you hear the spiel that Reggie Bush was the best player that'd ever been scouted from a bunch of different people? It was a little ridiculous. Reggie Bush lacks power and he's a terrible blocker. Thus, there's little to no chance he's going to make it as a feature back in the NFL. Does he have outstanding ability? Oh, certaintly, and he will be a playmaker. But, why in God's name would you spend a Top 5 pick on a guy who can't carry the load when you get someone of nearly the same ability (Maurice Drew) later? That's the thing that bothers me. If people talked about Reggie Bush as a mid to late first rounder instead of a gift from god, I wouldn't make nearly as much of a big deal about it.

As for Drew, I love him. You're dead on about him; the kid is a load. My concern is like with Bush - can he pass protect in the NFL? You can work your way around that slightly, but at some point, he's gonna have to step up and lower a shoulder into a 245 pound linebacker. I'm skeptical of whether or not he can handle that assignment. As a runner/receiver, though, he's tremendous. Shifty hips, excellent cutting ability, excellent lower body power... he's a better version of Darren Sproles.

I'm just curious, who do you think was the better than Bush? I mean, the guy is a home run threat each time he touched it. Yeah, he's not going to be a 25 carry a game guy, but how many feature backs are nowadays? Just about none. So there was zero chance he went to the mid first range. I would rather have a guy who could be a out of the park guy for 15 touches a game, than a guy who just pumps about 25 carries at yards a carry for four yards a piece. The NFL is built towards a two back system.

Better as what, a running back or as overall player?

How many "feature backs"? How about two of the top 5 draft picks last year in Williams & Brown? How about LDT, Shaun Alexander, Tiki Barber (Jacobs didn't get that many carries last year), Larry Johnson once he took over? If you're going to spend the money 1st overall on a position where you can plug in almost anybody & survive (see Goings, Nate), he better be able to carry the ball 25 times a game, Barry Sanders style.

Matt just jumped on your back, but I'll state my point of view first.

As for running backs in the draft, I would rather have gone with LenDale White and Maurice Drew in the second round. LenDale White because he's a legit feature back, and Maurice Drew because he can do everything Bush is capable of, just at a cheaper price.

As for overall players, I would have (depending upon the circumstances of the rosters) taken Mario Williams, D'Brickashaw Ferguson, AJ Hawk, Johnathan Joseph, LenDale White, Matt Leinart, and Jay Cutler in the first round.

The Saints didn't need Reggie Bush. The Texans didn't need Reggie Bush. What's the point in a ball player like that if you can't run block, pass protect, rush the passer or defend the run? Those are the fundamentals of football. Both teams needed a top tier trench player like Ferguson or Williams, premier talents at premium position. Running back is simply not a premium position. I know Bush is spectacular, but again, Maurice Drew can serve in the same capacity. Why draft Bush that high

Also, I'm just skeptical of Bush's ability to rely solely on his speed/elusiveness to gain yardage in the NFL. Outside of just kick returners, how many guys are there in the NFL that get by just because they're fast and elusive as a runner? Barry Sanders had power; he wouldn't run you over, but he'd break your tackles. Marshall Faulk, the easiest comparison to Bush, had power as well. He needs blocking. Some running backs can make plays out of nothing because they can squeeze into tight spaces and bounce off people up the gut, thus keeping the defense honest and allowing the perimeter if they need to take it outside. If the blocking isn't there, I can see Bush using his guile and burst to take it outside, but I just don't see him taking it up the middle.

I do like what Bush brings to the table as a third/fourth option in an offense. In a situation with a good offensive line and some other talented players around him, Bush could be absolutely deadly, matching up against nickel and dime corners and certain linebackers in the passing game. But, do the Saints really need that when they're going to struggle at accomplishing anything else offensively?

I've been plagued by a rambling episode, but basically, Bush is a luxury talent who would have been great for a team like the Denver, Philadelphia, St. Louis... but, his presence isn't going to magically whip the Saints' into contending shape.

Just for the record, the 25 carry backs are a myth. The average carries per game among the league's top 5 running backs (by yardage) last year was 22-23 carries. Just being a d*ck.

So you reference the superstars of all superstars at the RB spot, I'll give you that. That's how many backs? Not even 25% of the starters in this leauge. And then if you look at Johnson once he took over, and Tiki, they didn't have a real backup. That was a big point of contention.

As for Bush, I love everyone KNOWS he has no power, yet how many iso's and outside runs did he have compared to Lendale. He does run with power, and he can take on defenders squared up.

1) He has power, enough to lay a shoulder into a guy and fall forward. He doesn't have the power to break tackles or bounce off contact.

2) The Trojans bread and butter plays were counters and slant runs, which exploited Bush's speed and LenDale's excellent cutting ability. The Trojans offensive line delivered a lot of great blocks last year. They created a ton of room for Bush, even on ISO plays, and he had enough space to elude tacklers. LenDale received a lot of great blocks, too. However, when the blocking was just barely there on inside runs, Bush suffered terribly, where as LenDale could make something out of it. I think it speaks volumes that on 4th and 1 with a National Championship on the line, the Trojan offensive coaching staff wanted LenDale to carry the rock on a short run than Reggie Bush, despite the fact that Reggie Bush won the Heisman.

Pete, we've been hearing this for a 8 months now...but I ask you this...wasn't that HOW the Trojans offense was designed? I mean, I understand the idea that you want your big dog in there in that situation, but how many fourth and ones did Bush play all year? White was the best inside the tackles RB in the country last year, so that was HIS time whether the NC was on the line or not.

Yes! Exactly! That's exactly my point! When the Trojans needed a clutch run in a short-yardage situation that required a guy who could turn even bad blocking into a first down, they went to LenDale White, not Reggie Bush, even when LenDale was clearly EXHAUSTED at that point in the game. That's the essence of my argument: Bush has a lot of talent, but he's not going to make positive runs out of nothing. He NEEDS blocking. He can't do what backs like Shaun Alexander, Carnell Williams, Tiki Barber, and other premier runners do by getting gritty, taking it up the gut, and turning what should have been a nothing gain into three-four yards. The only way to properly utilize Reggie Bush is if you have a good offensive line. The Saints do not have a good offenisve line - they have a piss poor offensive line.

It's a good thing the Jags have Reggie Bush.







Wait a second.....

Shut up Matt, get back to work.

Yeah, but the flip side to that Pete is that were they ever going to use LenDale in Reggie's role? What if they needed a screen to the outside? Or did they ever put Lendale in motion in the slot? That's the point that was LENDALE'S ROLE. Just because it's a romanticized role, of the all out fourth and win to win a championship doesn't mean that they should have put Reggie in there. LenDale was the short yardage guy, so I'm not sure I understand why they needed to put Reggie.

LenDale's a little more than a short yardage guy. He's the quintessential Denver Broncos' back - extremely quick, patient, excellent vision, a great cutback runner, knows how to bounce off contact, punish defenders and break tackles. He can catch the ball out of the backfield and he can block. Is he the passing mismatch that Bush is? No, of course not.

I've said before, I understand Bush's value as a weapon in the passing game, as a kick returner, and as a guy who can take a well-blocked counter play the distance. Once again, my point is he can't turn nothing into something. He's a luxury player, a weapon for a team that can run block and pass protect. The Saints can't do either. He's also a complete liability as a blocker.

As for that being LenDale's role, if they had faith in Reggie's ability to run with power inside, don't you think they would have rather had him in there instead of a whooped White? In a normal circumstance, yes, that's LenDale's role... but, the guy was exhausted.

What the f*ck was this argument about anyway? =p

Whoa, I never said LenDale was strictly a short yardage guy. I said he was the short yardage guy. And you've been on the board long enough to know I have been a huge LenDale supporter. If you don't remember the epic argument between myself and FMA about him, I'm shocked.

I just can't see WHY they wouldn't have put LenDale in during that situation. That's been him all year. Reggie doesn't see those carries, Heisman or not. Just because he wasn't getting the "tough yards" doesn't mean he's bad RB. That's not his game. You would never run reverses, bubble screens, and what not with LenDale when you had Bush.

Ehhh, I was bored and we hadn't argued in a few days.