Yeah, I lost my week by half a point following that last pick. Groan.
Being unable to run between tackles sounds a lot like “change of pace back”, as does needing to “get in space”. Your mileage, and definition, may vary.
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FFS, who isn’t anymore? Unless your name is Adrian Peterson there is no longer such a thing as a “feature back”.
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Whatever definition you want to use is fine. I was trying to draw a distinction between a three down back who can run between the tackles and handle a heavy workload and Giovanni Bernard. There are backs, like Gio who can certainly be successful as a part time/in space/flexible back in a RBBC. But I don’t value those guys as much as I do full time backs, and certainly wouldn’t draft one as the first RB in the draft.
I don’t see LeSean McCoy, Jamaal Charles, or Reggie Bush in Giovanni. Maybe you do. We will see who is right.
Those 3 first half defensive penalties on the Colts that kept SD drives going were killer. I wonder how they’re tracked as they’re almost equivalent to a turnover.
As a Chargers fan, I would like to extend a heartfelt thanks to the Indianapolis receiving corps for applying six layers of QuikCrete to their gloves before the game. Not that our D didn’t put together a solid effort, but turn any two of the five wide-open drops into catches, and we’d be looking at a different scoreboard.
My biggest question from this week is: how is no one talking about the ludicrous, inexcusable jobbing the Saints got from the officials? Those three points they ended up winning by came from a possession they never should have had — with the play clock winding down on New Orleans’ offense, the refs proceeded to 1) ignore a clear and sustained timeout call by Brees, and 2) fail to call the ensuing delay-of-game penalty that would’ve been the result of the snap coming nearly a full second after the play clock had expired. However you look at that sequence of events, the one thing that it incontrovertibly was NOT was a live play…a fact of which everyone on the field not dressed in zebra stripes was fully aware, resulting in a highly confused Brees launching a ball into the hands of a Patriot defender.
There were a number of other blown calls in the Patriots’ favor, including the invocation of the little-known “a ball that bounces off the ground before being caught is still a completion as long as Tom Brady threw it” rule, but the Play That Never Was (But Apparently Was Anyway) was the piece de resistance.
If the NFL’s not going to hire refs who can be arsed to pay attention the game they’re supposedly officiating, Sean Payton should at least get to kick Tony Corrente in the dick.
The officiating was poor, but they had a chance despite that and Brandon Weeden completely screwed the pooch. And Chud says they’re sticking with him. You have to wonder what the hell Jason Campbell is doing in practice that he can’t win that job.
The drop by Fleener down the seam when he was wide open was also a killer.
Eh, to me it sounds like more of the same of “RB by committee” that almost every team in the NFL employs. Gio didn’t have a good game in that regard, granted, but he has before. He’s like Ray Rice in that he “gets lost” behind the lines and bursts out of the hole before linemen and linebackers can see him. He’ll do all right. I do agree that he may not be an every down back, but who is anymore, aside from guys like Adrian Peterson?
My biggest concern with him actually is pass protection. He’s just not very good at it. BJGE is, and Ellis gashed the Bills for 7YPC until the fourth quarter.
The same thing he did with the Raiders and Bears. Sucking.
Not every team. Many teams, many of them good, have a lead back. An Adrian Peterson, Ray Rice, Marshawn Lynch, LeSean McCoy, Alfred Morris, Frank Gore, Steven Jackson, Doug Martin, Matt Forte, DeMarco Murray, and on and on.
He’s averaging 4 ypc, not exactly game breaking. And he’s never had more than 15 carries a game, and in that game it was less than 2 ypc.
I gave you just a partial list. And, again, my position on Gio is about the value of having a guy like that. It’s just not worth an early second round pick and the first RB taken to have a guy like that. Look at the draft this past year. Andre Ellington, who is much the same, went in the 6th round. My guy Johnathon Franklin went in the 4th round. To me, that’s where those kinds of guys should be drafted.
I also don’t think Bernard is anywhere near, or is likely to get near, the McCoy’s, Rice’s, and Charles’ of the NFL. He’ll have a fine game here or there, but I wouldn’t bet on him being more than a slightly better than average piece in a RBBC.
As a complete aside, is there a bigger boob in the NFL than Jim Irsay? I don’t think he’s mean-spirited or a detriment to his team like some owners (cough Jerry Jones coguh), but he’s just kind of a … boob. His latest comments about Manning, his crappy spelling and punctuation, and his twitter feed all indicate to me he’s just kind of a … boob.
Yeah … the Broncos/Colts tilt on Sunday evening, which was never going to be uninteresting, just got less uninteresting. I’m glad Fox called Irsay out on his comments.
I need proof that he is better at sucking than Weeden.
I don’t know if Irsay is mean-spirited, but his comments were very dickish. Just say Manning was awesome and the Colts were lucky to have him for so long and leave it at that.
He filled in two games for the Bears last year when Jay Cutler was injured. He got $3.5 million per touchdown thrown, or $1.75 million per interception, depending how you want to count him. He missed targets, held onto the ball too long, and had a passer rating of around 53 in his start. Granted Wheeden isn’t exactly ripping up the league right now, but at least he has a bit of upside, whereas Campbell seems interested in cashing a backup QB check for the rest of his career.