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Thread: Ranking NFL backs 2016

  1. #1

    Default Ranking NFL backs 2016

    http://espn.go.com/nfl/
    Does anyone have insider?

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    Quote Originally Posted by Al Wilson 4 Mayor View Post
    http://espn.go.com/nfl/
    Does anyone have insider?
    Is that supposed to be an article or did you want me to find one about 2016 RB's?
    "Tuning ... into each other ... lift all higher”
    “I’m just different!”

    Sign Garbage Minshew.

    Draft
    1st round— Cooper Dejean CB
    2nd round— Jack Sawyer OLB
    3rd round— Will Shipley RB
    4th round— Ricky Pearsall WR
    5th round— Ladd McKonkey WR
    6th round— Cash Jones RB
    7th round— Carson Steele RB

  3. #3

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    Quote Originally Posted by Jaded View Post
    Is that supposed to be an article or did you want me to find one about 2016 RB's?
    There's an article. Apparently when I tried to copy the article link it just copied the page the article was found on.

  4. #4

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    They have LeVeon Bell #1, but without insider I can't see the rest.

  5. #5

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    Mike Sando, NFL Insider
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    Adrian Peterson is adjusting to the Minnesota Vikings' offense instead of carrying it. Marshawn Lynch and Eddie Lacy rank second on their own teams in rushing. DeMarco Murray's per-game rushing production has fallen by 56.3 percent from last season. Jeremy Hill and C.J. Anderson rank outside the top 35 in rushing after filling the top two spots over the final eight weeks of 2014. Worse, Jamaal Charles and Arian Foster have suffered season-ending injuries.

    Oh, and just in case this new NFL landscape at running back wasn't disorienting enough, the Atlanta Falcons' Devonta Freeman is the league's leading rusher -- just ahead of Chris Johnson and Doug Martin. Those three combined for 1,845 yards rushing last season -- less than Murray's NFL-best 1,875.

    What follows is my attempt at capturing a snapshot of the new and evolving running back hierarchy. The goal was to balance established track records with projected career trajectories, using input from coaches and evaluators who are themselves still making sense of all the changes.

    1. Le'Veon Bell, Pittsburgh Steelers

    A two-game suspension cut into Bell's numbers, but he remains a frequent choice as the NFL's best back. He has tremendous size for the position at 6-foot-1 and 244 pounds. He has breakaway speed and the versatility to excel as a runner, receiver and pass protector. "You have to put Bell at No. 1," a personnel director said. "He is a pretty special guy. He can create. He doesn't need a point of entry like a lot of guys do."



    Marshawn Lynch's ability to thrive in a variety of formations makes him unique. Joe Nicholson/USA TODAY Sports
    2. Marshawn Lynch, Seattle Seahawks

    Lynch missed nearly three games to injury and did not gain much traction in his return game against Carolina, but he was in peak form against San Francisco last week.

    While anyone can appreciate Lynch's punishing style, coaches attuned to the game's finer points love the way he excels regardless of the formation. Lynch has produced from the I-formation, affording him optimal vision. He has produced in pistol formations with obstructed vision. He has produced while offset in shotgun formations. That versatility separates Lynch from some others (Murray and Peterson have appeared less comfortable outside the I-formation).

    Lynch has shown a good feel for the screen game and an ability to detach from the formation to catch passes as a wide receiver. He is also effective as a pass protector, even against top rushers (he picked up Denver's DeMarcus Ware last season, for example).

    Lynch's physical running style still defines him.

    "There are a lot of guys who make a lot of money in this league who get tired of seeing him," one coach said.

    3. Adrian Peterson, Minnesota Vikings

    Peterson was once a near-consensus choice as the NFL's top back. That is changing after he missed the 2014 season and has appeared only intermittently effective this season, but it's too soon to knock down Peterson any further than this. Peterson actually has more yards through six games this season (530) than the 511 yards he had at this point in 2013, the year he topped 2,000 yards.

    A personnel evaluator who saw Peterson's 26-carry, 60-yard performance against Kansas City in Week 6 noted that Bell had a big game (121 yards) against the Chiefs a week later.

    "I didn't see the same guy," this evaluator said of Peterson. "He strikes fear in you, and when you play him, you are thinking, 'When is he going to pop one?' That never happened."

    Peterson does have runs of 75, 48 and 43 yards in other games this season. He also gained 49 yards on a pass he caught behind the line of scrimmage.

    4. Todd Gurley, St. Louis Rams

    Gurley is averaging 144.3 yards per game since becoming the Rams' starter three games ago. His 159 yards at Green Bay are the most an individual rusher has had against the Packers since Week 8 last season. His 146 yards at Arizona are the most against the Cardinals since Peterson had 153 against them in 2012. It's not much to go on, but the combination of Gurley's college pedigree and exceptional early production makes this high ranking feel safe, provided he remains healthy.

    "He has it all," a personnel director said. "I haven't seen him in the passing game much, but he is great on his own and doesn't need a lot of space to create. He is big and fast. There is nothing not to like about Gurley."

    5. LeSean McCoy, Buffalo Bills

    McCoy has missed two games to injury and has only 304 yards with a 3.9-yard average. Time will tell if McCoy is on the decline or simply adjusting to a new offense while dealing with problematic hamstring.

    A general manager who saw the Bills' past two games wasn't ready to downgrade McCoy.

    "I think he still has lateral quickness," this GM said. "He is very elusive. He has got burst. He runs hard. He can cause you some fits."


    Jets workhorse Chris Ivory has drawn comparisons to Marshawn Lynch. AP Photo/Tim Ireland
    6. Chris Ivory, New York Jets

    This is where the rankings get hazier. Ivory has never carried even 200 times in a season, but he is halfway there in the Jets' first six games despite missing one of them. Ivory is averaging 100 yards rushing per game. He has gained more than 60 percent of his yards against Miami and Washington, teams that have allowed 100-yard games to Freeman, Martin, Alfred Morris and Karlos Williams.

    "Ivory needs to be in the top six or seven backs," a personnel director said. "He is strong, he is powerful, he has vision. He is a little like Marshawn Lynch."

    7. Devonta Freeman, Atlanta Falcons

    Freeman had 65 carries for 248 yards last season. He has 131 carries for 621 yards this season. What changed? The offensive scheme.

    "I don't want to take away from what he is doing because he has feet, quickness, burst and vision, which you need for that offense," a personnel director said, "but that system spits out 1,000-yard backs."

    A GM hit on the same theme.

    "Really, for him it is more about being a great fit in that scheme," this GM said. "You have to be able to stretch plays out, get to the number and then be a one-cut type of runner."

    8. Matt Forte, Chicago Bears

    Two evaluators I spoke with were surprised to hear Forte ranked sixth in rushing yards this season and second only to Freeman in scrimmage yards for running backs.

    "I don't think he has the big-play ability anymore," one said.

    Forte has four rushes of at least 20 yards, with the longest covering 27. He has gained 38 and 27 yards on his longest receptions. The Bears rank 31st in defensive expected points added per game, which is one reason their offense has averaged a league-high 52.5 snaps per game while trailing on the scoreboard. Those situations are less conducive to running the ball.

    9. Mark Ingram, New Orleans Saints

    Ingram's 102 carries are 17 more than his previous high through seven games. He's averaging 4.4 yards per carry and has already matched his career single-season high for receptions with 29.

    "They are not playing with a great offensive line and it is not like they have a bunch of weapons outside," a personnel director said. "People aren't scared of Drew [Brees] like they used to be. [Ingram] is getting more attention and still producing. He is a big, strong back. He has good vision and feet. I'd take Ivory over him, but he's in the mix. He is good."

    10. T.J. Yeldon, Jacksonville Jaguars

    Young backs typically struggle in the passing game, but Yeldon has shown very good ability in that area during his rookie season. He has also topped 100 yards rushing in two of his past three games. That includes a 115-yard performance against Buffalo in Week 7, even though Yeldon was feeling under the weather and was coming off a groin injury.

    "He has good vision, instincts and feel," one evaluator said. "He can be patient, but when the hole is there, he can hit it. The things that go unnoticed from a statistical standpoint is just what a great job he has done in pass protection and also the feel he has in the passing game as a receiver."

    Honorable mention

    Carlos Hyde, Doug Martin, Frank Gore, Chris Johnson, DeMarco Murray and Eddie Lacy were among the other backs hovering around the top 10 based on past and/or current production. Below is a sampling of what league insiders are saying about these and other notable backs.

    On Lacy: "I don't put him in the category of those other guys. He is a good complimentary player. There is a difference. People are defending Aaron Rodgers and the pass game in Green Bay before they are defending Lacy. As a matter of fact, I'm going into the game saying, 'I want Lacy to beat us.' "

    On Lacy: "I think a lot of it is that ankle. Take the ankle away, and then you have to put Lacy up there."

    On Melvin Gordon: "I loved him -- loved him. I thought he was a no-miss guy. There is dysfunction on the offensive line. At Wisconsin, he didn't have to create a lot on the offensive line. He could get to the second level and really create. He is not able to do that right now in San Diego."

    On Gordon: "I'm not seeing it out of him. I've been disappointed. We liked him a lot in the draft. It seems like he is not hitting the hole hard. He is more of a one-cut runner, but he does not have top acceleration. It seems like he is being very indecisive at times and then obviously his ball security has been an issue."

    On Johnson: "He has come on. I didn't think he had anything left. He has resurrected his career and Bruce [Arians] is outstanding. He knows how to get it out of the pieces he has."

    On Gore: "Every time I put on the tape, I can't believe they are just not feeding him. I'd feed him. You want to help Andrew Luck out? Run the ball."

    On Hyde: "I think that guy is a stud. He is a bigger back who has really nice feet, runs with power, runs with aggressiveness, does not shy from contact. When they get it together, he is a guy defenses will worry about. He is a load to tackle. It was not going to be much of a drop-off from Gore to Hyde."

    On Murray: "For as many yards as he had last year, I didn't like the guy. I would take Ryan Mathews over him and I am not a Ryan Mathews fan, but at least Mathews runs hard. I think Murray dances too much. There has got to be a hole there for him. If he sees it, he can hit it."

    On Jeremy Hill: "Last season, [the Bengals] were lining up in a lot of big formations. They have not been running those types of runs as much. Now they are more spread out, more zone read, which is better for [Gio] Bernard. It will be interesting to see if Hill reemerges late in the year when the weather turns."
    "Tuning ... into each other ... lift all higher”
    “I’m just different!”

    Sign Garbage Minshew.

    Draft
    1st round— Cooper Dejean CB
    2nd round— Jack Sawyer OLB
    3rd round— Will Shipley RB
    4th round— Ricky Pearsall WR
    5th round— Ladd McKonkey WR
    6th round— Cash Jones RB
    7th round— Carson Steele RB

  7. #7

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    I can agree with #1, but beyond that, not so much. They are considering past accomplishments too much.

    Thanks for posting dude...

  8. The Following User High Fived Al Wilson 4 Mayor For This Post:


  9. #8
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    I'm gonna go ahead and put Ezekiel Elliot in there, 2016 2nd round draft of your Denver Broncos.
    "Tuning ... into each other ... lift all higher”
    “I’m just different!”

    Sign Garbage Minshew.

    Draft
    1st round— Cooper Dejean CB
    2nd round— Jack Sawyer OLB
    3rd round— Will Shipley RB
    4th round— Ricky Pearsall WR
    5th round— Ladd McKonkey WR
    6th round— Cash Jones RB
    7th round— Carson Steele RB

  10. #9

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    They ain't show no love for Bernard.

  11. #10
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    The real list:
    1. Devonta Freeman
    2. Everyone else.
    In Elway We Trust

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