Branden Oliver (1 Viewer)

[cstu]

he hit the wall after 3 games

He had a rough stretch weeks 6-9 but had YPC of 4.1 and 5.1 weeks 13-14 before his ankle injury ended his season.

I think your memory is failing you a bit here, but regardless, Oliver wasn't very good for most of the season.

http://www.pro-football-reference.com/players/O/OlivBr01/gamelog/2014/

From the time of his breakout in week 5, he had 5 good games and 5 bad games (two of them against Denver's 4th ranked run defense).

 

[humpback]

he hit the wall after 3 games

He had a rough stretch weeks 6-9 but had YPC of 4.1 and 5.1 weeks 13-14 before his ankle injury ended his season.

I think your memory is failing you a bit here, but regardless, Oliver wasn't very good for most of the season.

http://www.pro-football-reference.com/players/O/OlivBr01/gamelog/2014/

From the time of his breakout in week 5, he had 5 good games and 5 bad games (two of them against Denver's 4th ranked run defense).

So you're just going to ignore that your weeks were wrong and he didn't have an ankle injury that ended his season?

Sorry, but a 3.88 ypc against Oakland isn't "good". If you're being objective about it, he had far more bad games than good ones last year.

 

[cstu]

he hit the wall after 3 games

He had a rough stretch weeks 6-9 but had YPC of 4.1 and 5.1 weeks 13-14 before his ankle injury ended his season.

I think your memory is failing you a bit here, but regardless, Oliver wasn't very good for most of the season.

http://www.pro-football-reference.com/players/O/OlivBr01/gamelog/2014/

From the time of his breakout in week 5, he had 5 good games and 5 bad games (two of them against Denver's 4th ranked run defense).

So you're just going to ignore that your weeks were wrong and he didn't have an ankle injury that ended his season?

Sorry, but a 3.88 ypc against Oakland isn't "good". If you're being objective about it, he had far more bad games than good ones last year.

I think you're nitpicking - three weeks later the Raiders held Lynch to 21 for 67 (3.2).

 

[humpback]

he hit the wall after 3 games

He had a rough stretch weeks 6-9 but had YPC of 4.1 and 5.1 weeks 13-14 before his ankle injury ended his season.

I think your memory is failing you a bit here, but regardless, Oliver wasn't very good for most of the season.

http://www.pro-football-reference.com/players/O/OlivBr01/gamelog/2014/

From the time of his breakout in week 5, he had 5 good games and 5 bad games (two of them against Denver's 4th ranked run defense).

So you're just going to ignore that your weeks were wrong and he didn't have an ankle injury that ended his season?

Sorry, but a 3.88 ypc against Oakland isn't "good". If you're being objective about it, he had far more bad games than good ones last year.

I think you're nitpicking - three weeks later the Raiders held Lynch to 21 for 67 (3.2).

Lynch also had 2 rushing TDs and 76 receiving yards in that game, but that's besides the point.

Any objective person would admit that Oliver wasn't very good for most of last year, but it's pretty clear you're not objective.

 

[ptsteelers]

I wouldn't go as far as to say he wasn't good for most of the year, but I can understand the opinion as there was a drop off. I think he certainly hit a wall that he wasn't expecting to hit. I still like his feet and vision enough to think he has a shot at being the guy, someday, but I can also understand that it may not be this year.

 

[humpback]

I wouldn't go as far as to say he wasn't good for most of the year, but I can understand the opinion as there was a drop off. I think he certainly hit a wall that he wasn't expecting to hit. I still like his feet and vision enough to think he has a shot at being the guy, someday, but I can also understand that it may not be this year.

Seems pretty clear to me since he had more poor games than good ones. I don't think it had anything to do with hitting a "wall" either- after only his 5th game he had a stretch of several bad ones in a row, and he finished the season with two of his better games. He just wasn't very good last year (which isn't to say that he won't improve).

 

[cstu]

I wouldn't go as far as to say he wasn't good for most of the year, but I can understand the opinion as there was a drop off. I think he certainly hit a wall that he wasn't expecting to hit. I still like his feet and vision enough to think he has a shot at being the guy, someday, but I can also understand that it may not be this year.

Seems pretty clear to me since he had more poor games than good ones. I don't think it had anything to do with hitting a "wall" either- after only his 5th game he had a stretch of several bad ones in a row, and he finished the season with two of his better games. He just wasn't very good last year (which isn't to say that he won't improve).

He was good enough in some games that you can see some potential, even if he did have a bunch of bad games. Even Le'Veon Bell had more poor games than good ones his rookie year and finished with a worse YPC.

 

[ptsteelers]

I wouldn't go as far as to say he wasn't good for most of the year, but I can understand the opinion as there was a drop off. I think he certainly hit a wall that he wasn't expecting to hit. I still like his feet and vision enough to think he has a shot at being the guy, someday, but I can also understand that it may not be this year.

Seems pretty clear to me since he had more poor games than good ones. I don't think it had anything to do with hitting a "wall" either- after only his 5th game he had a stretch of several bad ones in a row, and he finished the season with two of his better games. He just wasn't very good last year (which isn't to say that he won't improve).

Seems clear to you how, just by stats? I mean if that is all your judging a guy by, and I get that as hey ... this is fantasy, but as someone that watched his games, he didn't have as many "Poor games" as you claim. Other than the stat line. Yes, he wasn't as strong later in the season as he was early, but that happens to a lot of rookies or first time starters.

Again, I get you don't like him, but I also think you are being a little hard on the kid. He was pretty good at some point, why can't he do it again with better conditioning?

Why don't you like him? Other than he sucked in more games than he was good? Was it his vision? Was it his drive to the hole? Or was it just the stats? Just curious.

 

[humpback]

I wouldn't go as far as to say he wasn't good for most of the year, but I can understand the opinion as there was a drop off. I think he certainly hit a wall that he wasn't expecting to hit. I still like his feet and vision enough to think he has a shot at being the guy, someday, but I can also understand that it may not be this year.

Seems pretty clear to me since he had more poor games than good ones. I don't think it had anything to do with hitting a "wall" either- after only his 5th game he had a stretch of several bad ones in a row, and he finished the season with two of his better games. He just wasn't very good last year (which isn't to say that he won't improve).

He was good enough in some games that you can see some potential, even if he did have a bunch of bad games. Even Le'Veon Bell had more poor games than good ones his rookie year and finished with a worse YPC.

Are you now agreeing that he had more bad games than good ones? I agree that he has some potential (I said that he could improve), but when evaluating last season, he wasn't very good. You kept arguing against that.

 

[Van Dyman]

I wouldn't go as far as to say he wasn't good for most of the year, but I can understand the opinion as there was a drop off. I think he certainly hit a wall that he wasn't expecting to hit. I still like his feet and vision enough to think he has a shot at being the guy, someday, but I can also understand that it may not be this year.

Seems pretty clear to me since he had more poor games than good ones. I don't think it had anything to do with hitting a "wall" either- after only his 5th game he had a stretch of several bad ones in a row, and he finished the season with two of his better games. He just wasn't very good last year (which isn't to say that he won't improve).

He was good enough in some games that you can see some potential, even if he did have a bunch of bad games. Even Le'Veon Bell had more poor games than good ones his rookie year and finished with a worse YPC.

Your analysis is way off. The two pff links you've posted (BO and Bell) tell me that BO had less than 80 total yards in 11 of his 14 games, while Bell had less than 80 total yards in only 2 of 13 games his rookie season. I guess if you want to arbitrarily pick some other dividing line to distinguish good game vs bad game, and not tell us what line you've chosen, then there may be some way to come up with your conclusion. But I sure don't get it.

Bell's rookie year was light years better than BO's.

 

[Tau837]

PFF graded Oliver as its 10th best RB last season. Breaking down the grading categories:

Passing (Receiving): +5.1

Running: +1.4 (8 games with positive grades, 6 games with negative grades)

Blocking: -0.3

That pass blocking grade is a bit misleading, because he was not asked to pass block much (32 snaps). It likely would have been a lot worse if he had a larger role in the offense.

Unfortunately for Oliver, he was much more effective as a receiver than as a runner, but Woodhead is set to return this year, which should virtually eliminate Oliver from the passing game.

 

[humpback]

I wouldn't go as far as to say he wasn't good for most of the year, but I can understand the opinion as there was a drop off. I think he certainly hit a wall that he wasn't expecting to hit. I still like his feet and vision enough to think he has a shot at being the guy, someday, but I can also understand that it may not be this year.

Seems pretty clear to me since he had more poor games than good ones. I don't think it had anything to do with hitting a "wall" either- after only his 5th game he had a stretch of several bad ones in a row, and he finished the season with two of his better games. He just wasn't very good last year (which isn't to say that he won't improve).

Seems clear to you how, just by stats? I mean if that is all your judging a guy by, and I get that as hey ... this is fantasy, but as someone that watched his games, he didn't have as many "Poor games" as you claim. Other than the stat line. Yes, he wasn't as strong later in the season as he was early, but that happens to a lot of rookies or first time starters.

Again, I get you don't like him, but I also think you are being a little hard on the kid. He was pretty good at some point, why can't he do it again with better conditioning?

Why don't you like him? Other than he sucked in more games than he was good? Was it his vision? Was it his drive to the hole? Or was it just the stats? Just curious.

Love this argument. Actually, I watched him play as well (big fan of his in college), he just wasn't very good overall.

I'm arguing against him hitting "the wall"- some of his worst games came early when he had fewer than 100 touches on the season, and two of his better games came at the very end. That leads me to think that he didn't really wear down.

I love his effort, toughness and vision, but my issue with him has always been that I just don't think he's physically gifted enough to be a workhorse in the NFL (in the long run).

 

[cstu]

I wouldn't go as far as to say he wasn't good for most of the year, but I can understand the opinion as there was a drop off. I think he certainly hit a wall that he wasn't expecting to hit. I still like his feet and vision enough to think he has a shot at being the guy, someday, but I can also understand that it may not be this year.

Seems pretty clear to me since he had more poor games than good ones. I don't think it had anything to do with hitting a "wall" either- after only his 5th game he had a stretch of several bad ones in a row, and he finished the season with two of his better games. He just wasn't very good last year (which isn't to say that he won't improve).

Seems clear to you how, just by stats? I mean if that is all your judging a guy by, and I get that as hey ... this is fantasy, but as someone that watched his games, he didn't have as many "Poor games" as you claim. Other than the stat line. Yes, he wasn't as strong later in the season as he was early, but that happens to a lot of rookies or first time starters.

Again, I get you don't like him, but I also think you are being a little hard on the kid. He was pretty good at some point, why can't he do it again with better conditioning?

Why don't you like him? Other than he sucked in more games than he was good? Was it his vision? Was it his drive to the hole? Or was it just the stats? Just curious.

Love this argument. Actually, I watched him play as well (big fan of his in college), he just wasn't very good overall.

I'm arguing against him hitting "the wall"- some of his worst games came early when he had fewer than 100 touches on the season, and two of his better games came at the very end. That leads me to think that he didn't really wear down.

I love his effort, toughness and vision, but my issue with him has always been that I just don't think he's physically gifted enough to be a workhorse in the NFL (in the long run).

The only thing he lacks is top end speed, but otherwise he has a similar burst and agility to MJD. His lack of long speed does limit his upside but he could be a useful player in PPR ala Kevin Faulk, Brian Westbrok or Sproles.

 

[ptsteelers]

I wouldn't go as far as to say he wasn't good for most of the year, but I can understand the opinion as there was a drop off. I think he certainly hit a wall that he wasn't expecting to hit. I still like his feet and vision enough to think he has a shot at being the guy, someday, but I can also understand that it may not be this year.

Seems pretty clear to me since he had more poor games than good ones. I don't think it had anything to do with hitting a "wall" either- after only his 5th game he had a stretch of several bad ones in a row, and he finished the season with two of his better games. He just wasn't very good last year (which isn't to say that he won't improve).

Seems clear to you how, just by stats? I mean if that is all your judging a guy by, and I get that as hey ... this is fantasy, but as someone that watched his games, he didn't have as many "Poor games" as you claim. Other than the stat line. Yes, he wasn't as strong later in the season as he was early, but that happens to a lot of rookies or first time starters.

Again, I get you don't like him, but I also think you are being a little hard on the kid. He was pretty good at some point, why can't he do it again with better conditioning?

Why don't you like him? Other than he sucked in more games than he was good? Was it his vision? Was it his drive to the hole? Or was it just the stats? Just curious.

Love this argument. Actually, I watched him play as well (big fan of his in college), he just wasn't very good overall.

I'm arguing against him hitting "the wall"- some of his worst games came early when he had fewer than 100 touches on the season, and two of his better games came at the very end. That leads me to think that he didn't really wear down.

I love his effort, toughness and vision, but my issue with him has always been that I just don't think he's physically gifted enough to be a workhorse in the NFL (in the long run).

Damn I hate this quote mechanism here.

So you liked him in college but his first year, after watching his games you don't like him. (And I am not being a smart ###, though I know that is what it sounds like. I am only trying to get at your reasoning) I just don't see how you watched the games and don't think he can improve, especially if you liked his college game.

He hit a wall. You can see it in his play about 2/3rds of the way through, he was just not as powerful nor explosive as he was early. I don't care what the stats say that he got better late, he didn't. He just wasn't the same as he was earlier. His stamina just wasn't there.

All this is moot if you watched his college games and liked him early there but then found he was lacking later in the year during his college days of course.

 

[humpback]

Damn I hate this quote mechanism here.

So you liked him in college but his first year, after watching his games you don't like him. (And I am not being a smart ###, though I know that is what it sounds like. I am only trying to get at your reasoning) I just don't see how you watched the games and don't think he can improve, especially if you liked his college game.

He hit a wall. You can see it in his play about 2/3rds of the way through, he was just not as powerful nor explosive as he was early. I don't care what the stats say that he got better late, he didn't. He just wasn't the same as he was earlier. His stamina just wasn't there.

All this is moot if you watched his college games and liked him early there but then found he was lacking later in the year during his college days of course.

No, I liked him in college when he was dominating the likes of Eastern Michigan and Miami of Ohio. I never thought he would be able to be a workhorse in the NFL, and last season did nothing to change that opinion.

I still disagree that he hit a wall (he handled over 300 carries twice in college with no noticeable drop off), but it's kind of moot anyway- if he wore down after fewer than 100 touches last season, it doesn't bode well for his ability to handle a much larger workload in the future.

 

[ptsteelers]

Well we just stand apart. I see it somewhat differently as I think with a little more conditioning he could handle it much better and be much better. Doesn't mean they won't still draft a RB to be that guy however, as I think they will. Ha. Regardless, thanks for taking the time to put your thoughts to posts.

 

[Boone22]

Damn I hate this quote mechanism here.

So you liked him in college but his first year, after watching his games you don't like him. (And I am not being a smart ###, though I know that is what it sounds like. I am only trying to get at your reasoning) I just don't see how you watched the games and don't think he can improve, especially if you liked his college game.

He hit a wall. You can see it in his play about 2/3rds of the way through, he was just not as powerful nor explosive as he was early. I don't care what the stats say that he got better late, he didn't. He just wasn't the same as he was earlier. His stamina just wasn't there.

All this is moot if you watched his college games and liked him early there but then found he was lacking later in the year during his college days of course.t

No, I liked him in college when he was dominating the likes of Eastern Michigan and Miami of Ohio. I never thought he would be able to be a workhorse in the NFL, and last season did nothing to change that opinion.I still disagree that he hit a wall (he handled over 300 carries twice in college with no noticeable drop off), but it's kind of moot anyway- if he wore down after fewer than 100 touches last season, it doesn't bode well for his ability to handle a much larger workload in the future.

When we talk about wearing down its not specifically about the amounts of touches. It's the length of the season and all the practice time/reps. Just because he had 100 touches doesn't mean he didn't hit the rookie wall due to the extra practice time compared to college.

 

[humpback]

Damn I hate this quote mechanism here.

So you liked him in college but his first year, after watching his games you don't like him. (And I am not being a smart ###, though I know that is what it sounds like. I am only trying to get at your reasoning) I just don't see how you watched the games and don't think he can improve, especially if you liked his college game.

He hit a wall. You can see it in his play about 2/3rds of the way through, he was just not as powerful nor explosive as he was early. I don't care what the stats say that he got better late, he didn't. He just wasn't the same as he was earlier. His stamina just wasn't there.

All this is moot if you watched his college games and liked him early there but then found he was lacking later in the year during his college days of course.t

No, I liked him in college when he was dominating the likes of Eastern Michigan and Miami of Ohio. I never thought he would be able to be a workhorse in the NFL, and last season did nothing to change that opinion.I still disagree that he hit a wall (he handled over 300 carries twice in college with no noticeable drop off), but it's kind of moot anyway- if he wore down after fewer than 100 touches last season, it doesn't bode well for his ability to handle a much larger workload in the future.

When we talk about wearing down its not specifically about the amounts of touches. It's the length of the season and all the practice time/reps. Just because he had 100 touches doesn't mean he didn't hit the rookie wall due to the extra practice time compared to college.

I know, but people are saying he hit the rookie wall in mid-October (after being inactive the first two weeks). That doesn't seem likely, but even if was, I wouldn't necessarily view that as a good thing.

 

[EBF]

The difference between 3.6 and 4.0 YPC in this case is about 1-2 really good/really bad games. If you like Oliver then you don't need to stretch far to find optimism in his production because the sample size on his NFL body of work is so small that literally one or two more weeks tacked onto the end of the season could've totally changed the narrative. Personally, I did not watch every game he played in 2014, but in the games I saw I felt he generally ran well and that most of his negative plays were attributable to breakdowns around him in the blocking. He's not a guy who I'd confidently predict will be starting for an NFL team in the future, but at the same time I felt he at least showed flashes last season. The price should always be a huge consideration in discussions about any player's FF prospects. In Oliver's case, the ~RB50 dynasty price tag means there's relatively little value lost if you buy him at his market price and he flops. His price is pretty much founded on the assumption that he'll flop. That being the case, there's not much point in dissecting his game and looking for every little flaw. I don't expect a clean and flawless profile when I'm taking a guy as RB50. Just someone with a pulse who has a chance to become something.

 

[Faust]

Branden Oliver gunning for Chargers' starting RB gig

 

[Gr00vus]

Another thing to keep in mind in regard to last season is that the Chargers offensive line got progressively worse and more injured as the season went on. In addition, and as a result of the offensive line problems, Rivers' performance and health declined as the season went on too. Those things probably had a non-zero negative impact on Oliver's performance late in the season.

 

[DaveL]

Having made it through free agency unscathed, if the Chargers make it though the first 2 rounds without picking a RB I'm calling this off-season a win for Oliver

 

[jurb26]

Having made it through free agency unscathed, if the Chargers make it though the first 2 rounds without picking a RB I'm calling this off-season a win for Oliver

There are plenty of RBs that could go in round 3 capable of derailing that. Perhaps even round 4.

 

[cstu]

Having made it through free agency unscathed, if the Chargers make it though the first 2 rounds without picking a RB I'm calling this off-season a win for Oliver

There are plenty of RBs that could go in round 3 capable of derailing that. Perhaps even round 4.

I agree about round 3, but I'll feel ok if he escapes the first 3 rounds without a RB.

 

[jurb26]

Having made it through free agency unscathed, if the Chargers make it though the first 2 rounds without picking a RB I'm calling this off-season a win for Oliver

There are plenty of RBs that could go in round 3 capable of derailing that. Perhaps even round 4.

I agree about round 3, but I'll feel ok if he escapes the first 3 rounds without a RB.

Round 4 is maybe a stretch. I think there could be some guys who fall there that are decent, though. We'll have to see. Round 3 is a clear threat IMO. Not just for Oliver, but several RBs.

 

[BoltBacker]

Having made it through free agency unscathed, if the Chargers make it though the first 2 rounds without picking a RB I'm calling this off-season a win for Oliver

There are plenty of RBs that could go in round 3 capable of derailing that. Perhaps even round 4.

I agree about round 3, but I'll feel ok if he escapes the first 3 rounds without a RB.

Round 4 is maybe a stretch. I think there could be some guys who fall there that are decent, though. We'll have to see. Round 3 is a clear threat IMO. Not just for Oliver, but several RBs.

I agree with jurb26 here and I would go even further. People forget that Oliver was an UFA in an all too forgettable draft class. This is one of the deepest draft classes in YEARS. I am not trying to hate on Oliver because he obviously played better than expected but can anyone try to logically argue he might lose his roster spot to a UFA from this draft class??

Imo not only could a 4th rounder cut into his time but might put him on the bench for good... if he makes the team. The best thing Oliver has going for him is SD doesn't have a 7th rounder so they would be crazy to draft more than one RB and Oliver will only have to defend his roster spot to Brown(who had a terrible year) and an UFA.

If SD takes a RB in the first three rounds I will be bitterly disappointed they passed up an opportunity to fill a need at a 3 down player at any one of a myriad of gaping holes on their roster.

 

[cstu]

I agree with jurb26 here and I would go even further. People forget that Oliver was an UFA in an all too forgettable draft class. This is one of the deepest draft classes in YEARS. I am not trying to hate on Oliver because he obviously played better than expected but can anyone try to logically argue he might lose his roster spot to a UFA from this draft class??

It's not out of the question, but here are the RB's the Chargers have drafted since 2005:

Rk 	Year 	Rnd 	Pick 		        Pos 	DrAge 	From 	To 	AP1 	PB 	St 	CarAV 	G 	GS 	Att 	Yds 	TD 	Rec 	Yds 	TD 	College/Univ 	1 	2014 	6 	201 	Marion Grice 	RB 	23 	2014 	2014 	0 	0 	0 	0 	10 	0 	15 	41 	1 	7 	29 	0 	Arizona St. 	College Stats2 	2012 	7 	250 	Edwin Baker 	RB 	21 	2012 	2014 	0 	0 	0 	1 	6 	2 	44 	173 	2 	8 	57 	0 	Michigan St. 	College Stats3 	2011 	6 	183 	Jordan Todman 	RB 	21 	2011 	2014 	0 	0 	0 	4 	34 	3 	111 	450 	3 	40 	314 	2 	Connecticut 	College Stats4 	2010 	1 	12 	Ryan Mathews 	RB 	23 	2010 	2014 	0 	1 	4 	36 	62 	53 	923 	4061 	23 	146 	1110 	1 	Fresno St. 	College Stats5 	2009 	4 	134 	GartrelJohnson 	RB 	23 	2009 	2010 	0 	0 	0 	0 	19 	0 	23 	79 	0 	3 	6 	0 	Colorado St. 	College Stats6 	2008 	5 	166 	Marcus Thomas 	RB 	24 	2008 	2008 	0 	0 	0 	0 	5 	0 							Texas-El Paso 	College Stats

 

[jurb26]

I agree with jurb26 here and I would go even further. People forget that Oliver was an UFA in an all too forgettable draft class. This is one of the deepest draft classes in YEARS. I am not trying to hate on Oliver because he obviously played better than expected but can anyone try to logically argue he might lose his roster spot to a UFA from this draft class??

It's not out of the question, but here are the RB's the Chargers have drafted since 2005:

Rk 	Year 	Rnd 	Pick 		        Pos 	DrAge 	From 	To 	AP1 	PB 	St 	CarAV 	G 	GS 	Att 	Yds 	TD 	Rec 	Yds 	TD 	College/Univ 	1 	2014 	6 	201 	Marion Grice 	RB 	23 	2014 	2014 	0 	0 	0 	0 	10 	0 	15 	41 	1 	7 	29 	0 	Arizona St. 	College Stats2 	2012 	7 	250 	Edwin Baker 	RB 	21 	2012 	2014 	0 	0 	0 	1 	6 	2 	44 	173 	2 	8 	57 	0 	Michigan St. 	College Stats3 	2011 	6 	183 	Jordan Todman 	RB 	21 	2011 	2014 	0 	0 	0 	4 	34 	3 	111 	450 	3 	40 	314 	2 	Connecticut 	College Stats4 	2010 	1 	12 	Ryan Mathews 	RB 	23 	2010 	2014 	0 	1 	4 	36 	62 	53 	923 	4061 	23 	146 	1110 	1 	Fresno St. 	College Stats5 	2009 	4 	134 	GartrelJohnson 	RB 	23 	2009 	2010 	0 	0 	0 	0 	19 	0 	23 	79 	0 	3 	6 	0 	Colorado St. 	College Stats6 	2008 	5 	166 	Marcus Thomas 	RB 	24 	2008 	2008 	0 	0 	0 	0 	5 	0 							Texas-El Paso 	College Stats

Looks like a NEED if I've ever seen one!

 

[Tau837]

I agree with jurb26 here and I would go even further. People forget that Oliver was an UFA in an all too forgettable draft class. This is one of the deepest draft classes in YEARS. I am not trying to hate on Oliver because he obviously played better than expected but can anyone try to logically argue he might lose his roster spot to a UFA from this draft class??

Imo not only could a 4th rounder cut into his time but might put him on the bench for good... if he makes the team. The best thing Oliver has going for him is SD doesn't have a 7th rounder so they would be crazy to draft more than one RB and Oliver will only have to defend his roster spot to Brown(who had a terrible year) and an UFA.

If SD takes a RB in the first three rounds I will be bitterly disappointed they passed up an opportunity to fill a need at a 3 down player at any one of a myriad of gaping holes on their roster.

I would be shocked if Oliver didn't make the roster. The Chargers currently only have 3 RBs on the roster. I expect they will carry 4, so IMO they would have to acquire more than 1 RB for there to be any threat to Oliver's roster position. And even then, Brown should really be cut before Oliver, for both cap and performance reasons.

 

[TheFanatic]

All this talk of Oliver as a physical guy, or trying to be the lead guy, or someone who could be a workhorse, or whatever is all a gambit by the coaching staff to try to make other teams think they don't want a RB so one falls to them in the 2nd or 3rd. They are going RB. They want everyone to think they aren't so someone else RB deficient doesn't snake their guy or trade ahead of them.

 

[Shutout]

All this talk of Oliver as a physical guy, or trying to be the lead guy, or someone who could be a workhorse, or whatever is all a gambit by the coaching staff to try to make other teams think they don't want a RB so one falls to them in the 2nd or 3rd. They are going RB. They want everyone to think they aren't so someone else RB deficient doesn't snake their guy or trade ahead of them.

THey will draft a RB but I don't think they are trying to fool anyone. Maybe a team would if it was a thin selection but this is fairly large crop of RBs. There's no way there won't be decent options left in the 3/4th rounds.

I think they genuinely believe, based largely on the memories of how he played that one big game against the Jets. You don't have to squint too hard to think of him as a version of MJD and, if nothing else, when team execs and coaches think of how he climbed the mountain to get ON the team, stick, and then do them a good job when called upon, it's easy to laud him a bit.

 

[Dr. Octopus]

All this talk of Oliver as a physical guy, or trying to be the lead guy, or someone who could be a workhorse, or whatever is all a gambit by the coaching staff to try to make other teams think they don't want a RB so one falls to them in the 2nd or 3rd. They are going RB. They want everyone to think they aren't so someone else RB deficient doesn't snake their guy or trade ahead of them.

THey will draft a RB but I don't think they are trying to fool anyone. Maybe a team would if it was a thin selection but this is fairly large crop of RBs. There's no way there won't be decent options left in the 3/4th rounds.

I think they genuinely believe, based largely on the memories of how he played that one big game against the Jets. You don't have to squint too hard to think of him as a version of MJD and, if nothing else, when team execs and coaches think of how he climbed the mountain to get ON the team, stick, and then do them a good job when called upon, it's easy to laud him a bit.

I like the guy and own him in one league, but he's way too slow to be compared to MJD.

 

[cstu]

All this talk of Oliver as a physical guy, or trying to be the lead guy, or someone who could be a workhorse, or whatever is all a gambit by the coaching staff to try to make other teams think they don't want a RB so one falls to them in the 2nd or 3rd. They are going RB. They want everyone to think they aren't so someone else RB deficient doesn't snake their guy or trade ahead of them.

THey will draft a RB but I don't think they are trying to fool anyone. Maybe a team would if it was a thin selection but this is fairly large crop of RBs. There's no way there won't be decent options left in the 3/4th rounds.

I think they genuinely believe, based largely on the memories of how he played that one big game against the Jets. You don't have to squint too hard to think of him as a version of MJD and, if nothing else, when team execs and coaches think of how he climbed the mountain to get ON the team, stick, and then do them a good job when called upon, it's easy to laud him a bit.

I like the guy and own him in one league, but he's way too slow to be compared to MJD.

He doesn't have MJD's top end speed but they are similar otherwise.

MJD combine (left) and Oliver Pro Day (right):

Height: 5066 vs. 5064

Weight: 207 vs, 208

40 Yrd Dash: 4.39 vs. 4.62

20 Yrd Dash: 2.57 vs. 2.63

10 Yrd Dash: 1.53 vs. 1.56

225 Lb. Bench Reps: 18 vs. 26

Vertical Jump: 36 vs. 33.5

Broad Jump: 09'08" vs. 09'09'

20 Yrd Shuttle: 4.38 vs. 4.22

3-Cone Drill: 7.08 vs. 7.04

 

[cstu]

All this talk of Oliver as a physical guy, or trying to be the lead guy, or someone who could be a workhorse, or whatever is all a gambit by the coaching staff to try to make other teams think they don't want a RB so one falls to them in the 2nd or 3rd. They are going RB. They want everyone to think they aren't so someone else RB deficient doesn't snake their guy or trade ahead of them.

THey will draft a RB but I don't think they are trying to fool anyone. Maybe a team would if it was a thin selection but this is fairly large crop of RBs. There's no way there won't be decent options left in the 3/4th rounds.

I think they genuinely believe, based largely on the memories of how he played that one big game against the Jets. You don't have to squint too hard to think of him as a version of MJD and, if nothing else, when team execs and coaches think of how he climbed the mountain to get ON the team, stick, and then do them a good job when called upon, it's easy to laud him a bit.

They will definitely draft a RB since the only other RB's are Woodhead and Brown, who IMO should be cut to save $3M.

A bigger back like Ajayi, David Johnson, or Yeldon would be a good pick in the 3rd round.

As long as that's all they get Oliver still has a chance to be the starter.

 

[humpback]

All this talk of Oliver as a physical guy, or trying to be the lead guy, or someone who could be a workhorse, or whatever is all a gambit by the coaching staff to try to make other teams think they don't want a RB so one falls to them in the 2nd or 3rd. They are going RB. They want everyone to think they aren't so someone else RB deficient doesn't snake their guy or trade ahead of them.

THey will draft a RB but I don't think they are trying to fool anyone. Maybe a team would if it was a thin selection but this is fairly large crop of RBs. There's no way there won't be decent options left in the 3/4th rounds.

I think they genuinely believe, based largely on the memories of how he played that one big game against the Jets. You don't have to squint too hard to think of him as a version of MJD and, if nothing else, when team execs and coaches think of how he climbed the mountain to get ON the team, stick, and then do them a good job when called upon, it's easy to laud him a bit.

I like the guy and own him in one league, but he's way too slow to be compared to MJD.

He doesn't have MJD's top end speed but they are similar otherwise.

MJD combine (left) and Oliver Pro Day (right):

Height: 5066 vs. 5064

Weight: 207 vs, 208

40 Yrd Dash: 4.39 vs. 4.62

20 Yrd Dash: 2.57 vs. 2.63

10 Yrd Dash: 1.53 vs. 1.56

225 Lb. Bench Reps: 18 vs. 26

Vertical Jump: 36 vs. 33.5

Broad Jump: 09'08" vs. 09'09'

20 Yrd Shuttle: 4.38 vs. 4.22

3-Cone Drill: 7.08 vs. 7.04

The big difference is that MJD did that at the combine, while Oliver did it at his pro day. Khalil Mack was at that same pro day, and he shaved .10 off his 40, .16 off his 20, and .11 off his 10 yard dash times vs. what he did at the combine.

 

[cstu]

The big difference is that MJD did that at the combine, while Oliver did it at his pro day. Khalil Mack was at that same pro day, and he shaved .10 off his 40, .16 off his 20, and .11 off his 10 yard dash times vs. what he did at the combine.

That's why I noted it was from his Pro Day. I don't anyone is under the delusion that Oliver is as fast as MJD.

 

[humpback]

The big difference is that MJD did that at the combine, while Oliver did it at his pro day. Khalil Mack was at that same pro day, and he shaved .10 off his 40, .16 off his 20, and .11 off his 10 yard dash times vs. what he did at the combine.

That's why I noted it was from his Pro Day. I don't anyone is under the delusion that Oliver is as fast as MJD.

Everything is inflated at a pro day.

 

[cstu]

The big difference is that MJD did that at the combine, while Oliver did it at his pro day. Khalil Mack was at that same pro day, and he shaved .10 off his 40, .16 off his 20, and .11 off his 10 yard dash times vs. what he did at the combine.

That's why I noted it was from his Pro Day. I don't anyone is under the delusion that Oliver is as fast as MJD.

Everything is inflated at a pro day.

Vertical, bench, and broad jump too?

 

[humpback]

The big difference is that MJD did that at the combine, while Oliver did it at his pro day. Khalil Mack was at that same pro day, and he shaved .10 off his 40, .16 off his 20, and .11 off his 10 yard dash times vs. what he did at the combine.

That's why I noted it was from his Pro Day. I don't anyone is under the delusion that Oliver is as fast as MJD.

Everything is inflated at a pro day.

Vertical, bench, and broad jump too?

Yep.

 

[BoltBacker]

A bigger back like Ajayi, David Johnson, or Yeldon would be a good pick in the 3rd round.

As long as that's all they get Oliver still has a chance to be the starter.

I strongly disagree. If SD drafts a guy as low as the 5th round I think he's the starter.

I was thinking SD should start thinking RB in the 3rd round but the more I look into these later RB's I think they are making a big mistake taking one before the 4th round.

If SD took David Cobb, Javorius Allen, Jeremy Langford or Mike Davis in the 4th round I think that buries Oliver on the depth chart behind Rookie/Woodhead.

For that matter if SD drafted Cameron Artis-Payne or Josh Robinson in the 5th I think Oliver would have trouble getting much work.

In the 6th round possible targets like Malcolm Brown or Dominique Brown could easily get as many carries as Oliver playing in a complimentary role. Probably a pretty even snap count between Woodhead/Oliver/Rookie.

Lastly, SD could easily take 2-3 of these guys that have NFL talent but may not get drafted due to special considerations: John Crocket(tiny school), Trey Williams(tiny player), Karlos Williams(off-field), Michael Dyer(off-field), and Zack Zenner(tiny school). All these guys are a threat to take the roster spot of either Oliver or Brown. Maybe even both.

Keep in mind these rookies aren't going to be expected to contribute on passing downs much as Woodhead platoons in on all passing downs so they don't face one of the biggest hurdles for rookie RB's. To me the sweet spot would be drafting Artis-Payne in the 5th and signing Dyer/Crocket/Trey Williams with no downside but the talent to really contribute. UFA RB's should be especially interested in SD as a spot where they not only have a legitimate chance to make the team but have a legitimate chance to start opening day if they look great in the preseason.

 

[Coeur de Lion]

I see more Jacquizz Rodgers in Oliver than I do MJD.

 

[Dr. Octopus]

I see more Jacquizz Rodgers in Oliver than I do MJD.

...and I like both of those RBs more than I possibly should.

 

[Maurile Tremblay]

The big difference is that MJD did that at the combine, while Oliver did it at his pro day. Khalil Mack was at that same pro day, and he shaved .10 off his 40, .16 off his 20, and .11 off his 10 yard dash times vs. what he did at the combine.

That's why I noted it was from his Pro Day. I don't anyone is under the delusion that Oliver is as fast as MJD.

I watched a bunch of Raiders games last year. Oliver is definitely faster than MJD.

 

[cstu]

I see more Jacquizz Rodgers in Oliver than I do MJD.

Rodgers vs. Oliver (both Pro Days):

Height: 5057 vs 5064

Weight: 196 vs 208

40 Yrd Dash: 4.52 vs 4.62

20 Yrd Dash: 2.61 vs 2.63

10 Yrd Dash: 1.58 vs 1.56

Bench Reps: 13 vs 26

Vertical Jump: 34 vs 33 1/2

Broad Jump: 09'08" vs 09'09"

20 Yrd Shuttle: 4.33 vs 4.22

3-Cone Drill: 7.31 vs 7.04

 

[mjr]

I can't see a day 2 draft pick, even after a pre-season shredding of 2nd and 3rd string Ds, getting the week 1 start over Oliver given he has the better part of experience & familiarity with the system if nothing else. Beyond that I don't even think the SD staff themselves know where things will go from there. Maybe a rookie takes half the carries week 2 and takes the start going into 3, but right out of the gate I think it's Oliver short of SD taking a RB day 1.

I took Oliver as a cheap flier, and my only interest in what SD does with him is in the number of carries he gets with a start. His 2014 stats hint that he's a performer when he gets 15-20+ carries; gets the opportunity to "warm-up", "get into a rhythm" or whatever the heck you want to call it. If they're going to go DeAngelo/Stewart-like with 8 - 12 carries per back, I'd bet the farm it ain't going to work out too well for Oliver or San Diego.

Edit: Mistakenly typed "Oakland" instead of "San Diego" in the last line.

 

[cstu]

I can't see a day 2 draft pick, even after a pre-season shredding of 2nd and 3rd string Ds, getting the week 1 start over Oliver given he has the better part of experience & familiarity with the system if nothing else. Beyond that I don't even think the SD staff themselves know where things will go from there. Maybe a rookie takes half the carries week 2 and takes the start going into 3, but right out of the gate I think it's Oliver short of SD taking a RB day 1.

I took Oliver as a cheap flier, and my only interest in what SD does with him is in the number of carries he gets with a start. His 2014 stats hint that he's a performer when he gets 15-20+ carries; gets the opportunity to "warm-up", "get into a rhythm" or whatever the heck you want to call it. If they're going to go DeAngelo/Stewart-like with 8 - 12 carries per back, I'd bet the farm it ain't going to work out too well for Oliver or Oakland.

My gut feeling is that unless they take a RB in the first 3 rounds that Oliver will be the week 1 starter. However, no matter what round they take a RB I wouldn't rule out that player becoming the starter sometime during the season. Oliver is not a special talent and will need to prove himself every week in order to keep his job.

 

[Faust]

Rotoworld:

The Union-Tribune San Diego says Branden Oliver is "not a No. 1 back."

We'd agree. Oliver flashed briefly while Ryan Mathews was sidelined last year, but ended up sputtering to a 3.63 YPC on 160 rushes. He's best served as a change-of-pace back, meaning the Chargers are in the market for a feature back in this draft. They could look there with the No. 17 overall pick in the form of Wisconsin's Melvin Gordon.

Source: Union-Tribune San Diego
Apr 30 - 6:25 PM

 

[cstu]

Rotoworld:

The Union-Tribune San Diego says Branden Oliver is "not a No. 1 back."

We'd agree. Oliver flashed briefly while Ryan Mathews was sidelined last year, but ended up sputtering to a 3.63 YPC on 160 rushes. He's best served as a change-of-pace back, meaning the Chargers are in the market for a feature back in this draft. They could look there with the No. 17 overall pick in the form of Wisconsin's Melvin Gordon.

Source: Union-Tribune San Diego
Apr 30 - 6:25 PM

Teams don't need a #1 back to win a Super Bowl.

 

[BoltBacker]

Rotoworld:

The Union-Tribune San Diego says Branden Oliver is "not a No. 1 back."

We'd agree. Oliver flashed briefly while Ryan Mathews was sidelined last year, but ended up sputtering to a 3.63 YPC on 160 rushes. He's best served as a change-of-pace back, meaning the Chargers are in the market for a feature back in this draft. They could look there with the No. 17 overall pick in the form of Wisconsin's Melvin Gordon.

Source: Union-Tribune San Diego
Apr 30 - 6:25 PM

Teams don't need a #1 back to win a Super Bowl.

I wonder if the good folks at the UTSD think Blount is a number 1 back?

 

[humpback]