1st Round RBs the last few years (1 Viewer)

[Jon_Moore]

Dating back to the 2,004 NFL draft:

2004

Steven Jackson

Chris Perry

Keven Jones

2005

Ronnie Brown

Cedric Benson

Cadillac Williams

2006

Reggie Bush

Laurence Maroney

Deangelo Williams

Joeseph Addai

2007

Adrian Peterson

Marshawn Lynch

2004: Chris Perry has been perpetually injured, as has Kevin Jones. Jones has since been cut.

2005: Ronnie Brown appeared to come on big, but tore an ACL. Benson had a significant leg injury, couldn't stay out of trouble, has been cut. Cadillac Williams tore his patella tendon on his knee--missed major time in 2007, is being speculated to miss all of 2008.

2006: Bush has been very sub standard as a RB. Maroney has split time since joining the team. The Panthers drafted a 1st round running back to let Williams know he sucks.

2007: Lynch and Peterson seem legit.

4/12 have lived up to expectations so far.

To add more: The Falcons, Bears, Bengals, Broncos, Cowboys, Lions, Packers, Texans, Giants, Eagles, Steelers, Seahawks, 9ers, Buccaneers, Titans, Redskins---half the league--are projected to start someone later than a 1st rounder.

More so: The team's current starting running back, not drafted in the first round by the team itself: Arizona, Atlanta, Baltimore, Chicago, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Dallas, Denver, Detroit, Green Bay,Houston, Giants, Jets, Philly, Pittsburgh, Seattle, San Francisco, Tampa, Tennessee, Washington---20/32 teams. Roughly 63%

Thoughts?

 

[HawkeyeChief]

It is tough to label some of them bust as it is injuries that sidelined them, not talent.

Potential Bust:

Chris Perry: has showed flashes of his talent but injuries derailed him thus far. Is this a bust? maybe.

Kevin Jones: Again flashes of talent, but running behind a mediocore line, and with bad injury luck. Bust? I say no.

Ronnie Brown: great talent who has at times been great behind a bad line...bad injury luck. Bust? NO

Cedric Benson: Enough said. Bust? Hell Yeah!

Cadillac Williams: steady when healthy, but not spectacular...others ran better behind same line. Bad injury luck. Bust? Yes

Reggie Bush: Has put up good yardage, and touchdowns, for a glorified change of pace back. Has he met what the Saints want out of him? Yes, on fringe though.

Laurence Maroney: Has performed at every oppotunity. Bust? no

Deangelo Williams: also performs at every opportunity. Bust? no

That said, they are all fantasy bust, thus far.

 

[EBF]

Most of those players have been effective when healthy. Football is a violent game and no position feels the consequences more than RB. So while guys like Kevin Jones, Chris Perry, Cadillac Williams, and Ronnie Brown have had some injury issues, I think they've lived up to their first round status when healthy. Others might disagree.

Calling Reggie Bush a sub standard RB diminishes his impact. Yes, his rushing totals have left a lot to be desired, but he's made a major impact in the passing game and his presence improves the New Orleans offense. So far he hasn't lived up to the massive hype, but he's not a flop either.

Historically, I think about 60-65% of first round RB's end up having pretty good careers, which means you can expect about one out of every three to be a pretty big bust. That's not all that different from any other position. In fact, RB probably has a better success rate than most other positions.