Let me venture into the lion's den after reading the first three, dizzying pages...
Basically, there appears to be the Jones faithful, loyalists, observers, whatever, that contend this helps JJ as it will keep him on the field over the course of the season as Thomas and/or Barber III will give him a few breathers during the game. These same posters also argue that Thomas poses no threat to take meaningful carries away from JJ.
The other side of the fence are those folks that see the signing of a former rookie of the year (yeah, I know, I know...) and starting RB as a serious threat to JJones, plain and simple.
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MY VIEW: Both camps are correct to an extent and the type of league you are in really affects your view.
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First, the statement that Thomas' signing is a good thing for Jones needs to be put in some sort of context. I agree that getting 20 - 25 carries is probably better than seeing him get 30 or more carries a game - IN THE LONG TERM. Even Ricky Williams-like runners have a hard time handling that kind of workload -- it showed for Ricky in 2003.
As an aside, I don't recall any threads on this board or any others where Jones owners were campaigning for Dallas to draft a decent rookie RB and sign a solid veteran backup. Why would you if you were a Jones owner? I don't think owners of studs like Tomlinson or Edge would want to see San Diego or Indy go get Thomas Henry to add depth. (Maybe it's just me, but I like my RB to hog all the carries. I'll accept the risk of injury, as I will hopefully draft their backups or a viable third starter. I want to win THIS year.)
Second, in terms of 2005 production, this signing has a real risk of reducing Jones overall potential. Thomas will see some touches each game that would have otherwise gone to JJ (considering the sorry state of Dallas' other RBs prior to the NFL draft and noted several times above). In addition, Thomas is the type of back that could legitimately take carries away at the goal line. IN THE SHORT TERM, this does not help Jones's numbers. It hurts them -- not enough to take Jones out of the realms of good fantasy RB starters, but hurts them nonetheless.
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If you're in a dynasty league, this is probably a decent signing if it keeps Jones healthier, longer. If you're in yearly league, or limited keeper league, this hurts Jones prospects.
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After his torrid pace at the end of last season, Jones looked like an RB that could have a very special season in 2005 -- top 10 potential with even more upside. He was the only quality RB on a team with a coach that liked to run the ball, had to run the ball (Blew Dredsoe at QB, c'mon!).
Jones chances of a special season are reduced significantly now. He can still have a solid season, but I doubt he cracks the top 10 in any format.
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Today, I was working on some deals that might have allowed me to convert Culpepper and Edge into Manning and Jones. My thinking was that Jones' stats potential had enough upside that he could be pretty close to Edge, if not better. I now doubt I will pursue these deals with same vigor, if at all.
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Perhaps, the best test for this signing is how your gut reacted to reading the headline on the blogger. Did you jump for joy for Julius Jones owners. Or, like me, did you immediately go "uh, oh" before trying to rationalize why this isn't going to be a negative to Jones' production?
Sorry for the length of this post, but there seemed to be a lot of different arguments being made that were being rebutted out of context, resulting in the several pages to this thread.
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The one thing I would add, though, is that one reason Jones' short term potential is so high is that he's Parcells's running back. With Parcells unlikely to be there too many more years, Jones' long term value is up in the air.
