Cardinals RBs (1 Viewer)

[DoubleG]

First off, I'm not a Wells owner (yet - could be though).

Secondly, this talk of "30 other teams passing on him in the draft" is ludicrious. Many teams had other needs than RB. Minnesota isn't going to draft and RB with ADP there, same with the 49ers, the Rams, Jags, Falcons, etc. Secondly, only two teams took a running back before Wells went off the board: the Broncos (who incidentally had two 1st round picks, so technically only 29 other teams passed on Wells ;-) and the Colts - who are known for drafting offensive players early.

Third, I find it odd that some people assume that Hightower will be the goal line back, when Wells is taller and weighs more and is every bit the physical runner that Hightower is.

Yes, there may indeed be durability concerns for Beanie - but many said the same about ADP when he came out of college (no, I'm not conmparing the two) - and he's held up well so far.

Most "experts" agree that the only reason Wells fell as far as he did (i.e. past Indy - they already have one back who can't stay on the field) was due to his durability concerns. What other teams did in the first round is irrelevant in large part.

The Cardinals used their very first pick to choose a running back. That to me suggests that they saw some sort of need at RB over any other position they could have drafted there. That's not to say that Hightower isn't a good player, but obviously the Cardinals felt they neede to get better at RB - so much so that they used a first round pick on the position.

 

[LHUCKS]

I think your total attempts are off. Arizona had an NFL low 340 last year and Whisnehunt has already stated he wants to run more and he will be running the O. I can see this going to 390 at least which would still be the 5th lowest but much higher than last year. There D gains confidence and with Wells they have a RB who can give them more options. Now on your spread, I would put up Wells a little but give more to HIghtower in the end of the extra 50 I think they could run. So 255-115-20

I agree with the total number of attempts but don't agree with your distribution as I see Wright playing a larger role...particularly since Hightower and Wells have never proven they can handle a heavy load.205-100-90

 

[kevthegrad]

As I mentioned in the upcoming staff Over/Under Valued article . . .Hightower had a grand total of ONE game with over 40 rushing yards last year and posted a meager 2.79 ypc on the season. Of backs with at least 140 rushing attempts in a season since 1960, that ranks in the Bottom 10 out of nearly 1,443 total RB seasons.

Wow. You'd never think this the way some people talk about Hightower.

Exactly. This information is fantastic, and I couldn't believe how much hype surrounded Hightower last year because came in and game out, he's post these results with less than 3 ypc and I'd say "WTF".I think Wells could come in and be a giant.

 

[T Bell]

Secondly, this talk of "30 other teams passing on him in the draft" is ludicrious. Many teams had other needs than RB. Minnesota isn't going to draft and RB with ADP there, same with the 49ers, the Rams, Jags, Falcons, etc. Secondly, only two teams took a running back before Wells went off the board: the Broncos (who incidentally had two 1st round picks, so technically only 29 other teams passed on Wells ;-) and the Colts - who are known for drafting offensive players early.

How many RB's with perceived top-10 talent and athleticism (which Wells undeniably has), and no injuries heading into draft time, slid down that far and still had strong careers? Keep in mind, this wasn't like the 2006 draft when you've got a handful of guys who are all looked upon like elite or near-elite talents going into that draft. This draft was thin at RB, and still he slid, and still two RB's were picked before him. Wells is the hands-down best athlete at RB in this draft, the best overall package. He slid because people question his heart, and when you're looking at a position that essentially is enduring a car wreck every time he's handed the ball or asked to pick up a blitzer, that's a major problem. Frankly, the perception seems to be that his heart is his durability problem, and that he's not prone to injury so much as prone to taking breaks.

Yes, there may indeed be durability concerns for Beanie - but many said the same about ADP when he came out of college (no, I'm not conmparing the two) - and he's held up well so far.

* * *

Many teams had other needs than RB. . . . What other teams did in the first round is irrelevant in large part.

Lotsa tap dancing here.

 

[Biabreakable]

The Colts did draft Donald Brown with pick 27 with Wells still on the board. There are reasons for that.

Still I think Wells has Jamal Lewis like upside if he puts it all together.

 

[FreeBaGeL]

Secondly, this talk of "30 other teams passing on him in the draft" is ludicrious. Many teams had other needs than RB. Minnesota isn't going to draft and RB with ADP there, same with the 49ers, the Rams, Jags, Falcons, etc. Secondly, only two teams took a running back before Wells went off the board: the Broncos (who incidentally had two 1st round picks, so technically only 29 other teams passed on Wells ;-) and the Colts - who are known for drafting offensive players early.

How many RB's with perceived top-10 talent and athleticism (which Wells undeniably has), and no injuries heading into draft time, slid down that far and still had strong careers? Keep in mind, this wasn't like the 2006 draft when you've got a handful of guys who are all looked upon like elite or near-elite talents going into that draft. This draft was thin at RB, and still he slid, and still two RB's were picked before him.

While that's a pretty strict set of circumstances, Steven Jackson comes to mind immediately.

 

[David Yudkin]

As I may have alluded to earlier, the Cardinals have been horrible at running the football since they went to Arizona. In 21 seasons in the desert. they have an average ranking of:

23rd in rushing attempts

24th in rushing yards

19th in rushing TD

24th in ypc

That's based on an average of 30 teams in the league. If I used actual stats instead of ranking the story would be even worse, as I'm pretty confident the results would be even worse.

I don't understand why the Cards have not been able to get much going on the ground the past 20 years, but I would be concerned that their track record is pretty abysmal.

 

[TheFanatic]

As I may have alluded to earlier, the Cardinals have been horrible at running the football since they went to Arizona. In 21 seasons in the desert. they have an average ranking of:23rd in rushing attempts24th in rushing yards19th in rushing TD24th in ypcThat's based on an average of 30 teams in the league. If I used actual stats instead of ranking the story would be even worse, as I'm pretty confident the results would be even worse.I don't understand why the Cards have not been able to get much going on the ground the past 20 years, but I would be concerned that their track record is pretty abysmal.

Because Bill Bidwell had his hand in waayyyy too many personnel decisions. I believe that Bill handed the reigns over to his son in the last couple of years and now we have seen some success as a team. They will run the ball better in time. The team is improving and is a direct result of Bill Bidwell taking a step back...

 

[brianhatch]

I don't post much, but as a Cards season ticket holder who watches these players and studies them closely, thought I'd share my opinion.

First of all, Hightower is an average talent. We didn't think much of him when he was drafted, but as they say, opportunity is king, and with James being way past his prime, he got the touches and the opportunities. Everyone was surprised and pleased but not quite understanding the national hype about him, because when we looked at him play, he didn't live up to it. But he quickly showed why he was drafted where he was. It's pretty sad when you lose your starter job to a washed up back like James after only a few games. He had no stacked boxes, but looked terrible and indecisive. He had many plays for losses. It seemed like he never broke long runs, even when from where we sat, he had plenty of open field opportunities.

Hightower would be the 3rd or 4th RB on many teams in the NFL.

Wells is our future - a lot of speculation locally was that we didn't think Wells would be there, but were so desperate for RB we kind of expected to take Brown... everyone I know was dancing when Indy took Brown. Whiz hides his cards until he's ready to switch, and says every job is a competition - right now, he'd probably answer if pressed that all RBs are equal as of now, even though we all know that's not true. There is no way that Wells doesn't emerge and get 70% of our touches. Wright and Hightower will battle for RB2. I think starting in 2010, our little round 7 spark plug may get a lot of 3rd down work.

Arizona may run 40-45% of the time this year, and Wells will actually make our WRs stronger. Wells is going to have so many holes in our pass friendly game, I think he's going to be stellar. I expect top 15 RB production this year.

Of course, I think injuries are a real concern. So that diminishes his fantasy potential, as he might be injured a lot during fantasy playoffs.

Anyway, my 2 cents. I'll be reluctantly drafting him at R1P2 in dynasty rookie drafts, and R1P3-4 gladly if he falls. I have him below Moreno and Crabtree, but ahead of Brown. Perhaps it's my Cardinals love, but I like his chances more, given the competition, in AZ, versus in Indy for the next 2 seasons at least.

 

[Fiddles]

any camp notes on larod stephens-howling yet?

 

[kutta]

any camp notes on larod stephens-howling yet?

I haven't heard much. I have a couple buddies that are up at "NFC champ camp" and they have not reported anything back to me yet on Howling.I did hear Graves (Cards GM) on the radio this morning. He was singing the praises of Hightower. The host asked him how Hightower reacted to the drafting of Wells and Graves said "I think we pissed him off." He went on to talk about how Hightower has looked fantastic in camp how he was super motivated.Of course, as always, that should be taken for what it's worth. The GM probably isn't going to say much bad about Hightower at this point.