Good article on Houston RB situation (1 Viewer)

[gbill2004]

Texans Two-StepDomanick Davis will not play in 2006. By John TuveyExecutive EditorSeptember 4, 2006 5:00 PM ETWhen the Texans brought in Gary Kubiak as their head coach, the assumption was made that he'd bring his productive running game with him. That's been the case through the early preseason, but tagging alongside has been a revolving door of runners that would make Mike Shanahan proud.Of course, this problem could have been averted had Domanick Davis managed to stay healthy. Davis fell 24 yards shy of a third straight 1,000-yard season when a bum knee forced him to shut down early last year, but arthroscopic surgery in December should have had Dom back on the field by minicamps.It didn't, and in the meantime the Texans passed on Reggie Bush in the NFL draft. Davis was held out of most of the minicamp workouts, as was second-year back Vernand Morency, battling injury issues of his own. Veteran Antowain Smith and sixth-round choice Wali Lundy handled most of the workload, but it was assumed Davis would be ready by training camp.Wrong again.Actually, it was a different issue in the same knee that started troubling Davis two days into training camp, a bruised knee that would simply not cooperate. That left Lundy and Morency with the bulk of the carries, and—this being the Broncos' scheme and all—they looked very good through the preseason.Rumors started flying that Davis was in danger of being cut. Kubiak quickly squelched those, though he did acknowledge that if Davis couldn't demonstrate an ability to help the team this year he'd go on injured reserve.And that's what happened shortly after the Texans' final preseason game.Prior to that, Kubiak had indicated that Lundy would be the starter for the season opener against the Eagles, and that Morency would spell him. The Texans cut Smith, keeping undrafted rookie Chris Taylor as the third back, and indicated they'd be scouring the waiver wire for a veteran back.Enter Ron Dayne, who went from starter in Denver to cut by the Broncos in the space of about four months.The former Heisman winner knows Kubiak's system, which is a plus if he'll be asked to contribute this Sunday. And Kubiak actually seems to believe Dayne can give the Texans something else besides experience."He gives us a real bruiser," Kubiak told the Houston Chronicle after the signing. "He can pound the ball. He's got more size than our other two."By "more size than our other two" we can only assume Kubiak means Lundy and Morency, but feel free to insert your own joke about Dayne's girth here."Because we're familiar with him, he can step right into our offense on Tuesday and know exactly what we're doing," Kubiak continued. "At this point that's a tremendous advantage for us."So, instead of a potential top-10 fantasy back in Davis, we're left with a sixth-round rookie, a second-year guy with 46 pro carries, and Dayne, a millennium removed from his Heisman. In a combo league, Lundy still appears to be the guy to get. He's not exactly Lilliputian at 5-10, 214, and he ran in a similar one-cut-and-go system in college—which is perhaps why he's excelled with the Texans.It's worth pointing out that the last time Kubiak plugged a sixth-round rookie into his backfield, Terrell Davis had an okay season with 1,117 rushing yards and eight total touchdowns.Morency was extremely productive at Oklahoma State but has had to radically alter his running style to fit the Texans' scheme. He, too, has been effective through the preseason and is quick enough to make exciting things happen following that one cut if he gets through the line of scrimmage.As for Dayne, the apparent plan is to use his 245-pound frame in short-yardage and goal line situations—though he's demonstrated time and time again that despite his size that isn't necessarily his specialty.What does it all mean for the Texans? Consider that the Broncos' ground game has averaged 20 rushing scores per season over the past four years; of course, they've also averaged roughly 100 more attempts per year than the Texans' 437 from a year ago, and they've got a better line and a defense that allows them to play from ahead and control the clock on the ground.Let's split the difference and say the Texans add another 50 carries to last year's numbers, and assume their line is improved enough to slightly upgrade the 4.16 yards per carry. As a team there should be a little more than 2,000 yards available for the Texans backfield, and between 12-15 touchdowns.Even if Lundy stays healthy, he's still a rookie and there's no reason to overwork him. At 15 carries per game, he's looking at a 1,000-yard season if he can average 4.2 yards per carry, or about 65 yards per game. That's nice in a yardage league, but if Dayne steals goal-line looks he'd pilfer a half-dozen scores, leaving Lundy with five or six.The shrewd move would be to nab Lundy with subdued expectations, but the thought that it won't take long for Dayne to prove he's just not that good at the stripe. Morency is strictly an insurance play… but then again, so were guys like Reuben Droughns and Mike Anderson in Denver.Wouldn't this have been so much easier if the Texans had drafted Reggie Bush?

 

[Jackal King]

Good read....thanks.

You can learn the system (Dayne) or adjust your running style (Lundy),

but you have a real hard time improving your talent level. That's why I think Morency may be the guy to have in this bunch. I think he's simply the most talented, and talent usually prevails.

If I owned Lundy...I'd hope for a couple of quality games out of the chute...and look to sell high.

One mans opinion.

 

[Gandalf]

Also, I believe Lundy has questions regarding his durability. That plus being a rookie probably mean he won't carry the full load the entire year.

 

[greenroom]

Is it me or does Morency equal Tatum Bell? Has better talent but is not a starter for what ever reason? Will be a good home run hitter but will never carry the heavy load for a team

 

[PatsWillWin]

I don't trust football articles that reference Gulliver's Travels.

 

[SteelerMurf]

Is it me or does Morency equal Tatum Bell? Has better talent but is not a starter for what ever reason? Will be a good home run hitter but will never carry the heavy load for a team

where do you draw your history on Morency? College? Or preseason play? Same with Lundy. How do you know Morency has better talent than Lundy?And Mike Bell, you must have watched a lot of college ball on him to know he has less talent than Tatem Bell?Are you a college scout?

 

[SKIDMARK]

Is it me or does Morency equal Tatum Bell? Has better talent but is not a starter for what ever reason? Will be a good home run hitter but will never carry the heavy load for a team

where do you draw your history on Morency? College? Or preseason play? Same with Lundy. How do you know Morency has better talent than Lundy?And Mike Bell, you must have watched a lot of college ball on him to know he has less talent than Tatem Bell?Are you a college scout?

Greenroom you gonna take that from a 5-digiter.

 

[el-gato-grande]

Also, I believe Lundy has questions regarding his durability. That plus being a rookie probably mean he won't carry the full load the entire year.

And I believe team doctors reported that Lundy's left testicle hangs a bit lower than the right which is why he runs slightly lopsided. So that is another reason why Morency will eventually be the starter. Give me a break. Is it that hard to believe that this kid could actually do well? It is amazing to me how some guppies on this board will talk themselves into anything despite the fact that the answer is staring them right in the face. Larry Johnson replacing Priest Holmes last year comes to mind.

 

[mr. furley]

You can learn the system (Dayne) or adjust your running style (Lundy),

but you have a real hard time improving your talent level. That's why I think Morency may be the guy to have in this bunch. I think he's simply the most talented, and talent usually prevails.

"In a combo league, Lundy still appears to be the guy to get. He's not exactly Lilliputian at 5-10, 214, and he ran in a similar one-cut-and-go system in college—which is perhaps why he's excelled with the Texans.""Morency was extremely productive at Oklahoma State but has had to radically alter his running style to fit the Texans' scheme."

HTH

 

[BustedKnuckles]

Lundy was drafted in the sixth round (pick #170) out of Virginia in the 2006 NFL Draft by the Houston Texans. Lundy isn't a speedy running back, but he is 5'11 and 213 pounds, and he rushed for 3,193 yards along with scoring 52 touchdowns in his career at Virginia.

 

[fatness]

You have to like Wali Lundy. Any guy whose first name is a type of fish is OK by me.