ahill84006 said:
The consensus number one pick this year will be Chris Johnson. I have selected number 2 in our league draft this year. According to our league scoring there are only 8 points difference in Peterson, Jones-Drew, and Rice.
I wanted to get some opinions on the pros and cons of each player.
Here's my thoughts when comparing the three to each other
Adrian Peterson
Pros: Great determination as a runner. The most powerful back of the three. He has the best size-speed-agility trio. His vision once he gets past the line of scrimmage is excellent and he's capable of changing the axis of pursuit with one cut.
Cons: He is at times a liability protecting the football. He has always carried the ball too far from his body and when you combine this with his heroic second and third efforts after contact, it creates turnovers. His cut back running is good, but he isn't always as patient with the flow of a play as he could be. He was often a big-play or nothing producer on a carry-to-carry basis last year and this was with a very good QB. Without Favre, what happens? Receiving skills are decent, but not as good as the other two. As a power runner, his risk of getting hurt (in theory) might be higher than Rice and MJD, but there's a strong argument to be made that since he's the aggressor and more than just a banger that he could have extended durability well into his late 20s.
Maurice Jones-Drew
Pros: He has been productive without a strong offense. He gets goal line carries despite his size. He has the best breakaway skills and open field moves of the three backs. He catches the ball very well. He has proven his worth as a three-down back. He might have the best overall vision of the three backs. Excellent ball protection.
Cons: His line (and offense) might be the worst of the three, but should improve and has talent to make strides. As we have seen from NFL teams, there's the concern that he needs to be spelled with another back despite proving in 2009 that he could produce as a top-five RB with a big load.
Ray Rice
Pros: Arguably the most mature runner of the three. He takes what a defense gives him, but also has the blend of balance and burst to turn a small opportunity into a bigger play. Excellent hands and versatile. He shares the "make a play" mentality that the other three have. A workhorse who tends to wear out defenses in the second half.
Cons:Lacks the top-end speed of the other two runners. Fumbled the ball three times this year. Half as much as Peterson, but something he'll need to correct.
Here's how I rank them in a few ways.
Sheer Talent
Peterson
MJD
Rice
Versatility
MJD
Rice
Peterson
Big Play Threat
MJD
Peterson
Rice
PPR
Rice-MJD (Rice the edge after last year, but not by as much as you think)
Peterson
Red zone
MJD
Peterson
Rice
Overall
MJD
Peterson
Rice
I could see the argument of Rice over Peterson, especially if he gets more chances in the red zone.
