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No doubt. Gore has not lost a step and he's signed fairly cheap through the end of the 2014 season.
IF - and I realize that is a big if - Lattimore is healthy in 2014, who do you think is more talented as an every-down RB? Lattimore, Hunter, or James?
Ok, fair enough question. Let's assume he returns to 2011 Lattimore. If so he'll still behind Gore in 2014. Hunter, who also needs to get healthy, and James are much better COP backs so I don't see a big role in 2014 unless Gore goes down.
I don't really understand this thought process. Any team that drafted him would do so with the understanding they were going to be willing to wait on him.
Lattimore needs a year or two to heal and SF has a back with a year or two left in the tank. It's the perfect fit.
Gore is far from a lock but barring a major injury I think he's still there. I don't believe in wear and tear and have seen lesser talents than Gore play well at 31. I expect Lattimore to have a role in 2014 but I would be surprised if they hand him the full time job given his injury history.
I'd agree with that. I wasn't really trying to imply that Gore is out next year and Lattimore is in. But I do think, if healthy, Lattimore will have a nice role next year and the man in 2015. Hell, Lattimore could help extend Gore's career if anything. Next year they can give Lattimore enough carries to keep Gore fresh. And in my opinion, those trying to figure out Lattimore with Hunter and James, it's not close if Lattimore is healthy.
I know nothing about lattimore, but as a SF fan I've been very impressed with Hunter and James, and they have also been carrying jewel Hampton, who the team also loves. Frankly, lattimore would have to be exceptional for it not to be "close" between all those guys.
We shall see. I wouldn't be sure that a 31 year old gore starts over a healthy lattimore. San Fran might not be the perfect spot for him, but it is one of the better.
Yes but with LaMichael James they won't have to give the ball to anyone to carry the load. I think they will rotate 2-3 RBs at some point, Harbaugh will go draft another stud RB next year and load up behind the best OL in football. I like Lattimore, he'll get his shot but because SF is so deep I think they can do whatever they want in the next couple of drafts.
He's gonna be the starter no matter what. There really isn't anything to show why he shouldn't. Gore has gone to the Pro-Bowl for 2 consecutive years these past two. He's at his highest YPA through 16 games since his whopper season in 2006. I always fall short of the prediction that he won't play a full 16 by missing a big chunk of games over the past two seasons, but it hasn't happened. I see no reason why he should not start, and I see nobody who can take over for Gore just yet. ETA his YPA was higher in 2009 than 2012, but not by much. So even in Jimmy Raye's pancake offense, he still produced.
This has been mentioned before, but there's a reason they call it 'falling off a cliff' and not 'slowly sliding down a hill'.
Sure, but it may take a few games into the season to see if he has fallen off that cliff. He IMO will be the unquestioned starter for this season, and again he hasn't shown anything yet to not be.
There's a good track record with the top RB's playing well through age 31. It's 32 where RB's really fall off a cliff (usually they lose the starting job by then).
Lattimore will be 22 next year and almost two years removed from his knee injury by the time the season starts. If he doesn't have any setbacks he should be worth a high 1st next year.
Trent Richardson
I don't expect people to get much use this year out of the rookies they get in the late 1st, so I don't think you're losing much productivity by taking Lattimore instead of Woods/Allen/Franklin, etc.
I expect Lattimore to have more trade value next year than Allen, Woods, Wheaton, Michael, Franklin, etc.
Has anyone broken down & compared tape of McGahee vs Lattimore pre-injury? It would be very interesting to see the comparison. My hunch is that McGahee was more explosive, athletic and natural as a runner.
McGhee was a far better prospect pre-injury. He was talked about as being one of the very best prospects in his class regardless of position.Lattimore was more if a mid-late 1st round prospect before his injury.
I am not the guy to ask about that.
Fully understood. And I think your logic is solid. But it raised - at least in my mind - the question of whether Lattimore is even ballpark the same type of pre-injury prospect that McGahee was. My gut is no. McGahee was ridiculous pre-injury. But I defer to the wisdom of the SP.
Yeah, I think that's an interesting part of the equation. How good is a 100% healthy Lattimore? Where would he have gone if he had never been hurt? I was never fully sold on him as an elite franchise back even before his health problems. Add in the injury/durability question marks and he's strictly a project in my view. I'm pulling for him to succeed, but he might end up being more of a niche player than the next Frank Gore/Willis McGahee. McGahee went in the first round despite his injury, so at least one NFL team still saw him as an elite prospect despite his problems. Lattimore went in the late 4th, a point in the draft where there's less commitment and risk.
Lattimore was putting up the same stats as Richardson pre-injury. He led the SEC in yards from scrimmage in 2010 and was on pace to match Richardson, who led the SEC, in 2011. He was also on pace to lead the SEC after the first 6 games of 2012 (he bruised his hip in the LSU game before tearing his knee up two games later).
That is true. Nfl teams were not as willing as Buffalo was to use a 1st round pick on a player they would not use until the season after. And even then Willis had a clear path to starting, Lattimore does not.
Travis Henry was 25 and had a 1300 yard season the year McGahee was drafted.
Maybe my memory is a bit fuzzy on the past but I seem to recall Travis Horny being on the way out because of off the field issues at the time, so speculation was high that Willis would be taking over in 2004 which he did. There may have been an injury to Henry as well but I do not recall.
I don't remember the whole deal with all his trouble but Henry won the starting job in 2004. McGahee took over week 8 against the Cardinals and kept the job (had to look it up). Henry did sprain his foot but he wasn't played well anyway.
The quality of SF offensive line is what makes the situation valuable even if Lattimore does not get significant action until 2015. The upside because of the offensive line means Lattimore could become a RB1 if he does take over the job. The line is good for Gore in the meantime as well. If you think the other RB on SF have a better chance of becoming that player than Lattimore then that player should be a great buy right now.
Agreed, was going to post the some of the same things you mentioned. Lattimore is the type of back that can stay in a game and grind it out too, he will wear down a defense. I watch maybe 8-10 of his games and often time found myself shaking my head as to why Steve had him in the game so late when the game was out of hand. The first injury really didn't surprise me as Steve feed him the ball like no one I can remember right now.
