Player Spotlight: Edgerrin James (1 Viewer)

[duaneok66]

-I feel people are being over optimistic about a running game that has struggled for forever. So I will restate that until the Cards o-line proves me something, then proceed with caution.

I don't totally disagree with what you are saying, but the fact of the matter is that once players do something at a certain degree of success, their prices will go up. So if Edge were to show something this year, next year he might again be a Top 10 pick.I would much rather have a RB that will get 350 touches than a back that is in a split carry situation and may not get more than 200. At least WE KNOW Edge is going to get the ball. A LOT.

Even if the Cardinals don't improve much on the ground, he ranked in the Top 20 last year and his ADP is very close to that. Basically, if he did not do ANY better, he would still be close to break even.

I may or may not draft Edge this year, as I think there may be better options at other positions available around where he'll be taken. I also think that this year there are other backs that could produce close to what Edge might available a couple rounds later, so I would probably rather wait and take those guys later on.

excellent post . . .footballguys.com has James going about late 2nd, early 3rd . . .

he finished as RB20 last year . . .

there is little reason to suggest that he won't AT least match that . . .

the OL should improve drastically under OL coach Grimm , and its common knowledge that Grimm wants to pound it . . .

I'd take James in the late 2nd/early 3rd without blinking . . .

QUESTION for people that value James this year . . .

what if you have picks 3, 22 and 27 . . . do you pass on James at 22 and pick a WR there and hope he falls to 27??

 

[BigRed]

The running game was actually pretty decent after the bye week and Edge ran VERY well.So I will restate, watch the games, understand that game, understand the situations, then proceed.....

What I understand about those situations - that you either did not or conveniently left out - was that they were against mostly weak run Ds (DEN being the one exception, and they weren't amazing). And I have always thought the "he did great in the last X games of the season so look out this year" was a pile of cow cookies anyway. But having said all that, I do think it's hard to say how good he will or won't do this year. My guess right now is marginally better than last year at most....which isn't necessarily so terrible for most RB2s, but again I prefer/hope for more.

 

[Jercules]

I don't think you can overstate how pitiful the Arizona O-line was last year. I mean, the head coach actually called these guys out publicly at one point... you almost never see that. Edge is a perfectly effective runner when he has blocking, and with Grimm there he ought to have at least mediocre run blocking. Add that to the fact that he's their workhorse, plus the weak run defenses in the NFC West, and I think he's definitely a great candidate for fantasy comeback player of the year (weak RB1, strong RB2).

 

[Football Menace]

James is in for another sub par season and because he is not a great goaline back and Arizona does not score many rushing TD's he rarely will help you out on those days he gets 58 yards rushing and 10 yards receiving with 0 TD's.

Now, I know there has been some pretty big moves made in Arizona, but until that O-line shows me something I am not biting on all this Edge value talk. He will be a borderline RB 2 again this season.

320 attempts at 3.5 ypc for 1120 rushing yards.

30 receptions at 6.0 ypc for 180 yards

5 TD's

1300 combined yards for 5 TD's.

-A very mediocre RB 2 that won't help you win many weeks.

What would be enough to have the o-line show you "something"? How would you measure this? YPC for the running back? Total number of rushing yards per game?

-Arizona was 30th out of 32 for rushing yards last season.-They were 32nd (dead last) in avg at 3.2.

-They were 21st in rushing TD's with 12. Only 6 to James which would again is a red flag as he is only getting 50% of a bad number.

-They were last in rushes over 20 yards (they were the only team in the leauge without even 1).

-I think an important stat that people are overlooking is James had plenty of opportunity to perform last year yet he still was a very mediocre RB 2.

-James averaged 21.1 rushing attempts per game last season which was 7th in the leauge. Only LJ, LT, SJ (the big 3), along with W. parker, R. Johnson, and S. Alexander had more rusing attempts per game than James. All of these running backs were top 10 fantasy RB's (excluding Alexander due to injury). So what gives? Is James going to average more rushing attempts per game? I highly doubt it and even if he does average more then 21.1 rushes per game will his numbers improve enough to improve on last season's numbers? I think it will be marginal at best.

All of this and Edge still came in as RB#18 in my league. The odds are against Arizona finishing the same or lower in all of these categories again this year. The problem that most of the nay-sayers are having in this discussion is that they are still judging Edge for his pitiful performance as a RB1 last season. He is no longer being drafted as a RB1; you can now get him as a low-end RB2, which is the level he performed at despite many bad circumstances last year. As others have noted, Edge has very little comp for carries; So with the upgrades of Cardinals and the coaching staff, there's no way he finishes worse than last season (except for injury).335/1273/9

25/163/1

 

[einstein2u]

benson or edge?

leaning edge.

 

[Dhizz]

-I feel people are being over optimistic about a running game that has struggled for forever. So I will restate that until the Cards o-line proves me something, then proceed with caution.

I don't totally disagree with what you are saying, but the fact of the matter is that once players do something at a certain degree of success, their prices will go up. So if Edge were to show something this year, next year he might again be a Top 10 pick.I would much rather have a RB that will get 350 touches than a back that is in a split carry situation and may not get more than 200. At least WE KNOW Edge is going to get the ball. A LOT.

Even if the Cardinals don't improve much on the ground, he ranked in the Top 20 last year and his ADP is very close to that. Basically, if he did not do ANY better, he would still be close to break even.

I may or may not draft Edge this year, as I think there may be better options at other positions available around where he'll be taken. I also think that this year there are other backs that could produce close to what Edge might available a couple rounds later, so I would probably rather wait and take those guys later on.

excellent post . . .footballguys.com has James going about late 2nd, early 3rd . . .

he finished as RB20 last year . . .

there is little reason to suggest that he won't AT least match that . . .

the OL should improve drastically under OL coach Grimm , and its common knowledge that Grimm wants to pound it . . .

I'd take James in the late 2nd/early 3rd without blinking . . .

QUESTION for people that value James this year . . .

what if you have picks 3, 22 and 27 . . . do you pass on James at 22 and pick a WR there and hope he falls to 27??

So taking Edge at RB20, who finished RB20 last year, its a steal? It's value?You have the worst RB2 in the league. Enjoy that.

Or you get a top notch WR1. Hmm... Seems like an easy pick to me.

There is a reason he's late 2nd/early 3rd. Not because he's great value. It's because he's on a horrible team, he's old, and the Colts system had more to do with his production then he did. People don't drop in drafts magically. There's usually lots of warning flags/issues.

If you choose to ignore those issues, that's fine. But Edge isn't value in the early 3rd. He's a RB with lots of red flags, that at best will be a bad RB2. And because of those flags, you need to take another RB very quickly and maybe two. He's not a must start, and will generally lose you games instead of win you games. There's just no upside there from what I can see.

Banking on the Cardinals to put it together? Don't we hear this every year? He just falls into the Jamal Lewis of the last 3 years group. He gets an offseason hype bump, despite the horrible situation and lack of production. Then people grab him too early, and he busts. People slowly forget the horrible year he had, and hope springs eternal in FF preseason.

Edge really had no games that would have given your team a huge boost. 115 1 td was his best game. Ehhh. Counter that, with 8 AWFUL games that would have been a blackhole in your FF lineup. So you start him all year, and pray he gives you something? Anything? 1 good, 8 awful, 7 average to below average.

Now someone might point out the Saints were bad, then became the best offense in the league. The Saints always had lots of talent. And always were a solid offense (Brooks was a top 8 qb for 4 straight years). The Cardinals are AWFUL. I'm not burning my 2nd pick banking on the Cardinals rush attack. There's no value, there's no upside, I don't care if Dicky and Al Saunders are running the show. Until they show on field production, I'm not risking my FF year on Zona run game.

 

[Dhizz]

All of this and Edge still came in as RB#18 in my league. The odds are against Arizona finishing the same or lower in all of these categories again this year. The problem that most of the nay-sayers are having in this discussion is that they are still judging Edge for his pitiful performance as a RB1 last season. He is no longer being drafted as a RB1; you can now get him as a low-end RB2, which is the level he performed at despite many bad circumstances last year. As others have noted, Edge has very little comp for carries; So with the upgrades of Cardinals and the coaching staff, there's no way he finishes worse than last season (except for injury).335/1273/925/163/1

Odds are against Airzona finishing the same or lower?Arizona had 2 rushing tds in 2005. The worst rush attack in the league.In 2006 they jumped to the 3rd worst rush attack in the league. The o-line is horrible. They could easily slip back to the worst rush attack in the league. When you're talking a horrible team, there's no "odds against". If it's bad, the odds are with the Cardinals. And the argument "he was so awful last year, no way he's that bad again", are you kidding? Wait your best argument is "Cardinals/Edge were so bad, I don't see how they stay that bad again". That gives you confidence? Crappy teams, usually stay crappy. Cardinals get new coaches every 2-3 years. Grimm won't be blocking. LT isn't running. It's old and tired Edge, wishing he stayed with the Colts, and yet another new coach. I see a lot of the same for the Cardinals, a hit and miss rush attack, with far more misses.

 

[Carter_Can_Fly]

-I feel people are being over optimistic about a running game that has struggled for forever. So I will restate that until the Cards o-line proves me something, then proceed with caution.

I don't totally disagree with what you are saying, but the fact of the matter is that once players do something at a certain degree of success, their prices will go up. So if Edge were to show something this year, next year he might again be a Top 10 pick.I would much rather have a RB that will get 350 touches than a back that is in a split carry situation and may not get more than 200. At least WE KNOW Edge is going to get the ball. A LOT.

Even if the Cardinals don't improve much on the ground, he ranked in the Top 20 last year and his ADP is very close to that. Basically, if he did not do ANY better, he would still be close to break even.

I may or may not draft Edge this year, as I think there may be better options at other positions available around where he'll be taken. I also think that this year there are other backs that could produce close to what Edge might available a couple rounds later, so I would probably rather wait and take those guys later on.

excellent post . . .footballguys.com has James going about late 2nd, early 3rd . . .

he finished as RB20 last year . . .

there is little reason to suggest that he won't AT least match that . . .

the OL should improve drastically under OL coach Grimm , and its common knowledge that Grimm wants to pound it . . .

I'd take James in the late 2nd/early 3rd without blinking . . .

QUESTION for people that value James this year . . .

what if you have picks 3, 22 and 27 . . . do you pass on James at 22 and pick a WR there and hope he falls to 27??

So taking Edge at RB20, who finished RB20 last year, its a steal? It's value?You have the worst RB2 in the league. Enjoy that.

Or you get a top notch WR1. Hmm... Seems like an easy pick to me.

There is a reason he's late 2nd/early 3rd. Not because he's great value. It's because he's on a horrible team, he's old, and the Colts system had more to do with his production then he did. People don't drop in drafts magically. There's usually lots of warning flags/issues.

If you choose to ignore those issues, that's fine. But Edge isn't value in the early 3rd. He's a RB with lots of red flags, that at best will be a bad RB2. And because of those flags, you need to take another RB very quickly and maybe two. He's not a must start, and will generally lose you games instead of win you games. There's just no upside there from what I can see.

Banking on the Cardinals to put it together? Don't we hear this every year? He just falls into the Jamal Lewis of the last 3 years group. He gets an offseason hype bump, despite the horrible situation and lack of production. Then people grab him too early, and he busts. People slowly forget the horrible year he had, and hope springs eternal in FF preseason.

Edge really had no games that would have given your team a huge boost. 115 1 td was his best game. Ehhh. Counter that, with 8 AWFUL games that would have been a blackhole in your FF lineup. So you start him all year, and pray he gives you something? Anything? 1 good, 8 awful, 7 average to below average.

Now someone might point out the Saints were bad, then became the best offense in the league. The Saints always had lots of talent. And always were a solid offense (Brooks was a top 8 qb for 4 straight years). The Cardinals are AWFUL. I'm not burning my 2nd pick banking on the Cardinals rush attack. There's no value, there's no upside, I don't care if Dicky and Al Saunders are running the show. Until they show on field production, I'm not risking my FF year on Zona run game.

Exactly what I have been trying to say in this thread. Very well worded.

 

[BigRed]

Edge really had no games that would have given your team a huge boost. 115 1 td was his best game. Ehhh. Counter that, with 8 AWFUL games that would have been a blackhole in your FF lineup. So you start him all year, and pray he gives you something? Anything? 1 good, 8 awful, 7 average to below average.

Again I'm not all fired up about him as my RB2 either, but unless you're in an auction league and blow a ton of $ on 2 top RBs, 115/1 from your RB2 is very good, not "ehhh." And I see 5, maybe 6 awful games. Pls review the other RB2s from last year and I think you'll see he stacks up at least comparably if not better.

 

[duaneok66]

All of this and Edge still came in as RB#18 in my league. The odds are against Arizona finishing the same or lower in all of these categories again this year. The problem that most of the nay-sayers are having in this discussion is that they are still judging Edge for his pitiful performance as a RB1 last season. He is no longer being drafted as a RB1; you can now get him as a low-end RB2, which is the level he performed at despite many bad circumstances last year. As others have noted, Edge has very little comp for carries; So with the upgrades of Cardinals and the coaching staff, there's no way he finishes worse than last season (except for injury).335/1273/925/163/1

Odds are against Airzona finishing the same or lower?Arizona had 2 rushing tds in 2005. The worst rush attack in the league.In 2006 they jumped to the 3rd worst rush attack in the league. The o-line is horrible. They could easily slip back to the worst rush attack in the league. When you're talking a horrible team, there's no "odds against". If it's bad, the odds are with the Cardinals. And the argument "he was so awful last year, no way he's that bad again", are you kidding? Wait your best argument is "Cardinals/Edge were so bad, I don't see how they stay that bad again". That gives you confidence? Crappy teams, usually stay crappy. Cardinals get new coaches every 2-3 years. Grimm won't be blocking. LT isn't running. It's old and tired Edge, wishing he stayed with the Colts, and yet another new coach. I see a lot of the same for the Cardinals, a hit and miss rush attack, with far more misses.

a team is defined by its coaching personnel . . . Green is history . . . they are paying OL coach Grimm a MINT to work over the line . . . they looked better at the end of the year . . . they drafted a guy at #5 to help . . . get ahead of the curve people . . .

 

[duaneok66]

-I feel people are being over optimistic about a running game that has struggled for forever. So I will restate that until the Cards o-line proves me something, then proceed with caution.

I don't totally disagree with what you are saying, but the fact of the matter is that once players do something at a certain degree of success, their prices will go up. So if Edge were to show something this year, next year he might again be a Top 10 pick.I would much rather have a RB that will get 350 touches than a back that is in a split carry situation and may not get more than 200. At least WE KNOW Edge is going to get the ball. A LOT.

Even if the Cardinals don't improve much on the ground, he ranked in the Top 20 last year and his ADP is very close to that. Basically, if he did not do ANY better, he would still be close to break even.

I may or may not draft Edge this year, as I think there may be better options at other positions available around where he'll be taken. I also think that this year there are other backs that could produce close to what Edge might available a couple rounds later, so I would probably rather wait and take those guys later on.

excellent post . . .footballguys.com has James going about late 2nd, early 3rd . . .

he finished as RB20 last year . . .

there is little reason to suggest that he won't AT least match that . . .

the OL should improve drastically under OL coach Grimm , and its common knowledge that Grimm wants to pound it . . .

I'd take James in the late 2nd/early 3rd without blinking . . .

QUESTION for people that value James this year . . .

what if you have picks 3, 22 and 27 . . . do you pass on James at 22 and pick a WR there and hope he falls to 27??

So taking Edge at RB20, who finished RB20 last year, its a steal? It's value?You have the worst RB2 in the league. Enjoy that.

Or you get a top notch WR1. Hmm... Seems like an easy pick to me.

There is a reason he's late 2nd/early 3rd. Not because he's great value. It's because he's on a horrible team, he's old, and the Colts system had more to do with his production then he did. People don't drop in drafts magically. There's usually lots of warning flags/issues.

If you choose to ignore those issues, that's fine. But Edge isn't value in the early 3rd. He's a RB with lots of red flags, that at best will be a bad RB2. And because of those flags, you need to take another RB very quickly and maybe two. He's not a must start, and will generally lose you games instead of win you games. There's just no upside there from what I can see.

Banking on the Cardinals to put it together? Don't we hear this every year? He just falls into the Jamal Lewis of the last 3 years group. He gets an offseason hype bump, despite the horrible situation and lack of production. Then people grab him too early, and he busts. People slowly forget the horrible year he had, and hope springs eternal in FF preseason.

Edge really had no games that would have given your team a huge boost. 115 1 td was his best game. Ehhh. Counter that, with 8 AWFUL games that would have been a blackhole in your FF lineup. So you start him all year, and pray he gives you something? Anything? 1 good, 8 awful, 7 average to below average.

Now someone might point out the Saints were bad, then became the best offense in the league. The Saints always had lots of talent. And always were a solid offense (Brooks was a top 8 qb for 4 straight years). The Cardinals are AWFUL. I'm not burning my 2nd pick banking on the Cardinals rush attack. There's no value, there's no upside, I don't care if Dicky and Al Saunders are running the show. Until they show on field production, I'm not risking my FF year on Zona run game.

a steal . . . please show me where I posted that . . .yes, you COULD get a top notch WR (assuming you select the correct one - last year Smith, Fitzgerald, 85, and Holt disappointed somewhat) . . . and you are still stuck with a bum RB2 in the 3rd . . .

who would you pick in the 3rd??? . . .

--------------

as to the part about having the worst RB2 in the league, you're assuming that he will finish in the same spot . . . I think that he can finish much higher . . .

 

[Carter_Can_Fly]

Edge really had no games that would have given your team a huge boost. 115 1 td was his best game. Ehhh. Counter that, with 8 AWFUL games that would have been a blackhole in your FF lineup. So you start him all year, and pray he gives you something? Anything? 1 good, 8 awful, 7 average to below average.

Again I'm not all fired up about him as my RB2 either, but unless you're in an auction league and blow a ton of $ on 2 top RBs, 115/1 from your RB2 is very good, not "ehhh." And I see 5, maybe 6 awful games. Pls review the other RB2s from last year and I think you'll see he stacks up at least comparably if not better.

The problem is James last year was a very mediocre to poor RB 2 and people had anticipated they were getting a RB 1 and at worst a strong RB 2. This year people are drafting James as a strong RB 2, hoping that he becomes an RB 1. I think that it is justifiable that James ends up being another mediocre to poor RB 2 again this season.Last year entering the draft these group of guys seemed to be a majority of the RB 1's taken-Tomlinson-Jackson-L. Johnson-S. Alexander: finished ahead due to injury-W. Parker-L. Jordan: James finished ahead of him-E. James-R. Johnson-W. Dunn: James finished ahead of him -C. Portis: James finished ahead due to injury-W. McGahee: James finished ahead of him-J. LewisThe following is a list of guys that finised ahead of James that were more often then not drafted as RB 2's or hand cuffs and in most cases drafted later than James-F. Gore-MJD-T. Jones-R. Bush-D. Mcallister-J. Addai-A. Green-C. Taylor-M. Barber -K. Jones-L. BettsJames narrowly beat out: -F. Taylor-T. Henry-C. Dillon-R. BrownI think James is a safe RB 2 with very limited upside yet people are projecting borderline RB1 stats which doesen't seem likely.

 

[duaneok66]

Edge really had no games that would have given your team a huge boost. 115 1 td was his best game. Ehhh. Counter that, with 8 AWFUL games that would have been a blackhole in your FF lineup. So you start him all year, and pray he gives you something? Anything? 1 good, 8 awful, 7 average to below average.

Again I'm not all fired up about him as my RB2 either, but unless you're in an auction league and blow a ton of $ on 2 top RBs, 115/1 from your RB2 is very good, not "ehhh." And I see 5, maybe 6 awful games. Pls review the other RB2s from last year and I think you'll see he stacks up at least comparably if not better.

The problem is James last year was a very mediocre to poor RB 2 and people had anticipated they were getting a RB 1 and at worst a strong RB 2. This year people are drafting James as a strong RB 2, hoping that he becomes an RB 1. I think that it is justifiable that James ends up being another mediocre to poor RB 2 again this season.

Last year entering the draft these group of guys seemed to be a majority of the RB 1's taken

-Tomlinson

-Jackson

-L. Johnson

-S. Alexander: finished ahead due to injury

-W. Parker

-L. Jordan: James finished ahead of him

-E. James

-R. Johnson

-W. Dunn: James finished ahead of him

-C. Portis: James finished ahead due to injury

-W. McGahee: James finished ahead of him

-J. Lewis

The following is a list of guys that finised ahead of James that were more often then not drafted as RB 2's or hand cuffs and in most cases drafted later than James

-F. Gore

-MJD

-T. Jones

-R. Bush

-D. Mcallister

-J. Addai

-A. Green

-C. Taylor

-M. Barber

-K. Jones

-L. Betts

James narrowly beat out:

-F. Taylor

-T. Henry

-C. Dillon

-R. Brown

I think James is a safe RB 2 with very limited upside yet people are projecting borderline RB1 stats which doesen't seem likely.

it's not likely, but it's possible . . .

 

[CalBear]

The problem is James last year was a very mediocre to poor RB 2 and people had anticipated they were getting a RB 1 and at worst a strong RB 2. This year people are drafting James as a strong RB 2, hoping that he becomes an RB 1. I think that it is justifiable that James ends up being another mediocre to poor RB 2 again this season.

Last year, people were overvaluing James. This year, they're undervaluing him. It is certainly possible that he will end up being RB20 again, but that possibility seems less likely than some of the alternatives. People being drafted ahead of James include Ronnie Brown and Willis McGahee, both of whom finished behind Edge last year. Maurice Drew, Thomas Jones, Brandon Jacobs, Cedric Benson--do you really think these guys are more likely than Edge to do well?If Edge merely performs at the level he did in the second half of 2006, he will be a borderline RB1. That's not far-fetched at all.

 

[Football Menace]

-I feel people are being over optimistic about a running game that has struggled for forever. So I will restate that until the Cards o-line proves me something, then proceed with caution.

I don't totally disagree with what you are saying, but the fact of the matter is that once players do something at a certain degree of success, their prices will go up. So if Edge were to show something this year, next year he might again be a Top 10 pick.I would much rather have a RB that will get 350 touches than a back that is in a split carry situation and may not get more than 200. At least WE KNOW Edge is going to get the ball. A LOT.

Even if the Cardinals don't improve much on the ground, he ranked in the Top 20 last year and his ADP is very close to that. Basically, if he did not do ANY better, he would still be close to break even.

I may or may not draft Edge this year, as I think there may be better options at other positions available around where he'll be taken. I also think that this year there are other backs that could produce close to what Edge might available a couple rounds later, so I would probably rather wait and take those guys later on.

excellent post . . .footballguys.com has James going about late 2nd, early 3rd . . .

he finished as RB20 last year . . .

there is little reason to suggest that he won't AT least match that . . .

the OL should improve drastically under OL coach Grimm , and its common knowledge that Grimm wants to pound it . . .

I'd take James in the late 2nd/early 3rd without blinking . . .

QUESTION for people that value James this year . . .

what if you have picks 3, 22 and 27 . . . do you pass on James at 22 and pick a WR there and hope he falls to 27??

So taking Edge at RB20, who finished RB20 last year, its a steal? It's value?You have the worst RB2 in the league. Enjoy that.

Or you get a top notch WR1. Hmm... Seems like an easy pick to me.

There is a reason he's late 2nd/early 3rd. Not because he's great value. It's because he's on a horrible team, he's old, and the Colts system had more to do with his production then he did. People don't drop in drafts magically. There's usually lots of warning flags/issues.

If you choose to ignore those issues, that's fine. But Edge isn't value in the early 3rd. He's a RB with lots of red flags, that at best will be a bad RB2. And because of those flags, you need to take another RB very quickly and maybe two. He's not a must start, and will generally lose you games instead of win you games. There's just no upside there from what I can see.

Banking on the Cardinals to put it together? Don't we hear this every year? He just falls into the Jamal Lewis of the last 3 years group. He gets an offseason hype bump, despite the horrible situation and lack of production. Then people grab him too early, and he busts. People slowly forget the horrible year he had, and hope springs eternal in FF preseason.

Edge really had no games that would have given your team a huge boost. 115 1 td was his best game. Ehhh. Counter that, with 8 AWFUL games that would have been a blackhole in your FF lineup. So you start him all year, and pray he gives you something? Anything? 1 good, 8 awful, 7 average to below average.

Now someone might point out the Saints were bad, then became the best offense in the league. The Saints always had lots of talent. And always were a solid offense (Brooks was a top 8 qb for 4 straight years). The Cardinals are AWFUL. I'm not burning my 2nd pick banking on the Cardinals rush attack. There's no value, there's no upside, I don't care if Dicky and Al Saunders are running the show. Until they show on field production, I'm not risking my FF year on Zona run game.

How could you argue that the Cardinals completely sucked last season, and then come back and say that AT BEST Edge is a bad RB2 this season? During all that "suckiness" Edge still finished as a RB2. Do you accually see Arizona, a team with 2 great WRs, a good young QB with another year of experience, an improved OL, and a better coaching staff doing worse than last season?

 

[Football Menace]

All of this and Edge still came in as RB#18 in my league. The odds are against Arizona finishing the same or lower in all of these categories again this year. The problem that most of the nay-sayers are having in this discussion is that they are still judging Edge for his pitiful performance as a RB1 last season. He is no longer being drafted as a RB1; you can now get him as a low-end RB2, which is the level he performed at despite many bad circumstances last year. As others have noted, Edge has very little comp for carries; So with the upgrades of Cardinals and the coaching staff, there's no way he finishes worse than last season (except for injury).

335/1273/9

25/163/1

Odds are against Airzona finishing the same or lower?Arizona had 2 rushing tds in 2005. The worst rush attack in the league.

In 2006 they jumped to the 3rd worst rush attack in the league.

The o-line is horrible. They could easily slip back to the worst rush attack in the league. When you're talking a horrible team, there's no "odds against". If it's bad, the odds are with the Cardinals. And the argument "he was so awful last year, no way he's that bad again", are you kidding?

Wait your best argument is "Cardinals/Edge were so bad, I don't see how they stay that bad again". That gives you confidence? Crappy teams, usually stay crappy. Cardinals get new coaches every 2-3 years. Grimm won't be blocking. LT isn't running. It's old and tired Edge, wishing he stayed with the Colts, and yet another new coach.

I see a lot of the same for the Cardinals, a hit and miss rush attack, with far more misses.

Like I said the odds are against it. There was an improvement in 2006, small, butstill an improvement.

 

[H.K.]

If Edge merely performs at the level he did in the second half of 2006, he will be a borderline RB1. That's not far-fetched at all.

Depends on your scoring system. In PPR leagues, Edge was better in the first half of the season weeks 1-8 (113 points) than he was in weeks 10-17 (98.8 points).Edge will be a decent RB2 again this year. He won't win you your league, but he won't lose it for you either.

 

[Sabertooth]

He's going to be a real value pick this year, relative to where he'll be drafted. Russ Grimm and Ken Whisenhunt will have the Cards offense looking like Pittsburgh's run-oriented style, in no time. There was a story about one of the reasons the coaching staff was moving Levi Brown to the RT spot, not only to protect Leinart's blind side, but also because, if I remember correctly, he wasn't as effective running right as as he was running left..either way, there should definitely be an uptick in James' stats this season. 345 carries, 1380 yards, 12 tds...(fixed. I originally put him down for 4.3, but I'll regress to 4.0 per carry.)there isn't anyone worth noting on that offense who is going to steal carries away from him. Whisenhunt joined the Steelers in 2001, and Grimm started in 2000. Since 2001, the Steelers have averaged running the football 529 times per year.2001 finished the season 2nd in rush attempts.2002 1st in rush attempts2003 17th2004 1st2005 1st2006 15ththats a great pedigree, any way you slice it....its been said that season ending trends are what to look for, in terms of what players to target the following year in your fantasy drafts..Edge really turned on the jets in the second half of the season, perhaps a sign of good things to come in 2007...?I like this coaching staff, a lot..Az can be a surprise team in 2007, not unlike N.O. was in 2006..

Why would a coaching staff with a Top QB prospect and potentially two of the most exciting and talented wideouts in the league want to switch to a run based attack featuring an aging veteran and shaky offensive line talent? It makes little sense to me.You can make the case that one of the reasons he did better in the second half of the season is that he played Seattle, San Fran, Detroit, and St. Louis. None have rush defenses in the top half of the league.

 

[bonesman]

I like the optimism in here.

I know it's just the preseason... but anyone down on him and/or the AZ running game after what we've seen in recent weeks?

Also... he didn't get any work in the last game against SD, although the rest of the 1st string did... was he resting an injury of some sort?

 

[FFCrazy]

I had my 12-team PPR draft on Sunday, and was ecstatic when Edge was still sitting there in the 3rd round. It seems people are really gun shy from last season....I suppose if I got burnt, I would be too.

I haven't seen it mentioned yet, but the Cardinals schedule (SOS) looks very good this season (usually ranked 4th easiest with the end of the season looking really soft).

I think with the slightly improved line, waaaaay better coaching, and another year under his belt to jell with the offense, he's a great value and will finish as a top tier RB 2 or possibly a low RB 1 (in PPR leagues).

 

[nygiants56]

Leinart has looked 'all-world' , so far this preseason..

I think the Cards could be this year's version of what N.O. was last season.

With the three quality WR's they have, defenses will have to respect the pass,which in turn will finally open things up for Edge.

this could be one of his best seasons ever..

 

[Carter_Can_Fly]

Same old Cardinals tonight. Against a team who gave up the most points in the league last season E. James had 26 carries for 92 yards and 1 TD to go along with 2 catches for 20 yards. I think James should be a sell high if at all possible after this game. Another game where his ypc (3.5) was bad and an o-line that is terrible at run blocking. James actually played well and had some nice cut backs, but he lacks any big play ability; his longest run tonight was a whopping 9 yards. His longest run which was only 33 yards came in 2005 (2 years ago). To put things in perspective James has had 723 rushing attempts dating back to 2005 and his longest run is 33 yards. James will be a poor man's RB 2 at best again this season.

 

[richn]

Same old Cardinals tonight. Against a team who gave up the most points in the league last season E. James had 26 carries for 92 yards and 1 TD to go along with 2 catches for 20 yards. I think James should be a sell high if at all possible after this game. Another game where his ypc (3.5) was bad and an o-line that is terrible at run blocking. James actually played well and had some nice cut backs, but he lacks any big play ability; his longest run tonight was a whopping 9 yards. His longest run which was only 33 yards came in 2005 (2 years ago). To put things in perspective James has had 723 rushing attempts dating back to 2005 and his longest run is 33 yards. James will be a poor man's RB 2 at best again this season.

Agreed. He is my RB3, and don't really need him, but will dangle him in front of some owners desperate for a running back, and see if they will part with a top-tier WR

I have both edge and portis as my #2 #3 RB........I guess this will be a week to week decision. If he's going to get 25 carries a game, I'll take that from a #2 RB......not many FF teams have a #2 getting 20+ carries a game, let alone a #1 with that many touches!!!!

 

[Carter_Can_Fly]

Any news on the rookie center for Arizona that hurt his knee??

 

[Otis]

Same old Cardinals tonight. Against a team who gave up the most points in the league last season E. James had 26 carries for 92 yards and 1 TD to go along with 2 catches for 20 yards. I think James should be a sell high if at all possible after this game. Another game where his ypc (3.5) was bad and an o-line that is terrible at run blocking. James actually played well and had some nice cut backs, but he lacks any big play ability; his longest run tonight was a whopping 9 yards. His longest run which was only 33 yards came in 2005 (2 years ago). To put things in perspective James has had 723 rushing attempts dating back to 2005 and his longest run is 33 yards. James will be a poor man's RB 2 at best again this season.

I disagree. The Niners defense looked tough, and Leinart did not open up the passing game. That will be the key to the run being successful in AZ, and they just didn't do it this game.And, as bad as they looked, he still had over 100 total yards and a TD. So he's on pace for 1600 yards and 16 TDs for the season. This would be a poor man's RB2?

For where you drafted him, if you drafted him wisely, that's fantastic value.

 

[NYGus]

Edge will out produce about 10 RB's that were drafted before him in most drafts including:

Jamal Lewis

Ronnie Brown

Pinto Williams

Willis McGahee

Julius Jones

Thomas Jones

Brandon Jacobs

Deuce McAllister

Both Carolina RB's

oh and of course Larry Johnson

 

[The Ref]

Same old Cardinals tonight. Against a team who gave up the most points in the league last season E. James had 26 carries for 92 yards and 1 TD to go along with 2 catches for 20 yards. I think James should be a sell high if at all possible after this game. Another game where his ypc (3.5) was bad and an o-line that is terrible at run blocking. James actually played well and had some nice cut backs, but he lacks any big play ability; his longest run tonight was a whopping 9 yards. His longest run which was only 33 yards came in 2005 (2 years ago). To put things in perspective James has had 723 rushing attempts dating back to 2005 and his longest run is 33 yards. James will be a poor man's RB 2 at best again this season.

I disagree. The Niners defense looked tough, and Leinart did not open up the passing game. That will be the key to the run being successful in AZ, and they just didn't do it this game.And, as bad as they looked, he still had over 100 total yards and a TD. So he's on pace for 1600 yards and 16 TDs for the season. This would be a poor man's RB2?

For where you drafted him, if you drafted him wisely, that's fantastic value.

The two drives where the Cardinals pounded the ball and mixed in one or two passes were the two drives where they scored. The passing attack of the Cardinals was just plain bad, but I'm not sure if it was because of the coverage or not. At any rate, I came away impressed with the way Edge ran the ball and eve more impressed with the commitment to the running game by the Cardianls. Edge may not average over 4.2 a carry when it's all said and done, but he may have 350 @ 3.8 with 8-10 TD's.

 

[David Yudkin]

Edge will out produce about 10 RB's that were drafted before him in most drafts including:

Jamal Lewis

Ronnie Brown

Pinto Williams

Willis McGahee

Julius Jones

Thomas Jones

Brandon Jacobs

Deuce McAllister

Both Carolina RB's

oh and of course Larry Johnson

Only a few of these guys were taken before Edge in most drafts. Edge went as the #15 RB and #16 RB in the drafts I had closest to the start of the season. Brown went one spot in front of Edge, Jacobs . All the other guys got taken after him.

 

[the spanker]

Edge will out produce about 10 RB's that were drafted before him in most drafts including:

Jamal Lewis

Ronnie Brown

Pinto Williams

Willis McGahee

Julius Jones

Thomas Jones

Brandon Jacobs

Deuce McAllister

Both Carolina RB's

oh and of course Larry Johnson

Only a few of these guys were taken before Edge in most drafts. Edge went as the #15 RB and #16 RB in the drafts I had closest to the start of the season. Brown went one spot in front of Edge, Jacobs . All the other guys got taken after him.

Agree here. The only guys that possibly should have gone before Edge on this list is Brown, McGahee and and Thomas Jones IMHO.

 

[Carter_Can_Fly]

Same old Cardinals tonight. Against a team who gave up the most points in the league last season E. James had 26 carries for 92 yards and 1 TD to go along with 2 catches for 20 yards. I think James should be a sell high if at all possible after this game. Another game where his ypc (3.5) was bad and an o-line that is terrible at run blocking. James actually played well and had some nice cut backs, but he lacks any big play ability; his longest run tonight was a whopping 9 yards. His longest run which was only 33 yards came in 2005 (2 years ago). To put things in perspective James has had 723 rushing attempts dating back to 2005 and his longest run is 33 yards. James will be a poor man's RB 2 at best again this season.

I disagree. The Niners defense looked tough, and Leinart did not open up the passing game. That will be the key to the run being successful in AZ, and they just didn't do it this game.And, as bad as they looked, he still had over 100 total yards and a TD. So he's on pace for 1600 yards and 16 TDs for the season. This would be a poor man's RB2?

For where you drafted him, if you drafted him wisely, that's fantastic value.

E. James was drafted as an RB 2 with RB 1 upside in many drafts but what he proved to me last night was there is a good cahnce that he is going to repeat last years performance which is a poor man's RB 2. Edge's numbers from last night look a lot similar to last year where Edge had 337 attempts for a 3.4 ypc and 6 TD's to go along with 38 receptions for 217 yards. Edge will have the odd good game against bad defense (like San Fran) that will be ok. But I think the best you can hope for out of Edge is a repeat of last season. Remember he played against San Fran yesterday a team that gave up 1936 rushing yards for an average of 4.1 ypc in 2006. San Fran also gave up 46 TD's last season as a defense.

Edge rushed the ball 26 times yesterday which would work out to 416 rushing attempts on the year; that is not going to happen. Sure the Cardinals were able to control the San Fran offense but they will be playing from behind a lot this year and won't have the luxury of rushing the ball that much. In redraft I think Edge had value as an RB 2 only after taking a good RB 1 and 2 good WR's first or a stud QB, RB, and WR first, which I don't think happened in most drafts. If you had to reach to take Edge sooner I think those teams may struggle.

 

[NYGus]

Agree here. The only guys that possibly should have gone before Edge on this list is Brown, McGahee and and Thomas Jones IMHO.

Ronnie Brown? Before Edge? Is that a typo?

 

[David Yudkin]

E. James was drafted as an RB 2 with RB 1 upside in many drafts but what he proved to me last night was there is a good chance that he is going to repeat last years performance which is a poor man's RB 2.

After 1 week Edge is the #9 RB . . . not sure that that's so bad.

 

[benbadman]

E. James was drafted as an RB 2 with RB 1 upside in many drafts but what he proved to me last night was there is a good cahnce that he is going to repeat last years performance which is a poor man's RB 2. Edge's numbers from last night look a lot similar to last year where Edge had 337 attempts for a 3.4 ypc and 6 TD's to go along with 38 receptions for 217 yards. Edge will have the odd good game against bad defense (like San Fran) that will be ok. But I think the best you can hope for out of Edge is a repeat of last season. Remember he played against San Fran yesterday a team that gave up 1936 rushing yards for an average of 4.1 ypc in 2006. San Fran also gave up 46 TD's last season as a defense. Edge rushed the ball 26 times yesterday which would work out to 416 rushing attempts on the year; that is not going to happen. Sure the Cardinals were able to control the San Fran offense but they will be playing from behind a lot this year and won't have the luxury of rushing the ball that much. In redraft I think Edge had value as an RB 2 only after taking a good RB 1 and 2 good WR's first or a stud QB, RB, and WR first, which I don't think happened in most drafts. If you had to reach to take Edge sooner I think those teams may struggle.

Wait a second. Which year are you playing fantasy football in--2006 or 2007? His numbers looked like they did last year and he should have put up more than 1 TD on a team that gave up 46 TDs in 2006? The 49ers did upgrade their defense through the draft and free agency, and they will probably be a defense ranked overall 15th-23rd.In the game last night, Edge basically was averaging 4 YPC. On the next to last Cardinals drive he had 4 carries for 3 yards as the team pretty much ran in place trying to run clock and play field position, hoping their defense would hold the 49ers. Before that he was 22-89 and a TD. Pretty solid week 1 outing.Edge was a 3rd or 4th round selection in most of my $$ leagues. At that point in the draft, would a team been better off taking a ""stud QB"" like Bulger, McNabb or Brees? How about take Edge then grab Big Ben & Romo later. I know I did, thx FBG subscription!Looking ahead in 2007, the Cardinals' week 2-16 schedule has about 12 games where you will probably want to start Edge and expect similar production 80-100yards good shot at a TD:SEA, PIT (depending on your 3rd RB), @STL, CAR, @WAS, @TB (iffy), DET, SF, CLE, @SEA, @NO, ATL ---- 13 out of 16 weeks in 2007 he's a good start at RB2 that will get 20+ carries. Can't beat that value.

 

[zoonation]

Same old Cardinals tonight. Against a team who gave up the most points in the league last season E. James had 26 carries for 92 yards and 1 TD to go along with 2 catches for 20 yards. I think James should be a sell high if at all possible after this game. Another game where his ypc (3.5) was bad and an o-line that is terrible at run blocking. James actually played well and had some nice cut backs, but he lacks any big play ability; his longest run tonight was a whopping 9 yards. His longest run which was only 33 yards came in 2005 (2 years ago). To put things in perspective James has had 723 rushing attempts dating back to 2005 and his longest run is 33 yards. James will be a poor man's RB 2 at best again this season.

I disagree. The Niners defense looked tough, and Leinart did not open up the passing game. That will be the key to the run being successful in AZ, and they just didn't do it this game.And, as bad as they looked, he still had over 100 total yards and a TD. So he's on pace for 1600 yards and 16 TDs for the season. This would be a poor man's RB2?

For where you drafted him, if you drafted him wisely, that's fantastic value.

E. James was drafted as an RB 2 with RB 1 upside in many drafts but what he proved to me last night was there is a good cahnce that he is going to repeat last years performance which is a poor man's RB 2. Edge's numbers from last night look a lot similar to last year where Edge had 337 attempts for a 3.4 ypc and 6 TD's to go along with 38 receptions for 217 yards. Edge will have the odd good game against bad defense (like San Fran) that will be ok. But I think the best you can hope for out of Edge is a repeat of last season. Remember he played against San Fran yesterday a team that gave up 1936 rushing yards for an average of 4.1 ypc in 2006. San Fran also gave up 46 TD's last season as a defense.

Edge rushed the ball 26 times yesterday which would work out to 416 rushing attempts on the year; that is not going to happen. Sure the Cardinals were able to control the San Fran offense but they will be playing from behind a lot this year and won't have the luxury of rushing the ball that much. In redraft I think Edge had value as an RB 2 only after taking a good RB 1 and 2 good WR's first or a stud QB, RB, and WR first, which I don't think happened in most drafts. If you had to reach to take Edge sooner I think those teams may struggle.

I think that you are not giving the San Fran D enough credit. With the addition of Nate they are able to play more man coverage which allows them to ball hawk around the line a little more. I think they will be a much better defense than they were last year.Given my foregoing belief, I think the Cards ran the ball well last night. Before the rook went down they were actually getting a fair bit of push. Added to this was the fact that Edge ran hard and showed great vision and finish.

I don't own Edge in any league, although I have always been a fan of his. I think he is as safe an RB2 as there is given the number of committees out there. He will get 300+ touches and if he averages close to 4.0 a carry will put up very good RB2 numbers if he can improve on his TD total.

The oe thing that worries me is Leinart, who looked timid and confused all night.

 

[Carter_Can_Fly]

E. James was drafted as an RB 2 with RB 1 upside in many drafts but what he proved to me last night was there is a good chance that he is going to repeat last years performance which is a poor man's RB 2.

After 1 week Edge is the #9 RB . . . not sure that that's so bad.

Yes and L. Jordan is 1, D. Ward is 5th and C. Brown is 8th. Ahead of L. Johnson, F. Gore, S. Jackson and Portis. This is my point, James' value is high right now and you may be able to get good value in a trade for him. I guess I am not neccessairly saying he needs to be traded as I see him being an RB 2 all be it a poor one, but his trade value won't be higher at any other point all year.

 

[Card Trader]

Two weeks into the season has anyone changed their mind's on Edge or the Cards Oline yet?

 

[David Yudkin]

The Cards have 65 passing attempts to 64 rushing attempts. They are on pace for 520 passes and 512 rushes. Compare that to 2005 when they had 670 passes and 360 rushing attempts.

 

[Raider Nation]

Did I miss the memo? Is Edge no longer the GL back?

1-2-WAS 2

(1:21) 31-M.Shipp left guard to WAS 3 for -1 yards (59-L.Fletcher).

2-3-WAS 3

(1:15) 28-J.Arrington up the middle to WAS 1 for 2 yards (21-S.Taylor).

 

[TheFanatic]

Did I miss the memo? Is Edge no longer the GL back? 1-2-WAS 2 (1:21) 31-M.Shipp left guard to WAS 3 for -1 yards (59-L.Fletcher). 2-3-WAS 3 (1:15) 28-J.Arrington up the middle to WAS 1 for 2 yards (21-S.Taylor).

I don't see the big deal here. The guy is 6th in a non PPR leagues and 12th in PPR leagues. Performing much higher than his draft position. He pulled himself at the goal line a lot last year. Keeps him healthy and allows the other guys some fun too. If you were relying on him to be your RB2 or even 3 you are in great shape right now....

 

[CalBear]

1312 rushing yards, 8 TDs, 250 receiving yards, 1 TD. Good for approximately RB#10.

As of game 7, Edge is on pace for:1382 rushing yards, 9.1 TDs, 155 receiving yards, 0 TD.

I accept PayPal.

 

[KingEl]

Did I miss the memo? Is Edge no longer the GL back? 1-2-WAS 2 (1:21) 31-M.Shipp left guard to WAS 3 for -1 yards (59-L.Fletcher). I saw the game, and it seemed more like a situational thing. Ran a funky formation, prob trying to cross up the defense. My feel was that Edge is the true goal line back 95% of the time. Besides, both Shipp and Arrington failed and didn't look good, so I can't imagine they impressed the coaches more than Edge. My bigger concern is almost no catches. It seems it would be smart to get Edge the ball out where there is a little more space. 2-3-WAS 3 (1:15) 28-J.Arrington up the middle to WAS 1 for 2 yards (21-S.Taylor).

I don't see the big deal here. The guy is 6th in a non PPR leagues and 12th in PPR leagues. Performing much higher than his draft position. He pulled himself at the goal line a lot last year. Keeps him healthy and allows the other guys some fun too. If you were relying on him to be your RB2 or even 3 you are in great shape right now....

 

[Raider Nation]

Did I miss the memo? Is Edge no longer the GL back? 1-2-WAS 2 (1:21) 31-M.Shipp left guard to WAS 3 for -1 yards (59-L.Fletcher). 2-3-WAS 3 (1:15) 28-J.Arrington up the middle to WAS 1 for 2 yards (21-S.Taylor).

I don't see the big deal here. The guy is 6th in a non PPR leagues and 12th in PPR leagues. Performing much higher than his draft position. He pulled himself at the goal line a lot last year. Keeps him healthy and allows the other guys some fun too. If you were relying on him to be your RB2 or even 3 you are in great shape right now....

Still, pulling himself at the goal line is not something I'm thrilled about.Don't we all want our players to have a killer instinct? I don't know many RBs who WANT to be pulled at the stripe.

 

[Nipsey]

Did I miss the memo? Is Edge no longer the GL back? 1-2-WAS 2 (1:21) 31-M.Shipp left guard to WAS 3 for -1 yards (59-L.Fletcher). 2-3-WAS 3 (1:15) 28-J.Arrington up the middle to WAS 1 for 2 yards (21-S.Taylor).

I don't see the big deal here. The guy is 6th in a non PPR leagues and 12th in PPR leagues. Performing much higher than his draft position. He pulled himself at the goal line a lot last year. Keeps him healthy and allows the other guys some fun too. If you were relying on him to be your RB2 or even 3 you are in great shape right now....

Still, pulling himself at the goal line is not something I'm thrilled about.Don't we all want our players to have a killer instinct? I don't know many RBs who WANT to be pulled at the stripe.

I don't believe he pulled himself. They were in their hurry up package.