What's new
Fantasy Football - Footballguys Forums

Welcome to Our Forums. Once you've registered and logged in, you're primed to talk football, among other topics, with the sharpest and most experienced fantasy players on the internet.

RB Devin Singletary, NYG (1 Viewer)

I'm definitely talking myself into him in the early mid 2nd. If there isn't some great value that drops out of the 1st.

 
I'm definitely talking myself into him in the early mid 2nd. If there isn't some great value that drops out of the 1st.
I say do it if you can,  I got him at 2.3 in a 14 team super flex and am pumped to see what he can do.  Kind of a luxury pick for me so can be patient to see if he takes over toward the end of the year into next year.  Really like the fit and surroundings with two backs he’s been compared to to learn from and work with.

 
I say do it if you can,  I got him at 2.3 in a 14 team super flex and am pumped to see what he can do.  Kind of a luxury pick for me so can be patient to see if he takes over toward the end of the year into next year.  Really like the fit and surroundings with two backs he’s been compared to to learn from and work with.
Certainly would seem to be a job opening there real soon if not sooner.

 
I'm not comparing them as players, but just looked at the first couple pages of another back's thread and thought it was worth revisiting our ability to scout rb talent as a community. 

I'm hoping he has a good season so that I can flip him after the season is over. I don't see him as a long term answer (even though I want him to be so badly, I'm a Steeler fan) Although he could surprise and stick around for 6+ years. He's willing to work with a good head on his shoulders I think he will do alright.


My biggest issue with taking Bell is his ceiling. Does anyone see him as a RB1 long term?


This has more to do with Bell's workload than his elusiveness. He led the nation in carries (382) and touches (414); Ball's YAC is actually better than his on a per-carry (or per-touch) basis.

Greg Peshek used STATS ICE data to calculate yards after contact per run for 11 RBs; Bell ranked 7th:

3.19 Giovani Bernard

2.88 Eddie Lacy

2.71 Johnathan Franklin

2.60 Joseph Randle

2.59 Andre Ellington

2.49 Montee Ball

2.41 Le'Veon Bell

2.18 Stepfan Taylor

1.95 Marcus Lattimore

1.76 Mike Gillislee

1.76 Christine Michael


If LeGarret Blount could pass pro and catch better, and wasn't such an ###, he would be a good comparison.


I think Gerhart is a good comparison. I also think Gerhart could have been a productive fantasy back in the right circumstances.


I'll freely admit I don't do in depth scouting like a lot of guys around here but from the highlight clips he looked to me like he was a fairly upright runner and did not seem very shifty. I have not read the scouting report on him.


Very happy an over rated back on rival college team was over drafted by rival pro team. Easier to avoid.

Problem is squeelers nailed the rest of the draft.


Doesn't look like anything special to me. powerful, but honestly, hes just slow... and struggled against all good comp. his stats were inflated by the amount of carries he had and good games against teams like indiana


Don't confuse his slowness as being patient. Not impressive to me....


Bell waaayy too slow and not elusive to provide anything more then 2 yds. and a cloud of dust


no chance I'm drafting


Got the Bell write up done today.

I'd compared him to Wells in another thread where I was arguing that Wells couldn't stay healthy because the combo of a bad build (tall) with poor vision is a death sentence for RBs, but at the time wasn't arguing for Wells was a good Bell comp. But I should have been.

IMO Bell's a slower, less explosive version of Wells. With his size he could be useful in a limited role, but I'd be shocked if he can stay on the field.


Man, he looks slow to me.


Is Michael Bush a relatively close comp? He seems to be the same type of player to me.

 
Which brings me back to the enigma that is devin singletary. Bell's 3 cone drill was about half a second faster than singletary and he was 25 pounds heavier.  Maybe we should have been wowed by Bell's combine stats. Maybe we should hate singletary's.

Or maybe bell succeeded because he's patient and has great vision, which are traits Singletary definitely showed in college, and a big part of why Beane drafted him. 

I don't think singletary has Bell's upside, but maybe Mccoy's is attainable?  Or maybe he's another paul perkins, elusive in college, but lacking the power to succeed in the nfl without good blocking. 

 
Last edited by a moderator:
Which brings me back to the enigma that is devin singletary. Bell's 3 cone drill was about half a second faster than singletary and he was 25 pounds heavier.  Maybe we should have been wowed by Bell's combine stats. Maybe we should hate singletary's.
Pretty much this.  Many, myself included, should have taken what Bell did that offseason more seriously.  Maybe we would have seen this coming.  I was stuck on the tape and the tape was very ordinary.  Singletary's kinda the opposite.  Bell's able to use his patience as an asset because of his physical traits.  It's a thin line though.  If you don't have those traits then you're going to get swallowed up before going anywhere.

 
Pretty much this.  Many, myself included, should have taken what Bell did that offseason more seriously.  Maybe we would have seen this coming.  I was stuck on the tape and the tape was very ordinary.  Singletary's kinda the opposite.  Bell's able to use his patience as an asset because of his physical traits.  It's a thin line though.  If you don't have those traits then you're going to get swallowed up before going anywhere.
Bell ran a 4.6 40. His 3 cone was very good at 6.75 but after cutting weight for the combine people expected him to improve his 40. 

Singletary probably tried to add weight for the combine, at 5 foot 7 and a half inches, weighing in at 199 lbs would have hurt his stock more than a slow 40. He didn't get a chance to improve at his pro day because he got hurt on his first 40 attempt.  So he may be "better than his numbers" in that sense.  

 
Bell ran a 4.6 40. His 3 cone was very good at 6.75 but after cutting weight for the combine people expected him to improve his 40. 

Singletary probably tried to add weight for the combine, at 5 foot 7 and a half inches, weighing in at 199 lbs would have hurt his stock more than a slow 40. He didn't get a chance to improve at his pro day because he got hurt on his first 40 attempt.  So he may be "better than his numbers" in that sense.  
A 4.6 40 at his size is fine.  That's all testing should be.  Confirming he's not below certain thresh holds.  "People" over rate the 40 - always have, always will.  Take note of the extremes, but anything in between may not mean nothing but damn close to it.  In Bell's case, the 3 cone is where I messed up.

 
http://www.nfl.com/combine/profiles/devonta-freeman?id=2543583

Devonta Freeman is considered a comp but even that may be optimistic.

Freeman

40 YARD DASH: 4.58 SEC

VERTICAL JUMP: 31.5 INCH

BROAD JUMP: 118.0 INCH

3 CONE DRILL: 7.11 SEC

20 YARD SHUTTLE: 4.26 SEC

Singletary 

Combine Results

40 Yard Dash 4.66 (unofficial)

Bench Press 15 REPS

Vertical Jump 35.0

Broad Jump 117.0

3 Cone Drill 7.32

20 Yd Shuttle 4.4

They're almost identical in size - about 3 lbs and half an inch in official measurements.  Stylistically they're similar but freeman played on a much better team and was a better receiver coming out.  Singletary has some receiving but his offensive line was horrendous.  Both struggled at times against top competition.  Singletary averaged 4 yards a carry against oklahoma but if you watch the cut up that's about 5 ypc more than he should have had. 

 
Last edited by a moderator:
That 3 cone is downright awful.....
Exactly.  So how do you reconcile that 3 cone with this?

https://youtu.be/kOBVfak4vk8

Maybe he just sucks at track, or had a bad combine because he'd been trying to add weight or something. It's not like his tape looks good because of his good blocking, but maybe it's the poor defense?  

Here he is against Oklahoma this year.  He looked credible considering they lost 63 to 14. 18 carries for 69 yards and a touchdown. He had a couple decent runs and one very good one that was all him.  

https://youtu.be/9d-wizYrtOc

But his combine absolutely blew.  

 
Which brings me back to the enigma that is devin singletary. Bell's 3 cone drill was about half a second faster than singletary and he was 25 pounds heavier.  Maybe we should have been wowed by Bell's combine stats. Maybe we should hate singletary's.

Or maybe bell succeeded because he's patient and has great vision, which are traits Singletary definitely showed in college, and a big part of why Beane drafted him. 

I don't think singletary has Bell's upside, but maybe Mccoy's is attainable?  Or maybe he's another paul perkins, elusive in college, but lacking the power to succeed in the nfl without good blocking. 
Bell was somewhat unique because he looked like a totally different player between his rookie year and 2nd season in the NFL.  For those saying Bell looked slow on tape, he looked slow in the NFL too....as a rookie.

I like Singletary but the jump Bell made, even stylistically, between his rookie year and 2nd season is something many of us hadn't really seen before, and not something to rely on.

 
Just feel it needs to be put out there in clear terms for everyone, this man was drafted to start next year. 3rd round pick, Gore on a 1 year, McCoy on his last year, Yeldon only leaves 250k dead money next year and cutting him opens cap. He has to seize the opportunity and perform but I love his film, his balance during his cuts and after contact is incredible. People need to know, the Bills RB room is out the door after this season and this is NOT a muddy situation at all, it is a great one

 
Last edited by a moderator:
Snagged him at 2.05.....so im on board....i won this league last year so i can be patient and wait one year while they clean out gore n mccoy....yeldon ....

 
A 4.6 40 at his size is fine.  That's all testing should be.  Confirming he's not below certain thresh holds.  "People" over rate the 40 - always have, always will.  Take note of the extremes, but anything in between may not mean nothing but damn close to it.  In Bell's case, the 3 cone is where I messed up.
There’s so much technique involved in running these drills well, outside of complete disaster level numbers I tend to take note of great performances but somewhat discount mediocre ones if they don’t match up with on-field performance. I’m not sure he has jets but he looks like he can string some mean cuts together so I’m less worried about the 3 cone

 
He comes so much cheaper than similarly drafted rbs that I am tempted around early 2nd. Great tape bad combine deceptively good landing spot. 

 
He comes so much cheaper than similarly drafted rbs that I am tempted around early 2nd. Great tape bad combine deceptively good landing spot. 
i was drafting at 1.10 in my 16 team dynasty league. he was okay-to-good value for me. i needed a RB, for sure, but wasn't paying much of a premium to grab him a little early.

 
Bell was somewhat unique because he looked like a totally different player between his rookie year and 2nd season in the NFL.  For those saying Bell looked slow on tape, he looked slow in the NFL too....as a rookie.

I like Singletary but the jump Bell made, even stylistically, between his rookie year and 2nd season is something many of us hadn't really seen before, and not something to rely on.
I agree with this mostly.

However you could see signs of Bell using elusiveness in colllege, he was even criticized for it in some draftnik write ups of him as a prospect.

His coaches at Michigan and some of these draftniks wanted Bell to be more of a power RB when naturally he runs better trying to make defenders miss.

Bell had an injury as a rookie and still played at a higher weight that year. He dropped 15 lbs and became much quicker as a result of it his 2nd season.

Tomlin and the Steelers deserve credit for having Bell do that. 

As far as Bells 3 cone I did think that was an impressive number as I focus on that a lot (less now than I used to) so it was a huge positive, but we hadn't seen Bell play that way at the lower weight yet, and I do think it helped him a lot.

As for Singletarys 3 cone being low I dont think it's a big deal. Dalvin Cook had a poor 3 cone time too.

 
Not sure I've ever seen a 3rd round pedigree RB drafted behind two old RBs in a weak draft class fall so far...some years these guys go late 1st. Remember how high Johnathon Franklin was sometimes going in 2013 despite being drafted to the same team that took Eddie Lacy higher? 

His combine has people really sleeping. Usually a guy with his pedigree, situation, and fun highlights would be a popular reach at some point in every league. Stockpile him now and sell later. 

 
Man, his combine was really, really, really bad...

https://www.mockdraftable.com/player/devin-singletary
It really was.  I think part of it is that he sucks at track though.  Try pausing this after his first and second steps. 

https://youtu.be/EhlKQ121dNY

He's still on his third step at the 1.00 second mark. It takes him almost 7 full steps and about 1.7 seconds to cross ten yards. He finishes the whole 40 in about 19 and a half steps. It's supposed to take about 17. 

Now watch this play. 

https://cdn.herosports.com/upload/files/2018/08/devin-singletary-3.gif

It's like a totally different player.  Look how much quicker those steps look.  You can see the clock. He probably runs about 14 or 15 yards in this clip while changing direction with pads on in 2 seconds - you can see the clock change from 21 to 20 at the very start of the gif and from 19 to 18 as he crosses the goal line. 

More importantly, look at him from the 12 to the 2, because he's slowing up as he crosses the goal line. He clearly finishes that in under 2 full seconds - you can see it on the game clock.  That's 10 yards if he's going in a straight line but he's not - he changes directions twice.  He covers it in the same number of steps that it took him without pads, when he's running in a straight line.  And it's not like he has built up speed - he starts the clip running inside then turns almost 90 degrees to cut around that mass of defenders. 

That's not to say this is a great example of track speed.  It isn't.  He's not really flying upfield in this clip, he's just going fast enough to make the play.  But he seems to play faster than his 40 time.  

 
According to ESPN's Marcel Louis-Jacques, Bills third-round RB Devin Singletary received "a ton" first-team reps during Sunday's practice.

It may not mean anything as the Bills seem to be easing in veterans LeSean McCoy and Frank Gore. But with Gore nearing the finish line (this will be his 15th season in the league) and McCoy at risk of being cut coming off last year's disappointment, we can't rule out the possibility of Singletary emerging as the Bills' starter. The Florida Atlantic product hurt his stock by underperforming at the Combine, but fantasy football is all about opportunity and Singletary should have a chance to contribute right away in a run-heavy Bills offense.

SOURCE: Marcel Louis-Jacques on Twitter

Jul 28, 2019, 11:50 AM ET

 
The Athletic reports Bills third-round RB Devin Singletary has earned a "steady amount of opportunities" with the first-team offense.

Per Matthew Fairburn and Joe Buscaglia, Singletary has "made a habit of busting a big play." Singletary has also shown well in the passing game, and "made good defenders look foolish in the open field on the way to significant gains." Speaking Tuesday, LeSean McCoy said he had been told he remains "the guy" in the Bills' backfield, but Singletary is banging down the door to early-season opportunities.

SOURCE: The Athletic

Aug 6, 2019, 4:50 PM ET

 
Jake Arthur @JakeArthurNFL

For those of you who aren't familiar with Bills rookie RB Devin Singletary, you MUST square him up and keep hold when you've got him. He's elusive, to say the least.

 
Wasn't impressed. Cumbersome, sluggish, and slow.
It’s funny how multiple people can watch the same game and come up with polar opposite opinions. Not saying I disagree, I didn’t even see the game, but just based off of other comments I’ve seen. Hell, even in this thread 🙃

 
nice breakdown

3 touch highlights including a screen pass

he only posted 9-27 & 3-21, in fairness to @cloppbeast he must have gotten stuffed a few times, I haven’t watched the rewind or All 22.
12 touches, 3 of them were good. I'd call them decent, actually, nothing amazing. He didn't make any defender miss or gain many yards after contact.

Maybe I'm being overly critical after watching Montgomery, who was pretty impressive. I don't think Singletary compares at all.

 
12 touches, 3 of them were good. I'd call them decent, actually, nothing amazing. He didn't make any defender miss or gain many yards after contact.

Maybe I'm being overly critical after watching Montgomery, who was pretty impressive. I don't think Singletary compares at all.
I linked to a play where he made yards after contact AND then made a defender miss.

He bounced after off a O lineman being blocked into him (balance) and tore through a hit by #45 coming from the other side (shows good ball security), and makes #57 completely whiff.

YPA is a largely meaningless out of context. Instead we should focus on vision, balance and decisiveness of cuts. This guy has a nice assortment of tools in his tool belt.

 
I linked to a play where he made yards after contact AND then made a defender miss.
I stand corrected. That little spin move thing allowed him past the LB providing him an extra yard or two. So that's 1 defender miss instead of 0.

I think at this point we agree to disagree for the moment, wait for the next game to reassess.

 
Fair enough, pretty small sample size. Great opportunity for him if he shows well the next few weeks, but first half of the third game (e.g., non-JV action) might be a good indicator.

 
The other thing worth noting is that 7 of his 12 touches came on an 8 play stretch, including 6 in a row. So, you know he was pretty gassed on some of those.

 
Singletary definitely got yards after contact and he definitely made defenders miss in college.  

The fact that he did both in his first NFL game is meaningful to me, because it answers the first question - will those skills translate to the NFL.  

I also like that he had a couple big catches and that he converted both a third and 1 and a third and 10. That's good when we're trying to predict his opportunity.

The valid concerns that still aren't answered are

- will he ever get a chance to start?  I don't want a third down back

- doing this against second string defenders is great but can he do it against real NFL defenses that scheme for him (and with the bills starting line,  which is already dinged up)

- it's great that he can spin out of that tackle but does he have the speed to turn those into big plays? 

- at his size, can he survive a heavy workload while fighting for every yard?  (And will the coaches let him try?)

Those are questions we can't answer yet.  But i think we have answered the question of whether his style translates and i think that's a clear yes so far. 

 
I was offered Phillip Lindsay straight up last night. I declined and said I’m holding out for a 2020 1st, which I was then offered in a 3 way but it was from the most stacked team in the league so I, again, declined. Would’ve taken a 1st from any other team in the league though. Would rather take the ride and try to cash in later than take such a low pick

Preseason game 1 showed some of the bad with the good, overall though, I liked what he showed and his usage was nice. They definitely showed that there is a world where they see the offense running through Singletary. The pass catching was also a welcome surprise. Him being pulled at the goal was definitely a conditioning thing. Maybe he’ll get more of a shot next week against the 1s with Allen and show us a little more

 
I was offered Phillip Lindsay straight up last night. I declined and said I’m holding out for a 2020 1st, which I was then offered in a 3 way but it was from the most stacked team in the league so I, again, declined. Would’ve taken a 1st from any other team in the league though. Would rather take the ride and try to cash in later than take such a low pick

Preseason game 1 showed some of the bad with the good, overall though, I liked what he showed and his usage was nice. They definitely showed that there is a world where they see the offense running through Singletary. The pass catching was also a welcome surprise. Him being pulled at the goal was definitely a conditioning thing. Maybe he’ll get more of a shot next week against the 1s with Allen and show us a little more
Wow, he is arguably not a first in this years crap draft.  Any 2020 first in what is projected to be stacked draft seems like robbery.  Hope it works out for you.

ETA: FBGs cumulative rookie rankings have him as the 21st overall pick in this draft with the very highest of the 7 staffers ranking at 16.  A 2020 first is a great offer if you buy what they are selling.

 
Last edited by a moderator:
i would not give up singletary for lindsay but i wouldve taken that '20 1st, even last pick of the 1st.

 
Wow, he is arguably not a first in this years crap draft.  Any 2020 first in what is projected to be stacked draft seems like robbery.  Hope it works out for you.

ETA: FBGs cumulative rookie rankings have him as the 21st overall pick in this draft with the very highest of the 7 staffers ranking at 16.  A 2020 first is a great offer if you buy what they are selling.
I think by the end of the preseason that he will be a 2019 1st round consensus. I drafted him with a flip to a 2020 1st in mind. At the time I was planning on packaging him with a 2nd after he showed for a 1st but he’s caught on so hard that I don’t think I will need to. Every league I’m in, there’s one guy (other than me) who is absolutely salivating over Singletary. I know a 1st is above market value right now but I have had guys way over offering from the moment I picked him so I’m going to stick to my guns.

I would take Lindsay and then try to sell him.
Not a damn soul is interested except for the guy whose 1st will be bottom 2.

i would not give up singletary for lindsay but i wouldve taken that '20 1st, even last pick of the 1st.
I really thought about it but I think I can do better than that barring an injury. For additional perspective, I was offered two 2020 2nds for Singletary 5 minutes after drafting him in the second. I think I’m spot on in wanting more because the owners who want him on their team are rabid 

 
I think by the end of the preseason that he will be a 2019 1st round consensus. I drafted him with a flip to a 2020 1st in mind. At the time I was planning on packaging him with a 2nd after he showed for a 1st but he’s caught on so hard that I don’t think I will need to. Every league I’m in, there’s one guy (other than me) who is absolutely salivating over Singletary. I know a 1st is above market value right now but I have had guys way over offering from the moment I picked him so I’m going to stick to my guns.

Not a damn soul is interested except for the guy whose 1st will be bottom 2.

I really thought about it but I think I can do better than that barring an injury. For additional perspective, I was offered two 2020 2nds for Singletary 5 minutes after drafting him in the second. I think I’m spot on in wanting more because the owners who want him on their team are rabid 
I’m honestly really down on Lindsay, but surprised group think has gotten to the point Singletary is valued more.

 

Users who are viewing this thread

Top