Shaun Alexander tracking Eddie George's career path? (1 Viewer)

[Ed Wood]

Is Shaun Alexander ready to take a path to ineffectiveness ala Eddie George late in his career? Consider the numbers:

George

+----------+-----+--------------------------+-------------------------+

| Year TM | G | Att Yards Y/A TD | Rec Yards Y/R TD |

+----------+-----+--------------------------+-------------------------+

| 1996 hou | 16 | 335 1368 4.1 8 | 23 182 7.9 0 |

| 1997 ten | 16 | 357 1399 3.9 6 | 7 44 6.3 1 |

| 1998 ten | 16 | 348 1294 3.7 5 | 37 310 8.4 1 |

| 1999 ten | 16 | 320 1304 4.1 9 | 47 458 9.7 4 |

| 2000 ten | 16 | 403 1509 3.7 14 | 50 453 9.1 2 |

| 2001 ten | 16 | 315 939 3.0 5 | 37 279 7.5 0 |

| 2002 ten | 16 | 343 1165 3.4 12 | 36 255 7.1 2 |

| 2003 ten | 16 | 312 1031 3.3 5 | 22 163 7.4 0 |

| 2004 dal | 14 | 132 432 3.3 4 | 9 83 9.2 0 |

+----------+-----+--------------------------+-------------------------+

| TOTAL | 142 | 2865 10441 3.6 68 | 268 2227 8.3 10 |

George had 5 years where he averaged about 340 carries through 2000. He then followed with two mediocre years, one good (albeit with a 3.3 ypc) and then one inconsequential year.

Alexander

Year TM | G | Att Yards Y/A TD | Rec Yards Y/R TD |

+----------+-----+--------------------------+-------------------------+

| 2000 sea | 16 | 64 313 4.9 2 | 5 41 8.2 0 |

| 2001 sea | 16 | 309 1318 4.3 14 | 44 343 7.8 2 |

| 2002 sea | 16 | 295 1175 4.0 16 | 59 460 7.8 2 |

| 2003 sea | 16 | 326 1435 4.4 14 | 42 295 7.0 2 |

| 2004 sea | 16 | 353 1696 4.8 16 | 23 170 7.4 4 |

| 2005 sea | 16 | 370 1880 5.1 27 | 15 78 5.2 1 |

| 2006 sea | 10 | 252 896 3.6 7 | 12 48 4.0 0 |

+----------+-----+--------------------------+-------------------------+

| TOTAL | 106 | 1969 8713 4.4 96 | 200 1435 7.2 11 |

Alexander's had 5 years where he's averaged about 330 carries through 2005. Then injured a good chunk last year and yards per carry took a BIG hit compared to previous years.

Is this the beginning of the end for the soon to be 30-year-old Alexander?

 

[The Moz]

being that Alexander

A. Had better rushing stats

B. SCored a ton more TD's

C. was plain more talneted

I can't see a comparison

they also had 2 different running styles.

 

[wannabee]

This is a good thought, Ed. I applaud the looking at issues/players with "new eyes". I do think that George with 8 yrs over 300 carries to Alexander's 4 might have a little to do with George breaking down so quickly. Also, he had a horrible OLine for a few of those last years.

 

[joffer]

I think George is the only RB faster to 2000 carries than LT2

 

[Grigs Allmoon]

being that AlexanderA. Had better rushing statsB. SCored a ton more TD'sC. was plain more talneted I can't see a comparison they also had 2 different running styles.

No kidding... SA was 3 times more talented than George (The #2 most overrated RB of all time, in my book.)If he actually does continue down this hill, the comparison might be SLIGHTLY valid, but I expect a pretty descent year from him this year. Well short of his carrer best, but better than last year.

 

[Dharp4titans]

Eddie George was much more of a "bruiser" back, just trying to run over people without many moves. Alexander eludes people fairly well and runs out of bounds when he can. He will not fall off like George did. I am a Titans fan and after the Super Bowl year, Eddie's career was over.

 

[Truman]

Eddie George was much more of a "bruiser" back, just trying to run over people without many moves. Alexander eludes people fairly well and runs out of bounds when he can. He will not fall off like George did. I am a Titans fan and after the Super Bowl year, Eddie's career was over.

Great point. Guys like SAlex who have a tendency to rely on speed rather than sheer power tend to last longer. It won't help that his line has deteriorated somewhat since his MVP year, but I still think Alexander will come back strong and has at least another year before he falls away.

 

[-OZ-]

being that Alexander

A. Had better rushing stats

B. SCored a ton more TD's

C. was plain more talneted

I can't see a comparison

they also had 2 different running styles.

No kidding... SA was 3 times more talented than George (The #2 most overrated RB of all time, in my book.)If he actually does continue down this hill, the comparison might be SLIGHTLY valid, but I expect a pretty descent year from him this year. Well short of his carrer best, but better than last year.

Nobody is going to buy your book.

IMHO, Alexander is not more talented than George, at least not by much. A different form of talent, but not "more" talented.

He is/was a TD scoring machine, but a good part of the credit there has to go to the OLine. I might be forgetting players, but while Alexander has two pereniel pro-bowl, possible HOF candidate players on his line, George had Brad Hopkins, and not a whole lot else.

BUT - this is also in Alexander's favor. The OL helped keep Alexander from the same punishment as George dealt with. Therefore, Alexander should not have the same path. As already mentioned, the styles make a huge difference.

 

[The Kansas Comet]

being that Alexander

A. Had better rushing stats

B. SCored a ton more TD's

C. was plain more talneted

I can't see a comparison

they also had 2 different running styles.

No kidding... SA was 3 times more talented than George (The #2 most overrated RB of all time, in my book.)If he actually does continue down this hill, the comparison might be SLIGHTLY valid, but I expect a pretty descent year from him this year. Well short of his carrer best, but better than last year.

Nobody is going to buy your book.

IMHO, Alexander is not more talented than George, at least not by much. A different form of talent, but not "more" talented.

He is/was a TD scoring machine, but a good part of the credit there has to go to the OLine. I might be forgetting players, but while Alexander has two pereniel pro-bowl, possible HOF candidate players on his line, George had Brad Hopkins, and not a whole lot else.

BUT - this is also in Alexander's favor. The OL helped keep Alexander from the same punishment as George dealt with. Therefore, Alexander should not have the same path. As already mentioned, the styles make a huge difference.

Bruce Matthews not a HOF candidate?I think the contrast in styles makes this comparison a bit of a stretch. George absorbed a lot of punishment throughout his career - the fact that his yards per carry never exceeded 4.1 in any season and the longest run in his career was 40 yards (after his 76 yarder in his rookie season) whereas Alexander has averaged 4.4 ypc to this point with numerous long runs suggest that Alexander has less wear and tear than George did at this point. It would stand to reason that Alexander got to the second level of the defense more frequently than George, meaning he was tackled by DB's more often than George, which probably wears less on a running back than getting hit by a linebacker or d-lineman. The longer runs would also suggest that Alexander has better speed than George - George may have had more heart, but speed helps a back take fewer beatings.

However, that's not to suggest there's nothing to worry about, that Alexander's career won't begin to decline. He is coming off his worst year, he had a lengthy injury, and his offensive line isn't as good as it was a few years ago.

 

[CA_7]

Can't say I have seen a lot of Seattle games and would love to hear feedback from Seahawk homers but based on what I have seen/heard, seems like SA goes down a lot or runs out of bounds (more so than most RBs) instead of trying to get a few extra yards like Eddie used to do.

 

[Grigs Allmoon]

being that Alexander

A. Had better rushing stats

B. SCored a ton more TD's

C. was plain more talneted

I can't see a comparison

they also had 2 different running styles.

No kidding... SA was 3 times more talented than George (The #2 most overrated RB of all time, in my book.)If he actually does continue down this hill, the comparison might be SLIGHTLY valid, but I expect a pretty descent year from him this year. Well short of his carrer best, but better than last year.

Nobody is going to buy your book.

IMHO, Alexander is not more talented than George, at least not by much. A different form of talent, but not "more" talented.

He is/was a TD scoring machine, but a good part of the credit there has to go to the OLine. I might be forgetting players, but while Alexander has two pereniel pro-bowl, possible HOF candidate players on his line, George had Brad Hopkins, and not a whole lot else.

I rest my case...Eddie George was nothing more than a Willis McGahee with heart. (And I'll give him the heart thing. He was great in that regard.) He only had descent numbers because they pounded the ball a TON.

Actually, the McGahee comparison is spot on. Similar styles. Hyped a ton out of college, but never really amounted to anything special in the NFL.

 

[mad sweeney]

Can't say I have seen a lot of Seattle games and would love to hear feedback from Seahawk homers but based on what I have seen/heard, seems like SA goes down a lot or runs out of bounds (more so than most RBs) instead of trying to get a few extra yards like Eddie used to do.

SA does whatever he can to avoid contact. Up until the SB season he was the last "elite" RB I wanted to see get the ball on 3rd and short. We used to call him Shaun Crumpler due to his knack of folding into the fetal position on contact. He takes nowhere near the pounding a runner like George takes and he slides through the second level. Put simply, he avoids and slides away from contact so his "miles" are a lot less than his carries suggest.

 

[-OZ-]

being that Alexander

A. Had better rushing stats

B. SCored a ton more TD's

C. was plain more talneted

I can't see a comparison

they also had 2 different running styles.

No kidding... SA was 3 times more talented than George (The #2 most overrated RB of all time, in my book.)If he actually does continue down this hill, the comparison might be SLIGHTLY valid, but I expect a pretty descent year from him this year. Well short of his carrer best, but better than last year.

Nobody is going to buy your book.

IMHO, Alexander is not more talented than George, at least not by much. A different form of talent, but not "more" talented.

He is/was a TD scoring machine, but a good part of the credit there has to go to the OLine. I might be forgetting players, but while Alexander has two pereniel pro-bowl, possible HOF candidate players on his line, George had Brad Hopkins, and not a whole lot else.

BUT - this is also in Alexander's favor. The OL helped keep Alexander from the same punishment as George dealt with. Therefore, Alexander should not have the same path. As already mentioned, the styles make a huge difference.

Bruce Matthews not a HOF candidate?I think the contrast in styles makes this comparison a bit of a stretch. George absorbed a lot of punishment throughout his career - the fact that his yards per carry never exceeded 4.1 in any season and the longest run in his career was 40 yards (after his 76 yarder in his rookie season) whereas Alexander has averaged 4.4 ypc to this point with numerous long runs suggest that Alexander has less wear and tear than George did at this point. It would stand to reason that Alexander got to the second level of the defense more frequently than George, meaning he was tackled by DB's more often than George, which probably wears less on a running back than getting hit by a linebacker or d-lineman. The longer runs would also suggest that Alexander has better speed than George - George may have had more heart, but speed helps a back take fewer beatings.

However, that's not to suggest there's nothing to worry about, that Alexander's career won't begin to decline. He is coming off his worst year, he had a lengthy injury, and his offensive line isn't as good as it was a few years ago.

WTF did I forget Ironman? Still, this is a bad comparison. You're exactly right here.

I maintain that the talent difference is much less than Grigs alleges. His McGahee comparison helps establish that, McGahee has as much natural talent as any RB in the NFL short of LT.

 

[Cookiemonster]

You are all forgetting the most important comparison...

Madden Cover Jinx!!!

 

[kensat30]

Eddie George was never very good IMO. The moment his body broke down just one bit, he went from an average talent with a lot of carries, to a washed up has-been who was getting the ball too much. Tennessee kept him around about 2 years too long based on loyalty and name recognition. Shaun Alexander has been getting the ball because he is effective. Maurice Morris in place of Shaun Alexander wasn't a better player than Shaun, despite playing on two healthy feet. Hell, SA had a broken foot last season and he was still more effective than Eddie George (career 3.6 runner).

Alexander weeks 1-3 (broken foot)

65/187 = 2.8ypc

Alexander after return

187/709 = 3.8ypc

So what we are seeing from last season, is that SA can't run worth jack playing on a frehsly broken foot. And after missing half a season due to that injury, unable to condition himself because it is a foot injury, Alexander still comes back and approaches an average.

 

[Slider]

George absolutely feasted on 2 of the worst franchises in history to pad his stats. Cincy and Cleveland twice a year inflated his stats to a level he really wasn't.

SA doesn't take half of the hits George took either.

 

[Traders2001]

WHo cares

 

[cacksman]

Also, look at the ypc difference between the two. You cannot compare George and SA with any credibility. Like already stated Alexander does good to preserve his body and last year towards the end of the season and in the playoffs, he was running like a mad man. This year he will approach 1600 and 20 once again.

 

[BigSteelThrill]

You cannot compare George and SA with any credibility.

Aye. I see absolutley nothing that puts SA on a career path that tracks EG. Nothing.