Thomas Jones to return earlier than expected? (1 Viewer)

[Wilbur Wood]

The "plan" was always to use both backs. It just doesn't work out that way in reality.When the bears start the game and probably through the first quarter or so, they will use Jones - he's the starter.When they are losing, they will use Jones, because he has more big-play ability and he's a much better receiver.That leaves us with mid-late game when the game is close and mid-late game when the Bears are winning by a lot.In the former instance, they MIGHT use Thomas a little bit to give Jones a breather. In the latter instance, they might use Thomas a fair amount. But how often do you think the latter instance will pop up? Not very often. And those instances aren't generally all that great for fantasy stats. A nice yardage bonus, but few catches and not very many TDs.As a Jones owner in every single league I am in, I am much more concerned about his health than his "sharing" with Thomas.

I do own TJones in 2 leagues and A-Train in none. However, with the improved overall play of the Bears of late, they may find themselves in more situations (at least compared to the first 6 weeks when TJones was "the man") in which they do have a lead and want to "control the clock/tire out the D". It is in this capacity that A-Train may actually be a better fit than TJones. I do think that TJones is the better overall RB, but A-Train may be the better option to play a bit of smashmouth, ball control in the 2nd half of games with leads

 

[Righetti]

I think the Chicago coaching staff would be silly to not realize what Anthony Thomas has done so far, he has helped milk the clock when neccesary, break the big run on occassion and score a couple of TD's.I see Lovie Smith easing Thomas Jones in with the realization that the team has played well with Anthony Thomas in there.. This has an RBBC smell to it.

heh uh... wrong

another well thought out respond by you

 

[Your Mom]

All thomas Jones owners relax. They signed Jones the minute the free agency period opened. The coaches are in love with thomas jones. Yes A-train had a good game, but this is not going to be a RBBC. I hated the signing of Jones and argued with a lot of people on this board pre-season about how Jones is not that much better than a-train. Jones might take next week off, just to make sure he is 100%. But when he comes back, RBBC is not going to happen. I think the situation will be similar to the curtis martin/lamont jordan situation. I'll fill you guys in when i hear more tom. on the radio from some bears insiders.

 

[RoosterScott]

I'd flush CBS' statements down the toilet and go with something from the Suntimes or Tribune. Wait and see who practices and who doesn't tomorrow.

 

[Pigskin75]

I don't believe it was ever sugested that TJ would not be the starter when he returns healthy. But it is implied by the thread title that he will be back sooner, rather than later. Sooner as in this Sunday.I have not been able to get conformation on this. Do we have to wait until practice Wednesday or does a Chicago homer have some local scoop?

 

[zamboni]

Do we have to wait until practice Wednesday or does a Chicago homer have some local scoop?

I can't imagine there will be any info until practice.

 

[cstu]

WTF now they are going to spilt carries...jesus f-ing christ i got no luck at freakin all this year.

Coach-speak for "we want Jones to be our RB but we don't want to tick off A-train after playing two good games".

I'm a Jones owner, but also realistic. A-Train most definitely won't be around next year, but right now Lovie & Co. want to win games. And if that means using both guys depending on their respective talents, then that's what they'll do.

Don't get me wrong, A-train will play but at most it will be 70/30. I don't see it turning into RBBC since the coaches want to prove that their system works with Jones.

 

[Pigskin75]

Do we have to wait until practice Wednesday or does a Chicago homer have some local scoop?

I can't imagine there will be any info until practice.

Good enough...but sometimes homers get info from radio shows, local news, etc. Just hoping for some news so I can plan.

 

[Slider]

A-Train will find his seat right back on the bench. Why would they take additional carries from "their guy" to play a guy who they know won't be there next year? ATrain might get a few carries here and there but I would expect 90-10 in favor of TJ.

 

[zamboni]

A-Train will find his seat right back on the bench. Why would they take additional carries from "their guy" to play a guy who they know won't be there next year?

Because A-Train is still on the team NOW, and can certainly help the team win. Again I'm a Jones owner and would love to see that 90-10 split, but A-Train won't just go back to the bench entirely. Jones also has to prove that he's durable enough to handle 25-30 carries a game, and they might use A-Train for the balance of the year to make sure Jones can make it through the duration.

 

[Slider]

A-Train will find his seat right back on the bench. Why would they take additional carries from "their guy" to play a guy who they know won't be there next year?

Because A-Train is still on the team NOW, and can certainly help the team win. Again I'm a Jones owner and would love to see that 90-10 split, but A-Train won't just go back to the bench entirely. Jones also has to prove that he's durable enough to handle 25-30 carries a game, and they might use A-Train for the balance of the year to make sure Jones can make it through the duration.

I would guess as soon as TJ shows he's 100% ATrain goes right back to where he was. I own neither. I just don't see the benefit of running ATrain.

 

[cstu]

From FANBALLNov 9, 2004 3:21PM ETJones will be the starter… if healthy THE NEWSRunning back Thomas Jones won't lose his starting job because of the injury that kept him out of Sunday's win over the Giants. However, it's not a sure thing that Jones will return this week from the sprained left big toe that has cost him most of the last two games.OUR VIEWBears coach Lovie Smith indicated he was hopeful Jones would be back for this Sunday's game in Tennessee, but we'll monitor the Bears' week of practice before making any recommendations for your fantasy lineup. Anthony Thomas has filled in well for Jones, and the Bears are indicating he'll continue to see some touches even after Jones returns.MY VIEWI hope so, since Jones is my only startable RB with LT and Wheatley on byes (don't make me start S. Jackson).

 

[fsufan]

Those were Thomas Jones' numbers with efficient play at the QB position. Don't forget how good he was for those first 3 weeks. The guy was on his way to being a super-star this year... as it stands, it'll have to wait till next year.

a superstar the guy has been on 4 teams in 5 years. there is a reason for that. remember David Boston. one great year and now ???????????i think it will be RBBC the rest of the year

 

[gman8343]

Those were Thomas Jones' numbers with efficient play at the QB position. Don't forget how good he was for those first 3 weeks. The guy was on his way to being a super-star this year... as it stands, it'll have to wait till next year.

a superstar the guy has been on 4 teams in 5 years. there is a reason for that. remember David Boston. one great year and now ???????????i think it will be RBBC the rest of the year

Dunno if I agree. He was putting up great numbers and looked completely comfortable in the offense. Remember, they built the whole offense around Jones' skill set, not A-Train. (and I like A-Train a lot).I don't see RBBC at all, though certainly Thomas will spell Jones a bit more.

 

[dandaman]

MY VIEWI hope so, since Jones is my only startable RB with LT and Wheatley on byes (don't make me start S. Jackson).

I feel your pain. I have TJ (injury), Droughns (bye), S Morris (bye), Zereoue (bye), V Hayes (listed as doubtful) to go with F Taylor this week. This is a mostly shark league with 20 persons per team - in other words unless V Haynes or TJ recover, I'm stuck withtrying to claim Mike Cloud or Nick Goings. EVERYONE else is taken. Please TJ, heal quickly!

 

[Hendo]

Those were Thomas Jones' numbers with efficient play at the QB position. Don't forget how good he was for those first 3 weeks. The guy was on his way to being a super-star this year... as it stands, it'll have to wait till next year.

a superstar the guy has been on 4 teams in 5 years. there is a reason for that. remember David Boston. one great year and now ???????????i think it will be RBBC the rest of the year

ya... i cant wait to bump this in the future

 

[zamboni]

Just to add to the uncertainty, it seems like Shea wasn't entirely thrilled with A-Train's performance despite the game-turning 41 yard TD run.

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

Although Thomas had 110 yards, Shea wasn’t calling it an overwhelming rushing effort for the Bears’ offense. He thinks the running game has to be more solid considering it’s covering for deficiencies in young quarterback Craig Krenzel.

“We actually were handcuffed pretty good in the run game for the most part,” Shea said.

“I think there was one point where Anthony Thomas had something like 24 carries and we were averaging 2.7 yards per carry, and that’s not good enough when you’re dealing with a young rookie quarterback. And then Anthony broke the draw (41 yards), which kind of sprung the game open for us.”

http://www.post-trib.com/cgi-bin/pto-story...z1_spor_05.html

 

[Steelers4Life]

Those were Thomas Jones' numbers with efficient play at the QB position. Don't forget how good he was for those first 3 weeks. The guy was on his way to being a super-star this year... as it stands, it'll have to wait till next year.

a superstar the guy has been on 4 teams in 5 years. there is a reason for that. remember David Boston. one great year and now ???????????i think it will be RBBC the rest of the year

There's also a reason that people watched him last year and this preseason and saw a vastly different runner than in the earlier years in Arizona. They saw a top 10 draft pick living up to his talent. And people who have watched him this season say the same thing. But this horse has been beaten to death since the preseason.Thomas Jones was a lock to be a top 7-10 RB this season before Grossman's injury, and if you don't see it by next season, you're going to miss out.

 

[sldonnel]

This is a little speculative, but provides hope to Jones owners (from STATS, through Yahoo Fantasy Football):

Nov 9 Jones' sprained left big toe continues to improve, and the Bears expect the running back to test it out at practice later this week. If he reports no major problems, Jones should return to the Chicago backfield for Sunday's game against the Tennessee Titans. He has been sidelined since suffering the injury early in a Week 8 win over the San Francisco 49ers.

Advice: At best, Jones likely will be listed as questionable on this week's injury report. If the Bears decide to hold him out another week, Anthony Thomas will get the starting nod. In seven games this season, Jones has 511 yards and five touchdowns on 117 carries, along with 26 receptions for 191 yards.

Link

/RB Starters = Holmes & Jones

Has there ever been a worse year for injuries?

 

[placeholder10391]

“We actually were handcuffed pretty good in the run game for the most part,” Shea said.

“I think there was one point where Anthony Thomas had something like 24 carries and we were averaging 2.7 yards per carry, and that’s not good enough when you’re dealing with a young rookie quarterback. And then Anthony broke the draw (41 yards), which kind of sprung the game open for us.”

 

[LordHusker]

Bump for Jones update.

 

[fsufan]

Those were Thomas Jones' numbers with efficient play at the QB position.  Don't forget how good he was for those first 3 weeks.  The guy was on his way to being a super-star this year... as it stands, it'll have to wait till next year. 

a superstar the guy has been on 4 teams in 5 years. there is a reason for that. remember David Boston. one great year and now ???????????i think it will be RBBC the rest of the year

ya... i cant wait to bump this in the future

here comes all the Jones owners

 

[zamboni]

Jones update:

Listed as questionable on the injury report (no surprise), but according to the site, he did practice today. Have to wait for Lovie to discuss how much he practiced and how he looked.

http://www.chicagobears.com/team/injury.jsp

 

[J-Co]

bump

 

[cstu]

Sounds encouraging. Barring any setbacks, he'll be in my lineup.

 

[tietzjd]

Fanball News.....Bears: Jones back on the field THE NEWSThomas Jones practiced on Wednesday, but remains questionable for the Bears' game on Sunday against the Titans. Jones is recovering from a sprained left big toe that he injured in week eight against the 49ers. OUR VIEWIf Jones plays on Sunday, he will be the Bears' starter. "Thomas Jones is still our starting tailback," head coach Lovie Smith told reporters earlier this week when asked about any potential controversy between Jones and Anthony Thomas. We will keep you informed as to Jones' attendance at practice this week. My View:Jones will start this week. But I don't think he will get full work load till next week. Glad I can sit him on my Bench well starting Mcallister and Brown.

 

[Hendo]

ya... i cant wait to bump this in the future

here comes all the Jones owners

we been here since preseason hearing this stuff.Atrain: 3.9 week 8 & 9 where the bearsd had Krenzel and not Quinn while blowing open massive holes.

TJ: 4.4 ypc on the season... with Quinn ya Atrain is marvelous

“I think there was one point where Anthony Thomas had something like 24 carries and we were averaging 2.7 yards per carry, and that’s not good enough when you’re dealing with a young rookie quarterback. And then Anthony broke the draw (41 yards), which kind of sprung the game open for us.” - straight from Shea

not encouraging if u ask me. Jones woulda racked up more yardage and maybe more TD's with those games... bad luck however didnt spurn the oppertunity.the RBBC talk is quite silly imo.... then again that's one's opinion.

 

[Isotopes]

Was Jones limited in practice yesterday, or did he fully participate. I don't have good options behind him, and need to know if he will be on the field this weekend.

 

[kaso]

Well this should be interesting. I will have to start either Jones or Thomas.... looks like it will be a fun sunday morning!! And to boot I will definitely have a hang over.

 

[NoCheese]

And to boot I will definitely have a hang over.

Drink a little less. Nothing to get stressed out about

 

[Tat]

Well this should be interesting. I will have to start either Jones or Thomas.... looks like it will be a fun sunday morning!! And to boot I will definitely have a hang over.

CBS sportsline said that it looks like Jones will play but so will ATrain.Looking at the flash update, it looks like ATrain is ready to be a backup again.We'll see what tomorrow brings.

 

[Marc Levin]

And to boot I will definitely have a hang over.

Drink a little less. Nothing to get stressed out about

I disagree - drink more - in fact, drink as soon as you wake up to make the decision - then you won't give a hoot if you make the wrong choice.

 

[H.K.]

I disagree - drink more - in fact, drink as soon as you wake up to make the decision - then you won't give a hoot if you make the wrong choice.

If this kind of sage advice does not justify the cost of FBG membership, then nothing can.

 

[Marc Levin]

I disagree - drink more - in fact, drink as soon as you wake up to make the decision - then you won't give a hoot if you make the wrong choice.

If this kind of sage advice does not justify the cost of FBG membership, then nothing can.

How do you all think I did my expert rankings all summer? Margaritas and a dart board made for a great drinking game!!

 

[Ditka is God]

And to boot I will definitely have a hang over.

Drink a little less. Nothing to get stressed out about

:reported:

 

[P Boy]

we been here since preseason hearing this stuff. Atrain: 3.9 week 8 & 9 where the bearsd had Krenzel and not Quinn while blowing open massive holes. TJ: 4.4 ypc on the season... with Quinn ya Atrain is marvelous

Well, actually, to be accurate, Jones averaged 4.98 ypc with Grossman getting the start and 3.62 ypc with Quinn getting the work.I'd say Krenzel is most likely somehwere between Grossman & Quinn, most likely almost right in the middle.And I still say A. Thomas is the better RB, and career evidence supports that, as well as the per game numbers so far this year when each Rb was the featured RB. We'll see.

 

[Hendo]

we been here since preseason hearing this stuff. Atrain: 3.9 week 8 & 9 where the bearsd had Krenzel and not Quinn while blowing open massive holes. TJ: 4.4 ypc on the season... with Quinn ya Atrain is marvelous

Well, actually, to be accurate, Jones averaged 4.98 ypc with Grossman getting the start and 3.62 ypc with Quinn getting the work.I'd say Krenzel is most likely somehwere between Grossman & Quinn, most likely almost right in the middle.And I still say A. Thomas is the better RB, and career evidence supports that, as well as the per game numbers so far this year when each Rb was the featured RB. We'll see.

Pony Boy... Grossman isnt exactly that far ahead of Craig. Atrain has a season average of 3.7... he has no speed what so ever and doesnt catch as well at Thomas Jones. the offense was specificaly built around Thomas Jones talent and utilized that way. A-Train and TJ are 2 totaly different RB's. Shea even acknowledged his 2.7 ypc in that game and was concerned over it until he sprung the 41 yarder. i truely believe a healthy Thomas Jones woul dnot only have racked up more yardage in those games but possibly would have taken a few to the house with his speed and the way they woul dutilize him more in passing situations. just my Anthony Thomas will succeed more in an offense that will use a power running game. which i hope comes in the offseason.

 

[P Boy]

Atrain has a season average of 3.7... he has no speed what so ever and doesnt catch as well at Thomas Jones. the offense was specificaly built around Thomas Jones talent and utilized that way. A-Train and TJ are 2 totaly different RB's. Shea even acknowledged his 2.7 ypc in that game and was concerned over it until he sprung the 41 yarder.

Which of course explains why A Thomas has a 20+ yd carry every 40 carries in his career, whereas Jones has a 20+ yd carry every 77 carries. Because Thomas is slow. I'd say that you haven't seen Thomas run enough if you are actually putting forth that claim.And do you really want to raise the tortured "if you ignore his one long run" argument here? At this board? You must not post here much, if you are trying to push that, because it doesn't wash no matter which RB you are talking about.Do you have a way to spin the 2-0 with Thomas vs 1-5 with Jones? Oh, yeah. Quinn. Okay, how about 2-0 with Thomas vs 1-2 with Jones behind Grossman?

 

[Macdaddy_2004]

Pony I think you wait untill you see Thomas Jones 100% healthy with Craig Krenzel in there and than make your argument for Anthony Thomas

 

[fsufan]

i do not under stand why this guy is getting so much . he has has 3 good games.week 1- 21 PTs(great #s)week 2- 21 PTs(great #s)week 3- 24 PTs(great #s)week 4-7 PTs week 5- byeweek 6- 11 PTs( average RB #s)week 7-12 PTs(average RB #s)week 8-got hurtweek 9-out

 

[P Boy]

Pony I think you wait untill you see Thomas Jones 100% healthy with Craig Krenzel in there and than make your argument for Anthony Thomas

Why? Does that make A-train slower?

 

[Peter]

I'm a Jones supporter, but I can't say he is faster than A-train. I do feel Jones is the better back of the two, but saying he's faster is I don't think Jones owners (such as myself) have to worry about him losing his job, but saying it's not even a possibility?

 

[sheerterror]

i do not under stand why this guy is getting so much . he has has 3 good games.week 1- 21 PTs(great #s)week 2- 21 PTs(great #s)week 3- 24 PTs(great #s)week 4-7 PTs week 5- byeweek 6- 11 PTs( average RB #s)week 7-12 PTs(average RB #s)week 8-got hurtweek 9-out

I'll tell you why there is so much love for Jones. He is money in point per reception leagues. A lot of us drafted him relatively late, in the RB3 range. When healthy he was putting up very good RB2, borderline RB1 numbers. You can't argue that at all. Simply put, when he was playing, he produced for us.You argue Jones' numbers, saying he had 3 great weeks, 2 average weeks, and 1 bad week. I don't think that argument holds much water, being that even great running backs (see Shaun Alexander) throw up stinkers once in a while. Don't get too excited about Anthony Thomas' numbers either over these past few weeks. He posted great numbers against mediocre/bad defenses. In those games, most of us Jones owners are confident that he would have put up just as good, if not better numbers. I'm not trying to take anything away from A-Train, he is a very good running back and will probably do well elsewhere...just not in Chicago where it is the Thomas Jones show once he returns to full health.

 

[fsufan]

I'll tell you why there is so much love for Jones. He is money in point per reception leagues. .

what about league that do not give 1 PT for receptions like mine 3 Great weeks do not make a good fantasy RB.

 

[sheerterror]

3 Great weeks and 3 average/mediocre weeks by no means make you a bad fantasy running back. Most of our cause for optimism is the fact that the Bears offense looks that much more opened up with Krenzel at the helm. It's no secret that Quinn couldn't do anything at all, so a lot of our optimism comes from the anticipation that with a QB that can get defenses to back off even the slightest bit, then maybe, just maybe, Jones can put up similar numbers to those while Grossman was playing. I just don't think you can argue A-Train is the better back or will take significant carries away from Jones the rest of the way yet because 1)he hasn't played a decent defense yet this season and 2)we've yet to see what Jones can do when Krenzel is in there.

 

[TheLaw]

Forget all this BS. Is TJ starting and getting the majority of the work, or what?

 

[Marc Levin]

Forget all this BS. Is TJ starting and getting the majority of the work, or what?

or what.

 

[cstu]

I'm a Jones supporter, but I can't say he is faster than A-train. I do feel Jones is the better back of the two, but saying he's faster is I don't think Jones owners (such as myself) have to worry about him losing his job, but saying it's not even a possibility?

I can:Anthony Thomas - 4.59Thomas Jones - 4.45Does that mean A-Train can't be a good NFL back? No. In fact he's nearly identical in size and speed with Barlow, although Barlow is a better receiver.

 

[Jim Otto]

I'm a Jones supporter, but I can't say he is faster than A-train. I do feel Jones is the better back of the two, but saying he's faster is I don't think Jones owners (such as myself) have to worry about him losing his job, but saying it's not even a possibility?

I can:Anthony Thomas - 4.59Thomas Jones - 4.45Does that mean A-Train can't be a good NFL back? No. In fact he's nearly identical in size and speed with Barlow, although Barlow is a better receiver.

 

[Pigskin75]

I wish this thread would concentrate on the playing status of Jones rather than who's the better back. TJ has been declared the starter when healthy. That's a given.So is he healthy? What were his practices like? Is he full speed? I can't find a press conference from Lovie so I'm looking for homer info.Give up the argument guys, it just bogs down the board.