Who would you rather have week1 against the Vikings? (1 Viewer)

[Ministry of Pain]

I started writing the week 1 report and I thought the 1st game of the season had a very interesting angle to it. Pierre Thomas for most of you was taken in the 3rd or 4th round of your redrafts. Reggie Bush in many of mine didn't come off the board until the 6th round. And here we are week1 and I have to ask which back you would rather be starting against the Minnesota Vikings.

Here are my thoughts and what I wrote for the upcoming thread; I'd love to hear what everyone else thinks of this match up...



Here in lies the rub for the Saints and owners of these 2 backs. Who is going to be the one to start? Against Minnesota and a fairly strong front seven I would say that Reggie Bush has the edge because of his receiving skills. He seems better equipped to exploit the Vikings' defense as they can shut down the run and to me that limits Pierre Thomas a little more.



Reggie Bush: I probably roll with him. He was a 5th-6th round pick in most redrafts. While I am sure most owners who grabbed him likely took a RB in the 7th, 8th, and or 9th to compliment Bush, he appears very focused and I wouldn't hesitate to start him in PPR leagues. If you grabbed him for your flex option I think you really found the right guy as long as he can stay healthy. I can see him racking up 75+ yards combined and at least a few receptions to pull him into double digit range.

Pierre Thomas: So now we see if those that grabbed him in the 3rd round early 4th paid too much or not. You cannot like this match up in the 1st week as it doesn't really play to Thomas' strengths. Pierre can catch balls too but Reggie Bush has a lot more plays designed for him to get the ball out of the backfield(OTB). You hate to sit a guy in week 1 that you might have picked as your RB1 but if you have juicier match ups I might look there. Can Pierre have a good game this week? Of course but what are the percentages? 25% perhaps. Wouldn't be my 1st pick of the pool this week. If the Saints are well ahead though in the game you might see more Pierre Thomas in the 2nd half.

If you could vote up top and then post some thoughts that would be great.

 

[Ministry of Pain]

Don't be shy, who would you take for the week 1 match up? Do you expect the starter to change throughout the season? Is there room for both to have strong games regularly?

 

[GECKO]

Unless Thomas drops to excellent value for me I do not expect to have him on any of my teams. I will likely regret this move but his injury woes concern me.

Bush, I would like to have as RB2/3 in a PPR and would roll him out as that.

 

[Marino's Legacy]

If Finley goes early 4th, I might pair Bush (4.08) with Thomas on my team. It's a significant reach, but with Bush as my flex in a start 1RB, 2WR 1FL league I think he is as valuable as any WR3 I might fit into that spot.

 

[travdogg]

Thomas was much better than Bush the last time the Saints and Vikings played. I don't really see what's changed.

 

[Kwai Chang Caine]

Check this out from last year's NFC championship.

http://www.nfl.com/gamecenter/2010012401/2...alyze/box-score

I have both and I'm sure this will be a headache this year but I think I'll roll with Thomas.

 

[Zigg]

NFC Championship Game:

PT - 14/61 TD - 2/38 TD

RB - 7/8 - 2/33 TD

Have people noticed that PT might be the best screen RB in football?

 

[Ministry of Pain]

Check this out from last year's NFC championship.

http://www.nfl.com/gamecenter/2010012401/2...alyze/box-score

Interesting but is there a chance the 2010 Reggie Bush is different than the 2009 version?

It seems Thomas outproduced Bush about 2:1 or 24-12 in PPR formats, of course in the playoffs not too many folks were still playing much FF.

If we played the same 2 teams against each other 10 times do you think these stats would be the same everytime?

 

[Yenrub]

Thomas was much better than Bush the last time the Saints and Vikings played. I don't really see what's changed.

Thomas 14-61-1 rushing and 2-38-1 recBush 7-8-0 rushing and 2-33-1 rec plus a lost fumble

 

[Ministry of Pain]

Thomas was much better than Bush the last time the Saints and Vikings played. I don't really see what's changed.

Thomas 14-61-1 rushing and 2-38-1 recBush 7-8-0 rushing and 2-33-1 rec plus a lost fumble

Good points but the Vikings were #2 in rushing yds allowed a year ago. If they tighten things up, actually Thomas was held in check pretty well but he had the 2 TDs which sort of brings the avg up. I still lean more towards Bush in week 1.

 

[travdogg]

Thomas was much better than Bush the last time the Saints and Vikings played. I don't really see what's changed.

Thomas 14-61-1 rushing and 2-38-1 recBush 7-8-0 rushing and 2-33-1 rec plus a lost fumble

Good points but the Vikings were #2 in rushing yds allowed a year ago. If they tighten things up, actually Thomas was held in check pretty well but he had the 2 TDs which sort of brings the avg up. I still lean more towards Bush in week 1.

If Thomas averaging 4.4 YPC is considered being held in check, then what is Bush averaging 1.1 YPC considered?I imagine that much like last year, the Saints RB production will be sort of random week to week, only there will likely be more of it since it is likely to be a two man show instead of three. Until I see a good reason to, there isn't a single matchup I'd start Bush over Thomas in.