To get a perspective on how talented some think Foster is, what would the following RBs do, given the exact same carries, in Foster's place?
Felix Jones - Not close to comparable
Shonn Greene - Slightly lower
LT - Slightly lower
Jonathan Stewart - Comparable
Jamaal charles - Comparable for now, questionable when taking number of carries into account
I think they would all have put up comparable numbers. Those are just 5 random RBBC backs. This year, Foster is obviously safe. But his talent does not secure his spot or value forever.
There you go.
Ha ha. This is funny.Felix Jone is a much more talented player than Arian Foster. Please share any reasons why he wouldn't be close to Arian's numbers. Please. I would love to hear it.
Greene - I would say about the same.
LT - Better.
Stewart - Much better. Foster is a poor man's Stewart.
Charles - Much better. He put up Foster like numbers over the 2nd half of the season, with a poor line.
This post reeks of someone who has not watched much of Arian Foster this season (and if you have, we have come away with COMPLETELY different views on what we have seen).Felix Jones- Ability to tote the rock 20+ times IS an ability...one that Felix Jones does not even come close to having. Even taking that away, what exactly makes Felix better? His speed is great, but he doesn't impress me with his vision, decision making, or power. Name me 1 thing he does better than Arian Foster outside of quickness/speed? In terms of total player, I think this one goes to Foster in a landslide. Now, if you are looking to gain 60 yards on 1 play, I suppose Felix would be that player (although the only one out of these 2 that has a 70+ yard TD this season is Foster...I'm not saying, I'm just sayin...).
LT- I believe that he is level with Foster this year and Foster will be miles ahead starting next year (if not later this year). The reason is obvious- age.
Greene- Not even close to the same. They both seem to have power (with Greene having slightly more pile moving ability), but Greene is not even in the same ballpark as Foster in regards to vision, balance, and burst, at least from what I have seen. Both of these players are dealing with a small sample size, except Foster's small sample size has been MUCH more impressive.
Stewart- I would say that Stewart is better. I have been on the Stewart bandwagon since his days at Oregon and firmly believe he will be a top 3 RB when he has a job all to his own.
Charles- Slightly behind. This is the toughest comparison to make, but I will refer back to what I said about Felix- the ability to tote the rock 20+ times is absolutely an ability and seems to be one even Charles' own coach doesn't believe he has at the moment. I actually think he MAY have this ability, but if his own coaching staff doesn't agree, that has to say something, doesn't it?
The reality of the situation is that in rare circumstances, you do NOT have to be an elite, top 3 talent to PLAY like an elite, top 3 talent. Arian Foster reminds me eerily of another player who I never felt was an elite talent but played better than anyone in football over his dominant run- Priest Holmes.
Sometimes, systems fit a player PERFECTLY. This was the case with Priest, as I don't think he would have faired NEARLY as well in essentially any other offense in the NFL. Some players make their own space, but don't do as well when the space is given to them. Conversely, some players can't turn nothing into something, but are superb when the holes are there for them. Not everyone is an other-wordly, transcendent talent like Adrian Peterson, Barry Sanders, etc..., who are capable of doing both. Did Priest benefit greatly from the offense, coach, etc... in place? Sure. That being said, I'm not sure any other running back in the NFL would have faired as well as Priest did in his situation, as it absolutely played right into his exact skillset. It's rare, but it does happen and I think we have the potential makings of this very thing with Foster and Houston.
I began by thinking Foster was a flash in the pan who was doomed to die a painfull fantasy death at the hand of Gary Kubiak, if not this year then next. However, one play in particular yesterday changed my mind. It was a simple 3rd quarter swing pass that he caught in the left flat. He was one on one with a defender, juked, left the defender standing, showed extremely impressive burst to get the corner, turned up field, and then showed impressive vision by making a cutback. In the end, what should have been a 5 yard gain turned into 31. In my mind, that turned Foster from simply a product of the system to a player with the POTENTIAL to turn into the next Priest Holmes (note that I said POTENTIAL. There is still a long, long way to go before he gets to that point). Normal system backs don't look as good as he has looked while benefiting from the system- it HAS to go beyond just the system, at least from what my eyeball test is telling me. In dynasty, I STILL think the smart and safe move is to sell high if you can get legit top 5 talent for him, but I no longer think that it is that far fetched to believe he can maintain this into the forseeable future. Once upon of time, you could essentially have replaced Arian Foster's name with Priest Holmes and had this exact same debate. We all know how well that turned out for everyone saying to sell him...
at this point.
