Isaiah Crowell

[Cheesedawg 39]

Big day for him. He look as good as the stats?

Nothing too crazy, following his blocks well more than anything. Still he's done well with his few carries.

He looks great! Big/fast and north and south!!!!

Couple of great on-point posts here...he is very patient and follows his blocks well (just as in college), and he is explosive and big when he turns north. I'm excited to see how this plays out for him.

[RushHour 801]

We probably need confirmation of Tate's injury being something more than minor before this Crowell thing gets too interesting, at least for redraft

[justinl 9]

We probably need confirmation of Tate's injury being something more than minor before this Crowell thing gets too interesting, at least for redraft

Agreed. I'm skeptical about some that claimed they rostered him in their redraft. This was a guy who, before he broke out against CHICAGO in the preseason, I thought was going to get cut. And it didn't help that Tate was mildly successful in his attempts in Week 1 and Pettine said Crowell was an afterthought until Tate went down. I think Crowell remains stuck behind Tate and West as long as they're healthy.

[Mene 793]

We probably need confirmation of Tate's injury being something more than minor before this Crowell thing gets too interesting, at least for redraft

Agreed. I'm skeptical about some that claimed they rostered him in their redraft. This was a guy who, before he broke out against CHICAGO in the preseason, I thought was going to get cut. And it didn't help that Tate was mildly successful in his attempts in Week 1 and Pettine said Crowell was an afterthought until Tate went down. I think Crowell remains stuck behind Tate and West as long as they're healthy.

I actually picked him up in a 12 team/18 roster ppr last week. I credit The Audible with making me aware of him, but as the Tate owner who didn't get West, I thought Crowell might be a nice lottery ticket style backup plan.

[Tanner9919 392]

the fact that we're already talking about a Tate injury , after only the first game of the season,tells me all I need to know about Crowell: he's going to get plenty of playing time in this offense.. it's between Crowell and West at this point.

[Cheesedawg 39]

Nate Ulrich @NateUlrichABJ

#Browns HC Mike Pettine said he thinks RB Isaiah Crowell is "built for" OC Kyle Shanahan's system.

[Alex P Keaton 3,770]

Nate Ulrich @NateUlrichABJ

#Browns HC Mike Pettine said he thinks RB Isaiah Crowell is "built for" OC Kyle Shanahan's system.

He also said that T West had a great week of practice.

[massraider 10,856]

And that Tate was a workhorse.

[ebsteelers 48]

3 rbs with 1000 yards?

more likely 3 rbs with 700 yards, and equal number of tds so no one gets a good piece

[Xue 245]

Great breakdown of Crowell here: http://cle.scout.com/story/1449578-browns-film-room-isaiah-crowell

[jurb26 926]

Sorry if I missed it but what is the extent of Tate's injury?

[Freelove 617]

Sorry if I missed it but what is the extent of Tate's injury?

Something, something, 2-4 weeks.

[hines 21]

the fact that we're already talking about a Tate injury , after only the first game of the season,tells me all I need to know about Crowell: he's going to get plenty of playing time in this offense.. it's between Crowell and West at this point.

this is blinding yourself to the situation. it sounds like a 2-4 week injury after which Tate will be back. when he comes back he takes the job back or at least most of the job back

[SameSongNDance 7,014]

the fact that we're already talking about a Tate injury , after only the first game of the season,tells me all I need to know about Crowell: he's going to get plenty of playing time in this offense.. it's between Crowell and West at this point.

this is blinding yourself to the situation. it sounds like a 2-4 week injury after which Tate will be back. when he comes back he takes the job back or at least most of the job back

Until the next injury. Tate has succumb to more injuries on his 480-ish touches than a lot of RBs in the league. He's essentially in Chris Ivory territory but Ivory is still upright after week 1, so he wins this round.

[njherdfan 140]

the fact that we're already talking about a Tate injury , after only the first game of the season,tells me all I need to know about Crowell: he's going to get plenty of playing time in this offense.. it's between Crowell and West at this point.

this is blinding yourself to the situation. it sounds like a 2-4 week injury after which Tate will be back. when he comes back he takes the job back or at least most of the job back

Until the next injury. Tate has succumb to more injuries on his 480-ish touches than a lot of RBs in the league. He's essentially in Chris Ivory territory but Ivory is still upright after week 1, so he wins this round.

Ivory also stayed healthy last year.

[SameSongNDance 7,014]

the fact that we're already talking about a Tate injury , after only the first game of the season,tells me all I need to know about Crowell: he's going to get plenty of playing time in this offense.. it's between Crowell and West at this point.

this is blinding yourself to the situation. it sounds like a 2-4 week injury after which Tate will be back. when he comes back he takes the job back or at least most of the job back

Until the next injury. Tate has succumb to more injuries on his 480-ish touches than a lot of RBs in the league. He's essentially in Chris Ivory territory but Ivory is still upright after week 1, so he wins this round.

Ivory also stayed healthy last year.

I thought he missed some time earlier in the season due to another hamstring injury.

He did stay relatively healthy though, yeah, which for Ivory is a huge success.

[hines 21]

Until the next injury. Tate has succumb to more injuries on his 480-ish touches than a lot of RBs in the league. He's essentially in Chris Ivory territory but Ivory is still upright after week 1, so he wins this round.

that's what they say about everyone until they stay healthy. unless he has some structural issue he is more likely to play say 9 of the remaining 10 games than to simply be out of the picture entirely. if you are guessing fantasy points rest of season, Tate has to be #1 among Browns RBs

[SameSongNDance 7,014]

Until the next injury. Tate has succumb to more injuries on his 480-ish touches than a lot of RBs in the league. He's essentially in Chris Ivory territory but Ivory is still upright after week 1, so he wins this round.

that's what they say about everyone until they stay healthy. unless he has some structural issue he is more likely to play say 9 of the remaining 10 games than to simply be out of the picture entirely. if you are guessing fantasy points rest of season, Tate has to be #1 among Browns RBs

Here was my post a little before the start of the season in the Tate thread..

He's been in the league for 4 years, in that time span he's amassed 479 touches (421 rushing, 58 receiving).

2010 - broke his foot, missed the entire season

2011 - pulled his groin vs. PIT in week 4 after amassing a large volume of touches in September, Foster came back in October

2012 - sprained his foot against TEN in week 4, missed a game, came back for two games then injured his hamstring, missed all of November

2013 - broke his ribs, played through it like a boss but wasn't as effective and was eventually placed on IR in week 15

How am I supposed to expect him to touch the ball 275-300 times, ~60% of his workload in the NFL up to this point and remain upright? The fact that West hasn't been super impressive isn't a plus, it's a negative. I'd feel much more comfortable if I knew I could cuff Tate but now I'd have to worry about Crowell possibly splitting reps or even taking over in the event Tate did go down. I just can't justify a 5th/6th round, let a lone a 3rd round investment with that kind of track record and so much uncertainty.

This isn't meant to brag, as everyone knows about Tate's durability issues but it is meant to help gain a better perspective. I'm willing to bet there are only a handful of perennial back-up RBs with Tate's extensive injury history. When trying to measure Crowell's long-term potential this year, I think it's very fair to take into account Tate's injury history. Of course, Tate should touch the ball again sometimes this year but again "for how long?" is a good question. It's the same reason people felt more comfortable gambling on C. Johnson this year even though they knew Ivory would be apart of the game plan. These guys haven't proven they can last a full season, and until they do I'm going to assume they can't.

[Gvindy 40]

Coach Mike Pettine hinted that he sees Isaiah Crowell as more of a power back than Terrance West.

With Ben Tate (knee) out 2-4 weeks, West is going to be the starter. But the talented Crowell is going to mix in as well, possibly in the red zone. He scored from 3 and 15 yards out in the Week 1 loss to the Steelers. "I think Terrance is more of a 'can make you miss' guy. I don't know if Crowell wants to make you miss," Pettine said. Crowell, a former five-star recruit and SEC Freshman of the Year before off-field issues derailed his career, needs to be owned in most 12-team formats.

Source: Cleveland Plain Dealer

[Alex P Keaton 3,770]

Coach Mike Pettine hinted that he sees Isaiah Crowell as more of a power back than Terrance West.

With Ben Tate (knee) out 2-4 weeks, West is going to be the starter. But the talented Crowell is going to mix in as well, possibly in the red zone. He scored from 3 and 15 yards out in the Week 1 loss to the Steelers. "I think Terrance is more of a 'can make you miss' guy. I don't know if Crowell wants to make you miss," Pettine said. Crowell, a former five-star recruit and SEC Freshman of the Year before off-field issues derailed his career, needs to be owned in most 12-team formats.

Source: Cleveland Plain Dealer

That seems like a bit of a stretch in interpretation.

[JamesTheScot 85]

We probably need confirmation of Tate's injury being something more than minor before this Crowell thing gets too interesting, at least for redraft

Agreed. I'm skeptical about some that claimed they rostered him in their redraft. This was a guy who, before he broke out against CHICAGO in the preseason, I thought was going to get cut. And it didn't help that Tate was mildly successful in his attempts in Week 1 and Pettine said Crowell was an afterthought until Tate went down. I think Crowell remains stuck behind Tate and West as long as they're healthy.

These are never static situations.

If his performance against Chicago caused a shift in his coaches' plan for him, then it would be reckless to ignore what another good showing would do. Although he had fewer carries, he looked every bit as good as Tate and West did.

What this is shaping up for is a situation where none of the three have a lock-down hold on the job. The minute any of them falters, fumbles, gets dinged, etc. it's going to be very easy for the coaches to start thinking about the other guy standing on the sideline.

I think this could easily be a "hot hand" situation by mid-season. It will be a nightmare if you need to count on one of them, but the Crowell owners will clearly have an advantage there given that their cost to acquire was likely significantly lower than it was for both the Tate and West owners.

[Zyphros 1,883]

So what is his price tag now? I just inquired about him and his owner wants a late 1st/early 2nd at worst. Seems a bit high to me for 1 "good" (if you want to call 5 touches good, although the results were nice) game. I wouldn't mind putting a 2nd for maybe 2 years in the future but the immediate year is a high price tag. As much as I hate how I dropped him from my team, maybe this is sellers remorse and I just want him back and willing to pay higher, but whats the consensus on how high people are willing to pay to get him?

[Gvindy 40]

I envision a scenario where Crowell closes out games (assuming CLE) is in the game. Do you think a tired defense wants to/can tackle this beast? However even down by a lot, vs PIT they leaned heavily on the run. I would much rather have shares in the #2 RB behind this Oline and Shanahan system, than even other teams 1st option in some cases(OAK). I'm in a 6pt TD league so that makes it sweeter. With Tate's injury history, it's time to buy.

Edited September 11, 2014 by Gvindy

[Alex P Keaton 3,770]

So what is his price tag now? I just inquired about him and his owner wants a late 1st/early 2nd at worst. Seems a bit high to me for 1 "good" (if you want to call 5 touches good, although the results were nice) game. I wouldn't mind putting a 2nd for maybe 2 years in the future but the immediate year is a high price tag. As much as I hate how I dropped him from my team, maybe this is sellers remorse and I just want him back and willing to pay higher, but whats the consensus on how high people are willing to pay to get him?

I'm in a bit of a hybrid league....between dynasty/redraft. In that league, the Crowell owner was offered a likely late 2nd + small amount of cash weeks ago. He turned down the offer. I can't see any rabid Crowell owners selling him for less than a late 1st. The upside - and talent - is such that there is value in holding Crowell.

[Steelers4Life 414]

So what is his price tag now? I just inquired about him and his owner wants a late 1st/early 2nd at worst. Seems a bit high to me for 1 "good" (if you want to call 5 touches good, although the results were nice) game. I wouldn't mind putting a 2nd for maybe 2 years in the future but the immediate year is a high price tag. As much as I hate how I dropped him from my team, maybe this is sellers remorse and I just want him back and willing to pay higher, but whats the consensus on how high people are willing to pay to get him?

I drafted him at 2.12 for him in a 12 team PPR dynasty league this year. Wanted to go for the highest upside at the point, and Crowell was that by far.

On Sunday, he looked like the best RB the Browns have on his limited touches. Bigger, faster, and more powerful than West. Tate looked lighter on his feet by a little and had more moves than I thought he would, but Crowell looked awesome. He looked like a guy who was a 5 star recruit and the SEC freshman of the year, and I believe his talent will eventually win out if he's given a fair chance to show it.

I don't believe I'd get anything close to what he's worth to me right now, just at the chance that what I saw turns out to be real. That chance is worth a lot more than a 2nd round rookie pick that probably won't amount to much.

He's not much different than Christine Michael right now to me. He's behind younger but far less talent backs though.

[Bracie Smathers 3,547]

One thing that stood out to me from the Pittsburgh game per all Browns RBs.....

Zero receptions.

I think once Tate comes back that he will see opportunities in the passing game but so far we haven't really seen that from the rookies.

One other interesting tidbit.

Everyone was oohing and aaaaahing over Pittsburgh RB LeVeone Bell and all of the Browns RBs, for good reason and they all looked great but I decided to do one simple thing. Take away the biggest run from each and see how much it impacted their average per rush.

Since, Tate (4 carries) and Crowell (5) had such limited attempts, taking away one carry meant chopping off 20 to 25% of their carries so any number derived is meaningless but Bell had 21 carries and West had 16 so we get a better picture of what they did if you take out their largest carry and this is what they averaged on their 'other' carries.

- Bell 3.55 yards per carry on his 'other' 20 rushing attempts

- West 4.7333333 yards per carry on his 'other' 15 rushing attempts

Considering that every Browns back averaged over 6 yards per rush it shows that either the Browns O-Line is dominant or the Steelers run defense is shoddy or a combination of both.

The biggest take-aways is that no Cleveland Brown RB caught a single pass and even if you took away West's longest carry he was still producing at a very-high level average per carry.

We'll have to see if Shanahan starts to incorporate the RBs into the passing attack game-plans now that Tate is out.

I would expect to at least see some screen plays schemed-up for them if anything but if we don't see any production then it seems that when Tate comes back that he will assume that role.

[Warhogs 631]

So what is his price tag now? I just inquired about him and his owner wants a late 1st/early 2nd at worst. Seems a bit high to me for 1 "good" (if you want to call 5 touches good, although the results were nice) game. I wouldn't mind putting a 2nd for maybe 2 years in the future but the immediate year is a high price tag. As much as I hate how I dropped him from my team, maybe this is sellers remorse and I just want him back and willing to pay higher, but whats the consensus on how high people are willing to pay to get him?

I drafted him at 2.12 for him in a 12 team PPR dynasty league this year. Wanted to go for the highest upside at the point, and Crowell was that by far.

On Sunday, he looked like the best RB the Browns have on his limited touches. Bigger, faster, and more powerful than West. Tate looked lighter on his feet by a little and had more moves than I thought he would, but Crowell looked awesome. He looked like a guy who was a 5 star recruit and the SEC freshman of the year, and I believe his talent will eventually win out if he's given a fair chance to show it.

I don't believe I'd get anything close to what he's worth to me right now, just at the chance that what I saw turns out to be real. That chance is worth a lot more than a 2nd round rookie pick that probably won't amount to much.

He's not much different than Christine Michael right now to me. He's behind younger but far less talent backs though.

Umm, yeah.

You aren't cashing him in for a first round pick at this point so he is more valuable to you than anyone else.

[Steelers4Life 414]

So what is his price tag now? I just inquired about him and his owner wants a late 1st/early 2nd at worst. Seems a bit high to me for 1 "good" (if you want to call 5 touches good, although the results were nice) game. I wouldn't mind putting a 2nd for maybe 2 years in the future but the immediate year is a high price tag. As much as I hate how I dropped him from my team, maybe this is sellers remorse and I just want him back and willing to pay higher, but whats the consensus on how high people are willing to pay to get him?

I drafted him at 2.12 for him in a 12 team PPR dynasty league this year. Wanted to go for the highest upside at the point, and Crowell was that by far.

On Sunday, he looked like the best RB the Browns have on his limited touches. Bigger, faster, and more powerful than West. Tate looked lighter on his feet by a little and had more moves than I thought he would, but Crowell looked awesome. He looked like a guy who was a 5 star recruit and the SEC freshman of the year, and I believe his talent will eventually win out if he's given a fair chance to show it.

I don't believe I'd get anything close to what he's worth to me right now, just at the chance that what I saw turns out to be real. That chance is worth a lot more than a 2nd round rookie pick that probably won't amount to much.

He's not much different than Christine Michael right now to me. He's behind younger but far less talent backs though.

Umm, yeah.

You aren't cashing him in for a first round pick at this point so he is more valuable to you than anyone else.

I agree, and I'm not shopping him. Why would I? I'd rather keep him anyways because I agree - the chance that he's real is more valuable than anything anyone will give up to take that chance. If someone wants him, they're welcome to offer for him, but selling high only works if there are buyers, and people who don't own him won't be paying much.

Christine Michael is nothing but a physically talented backup without any kind of role or track record, yet people drool over him all the time despite him playing behind one of the best backs in the league for this year at least. Crowell didn't have the draft status to match his pedigree, but he has a much better pedigree than Michael. I suspect that if Crowell shows well with whatever carries he gets in the next 2 to 4 weeks, his hype could reach a similar level.

[peyton41 1]

I have a trio of Ben Tate, Terrance West and Crowell on my roster. Do I drop Crowell to speculate on Aaron Dobson? It's a somewhat shallow, 10-team league so I'm looking for upside.

[Teef 29]

We probably need confirmation of Tate's injury being something more than minor before this Crowell thing gets too interesting, at least for redraft

Agreed. I'm skeptical about some that claimed they rostered him in their redraft. This was a guy who, before he broke out against CHICAGO in the preseason, I thought was going to get cut. And it didn't help that Tate was mildly successful in his attempts in Week 1 and Pettine said Crowell was an afterthought until Tate went down. I think Crowell remains stuck behind Tate and West as long as they're healthy.

I didn't draft him myself, but I saw him drafted in a 10 and a 14 teamer, both redraft. These weren't shark leagues either.

He was on some kind of sleeper list out there, somewhere.

[Sabertooth 5,923]

I have a trio of Ben Tate, Terrance West and Crowell on my roster. Do I drop Crowell to speculate on Aaron Dobson? It's a somewhat shallow, 10-team league so I'm looking for upside.

I wouldn't. I think Crowell's got plenty of upside.

[groin pains 47]

How many touches do you guys see him getting against New Orleans this Sunday?

[RBM 4,899]

How many touches do you guys see him getting against New Orleans this Sunday?

If they're playing from behind - 4

Tight game - 8

[Cheesedawg 39]

We probably need confirmation of Tate's injury being something more than minor before this Crowell thing gets too interesting, at least for redraft

Agreed. I'm skeptical about some that claimed they rostered him in their redraft. This was a guy who, before he broke out against CHICAGO in the preseason, I thought was going to get cut. And it didn't help that Tate was mildly successful in his attempts in Week 1 and Pettine said Crowell was an afterthought until Tate went down. I think Crowell remains stuck behind Tate and West as long as they're healthy.

I didn't draft him myself, but I saw him drafted in a 10 and a 14 teamer, both redraft. These weren't shark leagues either.

He was on some kind of sleeper list out there, somewhere.

When they played him extensively in the last game and didn't put him on the practice squad, their actions said that they really liked what they saw. Crowell was one of three RB's on the roster and he is no special teams asset, so they were telling us they intended to give him carries. It's happened faster than expected because Tate already got hurt, but regardless he was very draftable in deep leagues. I took him in the 17th in a 12 team league.

Edited September 13, 2014 by Cheesedawg

[nastynate 38]

How many touches do you guys see him getting against New Orleans this Sunday?

If they're playing from behind - 4

Tight game - 8

I'm leaning 7-10. Think he probably earned something close to a 60/40 plan going into the game.

[munygon2 15]

Ok, who is rolling the dice and starting Crowell against the Saints?

[AgentMulder 2]

Ok, who is rolling the dice and starting Crowell against the Saints?

You should start him.

[NREC34 3,561]

Ok, who is rolling the dice and starting Crowell against the Saints?

I think I'm going to start him over Jeremy Hill.

[bill bates hits hard 20]

^Me too

[Rubi 289]

Ok, who is rolling the dice and starting Crowell against the Saints?

Anyone think he's worth a start over F.Jackson or R.Matthews?

[Jim Otto 15]

I'm starting him over Adrian Peterson and Ray Rice

[ponchsox 622]

11/54 4.9 YPC. Looked like he got more work in the second half. Perhaps a sign of things to come?

[Dave Stauff 35]

Be interested in any comparisons between West and Crowell from those that had a chance to see the New Orleans game. See that Crowell's YPC was a bit higher, but hard to tell how West looked from a stat sheet . . .

[Dinsy Ejotuz 12,881]

West has 16 and 21 touches (190 yards) since Tate went down.

Crowell has 5 and 12 (89 yards).

So right around 2:1 in favor of West overall.

[amnesiac 859]

got to watch the game Sunday.

Crowell definitely looks faster to my eyes.

West is a decent RB.

glad the Browns have both, but Crowell seems to have the higher ceiling.

[FGITLOTR 343]

West doesn't wow you in any facet of the game, but he's playing like a veteran RB. In other words, most rookies have a tendency to bounce things outside, but he is taking what is there and on top of that is doing okay is pass pro. I own him and to be objective, hes not as athletically gifted as Crowell (echoing the sentiments of many), but he's pretty darn good. Between Tate's proclivity to get nicked up and Crowell's character issues, I'll take West over them any day of the week.

[Long Ball Larry 14,280]

FWIW, on PFF, Crowell had a much better running grade (.4 to -1.9), but West a much better blocking grade (-.7 to .6)

[FGITLOTR 343]

FWIW, on PFF, Crowell had a much better running grade (.4 to -1.9), but West a much better blocking grade (-.7 to .6)

Makes sense from what I saw

[DirtyCashDylan 78]

thoughts? He's got a bye coming up and then he's back to 3rd string.

[NREC34 3,561]

thoughts? He's got a bye coming up and then he's back to 3rd string.

Droppable in redraft.