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Dynasty: Kalen Ballage, RB Arizona State (1 Viewer)
- Thread starter Liquid Courage
- Start date
Boston
Footballguy
Could not agree more...it could be 100 times worse...they added an aging Frank Gore and a project type of fourth rounder in Ballage...any Drake owner disappointed in that is not being realistic...IMO Miami’s current depth chart is nothing but an endorsement for Drake...
Gandalf
Footballguy
I don't see how taking a RB with Ballage's athleticism could be an endorsement for Drake. It's a risk for sure and I would not be surprised if Ballage winds up the bell cow in that offense within a year.
ChuckLiddell
Footballguy
Measurables are solid. Very fast for a back his size. https://www.mockdraftable.com/player/kalen-ballage
Boston
Footballguy
Very easily...he is a 4th round pick that is seen as a project...if Miami was really concerned about Drake they would have added more than an aging vet and a mid-round rookie...that doesn't mean Ballage can't figure things out at the NFL but the assets Miami invested in at that position say they are going to give Drake an opportunity this year...
jtd13
Footballguy
Couldn't have asked for a better spot for Ballage, and apparently, our RB coach has been hot on Ballage for awhile and was the guy pushing for him. I still think Drake is the favorite to lead the backfield, but Miami has had success with mid-round RBs over the past several years (Miller, Ajayi, Drake, even grabbing Darkwa and Damien Williams as UDFAs).
JPeso
Footballguy
gianmarco
Footballguy
gianmarco
Footballguy
Knile Davis -- 227 lbs, 4.37 forty time, 33.5" vert, 121" broad, 6.96 3-cone, 4.38 20 yd shuttle
K. Ballage -- 228 lbs, 4.46 forty time, 33.5" vert, 122" broad, 6.91 3-cone, 4.35 20 yd shuttle
FreeBaGeL
Footballguy
Gandalf
Footballguy
4th round pick in a deep RB class. He might not de-thrown Drake as Miami's lead back but to not be at all concerned about that seems too cavalier.
Boston
Footballguy
I said it could be a lot worse...that is not cavalier...if Ballage turns into a Kareem Hunt level player Drake owners can worry but that is an awfully big leap from what he has shown to date...bottom line is Miami had to add bodies...that was a definite...if they added a McKinnon in free agency or a Guice in the draft I would be far more concerned...that would not be seen as an endorsement of Drake...
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Dr. Octopus
Footballguy
It was a deep class, but teams sure seemed determined to make sure they got one of the true talents with 7 gone by the end of Round 2. I was able to draft Ballage at 2.12 in the only league I had Drake, but I was not all that concerned about getting him. At that point in the draft the pool is pretty shallow so it made sense to grab him just in case, but I fully expect Drake to see the bulk of the workload still. I think Ballage may even end up stuck behind Gore for 2018.
I like ballage but also own a couple shares of drake. It's a good spot for him since he does have the chance to possibly be a bell cow but I'm not that worried as a drake owner that he will. Drake will have to play bad for ballage to really give him a shot and at that point we wouldn't expect much from drake anyway.
squistion
Footballguy
As a Ballage dynasty owner, this is not exactly what I wanted to hear (although it is not that much different than was said by draft scouts before the draft).
Evan SilvaVerified account @evansilva 38m38 minutes ago
#Dolphins RBs coach Eric Studesville indicated he sees 4th-Round pick Kalen Ballage as a work in progress: "We're at the beginning stages of developing him."
http://amp.miamiherald.com/sports/spt-columns-blogs/barry-jackson/article211925779.html?__twitter_impression=true
Evan SilvaVerified account @evansilva 38m38 minutes ago
#Dolphins RBs coach Eric Studesville indicated he sees 4th-Round pick Kalen Ballage as a work in progress: "We're at the beginning stages of developing him."
http://amp.miamiherald.com/sports/spt-columns-blogs/barry-jackson/article211925779.html?__twitter_impression=true
Borden
Footballguy
Meh. If this is a year two statement then there’s concern. Plus the whole quote is, “Physically he looks the part for sure, but there’s a lot more things that go into it. We’re at the beginning stages of developing him.” For a rookie at this point in the season, there’s not much to worry about. I agree that isn’t not the best news but I wouldn’t be too worried about it.
Bojang0301
Omar4Heisman
Hype train starting to roll. I’m pretty conflicted on him. Physically there aren’t many that compare. He slipped a lot in rookie drafts and I ended up with a healthy stock of Ballage despite where I had him in my rankings. If he starts flashing in preseason I have no idea what would be fair value.
Bojang0301
Omar4Heisman
Open Competition?
Loggains thinks both Ballage and Drake three down backs
Reports of him looking good in OTA’s. No pads so not a surprise there as the superior athletes tend to stand out more in that setting. Still it’s not opposite news. There is opportunity to be had if Drake is a small sample size mirage.
Loggains thinks both Ballage and Drake three down backs
Reports of him looking good in OTA’s. No pads so not a surprise there as the superior athletes tend to stand out more in that setting. Still it’s not opposite news. There is opportunity to be had if Drake is a small sample size mirage.
Football Jones
Footballguy
I was more interested in Ballage at one time, but his cost might be prohibitive given his realistic upside.
I'm curious to see what he can do with the Dolphins. They do have an opening at RB (more or less) if he can take advantage of it.
I'm curious to see what he can do with the Dolphins. They do have an opening at RB (more or less) if he can take advantage of it.
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Jello_Biafra
Footballguy
I don't think he beats out Drake. Miami has nothing to lose by trotting Drake out there to see what he can do, which I think he earned based on last year. I don't think he beats Gore out, either.
Dr. Octopus
Footballguy
I took him at 2.11 in a league I had Drake and Gore already because there wasn’t much I was interested in anyway - but if he went at 2.10 it wouldn’t have bothered me. Like you, I don’t expect him to even beat out Gore for the backup role. Of course it’s possible his athleticism translates and the light goes on, but for me he’s just insurance.
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squistion
Footballguy
https://twitter.com/FtballMikeHern/status/1006646553325563905
#Dolphins rookie RB Kalen Ballage lining up at WR.
Gonna be asked to do everything Kenyan Drake can do. Gase doesn't want to script playcalls due to personnel
#Dolphins rookie RB Kalen Ballage lining up at WR.
Gonna be asked to do everything Kenyan Drake can do. Gase doesn't want to script playcalls due to personnel
Bracie Smathers
Footballguy
Berry from June 1st. Just saw this and it hasn't been posted in this thread. Interesting stuff. He looks the part of a goal line back but also has pass catching chops.
First impressions and expectations 2018 fantasy football rookie class
Speaking of Miami, one of my favorite interviews came with Dolphins fourth-round running back Kalen Ballage. When we did our NFL draft wrap-up Fantasy Focus 06010 podcast, I mentioned Ballage as an interesting late-round sleeper. I have a feeling he may not go in the late rounds by the time we get to late August. I am fully on board with him as one of my favorite later-round upside picks. I absolutely loved this kid. First, he is a massive human being. He's 6-foot-3 with a vise-like grip, so I don't know how he doesn't become their goal-line back right out of the gate. He is funny, smart and quick-witted. The press in Miami is going to love this guy.
At one point I asked him this:
TMR: Kalen, at Arizona State in 2016, you caught 44 balls, but only 17 last year. Has anyone on the Miami coaching staff talked to you about how they see you and your role in this offense?
Ballage: (Big smile) Absolutely. Y'all gonna have to find out on game day.
I kept pressing him on an answer and he wouldn't budge. At one point, I told him I had said he would be a great goal-line back for Miami on the podcast. And his response was something like, "But that's a very narrow role. Don't box me in." And they way he said "don't box me in" was more like a "if you do, you'll look dumb" than a defensive, "hey, don't stereotype me." I don't know, man.
If you just read the transcript of the interview I did with him, you'd say he gave me absolutely nothing and you'd be 100 percent right. And maybe he's a great actor or maybe he's just B.S.-ing me. All of it possible and maybe even probable, but I just think sometimes you meet people and you immediately know that person has "it."
Kalen Ballage has it by the truckload. He'll be a mid-to-later-round pick for me in every draft I do this year.
First impressions and expectations 2018 fantasy football rookie class
Speaking of Miami, one of my favorite interviews came with Dolphins fourth-round running back Kalen Ballage. When we did our NFL draft wrap-up Fantasy Focus 06010 podcast, I mentioned Ballage as an interesting late-round sleeper. I have a feeling he may not go in the late rounds by the time we get to late August. I am fully on board with him as one of my favorite later-round upside picks. I absolutely loved this kid. First, he is a massive human being. He's 6-foot-3 with a vise-like grip, so I don't know how he doesn't become their goal-line back right out of the gate. He is funny, smart and quick-witted. The press in Miami is going to love this guy.
At one point I asked him this:
TMR: Kalen, at Arizona State in 2016, you caught 44 balls, but only 17 last year. Has anyone on the Miami coaching staff talked to you about how they see you and your role in this offense?
Ballage: (Big smile) Absolutely. Y'all gonna have to find out on game day.
I kept pressing him on an answer and he wouldn't budge. At one point, I told him I had said he would be a great goal-line back for Miami on the podcast. And his response was something like, "But that's a very narrow role. Don't box me in." And they way he said "don't box me in" was more like a "if you do, you'll look dumb" than a defensive, "hey, don't stereotype me." I don't know, man.
If you just read the transcript of the interview I did with him, you'd say he gave me absolutely nothing and you'd be 100 percent right. And maybe he's a great actor or maybe he's just B.S.-ing me. All of it possible and maybe even probable, but I just think sometimes you meet people and you immediately know that person has "it."
Kalen Ballage has it by the truckload. He'll be a mid-to-later-round pick for me in every draft I do this year.
Bojang0301
Omar4Heisman
Bojang0301
Omar4Heisman
barackdhouse
Footballguy
Can't get a read on this backfield to save my life. Then again, if my life depends on the Dolphins offense this year, IDK. Gase seems he may be a lame duck. I thought Drake looked great, not good, at the end of the year, yet this *looks* like it will be a committee.
King of the Jungle
Footballguy
Getting the “quack” vibe from Gase.
SameSongNDance
Footballguy
I've always been a fan of Drake but I partially attribute his success to fresh legs. I think people often scoff at that narrative but Drake didn't see any meaningful touches untill W9 last season and didn't see work horse touches untill W13. Injuries also forced Gase's hand. Drake could pull a Bryce Brown.
Bojang0301
Omar4Heisman
Bojang0301
Omar4Heisman
Ask Adam Gase how he used Jarvis Landry last year and how he is completely clueless about the talent he has around him on the team.
Stuart Ullman
Footballguy
Picked him up today. Think he has a late season emergence and turns some heads.
He’s not on the active roster but I agree with you...he’s the perfect come out of nowhere player to make a fantasy impact
Ilov80s
Footballguy
Anything can happen because it's football but he wasn't good at Arizona State, could never really get a grip on a feature back role and while he is very fast for his size, he did not test out anywhere close to the great athlete that people expected.
Bojang0301
Omar4Heisman
133.9 Sparq, only below Saquon, Mike Boone, Trenton Cannon and Bo Scarbrough. Would have only been below Matt Breida, Brionte Dunn (prison) and Aaron Jones from last year. 4.46 40 at 228 lbs and ran the fastest sustained MPH of any RB at the senior bowl with 19.42. He is very much the great athlete people thought he was.
Ilov80s
Footballguy
He’s a very good athlete: his broad jump,40 and 3 cons were really nice- especially for his size. He’s an 80th so percentile athlete. However, I heard talk from some hardcore draft junkies that he had potential to post a Saquon level combine. He’s a +1 SD athlete with bizarre college production. Hid numbers indicate he was a bizarre hybrid of GL back and receiving back as a junior. He scored 15 TDs but 8 of them came in 1 games. Then as a senior in 13 games he has 700 total yards, 6 TDs and 4.3 ypc. Meanwhile fellow senior Demario Richard completely outplayed him as he had for 2 of their 3 years at ASU. Why wasn’t Ballagr productive outside of 1 crazy game? Why wasn’t he featured?
I saw many of his pre-season carries and reception. He's big but not an instinctive between the tackles runner. Fast, but takes time to get up to speed. Good receiver. Could be a 3rd down back, but not the Sproles type with multiple juke moves.
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