NFL Running Back Camp Battles to Watch, Part One

While OTA’s are winding down or have wound down, the NFL does not sleep.

The players get what passes for a vacation, but the media does not, especially since Brett Favre can’t make up his damned mind.

In perfect universal symmetry, neither can the Vikings. Is it a marriage made in heaven or hell? We’ll find out soon enough.

In order to get you prepped for tons of footbally goodness at the end of July, I’ve decided to break down some of the more interesting running back battles to watch in July and August.

This is what happens when you drive cross country folks: You fill time.

This is also not to say that there won’t be battles we don’t see as important now, emerging down the pike as intriguing. But for now, these are ones that stand out as important immediately.

Without further ado (or more ado than usual at least) here are the running back training camp battles to watch:

 

Carolina

There is a ton of assumption going on here after DeAngelo Williams went off in 2008. We know John Fox loves to hang with his vets and you have to figure Williams earned some consideration.

Still, Jonathan Stewart was able to score 10 touchdowns even with Williams’ numbers, so Fox is willing to work him in.

Where this gets interesting is behind Stewart with Mike Goodson.

Stewart has been hurt during Minis and OTAs, and Goodson is a guy the team wants involved. Why does this matter?

Because if Goodson gets a shot to shine and does so, this could become a three-headed monster, which might be great for Panther fans, though hurt the overall numbers of all three guys.

Carolina runs a ton (504 rush attempts versus 414 passing according to footballguys.com) so there could be work for all, but that might be offset a tad by three running backs.

 

Baltimore

Will last year’s Thundering Blurb Mr. Glass Award Winner (TM), Willis McGahee, ever be healthy?

My guess is no, sure as heck not coming off of two offseason surgeries. Both his knee (the one that has been hurt since…um, 1942?) and his ankle went under the knife. Stick a fork in him (or a scalpel), the man is done.

The Ravens may not agree and we’ll get a sense of that in Training Camp. That could mean the start of the Ray Rice Ruckus (also (TM)).

Rice showed some skills last season when he was healthy and should get a ton of the carries.

He won’t do it alone, however, whether the teams sticks with rookie Cedric Peerman, moves Le’Ron McClain back from fullback (where he went during OTA’s), or adds some work for Jalen Parmele.

How the backs behind Rice shake out could impact his numbers very significantly.

 

Buffalo

With Marshawn Lynch suspended the first few games of the season, Fred Jackson will get his time to shine again. Jackson looked great in limited (sometimes not-so-limited) action last season.

But the Bills acquired journeyman Dominic Rhodes this offseason to protect themselves, and he’ll duke it out for lead bell cow while ‘Dis Muh Son’ Lynch is in Goodell’s pokey.

This battle, mostly between Jackson and Rhodes is critical because whoever wins the top spot might not relinquish it when Lynch comes back and could factor in with what the Bills do with the troubled back long-term if he can’t get his head straight.

 

Cincinnati

I know the Bengals think they have some sort of hidden gem in Cedric Benson, and I’m happy for them but remain unconvinced.

Benson did well behind a tragic offensive line, which will not be the case if rookie Andre Smith can get his act together. But I can’t help but recall all the problems Benson had in Chicago, so I am not anointing him anything and neither should Cincy.

Brian Leonard and Bernard Scott are both good short yardage backs who can catch the ball and could make some noise.

Scott will have to overcome some maturity issues, and they will both have to shine in camp to wrest carries away from Benson. That’s completely possible in my opinion, so I will be interested to watch this camp closely.

 

Denver

There are three sure things in football right now: Brett Favre will be considering and waffling about a comeback in the spring and early summer, the Raiders will make decisions based on logic only they can comprehend, and the Broncos running back situation will be a cloudy mess.

But have we lost one of those sure things? Surprising everyone in this April’s Draft, the Donks took Knowshon Moreno, the talented back from Georgia, and the interwubs is all a-twitter (or all twittering) about Moreno carrying the whole load.

For sure, he can do it all—block, run and catch. But will Head Coach Josh McDaniels truly rely on one back?

His former team, the Patriots, didn’t. Of course, you can argue they lacked a back like Moreno.

All I know is Moreno has the ability to do it. But with recent additions Correll Buckhalter, Lamont Jordan, and Darius Walker—along with impressive 2008 rookie Peyton Hillis—this is a camp battle you have to watch.

Considering they no longer have Jay Cutler slinging the ball, the run game is of paramount importance this year.

 

Indianapolis

It wasn’t that long ago that Joseph Addai was the answer in Colt-land at running back. A few injury-plagued seasons later, Donald Brown is drafted and Addai is poised to lose most of his carries.

Brown can do pretty much everything Addai can do, and might have the size to stay healthy, as well. Most analysts feel it is only a matter of time before Brown takes over the higher percentage of carries in this obvious running back committee.

What I want to know is, what percentage does he start the season with? A good camp by Brown could give him a large role in this prolific offense.

That’s it for today’s installment. I’ll be back tomorrow with a look at some more teams, including who might be backing up MJD in Jacksonville, what Philadelphia is looking at if Westbrook stays hurt, and who will be the top dog in the mess that is the Seahawks’ run game?

The Ghost Of Bill Walsh: Is The Past Hurting The 49ers Present?

You cannot think about the San Francisco 49ers without several names attaching themselves to the memory.

Jerry Rice. Joe Montana. Steve Young.

Bill Walsh.

While the athletes get more facial recognition outside of football and off the playing field, a real football fan will tell you that more than anyone else, Bill Walsh shaped the 49ers success.

Walsh popularized the west Coast Offense, won early and often with the team going 102–63–1 lifetime, won 10 out of 14 postseason games along with six division titles, three NFC Championship Titles and three Super Bowls.

Guy like that? He’s someone who shapes a franchise, even when he’s gone.

Is that always a good thing though?

Bear with me for a second here. Walsh did incredible, miraculous, wonderful things with the 49ers. It was one of the best franchises under one of the best coaches to ever see the NFL.

But I feel like I’m hearing a lot about how Bill Walsh would be doing things now, and I can’t help but wonder if that’s bad.

When Mike Lombardi at the National Football Post spends an entire column on Thursday talking about what Walsh would have done in terms of the Draft (he would have drafted Sanchez) and how the 49ers aren’t who they once were (where is the West Coast Offense? he asks) I have to wonder if it is.

Again, I cannot say enough how much I respect what Walsh did, both for the organization and for football.

But he’s not coaching now. Mike Singletary is.

Which makes Mr. Lombardi’s paragraph saying ‘I often ask myself, what would Bill want for the 49ers? What would Bill do if he were back with the 49ers?’ completely irrelevant.

This is not Walsh’s 49ers. However, unlike the way Lombardi’s column feels, I think that’s not a huge crisis.

Have they lost any sense of identity? Absolutely and I have pointed it out more than once the last few weeks.

But intimating that the way to succeed is for Singletary to do what Walsh would do is wrongheaded at best and could be damaging to the franchise.

Singletary is very much working to bring an identity to this team. Bringing in Jimmy Raye as an offensive coordinator who can get the run going consistently, and quarterback/coach Mike Johnson to fix the position are both steps towards that.

If it’s not exactly how Walsh might have done it, fine. It shouldn’t be.

Or more to my point it shouldn’t HAVE to be.

In my mind, there isn’t just one way to do things and even a way that was successful once isn’t guaranteed to be so again.

We need to give Singletary time to fix this. I really think he can.

However, the only way to do that is to let Mike be Mike – not force him to be Bill Walsh as played by Mike Singletary.

In fact, I would say that if Singletary were to adhere to what Walsh would have done – or what was once ‘the 49er way’ – it could be a good way to slow a resurgence down and perhaps even crush it altogether.

It’s not that it couldn’t work — it’s just that it’s not necessarily Singletary’s way.

A round hole is only going to get beat up by forcing a square peg into it, even if the peg is a good peg. It just doesn’t fit the hole and complaining that the hole used to be square isn’t a solution.

Don’t get me wrong, I respect and enjoy what Lombardi says and read him constantly at the Post. But the column highlights a dangerous trap, one which has us dwelling too much on ‘the way things were’ rather than see the possibilities of what could be today.

Singletary’s way might not be Walsh’s way or what the 49ers way was once upon a time. But that’s not to say it couldn’t be the way of the future.

We cannot forget the incredible dedication and success that Bill Walsh showed while with the 49ers.

At the same time, we must not let that love and respect cloud our vision of Singletary is trying to do today.

We must not judge one by the success of the other.

San Francisco 49ers Sign CB Dre’ Bly

With the injury to Walt Harris this week, it was only a matter of time before the 49ers brought in another veteran to fill out the roster spot and the today the team signed cornerback Dre’ Bly accordingly.

Bly, who according to Matt Maiocco of the The Press Democrat signed a one-year contract today, has been around the league a few times. Most recently he played with the Denver Broncos after working for the Lions and Rams previously.

He has been unemployed since he was cut by the Broncos this offseason. While with Denver, he compiled 62 tackles (54 solo, 8 assisted) over 16 games. He also had a pair of interceptions.

While Bly’s best days might be behind him, he is still a producer and helps give the 49ers some veteran depth. With Shawntae Spencer coming off an injury and players like Tarrell Brown and Marcus Hudson who have yet to prove themselves, a little extra proven support could be a big deal.

Bly will likely line up across from Nate Clements this season and get his hands dirty supporting the run defense—something he can defintely do.

The Five Keys to Success for the San Francisco 49ers in 2009 and Beyond

Once upon a time, the San Francisco 49ers were a force to be reckoned with both offensively and defensively.

Names like Montana, Young, Rice and Lott were feared throughout the league.

It hasn’t been the same story in recent years.

However, the key to past great 49er teams wasn’t just players – though you can never credit the phenomenal talents of the men mentioned above enough.

As that is the case, it should be equally true that the failings of the past years are not just on the players who wear the uniform, though they often share some blame.

There are several areas which the team must improve to be successful – and not just for this season. The problems which have been plaguing this team for so long must be fixed with an eye towards the long term as well, or else we’ll just be writing this article again in a short amount of time.

So here are a look at five areas I believe are of paramount importance if the 49ers are to succeed not just this year – but in future seasons as well.

San Francisco 49ers Sign Another Draft Pick

The San Francisco 49ers continued assuring that their 2009 rookie class will be attending Training Camp.

Matt Maiocco of the Santa Rosa Press-Democrat is reporting on his twitter account that the team has signed seventh round pick Curtis Taylor.

This was also picked up by ProFootballTalk.com.

The LSU safety is reported to have signed a deal for four years, $1.8M with a $59,880 signing bonus.

Taylor is an athletic, big hitting safety who can leap to make a big block or close on a target quickly. He does get over aggressive at times, which can cause him to miss tackles.

He also isn’t as strong as he should be and for a guy who can hit big, isn’t as physical as he should be, especially against the run.

He’ll be vying for time with a large roster of safeties, including with veterans Michael Lewis, Dashon Goldson, and Mark Roman and less experienced players like Tarrell Brown and Reggie Smith (who made the switch from corner to safety this off season).

While in all likelihood Taylor will spend a portion of his rookie season filling in for Keith Lewis on special teams, some of the defensive backs—Goldson in particular—have had trouble staying healthy.

If Goldson or any other safety cannot stay healthy, Taylor has an excellent chance of contributing early in his career.

As with the prior early signings (Scott McKillop and Ricky Jean-Francois), the Niners are serious about getting their rookies into camp on time so that they can have as much space to get up to speed as they need.

It can only help a defense and team which is looking to make a big impact in 2009.

 

Plaxico Burress and the New York Jets: Good Idea or Epic Fail?

As the off-season drones on, there are still plenty of stories to follow and carry us up until the beginning of training camps.

One which I have been following both as a journalist and a Jet fan has been the alleged interest in former Giant/current defendant Plaxico Burress.

We all know by now that the Jets were in touch with Burress and/or his agent prior to the 2009 NFL Draft.

They never pulled the trigger—and wisely so—as they are unsure what Burress’ playing status will be this coming season.

For those who have tried to forget (Giants fan, I hear you), Burress is still waiting for the beginning of his trial on gun charges stemming from an incident last season.

By “incident” I mean, shot himself in the leg.

Meanwhile his agent—the recently Twitterific Drew Rosenhaus—has been tweeting on his account that several teams have been interested in Plax.

The names of the teams in question are murky save for one. That one team is the New York Jets.

Now it is no secret that Gang Green is still lacking your prototypical No. 1 wide receiver. I love Cotchery, but he’s a No. 2. Clowney, Stucky and Smith are all middle of the road guys and I doubt any of them—dynamic as they can sometimes be—are going to develop into a top notch starter.

But before you start yelling for GM Mike Tannenbaum to run out and sign Burress, let’s keep a few things in mind.

 

Delayed Impact

If the Jets need a wide receiver, they need him now, not a year from now. Given the rhetoric coming out of the NY DA’s office, Mayor’s office and other various hounds in the Empire State, it’s likely Burress will see some jail time and that looks like at least a year.

Keep in mind, that’s even before NFL Sheriff—er Commisioner—Goodell serves him an expected long suspension.

So if the Jets sign Burress—it’s likely he won’t see the field for a year, maybe more.

 

There’s No ‘I’ In Team—But There Is One in Meat Pie

Shaun of the Dead quotes aside, Plax has some team issues. He’s not TO. But he has his quirks.

One of them is not practicing. Now this is just a guess, but I think new head coach Rex Ryan might not jive with that.

Doesn’t mean he couldn’t be effective (please see Giants Super Bowl Season, 2007). But chemistry is a tricky thing. The Jets are trying to build a team attitude that involves hard working teammates not rugged individualists.

This might be a reason why they didn’t trade for Boldin for that matter. Ryan is forming a team, not a showcase.

Again, he could (and has) performed before. But the laissez faire attitude could cause problems and disrupt the tone the Jets’ staff is trying to make.

Either of those reasons—and they aren’t trivial—could leave the Jets saying ‘no thanks’ to Burress at the end of all this.

But the Plax Show has it’s benefits too.

 

BOOM—TOUCHDOWN! I Make Miracles HAPPEN!

Say what you want about his intelligence for shooting himself, his lackluster work ethic or general ability to be a good citizen. The man makes things happen.

Burress is a guy who always flirts with 1,000 yards and often has broken it. He has topped the mark four out of nine seasons, and if it wasn’t for missing games last year, and in 2006 and 2004, I think he would have added three more times.

The Jets need a guy at some point to get the heat of Jerricho Cotchery. even if it isn’t this year, the pass attack needs someone who can be a big play receiver to take the heat off everyone else.

Smith, Clowney and Stucky are good receivers but none of them appear to have the big play-crunch time effectiveness that Plax has.

He may be a pain in the tail, but this pain in the tail can ball and the Jets need that. Maybe he doesn’t play this year but he will and the Jets have to look long term as well as short.

 

You See that Lombardi Trophy in the Giants’ Offices? You Need One of Those.

The Jets, despite the drafting of future QB Mark Sanchez and future Thomas Jones replacement Shonn Greene, expect to win and now.

In his first presser as head coach, Ryan was very clear. He expects this team to compete year one and be winning the trophy sooner than later.

His defense and run game can take the Jets far. But can they—alone—take the team all the way?

Before the Jets have a shot at getting the Lombardi, they need to add some more pieces and like it or not, a top shelf wide receiver is one of those pieces.

Burress was integral to the Giants’ NFL Championship in 2007 run and they suffered without him last season.

Despite a dominant run game (first in the league) and a top five defense, they couldn’t finish the job in the playoffs.

There were times where the collected wide receivers were just not enough for Eli Manning to work with. They missed him and couldn’t even get one touchdown through the air.

The Jets could use a guy who can change games.

In conclusion Burress certainly brings a complex set of issues for the Jets, if they continue to court him.

Certainly in the short term, he could very well be useless to them as he will at least be suspended if not in jail.

But as a longer term solution, he represents a potentially huge help for the Jet offense and one they have to consider when his legal situations clear up.

Meet the SF 49ers’ Coaching Staff: Part Two: Defense

Welcome to part two in our look at the latest coaching staff for the San Francisco 49ers.

Today we’re looking at the defensive side of the ball. Of course, this is where newly anointed full time head coach Mike Singletary made his bones in the first place.

It’s a sure bet he’ll expect the defense to keep up their end of the bargain this season. The defense was ranked a middling 13th overall last year.

They were only ranked 20th against the pass, generating only 30 sacks and 12 interceptions.

They were better against the run, ranked 13th and only surrendering 14 touchdowns on the ground.

Here are the folks Coach Singletary will count on to keep it up on the ground and improve things against the pass.

Defensive Line: Jim Tomsula
ILB Coach: Vantz Singletary
OLB Coach: Jason Tarver
Pass Rush Specialist: Al Harris
Secondary Coach: Vance Joseph
Secondary Coach: Johnny Lynn

Meet the SF 49ers’ Coaching Staff: Part One: Offense

Every year there is some upheaval in the coaching staff for the San Francisco 49ers, so every year it’s worth taking a look at who is in charge of the squad which will be taking the field in just a few months.

Today we’re taking a look at the overall structure, with a focus on the offensive coaching staff.

Mike Nolan is out. Mike Martz is out. The Not-Really-Greatest-Show-On-Turf… I mean Grass.. is out.

A new crew and a new plan are in place. Let’s see who will be bringing this new attitude to this year’s 49ers offense.

First, here’s the names you need to know and what they do.

Head Coach: Mike Singletary
Offensive Coordinator: Jimmy Raye
Quarterbacks Coach: Mike Johnson (high on Nate Davis)
Offensive Line Coach: Chris Foerster
Running Back Coach: Tom Rathman
WR/Senior Assistant: Jerry Sullivan
Tight End Coach: Pete Hoener
Offensive Assistant Jason Michael
Special Teams: Al Everest
Assistant Specials Team Coach: Dave Fipp

Now let’s meet the guys in charge of the offensive side of the ball.

The San Francisco 49ers Sign Rookies Jean-Francois and McKillop

The San Francisco 49ers have started signing their rookies and they have started with the easier contracts to get done—the ones for players selected on the second day.

This Thursday the team announced they have signed defensive end Ricky Jean-Francois and inside linebacker Scott McKillop.

Jean-Francois was a little underwhelming overall during his time at LSU, which was part of the reason he became a seventh round pick. He stood out on tape while the team was researching his fellow teammate Tyson Jackson, and they liked what they saw.

As I mentioned on page four of my recent article, San Francisco 49ers 2009 Training Camp Battles to Watch, Jean-Francois has some upside and solid skills.

He also tends to have a big mouth and sometimes rubs even teammates the wrong way. Still, it’s not as if Head Coach Mike Singletary hasn’t dealt with that before.

Please see: Davis, Vernon.

Rumor has it, Davis has become one of Singletary’s favorite players. Could work out the same for Jean-Francois. If anyone can settle him down, it’s Singletary.

With Ray McDonald’s knee an issue again, Jean-Francois has a shot to produce early, if he can temper his vocalizing and be consistent in his play.

Scott McKillop—a fifth round linebacker from Pittsburgh—is another guy to watch this preseason.

Again—as I touched on in the aforementioned article—McKillop is a guy they expect to contribute early.

While not a great natural athlete, he has great instincts, a non-stop motor and was a very productive player in college. McKillop was also a great team leader and a very hard worker.

At the recent spring practices, McKillop practiced behind Takeo Spikes and Jeff Ulbrich at the TED linebacker position. The team seems to expect him to take over for Spikes, if he can play well. For the foreseeable future, he’ll be fighting with Ulbrich for playing time.

Both players signed four year contracts.

While both players are day two picks, it’s unusual for teams to sign draftees this early. For fans of the team, you have to be happy that they are clearly working hard to get all their picks into camp on time.

Often, that can make all the difference in getting quick production from any rookie player. The sooner they are in camp, the sooner they can contribute.

 

My Imaginary Lunch with Isaac Bruce of the San Francisco 49ers

As part of the BR-CBSSports.com search for 32 correspondents to cover the NFL this coming season, they’ve asked us to write out some questions we might use in an interview with one of the teams we are looking to cover.

Which is actually one of my favorite things to do—interviews that is, not make questions for them, though that can be fun.

However, one-sided interviews are sort of odd. So, instead of just throwing questions out into the ether, I decided with each question, I’d give YOU the reader, my reasons for why I’d ask something.

For my subject I chose a guy who hasn’t been a Niner that long, but has been in the league longer than anyone else on the team.

I don’t need to introduce you to Isaac Bruce. If you were a 49ers fan, you saw him score all too frequently against the team for many years. Same thing if you were just a fan of the NFL. The guy is class and has been for a long time.

I thought his insight on what this team has gone through, as well as where it might be headed, would be interesting to hear.

Once again this off-season, we’re bombarded with more Brett Favre will he/won’t he retirement talk. This off-season you struggled with this very question yourself. What was the final thing which brought you back?

When a player starts considering whether or not he is done with his playing career, it’s always interesting to know why they hang them up or don’t. With the Favre story going on again, we might get some insight from Bruce which we never get from Favre as to why players decide they can’t leave.

You were with the Los Angeles Rams when they moved to St. Louis. We constantly hear about teams interested in moving from their cities due to everything from stadium issues to plain old money. Having witnessed that transition, what are your thoughts on moving franchises?

Not a year goes by that someone isn’t talking about how Team X is moving to Los Angeles or how Team Y is thinking about leaving a city. I know how fans see it. I know how the media sees it. I always wonder what players think about it. And Bruce, having lived it and seen its effects, is a natural guy to ask about it.

You played for Mike Martz during the ‘Greatest Show on Turf’ years in St. Louis, but the success wasn’t replicated here in San Francisco. What do you think the biggest problem was translating that vertical game to this team?

I’d be curious how honest an answer you get here, but a decent transition question. Bruce did see the offense work in the past—and was there last season when it didn’t. I’d be interested to hear what he saw from the inside. Depending on the answer, I might ask a follow up like “what could the team have done to make it work?”

 

Last year you caught your 1,000th reception—against your former team, no less. What went through your mind as you hauled in that touchdown, and what did it mean to do it with the franchise you had spent the previous 14 seasons in the stadium with you?

Milestones are important and rarely do players get to reach one against a former team. While not all his past teammates were there, plenty were. While it wasn’t Cal Ripken breaking Lou Gehrig’s “Iron Man” Streak, it’s a significant milestone and should hold some meaning for Bruce.

 

Speaking of records, you also played in your 200th career game, the most for any current player. Last season you passed Andre Reed moving into fifth on the all time reception list and you’re currently third on the all time yards list. Talk to me about how you stay productive for so long and what goes into both your in-season and off-season training regimen.

When a guy plays well for as many years as Bruce has, there’s a reason. Bruce has eight 1,000-yard seasons and while his production has dipped, he still can play. I want to know what drives him, and how he gets into the shape he needs to be in to excel at his age.

Michael Crabtree is fresh out of college. Josh Morgan is entering into his second season. So is Jason Hill. When it comes to being the most experienced player at your position, how to you perceive your role as it pertains to the younger guys and what kind of advice do you dole out?

When someone shows up at your place of business to take your job, you could be excused if you weren’t ready to explain to them all the in’s and out’s you learned on the fly. But that’s not the word on Bruce. This might also be a very good lead-in to a coaching question.

Even though you’ve only been with the team for a year or so, you’ve already had the 49er experience of constantly shifting offensive coordinators and coaches. How do you approach your job when the landscape changes so frequently?

Again, always interesting to hear a vets take on something like this. Some guys will say it shouldn’t matter, some will say it can be disastrous. This is the kind of question that could lead to some good Alex Smith discussion as well.

Speaking of which…

 

A big question mark again this season is the quarterback position. What are some of the things you see in both Shaun Hill and Alex Smith that would make them assets to the passing game?

I wouldn’t want to outright ask him who he thinks is better, so this is a good way to find out his thoughts on them, get some insight into who might be a better fit, and also get his read on how the two players have developed—or haven’t.

 

Like the receivers, whoever wins the quarterback job will be relatively inexperienced. As a veteran receiver, what can you do to help a guy succeed?

A good wide receiver with a sharp mind can go a long way toward helping a young quarterback succeed. Sure, neither Shaun Hill nor Alex Smith are babes in the woods, but they haven’t exactly lit the league on fire.

Like with the wide receivers, what does a guy like Bruce feel his role is in helping his QB be successful?

 

As you head towards the end of an incredible career, what do you think will be the next step for you? What are you looking forward to most about beginning another phase in your life, and where might that lead you?

A good closing question, and one he’ll hear a ton over the next year or so. So many players move on to television and radio, yet many of his contemporaries have already established themselves in those mediums while he was still playing.

I’m curious to see where he sees himself in a year, in two—in 10. Will he coach? Will he write?

Or will he sit in front of his TV with the rest of us and watch Favre go through another year of will he/won’t he?

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