Running NFL Preseason Thread

Re: Running NFL Offseason Thread

And as for the other meaning of "biggest NFL bust ever," I'd say it's still a toss-up between Russell and Mandarich. JaMarcus had some bodacious man-boobs.

 

Re: Running NFL Offseason Thread

Just read the Sports Weekly feature on the top running backs in the NFL by Robert Klemko. I never realized how badly Arian Foster screwed himself by staying for his senior season at Tennessee. He went from possibly being taken in the first three rounds to going undrafted.

Sad part for Foster is, given his injury history, he may not hold up long enough to even get one big NFL payday.

Maybe I'm being picky, but one thing in the article did bug me. Klemko wrote that Merril Hoge "split carries with Barry Foster for most of his seven years with the Pittsburgh Steelers." This is not accurate. They really only split carries in 1991, Hoge's fifth season in Pittsburgh

Foster carried the ball 390 times in 1992 to Hoge's 41. Hoge was relegated to mostly blocking and catching passes his final two seasons as a Steelers while Foster was used as a feature back.

Hoge did split carries with other backs earlier in his career, mostly Tim Worley, so I can see the mix-up. Just something that should have been checked.

 

Re: Running NFL Offseason Thread

guess we'll have to agree to disagree. the cap cost between no. 1 overall/no. 2 overall hasn't been great enough to dictate which position a team takes. that remains driven by need.

unfortunately for most teams picking first overall, they usually are desperate for a 'star quarterback.' what the niners had to pay the no. 1 pick overall didn't dictate they select alex smith; their desperation to give their fanbase the next montana/young dictated it. if a regime doesn't get its 'franchise qb' on board in pretty short order they won't be 'the regime' for very long....

whatever. let's not turn this into a threadjack of sorts.

 

Re: Running NFL Offseason Thread

egg-cellent! ;D ;D ;D

 

Re: Running NFL Offseason Thread

Maybe looking at "biggest draft mistakes" instead of "biggest busts" might be a little more interesting.

When a team needs a player to fill a position on their team. Come hell or high water, they were going to draft a QB or a LB with that pick, but instead of drafting the future HOFer, they draft a bum.

And the mistake needs to be player who easily could have been selected instead of the bum. Tom Brady, for example, was drafted so late that you really cannot say a team, at the time, should have used a #1 on him.

Mistake - Blackledge (KC)
HOFers - Kelly, Marino

Mistakes - Tim Lewis (Giants), Terry Kinnard (Pack)
HOFer - Darrell Green

Mistake - Eddie Brown (Cincy)
HOFer - Jerry Rice

Mistake - Tony Jeffery (AZ)
HOFer - Thurman Thomas

Mistake - Eric Moore (NYG)
HOFer - Randall McDanial

Mistakes - Todd Marinovich (Oak), Dan McGuire (Sea)
HOFer - Favre

All right, I will leave some for the rest of you...

 

Re: Running NFL Offseason Thread

As dreadful as JaMarcus was was, I still think Leaf was the bigger bust for multiple reasons:

1. While not even close to a good year for a starting QB, JaMarcus' 2008 season (13/8 TD/INT rate, 77.1 rating) dwarfs anything Leaf ever did as a starter.

2. If wins are the ultimate stat for QBs, JaMarcus as a starter =7-18, while Leaf was 4-17.

3. This one might be unfair, but Leaf gets bonus points because of just how much San Diego paid in order to move up in the draft for Leaf.

 

Re: Running NFL Offseason Thread

The Chargers did give up the farm to Arizona, I believe, to get Leaf. Then again, the Raiders paid Russell $39.4 million.

Since Bradford is already doing well, and Stafford will likely be fine, that's not likely to be topped anytime soon with the rookie cap in place. Does that make him a bigger bust that Cam Newton could be with only $22 mil guaranteed? I think it does...

The Raiders also passed on Joe Thomas, Adrian Peterson, Patrick Willis and Darrelle Revis. It's too early to call any of those guys Hall-of-Famers, but I don't think too many would be surprised if all four made it to Canton.

 

Re: Running NFL Offseason Thread

Did somebody say man-boobs?

 

Re: Running NFL Offseason Thread

I know it's easy to say, "I knew he was going to be a bust" about certain guys, but I really felt like Alex Smith and Russell were going to be busts. I don't think I'm alone either.

Which guys were you surprised were busts? I thought David Carr was an amazing talent, but you don't throw a rookie QB out there without a decent offensive line and expect him not to get roughed up.

I was also surprised that Tim Couch was a bust.

 

Re: Running NFL Offseason Thread

I wonder how much of Couch's failure in Cleveland was the absolute horsecrap team he had around him early on. I'm not saying Couch wouldn't have failed anyways, but those Browns teams in 1999 and 2000 were horrible. I don't think it helped that the Browns passed on drafting Chris Samuels No. 1 in 2000 to take Courtney Brown instead. Samuels could've given Couch somebody to protect his blindside, and maybe sparred him some of beatings he took early on that contributed to his failure as well.

Just my two cents, though.

 

Re: Running NFL Offseason Thread

I think Carr and Couch could have been a lot better on different teams. I don't think anything would have made a difference for Russell or Smith.

 

Re: Running NFL Offseason Thread

It didn't help Couch that he rarely threw a pass more than 10 yards down the field his last two years at Kentucky.