Yeah I can see why people would not be slightly excited. I mean T. Jones only had about the same yards rushing as Washington, Barlow, and Houston combined in one season.
Lol He also had more carries. See what people seem to not understand is that a guy needs carries to look as good as the other guys.
.... And what makes this signing so great is that Thomas Jones had his best seasons when he had a change of pace back to take a bunch of carries in a game. This was Cedric Benson and Adrian Peterson the past 2 seasons. Now he has Leon Washington and Cedric Houston. I think he'll be very effective here for a few seasons.
"Got what they could get!?!" HAHAHAHAHA!!! They got the starting RB from the NFC SB contender Bears for the approximate value of a third round pick. By all accounts (except for the people who are OBSESSED with Michael Turner), this deal was a heist.
The 37 pick was probably our most valuable pick in this draft IMO. Alot of this drafts good players are going to be available in that spot. The deal isn't as big a heist as people seem to think. What happened to all the "the best backs barely have 2nd round value" comments before? Is Jones that great? No. Honestly, we could have done better, the deal was a good FAIR deal for both teams, and we have a solid RB game that I think/thought could have been better.
It was a pretty fair deal for both sides, but as a guy who likes to compile picks usually more than lose them, I'd say we definitely got a very good deal. The Bears got what they could for Jones. Besides, we'll see who is available with the two picks. If a guy like Carriker or Branch falls to 37, and we end up reaching for someone, then it will only look like a fair deal. If we get a very nice pick with the Bears pick, the deal will only look better.
I understand draft postion and it's importance at this area of the draft as perceived by draftniks, but the reality of the situation when you look at the history of the draft is that NFL-ready talent tends to dictate itself with regularity throughout the draft and the results don't follow the mantra of talent level declining significantly from the first third of the second round. There's a hot list of blue chippers that always is obsessed over every single offseason without fail, and it seems like every year at least half of the list ends up being busts. So, while I would prefer to keep as many early first day picks as we can, I think the value we got for sliding down in the second round is a fair gamble to succeed versus the value whatever team wins the Michael Turner Sweepstakes gets for their investment.
Yeah, got what they could get. Jones had 1200 yards. There were 10 other backs with more yards then him. 23 total over 1000 yards and as you pointed out he was on a SB team which you would expect would be much better then the Jets. So where does that put him? Slightly above average? I think anybody who really believes Thomas Jones is a stud is setting themselves up for a major disappointment.
Who says he's a stud? He is a starting caliber runningback who by all accounts is a great blocker and a workhorse. Not flashy, will work for us in a rotation, and cost us very little in a year that we will need the most out of our draft picks. Compared to the alternative, an unproven back, seemingly a stud but has never gotten more than 80 carries a season for his first three seasons but is still tendered at a 1st and a 3rd? And likely to demand a starter's salary? Please, this is a no-brainer. You're dreaming about Turner, IMO, and setting yourself up to be angry for the rest of the offseason.
You misunderstand. I'm not saying Turner is a stud although he may very well be. I'm just saying I don't think Jones is. At 20 million with 12 of that guarenteed it seems we paid for one and to answer your question, lots of people here are treating him like one.
Not too crazy about the article either. I think our running game has improoved immensely with the acquisition of Jones. I think we have to continue to get better on the O-line. I the in NFL today, even if you are a gifted or great running back, you can not do well if you do not have good blocking around you. Today's defenses are too good, and much faster than in the ancient years. Back in the days of Jim Brown, Gayle Sayers, OJ Simpson, etc.; just to name a few, a running back could do some great things just by being better than the people trying to tackle him (faster, shiftier, more powerful). Now, that era is long over. Even Ladanian Tomlinson could not do well if SD has a poor O-line. As far as the QB part of the article. Objectively, I see his point, but take it for what it is worth, Chad is Chad. I give the guy tremendous credit. I did not think he could recover from the second shoulder surgery, but very exceeding my expectations, he did. Not only did he come back, but he played the whole season. He also, survived quite a few nasty shots. He may not have a wheel house for an arm, but the guy is smart, and he makes up for some of his short comings with his mind. It may be somewhat boring and cerebral to watch him play, but it somehow seems to work. Chad absolutely desreves to continue to be the QB of this team until somebody else emerges that clearly is better. That could be Clemens, but he is not there yet. If Clemens works hard, he will get his chance. Law of averages says he has to. Chad will get injured again. Maybe Chad misses a few games this year; who knows. That is when Clemens will have the opportunity to show his metal.
