1. Poorly written article with flawed analysis. 2. Greene's coming into his 3rd year with a new system devoted to putting the ball in his hands and creating holes for him. All in all, I'm not too worried about Greene, he ran for 1000 yards and was never really the focal point of any game. I have a hunch he'll at least get around 1100 yards this year.
LOL. So basically, the guy watched 3 games, and feels that's enough to judge Greene's season / career. What a clown. Did they forget he averaged 4.2 a carry and has been a bulldozer that moves piles in many situations. I agree he's not the quickest to get to the edge, but he's more of a power back, so that makes sense, BUT once he gets rolling with a head start, he can plow through people. Greene was beastly in the chiefs game. That was the first game I can remember that Greene was utilized to his strengths and actually played on the goal line. He had 3 TDs that game. As soon as that game ended I was baffled at why Schotty rarely played him on the goal line, when he was that effective. I expect a much bigger season from Greene this year, even though he still played decently considering the oline and sporadic usage of the run game.
there were 17 rbs with at least 216 carries last year. only 2 of them didn't reach 1000 yards. 12 rbs with 250+ carries, only 1 failed to hit 1000. and that was michael bush with 977 yards. greene is just an average guy. there is no part of his game where he excels. and even though he's big, he's not really a powerful guy. he gets dropped on first contact way too often. the article was harsh and i don't think greene is a bad player. but he's certainly nothing special so far. and he's forever banged up. i see some people using that as an excuse, but it might just be something that comes with the territory with him. and why can't this guy find a helmet that fits him?
So b/c 15 rb's had over 1000 yards it's not an accomplishment?So basically 15/32 starting backs reached the landmark. Sounds about right w/ what I'm saying. I didn't say he was a pro bowler...he's a productive back w/ room to get better. Additionally, how is "first contact" the only indication of power? He's explosive out of his stance, & he runs w/ velocity. Power doesn't always mean broken tackles.It means punishing the defense's front 7 so that they wear down for later in the game. Greene is fully capable of that notion. Does he need to get better w/ yards after contact? Yeah..his pad level needs to get better. Does he need to become a better receiever out of the backfield?Yes? Is he Earl Campbell?No. But he's a young player that has made progress every year that jet fans should be excited about
The only thing that's exceptional about Shonn Greene at this point is that due to his mix of flaws he doesn't have as many carries as you'd expect a 27 year old back entering his 4th season to have. That's the thing that's interesting about him. He doesn't have a lot of tread worn off his tires yet. Now if he can stay on the field and not get banged up the second half of his career he might make some noise.
No he isn't exceptional. I don't think there is an exceptional back in today's NFL including Foster, CJ, & Peterson(And no i don't think Greene is even close to their level)...they're either inconsistent, eggshell, and/or too expensive Most backs are only 3 down players for acouple years before they get banged up, defenses figure them out or they demand too much money & leave for a lousy team. Greene isn't a 3 down player. He is nothing spectacular. But he does fit this offense's philosophy,will give you a handful of plus performances & as you stated has tread left on the tires. 4.2 yards per carry at over 260 carries and 1000+ yards all w/ power is a good start to the ground & pound. he's steady, he's productive & he's young.
I agree with the notion that he is just an average runner. He lacks good vision (which is mostly why he leaves yards on the field/isnt a short yardage back), isnt explosive at all really and is pretty useless in the passing game. I could pick out a ton of flaws in his game, but point is, it that he’s not an above average back and that really leaves something to be desired in a run first team. I think because of this, McKnight and Ganaway will get a solid opportunity to carry a decent load (I believe McKnight will have a break out year, he knows this is his last shot). Greene is entering his contract year at age 27, which doesnt help, and someone else in the backfield is going to have to prove they can handle a decent size of the load.
I think Greene entering a contract year, and this being pretty much his only shot at a contract combined with Sparano @ really means hes gonna have his best year yet. I dont expect him to be a star by any means, hell I dont even expect him to match Thomas Jones when he was here, but i think he comes close
So, in the end the majority seem to be agreeing with Silva - Who of course is not coming from a Jet Die hard POV.... The icing on the cake for me is that I don't trust any of the backs behind him - I wish I can feel for one of these back what I feel for Stephen Hill = INCREDIBLE Talent that needs to be honed.... If we had a true "Lightening" back - Maybe a Reggie Bush / Sproles back behind him I'd feel better..... Mcknight's career makes me want to yack so far.... Honestly - I would take the Dolphins Trio of Bush / Miller / Thomas over our guys.
Thomas Jones in his last year here :breakdance: it seemed like he just ran smack dab into the oline without any thought of trying to let things develop. Shonn Greene was not as bad as that last year. If he can stay healthy, he will improve on those numbers. That being said, here is a blurb I found looking at some info for RB's in general If we are going to act like 1000 yards is a huge deal (it isn't anymore) then we should consider these figures into the equation. I want the guy to succeed, he's a Jet. I just wouldn't bet the farm on him being this bell cow/prototype power back some up here think he is. A power back that doesn't run over people? What does he do then?
I don't like Shonn Greene. For being a "power" back, he isn't powerful at all. He almost always goes down on first contact. Very often during games I feel like he's saving himself or something but that's not the case. He's big enough to just run straight, break a few tackles and fall forward consistently but he doesn't do this. He even gets "tripped-up" alot. - and this is supposed be to his strengths! He is virtually useless in the passing game. He can't catch a cold and he doesn't block well either. The Jets seriously need an upgrade at the RB position. For a "ground-and-pound" team, you'd think they'd want good RBs and good OL, right now the Jets are lacking in both.
Schottenheimer didn't give Greene the ball by the goal line much last season because he was tired of shooting himself in the foot with that. Greene burned him many times by NOT actually moving the pile the year before and early in the season. Also it makes the Jets so incredibly one dimensional when they put him in the game because he's so useless in the passing game - the red zone passing offense was excellent last season anyway, about the only part of the offense that we can say was good. He's definetely not a bulldozer and he doesn't plow through people. The Jets need an upgrade in a big way.
I love it. 1000 yard season with more than 250 carries isn't "Good". 3 O-linemen in the pro bowl isn't "Good" either. According to Jet fans...The Jets lack talent unless they have an all star at every position. The negativity on here is a joke. What planet do you people come from where you have no pride for young players on your team?
Averages over 4 yards a carry? Punishes opposing defenders w/ his size/ velocity. Power back doesn't solely mean running over defenders.
I just hope next year Ganaway can be our main back, with Greene as our change of pace back, and McKnight as our Sproles kinda guy. And if Bilal figures out how to play football, all the merrier
And where they do have an exceptional talent, it's more prudent to trade him, than it is to keep him on the roster for fear he may holdout.
If he winds up signing a 4 year deal for $10-12M and then gives the Jets 1,000 carries and 4,000 yards over that deal obviously he's a plus for the team. That's about the replacement level for a non-superstar RB at this point. If he wants a lot of money the Jets need to just move on. It's easy to find somebody to take 250 carries for you and not totally screw things up. You just need to be looking for any of the dime-a-dozen backs out there who never got a chance at their last job or got hurt one year so their team moved on or suddenly find themselves at 25 when Not For Long hits their stream of consciousness for the first time.
I would be very happy if we got Greene for 4 years 10 million especially having Ganaway as a change of pace back under a rookie deal and even McKnight who will never command big dollars That would pretty much give us a physical, diverse, young backfield for a very very cheap price. Helping us afford to pay Revis his 100 billion dollars better
The article is pretty accurate. Greene ranks at the bottom of the league in yards after contact. If I recall correctly he was 5th from the bottom. He looks like a big power back but plays like a small back. That is the crux of the problem when he is contacted he goes down fast. He has some explosion and some speed but does not have the lateral moves or the vision to avoid tacklers. He cannot function as short yardage back and he is at the bottom of the heap of feature backs. He cannot block and be a 3rd down back. Overall his value is very low. Hopefully Ganaway will be a surprise and can challenge Greene.
