I know you guys like Faulk, and so do I, but now we are getting silly. There are a lot of backs who do what Faulk does, and who would be productive in our system.
Don't make too big a deal of how passes are caught. Without looking up the actual stats, I suspect that both guys average around 8 yards per catch.
LaMont Jordan has made the RB position a very interesting one in camp, right up there with the QB and CB competition.
Before you get locked into a "this could never happen" scenario, who would have guessed in early 2004 that a 5th round pick would unseat Damien Woody?
Fans get so emotional about their favorites they cannot imagine someone unseating them, even to the point where they think on third down we are better off with Faulk coming out of the backfield than LT.
Let's watch and see how it all unfolds. That's the fun of TC. Watching to see who the surprises are.
The differences between the production of Jordan and Faulk are not that far apart, and no one has yet told me that these stats everyone is so locked into would be the same for both Faulk and Jordan would be the same if they had each been on the other's team the last few years. For instance:
Jordan lined up next to McCown and Tuiasasopo and God knows who else and did the same
If I appeared sentimental about Faulk, I assure you it was because the point I was making dealt only in what he brings to the table. I'm fond of him after all these years, but not to the point of being blinded to some simple facts: he is a sub-par rusher with negligible power and merely adequate burst and speed who gets by on vision and experience, an aging player for whom durability has never been a strong suit, and a player prone to fumbling when overworked.
What he does so well is on the periphery of a typical RB's skillset, and as such, you'd never want him to be "the guy" on your team: his value to the Pats has and always will be as a supplemental player to the offense.
That said, he does have some unique talents, and BB + McDaniels have gotten better and better over the years at putting them to good use. Out of all NFL RBs, only Brian Westbrook is as fluid and capable a route-runner when split wide as Faulk. (Unlike Faulk, Westbrook is also a top-notch rusher.) Other backs might rack up receiving yards out of the backfield, but they do it catching a much higher % of their passes behind the LOS, gaining yards using more typical RB-like abilities. Faulk can run routes and catch passes from just about anywhere along the width of the field, and catches the ball 6 yards out as often as not.
Now, you tell me not to make a big deal about how passes are caught. I'm sorry, but I just don't see any sense in complying. Raw numbers don't tell you a whole lot about what a player brings to the table. They don't say anything about what kinds of situations a player is useful in, what kinds of offensive schemes he works well in. Faulk fits in perfectly with the spread offense the Pats favored during much of last year. His versatility as a pass catching route running back allows Brady to get the team to the line, read the defense, and call plays that will get the matchups he wants.
The difference in the kind of pass-catching that Faulk excels at won't be told in raw numbers, but would only come out if you start looking at success-rate: Faulk won't take over a game for you and rack up a ton of yards making guys miss and breaking big gains, but last year, when Brady absolutely NEEDED six or seven yards on a play, it was usually Faulk or Welker he looked for.
So when I say that Jordan won't unseat Faulk, it's not because I don't think Jordan doesn't have his own ways of contributing, but rather because Jordan's talents don't repeat Faulks but
complement them. He's a beast, a back with the kind of burst and power the Pats haven't had since '04 Dillon, only with more breakaway or corner-turning speed than Dillon had at that point. I'm very excited to see what he can do in the Pats' offense. If he can stay healthy, I think he and Maroney will split the lionshare of the rushing carries, and I actually wouldn't be surprised to see Jordan emerge as the guy BB leans on down the stretch.
So when I say that Jordan can't unseat Faulk it's not because I have such a high opinion of Faulk, I just don't see them as being in direct competition.
