Reiss doesn't consider Ridley a roster lock

Ridley doesn't have exceptional speed or power in the open field, but he has great burst from a standing start and elusiveness.

BelichickFan said:

The weird thing about Ridley is his long run last year was 29 yards. He looked like he was a big run waiting to happen and yet it never did. But Blount had several. Even Bolden had a 46 yard run.
I'm a "Ridley guy" but the lack of any long run was weird.

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We've seen it happen before, though. Ridley is capable of it. The blocking just has to align for him. He's elusive where Blount is a force. So Blount can typically run through tackles at the second level that Ridley cannot. But Blount is also more prone to getting stopped behind the LOS than Ridley is because he needs those initial steps to get going.

BelichickFan said:

The weird thing about Ridley is his long run last year was 29 yards. He looked like he was a big run waiting to happen and yet it never did. But Blount had several. Even Bolden had a 46 yard run.

I'm a "Ridley guy" but the lack of any long run was weird.

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I have the same impression he never brings to the house, even when he gets an open space he gets chased by safetys, he doesn't have that extra gear to finish the job. I'm not asking much, a 50 yard run is a normal play in NFL you see every sunday.

Ridley is just not that great with angles and turning guys around once he is in the open field. He just gets caught when other guys can kind of turn defenders around.

BelichickFan said:

The weird thing about Ridley is his long run last year was 29 yards. He looked like he was a big run waiting to happen and yet it never did. But Blount had several. Even Bolden had a 46 yard run.

I'm a "Ridley guy" but the lack of any long run was weird.

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It's pretty rare to get a guy who gains consistent yardage and also often threatens to break a long one on a given play. The RBs like that are special, like McCoy or Peterson. Ridley's not and will never be in that category.

Brady6 said:

Blount rushed 54 times for 322 yards, 6.0 average, and 5 touchdowns in the fourth quarter. Most of these runs were in decided games. In the other 3 quarters of the games, he rushed 99 times for 450 yards, 4.5 average, and 2 touchdowns.

In addition, this belief that he broke these long runs is ridiculous; Blount had 4 runs of 20+ yards last season –
- 47 against Atlanta
- 36 against Buffalo
- 23 against Pittsburg
- 23 against Tampa

All 3 of these 4 long runs occurred in the fourth quarter and the other occurred in the Bills game in week 17.

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I actually think this all goes to support Blount. He was exactly the kind of guy you need, who wears teams down with his size and running style. He was the perfect guy for closing out a game.

rochrist said:

I actually think this all goes to support Blount. He was exactly the kind of guy you need, who wears teams down with his size and running style. He was the perfect guy for closing out a game.

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You should change your username to Jesus H. Christ.

Brady6 said:

It really does not matter if they know you are going to run, in the fourth quarter a defense is worn down more than in the first 3 quarters.

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You're kidding, right?

KontradictioN said:

Blount, as was known, really needed 2-3 steps before he really got going. If the OL couldn't provide him that, he was usually getting stopped for a loss. If they could provide him those 2-3 steps, he could easily break a 30+ yard run or take it the distance for a TD. Ridley doesn't need that same amount of time to get going. He's also capable of breaking those runs, if given a chance. There's no questioning his talent as a pure runner. He just has to get the fumbles under control or he won't get that chance.

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According to NFL.com:

Ridley has 555 career rushing attempts, 14 career carries of 20+ yards, and 1 career carry of 40+ yards. He has 8 career fumbles.

Blount has 579 career rushing attempts, 20 career carries of 20+ yards, and 5 career carries of 40+ yards. He has 9 career fumbles.

Ridley is never going to be a 'star' RB but he is great for our system! I cannot see us going to a #1 RB with TFB under center.

Blount was infuriating at times last season, most of it to be honest! He would gain a first down and then be stopped behind the LOS on his next 3 runs!

Ridley isn't going to get a 75 yard TD week in, week out but he is reliable and gets back to the line of scrimmage!

Blount was an above-average back in every way and good for the Patriots when they needed him last season. Letting him go was the right decision. These aren't mutually exclusive statements.

I can see why Reiss would make that assertion, but I disagree (if that makes sense). I just don't see Ridley being cut at all and, if he can hold on to the ball this season and his asking price isn't ridiculous, I can even see the Patriots bringing him back. He has proven he can play very well in this league. That alone gives BB pause and I'm sure the organization will be monitoring him very closely in what is a contract season.

The guy runs hard, shows some shiftiness, and he can break long runs. His main issue is his propensity to put the ball on the ground and I'm not too sure how good his hands are as a pass catcher. At this point, he is the closest thing to a workhorse on the roster. It would be asinine to cut him unless he keeps putting the ball on the ground in training camp and the preseason.

I'm a big fan of Finch and Houston could be 2 guys to get significant carries would say I'd like to see Finch get a year in the system and improve his lower body strength he has Lamar Miller cj spiller kind of moves.
Absolute steal undrafted would love to see him have a better career than the Squeeler back.

There were red flags about his fumble issues last off-season so this is nothing new, nothing he should be worried to address only now, and then in the week 1, before half time he already had 2 fumbles, that didn't help his cause at all, I don't think it's an impossible scenario that BB took his decision right there.

primetime said:

Blount was an above-average back in every way and good for the Patriots when they needed him last season. Letting him go was the right decision. These aren't mutually exclusive statements.

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Running backs are replaceable, precisely because it isn't that hard to find a serviceable one. Blount himself--acquired for a 7th round pick--is basically a perfect example of that.

primetime said:

It's pretty rare to get a guy who gains consistent yardage and also often threatens to break a long one on a given play. The RBs like that are special, like McCoy or Peterson. Ridley's not and will never be in that category.

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I disagree. All he needs to do is learn to make a read after he's through the LOS. He make a read and hits the hole with a burst that gets him the consistent yardage, but then continues at full speed into the secondary. Once he's clear, he just needs hesitate briefly to make a secondary read and hit it again. He has all the skills needed to bust 20+ runs, if not the top-end speed to outrun the secondary all the way to the end zone.

JackBauer said:

This explains so much.

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And Tbucky Jones Jr is your fav.

You luv that man.

Bolden had 0 fumbles in 2013.

He has the potential to take carries away from Ridley.

Triumph said:

Bolden had 0 fumbles in 2013.

He has the potential to take carries away from Ridley.

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Sample size.

Triumph said:

And Tbucky Jones Jr is your fav.

You luv that man.

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Triumph said:

Bolden had 0 fumbles in 2013.

He has the potential to take carries away from Ridley.

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You're either the worst evaluator of talent I've literally ever come across in my life or you're a troll who is a master at his craft. I can't decide yet...