INSIDE THE NUMBERS: Patriots RB Green-Ellis Well Behind 2010 Pace

[PatsFans.com Article]

INSIDE THE NUMBERS: Patriots RB Green-Ellis Well Behind 2010 Pace
By: Ian Logue

Patriots runningback BenJarvus Green-Ellis broke the 1,000 yard rushing last season, but as it stands right now unless he has a massive two weeks, he won't get there this year....

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[Ian]

Some interesting #'s on him in this piece, which breaks down his numbers from this season compared to last year at this time, including an increase in "no gain" carries.

 

[Joker]

I thought he had turf toe early in the season?...that lingers all year and only gets better with complete rest...anyway, watching the replay tonight, Ridley has the looks of a pretty competent RB...

 

[patsfaninpa]

I thought he had turf toe early in the season?...that lingers all year and only gets better with complete rest...anyway, watching the replay tonight, Ridley has the looks of a pretty competent RB...

Zackly. Looking at raw numbers without factor an important injury isn't fair to the player. Hard to get any explosion with a bad toe. Also, don't count out Vereen next year. I think he's gonna be perfect for our hurry up. Can run the ball. And, line up in the slot.

 

[strngplyr]

Without reading the article yet, I've never seen a bigger "Well, no sh--" title.

 

[ausbacker]

I thought he had turf toe early in the season?...that lingers all year and only gets better with complete rest...anyway, watching the replay tonight, Ridley has the looks of a pretty competent RB...

It's interesting that I still trust Green-Ellis to pick up those short yards when needed. The Patriots are getting game time into other running backs whilst preserving the health of Green-Ellis as best they can (through his turf toe).

 

[patsfaninpa]

It's interesting that I still trust Green-Ellis to pick up those short yards when needed. The Patriots are getting game time into other running backs whilst preserving the health of Green-Ellis as best they can (through his turf toe).

We're also missing Vollmer. Solder has done a great job at RT. But, that short-yardage formation where Solder lined up next to Light and we'd bring Gronk in motion to that side was our clock-killing unit. Hope Seabass is back for the playoffs too.

 

[Joker]

yup.....turf toe

NFL Week 10 Injury Report: Joseph Addai, Hakeem Nicks Banged Up - SBNation.com

Turf toe rehabilitation
As an athlete, your number one concern is getting back to full strength as soon as possible so that you can return to training and competition. That is why appropriate rehabilitation is extremely important. Rehabilitation for turf toe often includes the following:

Rest
Do not participate in sports until your toe is fully healed.

Ice
Apply ice or a cold pack to your toe for 15-20 minutes, 4 times a day for several days. This helps reduce pain and swelling. Wrap the ice or cold pack in a towel. Do not apply the ice directly to your skin.

Elevation
Keep the injured foot raised above the level of your heart for 48 hours (such as up on a pillow). This will help drain fluid and reduce swelling.

Medication
Use anti-inflammatory medications such as ibuprofen to reduce inflammation and speed up recovery

Serious conditions may last 7 to 10 days, and even more acute forms of turf toe accompanied by pain, swelling, and loss of range of motion may last weeks or even months.

Turf Toe | Sports Injuries Cape Town

 

[strngplyr]

Without reading the article yet, I've never seen a bigger "Well, no sh--" title.

I think Benny's down year comes down to a few things:

1.) Alge Crumpler - He was a great blocking TE, and has NOT been replaced. Solder has done a good job, but Solder at TE creates the next problem.

2.) Consistency on the OL - Four Centers have started games (Koppen, Connoly, Wendel, McDonald). Light and Waters have both missed time in games. Vollmer has missed multiple full games. The entire line has been ravaged at times. And it creates more inconsistency when we run 3 TE sets, causing Solder to line up at TE, and bringing in yet another RT, Cannon. All this change has to have a negative effect on blocking at times.

3.) Passing Game - It's been nearly unstoppable. Welker and Gronk have been straight uncovered at times, and on the occasion they aren't open, Hernandez or Branch usually are. The passing game works more often than not, an dpicks up bigger chunks of yardage, even when teams are playing against the pass the whole way.

4.) Swinging door at RB - We don't give anyone enough touches to get into a groove. I'm not a fan of the Running-back-by-committee approach we take. We have 5 RB's on the active roster. Four are usually active on game day. That is a lot of guys to split touches, and lately none of them have a specific role.

5.) Injury - He looked pretty quick last year, far from a burner but he doesn't look as fast as he was. In recent weeks he's looked better, but I still don't see what we saw last season.

Add all of that up, I think it takes its toll. List isn't in order, but I'd put most emphasis on #3 and 4. Both directly take snaps away from Benny which further prevents him from gaining any momentum within a game, if you believe in that.

Edit: I had a much more detailed post typed up and accidentally closed the tab and lost everything, this was a quick rewrite off of memory.

 

[Patspsycho]

I think Benny's down year comes down to a few things:

1.) Alge Crumpler - He was a great blocking TE, and has NOT been replaced. Solder has done a good job, but Solder at TE creates the next problem.

2.) Consistency on the OL - Four Centers have started games (Koppen, Connoly, Wendel, McDonald). Light and Waters have both missed time in games. Vollmer has missed multiple full games. The entire line has been ravaged at times. And it creates more inconsistency when we run 3 TE sets, causing Solder to line up at TE, and bringing in yet another RT, Cannon. All this change has to have a negative effect on blocking at times.

3.) Passing Game - It's been nearly unstoppable. Welker and Gronk have been straight uncovered at times, and on the occasion they aren't open, Hernandez or Branch usually are. The passing game works more often than not, an dpicks up bigger chunks of yardage, even when teams are playing against the pass the whole way.

4.) Swinging door at RB - We don't give anyone enough touches to get into a groove. I'm not a fan of the Running-back-by-committee approach we take. We have 5 RB's on the active roster. Four are usually active on game day. That is a lot of guys to split touches, and lately none of them have a specific role.

5.) Injury - He looked pretty quick last year, far from a burner but he doesn't look as fast as he was. In recent weeks he's looked better, but I still don't see what we saw last season.

Add all of that up, I think it takes its toll. List isn't in order, but I'd put most emphasis on #3 and 4. Both directly take snaps away from Benny which further prevents him from gaining any momentum within a game, if you believe in that.

Edit: I had a much more detailed post typed up and accidentally closed the tab and lost everything, this was a quick rewrite off of memory.

Excellent write up; to this I would add that while Waters is professional and is holding his own at RG, he is no athlete. The loss of Connolly at that spot is inestimable because as has been said a few times, Connolly is the fastest and most athletic guard we have on the roster and he is one of the best at the kick out block.

 

[Ian]

Without reading the article yet, I've never seen a bigger "Well, no sh--" title.

LOL, well, I was trying to keep it short and that was the best I could come up with

The big thing I was surprised comparing the two seasons was the increase of 0 yard carries, of which he had four in a row without gaining a yard against Denver on Sunday before coming out with a better second half effort.

Clearly the injury hampered him, and it's interesting listening to some of the people who are already handing the job to Ridley thinking that Green-Ellis will be gone after this season. He's given them a lot of tough yards this year, and save for the turf toe injury, has been pretty reliable. I know we talk about the fact they need a back who scares opposing defenses, but if you look around the league it's not exactly like everyone has someone like that.

I didn't write that to criticize him. It was just a closer look at his numbers. I know Ridley's had his moments, but BJGE I think has played well enough to earn a role here long-term. It should be interesting to see how it plays out.

 

[RobertWeathers]

LOL, well, I was trying to keep it short and that was the best I could come up with

The big thing I was surprised comparing the two seasons was the increase of 0 yard carries, of which he had four in a row without gaining a yard against Denver on Sunday before coming out with a better second half effort.

Clearly the injury hampered him, and it's interesting listening to some of the people who are already handing the job to Ridley thinking that Green-Ellis will be gone after this season. He's given them a lot of tough yards this year, and save for the turf toe injury, has been pretty reliable. I know we talk about the fact they need a back who scares opposing defenses, but if you look around the league it's not exactly like everyone has someone like that.

I didn't write that to criticize him. It was just a closer look at his numbers. I know Ridley's had his moments, but BJGE I think has played well enough to earn a role here long-term. It should be interesting to see how it plays out.

No, he hasn't. His injury has understandably impacted his production and the flux in the line has also compromised his production. Lets call a spade a spade here. BJGE is a north-south runner who can't make defenders miss, can't turn the corner because of a lack of speed and can't get to the second level and break long runs.

I like him. Hes a solid guy and had an very good year in 2011 but I believe that this offense needs a threat in the backfield that keeps defenses honest in tight games when the passing game is flat (if that's possible). We all know this o-line isn't he second-comming of the 1995 Dallas Cowboys so a RB is needed that can create yards on their own that defenses will respect on 3rd and 3 or 2nd and 6. That is not BJGE (we saw that vs the Jets in last year's playoff game 3/4 down linemen 80% of the game). I don't know if Ridley or Vereen are the guys either but at least with their speed and moves they can make guys miss and create their own yards. In addition, if they want to maximize Brady's career, having him throw 600 times a year does not get the team to that goal. On the other hand, the team needs a stout defense to play that brand of football. Thats a topic for another thread .

 

[strngplyr]

LOL, well, I was trying to keep it short and that was the best I could come up with

The big thing I was surprised comparing the two seasons was the increase of 0 yard carries, of which he had four in a row without gaining a yard against Denver on Sunday before coming out with a better second half effort.

Clearly the injury hampered him, and it's interesting listening to some of the people who are already handing the job to Ridley thinking that Green-Ellis will be gone after this season. He's given them a lot of tough yards this year, and save for the turf toe injury, has been pretty reliable. I know we talk about the fact they need a back who scares opposing defenses, but if you look around the league it's not exactly like everyone has someone like that.

I didn't write that to criticize him. It was just a closer look at his numbers. I know Ridley's had his moments, but BJGE I think has played well enough to earn a role here long-term. It should be interesting to see how it plays out.

Yeah, i understand why you wrote it, haha. I was just poking fun at the title.

I like Benny, and would like to see him back, I've never seen an RB take care of the ball better than him, and when healthy he's been a solid #1, but, the fact that he is playing on a RFA tender and that we drafted two RBs in 2010 makes me think he'll be gone.

I want to see a heavy dose of Ridley over the next few weeks, and if he's successful, more of him in the playoffs, Ridley appears to have the tools to be a #1 RB, but we have such a small sample size to view.

The good thing about RB's is that you don't need to spend a 1st rounder to get a hit. Benny and Danny are undrafted, Ridley is a 3rd rounder, and you can find a ton of examples around the league of very good RB's that are from mid-lower rounds or not drafted at all.

 

[Calciumee]

Last year was different to this year!

Last year carries we're split with Woodhead, and occasionally Morris!

Whereas this year has been LawFirm, Woody, Ridley and some Faulk and Vereen!

Also the lack of Crumpler makes a difference! Look at Chris Johnson's number once Crump left the Titans!