NEW ARTICLE: Is Damien Harris the “X-Factor” of a Loaded Running Back Group?

[Wozzy]

Sony is Lagarette Blount taken in the first round. Not really special but plays well when his surrounding cast is good.

Todd Gurley's sophomore season he had a poor surrounding cast and averaged 3.2 yards per carry, then Jeff Fisher was fired and for the next two years Gurley led the NFL in rushing TD's, made the Pro Bowl and All Pro Team.

Sony is not unique in needing blocking. Analytics are dumb.

 

[captain stone]

Sony is Lagarette Blount taken in the first round. Not really special but plays well when his surrounding cast is good.

Soreknee wishes he were Bluntman...

 

[JarOfMayo51]

What changed?
From ‘Did Not Dress’ to ‘Secret Weapon’?

Its pretty obvious that Damien Harris was red shirted his rookie year because he had 4 veteran RBs ahead of him on the depth chart...

It is not an indication of his lack of ability or anything else, just a lack of opportunity. Go watch his highlights from Alabama, he breaks a lot of tackles and has a lot of homerun plays.. he has great patience and vision, anticipates the holes and hits them hard with a good burst, has excellent center of gravity and balance/body control as well. Hes a good receiving back too


I don't think anyone is saying hes going to be a "secret weapon", some are just optimistic and excited to see what some of our younger players bring to the table

 

[JarOfMayo51]

Harris has shown absolutely NOTHING.

But it would be nice if he could come through and SHINE. There's certainly an opening for that starting RB spot because of Michel's lackluster showing last season.

I wouldn't say he has shown nothing... hes basically only played in 1 preseason game, where he had 15 carries for like 80 something yards (5.7 yards per carry if i recall correctly), and he also had a few catches that put him over 100 all purpose yards

So he had a very good game in his very limited playing time. Doesn't mean hes a pro bowler, all pro or hall of famer.. but when given an opportunity he produced and played really well, so there is plenty to be optimistic about

 

[JarOfMayo51]

They don't have to scare them. They just have to be productive. It's a solid group.

Exactly, we have only had 1 RB in the last 20 years that scared opponents, and that was Corey Dillon. I'd say we've done pretty well with a solid group of RBs that aren't big name superstars

 

[JarOfMayo51]

It will be super easy to defend their ground game, especially since they have a question mark at QB. Expect defenses to load the box which means Michel will have a tough time improving his worst yards per carry for backs rushing for at least 800 yards.

Every back is obvious when they are on the field:

Michel = run. Can't make anyone miss and is easy to tackle. Among the worst in yards after contact. Blame the blocking? His former teammate Chubb had the same yards before contact and did just fine. Michel has only proven to be "effective" when his O-line is healthy, has an elite TE blocking like a T, another TE throwing quality blocks in Allen and an elite FB. Michel has a lot to prove this year.
White = pass. Does he get the same amount of looks as when Brady was here?
Burkhead = can't play long enough to be a threat. He'll get a few chunk yards here and there, but will eventually be off the field.
Harris = unknown but he better push for playing time.

They are average at best.

Average RBs have put this team into 9 superbowls with 6 wins over 20 years (well i guess 5 wins, Corey Dillon was a beast and the only exception to the norm here)

The entire offense the 2nd half of the season was an atrocity... the offensive line was decimated with injuries and lacked consistency, we lost our elite FB and then lost his backup, we had no starting quality tight end on the entire roster, we had no receivers outside of Edelman that opponents had to respect....

It is not a mystery why production across the board was down for all players, because the offense was terribly ineffective and lacking talent at virtually all positions on the field. The only RB that might have been able to make something happen in last year's offense is Barry Sanders, and he isn't walking thru that door

 

[captain stone]

I wouldn't say he has shown nothing... hes basically only played in 1 preseason game, where he had 15 carries for like 80 something yards (5.7 yards per carry if i recall correctly), and he also had a few catches that put him over 100 all purpose yards

So he had a very good game in his very limited playing time. Doesn't mean hes a pro bowler, all pro or hall of famer.. but when given an opportunity he produced and played really well, so there is plenty to be optimistic about

We could've used that production at times last season.

 

[Pape]

It is not an indication of his lack of ability or anything else, just a lack of opportunity.

Players play. If he could have unseated any one of the backs in the rotation, he would have. But nope.

wasted draft pick so far.

 

[skinnydog]

Average RBs have put this team into 9 superbowls with 6 wins over 20 years (well i guess 5 wins, Corey Dillon was a beast and the only exception to the norm here)

The entire offense the 2nd half of the season was an atrocity... the offensive line was decimated with injuries and lacked consistency, we lost our elite FB and then lost his backup, we had no starting quality tight end on the entire roster, we had no receivers outside of Edelman that opponents had to respect....

It is not a mystery why production across the board was down for all players, because the offense was terribly ineffective and lacking talent at virtually all positions on the field. The only RB that might have been able to make something happen in last year's offense is Barry Sanders, and he isn't walking thru that door

Other than the Corey Dillon SB year I would not say that average RBs "put" the Pats into the Superbowl 9 times. I agree with everything else here.

 

[JarOfMayo51]

He has to do better making somebody miss because he can’t expect perfect blocking.

I'll agree that he hasn't really been able to make guys miss like he did in College so far at the NFL level, but he has a nice quick burst and is decisive, so he usually nets positive plays

In College, Sony was juking guys out of their skulls and breaking ankles. In the game against Baker Mayfield's Oklahoma, Sony scored 4 huge touchdowns (all of them were big runs of 15+ yards), including a 30+ yard run in double overtime for the go ahead touchdown that got them into the national championship game

His natural ability is there, he just needs to consistently put it together at the pro level

Michel has barely caught passes out of the backfield or caught passes flexed outside. White is the only elite pass catcher.

Don't tell me you’d take Michel over Chubb. That’s ridiculous. Michel is a run only back.

I actually watched a ton of tape of Sony and Damien last night, and what i noticed is that in college Sony was an excellent pass catching back... so its not a lack of ability that he isn't used in the passing game, we just dont seem to use him that way very often

He had lots of great catches and was very productive in the passing game at Georgia, so I think its a misconception that he's a Run Only back

 

[JarOfMayo51]

Players play. If he could have unseated any one of the backs in the rotation, he would have. But nope.

wasted draft pick so far.

I guess we see it differently there, he was a luxury pick in the 3rd round that they were able to redshirt and acclimate to the offense for 1 year.

If we had the same injury problems at RB that we had in 2018, then I'm sure Damien would have been getting plenty of playing time. With 4 vets ahead of him that all knew the playbook inside and out, the coaches went with the consistent play of the experienced RBs

Most people when the pick was made knew that he would have a tough time cracking the lineup with all the depth at RB they had

Just go watch some highlights of this kid toting the rock at Alabama, hes the real deal.. he was regularly breaking 2-3 tackles per run and had more 15+ yard runs than i could keep track of.. he doesnt have elite high end speed, but he has great vision, great agility and acceleration, and he has great center of gravity.. lots of plays where a defender got a solid hit on him and he just maintained his footing and kept on trucking forward.. lots of big home run highlight plays, even when a DB might have caught up to him from behind, they weren't able to tackle him to the ground and he still scored

What made me want to watch his tape again was someone stating his style was similar to Emmitt Smiths, and after watching a bunch of tape of the 2 of them, i agree they do have similar styles.. and Emmitt Smith didn't really have elite high end speed either, that is just a nice luxury in a RB, not a requirement

 

[Pape]

I guess we see it differently there, he was a luxury pick in the 3rd round that they were able to redshirt and acclimate to the offense for 1 year.

If we had the same injury problems at RB that we had in 2018, then I'm sure Damien would have been getting plenty of playing time. With 4 vets ahead of him that all knew the playbook inside and out, the coaches went with the consistent play of the experienced RBs

Most people when the pick was made knew that he would have a tough time cracking the lineup with all the depth at RB they had

Just go watch some highlights of this kid toting the rock at Alabama, hes the real deal.. he was regularly breaking 2-3 tackles per run and had more 15+ yard runs than i could keep track of.. he doesnt have elite high end speed, but he has great vision, great agility and acceleration, and he has great center of gravity.. lots of plays where a defender got a solid hit on him and he just maintained his footing and kept on trucking forward.. lots of big home run highlight plays, even when a DB might have caught up to him from behind, they weren't able to tackle him to the ground and he still scored

What made me want to watch his tape again was someone stating his style was similar to Emmitt Smiths, and after watching a bunch of tape of the 2 of them, i agree they do have similar styles.. and Emmitt Smith didn't really have elite high end speed either, that is just a nice luxury in a RB, not a requirement

Burkhead was out for three or four games last year... think Harris dressed for one of those games. If he was the "real deal", he wouldn't have been buried on the dc ... and a guy like Bolden would have been kicked to make room for him...

so yeah, its great that he did well at alabama. but we don't play in the ncaa / sec ...

 

[Scotty]

I hope Harris can make a jump this year and show what he can do in case Sony struggles again , injured OLine or not.

 

[A Defiant Goose]

A lot of what people are saying about Harris sounds like what we could've said about White in 2014, behind Vereen. Give the guy some time

 

[imahobgoblin]

I'd like to see Harris and JJ knock off Bolden and Burkhead

I find this proposition to be silly. You don't cut guys that have signed or restructured to cost us virtually nothing that have proven worth. Bolden is a demon on ST and BB soldier and now Rex is working for virtually free. I want to see Harris on the roster and what JJ can do, but not at the cost of Bolden and Burk. White, Sony, Burk, Bolden, Harris just like last year. Sony may start on PUP. I don't see JJ taking that extra spot though unless he is a phenom.

 

[captain stone]

A lot of what people are saying about Harris sounds like what we could've said about White in 2014, behind Vereen. Give the guy some time

Same roster position, but different roles...and Sugar was healthy & productive in 2014, as opposed to Soreknee in 2019...

 

[captain stone]

I find this proposition to be silly. You don't cut guys that have signed or restructured to cost us virtually nothing that have proven worth. Bolden is a demon on ST and BB soldier and now Rex is working for virtually free. I want to see Harris on the roster and what JJ can do, but not at the cost of Bolden and Burk. White, Sony, Burk, Bolden, Harris just like last year. Sony may start on PUP. I don't see JJ taking that extra spot though unless he is a phenom.

He isn't, so he won't.

Soreknee - Harris

White - Burkhead

Lasco - Bolden

 

[TheRainMaker]

I'll agree that he hasn't really been able to make guys miss like he did in College so far at the NFL level, but he has a nice quick burst and is decisive, so he usually nets positive plays

In College, Sony was juking guys out of their skulls and breaking ankles. In the game against Baker Mayfield's Oklahoma, Sony scored 4 huge touchdowns (all of them were big runs of 15+ yards), including a 30+ yard run in double overtime for the go ahead touchdown that got them into the national championship game

His natural ability is there, he just needs to consistently put it together at the pro level




I actually watched a ton of tape of Sony and Damien last night, and what i noticed is that in college Sony was an excellent pass catching back... so its not a lack of ability that he isn't used in the passing game, we just dont seem to use him that way very often

He had lots of great catches and was very productive in the passing game at Georgia, so I think its a misconception that he's a Run Only back

McDaniels said he takes blame for making Michel one dimensional. Says that will change this year.

 

[BaconGrundleCandy]

McDaniels said he takes blame for making Michel one dimensional. Says that will change this year.

Maybe I'm thinking of something else but I thought I read the same thing recently but not new?

Either way that's a huge F up and I try to support Josh. We were too one dimensional.

 

[captain stone]

McDaniels said he takes blame for making Michel one dimensional. Says that will change this year.

Soreknee didn't help his cause by dropping easy passes...