Jimmy White is Completely Unappreciated

[RobertWeathers]

Yup, I'm biased, cause Ive liked him from jump, but I've yet to see any love for this kid....and I'll take it a step further and say he's better than Lewis.

This kid can catch, run, block and he's earned Brady's/BB trust.

Jimmy White is our Kevin.

I like White too but I think you are glamorizing him a little.

I happen to think hes a little smoother of a receiver than Lewis but in terms of being a better overall player, no and the gap is pretty wide.

He is functional in pass protection and in terms of running the ball he is still very much a work in progress.

Once/if Lewis makes it back to being what he was a year ago, White will be collecting splinters in his butt.

 

[jv320i]

I like White too but I think you are glamorizing him a little.

I happen to think hes a little smoother of a receiver than Lewis but in terms of being a better overall player, no and the gap is pretty wide.

He is functional in pass protection and in terms of running the ball he is still very much a work in progress.

Once/if Lewis makes it back to being what he was a year ago, White will be collecting splinters in his butt.

Certainly entitled to your opinion but I think White has been less "a work in progress" and more a guy doing a great job as a receiving back being asked to run behind this O line.

I think we can both agree we'd rather see the guy catching the ball out of the back field or giving Brady an extra second or two to make a pass than running it up the middle. That said I think he's done a fine job doing what's been asked of him.

 

[RobertWeathers]

Certainly entitled to your opinion but I think White has been less "a work in progress" and more a guy doing a great job as a receiving back being asked to run behind this O line.

I think we can both agree we'd rather see the guy catching the ball out of the back field or giving Brady an extra second or two to make a pass than running it up the middle. That said I think he's done a fine job doing what's been asked of him.

I said he was a work in progress as a runner.

As a receiver hes more than adequate.

 

[Two Eight]

He's been nothing but solid, certainly he's not as explosive as Lewis but he's been consistent and reliable. I've been a big James White fan since training camp last year, as have several others.

 

[jah]

As runners: Lewis >>> Vereen > White

As receivers: White > Vereen = Lewis

As pass protectors: Lewis > Vereen = White (? haven't paid much attention to this aspect but people consider it a strength for Lewis but not the other two)

So, overall, I'd say both Lewis and White are upgrades over Vereen. While White is a more direct Vereen replacement who is much better as a receiver than a rusher, his vision and agility seem far ahead of Vereen.

Lewis is really just a 3 down back in the body of a kick returner. Can do anything a running back is asked to do but might not finish in one piece. Is he quite as good at running routes and catching as White and maybe even Vereen? No. But he's pretty close, and the other skills make him a far better player than White.

As has been stated already, though, we need both. They aren't the exact same type of player, and one of them is injury prone.

 

[brdmaverick]

Vereen was a much better receiver than White at catching balls thrown down the field. I know that's not the most utilized quality of a receiving back but that's why I give Vereen the edge in a straight up comparison.

 

[Kontradiction]

His improvement as a runner is really just a testament to how good the 2TE sets are for the Patriots. James White is not a very good RB between the tackles but he's become passable due the New England's improvement as a run blocking group.

 

[Froob]

Slipping Jimmy White is hard to get a hand on it the open field.

 

[JarOfMayo51]

Yup, I'm biased, cause Ive liked him from jump, but I've yet to see any love for this kid....and I'll take it a step further and say he's better than Lewis.

This kid can catch, run, block and he's earned Brady's/BB trust.

Jimmy White is our Kevin.

He does deserve recognition for his contributions.. I wouldn't go so far as to say hes the better player than Lewis, but he's certainly more reliable

 

[oldrover]

White has been better than good in the passing game, and improving in the running game.

The theory of Lewis is great. That play against the Cowboys is an all timer.

But White stays healthy. That's kind of important.

 

[pdangle]

He's def much better this year. A valuable reliable piece for the O. But not a impact player, dual threat RB, the D needs to account for at all times, which also has the effect of opening the field for other players. If anything, he tips off the playcall and allows the D to account for less possibilities and hedge their bets a bit. But I think NE is camouflaging that better this year too.

White doesn't give you that. But I'm sure glad we have him these past 2 seasons. But if Dion comes back 100%, you bench White in a heartbeat. And if Dion gets hurt again, you call White off the bench just as quick.

But he's definitely proved himself to me, and I no longer view him as a liability. He's serviceable and dependable which is all one needs in NE to be a productive player in the current lineup.

It cuts both ways, he probably looks better than he really is, bc the D is NOT focusing on him. He has had space and used it effectively when TB called his number. That's not a bad thing, he's getting the yards and making the plays he should make. And has TBs trust.

You can have one or two of these types at the skill positions if you got stars elsewhere, but the house of cards collapses real quick if there are 5 just serviceable skill types on field. We saw that end of last season.

Writing this has made me think... Gawd I hope Dion come back strong. It'll be fun to watch.

 

[Soul_Survivor88]

White has been better than good in the passing game, and improving in the running game.

The theory of Lewis is great. That play against the Cowboys is an all timer.

But White stays healthy. That's kind of important.

What is it that Belichick says? "Availability/Durability is the best ability"

Lewis is like that shiny new toy that needs to be handled with care, or else it gets easily damaged.

White is more like the toy that you can play with and never have to worry about ruining.

As a coach, I like the durable toy, but as a fan, the shiny toy is more fun to watch - if you can get him out on the field

 

[Deus Irae]

What is it that Belichick says? "Availability/Durability is the best ability"

Lewis is like that shiny new toy that needs to be handled with care, or else it gets easily damaged.

White is more like the toy that you can play with and never have to worry about ruining.

As a coach, I like the durable toy, but as a fan, the shiny toy is more fun to watch - if you can get him out on the field

As fans, we often take what coaches say far more seriously than we should.

Gronk
Vollmer
Edelman
Amendola

Four obvious examples of talent being the key, not durability. If durability was the key, they'd all be long gone.

 

[Kdo5]

I hope Lewis gets back and can stay healthy. He is tremendous and a game changer. If he can't do that then it'll be a shame, still White looks good and can only improve from here on in.

He's only been seeing serious playing time since midway through the 2015 season and he is already looking better. I thought White was going nowhere until he started playing last season. While a very mediocre runner he contributed well as a receiver, and I'd argue that his role was one of the few strengths left in our offense during that anemic stretch in the late-regular season.

 

[PScottman]

The James White progression highlights the steady, upward improvement that is yet another herald of the Patriots success. Faulk's fumbling. Cannon's footwork and leverage. C. Jones setting the edge vs the run. There are hundreds of other examples of guys getting high quality effective COACHING both in and out of season. That improvement happens in every phase too and with every level of player.

That doesn't mean every player improves. There are ones that likely just aren't coachable for whatever reason from personality differences to just satisfaction that they're good enough where they are, but those are more the exception than the rule round Foxborough.

 

[PatsBoy12]

Yup, I'm biased, cause Ive liked him from jump, but I've yet to see any love for this kid....and I'll take it a step further and say he's better than Lewis.

This kid can catch, run, block and he's earned Brady's/BB trust.

Jimmy White is our Kevin.

Um, no.

 

[Schmo]

I would like to see him show the capability to split out wide more, and own LBs in man coverage. That was one of the first things I noticed Dion was great at. With Foster's background at WR, I think there's a lot more upside for him in that area than White.

But I don't think "Jimmy" is necessarily underappreciated....he's made some great plays this year.

 

[bbobbo]

 

[bbobbo]

 

[bbobbo]