Running back rotation

Was anyone else surprised to see Ajayi carry it 28 times yesterday? I wasn't. But let's be honest, 28 carries a game cannot be sustained over 16 games.

I was surprised to barely see Williams or Drake in the game. I know the drop off is considerable, but there were multiple times where Ajayi looked exhausted out there.

I'd rather see us not run him into the ground like we did to Ricky before he retired.

They need to give Drake at least 5 or so carries a game.....Drake can make plays and Ajayi shouldn't handle the rock more than 20 times a game give or take.

Definitely agree with you here. 20-25 ideal. 25+ might happen on occasions, but is pushing it if dialed up on a consistent basis. We have plenty of depth to offset Ajayi's carries and I hope to see that going forward.

Believe it or not, Ajayi is a workhorse.

I'm really not concerned if he gets 30+ carries a game...

I will never doubt his ability to carry the load.

We simply don't win yesterday without all the tough yards he mustered.

Ajayi needs to be spelled consistently. 25+ carries is too much for 16 straight weeks is too much. The problem is that neither Drake nor Williams have the skill set to duplicate Ajayi's production. Drake seems to only be comfortable running outside zone plays like he did at Bama when he subbed Derrick Henry. Williams seems to only be used on 3rd down passing situations.

Last year Williams' highest game carry total was 6 and Drake's was 9. We have to find a runner that can truly compliment Ajayi and burn off more carries.

Yeah, have to agree here, at this rate he will break down before seasons end. I though believe that if given a chance, Drake and Williams do have the skill set to carry the load.

finmann said:

I though believe that if given a chance, Drake and Williams do have the skill set to carry the load.

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Kenyan Drake has never carried the load, not even in college. He's always been a complimentary outside speed guy.

And Damien Williams is terrible between the tackles (no vision or burst). His career rushing average (3.4) is lower than Daniel Thomas (3.6). Damien Williams is mainly a pass-catching RB.

Pandarilla said:

Believe it or not, Ajayi is a workhorse.

I'm really not concerned if he gets 30+ carries a game...

I will never doubt his ability to carry the load.

We simply don't win yesterday without all the tough yards he mustered.

Click to expand...

Agreed - Ricky was sick of carrying the load partly because the passing game stunk, he made a point of that. As long as Ajayi's up for it and not gassed, I have no problem with him carrying the ball like it's 1989.

need to give Kenyan Drake 5 to 10 touches per game no matter what.

if that doesn't happen, at the end of the season we're going to get a "i should have figured out a way to get him the ball more. that's on me" from Gase.

Pandarilla said:

Believe it or not, Ajayi is a workhorse.

I'm really not concerned if he gets 30+ carries a game...

I will never doubt his ability to carry the load.

We simply don't win yesterday without all the tough yards he mustered.

Click to expand...

Look at the history of RBs that have carried the ball 350+ times in a season and see how long they last in the league after that season.

2006 Larry Johnson carried the ball 416 times for 1789 yards. He never came close to 1000 yards after that and basically fizzled out in Miami after 1 carry for 2 yards in 2011.
1998 Jamal Anderson carried the ball 410 times for 1846 yards. Last played in 2001, just 3 years later. 8 year career.
2000 Eddie George carried 403 times for 1509 yards. Out of the league 4 years later. He never averaged more than 3.4 ypc in the remaining 4 years after the 2000 season.
1998 Terrell Davis (one of my favorite backs ever) carried 392 times for 2008 yards. Out of the league in after 2001. He went down hill fast.
1992 Barry Foster carried 390 times for 1690. Out of the league in 1995. Only lasted two more years after the 1992 season.

It's a long list. The majority of guys that make it to that 350+ carry range in a season have their careers shortened. Injuries, wear and tear, they wear out. We saw how Ricky quit on this team because Wannstedt ran him into the ground.

The situation called for Ajayi rushing 28 times in order for us to squeek out a W. That won't happen for 16 straight weeks.

I love Ajayi and I really like Drake behind him. I'd like to see Drake spell Ajayi more in the middle of drives in the 2nd and 3rd quarters, leaving Ajayi fresher in the 4th quarter. Ajayi didn't seem to lack energy once in the game though. Kenyan is talented in his own right and is a little more likely to pop off 50+ and 60+ yard TD runs once teams wear down a bit and might offer a little more wiggle as a receiver out of the backfield. As we know from last year though, Ajayi can rattle off the big runs too.

I'm happy with the RB position as a whole, I think we need to rely on them for 16 weeks.

I agree and consider the fact we're playing 16 weeks in a row. He won't have a bye week to rest up and on top of it, Drake is a very capable back up so no reason to run Ajayi into the ground. It seems that was the plan for the whole team. The top 3 WR's played almost every snap too. Maxwell and Howard played just about every snap and they got beat all game long. Hull played every snap too so Gase just didn't want the back ups out there at all for whatever reason.

Ozzy rules!!

Who is the best pass blocking back on the roster? I gotta think Jay is better at this point of he is getting that many more snaps than Williams.

Give Drake more opportunities. There were a lot of Ajayi doubters before he really got a featured opportunity as well.

run heavy game plan made a ton of sense on a lot of levels for the Chargers game. there will be other games when we won't run as much, be it because of game plan or circumstance. so far, i'm not worried.