ahmilli
Rookie
Hope he's a steal!
CFL Edmonton Eskimo's runningback Jerome Messam signs with the Miami Dolphins
- Thread starter FinAtic8480
- Start date
Fodder - someone for the D to TEE OFF on the soft training camp last year got us NO WHERE - and that practice BUBBLE is just a curse
We are slowly infiltrating the NFL like we did MLB - LOL - Just kidding Dlockz don't get your tighty whities in a knot my man
hoops
Tua time!
i still don't see a goalline back on this roster...unless hilliard is gonna be that guy...
Phinatic8u
Club Member
I looked at Hilliard...still didn't see anything
CFL backs and WRs look great in the extra open space until they are left in the confines of the much much smaller NFL field -
ckparrothead
Premium Member
CFL wide receivers tend to look great with all that open space, but tailbacks not necessarily.
Ricky Williams was only an average tailback up in the CFL. He gained 526 yards on 109 carries with only 2 TDs.
He was actually a better and more productive NFL tailback than he was a CFL tailback. His first two seasons back in the NFL he ran for 1780 yards on 301 carries, with 15 TDs.
Certain positions are at an advantage in the CFL and they become highlight reels up there. I don't consider tailback one of them. Nor defensive back, or defensive end.
Ricky Williams was only an average tailback up in the CFL. He gained 526 yards on 109 carries with only 2 TDs.
He was actually a better and more productive NFL tailback than he was a CFL tailback. His first two seasons back in the NFL he ran for 1780 yards on 301 carries, with 15 TDs.
Certain positions are at an advantage in the CFL and they become highlight reels up there. I don't consider tailback one of them. Nor defensive back, or defensive end.
I would say it's more like some tailbacks look better up here and some do not. Ricky was one who didn't and there are probably dozens more like him. The average big bodied (230 lb) back doesn't fare that well up here because the CFL is really made for someone with a very quick burst, who can get into the secondary quickly and then do some open field damage.
The defenders in the CFL are all undersized and quick/fast. The average 4.5 - 4.6 tailback doesn't stand a chance. But the undersized jitterbug (e.g. Stefan Logan) can do really well if he's quick enough. On the other extreme, really fast big guys (e.g. Jesse Lumsden) can also do well. But there is a history of NFL backs not doing well in the CFL, and vice versa, and it's because the field/defenders in each league seem to favor a different skill set...
dlockz
Hall Of Famer
Seriously Im a fan of football in all leagues Im just not under the impression that there is alot of NFL talent in the cfl, these are guys that for the most part could not make the nfl thats why they are in canada , I do think there are some guys like Messam and even Adarious Bowman that have never really been given a chance and could actually be decent players. That still doesnt change the fact that any given year there is like one CFL player that could start in the NFL. Ever since the CFL has given up cometing with the NFL the talent level has gone down slightly.
There is very little NFL talent in the CFL that is why Wake stood out so easily - Messam will not make this team - period - has nothing to do with attitude - he is training camp fodder as was WR RGM and his 1,000 posts - people are bored and so they leap on every signing - DT has nothing to worry about over Messam - BTW GaSped speaks truth - unless you have ever seen a CFL field you can't fully grasp the space the backs and WRs have to play with - Ricky WiLliams looked unprepared in Toronto and they rarely gave him the rock anyways this CFL is a two and out punting league unless you have a good QB and at the time Ricky played with CFL legend Damon Allan - and Toronto was really about the passing game but they sigbed Ricky to sell tickets - no one watches CFL in Toronto they are more likley to cheer the Jills LOL
Fodder or not there is no way this dude is worse than Hillard. He can be as bad but not worse if he improves the position than Hillard is gone or cut them both if needed, it isn't like fullback is going to be a position of emphasis.
One thing I do have to agree with both ckparrot and rev kev on is how the WR position translates (or doesn't) between CFL and NFL. I would be extremely leery of any CFL WR, star or not, in the NFL. I can only think of two (Mervyn Fernandez, Rocket Ismail) who made the jump with any degree of success, and that was 20 years ago. The difference between playing in an abandoned air strip (CFL) vs. a phone booth (NFL) is way too much to overcome. QB is also a position that does not translate very well between the two leagues.
On the other hand, on defense, where it's more about athletic ability than skills, there are definitely more possibilities. Just about any position on a CFL defense has some potential for a place on an NFL defense (e.g. may convert a CFL OLB to an NFL SS). O-line is another place where CFL talent could find a spot in the NFL.
On the other hand, on defense, where it's more about athletic ability than skills, there are definitely more possibilities. Just about any position on a CFL defense has some potential for a place on an NFL defense (e.g. may convert a CFL OLB to an NFL SS). O-line is another place where CFL talent could find a spot in the NFL.
If these guys who "watch all the tape" took the time to inlay the NFL field dimensions within the CFL field dimensions they would come to understand how different the two games are. I prefer the NFL to the CFL kicking/punting game myself - and that is what happens in the CFL when the QB is poor -punt, punt, punt
The guy's size and surprising speed/agility make him look a lot like Arian Foster (not saying he will perform like Foster though). Definitely worth a look.
dlockz
Hall Of Famer
He a actually can be worse than Hillaird, Messan has not even made an NFL team yet so who knows