Lost in the excitement; running game continues pedestrian streak

[hugoguzman]

I'll spend a lot of time heaping praise on guys in my column for tomorrow morning, but for now, I want to bring some attention to a concerning trend.

In 5 of our 6 games, our rushing duo of Ronnie Brown and Ricky Williams have been pedestrian at best.

Brown ran for just 43 yards on 14 carries with 1 reception for 5 yards.

Williams ran for just 16 yards on 7 carries. He did score a beautiful touchdown on a cutback as well as an explosive 47-yard gain on a screen pass but also turned the ball over on a fumble in a key spot.

Now don't get me wrong, I'm not saying that Brown and Williams aren't above average running backs.

It just seems like we've really moved away from a run-oriented attack. It also seems as if our offensive line is struggling to get a push at the line of scrimmage and create solid holes for these guys to run through.

It seemed as if this unit had turned the corner against the Patriots and Chargers, but clearly, the offensive line has taken a step back since then.

 

[SR 7]

agree 100%. they do a good job in pass protectoin but suck at opening up holes.

 

[nosleep]

Buffalo showed up today to stop our Running game, let's face it, if you're a team facing Ronnie and Ricky you have to respect that tandem and you must gameplan to stop it. What, are you going to gameplan to stop our receivers? LOL. They did a good job of stopping our run though, luckily Pennington made them pay.

 

[SR 7]

Buffalo showed up today to stop our Running game, let's face it, if you're a team facing Ronnie and Ricky you have to respect that tandem and you must gameplan to stop it. What, are you going to gameplan to stop our receivers? LOL. They did a good job of stopping our run though, luckily Pennington made them pay.

very well said. thats why throwing deep is key and i think thats what Buffalo DIDNT expect from us. we hae to keep it up so we can keep defenses on their toes and allow holes to open up. this way they game plan around ginn now as well. look what teams are doing with him returning kicks now, imagine with the passing game. he reminded me of santana moss today. BIG time.

 

[napsndreds]

Williams had more than 16 Yards!

 

[Namor]

I'll still take "W" over the CFL team.

 

[hugoguzman]

Williams had more than 16 Yards!

No he didn't. He had 59 total yards if you count his receiving yardage (which I referred to) but only had 16 rushing yards on 7 carries.

Also, as far as stretching the field with the passing game, etc...my big problem with this is that our running game is supposed to succeed even when the defense nows it's coming...in short yardage situations or late in games (like when we iced the game against San Diego).

Right now, that's not happening. I just think that it's a combination of poor blocking and not enough overall carries.

No biggie for now, especially since the Dolphins won, but it's something to keep an eye on.

 

[3rdandinches]

That is Buffalo's strength, stopping the run. We actually had more success with the wildcat and I thought we should have used it more. That was another new look and it was pretty effective, we just hardly used it.

 

[phinphan4life]

I'll spend a lot of time heaping praise on guys in my column for tomorrow morning, but for now, I want to bring some attention to a concerning trend.

In 5 of our 6 games, our rushing duo of Ronnie Brown and Ricky Williams have been pedestrian at best.

Brown ran for just 43 yards on 14 carries with 1 reception for 5 yards.

Williams ran for just 16 yards on 7 carries. He did score a beautiful touchdown on a cutback as well as an explosive 47-yard gain on a screen pass but also turned the ball over on a fumble in a key spot.

Now don't get me wrong, I'm not saying that Brown and Williams aren't above average running backs.

It just seems like we've really moved away from a run-oriented attack. It also seems as if our offensive line is struggling to get a push at the line of scrimmage and create solid holes for these guys to run through.

It seemed as if this unit had turned the corner against the Patriots and Chargers, but clearly, the offensive line has taken a step back since then.

Very well stated. Although the O-line isn't performing optimally in the run game, I still feel the coaches are giving up on the run too soon in games. We are relying way too heavily on gimmick run plays. There's nothing wrong with just lining up in a traditional I formation or whatever and running the ball down the opponent's throat. Ronnie has proven over and over again, that if you give him enough touches (20-25) he'll produce and produce big time.

 

[PerfectFinz72]

In fairness, the running game isn't getting enough attempts in my opinion. Today I said in the gameday thread that they need to run the ball more and I got repeated responses that they couldnt against buffalo. But they attempted 20 runs between 2 guys...thats not enough. And the running game wasn't being completely stuffed like against the Ravens, so I dont get why it was limited. But we've seen it a number of times this year...even when we've had a lead in the 2nd half. We continue with the throw 1st, run 2nd mentality.

With that said, maybe the coaches feel its not working so they go away from it. But I still think most running backs tend to start slow...and finish strong. But neither Ronnie or Ricky are getting the types of carries you can give running baks and expect them to produce week in and out.

 

[hugoguzman]

That is Buffalo's strength, stopping the run. We actually had more success with the wildcat and I thought we should have used it more. That was another new look and it was pretty effective, we just hardly used it.

I thought that as well, but Buffalo really isn't that great at stopping the run.

Coming into this game they were ranked 15th in the league, allowing 107.2 yards per game (4.1 ypc) and 7 rushing touchdowns.

 

[SR 7]

No he didn't. He had 59 total yards if you count his receiving yardage (which I referred to) but only had 16 rushing yards on 7 carries.

Also, as far as stretching the field with the passing game, etc...my big problem with this is that our running game is supposed to succeed even when the defense nows it's coming...in short yardage situations or late in games (like when we iced the game against San Diego).

Right now, that's not happening. I just think that it's a combination of poor blocking and not enough overall carries.

No biggie for now, especially since the Dolphins won, but it's something to keep an eye on.

most definitely. I'm glad your pointing this out b/c you arent acting like Oh we won so we shouldnt complain or notice any mistakes. Only way to get better is to notice mistakes even after victories only way to fix them.
:up:

 

[SR 7]

That is Buffalo's strength, stopping the run. We actually had more success with the wildcat and I thought we should have used it more. That was another new look and it was pretty effective, we just hardly used it.

not true. they give up about 107 yards rushing i believe.

 

[SR 7]

Very well stated. Although the O-line isn't performing optimally in the run game, I still feel the coaches are giving up on the run too soon in games. We are relying way too heavily on gimmick run plays. There's nothing wrong with just lining up in a traditional I formation or whatever and running the ball down the opponent's throat. Ronnie has proven over and over again, that if you give him enough touches (20-25) he'll produce and produce big time.

the problem is w/out thos gimmick plays we aren't gaining yars rushing. I think satele in the run game has gone backwards tremendously compared to last year and smiley is doing an avg job. on some plays hes doing well some not at all.

 

[islandah]

Fact of the matter is that we still have a relative talent deficit compared to most of the teams we play. If we try to just line up straight formations and play them, we will lose more of those battles than we win. No passing threat makes it easier to defend us if we are playing 1 dimensional football.

Right now we have to win by constantly giving new looks, occasional "trick" plays, some wildcat, and changing things up every game. Basically, outcoaching the other guy. So far, I'm impressed with Sparano, Hennings, etc and what they've been able to accomplish so far. We're a year or two away from being able to just line up and beat somebody man on man. And that's essentially what a power running game is.