Sporting News RB grades..

[Oboy]

I don't see how they have the Pats and Jets so high. Yes the Pats have some really good rb's. Just not sure about the A+. Think they are the best in the league? Come on... The Jets... they lost their back up rb and Martin is really close to being out of football. In his Prime he was AWESOME. He had a really good year last year, but I think that gravy boat is coming to an end.

As for us getting a B, I can handle that (if the other rankings were more on par). We do have a bunch to prove. Playing devils' advocate Ricky has to show he is back in form and Ronnie has not taken a snap yet. I personally think they will both be fine, but I can see the skepticisim.

 

[Al13]

I guess with Ronnie you have to wait until he proves himself, but Ricky has proven himself over and over again.

This whole weight gain issue is so overblown it is ridiculous. Not only does the guy still have 2 weeks to gain weight before he even gets into training camp, but after that he's got all the way until OCTOBER before he even has to play a single meaningful down, because of his five week suspension.

He's already at 215 pounds, and his normal playing weight in Miami was between 225 and 235 pounds. Does anyone HONESTLY think, that he will have trouble gaining another 10 or 15 pounds, over the course of the next three MONTHS?

What exactly does Ricky have to prove to anyone? We're not talking about a guy who missed a year because of an ACL tear, or some other injury that throws his effectiveness into question. He missed a year voluntarily.

If you would give Miami's runningbacks an A or A- before Ricky's retirement, there's no good reason to give it a B now, especially after using the SECOND OVERALL PICK IN THE DRAFT ON ANOTHER RUNNINGBACK.

Inexcusible, plain and simple.

well put ck, unbelievable these guys

 

[ch19079]

Wow, I know everyone likes to take a wait-and-see approach, but I'm not sure how Ricky Williams' sudden retirement has made him less talented on the football team, and how a #2 overall pick runningback even alone compares to unfavorably to Corey Dillon, Curtis Martin, and Willis McGahee.

are you kidding?
RW is a RB who retired and does not want to play football anymore. he didnt just sit out a year, or sit on the IR for a year. he retired. and went to smoke pot in india. forget about the weight issue, that doesnt matter. whats important is that his teammates arnt happy with him. he already has problems with dealing with people, and the media. and HE DOESNT WANT TO PLAY FOOTBALL ANYMORE!!!. Dont expect him to return to his 2002 greatness. i think the best you can hope for is for him to be what he was in 2003. but IMO even that is unlikly.

Brown is a ROOKIE. alot of fin fans dont want to accept that, but he is. no matter his potental or what skills he showed in college, he is still unproven. and untill he shows he can perform at the NFL level, than he cant be put above other proven RBs. he wasnt even the RB on his college team. we have no way of knowing what he can do in the NFL. so on the list of best RBs in the NFL, draft picks have to be at the bottom of the list. untill they prove themselves. Hell, A. Smith (QB) was the #1 overall pick, noone would put him above other NFL QBs.

and before yall start talkin smack about losman, hes not a rookie, but is still unproven. so i dont put losman above any QB, (even AJ).

 

[dolfan4good]

I guess with Ronnie you have to wait until he proves himself, but Ricky has proven himself over and over again.

This whole weight gain issue is so overblown it is ridiculous. Not only does the guy still have 2 weeks to gain weight before he even gets into training camp, but after that he's got all the way until OCTOBER before he even has to play a single meaningful down, because of his five week suspension.

He's already at 215 pounds, and his normal playing weight in Miami was between 225 and 235 pounds. Does anyone HONESTLY think, that he will have trouble gaining another 10 or 15 pounds, over the course of the next three MONTHS?

What exactly does Ricky have to prove to anyone? We're not talking about a guy who missed a year because of an ACL tear, or some other injury that throws his effectiveness into question. He missed a year voluntarily.

If you would give Miami's runningbacks an A or A- before Ricky's retirement, there's no good reason to give it a B now, especially after using the SECOND OVERALL PICK IN THE DRAFT ON ANOTHER RUNNINGBACK.

Inexcusible, plain and simple.

Im not sure if they are questioning his physical ability as much as they are questioning his state of mind. Is he mentally ready to pick up where he left off. Personnaly I think he will be, but you have to admit that other people could question his desire and motivation (remember the 8 mil) for returning.

 

[Justasportsfan]

I couldn't agree more Disgustipate.

I would caution the Bills not to place too much hope on Willis McGahee. He's good and I like him, but William Green did pretty much the same thing Willis did in his rookie year. He then proceeded to level off. Before we start declaring them as having the best RB in the division, lets wait until Willis shows some seasonal consistency.

Ricky Williams is a proven commodity. There should be no questions about him on the field. Those questions are all off the field in nature.

And then there's Ronnie Brown. I know we should wait until we see him in action before dubbing him the next coming, but I think normally when someone chooses a runningback in the top 5, they are given more respect than he is being given. I wonder what they gave the Bucs?

Caution the bills about "what could happen" You should apply that to your team.

I would caution the fins Brown could be the next Lawrence Philipps. :shakeno:

 

[Stampede201]

Dillon won't have the season he enjoyed last year..MArk my words..so the Pats score really pees me off...The rest is ok!

 

[Mike13]

Miami: B
If Ronnie Brown matches his hype and Ricky Williams is close to what he was, yikes.

by the by...

Pats A
Corey Dillon hauls the mail, and Kevin Faulk provides a nice change of pace.

Jets A
Curtis Martin, 32, will slow down sooner or later. Bet on later.

Bills B+
Willis McGahee is a heavy-duty back with gamebreaking ability.

That sounds right for everyone. Well lets eee this year if the divsion does have the best RunningBacks in the AFC.

 

[dolfancoolio]

are you kidding?
RW is a RB who retired and does not want to play football anymore. he didnt just sit out a year, or sit on the IR for a year. he retired. and went to smoke pot in india. forget about the weight issue, that doesnt matter. whats important is that his teammates arnt happy with him. he already has problems with dealing with people, and the media. and HE DOESNT WANT TO PLAY FOOTBALL ANYMORE!!!. Dont expect him to return to his 2002 greatness. i think the best you can hope for is for him to be what he was in 2003. but IMO even that is unlikly.

Brown is a ROOKIE. alot of fin fans dont want to accept that, but he is. no matter his potental or what skills he showed in college, he is still unproven. and untill he shows he can perform at the NFL level, than he cant be put above other proven RBs. he wasnt even the RB on his college team. we have no way of knowing what he can do in the NFL. so on the list of best RBs in the NFL, draft picks have to be at the bottom of the list. untill they prove themselves. Hell, A. Smith (QB) was the #1 overall pick, noone would put him above other NFL QBs.

and before yall start talkin smack about losman, hes not a rookie, but is still unproven. so i dont put losman above any QB, (even AJ).

right so he is making a return to playing NFL football because "HE DOESNT WANT TO PLAY FOOTBALL ANYMORE!!!"......riiiiiight keep dreaming.

 

[infiltrateib]

are you kidding?
RW is a RB who retired and does not want to play football anymore. he didnt just sit out a year, or sit on the IR for a year. he retired. and went to smoke pot in india. forget about the weight issue, that doesnt matter. whats important is that his teammates arnt happy with him. he already has problems with dealing with people, and the media. and HE DOESNT WANT TO PLAY FOOTBALL ANYMORE!!!. Dont expect him to return to his 2002 greatness. i think the best you can hope for is for him to be what he was in 2003. but IMO even that is unlikly.

You can question his motivation, but for some reason or another he does want to play football. He's coming back. And the best part is, we already have 2 very capable backs. What team wants to face a fresh-legged RW halfway through the 4th quarter? Even if it takes him a little while to get back to speed, RW at 80% coming across that line versus a LB at 60% is still a train wreck waiting to happen.

Brown is a ROOKIE. alot of fin fans dont want to accept that, but he is. no matter his potental or what skills he showed in college, he is still unproven. and untill he shows he can perform at the NFL level, than he cant be put above other proven RBs. he wasnt even the RB on his college team. we have no way of knowing what he can do in the NFL. so on the list of best RBs in the NFL, draft picks have to be at the bottom of the list. untill they prove themselves. Hell, A. Smith (QB) was the #1 overall pick, noone would put him above other NFL QBs.

Couple problems here:

1) QB is a more difficult position to learn than RB. RBs can easily come in and gain 1,000+.
2) Let's not get back into the "who started for Auburn" argument. The guy just drafted #1 in the NBA didn't start.
3) We accept that Brown is a rookie. I just think he, Gordon, and RW combine to grade higher than "B."

 

[Motion]

You are totally missing my point. What does it matter what freakn sporting news grades you?

He has a very good point. Some people on this site get way too fired up over petty stuff. Let our Fins prove it on the field, who cares what the papers say. We'll earn our respect on the field, where it counts.

 

[ch19079]

right so he is making a return to playing NFL football because "HE DOESNT WANT TO PLAY FOOTBALL ANYMORE!!!"......riiiiiight keep dreaming.

he doenst want to play footaball. thats why he retired.

now it appears that he is comming back. not because he wants to. but because he has to. basically forced to do so by the team he inteds to play for.

that makes me question if he will return to what he was in 2003, (much less 2002).

 

[dolfancoolio]

he doenst want to play footaball. thats why he retired.

now it appears that he is comming back. not because he wants to. but because he has to. basically forced to do so by the team he inteds to play for.

that makes me question if he will return to what he was in 2003, (much less 2002).

thats why retired but how can you say he is being "forced" to come back and play NFL. On the front page of this site, about the fifth or so article down it says his agent has spoken to RW and said that he is "in good spirits and ready to go". Seems to me someone that so easily and apathetically left a franchise for dead wouldn't just be "forced" into coming back to the game. I question whether or not he will return to form also but to propose his motivation to play football is because he is being "forced" to is nonsense considering what has transpired.

 

[ch19079]

thats why retired but how can you say he is being "forced" to come back and play NFL. On the front page of this site, about the fifth or so article down it says his agent has spoken to RW and said that he is "in good spirits and ready to go". Seems to me someone that so easily and apathetically left a franchise for dead wouldn't just be "forced" into coming back to the game. I question whether or not he will return to form also but to propose his motivation to play football is because he is being "forced" to is nonsense considering what has transpired.

at this point, i dont believe anything a agent says. i have to see it first.

you make it sound like he has just changed his mind, and is looking forward to the game again. i just dont see it that way. i really think he is atleast being pressured, (if not forced), to come back and play football again. if he didnt have that 8 mil. dollar debt hanging over his head, noone would be talkin about him now. to me, thats the only reason he "wants" to play football.


kinda like driving to do your community service. you want to get there (thats why your driving there), but you really really dont want to go.

 

[Dol-Fan Dupree]

at this point, i dont believe anything a agent says. i have to see it first.

you make it sound like he has just changed his mind, and is looking forward to the game again. i just dont see it that way. i really think he is atleast being pressured, (if not forced), to come back and play football again. if he didnt have that 8 mil. dollar debt hanging over his head, noone would be talkin about him now. to me, thats the only reason he "wants" to play football.


kinda like driving to do your community service. you want to get there (thats why your driving there), but you really really dont want to go.

I guess the only person who knows for sure is Ricky Williams. You think he is being forced, and yet what you think means nothing. You have no clue, just like I don't have a clue when it comes to Ricky's motivations.

 

[Roman529]

No way the Bills have better backs than us....wait till the Ronnie and Ricky show get going....we COULD have the best backfield in the NFL.