Watching Reggie Bush Tonight...

[Astrosback]

Reggie Bush had a very big game tonight in helping the Saints beat ARI in the playoff game.

It got me thinking...would CJ Spiller be a good pick at 1.12 if he ended up being more Reggie Bush than Chris Johnson?

I know all the Spiller threads have posts about whether or not he can be as good as Chris Johnson, and obviously we'd all love it if Spiller delivered us a rushing title or 2,000 yards in his 2nd year but...

What if Spiller was just Reggie Bush-good? Would that be good enough?

I think so.

Especially if you subtract out the injuries of Bush. I could live with the less-than-ideal between the tackles running if Spiller could open up the offense and deliver as a RS like Bush did/does for the Saints.

Anyway, Spiller should be seriously considered at 1.12 if Dez Bryant and Rolando McClain are gone (in that order; Dez before McClain).


Because as much as we need defensive help (and I know we do), we also must become more explosive. And while WR1 (Dez Bryant) should be a higher priority, RB1 is also a need.

If we're lucky, Ronnie will opt out, then we could tender him a 2nd rounder and hopefully he'll get signed away and we'll get an extra 2nd.

If we're not so lucky, Ronnie won't opt out, we'll have to pay him a hefty sum for 2010 but MAYBE he'll be worth it IF he plays 16 games. Even then, Ronnie will be gone by 2011 so running back will still be a need.

As for our other RBs, Ricky will be 33 and retired by 2011. Hillard, Cobbs and Sheets may be HOFers here in finheaven but in real life, they're RB3s at best with Cobbs coming off injury and Sheets a liability in pass protection.

Nah, make no mistake about it, RB is a huge need.

I hope Dez Bryant is there for us. If not, I hope McClain is, but if not, Spiller should be the pick b/c RB is a need and GAME-CHANGER is an even bigger need.

 

[dolphinators13]

What I said in another thread.

We should not draft Spiller! What the hell would be the point? I have seen him play and he is a beast but it would be a wasted draft pick. We just had too many unfortunate injuries at running back this year. LB, DT, WR are way way way bigger needs than running back. At one point in the season we were leading the league in rushing so I think we will be fine next year. We get Cobbs back and Ronnie, we will be fine. Plus Lex did a good job and is a threat catching passes as well and it’s not like Cobbs is a scrub either he had a lot of big plays the year before. Drafting Spiller to me seems pointless.

 

[Rhody Phins Fan]

If Spille is Reggie Bush then that would be a bad pick. Bush can't run between the tackles, which is kind of a vital ability that you want in a first round runningback.

 

[SF Dolphin Fan]

I totally agree, except that I would take Spiller over Bryant. Both are great, but Spiller can affect a game in so many more ways. At best, the top receivers get 5-7 touches a game. Spiller, when you count in returns, could get 20-25. That's so many more chances for a big play and explains to a degree why Parcells doesn't give receivers value in the first round. My take anyway.

 

[Astrosback]

What I said in another thread.

We should not draft Spiller! What the hell would be the point? I have seen him play and he is a beast but it would be a wasted draft pick. We just had too many unfortunate injuries at running back this year. LB, DT, WR are way way way bigger needs than running back. At one point in the season we were leading the league in rushing so I think we will be fine next year. We get Cobbs back and Ronnie, we will be fine. Plus Lex did a good job and is a threat catching passes as well and it’s not like Cobbs is a scrub either he had a lot of big plays the year before. Drafting Spiller to me seems pointless.

The only thing that matters about a player picked in the early first round is that he is a stud, elite talent. There's a very good chance that Spiller might be the only elite talent left on the board when we pick.

If you read my post, I acknowledged that Dez or McClain would be higher priorities b/c they are also studs but at higher-need positions.

But after Dez and Bryant, I'd rank Spiller pretty high.

And again, Ronnie might opt out. If he doesn't opt out, he'll be with us one more year only (no way we pay him long term).

Cobbs is alright as a RB3 but he's coming off injury. Hilliard is only a RB3.

If you haven't noticed, Ricky is 33. Ronnie can't make 16 games to save his life and Cobbs/Hilliard/Sheets are RB3s.

You need to re-check your "needs" list.

 

[Astrosback]

If Spille is Reggie Bush then that would be a bad pick. Bush can't run between the tackles, which is kind of a vital ability that you want in a first round runningback.

Bush actually ran pretty tough in the game today, but obviously, if we draft Spiller, we hope he's better between the tackles than Bush.

We hope he's Chris Johnson-esque. But Bush is a playmaker none the less and we do need a playmaker.

Another route we could go would be to sign FA Darren Sproles and look elsewhere at 1.12 but it just looks - the way the draft is lining up - like Spiller might be there at 1.12 and Dez and McClain will be gone already.

 

[Astrosback]

I totally agree, except that I would take Spiller over Bryant. Both are great, but Spiller can affect a game in so many more ways. At best, the top receivers get 5-7 touches a game. Spiller, when you count in returns, could get 20-25. That's so many more chances for a big play and explains to a degree why Parcells doesn't give receivers value in the first round. My take anyway.

I think we don't really know what Tuna does or does not value in any round. Pat White in the early 2nd round just goes to show that we have no idea who Tuna will pick.

Free agent signings will be the only indicator and even then, you just don't know. Last offseason they spent a lot of money on that Eric Green bum FA CB from ARI and then still drafted two CBs in the first 2 rounds.

I have no idea what we're gonna do but I just know I don't want to see Ginn starting and I think we'd be better off if Ronnie opts out and we get a 2nd rounder for him thru a tender.

 

[hoops]

this offense needs playmakers BAD...cj spiller is a playmaker...this defense needs playmakers...imo rolando mcclain is a playmaker...this offense needs a playmaking wr...imo dez bryant is a playmaking wr

take bpa and we'll be fine...whatever position of need

 

[Ronnieisabeast]

Wait. Let me get this straight. You saw Reggie Bush take 4 years to have one good game,and that convinced you to take CJ Spiller. Bush has been has been in the league for 4 years, and doesnt have a total of 2000 rushing yards. I do think that Spiller is a much more polished back, and is a very explosive player, but please dont compare him to Reggie Bush.

 

[MP-Omnis]

I think Kim said that she'd go sleep with 5 other guys at once if he didn't have a good game.

Spiller would just be trade bait for us.

 

[Kdawg954]

Reggie had a great game last night . . . but he for the most part hasn't been consistent enough to be highly regarded as the #2 pick that he was.

Hell Ginn burnt Revis earlier this year, that has slowly become one of the more impressive plays by ANY WR in the NFL this season.

 

[ColonelJ]

What I said in another thread.

We should not draft Spiller! What the hell would be the point? I have seen him play and he is a beast but it would be a wasted draft pick. We just had too many unfortunate injuries . . . . .

The point would be to (1) gain leverage in Ronnie negotiations, (2) get a replacement for Ricky, or for Ronnie if we lose him, and (3) get an explosive player.

But I agree, RB is not top on the list of priorities. To win it all, the priorities are, in no particular order: (1) a #1 WR, (2) pass rushing DE/OLB (3) a safety (whether SS or FS), and (4) smart ILB, (5) a better TE.

 

[skipp2myloo13]

Spiller can truly be a guy you can build a team around. He will affect the game more than any offensive player we could select. I still rather have Bryant, but Spiller isnt Bush. He isnt Johnson. He is different. He has a RB mentality with a track stars meets body builder mentality, haha. I see him as a rich man's Leon Washington or Sproles. Used right, an absolute weapon. Im not saying we need to pick him, but i would be siked if we got someone who could be the RB1, slot weapon, WR weapon, PR, KR. He sure does affect a lot of the game. As of now my top 3-McClain, Dez, Spiller.

 

[Awsi Dooger]

Reggie Bush will prove the doubters wrong. Every time I read comments downgrading him, I think back to exactly two years ago, when multiple threads asserted Lorenzo Booker was every bit as good as Reggie Bush, if not superior.

Fortunately, some of the prime offenders in that looney assessment have split to the other site.

I remember posting that within a year normalcy would be restored; Reggie Bush an NFL star and Lorenzo Booker nothing more than a dime a dozen scatback. Okay, it took two years, due to injury

I believe Booker is out of the league. It was incredible we retrieved a 4th rounder for that stiff.

Reggie Bush is not yet 25. Once his left knee is further removed from the problems, he'll regain full confidence and explosiveness, if he's not there already. Plus Sean Payton will figure out how to best utilize him, which has never been fully deciphered considering the lost game to injury in three straight seasons.

It's simple to have faith in freakish ability, and eventually be proven correct. I feel bad for posters who don't grasp that.

Anyway, Spiller would be a superb investment. He was the most dangerous college player I saw all year. In particular I love two things about Spiller:

1) He's a fantastic receiver out of the backfield, the best to enter the league in years. You can send him on deep wheel routes and force one absurd mismatch after another. Clemson did that multiple times, including against the Canes for a huge TD, burning Sean Spence. There was hype on Ronnie as a receiver. With Spiller it's legit. As seniors they had virtually the same number of receptions but Spiller averaged roughly 14 yards per catch, compared to slightly more than 9 for Ronnie. Henne's YPPA would automatically bump with Spiller, and that's got to be one of our prime considerations.

2) Spiller understands straight line benefit. He's got moves but when the crease is there he hits it, straight to the goal line without excess thought process to kill the play. That's one of the reasons he has such an amazing number of long TDs, great speed combined with a lack of frivolous detour. I watch plenty of tapes, new and old, and it's preposterous how many players forfeit TDs by weaving instead of exploding. DBs are notorious for that. The Jets guy cut it back toward the center of the field yesterday after the INT instead of continuing down the left sideline. Rex Ryan made an annoyed gesture. Teams with weak to mediocre offenses can't afford to forfeit those cheap yards and cheap points. No guarantee you get them once the other team is allowed to line up.