Sony Michell shows why you need a good RB

[OmerV]

I was told you need a top 4 pick to get a good running back.......

It’s never about having to have a top pick to get a good RB, or any other position. It’s about having the best odds to get a good player. Odds go down the lower you go in the draft.

 

[Diehardblues]

In Patriots championship runs they usually have a solid running game, solid defense with the best defensive guru in the league and of course the most clutch QB in NFL history.

 

[Diehardblues]

It’s never about having to have a top pick to get a good RB, or any other position. It’s about having the best odds to get a good player. Odds go down the lower you go in the draft.

When you have a GM without that keen eye for talent then the 1st round is best place to assemble talent or 2nd rounders with 1st round talent who fall because of injuries or personal conduct.

 

[mattjames2010]

what wasn't true is that Michel played on both games vs the Chiefs. The first game, he ran for over 100 yards ... the second game, got nearly 100. Those were hard yards to get and proved to be very important in the overall scheme of those two games.




The point is the difference between Super Bowl 52 and 53.

In Super Bowl 52, the Patriots were unable to play any type of ball control offense. The running game they had in place was not capable of gaining the hard yards because it was all based on the short passing routes. They couldnt keep them off the field.

Compare that to Super Bowl 53, where the Pats were able to grind out plays on the ground. It may not seem like much, but it allowed the Patriots to control the time of possession. It was a low scoring game. One or two plays made by the Rams and the outcome could have been much different.



not for nothing, but a lot of people continually under rate the new england running back corps... yes it has been set up differently than most other teams, but that is what the Patriots have needed. They have always tried to carry quality backs on their roster. Contrary to popular opinion, a player does not have to hit an arbitrary statistical benchmark in order to be considered a "good" player.

Nobody is taking away from a good run game - the point is, you don't need "Great" or "elite" RBs in today's league to have a good running game. And Sony Michel, by any statistical benchmark, is not a great player. Maybe had a great playoff run, but that's it. Not a single stat from him was anything out of the ordinary from multiple backs you see yearly.

 

[Diehardblues]

Nobody is taking away from a good run game - the point is, you don't need "Great" or "elite" RBs in today's league to have a good running game. And Sony Michel, by any statistical benchmark, is not a great player. Maybe had a great playoff run, but that's it. Not a single stat from him was anything out of the ordinary from multiple backs you see yearly.

But he was a 1st round pick which makes him a potential great talent. I’d definitely consider calling his Rookie season more than above average. Playing great in the playoffs does elevate his season.

Great or Elite are subjective descriptions anyway. They might mean different things to all of us depending on our personal perspective or beliefs coming in.

 

[mattjames2010]

But he was a 1st round pick which makes him a potential great talent. I’d definitely consider calling his Rookie season more than above average. Playing great in the playoffs does elevate his season.

Great or Elite are subjective descriptions anyway. They might mean different things to all of us depending on our personal perspective or beliefs coming in.

Out of the 13 games started, 6 of those games he had below 4 ypc, his longest run in the regular season was 34 yards, and he had a whopping 7 catches in those 13 games. The only embarrassing thing I see is that he totaled Zeke's rushing TDs on 209 carries.

Again, by not statistical benchmark, is this "great". Pretending you can't find an RB giving this kind of production yearly that is a flash in a pan is crazy talk. Those numbers compare to someone like Lamar Miller, who is not a great RB.

And the only reason "great" and "elite" is "subjective" with RB is due to the fact that the position, as a whole, is incredibly unremarkable. There are very few real "elite" RBs in the league and the ones who look elite right now don't stay there for very long. You then have scrub RBs that come in, put up good numbers, and then disappear.

 

[Bobhaze]

When I look at how the pats use their RBs, it’s so much more innovative than here in Dallas and it’s one of the many reasons they are hard to prepare for. The pats like to use their RBs all over the field in multiple formations, and they don’t just use Michel. They also use James White as both a runner and receiver.

If we’re being honest about our offense and how it uses players, we really only use Zeke as a backfield weapon in the same simple ways. Sure Zeke catches passes but he is rarely used in a way we’ve never seen before. Rod Smith is never or almost never used in any creative way. He is brought in for one reason- to give Zeke a breather. When the defenses see Rod Smith, they know he’s only going to be used to run basic plays from their base formation.

IMO, we need to upgrade at the backup RB position for two reasons:

1. We need a bonafide running and receiving threat to come in once in a while and create some new wrinkles for the defense. We need a player that’s a real threat to run or catch passes.

2. Zeke is being used at a pace that will shorten his career. Having Zeke’s workload reduced will make him fresher when you need him most. Look at how gassed and injured Gurley was in the playoffs. If the rams hadn’t had CJ Anderson, they wouldn’t have made the SB.

 

[CowboysFaninHouston]

I was told you need a top 4 pick to get a good running back.......

when you have gronk, Brady, Edelman and bilicheck as your head coach, you don't need a top 4 pick for RB...... michel was still a first round pick.....but when you have Dak, Beasley, Austin, a Rookie and Jarwin/Swaim and Garrett as the head coach...you need a Zeke type back.

 

[Beaker42]

Lost in the shuffle w/ Edelmann busting out in the super bowl was a playoff MVP type performance in the Pats super bowl run. In 3 games, here are his stats:

71/336/6 TD's.

Michell was a beast in the Chargers playoff win. They couldn't stop him. 24/129/3 TDs

And then in what became a close one vs KC, Michell kept the chains moving and the ball out of Mahomes's hands. 29/113 and 2 TD's.

And then in the super bowl, while overshadowed by Edelmann's performance, Michell once again had a great game at 18/94 and scored the games only TD.

NE outplayed SD, but I'm not sure NE beats KC w/o his performance.

A good RB can do that with a good O-line. Our O-line wasnt that great last season. Or Zeke wasn’t that great. Or our play calling wasn’t that great.

 

[MojaveJT]

Nobody is taking away from a good run game - the point is, you don't need "Great" or "elite" RBs in today's league to have a good running game. And Sony Michel, by any statistical benchmark, is not a great player. Maybe had a great playoff run, but that's it. Not a single stat from him was anything out of the ordinary from multiple backs you see yearly.

Pats have the luxury of having one of the greatest HC and TB12. They’re able to win without a great RB because Brady can read D’s and adjust accordingly.

Cowboys can win without Zeke, no doubt. But not with Dak at the helm and an average RB paired together. Heck, this offense is bottom half with an elite RB! That’s saying something.

 

[QuincyCarterEra]

NE outplayed SD, but I'm not sure NE beats KC w/o his performance.

Michel averaged 3.9 yards per carry against KC

 

[Verdict]

You want to take bets now on Sony getting a second contract in NE

Which way are you going with that?

 

[QuincyCarterEra]

Ramsey would have been a lesser pick than Zeke for MANY reasons.

So wrong.

 

[conner01]

Which way are you going with that?

Drafting a RB in the first rnd is really not a risk
Letting a RB play out his rookie contract and then signing him is the risk
And once Sony finishes his first contract they will let him walk

 

[Verdict]

So wrong.

We are going to have to disagree on that one, my friend.

 

[Verdict]

Drafting a RB in the first rnd is really not a risk
Letting a RB play out his rookie contract and then signing him is the risk
And once Sony finishes his first contract they will let him walk

They might. The Patriots may let any player they draft walk. They make hard evaluations on performance, cap hit and performance vs cap that all the other team's should be doing.

If they can draft a guy, use him for three orv4 years and trade the guy for a high pick, or end up with a 3rd round comp pick for him, that's not a bad gig for them is it?

 

[robjay04]

LOL because THEY DID MOVE back. If we offered the same, again, why would the Browns and Titans NOT move back? You're not making any sense. They could do more with the picks they got from us than the picks they got from Eagles and Rams - again, if they wanted, still keeping a top 5 pick, they could move around the board still.

There were two franchise QB, a highly touted corner, and a dominant pass rusher in the top 5 - we took the RB. There's not getting around this, we went with the least valuable position outside of longsnapper. Two of the teams in the top 5 now have franchise QBs and were in the Super Bowl (Wentz helped), Ramsey is one of the best young corners in the league that got to a championship game led by a great defense, and Bosa has had two seasons of double digit sacks in his 3 year career. All of these positions are more valuable than RB.

You’re either not understanding what I’m saying or you just don’t care because you got to be right regardless.

If they moved to 4...do you have confirmation other teams wanted the 4th pick?

In my opinion, the top two picks are the only picks with any value in the draft. Browns/Titans woundnt have traded to 4 unless we offered exactly what the Eagles/Rams did.

 

[Pape]

Nobody is taking away from a good run game - the point is, you don't need "Great" or "elite" RBs in today's league to have a good running game. And Sony Michel, by any statistical benchmark, is not a great player. Maybe had a great playoff run, but that's it. Not a single stat from him was anything out of the ordinary from multiple backs you see yearly.

Stop looking at statistical benchmarks. Or if you insist, look at the correct ones!

Rams vs the run, Playoffs 2019
Kamara 1.88 ypc
Ingram 3.44 ypc
Elliot 2.45 ypc
Michel 5.22 ypc

Sony Michel Playoffs 2019
vs Chargers 5.38 ypc
vs Chiefs 3.89 ypc
vs Rams 5.22 ypc

Its about performing when it matters. That's what makes a player lousy, average, good, very good, great, elite or however else you want to label them.

 

[nightrain]

having Brady under center is a big assist for the running game.

 

[Proof]

I have not seen anyone say it is not possible to get a good RB outside of the top 10.

lol. EVER. no one. Very silly