Does anyone know how fast Zeke is at the moment?

[KJJ]

I don’t think he’s straight away speed is the problem he just can’t break free. It’s not like anyone is chasing him down, he simply can’t elude defenders. He lacks burst and quickness.

 

[Portnoy1]

You know a players is truly Ivory Springs washed when you start hearing non performance based adjectives such as leadership and toughness.

I was a staunch Zeke fan in the past. But he is slow and lacks any power after contact now. People who keep talking about dirty yards and beating up a defense have not seen him over the last two years. Or they are in full Stevie Wonder mode.

You said Ivory Springs washed lol, that’s next level disrespect…………………but it’s true sadly. While I don’t think he’ll be that bad, I do think the leadership and pass blocking along with goal line stuff is what they’ll expect. His YPC may be even worse since they’ll be using him in that manner

 

[fivetwos]

I don’t care what his 40 time is. Does it really matter? I’m sure he is in fine shape.

All I know is he used to hit the hole with an elite burst. That went away several years ago, and doesn’t typically return.

It’s not even about him. Many elite RB over the recent years have dropped off dramatically, and it’s understandable. The position is thankless. You’re either carrying the ball and taking shots from several defenders, or in pass protect and throwing yourself in front of a guy with a head of steam.

How this team doesn’t have a young RB in here is maddening. This is about Jerry and the relationships he forms with players. It’s certainly part of what makes him an awful GM.

 

[CWR]

I don’t care what his 40 time is. Does it really matter? I’m sure he is in fine shape.

All I know is he used to hit the hole with an elite burst. That went away several years ago, and doesn’t typically return.

It’s not even about him. Many elite RB over the recent years have dropped off dramatically, and it’s understandable. The position is thankless. You’re either carrying the ball and taking shots from several defenders, or in pass protect and throwing yourself in front of a guy with a head of steam.

How this team doesn’t have a young RB in here is maddening. This is about Jerry and the relationships he forms with players. It’s certainly part of what makes him an awful GM.

Exactly! I'm not hating on Zeke. More so I'm hating on the half arsed way our FO handled the off season.

 

[DUO_CORE]

On 4th and goal from the 1/2 yard line, when he busts through into the endzone and is helped into the Salvation Army kettle, he's fast enough.

 

[john van brocklin]

In the 10 yard sprint and the 40 yard sprint? What is his maximum running speed on longer runs?

Slower than my grandma

 

[HungryLion]

Turn on the burners? That was like watching a train pick up speed.

 

[rnr_honeybadger]

Let's just say he is slow enough to leave a snail trail

 

[Rockport]

In the 10 yard sprint and the 40 yard sprint? What is his maximum running speed on longer runs?

Not as fast as he was in 2016. But don’t worry, he’s not going to be the lead back. At least I hope.

 

[Reid1boys]

In the 10 yard sprint and the 40 yard sprint? What is his maximum running speed on longer runs?

Im sure he can still do a 5.4 forty.

 

[bigE79]

Pretty darn fast.

LMAO

 

[SteveTheCowboy]

I don’t think he’s straight away speed is the problem he just can’t break free. It’s not like anyone is chasing him down, he simply can’t elude defenders. He lacks burst and quickness.

Right..because we signed him up up for his burst and quickness

 

[SteveTheCowboy]

Not as fast as he was in 2016. But don’t worry, he’s not going to be the lead back. At least I hope.

If he is lets just keep bashing the ship out of him as if its his fault.
It will make us feel better and oh so very clever...

 

[gimmesix]

Wasnt there just a thread recently where they said they believe he can be the lead back?

The team has said that, or at least Jerry has, and I believe that is the expectation. However, he can both be the lead back and carry the ball less than he did before.

 

[Rockport]

If he is lets just keep bashing the ship out of him as if its his fault.
It will make us feel better and oh so very clever...

Little too much whiskey tonight?

 

[cowboys1732]

Well, probably many on here need glasses or better ones. As we have no idea how fast he is.
He was not brought in to be that guy with break away speed. His role will not be that, as MM stated that his carries would be less than when he was here before.

I definitely should be wearing my glasses because I originally that the thread title was does anyone know how “fat” Zeke is right now. Zeke will be fine in short yardage and to grind out yards in limited carries in my opinion.

 

[gimmesix]

Excellent point......Zeke is here to get first downs, TDs, pass protection, pass receiver, leadership and toughness.

I would argue/ although he's much slower, Zeke may give our offense just as much as Pollard did last season

Also isn't it interesting you don't see RBs with a multitude of longs run per like the 80s and 90s

I think he'll give the offense more because he's built for the running game we used. We seemed to want to keep the ball between the tackles more often than not and that's not Pollard's game. Elliott may not have great speed, but speed was never his greatest asset. He's going to be a power back probably running up the middle a lot behind three power linemen (Smith, Beebe, Martin). If he can regularly plow for 4 yards (even if his average ends up lower than that), then it keeps the defense honest.

I won't be surprised if our top two backs are Elliott and Freeman because of that style of play. We may just want to hammer defenses when we run. Dowdle does pretty well between the tackles, too, though and does provide more of an outside element. I really don't see the fit for Vaughn. I could see us using him as a third-and-long back, giving him the occasional draw and letting him use his open-field skills, but I'm not sure his blitz protection is good enough.

Let me add that I wonder if that would mean more playing time for Luepke than a second tight end. Having a lead blocker on those inside runs is more important than having tight ends hold the edges. Of course, you can always motion a tight end into the backfield or have one come across the formation for a wham block.

 

[rambo2]

In the 10 yard sprint and the 40 yard sprint? What is his maximum running speed on longer runs?

He had a 70 yard td last year that was called back. He is fast enough.

 

[rambo2]

Amazing he’s only 28. Unfortunately he’s toast

Lol

 

[gimmesix]

It is not just that he is slow running, he also lost some quickness. But, I will give him a chance to show what he can do in the preseason before I am too critical. I just do not think we can expect him to be better than what he was the last time he was here or when he played for NE.

The last time here he was averaging better than 4 yards per carry before hurting his knee for the second year in a row. I'll take that (minus the knee injury).

I don't watch New England, so I'm not sure what happened there, but others who did watch the Patriots have their explanations for why he averaged 3.5. Even though for the fun of it I predicted him to average 4.5 this year, he doesn't really have to do that for the running game to be effective. If he picks up 3.5 on first down, then running or passing is still an option and the defense has to respect that. Same if he picks up 3.5 on second down. Not all YPC is equal, a back who averaged 4 YPC but doesn't have many long runs is obviously making more positive-yardage runs than one who averages 4 YPC but has several long runs.