Is having an every down back ideal for winning?

[Jake0]

There's a lot of different ways teams handle their running game these days. Every down back, primary rb + 3rd down back, or RBBC I suppose are the 3 main methods, but which is the best?

Every down back:
Reliable due to lots of reps, should have offense mastered, good receiver so defenses will never have an easy time reading what the offense is going to be doing and play action is always a threat, will always be "in rhythm".
However, takes tons of snaps, huge fatigue risk at the end of games so even though the defense is probably tired, so is he. Injury risk higher due to more snaps and an injury pretty much changes your entire offense into one of the other rb systems.
Will probably have another guy who's not as good come in for a few snaps/series per game to spell him out of necessity and all the fans will hate that their bell cow ain't out there. Really only comes out in hopeless situations like 3rd and 20 otherwise.
Hardest to get as they are generally very expensive (i.e. you need to spend a first rounder on Zeke) or hope you get extremely lucky with a sleeper.
Not really important but racks up tons of stats so stat historians and fantasy football fanatics will love the player. What helps you win is the actual key factor here though.

Primary rb + 3rd down back:
Generally an outstanding runner who really sucks at being a receiver and/or blitz protection so he comes out on 3rd downs. Keeps the runner fresh throughout the game so that he can come in and close out a lead. Becomes a 3 down back in the 4th quarter when you're running out the clock and really brutalizes a defense. He's also completely useless in any hurry up/2 minute drill/fallen so far behind you can only pass situation so you don't get much value out of your player in those cases. Not as great when trying to trick defenses, i.e. lining up in a run formation and then passing or play action since he's not a good receiver.
So he's complemented by a 3rd down back who is a very good receiver, great quickness in the open field, great at blitz pickup. You pretty much know it's a pass play if he's out there though, but draws catch people off guard sometimes.
Easier to find and also cheaper draft pick wise to get both.

RBBC:
2 guys who are pretty close in skill level sharing the load. Lots of complaints by the runners of "not being able to get into a rhythm" but they should always be fresh. Some games the head coach might ride the hot hand. Pretty expensive as 2 highly skilled RBs aren't cheap. Best protection against injury and RB is not really a position that is friendly to injury risks.


Correlating this to the upcoming draft... If #1 is preferred due to playcalling options and usefulness in every situation (most importantly, still valuable in hurry up, pass only situations) then someone like Zeke is definitely worth a 1st rounder. If #2 is ideal in order to keep your primary RB fresh enough to close a game out, then he probably isn't worth it. Getting a great runner + a great 3rd down back could be a much better combo than a do it all guy. RBBC... I'm not sure about.

 

[CowboyRoy]

There's a lot of different ways teams handle their running game these days. Every down back, primary rb + 3rd down back, or RBBC I suppose are the 3 main methods, but which is the best?

Every down back:
Reliable due to lots of reps, should have offense mastered, good receiver so defenses will never have an easy time reading what the offense is going to be doing and play action is always a threat, will always be "in rhythm".
However, takes tons of snaps, huge fatigue risk at the end of games so even though the defense is probably tired, so is he. Injury risk higher due to more snaps and an injury pretty much changes your entire offense into one of the other rb systems.
Will probably have another guy who's not as good come in for a few snaps/series per game to spell him out of necessity and all the fans will hate that their bell cow ain't out there. Really only comes out in hopeless situations like 3rd and 20 otherwise.
Hardest to get as they are generally very expensive (i.e. you need to spend a first rounder on Zeke) or hope you get extremely lucky with a sleeper.
Not really important but racks up tons of stats so stat historians and fantasy football fanatics will love the player. What helps you win is the actual key factor here though.

Primary rb + 3rd down back:
Generally an outstanding runner who really sucks at being a receiver and/or blitz protection so he comes out on 3rd downs. Keeps the runner fresh throughout the game so that he can come in and close out a lead. Becomes a 3 down back in the 4th quarter when you're running out the clock and really brutalizes a defense. He's also completely useless in any hurry up/2 minute drill/fallen so far behind you can only pass situation so you don't get much value out of your player in those cases. Not as great when trying to trick defenses, i.e. lining up in a run formation and then passing or play action since he's not a good receiver.
So he's complemented by a 3rd down back who is a very good receiver, great quickness in the open field, great at blitz pickup. You pretty much know it's a pass play if he's out there though, but draws catch people off guard sometimes.
Easier to find and also cheaper draft pick wise to get both.

RBBC:
2 guys who are pretty close in skill level sharing the load. Lots of complaints by the runners of "not being able to get into a rhythm" but they should always be fresh. Some games the head coach might ride the hot hand. Pretty expensive as 2 highly skilled RBs aren't cheap. Best protection against injury and RB is not really a position that is friendly to injury risks.


Correlating this to the upcoming draft... If #1 is preferred due to playcalling options and usefulness in every situation (most importantly, still valuable in hurry up, pass only situations) then someone like Zeke is definitely worth a 1st rounder. If #2 is ideal in order to keep your primary RB fresh enough to close a game out, then he probably isn't worth it. Getting a great runner + a great 3rd down back could be a much better combo than a do it all guy. RBBC... I'm not sure about.

In my mind an every down back is the best weapon. You can still have other specialty backs.

 

[Doc50]

There's a lot of different ways teams handle their running game these days. Every down back, primary rb + 3rd down back, or RBBC I suppose are the 3 main methods, but which is the best?

Every down back:
Reliable due to lots of reps, should have offense mastered, good receiver so defenses will never have an easy time reading what the offense is going to be doing and play action is always a threat, will always be "in rhythm".
However, takes tons of snaps, huge fatigue risk at the end of games so even though the defense is probably tired, so is he. Injury risk higher due to more snaps and an injury pretty much changes your entire offense into one of the other rb systems.
Will probably have another guy who's not as good come in for a few snaps/series per game to spell him out of necessity and all the fans will hate that their bell cow ain't out there. Really only comes out in hopeless situations like 3rd and 20 otherwise.
Hardest to get as they are generally very expensive (i.e. you need to spend a first rounder on Zeke) or hope you get extremely lucky with a sleeper.
Not really important but racks up tons of stats so stat historians and fantasy football fanatics will love the player. What helps you win is the actual key factor here though.

Primary rb + 3rd down back:
Generally an outstanding runner who really sucks at being a receiver and/or blitz protection so he comes out on 3rd downs. Keeps the runner fresh throughout the game so that he can come in and close out a lead. Becomes a 3 down back in the 4th quarter when you're running out the clock and really brutalizes a defense. He's also completely useless in any hurry up/2 minute drill/fallen so far behind you can only pass situation so you don't get much value out of your player in those cases. Not as great when trying to trick defenses, i.e. lining up in a run formation and then passing or play action since he's not a good receiver.
So he's complemented by a 3rd down back who is a very good receiver, great quickness in the open field, great at blitz pickup. You pretty much know it's a pass play if he's out there though, but draws catch people off guard sometimes.
Easier to find and also cheaper draft pick wise to get both.

RBBC:
2 guys who are pretty close in skill level sharing the load. Lots of complaints by the runners of "not being able to get into a rhythm" but they should always be fresh. Some games the head coach might ride the hot hand. Pretty expensive as 2 highly skilled RBs aren't cheap. Best protection against injury and RB is not really a position that is friendly to injury risks.


Correlating this to the upcoming draft... If #1 is preferred due to playcalling options and usefulness in every situation (most importantly, still valuable in hurry up, pass only situations) then someone like Zeke is definitely worth a 1st rounder. If #2 is ideal in order to keep your primary RB fresh enough to close a game out, then he probably isn't worth it. Getting a great runner + a great 3rd down back could be a much better combo than a do it all guy. RBBC... I'm not sure about.

Protecting Romo is a high priority, whatever back is there needs to be good at picking up expected and unexpected blitzes.

The best way to sustain drives and score TD's is to keep the opponents off balance, i. e, be unpredictable. Having a primary back that can catch passes is therefore strategically preferable.

For these and other reasons I would be much happier with Zeke than Derrick, and would be willing to pay a premium for him.

(One of the other reasons is that Zeke scored more than twice as high on the Wonderlic)

 

[erod]

Not the best way to say it.

A back that CAN play every down is very, very valuable.

However, you need other guys to take some load, and Morris and McFadden would be ideal for that. Especially Morris.

 

[DFWJC]

I'd prefer an all-around stud back.

But very few of the last dozen SB winners have had that.

Denver--group
New England--group
Seattle--Lynch
Baltimore--Rice
Green Bay--group
New Orleans--group
Pittsburgh--group
New York--group
Indy--group
Pittsburgh--group
New England--group
New Engalnd--group

 

[Jake0]

Not the best way to say it.

A back that CAN play every down is very, very valuable.

However, you need other guys to take some load, and Morris and McFadden would be ideal for that. Especially Morris.

Morris fits the mold of lesser guy who comes in to spell the bell cow for a bit. Nobody is gonna really be happy that he's in there and he's very 1 dimensional as his receiving skills are poor. DMac could be edging towards the RBBC area, but I suppose having DMac be the lesser guy who spells the primary rb for a bit isn't too bad. He needs to not get too many snaps and actually be a real backup rather than splitting the number of carries evenly though.

 

[SHAMSzy]

Huge benefit of every down back is it makes your offense less predictable. Defenses can determine the tendency of your play calls based on the RB in the game when you do RBBC. Also stated earlier the chemistry / rhythm of the offense is much better.

 

[erod]

Huge benefit of every down back is it makes your offense less predictable. Defenses can determine the tendency of your play calls based on the RB in the game when you do RBBC. Also stated earlier the chemistry / rhythm of the offense is much better.

Exactly.

I prefer a relief back that you can give entire series to a few times a game.

When you sub based on down or formation, you're tipping your hand.