Is Adrian Peterson an anomaly or could Shady play at a high level in his 30s?

[Stank_Nasty]

I think the better question is.... who would you rather have if you had a solid O-line. ivory or McCoy. that's a no brainer for me. its McCoy. we saw that last week.

 

ivory being more productive than McCoy up to that game says way more about the line than it does the backs. 

 

you fix up the line this season. shady looks just fine behind competent run blocking or when teams need to at least slightly respect the pass.

[row_33]

1 hour ago, Epstein's Mother said:

If the Bills could play the Jets every week then yes.

 

a tanking-from-the-bus-to-the-stadium Jets

 

[T master]

Top backs in history that ran for 1000 yds after they turned 30 

 

Warrick Dunn - 05 & 06 - 30 & 31 yrs 

Franco Harris - 1983 - 32 yrs 

Ricky Waters - 1999 & 2000 - 30 & 31 yrs 

Fred Taylor - 06 & 07 - 30 & 31 yrs 

Curtis Martin - 03 & 04 - 30 & 31 yrs 

Tiki Barber - 05 & 06 - 30 & 31 yrs 

John Riggins - 1980-83-84 at 30-34&35 yrs

Emit Smith - 1999- 01 - at 30-31&32 yrs

Walter Payton - 1984-86 at 30-31&32 yrs

 

So i would think that shady could do some more damage al though this year might be a push seeing as they haven't been able to get him going to this point of the year but it is possible because Shady could be lumped into this group of backs as far as talent goes !! 

[Mark Vader]

36 minutes ago, H2o said:

I have mentioned this before that there are some exceptions to the rule. Curtis Martin was the first guy I thought of. He ran for 1,600+ at 33 years old. Peterson is another. Emmitt Smith put up almost 1,000 yards at age 35. 

Another  good example would be Frank Gore. Look at how long he was the starter in San Francisco, and was still a highly productive running back.

 

I remember Shady said that he could play until he was 33. I say, let him.

[Needle]

I think Peterson is an anomaly and is genetically superior to everyone else. The year after he ruined his knee, was one of the most amazing things I have ever witnessed in sports. I have always thought he might be the best RB ever.

 

I do think Shady can be a big contributor into his 30s. Ideally I would like to see a shift into a committee approach. The wear and tear can be controlled without much of a dip in overall production. 

[RyanC883]

1 hour ago, LABILLBACKER said:

I highly doubt he has longevity with the Bills. He could play through next season but that would be it for me. He's starting to dance to much at the LOS. I can also see us drafting a RB to compliment Murphy. We all love Shady but his clock is ticking. 

 

I think he's dancing like, "WTF is the hold I'm supposed to run through!"  Ivory can create his own holes. 

 

That said, I'd draft a RB (someone like Chubb, or Hunt) ,etc. that can complement Shady and Ivory.  

 

 

[Big Turk]

2 hours ago, ShadyBillsFan said:

In a Radio interview in DC AP said that the season off did help him. 

 

Dont know if we have that luxury 

He looked speedy enough to me Sunday 

 

Peterson is just an athletic freak...dude came back from that ACL tear unbelievably faster than normal and then had one of his best if not his best years his first season back.

 

 

[MDH]

Running backs who have successfully extended their careers tend to be one cut runners. Guys who extend plays outside and rely on quickness and/or speed tend to have much swifter drop offs.

 

There's always the exception but I don't think Shady is going to be very productive 3 years from now. 

[Mr. WEO]

2 hours ago, YoloinOhio said:

Where is he at?

 

 

At this rate, 2 years away.

 

 

[ChronicAndKnuckles]

1 hour ago, Needle said:

I think Peterson is an anomaly and is genetically superior to everyone else. The year after he ruined his knee, was one of the most amazing things I have ever witnessed in sports. I have always thought he might be the best RB ever.

 

I do think Shady can be a big contributor into his 30s. Ideally I would like to see a shift into a committee approach. The wear and tear can be controlled without much of a dip in overall production. 

 

OK Hitler. 

[CDogg20]

3 hours ago, YoloinOhio said:

AP is rather quietly having a great year at age 33 with the Redskins. And their OL is a mess. Shady just turned 30... I know most of us are casting him aside after this year or next, but does he have a couple more years in him given what we are seeing from AP or is he just a freak?

 

 

https://www.si.com/nfl/2018/11/08/adrian-peterson-comeback-washington

I think AP is just a freak of nature, but I also think Shady is too. He also has had a good amount of time for his body to recover as he sat out for a while. 

[jrober38]

The Bills need to move on from Shady in the offseason. 

 

Makes minimal sense to pay a 30 year old running back over $8 mil/season in 2018. 

 

Draft a new bell cow in the 2nd or 3rd round and pay them $1 mil/year for 4 years instead. 

[RoyBatty is alive]

Is Adrian Peterson an anomaly, yes.

 

Could Shady play at a high level, yes,. Real issue is will he and odds are against it.

[Flip Johnson]

3 hours ago, YoloinOhio said:

Where is he at?

 

10,472 yards to be precise. 

 

McCoy would need to average about 69.5 yards per game for the remainder of his contract with the Bills to get to 12K with Buffalo.

[Thurman#1]

3 hours ago, H2o said:

I have mentioned this before that there are some exceptions to the rule. Curtis Martin was the first guy I thought of. He ran for 1,600+ at 33 years old. Peterson is another. Emmitt Smith put up almost 1,000 yards at age 35. 

 

 

Yup, those were the three I thought of too, and none of them are scatbacks. Ricky Williams also played pretty well into his early 30s. Marcus Allen also went late but IMHO he would't have lasted as long these days against today's more athletic defenders.

 

None are huge guys either, but although they're reasonably close to Shady in size, they are more power-based runners than he is.

 

Ricky Williams also played pretty well into his early 30s. Marcus Allen also went late but IMHO he would't have lasted as long these days against today's more athletic defenders. Franco Harris had a 1000 yard season at age 32. Hush, as I research, I didn't realise Riggins played till he was so old. He was still smashing people into his mid-thirties. He didn't average 4.0 during his last five years, but at age 34 and 35 he was getting a ton of carries and putting up a ton of yards. 24 TDs as a 34 year old. Dorsett lasted a while but his last three years were not that impressive. Walter Payton played well till around 32.

 

IMHO there aren't a lot of folks on that list from recent history and not that many scatbacks at all for good reason. Maybe McCoy can be the first, but it tends to be guys with more power in their game who last. Does power stay with you longer than pure explosion?

[LSHMEAB]

It's the same thing in baseball. Never rely on a speed/quickness based player post 30 years old. See Carl Crawford.

 

I love Shady, but he's approaching the finish line.

[Solomon Grundy]

4 hours ago, HeHateMe said:

Shady looks a step slower this season, and his tendency to lose yardage even in his prime will only get worse as he continues to age.  

You must not have seen his TD run

[ColoradoBills]

50 minutes ago, jrober38 said:

The Bills need to move on from Shady in the offseason. 

 

Makes minimal sense to pay a 30 year old running back over $8 mil/season in 2018. 

 

Draft a new bell cow in the 2nd or 3rd round and pay them $1 mil/year for 4 years instead. 

 

The decision on Shady in 2019 will be a big one.  There is quite a few RBs in FA too.

Waiting until the draft might not be a good plan this year being they will need OL, WR, and probably TE too.

Finding an answer for RBs next year without drafting one is the way to go IMO.

[blacklabel]

I think Shady can find success into his 30s. He takes care of himself very well, he's never endured a super serious injury or needed major surgery. What he'll likely have to do is be honest with himself and his skills as he ages. If he loses half a step, he's gonna need to realize that he probably won't find as much success as he used to when he tries to reverse field or cut back a buncha times as he tries to make something out of nothing. He'll have to start taking what's there instead of always trying to find the path to a big gain. Not saying he won't be able to make those kinds of runs at all, but I think if he wants to play into his 30s, he'd have to change his style to a more straightforward approach. 

 

He could certainly go somewhere with another good, established back and split carries and be utilized in the passing game where he's still really good. Actually, I kind of expect Beane to bring in a couple of new backs in the off-season as they search for his successor. If that new back can contribute right away, I wouldn't be surprised to see McCoy be the workhorse at the beginning of the season but see his touches decrease little by little as he starts to split more time with the new kid.

Edited November 16, 2018 by blacklabel

[mjd1001]

4 hours ago, HeHateMe said:

Shady looks a step slower this season, and his tendency to lose yardage even in his prime will only get worse as he continues to age.  

Agreed.

 

Right now in his career, I think McCoy can be a good RB as long as he is not a featured back where a team relies on him to carry the load.  The Chargers, Stealers, Colts, Bears, Falcons, even the Bucs are teams he could still excel on....but you don't want to rely on him as your centerpiece any longer.