Do we really need a power back?

[RocCityRoller]

Just need more young legs in the backfield. It's a RB by rotation league right now. The Henrys, McCaffreys, Zekes and Barkley's of the league are not the norm. Even Zeke and Barkley faded some this past year.

 

As for Buffalo, Gore ran out of juice and the coaching staff lost confidence with Yeldon.

 

In an ideal situation Motor is the change of pace back. After running a more complete back (size, speed, blocking, hands) early, and with a solid McDermott defense, Motor becomes a third and 4th quarter nightmare. No one wants to find and tackle a 5'8" guy who is elusive enough to avoid tackles in a phone booth, has enough strength to break a tackle and has fresh legs.

 

He reminds me most of Doug Martin (muscle hamster) in stature and running ability. Martin had a 4.55 40 and a 6.79 3 cone score at the combine if we want to compare. Singletary had a 4.66 40 and 7.32 3 cone score, but to his credit, Singletary plays better than his stats. I was down on the pick, but he won me over. As an RB aficionado Singletary is not a RB1. He is however a nasty RB2, and there is room for that on a team building an offense around a young QB.

 

Find a good three down back in rounds 2-4 and compliment him with Singletary. I view Devin Singletary as the modern Kenny Davis, a guy that can fill in for a starter, can take over a game for a back with a different running style, but is not the alpha dog in a RB room.

 

I would love to find a way to get Kenyan Drake on the team and draft another RB in 3-5.

 

Edited February 21, 2020 by RocCityRoller

[billsfan89]

I think they do need a backup to Singletary as I don't think you want to run Singletary into the ground. I think Singletary could be that 3rd and short type back but I think you don't need a power back that can handle early down situations to keep Singletary fresh for the fourth quarter. 

[RocCityRoller]

8 hours ago, H2o said:

There are numerous RB's in this draft that we could snag anywhere from rounds 2-5 I believe. I still want AJ Dillon out of the bunch though and he will likely be able to be had on day 3 unless he runs an insane 40 time. He has pretty nimble feet for a big guy, can run people over, throw them off, bounce through pretty much any arm tackle, and has breakaway speed when he hits the open field. He would be a power back, but not just that per say. 

 

I had to look him up. He is a big boy with some nice ability and solid hands. 6'0" 249. This is exactly that 3-5 rd pick I was alluding to.

A mix of Singletary, Drake and Dillon would be super nice. Different sized backs, and different abilities.

 

 

Edited February 21, 2020 by RocCityRoller

[fansince88]

Quote

 

FYI, Saw this article today. Just saying....

https://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2020/02/20/bills-talk-up-the-potential-of-rugby-player-christian-wade/

[WideNine]

5 hours ago, thebandit27 said:

I think the issue is that a power back doesn’t really bring a new dimension to the offense, whereas speed does. JMO of course...

 

Singletary is kind of unique in that he is not a big back, but he has a low center so is not easily hit cleanly, doesn't have breakaway speed, but has great vision and the ability to make the first guy miss and more often than pick his way through the traffic and rarely has negative plays.

 

There are plenty of bigger backs that have a top gear and can bang it up between the tackles, maybe break past a stacked box into the open and then it is off to the races.

 

Devin will need that kind of back who can spell him, throw a block, bang out a few yards, maybe break one or give Allen a viable read run option that defenses have to respect. There is always the chance he tweaks his hammy again too so we need the depth.

 

Does not mean that Devin will not carry most of the load. I just want to see Daboll be a bit less predictable when he does sub his bigger back - extra TE packages into the game.

 

 

[LSHMEAB]

7 hours ago, NewEra said:

No.  We need an explosive big play back imo

This. The offense needs playmakers. I think we can find a big straight line back on the cheap(and I do think we need someone like the Frank Gore we thought we were getting.) The fact that Allen can get a yard any time he needs is does sort of mitigate the need for a "goalline" runner, although you don't want to go to that well too often. 

 

Singletary is a solid back and definitely has value. 

 

The "type" of back I'd prefer to see them add is someone like DS, but BETTER. More explosive. More of a threat to take it to the house. 

 

RB's get winded. They get worn down. There's no rule that says you can't have two backs with a similar skill set.

 

 

[MJS]

No, we don't need a power back, but it would be nice to have a better 2nd running back. A Karlos Williams type would be sweet (before he ate and smoked himself out of the league). A one-cut back that hits the hole and gets up field quickly, whether through power, or just speed and explosiveness.

[vincec]

Just get somebody good. Speed, power, elusiveness, whatever; someone who's hard to tackle for one reason or another. I would actually like a couple of new backs so that Allen doesn't have to take as much of a beating.

Edited February 21, 2020 by vincec

[Mr. WEO]

8 hours ago, thebandit27 said:

No, we need a speed back.

 

Singletary can get the tough yards when he needs to; we need a guy that’s a threat to score whenever he touches the ball.

 

Paging Javon Leake...

 

 

CJ Spiller just answered the phone....

[GreggTX]

You can't count the times he dragged defenders 4 or 5 yards? Slight exaggeration. How about a guy like Matt Breida with world class speed? If you want power, maybe Carlos Hyde? I agree Singletary is a #1 RB and is very underrated by some, but a change of pace is good too. I don't know if Breida (49ers) or Hyde (Browns) have resigned or will be FA's, but either of them could help us. I don't see Beane spending big on a RB after Singletary's great rookie year and the fact that Daboll doesn't seem to really want to run so much.

[Thurman#1]

9 hours ago, AlCowlingsTaxiService said:

Tough yes, but still smallish and prone to breakdown from overuse. Essential to have a RB 1A to share the burden. 

Shifty? Yes. Fast?  Not so much. 

 

 

Come on, Singletary's fast. But you're right that he's not a 4.4 kind of guy, not a guy nobody can catch. Speed isn't his most outstanding trait, that would be shiftiness.

 

We need another back and he has to be effective. That's really what we actually need. As for what would be the frosting on the cake, I personally would like to see a power back, to show teams a contrast of styles. But in terms of actual needs, we need another effective back to spell Singletary.

Edited February 21, 2020 by Thurman#1

[Aussie Joe]

Is it possible to say yes, and still have respect for Devin and what his future is ?

 

 

[Thurman#1]

5 hours ago, Beck Water said:

 

My question about Singletary is how he would vanish for large portions of the game

When pressed McDermott said “it’s not good to run the same back every down”

Don’t other teams do this?

Or am I mistaken?

 

Is there something about Singletary that makes our coaches believe he can not play every down?

 

 

One guy in the league managed more than 20 carries per game, Derrick Henry at 20.2. Below him, four guys got between 18.8 and 18.5, Elliott, Chubb, Jacobs and Carson, and #6 is at 17.9. Sixteen guys had more than 15 carries per game,

 

The Titans averaged 27.8 carries per game as a team, the Cowboys 28.1, the Browns 24.6, which meant Chubb got more than 75% of their carries, the highest of the ones I quickly checked. And you generally don't want to use the Browns as your model.

 

If you go back to, say, 1985, six guys had over 20 carries, Gerald Riggs (24.8), Marcus Allen (23.8), James Wilder (22.8), Freeman McNeil (21.0), Eric Dickerson (20.9) and Walter Payton (20.2). So things have changed, but the trends go up and down over the years.

[VW82]

Given the type of offense we run and the fact we have a QB whose best asset is rushing TDs in the red zone I’d say no. We could really use a second RB who can pass block and catch though. Singletary improved throughout the season but given his stature he might never be a plus blocker.
 

in any event, unless/until we change our offense finding a Derek Henry type doesn’t make a lot of sense. Daboll is too obsessed with making Josh and the receivers play read the defense to bother with a power running game. Also, our line isn’t really built for that. You have to be able to move and push people.  

[ALF]

A.J. Dillon, RB/FB, Boston College        Walterfootball
Height: 6-0. Weight: 245.
Projected 40 Time: 4.59.
Projected Round (2020): 3-5.
2/1/20: Dillon averaged 5.3 yards per carry in 2019 for 1,685 yards with 14 touchdowns. He also made 13 catches for 195 yards and a touchdown. Dillon is a potential rotational power back for the NFL.

 

Could replace DeMarco as a run ,pass blocker and  be a RB with  Devin 
 

[billsfan_34]

19 hours ago, Victory Formation said:

I can’t count how many times I’ve seen Singletary drag 4-5 defenders on his back for an extra 4 or 5 yards. I think Singletary is a tougher runner than we think. I have no reservations whatsoever about plugging him in on the goal line. I’m not against drafting a power back but I don’t view Singletary as strictly a scat back or finesse back, he’s pretty strong. I think Singletary can get you the tough yards.

He is tough/strong for his size but he isn’t lowering his pads and bowling people over. So yes, we need a big back to wear defenses down and punish them.

[T master]

On 2/20/2020 at 1:37 PM, Logic said:

Is there a water bug available? Asking for a Buddy...

 

Is your buddy Shady ? 

[thebandit27]

I think I might have football feelings for Darrynton Evans.

 

 

[Buffalo Junction]

On 2/20/2020 at 8:11 PM, RocCityRoller said:

 

I had to look him up. He is a big boy with some nice ability and solid hands. 6'0" 249. This is exactly that 3-5 rd pick I was alluding to.

A mix of Singletary, Drake and Dillon would be super nice. Different sized backs, and different abilities.

 

 

Where are you getting “solid hands” from? He caught 20 passes in three years. I like the kid as a big back, but his catching ability is basically an unknown. There are plenty of other backs with a proven track record of being weapons in the passing game. 

[BarleyNY]

On 2/20/2020 at 2:10 PM, Buffalo Junction said:

I don’t think we need a pure power back. However, a bigger back that runs decisively and can catch would be ideal. 

I agree.  I’m far more concerned with getting a RB who can catch than I am with getting a bruiser.  If they could also be effective splitting out it’d be even better.