Assuming we sign a vet back up.. who do you want? Kevin Smith Tim Hightower Cedric Benson Justin Forsett Ryan Grant Joseph Addai Landanian Tomlinson Cadillac Williams Mewelde Moore Jackie Battle Ronnie Brown Maurice Morris Jerious Norwood Thomas Jones Sammy Morris Lorenzo Booker Derrick Ward Chester Taylor Jerome Harrison these are all available free agents..
Yes: Hightower, Addai, Benson, Grant, Ward. Maybe: Williams, M. Morris, Forsett, Smith, Norwood, Harrison. No: Tomlinson, Jones, Battle, Brown, Taylor, S. Morris, Booker.
Kevin Smith - besides injuries, could be a solid number 2 or 3rd down RB Tim Hightower - " " Cedric Benson - Deff no, too many issues with this guy. Justin Forsett - Wouldn't mind could be a solid number 2 or 3rd down RB Ryan Grant - " " Joseph Addai - No, too many injuries, and too inconsistent, best days behind him. Landanian Tomlinson - Would love LT to be back wearing 21 again, wouldn't take much of the load and would be a great compliment, mentor and locker room guy. Nice one year deal would suit us all well! Cadillac Williams - No, too many injuries, and too inconsistent, best days behind him. Mewelde Moore - No. Jackie Battle - No. Ronnie Brown - No. Maurice Morris - No. Jerious Norwood - He's all done, had a 3 year career. Thomas Jones - Wouldn't mind this vet, surely won't produce much but could be a great mentor, guy takes care of his body. Sammy Morris - Wouldn't mind. Lorenzo Booker - No. Derrick Ward - No. Chester Taylor - No. Jerome Harrison - No. Ricky Williams - YES! Bring him in ASAP!
My Cal homerism would say Justin Forsett, but if Ryan Grant were affordable, I'd LOVE to have him backing #1 Ryan. Grant can put up a decent ypc, still can break off a 50 yarder, and has winner/playoff experience. Don't know what he'd cost, though...
If and its a big "IF" Kevin Smith is healthy he's be my guy Otherwise I say Ronnie Brown or Cadillac Williams on a 1 yr deal
Lets go ahead and say "No" on Ryan Grant rumor has it Lions are just a right price away from signing him
He's not a great receiver, I'd take him because the drop off in talent is less if Mathews goes down, but I think Hightower and Addai are better fits for our screen game.
LT for 1 yr would be nice but never gonna happen with AJ in charge. After LT I'd go for Ryan Grant or Ronnie Brown.
I agree about LT not returning, but likely for a different reason: I don't think it's unlikely because AJ's petty, but rather because he rarely makes moves based on sentimentality or warm fuzzies. (for starters, LaDainian has over 3x the career carries as Grant does... tons more wear & tear on LT's elderly body)
I wouldn't want any of these guys. Sign an unspectacular UDFA RB with decent ball security and that's enough. Our line has hopefully improved, and we've added a legitimate blocking FB. Save the cap dollars for something important.
If the Chargers did bring back LT I wonder how many of the crowd who suddenly hates him would go back to liking him again.
This thread is discussing a back-up RB. Not a change of pace back, not a starter, not insurance in case our star holds out all season, a back up. The Chargers used a 7th on a RB, and signed 2 UDFAs, in addition to having 2 RBs and 2 FBs on the roster already. If we're adding a RB, he's probably camp fodder, which makes it somewhat rediculous to sign a veteran RB, as any veteran RB worth having is going to be expensive, and any RB who isn't going to be expensive is either bad or burnt out. RB isn't a red wine that gets better with age. It's a white that turns into vinegar, and the stink can poison your locker room. Say no to spending money on the least important position on the football field, and, if anything, consider signing some additional o-line depth.
So you'd bring in a rookie taken in the 7th and two UDFA's over a vet on a one year deal, who has experience in the league? We need a back up plan if Mathews goes down, Think we saw it last year when both Tolbert and Mathews were out @ KC. Brinkley isn't the guy you want carrying the ball, receiving yes. Ricky Williams or LT I wouldn't mind cause they have experience AND they can hold onto the ball.
I think Mike Shanahan proved that you can have a sh1tty running back as long as you have a great O-line. Beef.
Kevin Smith - I absolute loved this kid coming out of college; sadly he has been injured virtually every season. Seems like he caught Charles Rogers-itis while he was in Detroit. I'd have to pass because we need stability. Tim Hightower - If the knee checks out he's at the top of my list. Runs well in both zone and power schemes, catches the ball exceedingly well, churns for extra yards after contact, pass-blocks well. Cedric Benson - He's not much of a receiver, TBH. He'd be about 5th or 6th on my list if only because he's still got tread left on the tires and is a capable pass-blocker. Justin Forsett - #2 or 1B on my list (depending on the status of Hightower's knee). People keep saying they want a replacement for Sproles, here's your poor man's Sproles. He got ousted because the Seahawks acquired a similar player in Leon Washington who took Forsett's reps, otherwise Forsett's still quite capable. Very good receiver and compliments Mathews well. Ryan Grant - Always been a bit overrated, mostly because he was the guy to get the lion's share of carries in a system and team that doesn't place a ton of value in the RB position. Joseph Addai - Like Kevin Smith, the guy is a lock to miss some time for injury in any season. I'll pass. LaDanian Tomlinson - Wouldn't mind seeing it, but I'll be honest, I don't think he can put his ego aside and come back here as "the backup" after the way he went out firing parting shots. It'd be like Emmett Smith going back to Dallas for one last hurrah - sounds nice, but wouldn't have happened. Cadillac Williams - Of all the usually injured guys he's the one I'd be most willing to take a chance on. In limited reps he's extremely effective, but his knees are made of the same stuff Bob Sanders is at this point. Mewelde Moore - Negative Jackie Battle - Negative Maurice Morris - He's not flashy, but he's consistent which might honestly be a good fit for us. He rarely gets injured, he can crank off a respectable (if not outstanding) YPC, and he's a capable spot-starter in the event Mathews misses time for injury. Ronnie Brown - Negative
We have too much invested in Mathews to be able to spend real (i.e. above a 4th) draft picks or significant cap dollars on a RB. What I saw last year with Tolbert and Mathews out @ KC was Brinkley run the ball 10 times for 43 yds. I believe we were playing against Denver when Tolbert and Mathews both went down and Brinkley was inactive, so that Hester had to run. Do you want LT running the ball for 3 yds a play (if that) if/when Mathews goes down? We need a young RB with gas in the tank who is eager to prove himself. Vet running backs come in three varieties, players who have proved themselves and want 5+ million a season (and a multiyear deal), players who have proved that they are awful, and players with nothing in the tank. I don't want to pay for the first one (and apparently neither do you since you mentioned a 1 year deal), and the 2nd and 3rd options won't help the team as much as a hungry young guy who'll run hard and push his body every snap.
Did we just draft a guy? I caught up to Steve Muench of Scouts Inc. to get one thought that jumps out to him about each AFC West team’s draft last week. Let’s take a look: San Diego The drafting of Michigan State running back Edwin Baker in the seventh round: "It was huge for San Diego to get Baker in the seventh round. I thought he’d be a fourth-rounder who could sneak in the end of the third round. He is an effective, hard-nosed Big Ten running back who lacks an ideal frame. He can be effective. It’s incredible he lasted until the seventh round."
Really he's not much different from Brinkley, he fell because he got complacent and lost his grip on the starting role to Le'Veon Bell last year. They finished with nearly the same carries, but Baker only averaged 3.9ypc to Bell's 5.2. Also he has had durability issues, is terrible in pass protection, and fumbles a bit too much. If this were the 2011 draft I think he'd have gone 3rd or 4th round though.
If the alternative is an injury prone rookie who can't hold onto the ball and has to come off the field on 3rd down because he can't block anyone?...duh. And Brinkley, after 3 full seasons and maybe 1 or 2 good games to his name I think its been obvious the dropoff in talent between him and Mathews is going to be way too steep for comfort. He's a suitable 3rd RB, but a guy like Hightower, Addai or Forsett would be a step up, and they all fit our offense perfectly.
With very little in the salary cap available, I doubt we sign one of the better known vets, simply comes down to a matter of economics. I'd say it's a far greater chance the likes of Brinkley or Baker or even one of the UDFA signed, will get the role, which isn't ideal, but those are the choices we find ourselves with..............if they'd jettisoned the likes of a Hester in the off season then maybe that money could have gone towards a #2 RB, instead of just a ST'er.
Odds are who ever we get will be a lesser known name who may or may not contribute , Reason I believe is we need a vet to come in is we don't know how well these rooks are in pass protection. If it comes down to that, for instance Battle vs. Hester, I honestly believe we'd be better off with using Hester in that role and going with Baker or Brinkley. The trouble with that is it would leave us clearly predictable on if we run or pass
