Most Overrated RB In NFL

[Russ Smith]

Interesting topic.

In my opinion, I agree totally on Alexander being #1 on the over rated list. I have just never really thought Alexander was all that great, and now he's really taken a nose dive in his productivity. Of course, I don't think that a back being "overrated" means he's a bad back. I wouldn't count Edge as over rated because really, who's rating him highly? I don't read a lot of press on Edge, he's ignored by ESPN, SI, and other sports news outlets, so how does he rank as over rated if he's not getting any press at all?

Reggie Bush would fit into the Over Rated category pretty well, because he's a really "big name" that doesn't produce much, at least not yet. To me, comparing everything as a whole, the 2nd most over rated back in Football is Adrian Peterson. I'm not saying Peterson isn't a good back, because he is, but one good year isn't enough to label a back "great." We already have people saying he's the best back in football based on what he's done this year behind a great offensive line. One year does not make a back elite, if you need to know why, just have a look at Frank Gore. For anyone that thinks that Petersons numbers are all him, look at Chester Taylor, the guy averages 5.2 Yards Per Carry. What does that tell you? The Vikings Line is dominating.

Adrian Peterson on the Cardinals would average right around 2.5 - 3.5 YPC. Peterson gets too much of the credit for his numbers, making him one of the most over rated backs in football. Again, not saying he's not good, he is good, he's just over rated.

Given he's only played one year saying he's only had one good year is kind of pointless?

If you'll just list all NFL RB's who got 1300 yards in 13 games as a rookie averaging 5.7 YPC or more and then did NOT go on to be great NFL RB's that would help me appreciate how his rookie year doesn't prove anything.

he was over 6 YPC when he hurt his knee, averaged only 3.9 in December after coming back from the knee injury. He also averaged 14 YPC this year as a receiver out of the backfield(only 19 catches). he broke the NFL rookie single game rushing record and then decided that wasn't enough and broke the NFL single game rushing record.

All this while playing with one of the worst QB's(30th rated in the NFL). They ranked 28th in passing yardage behind that wonderful OL that gave Peterson an extra 2-3 yards per carry according to your 2.5 to 3.5 prediction.

The reason AP averaged nearly 6 YPC is he had 11 runs over 20 and 5 over 40 yards, Edge had 3 and 0 respectively. Teams have started to play 1 or even 2 extra players in the box against Minnesota because Tarvaris Jackson can't make anybody pay. The next time we see a defense like that to stop Edge will be the first.

It's nothing against Edge he's just past his prime, he is still our best RB but he can't bust long runs and hasn't been able to for several years.

 

[Lorenzo]

Given he's only played one year saying he's only had one good year is kind of pointless?

If you'll just list all NFL RB's who got 1300 yards in 13 games as a rookie averaging 5.7 YPC or more and then did NOT go on to be great NFL RB's that would help me appreciate how his rookie year doesn't prove anything.

he was over 6 YPC when he hurt his knee, averaged only 3.9 in December after coming back from the knee injury. He also averaged 14 YPC this year as a receiver out of the backfield(only 19 catches). he broke the NFL rookie single game rushing record and then decided that wasn't enough and broke the NFL single game rushing record.

All this while playing with one of the worst QB's(30th rated in the NFL). They ranked 28th in passing yardage behind that wonderful OL that gave Peterson an extra 2-3 yards per carry according to your 2.5 to 3.5 prediction.

The reason AP averaged nearly 6 YPC is he had 11 runs over 20 and 5 over 40 yards, Edge had 3 and 0 respectively. Teams have started to play 1 or even 2 extra players in the box against Minnesota because Tarvaris Jackson can't make anybody pay. The next time we see a defense like that to stop Edge will be the first.

It's nothing against Edge he's just past his prime, he is still our best RB but he can't bust long runs and hasn't been able to for several years.

those explosive runs is what makes AD a special back. he has a rare combo of abilities that you don't see with many RBs. He has it all. the only ? is his durablity.

 

[Darth Llama]

So the people that think AP is the best back in Football, you guys think Taylor is the 2nd best back in the NFL then right? Because if the argument works for Peterson, it has to work for Taylor who is averaging .5 YPC less then his team mate AP. Amazing how with two backs averaging over 5 YPC no one gives any credit to the offensive line. With Taylor people say it's his line, with AP they say it's AP's skill. You hear next to nothing about Taylor, and you can't watch ESPN for more then 5 min without some type of mention of AP.

I'm not saying Peterson isn't a good back, he is a good back. He just hasn't come anywhere close to proving he is "great." No back could be great in one year because one year, no matter how good just isn't enough to cement yourself as an elite back. No one is saying Peterson isn't good, but he's clearly the most over rated back in the league because media and fans are already anointing him as the 2nd coming of Barry Sanders. It's ridiculous how much hype this kid gets. Peterson has proven he has big play potential no doubt, but the fact that people already slap the "great" label on him is ridiculous. Lets see him do it for a couple years then we'll talk.

The question is who is the most over rated. It's clearly Adrian Peterson. He's already credited with things he needs 2-3 years + to prove.

 

[Russ Smith]

So the people that think AP is the best back in Football, you guys think Taylor is the 2nd best back in the NFL then right? Because if the argument works for Peterson, it has to work for Taylor who is averaging .5 YPC less then his team mate AP. Amazing how with two backs averaging over 5 YPC no one gives any credit to the offensive line. With Taylor people say it's his line, with AP they say it's AP's skill. You hear next to nothing about Taylor, and you can't watch ESPN for more then 5 min without some type of mention of AP.

I'm not saying Peterson isn't a good back, he is a good back. He just hasn't come anywhere close to proving he is "great." No back could be great in one year because one year, no matter how good just isn't enough to cement yourself as an elite back. No one is saying Peterson isn't good, but he's clearly the most over rated back in the league because media and fans are already anointing him as the 2nd coming of Barry Sanders. It's ridiculous how much hype this kid gets. Peterson has proven he has big play potential no doubt, but the fact that people already slap the "great" label on him is ridiculous. Lets see him do it for a couple years then we'll talk.

The question is who is the most over rated. It's clearly Adrian Peterson. He's already credited with things he needs 2-3 years + to prove.

I never said the Ol isn't good I just said I don't quite believe your he'd get 2.5 to 3.5 here comment. That's literally less than half his average, he got 3.9 the last 4 games playing hurt against 8 or at times NINE in the box.

Taylor had about half the carries AP had and quite frankly is better as a part time runner. Remember last year playing on the same team with the same OL he had less runs of 20 or more, in twice the carries, and averaged 4 YPC. I think they changed one starter on their OL Herrera the RG, and people have been telling us all year it's the left side of the OL that makes AP so good so that's not it.

Nobody says the OL is not a factor, just that they didn't make AP more than twice as good as he'd be in Arizona which is what you said.

But since we're putting words in each others mouths so you think Edge would average over 7 YPC if he played for the Vikings? Afterall his average was higher than what you forecast for AP so by extrapolating we get over 7.

 

[PoolBoy]

Nah!.. Takes himself out of games. Bet Parcells dumps him.

if he dumps him...first of all he should be fired, but if so, drafting a RB will not be neccessary, assuming that his knee heals alright. dudes a beast with good speed.

 

[Diamondback Jay]

For anyone that thinks that Petersons numbers are all him, look at Chester Taylor, the guy averages 5.2 Yards Per Carry. What does that tell you? The Vikings Line is dominating.

Adrian Peterson on the Cardinals would average right around 2.5 - 3.5 YPC. . Again, not saying he's not good, he is good, he's just over rated.

Hey wow.. Someone else with my views. I thought I was the lone person who felt this way.

I've been saying the same thing since Draft Day and every subsequent passing week in the umpteen "WE SHOULD HAVE DRAFTED AP" threads that seem to pop up round here.

Point is, you put Minnesota's OLine here, James leads the league in rushing yards and probably TDs as well. You put Peterson here, he gets over a thousand no doubt, but also likely misses significant time due to injury.

 

[Crazy Canuck]

Hey wow.. Someone else with my views. I thought I was the lone person who felt this way.

I've been saying the same thing since Draft Day and every subsequent passing week in the umpteen "WE SHOULD HAVE DRAFTED AP" threads that seem to pop up round here.

Point is, you put Minnesota's OLine here, James leads the league in rushing yards and probably TDs as well. You put Peterson here, he gets over a thousand no doubt, but also likely misses significant time due to injury.

Well, if you check the game stats you'll see that AP's av. has dropped significantly as others have adjusted to the fact that Minn. can't pass effectively.

Minn. is no. 1 in rush O. - no. 28th in pass O.

Card are no. 29 in rush O. - no. 6 in pass O.

Minn. averages 23.1 pts per game (Cards 23.7)

Minn. O-line has given up (35 sacks) - Cards (24 sacks)

Total yards - O: Minn. (13th) - Cards (11th.)

 

[Darth Llama]

I never said the Ol isn't good I just said I don't quite believe your he'd get 2.5 to 3.5 here comment. That's literally less than half his average, he got 3.9 the last 4 games playing hurt against 8 or at times NINE in the box.

Taylor had about half the carries AP had and quite frankly is better as a part time runner. Remember last year playing on the same team with the same OL he had less runs of 20 or more, in twice the carries, and averaged 4 YPC. I think they changed one starter on their OL Herrera the RG, and people have been telling us all year it's the left side of the OL that makes AP so good so that's not it.

Nobody says the OL is not a factor, just that they didn't make AP more than twice as good as he'd be in Arizona which is what you said.

But since we're putting words in each others mouths so you think Edge would average over 7 YPC if he played for the Vikings? Afterall his average was higher than what you forecast for AP so by extrapolating we get over 7.

I re-read my post and I'm really not sure where I started "putting words in your mouth." Apologies if you felt that's what I was doing, I was trying to address the issues, not put words into your mouth.

With that in mind, to answer the question, I believe Edge on the Vikings would probably average about 4.5 - 5 Yards per Carry. Why less then AP does? Because I don't credit the offensive line entirely for AP's success. I don't think that none of it is AP, not at all, and AP is a better back at this point in his career then Edge. If you put AP and Edge behind the same line, AP does better. The reason I think Edge gets more on the Cardinals then AP is simply running style. Edge is more of a tough "between the tackles" runner then AP and he's more fit for an offensive line where the runner has to anticipate contact starting in the back field. AP has the luxury of sometimes not being touched till a linebacker or safety moves up to hit him.

Again, this is my opinion, and is hypothetical and subjective. I could spend all day guessing how many yards AP would get as a Cardinal, and I might be right, or way totally wrong, I'll just never know. The only thing we know for sure is that AP averages 5.7 YPC as a Viking. While I acknowledge AP's ability, I think the success of other backs on the team proves that at least some of it is the result of offensive line play, that's all I'm saying. The question asked who the most "overrated back" is, and right now I think it's AP. I'm going to think that for any rookie that gets labeled as the 2nd coming of Barry Sanders. He could very well end up being the best back in history, or he could have a good rookie year, and get injured for 3 years and wash out of the league, we just don't know yet. My point is that I disagree with anointing a rookie as the next Sanders. I appreciate your view, and apologize if you felt I was trying to speak for you. I'm just a poster with an opinion, nothing more. I'm not so arrogant as to assume I'm never wrong, I assure you.

 

[Redleg]

I'm going with Ricky Williams.....every thing I read about him has him high.

 

[Skkorpion]

I'm going with Ricky Williams.....every thing I read about him has him high.

So, as I understand your statement, you're going to go get high with him, right? No wonder you have made only 22 posts in 4 years, redleg.

 

[Redleg]

So, as I understand your statement, you're going to go get high with him, right? No wonder you have made only 22 posts in 4 years, redleg.

Not the intended message. I must remember to remove all ambiguity from my posts to avoid future embarrassment or take another 4 years to think it through.

 

[Southpaw]

if he dumps him...first of all he should be fired, but if so, drafting a RB will not be neccessary, assuming that his knee heals alright. dudes a beast with good speed.

Parcells should be fired???? Please.

 

[devilalum]

Anybody ever see North Dallas 40? There's one scene where the main character says, "I scored a touchdown." after the coach gives him crap and the coach shoots back, "We let you score a touchdown."

When Edge was brought in a lot of people on this board were skeptical because the Cards had no LINE! Runningbacks are only as good as their teams let them be. Just look at the string of awesome rushers the Broncos had for about 8 years. Was it that every 4th round chump they brought in turned out to be a Pro Bowler or was it that they were running behind the best line in the NFL?