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Wildman

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About Wildman

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  • Birthday 02/06/1970

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  1. Wildman

    Yo. I'm pimpin' my man - Matt Waldman

    Someone pointed out this thread to me and I just wanted to say thanks. I still have a lot of respect for the work FFToday does. Mike Krueger has always had a sharp-looking site and there's some good writers (Antonio, Tony, Doug, etc.) and that MacGregor guy has some chops when he's not pushing out cool site-specific apps. All the best... M
  2. Wildman

    Congrats to Matt Waldman

    Thank you It's just nice to be mentioned. There's a lot of good work out there...
  3. I agree the system should be different, but I also agree that Williams caught fire too late and he was generally great against lesser defenses and not so good against stronger ones. The exception was the huge Bucs game and maybe the Packers contest.
  4. I can see your point about average per carry due to the situational roles - it's a good argument I didn't think about.
  5. I'll answer that first question - O.J. Simpson didn't look almighty from day one and he was an all-time great. I have to argue that Williams play has nothing to do with Jonathan Stewart. So you know, Stewart is my top back in my annual draft publication and D Will was my #2 back in 2006. Williams didn't play as well in 2006-2007 for several reasons. One of them was the lackluster offensive line compared to what they have now. Second, Williams tended to bounce too many plays outside and he's not as fast as Adrian Peterson nor as strong. Third, DeShaun Foster as top-shelf athleticism and hung onto the role for a bit long as Williams learned the ins and outs of the system. Fourth, part of learning those ins and outs was pass blocking something he didn't have to do much of as the Memphis offense. Williams is showing all of the things I saw from him in college, deceptive power, good vision, decent movement, and enough speed to break big plays. Sometimes a player takes a bit more time to adjust to the speed and complexity of the pro game. When your athleticism goes from being better than 99% of your competition (college football) to being on par with everyone else (NFL), it's easy to think too much. When you think rather than react, you slow down and make poor decisions. You stop playing naturally. This often makes you look like a dud early in your career. It's the reason why some great QBs look like crap to begin their careers. It's just more noticeable with QBs than it is with RBs because it happens less often with backs. It doesn't make Williams stupid for not catching on as quickly. It just meant he dwelled on it a bit too much. Jonathan Stewart is a going to be a stud, but that has nothing to do with Williams playing better. Derrick Ward doesn't make Brandon Jacobs better (or vice versa). Priest Holmes didn't make Larry Johnson great. Marion Barber didn't make Julius Jones a stud. Jerious Norwood is the same back since Michael Turner came to town. It's the offensive line and the success of the passing game that helps open holes for runners, not other running backs - unless they are lead blockers All that said, Adrian Peterson and DeAngelo Williams are both two of the better performing runners in the league. Both are capable of big plays because they can get yardage after contact. What separates them from each other is that Williams faces fewer 8-man fronts and his big runs tend to come after making one man miss or breaking one past the line of scrimmage. What he does is impressive - especially his vision and balance - but you seriously need to watch some Walter Payton highlights and then put on that Peterson youtube clip and watch how Peterson's skills and situation (no QB, decent line) resembles Payton. You may not like Jim Brown for whatever reason. But when the running back equivalent of Picasso says Peterson is at another level, you ought to at least try to see why he says that rather than write it off. Jim Brown has forgotten more about running the football than 2/3 of the backs in the NFL right now will ever know. I watch so much tape of these guys and I'll tell you that I was very appreciative of Williams and Stewart. Stewart earned my first perfect grade. Williams was labeled a franchise talent in my scoring system. The reason is they both did a lot of fundamental things very well. Peterson was labeled a franchise talent with a lower score, but I noted that Peterson's talents only come around once every 10-15 years. When you are a special talent, you sometimes do things "the wrong way" but get away with it because of your immense skills that more than compensate: Barry Sanders - he got stuffed as much if not more than most backs every year, but his lateral movement, open field vision, and balance were unheard of Jim Brown - upright runner, not much of pass blocker, and carried the ball too far from his body. His combo of speed-power-balance-and vision is among the best of all-time. Walter Payton - held the ball like a loaf of bread. Lost yardage going east-west too often. Might be the greatest all-around back ever. It really puzzles me when someone tries to argue Williams is as good a player as Peterson. In terms of numbers, they are absolutely right. But when you take away the quantitative evidence and look at it in a qualitative way, I don't understand how anyone could compare the two. Peterson's ability may not be much better when charting it mathematically in some fashion but everything has both a scientific and artistic element to it. Some things are judged more towards one or the other. In terms of production, Moz is right for this year. In terms of artistry, I hope he doesn't think the same thing, but that's his opinion.
  6. Wildman

    2009 NFL Hall of Fame Nominees

    See below -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- http://www.nfl.com/halloffame/story?id=090...mp;confirm=true Preliminary list of nominees for class of 2009 First-year eligible nominees: RUNNING BACKS -- Larry Centers, Brian Mitchell (also KR/PR). Mitchell deserves consideration beyond the preliminary list because of his longevity and productivity as a returner. Centers was an excellent receiver, but never a great runner. TIGHT ENDS -- Shannon Sharpe, Frank Wycheck. Wycheck was underrated, but he's not a HOFer. Sharpe is definitely a HOFer and automatic finalist this year. OFFENSIVE TACKLE -- Lincoln Kennedy. No way. At his best, he was good but not a HOFer. DEFENSIVE LINEMEN -- John Randle (DE/DT), Bruce Smith (DE), Dana Stubblefield (DT). Randle is an automatic finalist. Great pass rusher. Smith is a surefire HOFer and automatic finalist this year. LINEBACKER -- Jessie Armstead.Terrific college player. Better than average NFL LB with some longevity, but not a HOFer. DEFENSIVE BACKS -- Darren Woodson (S), Rod Woodson (CB/S). Darren Woodson is like Jessie Armstead as a safety. Rod Woodson is in the class of Shannon Sharpe and Bruce Smith. Additional nominees: QUARTERBACKS -- Ken Anderson, Boomer Esiason, Jim Plunkett, Phil Simms, Ken Stabler, Joe Theismann, Doug Williams. Ken Anderson was very underrated, but his results didn't reflect his skills. Esiason is a QB I'd love to have on my team, but he's no HOFer. Plunkett? HOF moment as SB-winning QB reviving his career, but not a HOF career. Phil Simms? Enough great moments in the post-season for finalist consideration. Stabler? Same as Simms. Theismann? Ran some very good offenses, maybe finalist consideration. Doug Williams? Great SB performance does not equal HOF enshrinment. RUNNING BACKS -- Ottis Anderson, Roger Craig, Terrell Davis, Greg Pruitt (also KR/PR), Herschel Walker, Ricky Watters. Anderson was wicked good early and above average late in his career, but not a HOFer. Tough runner and fun to watch though. Great guy to have on a team. Roger Craig is a finalist. His 1000/1000 seasons were a big deal and he was a big cog in a great offense. Terrell Davis is a finalist for his 2000-yard season and great production in a short time + 2 SBs. Greg Pruitt had HOF skills, but injuries derailed his potential. He was a less evolved combo of Barry Sanders and Marshall Faulk in terms of skills. Not a finalist. Herschel Walker? Throw in the USFL career and he's a finalist and possibly a HOFer, otherwise no - a very good, but not quite great NFL career. Ricky Watters? Excellent RB, but at this point he's a finalist at best, if at all. WIDE RECEIVERS -- Cliff Branch, Harold Carmichael, *Cris Carter, Wes Chandler, Gary Clark, Isaac Curtis, Henry Ellard, Irving Fryar, Roy Green, Harold Jackson, Herman Moore, Stanley Morgan, *Andre Reed, Sterling Sharpe. Branch was great in the Raiders offense and is why Al Davis has become a broken record in personnel/offensive philosophy, but a finalist at best. Carmichael was good, but not great. Carter is an automatic finalist. Chandler was as talented as any WR, but his production wasn't consistent enough. Maybe a finalist. Clark, good, but see Carmichael. Curtis, like Ken Anderson was underrated, but not a finalist. Ellard...wow, good player but up and down career. Maybe a finalist, but not in this group. Fryar had the skills, but not the career to go with it. Roy the Jet Stream Green was a two-way player before Deion and after Ironmen were no longer a common part of the game. Great deep threat, but not productive enough to be a finalist. Harold Jackson, Herman Moore, and Stanley Morgan were very good, but if Ellard doesn't get a finalist consideration, neither do they. Andre Reed earns it as does Sterling Sharpe who was like a mutant at the position at that time period. He changed the game with his physicality and speed. TIGHT ENDS -- Mark Bavaro, Todd Christensen, Ben Coates, Russ Francis, Brent Jones, Steve Jordan. Bavaro has HOF moments, but not the stats. Chirstensen has the stats for a brief time, but not long enough. Francis was a great player with injury issues and mismatched in offensive systems. Brent Jones was like Frank Wycheck, but in a better offense. Steve Jordan was a good football player, but not a HOFer OFFENSIVE LINEMEN -- Tony Boselli (T), Lomas Brown (T), Jim Covert (T), Randy Cross (G/C), Dave Dalby ©, Dermontti Dawson ©, Ray Donaldson ©, *Russ Grimm (G), Jay Hilgenberg ©, Kent Hill (G/T), Chris Hinton (G/T), Kent Hull ©, Joe Jacoby (T), Mike Kenn (T), *Bob Kuechenberg (G), Jim Lachey (T), Henry Lawrence (G/T), Mark May (G/T/C), *Randall McDaniel (G), Max Montoya (G), Marvin Powell (T), Steve Wisniewski (G). Boselli is a finalist despite short career. Brown was very good, but longevity is what earned him the consideration. Covert, Cross, Dalby, Donaldson, Hiilgenberg, Hill, Hinton, Hull, Lawrence, May, Montoya, and Powell were very good, but not sure they qualify as finalists right now. Many of them will earn a senior committee nod sometime down the line. McDaniel, Grimm, Dawson, Jacoby, Kenn, Kuechenberg, and Wisniewski really deserve finalist consideration and will get into the HOF one day, if not as a sr. pick. DEFENSIVE LINEMEN -- Ray Childress (DT/DE), *Richard Dent (DE), Chris Doleman (DE/LB), Carl "Big Daddy" Hairston (DE/DT), Charles Haley (DE/LB), Ed "Too Tall" Jones (DE), Cortez Kennedy (DT), Joe Klecko (DE/DT/NT), Steve McMichael (DT/NT), Leslie O'Neal (DE), Fred Smerlas (NT), Art Still (DE). Dent, Doleman, Haley, and Jones deserve the most conisderation. McMichael maybe. LINEBACKERS -- Cornelius Bennett, Robert Brazile, Kevin Greene (LB/DE), Ken Harvey, Rickey Jackson, Tom Jackson, Clay Matthews, Karl Mecklenburg, Sam Mills, Hardy Nickerson, Chris Spielman, Pat Swilling, Darryl Talley, *Derrick Thomas.Bennett? very good, not great. Brazile, same thing. Greene - great moments, but more hype than all around greatness. Rickey and Thom Jackson deserve more love than given. Clay Matthews is a finalist as is Mecklenburg and Sam Mills. Nickerson? Nah. Speilman, great college player and very good pro- maybe. Swilling - excellent moments but not a HOfer. TAlley maybe. Thomas...deserves way more love - helped change the game along with LT. DEFENSIVE BACKS -- Eric Allen (CB), Steve Atwater (S), Joey Browner (S), LeRoy Butler (S), Deron Cherry (S), Raymond Clayborn (CB), Kenny Easley (S), Lester Hayes (CB), Albert Lewis (CB), Ken Riley (CB), Eugene Robinson (S), Donnie Shell (S), Louis Wright (CB).Allen and Lewis were the best of this lot although Butler, Easley, Hayes, Shell, and Wright could easily be finalists PUNTERS/KICKERS -- Rich Camarillo (P), *Ray Guy (P), Nick Lowery (K), Reggie Roby (P).Ray Guy deserves it. Roby was good for a long time. SPECIAL TEAMS/WIDE RECEIVER -- Steve Tasker.Should be a finalist and HOFer but won't get it unless the Sr. committee does it years from now. COACHES -- Don Coryell, Tom Flores, Jimmy Johnson, Chuck Knox, Buddy Parker, Dan Reeves, Clark Shaughnessy.Coryell, Jimmy Johnson, and Reeves deserve finalisty consideration. CONTRIBUTORS -- Bud Adams, Gil Brandt, C.O. Brocato, Leo Carlin, Ed DeBartolo, Jr., Ben Dreith, Bob Harlan, Jerry Jones, Art Modell, Art Rooney, Jr., Ed Sabol, Steve Sabol, *Paul Tagliabue, Ralph Wilson, Jr., Ron Wolf, George Young. A ton of them deserve it but I go with Rooney or Wilson and I'llstick with Wilson because if it weren't for him or Lamar Hunt, the NFL wouldn't have been successful it its lean years. *On 2008 17 finalists list My top 17 in no order Derrick Thomas Shannon Sharpe Bruce Smith Rod Woodson Roger Craig Terrell Davis Cris Carter Andre Reed Sterling Sharpe Tony Boselli Russ Grimm Joe Jacoby Charles Haley Richard Dent Clay Matthews Ray Guy Jimmy Johnson The five I'd pick if I could pick five: Bruce Smith Rod Woodson Derrick Thomas Sterling Sharpe Tony Boselli
  7. Wildman

    What's Wrong With This Photo

    http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2/story...e=snibbe/081031 My apologies if already posted, but didn't see in on the first page...
  8. Wildman

    2008 Rookie Scouting Portfolio

    Good question and the answer should give you additional insight on the running back position in the NFL. BenJarvus Green-Ellis was a player several scouts/analysts felt had enough skill to make an NFL team. He's strong, straight ahead runner. But there are far more talented college running backs, with pro ability than there are spots on an NFL depth chart. Green-Ellis played on an Ole Miss team with some excellent offensive linemen - Michael Oher, the subject of a best-selling book, will likely be a top 15 pick this year at LT - but the blocking scheme was a very simple one. Green-Ellis was not a very creative runner and from what I saw, he never veered from the design of the blocking scheme. If that meant he gained 15 yards, awesome. If it meant he gained -2 yards when there was a gaping hole one quick cut away, so be it. Green-Ellis, Rueben Droughns, Ryan Grant, and late-round picks Derrick Ward and Earnest Graham are all examples of talented players who were a bit too raw to stick with a team. RB is probably the one position where it's always good to remember the backs not drafted who were once considered mid-to-late round picks, if not high round picks before an injury because they frequently develop into decent fantasy players even if it is for a short stretch. I think Ken Darby, now with the Rams, is a candidate to make this list one day. Same with Kregg Lumpkin and maybe even Darnell Savage with Kansas City.
  9. Wildman

    Brees's Hail Mary INT

    Yep, it guaranteed there were no more undefeated teams in our league
  10. Wildman

    2008 Rookie Scouting Portfolio

    This year, of course. Dynasty, it could wind up being a closer comparison.
  11. Wildman

    Hypocrisy in action

    Not a dirty play - a high effort play. Although Vrabel wasn't likely to catch Brown there is no guarantee Brown doesn't stumble, lose the ball, or come up lame at the end of the run and slow down significantly before he reaches the end zone. Plus, this is moot because Brown wasn't in the endzone, he was at the 25 yard line when Ricky dove for Vrabel. Just because the team didn't expect the Dolphins - namely Williams - to show that much effort to go full speed in the 4th QTR with a big lead and make a play that any coach would applaud him for doing tells you that they are simply upset about getting their butts whipped. BTW - if you don't believe what I just said about not being a dirty play, then just call it retaliation for what you see at :28 seconds of this highlight reel and you'll understand why Vrabel got what he got http://www.nfl.com/videos?videoId=09000d5d80affc67
  12. Wildman

    Titans D

    His hate for VY way before this season blinded him to that fact. Though I have to say, it looks like he has a point about VY's prospects, now.
  13. Everyone who writes in this industry is always looking for that potential "out of nowhere guy" for their readers. Lumpkin is one of those candidates. Right now, Brandon Jackson is the better player but if Lumpkin can stay healthy gain a bit more speed as he continues to be a few years removed from ACL surgery and gets more reps, he could be a starting quality back. People in the know like Lumpkin because he's a good pass protector, has excellent patience and vision, and runs hard downhill. Lumpkin has a legitimate chance to beat out Jackson in a season or two if he continues along the path he's taking with his performance. It's important to remember that if Packers people are talking about him to the media that they like his skills. It's a big deal that Lumpkin, who was an undrafted free agent rookie, beat out Morency, Herron, and Wynn for the final spot. That move states "Lumpkin has enough talent that we don't have to keep veterans who know our system and have proven they can function on the playing field if we use them in a situational manner." For a free agent rookie, that's why people are high on him.
  14. Wildman

    Isaac Bruce or Bryant Johnson

    Glad I only have Bruce, because Bryant Johnson is getting more of the targets. It's difficult to trust a player who has a high ypc average, but few targets. One suggestion is to view this matchup in the context of your roster. If the choice is for a 3rd or 4th WR spot and your other guys are high target players and you have a strong lineup overall, I'd go for the upside of Bruce. If your team has more upside guys with greater risk, go w/Johnson.
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