(05-08-2018, 12:37 PM)pirkster Wrote: This is the kind of "article" that one writes when they look at statistics on a sheet and have never seen a single game the player who produced those stats played.

You can say he was drafted too high, and that's valid.  Many do not believe RBs should be drafted that high no matter who you are.

But to suggest he did not produce or to pretend he was not the face/identity of the franchise offensively is simple ignorance.

Take him off this team and we would not have been in the playoffs last season.  You aren't going to find what he means to this offense (in particular, Blake) buried in a stat sheet unless you're focused on the W/L column.

Agreed completely.

A few things to consider:

1.  People say, with good reason, that this is a defensive team.  But in 2016-the year before Fournette arrived, the Jaguars had the 6th ranked defense, and they still finished 3-13.

2.  That same year, the Jaguars finished 22nd in rushing.  In 2017, Fournette's first, the Jaguars finished first in rushing.

3.  In 2016, the Jaguars had a total of TEN (10) rushes of 20+ yards-seven >20 yards and 3 >40 yards.  In 2017, Fournette's first year, the Jaguars had eighteen (18) carries of 20+ or more-thirteen (13) of 20+ yards, and 5 of 40+ yards.

4.  In 2016, the Jaguars ranked 26th in time of possession, averaging 29:09 per game.  Last year, with Fournette, the Jaguars averaged 31:31 minutes per game, good for 5th in the NFL.    https://www.teamrankings.com/nfl/stat/av...2018-02-05

Anyone who followed the Jaguars closely knows how much better the Jaguars running game was with Fournette.  In the 30-9 win in Pittsburgh, the Jaguars had a stretch in the second half where they ran the ball FOURTEEN (14) straight times.  A drive of that nature was an impossibility for this team prior to Fournette's arrival.

Fournette's arrival helped instill a toughness in this offense that paid huge dividends for this team.

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