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Predator · 06-24-2022, 09:31 PM

(06-24-2022, 04:40 PM)JagFanatic24 Wrote:
(06-24-2022, 08:53 AM)Predator Wrote: Those 3 years just validate a short yardage and scoring issue he has had most of his career, that you attempted to blame on coaches pulling him, because he was the only option over that span and he didn't perform.

The coaches pulling him wasn't the cause of Fred having low TD numbers, it was the effect of Fred struggling in short yardage scoring situations which those three seasons, where there wasn't a viable replacement option for him, demonstrate.

Whether that will be something that keeps him out of the Hall of Fame I don't know, but I'm pretty sure his TD numbers compared to his peers is what kept him out of many pro bowls because scoring weighs heavily over yardage.

Averaging 5 TDs a year during an era where scoring 20+ was common and the all time records were being set and then reset by his peers, will probably be the biggest contributing factor if he never get voted in.

1998

Fred scored 17 TDs as a rookie in 1998. He rushed for 1223 yards and 14 TDs. He also added 421 yards receiving and 3 TDs, with 1644 yards from scrimmage. Jags went 11-5.

Eddie George made the Pro Bowl in 1998. He rushed for 1294 yards and 5 TDs. He also added 310 yards receiving and 1 TD, with 1604 yards from scrimmage. Oilers went 8-8.

*Taylor started 12 games in 1998
*George started 16 games in 1998
————

1999

Fred Taylor started 9 games and was statically the 10th best RB in the AFC.

Most yards by a RB for 1999

Edgerrin James 1553 yards, 13 TD
Curtis Martin 1464 yards, 5 TD
Eddie George 1304 yards, 9 TD
Corey Dillon 1200 yards, 5 TD

Fred Taylor 732 yards, 6 TD
(scored more TDs than 2 of the top rushers while starting just 9 games)

—————

2000

Corey Dillon had 1435 yards rushing and 7 TDs. He added 158 yards receiving and
0 receiving TDs, with 1593 yards from scrimmage.

Fred Taylor had 1399 yards rushing and 12 TDs. He added 240 yards receiving and
2 TDs, with 1639 yards from scrimmage.

*Dillon started 16 games
*Taylor started 13 games

* Taylor also had 9 straight games with 100 yards rushing.

—————

2002

This was the first year in Taylor’s career that he was able to play a full season and start all 16 games. Except wild numbers across the AFC for RB’s happened.

-Williams exploded for 1853 yards and 14 TDs

-Tomlinson put up his usual 1683 yards and 21 TDs

-Holmes, who had the best 3 years of his life rushed for 1615 yards in 2002 and scored 21 times on the ground. If Holmes doesn’t erupt for 2001, 2002, and 2003…his best season would have been in 1998 when he rushed for 1008 yards.

Holmes rushed for 0 yards in 1997
1008 in 1998
506 in 1999
588 in 2000
892 in 2004
451 in 2005
0 in 2006
137 in 2007

-Clinton Portis went for 1508 yards and 15 TD

-Travis Henry had 1438 yards and 13 TD

-Jamal Lewis rushed for 1327 yards and 6 TDs

*Fred Taylor rushed for 1314 yards and 8 TDs. Only 2 NFC Running Backs had more yards than Taylor. (Deuce McCallister, Tiki Barber)

————-

‘03 was a wild year for RBs across the league. It’s considered the best year ever for the RB position. Tomlinson rushed for 1645 yards and 13 TDs. He also added 100 catches for 725 yards and 4 TDs, with 2370 yards from scrimmage…and didn’t make the Pro Bowl.

Holmes rushed for 1420 yards but scored 27 TDs and was voted All Pro and Pro Bowl. That same year, Jamal Lewis rushed for 2066 yards and 14 TDs and was voted to the Pro Bowl.

Jamal Lewis rushed 2066 yards and 14 TDs

*Clinton Portis was selected to the Pro Bowl while rushing for 1591 yards and 14 TDs. He added 314 yards receiving and 0 TDs, with 1905 yards from scrimmage.

*Taylor rushed for 1572 yards and 6 TDs. He added 370 yards receiving and 1 TD, with 1942 yards from scrimmage.

*only 2 NFC Running Backs had more yards than Taylor. (McCallister and Ahman Green)
—————

2004

Only 2 RB’s in the NFC had more rushing yards than Fred Taylor. (Alexander, Tiki Barber). While in the AFC 7 other backs had more yards rushing. New players came on the scene with guys like Rudi Johnson and Ruben Drougnhs.

That year Curtis Martin led the league in rushing with 1697 yards. 5 AFC RBs were selected to the Pro Bowl in 2004.

-Curtis Martin
-Corey Dillon
-Edgerrin James
-Rudi Johnson
-Ladanian Tomlinson

4 of the 5 AFC backs that season rushed for 12 or more TDs.

*Taylor rushed for 2 TDs in 2004

————

In my opinion Taylor should have made the Pro Bowl in 1998 instead of Eddie George. In 2000 instead of Corey Dillon. In 2003 I will admit that I’m being biased but he had more rushing yards than Priest Holmes but Holmes scored 27 TDs. Also in 2003 Taylor had more yards from scrimmage than Portis, but Portis had more TDs.

And of course we got lucky in 2007 when Fast Willie Parker missed the Pro Bowl due to injury and Taylor got the nod.

Taylor could have possibly been a 4 time Pro Bowler. Who knows what could have happened in 1999 (started just 9 games) and 2001 (started just 2 games).

I agree his TD totals are not good. When the Jags got inside the 10 yard line, Greg Jones, James Stewart, MJD, and Stacey Mack took a lot of TDs away from his totals.

I agree there were a couple of seasons you could make a strong case for Fred making the pro bowl, but the pro bowl voting has always been biased towards guys who have already been there. Unfortunately in 1998 and 2000 he was competing for a spot against two players who also had excellent seasons and were in the pro bowl the season before.

Stewart and Greg Jones actually didn't take many TDs from Fred. I went through the seasons they played together and between them they only scored 6 TDs in 5 seasons when there was a healthy Fred available and one of those TDs happened in the first game Fred ever played in and only had 6 carries and another one was on a 4th and 1 where Fred had gotten the chance on 3rd and 1 and couldn't get in and they gave Jones the 4th an 1 and he scored. All the rest of their TDs came either when Fred didn't play or was injured during the game and on the sideline.

Stacy Mack had 19 TDs with the Jags but it wasn't until 2002, after he had already scored 10 while Fred was out, that he was given the bulk of the short yard carries with a healthy Fred. So there was really only 1 season in Fred's first 8 that you could say he was denied scoring opportunities.

Fred was in his 9th season when MJD came along. MJD scored 13 rushing TDs his first season, but only 5 were 10 yards or less. In 2007 it was the same number 5. By 2008 Fred was done and you can't blame anyone for him having only 1 TD in 13 starts.

The reality is that outside of 2002 you can't really say anyone held him back from scoring TDs.

Fred scored a lot of TDs in his first few years largely because people underestimated his speed and took bad angles. Once the league saw him enough players started taking better angles and he couldn't out run the angles as often and his TD numbers dropped. Runs that used to become TDs just became nice gains and he would get caught before he got to the end zone.