I personally have not seen enough progress to justify being set at running backs.  We have seen flashes.  And potential.

But at this point is that enough?  

 

I do not think so. And look for us to grab one in FA or more likely draft.  What is your take? Has it been the line? Having no true blocking fb?   Or the backs itself?  The reason for lack of production.

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Bleeding Teal since 1995. The Icon Teal Time Radio aka ctjags

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Not even a little bit. Ivory is terrible, Yeldon is underwhelming, Robinson is Robinson and Grant is a twig.

 

I'm hoping we grab a back in the first three rounds. Dalvin Cook would be nice in one, but I think we have bigger fish to fry that early.

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This isn't even a question. Running back is a huge hole and needs to get upgraded significantly.

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No, RB should be at the top of the lust with guard. We are the only team in the league that had more fumbles at the RB position than TDs

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No. Ivory is okay but hes old and always been frail. Yeldon just doesnt do anything especially well hes just a decent backup.

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No way.  We need to take Dalvin Cook with the 4th pick.  i don't care what they say about taking RBs at the top of the draft.  He is elite and could overcome some of the weaknesses with the OL.  The FSU line was so bad they almost got Francois killed this year and Cook shattered records in spite of how bad they were.

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I believe Corey Grant is the answer.

And ivory should spell him.

The exact opposite of what most of u would probably say...

I don't believe yeldon is very good.

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Caldwell gave Ivory a 5 year $32 million deal, with a $5m signing bonus and $10m guaranty.  He has another year with guaranteed money in his deal, which makes him financially more painful to cut this next season (about a $7m dead money hit).  

 

I thought Ivory was a good back, but fumbling was an issue this year.  He fumbled 5 times in 117 carries this year.  However, in the previous two seasons, he cumulatively fumbled 5 times in 445 carries (a substantially lower rate).  In his first four seasons in the league, he fumbled 6 times in 438 carries (still a substantially lower rate).  This past year was abnormally high for fumbles when viewing his 7 seasons.  I would give him another shot to run and hold onto the ball better.

 

Yeldon, along with Robinson, are underwhelming to me.  Grant, as mentioned earlier in the thread, is fast, but is a twig and goes down to easily.  I would like to add a RB, but you can find good ones with potential outside of round 2...we just have bigger needs for those first couple rounds. 

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I want an elite RB that doesnt fumble.

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Chris Ivory is a capable starting running back. He led the Saints in rushing as a rookie and made the NFL all rookie team. When he went to the Jets he had a couple of 800 yard seasons in a committee with Bilal Powell in 2013 and Chris Johnson in 2014, and when he was given a heavier workload he led the AFC in rushing in 2015. So the guy has a decent record. Is he a top tier running back? No. He is not a back that will have much success behind an under performing O-Line. He isn't Adrian Peterson (in his prime) or Zeke - those guys could have come into Jacksonville this season and had really productive years. For a guy like Ivory to have success he will need help from his O-Line and a commitment from his OC to the run. Is he good enough to start for us next season? Sure, but he will always only be a steady running and not a special one. 

 

As for Yeldon. I am not convinced he is a feature back in this league. He strikes me more as a pass catching back, who can handle some carries, but not a heavy workload. Is he good enough to work in a one-two punch with Ivory? Sure, it can work. But the team would need to commit to feeding Ivory the ball and using Yeldon as the pass catching back. If we moved forwards with this duo there would need to be a belief that they can stay healthy and produce behind an improved O-Line. Is that a risky thing to do? Perhaps, but by sticking with these two (plus any other additions to the running game through free agency or the draft), then the team does have enough on this roster to have a productive running game. However, we don't have a back that will do for us what Zeke has done for the Cowboys, or Johnson has done for the Cardinals. We have steady backs, not special ones like we had with Fred Taylor and MoJo. 

 

What would I do? 

 

I would honestly consider drafting Fournette or Cook in the first round. I know some don't like first round running backs and would want to see us use our pick on a different position - I get that, but we have all seen the impact that Todd Gurley made as a rookie last season and the impact that Zeke made this season. Take Zeke away from the Cowboys and they would not have won as many games as they did, nor would their offense have been anywhere near as prolific as it has been. When you get the chance to draft a special running back, then that could be a very appealing thing for this team. Remember that we have put this team on Bortles' back in the last two seasons. Imagine what Zeke could have done on this team. Suddenly we have a special back we can feed the ball to 20+ times a game. That would take a ton of pressure off Bortles and he would probably be better for it because we wouldn't need him to do everything. So far as I'm concerned, if we believe that Fournette or Cook are potentially special running backs (I'm not talking solid backs coming out of college like Trent Richardson), then I would have no issue seeing us draft one of them because they could help take this offense to the next level. 

 

Obviously we have other considerations to make. But our defense is talented and isn't that far away from being good. We can add prospects for the D-Line, linebackers and secondary in the other rounds. Not every star defensive player has been taken high in the first round. Richard Sherman was a fifth round pick, Kam Chancellor was a fifth round pick, Bobby Wagner was a second round pick, Frank Clark was a second round pick, Jarren Reed was a second round pick, and KJ Wright was a fourth round pick. Now I appreciate the Seahawks are one of those rare teams, but the way they have drafted proves that star talent can be found in any round. So we don't really need to worry about drafting a DE or S with our high first round pick if we feel that adding a special running back could make a greater impact, and we could add a DE or S in another round. 

 

For me, I would grab Fournette or Cook. I don't know which guy I would pick. I think Fournette has the edge as a runner, whereas Cook is a better all round back due to his pass catching ability, but both should have a ton of success in the NFL. I'd love to see us get our next special running back. 

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How many times did Fournette and Cook fumble in college?

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No running back can run when we have a OL that cannot run block. Our Line improved this year in pass blocking but totally stunk at run block. We could still pick up a RB in a later round, but, an OL upgrade is badly needed.

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No running back can run when we have a OL that cannot run block. Our Line improved this year in pass blocking but totally stunk at run block. We could still pick up a RB in a later round, but, an OL upgrade is badly needed.

Completely agree but I don't think there's an OL in the top of the draft worth picking at 4.  Cook is worth a Top 5 pick.  Get at least 2 OL in rounds 2,3 or 4.

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Draft a rb in a late round and maybe a free agent.

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No Fun

I'd love Cook. But I don't think anyone will have success behind our line. That has to be addressed big time.

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I'd love Cook. But I don't think anyone will have success behind our line. That has to be addressed big time.

Most likely the Line will be the main focus in FA and in the later rounds of the Draft.

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A RB needs to be added. Luckily this is a great draft for RB's.

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"Sucess Is Not a Goal, It is a By-product"

No. We're far from set at this position. Yeldon hasn't shown he's dependable enough to be a starter. Ivory was a let down between the injuries and fumbles. This team needs to bring back the full back position next year.

 

And I am not against this front office drafting Dalvin Cook out of FSU 4th overall in a few months if they deem him worthy enough and good enough to be the next Fred Taylor or Maurice Jones-Drew here in Duval. 

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"What do I know of cultured ways, the gilt, the craft and the lie? I, who was born in a naked land and bred in the open sky. The subtle tongue, the sophist guile, they fail when the broadswords sing; Rush in and die, dogs - I was a man before I was a king."

Think its highly likely our first pick will be best available defense, but maybe whoever the coach ends up being sways them on a rb.

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No Fun

Think its highly likely our first pick will be best available defense, but maybe whoever the coach ends up being sways them on a rb.

 

Personally I only want two players on defense that could be around the fourth overall pick. And that's Johnathan Allen or Tim Williams out of Alabama. If either of those guys are gone I think we have no other choice but to take the BAP on the board, which by then could arguably and honestly be Cook. I don't see them taking a RT in Robinson out of Alabama right there. And I don't see a QB worth that selection either. 

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"What do I know of cultured ways, the gilt, the craft and the lie? I, who was born in a naked land and bred in the open sky. The subtle tongue, the sophist guile, they fail when the broadswords sing; Rush in and die, dogs - I was a man before I was a king."