(10-30-2023, 01:25 PM)The Real Marty Wrote:

(10-30-2023, 01:08 PM)NYC4jags Wrote: Wow.

You really aren't reading half of the stuff I'm typing. You're kinda saying some of the same things that I am. 

To your final two sentences - talent trumping positional value at the RB position is more rare in the modern NFL than it used to be and for good reason. 

2023 - 2  - 1st round RB
2022 -  ZERO - 1st round RB
2021 - 2 - 1st round RB
2020 - 1 - 1st round RB
2019 - 1 - 1st round RB

That's 6 RBs in the 1st round in 5 years. 

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2008 - 5 - 1st round RB
2007 - 1 - 1st round RB
2006 - 4 - 1st round RB
2005 - 3 - 1st round RB
2004 - 3 - 1st round RB

That's SIXTEEN RBs selected in the first round over 5 years. 

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GMs are wise to no longer risk so many early picks on running backs. And this ^  should make the trend very obvious for you.  It has to be a special talent to lead you to exception and about half of those exceptions fail.

This tectonic shift in drafting strategy did not happen by accident. The game has changed, the rules have changed, the RB position is devalued. The GMs have adjusted. 

You just aren't hip to it yet.

If we follow your rule, never draft a RB in the first round (unless he's a "special talent," which is vague enough to get you off the hook), who would you have drafted instead of Travis Etienne?

This has been hashed out IN THIS THREAD, Marty

The guys on my radar were Barmore and Teven Jenkins. Yes, yes, I know they ended up going several picks later - but they were projected in that late first round range and fit the team's needs and positional value better than a RB did. 

Either would have been a welcome addition - but ETN turned out to be worth the gamble and a better pick than both of those guys. 

I'm glad we won the coin flip on the back.  He's a fantastic player and appears to be a great fit/piece of the puzzle in the culture build Baalke and Pederson have pulled off. 

For the life of me, I don't understand why it rubs people so badly that teams just  don't gamble on first round backs very often anymore and I agree with that practice.

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