Our RB's

We passed the ball 55% of the snaps last year and our quarterback went #1 overall.

Protecting him was pretty important.
Reason #1 why RB pass pro doesn't matter:

Damien Martinez graded out as a horrible blocker at Oregon St - I mean REALLY BAD.

That mattered 0% when we made him a top priority in the portal last year.

We went after him hard for 1 reason, and 1 reason only - he's a beast running the ball.
 
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I think the whole room needs to show us something.

I know Mark Fletcher can will this team to wins against some mid-tier competition in the ACC. He's a good football player but he needs to take the next step if he wants to be a draftable running back. He should be our 1000 yard runner, but them injuries leave a spot open for Rb2

I like Jordan Lyle, he should be good. He had two good games last year that just happened to be against some of our easiest competition in beatdowns. 3.0 ypc v. UF, 3,8 ypc v. Iowa State, 1.7 ypc Syracuse (Martinez had 8.4) give me pause and I just want to really see it before we give him the crown and call this a running back room that is BACK...when we've had a ton of drafted running backs over the years.

Marty Brown is an interesting wild card in the room. He looks the part of a dawg, but we really need to see if he has athleticism that can play at this level. I think he does. He's a bit closer to Damien Martinez than a lot of people are giving him credit for. If Lyle doesn't step up or Fletcher goes down, I think Marty can play.

Gerard Pringle is this year's Chris Johnson. I kill with him in CFB26, too.
 
What? Isn't it pretty widely accepted that the Philadelphia Eagles have the best OL in football, with probably the best coach? Do you think Saquon Barkley and Kenny Gainwell don't pass block when they have to?

Or you're a Lions fan, right? You think Jahmyr Gibbs doesn't pass block?

It's obviously not the most important thing, he's a game-breaking back and breaking games is why he's there. But it's an insane take to say your backs need to pass block? What? We could have 5 Orlando Pace's on the OL, there are times the defense sends more than you can block and you don't have a hot read to immediately get rid of the ball, your back has to be able to recognize that and stick his mask into someone's chest or your QB gets killed. And on this team, if the QB gets killed, the team gets killed.


I never said anything about not pass blocking. If you saw read the reports on both of those players their were question marks about their willingness/technique/size in pass pro. Guess what they still were drafted in the top half of the first round. Saying that if you can't pass block you cant play is stupid when you tout how amazing the OL is.
 
Reason #1 why RB pass pro doesn't matter:

Damien Martinez graded out as a horrible blocker at Oregon St - I mean REALLY BAD.

That mattered 0% when we made him a top priority in the portal last year.

We went after him hard for 1 reason, and 1 reason only - he's a beast running the ball.
I thought he was a pretty good blocker here. Numerous highlight pass blocks that led to big plays.
 
I never said anything about not pass blocking. If you saw read the reports on both of those players their were question marks about their willingness/technique/size in pass pro. Guess what they still were drafted in the top half of the first round. Saying that if you can't pass block you cant play is stupid when you tout how amazing the OL is.

Pass blocking as a back has literally nothing to do with how amazing your line is. Not one single thing.
 
Why is everyone so obsessed with weight numbers and what’s reported…225 year to year (true or not) will look different.

If you are stronger, faster, more explosive then there was progression.
 
Just glad Mario figured this **** out so our elite speedy mismatch TEs don't have to worry about blocking and can run around like deer and get 800 and 12!
 
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I thought he was a pretty good blocker here. Numerous highlight pass blocks that led to big plays.
You're right - he was good here. PFF blocking grades by year:

FR OSU - 12.2
SO OSU - 21.0
JR Miami - 62.9

What I'm saying is - Our staff didn't care AT ALL how bad a blocker he was at OSU when they went after him in the portal.
 
Come on you're not that daft. No matter how good your OL is sometimes the defense sends more guys than you have bodies to block. The RB needs to know who to pick up.
You guys are using extremes. If he is willing that is enough.
 
I think the whole room needs to show us something.

I know Mark Fletcher can will this team to wins against some mid-tier competition in the ACC. He's a good football player but he needs to take the next step if he wants to be a draftable running back. He should be our 1000 yard runner, but them injuries leave a spot open for Rb2

I like Jordan Lyle, he should be good. He had two good games last year that just happened to be against some of our easiest competition in beatdowns. 3.0 ypc v. UF, 3,8 ypc v. Iowa State, 1.7 ypc Syracuse (Martinez had 8.4) give me pause and I just want to really see it before we give him the crown and call this a running back room that is BACK...when we've had a ton of drafted running backs over the years.

Marty Brown is an interesting wild card in the room. He looks the part of a dawg, but we really need to see if he has athleticism that can play at this level. I think he does. He's a bit closer to Damien Martinez than a lot of people are giving him credit for. If Lyle doesn't step up or Fletcher goes down, I think Marty can play.

Gerard Pringle is this year's Chris Johnson. I kill with him in CFB26, too.
I think Lyle has the most draftable talent of the group. Fletcher may never be a Day 1-Day 2 type rpure unner, but he is a winning football player that you see on championship teams.
 
What? Isn't it pretty widely accepted that the Philadelphia Eagles have the best OL in football, with probably the best coach? Do you think Saquon Barkley and Kenny Gainwell don't pass block when they have to?

Or you're a Lions fan, right? You think Jahmyr Gibbs doesn't pass block?

It's obviously not the most important thing, he's a game-breaking back and breaking games is why he's there. But it's an insane take to say your backs need to pass block? What? We could have 5 Orlando Pace's on the OL, there are times the defense sends more than you can block and you don't have a hot read to immediately get rid of the ball, your back has to be able to recognize that and stick his mask into someone's chest or your QB gets killed. And on this team, if the QB gets killed, the team gets killed.


Reason #2 why RB pass pro doesn't matter (not directed at you - directed at the misconceptions)

Here's the Top 3 pass catching RB's in the NFL in 2024:

Devon Achane - 592 yds
Pass Play Snaps-456 - Routes Run-408 - Pass Block Snaps-19. PFF Pass Block Rank -129 out of 130

Alvin Kamara - 543 yds

Pass Play Snaps -376 - Routes Run-311 -Pass Block Snaps-45. PFF Pass Block Rank -101 out of 130

Jahmyr Gibbs - 543 yds

Pass Play Snaps-368 - Routes Run-310 -Pass Block Snaps-49. PFF Pass Block Rank -119 out of 130

What people probably don't realize:

1) On passing downs - the RB is running routes 85% of the time & blocking 15% of the time
2) The RB's anyone would want MOST on the field on for pass plays are literally the WORST pass blockers

Making plays is all that matters. Pass blocking means very little.
 
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I thought he was a pretty good blocker here. Numerous highlight pass blocks that led to big plays.
He was an excellent blocker here, but as @bshaw28 stated earlier, he was brought here for his running ability. Ended up being a really good blocker for us as well, which was a pleasant surprise to everyone.
 
Reason #2 why RB pass pro doesn't matter (not directed at you - directed at the misconceptions)

Here's the Top 3 pass catching RB's in the NFL in 2024:

Devon Achane - 592 yds
Pass Play Snaps-456 - Routes Run-408 - Pass Block Snaps-19. PFF Pass Block Rank -129 out of 130

Alvin Kamara - 543 yds

Pass Play Snaps -376 - Routes Run-311 -Pass Block Snaps-45. PFF Pass Block Rank -101 out of 130

Jahmyr Gibbs - 543 yds

Pass Play Snaps-368 - Routes Run-310 -Pass Block Snaps-49. PFF Pass Block Rank -119 out of 130

What people probably don't realize:

1) On passing downs - the RB is running routes 85% of the time & blocking 15% of the time
2) The RB's anyone would want MOST on the field on for pass plays are literally the WORST pass blockers

Making plays is all that matters. Pass blocking means very little.

Interesting

None of those RB's are on Superbowl winning teams. Suspect there may be a flaw in the hypothesis.
 
I don’t know why I feel like point #2 quote was directed at Fletcher. He has to become more elusive once he gets past the line of scrimmage. He can get 4-5 yards with ease..we need more explosive plays from him.
Fletcher leaves a lot to be desired. He also leaves a lot of yards on the table. I’ll give him some credit, he was pretty awesome in short yardage situations when used as a battering ram. He did his job and got those tough yards.

Now, if he could stop getting tackled so easy when gets past that first line of defense and has a wide open field.
 
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