Jonathan Vilma Breaks Down The AFC East Running Backs

[justasportsfan]

http://play.rbn.com/?url=nfl/nfl/open/nflfilms/demand/s2006/nfln-ta/off/afc_east_rbs_breakdown_300k.rm

Pls. let me know if link works. I can't see it here at work.

[BillsNick]

doesn't work

[BAM]

Works for me.

Opens with Real Player.

[BillsNick]

What's he say about willis?

[BAM]

Not a whole lot. Just says he's a big, shifty back that hits the holes quickly and is often able to make the first person miss. First RB they talked about was Willis, then Ronnie Brown, then Corey Dillon.

[Mahdi]

What's he say about willis?
Poweful runner who explodes througth the hole but also has the ability to make guys miss. And he's from THE U.

[evol4276]

don't we have the best rb in the AFC East right now?? Ronnie Brown'll be good, but he still needs time so right now it has to be Willis

[SquishDaFish]

It worked for me. Dillon is getting old and Brown is a youngster so Id say we have the best RB in the East

[justasportsfan]

I'm not worried about Culppeper , but Brown is gonna be one hell of a back in this league.

[Drive 4 Five]

McGahee and Brown are very different players in my opinion. Even from what little I saw of Brown last year, he does possess one ability that Willis lacks. Speed. This kid can take it to the house. He is a threat to go the distance very time he touches the ball. On the other hand, he does not have the size and power that McGahee has. Is he tough enough and can he block well enough to be an every down back or is he more of a Warrick Dunn type player? It is really tough to compare those two. One thing I will say about McGahee is that I believe the best is yet to come. I'd love to see what he could do behind a solid group of linemen.

[FlyingDutchman]

I think Willis speed is deceptive. I think hes movin faster than he looks. He did start pussy footin a little around the line last year, but that might have been bc a defender was penetrating through the hole almost every time.

[Mahdi]

McGahee and Brown are very different players in my opinion. Even from what little I saw of Brown last year, he does possess one ability that Willis lacks. Speed. This kid can take it to the house. He is a threat to go the distance very time he touches the ball. On the other hand, he does not have the size and power that McGahee has. Is he tough enough and can he block well enough to be an every down back or is he more of a Warrick Dunn type player? It is really tough to compare those two. One thing I will say about McGahee is that I believe the best is yet to come. I'd love to see what he could do behind a solid group of linemen.
I agree with most of what you said, but Ronnie Brown does not lack size. He's 6'0 232 pounds and is a powerful runner too. There isnt much about Ronnie Browns game that is lacking, he is well rounded. He should be good for a long time. Willis needs an O-line, hopefully he has one this year and it should be a competitive battle for top rusher in the AFCE.

[!Papacrunk!]

I'm always amazed when WIllis moves the pile, just won't give up until he gets that extra yard or two, great effort. One could wonder how much better he could be if the knee injury never happened, but on the other side maybe the injury is what has motivated him that much more to be the 'back he is today.

With Ronnie Brown, I really like his attitude--very positive, very humble. As far as his play, I'm a big fan of his ability to catch in the backfield and just take off--hopefully that will be utilized more in the upcoming seasons. I was also impressed with his ability to pick up the blitz, especially when it took a while for the o-line to gel.

[Mr. Pink]

This is an amusing thread...all this talk about backs in the afc east and you leave out the best one Curtis Martin. Quite possibly the most underrated, unappreciated back in NFL history. All he does is go out and rush for over a 1000 years every year and lead the NFL in rushing 2 years ago.

Priceless!

[Mahdi]

This is an amusing thread...all this talk about backs in the afc east and you leave out the best one Curtis Martin. Quite possibly the most underrated, unappreciated back in NFL history. All he does is go out and rush for over a 1000 years every year and lead the NFL in rushing 2 years ago.

Priceless!
I dont think anyone can possibly deny the quality RB Curtis Martin is. I just watched 'In His Own Words' on NFLN featuring him. He is a class act. I think this thread is just more focused on the RB class in the AFCE going forward in the next few years.

[Mr. Pink]

CMart is 33...he should have at least 2 more productive seasons left in him if he stays injury free.

[patmoran2006]

Until he proves otherwise to me (and sorry guys) but Willis is overated.

Off the top of my head, there are a dozen RB's right now I'd rather have on my team.

As a matter of fact, dont be surprised in the LEAST if you see a hell of a lot more of the A-Train than you might think.

[justasportsfan]

Until he proves otherwise to me (and sorry guys) but Willis is overated.

Off the top of my head, there are a dozen RB's right now I'd rather have on my team.

As a matter of fact, dont be surprised in the LEAST if you see a hell of a lot more of the A-Train than you might think.
One can only imagine how Willis could've performed without the drama and better coaching. I am quite optimistic for Willis this year, seing how Fairchild was able to bring out the best in Henry .

There's also the hope that McNally was given decent players to work with by Marv unlike last year where he was asked to make use of crappy players by the last GM.

Willis lead the league in ypc up until the drama started.

[jamze132]

Of course Vilma's opinion on McGahee is biased. Since when has Willis hit the hole hard? I would say he does it maybe 25% of the time. The other 75% he is dancing around there wating for a hole to open up. And I don't necessarilly blame Willis, Teague and Anderson had a big part of that.

[Samphin1]

Uhm, Ronnie Brown is no where near a Warrick Dunn type of back. I could be wrong, but I think he is bigger than Willis on a pure physical standpoint. He is also faster.

However, Willis has that deceptive speed. I have seen him many times, turn that corner and blow past people even though he looks like he is carrying a boulder on his back. Plus, I think Willis still has the best stiff arm in the league.

Dillon is somewhat injury prone and is winding down his career. Obviously, he isn't in the long term plans for New England based off their draft. Also, Martin could bounce back, but he is a back who always relied on his o-line to get him yardage. Last year his o-line was poo and he got nothing. Heck, he got injured even.

Right now, I would have them as such based on what I think they can do over the next few years.

1. Willis McGahee
2. Ronnie Brown
3. Corey Dillon
4. Curtis Martin

[justasportsfan]

Of course Vilma's opinion on McGahee is biased. .it wasn't.

[acehole]

Sounds like r2d2/