Freeman's career ypc: 3.85.... What caliber of RB do we really have there?

[Atlfanstckndenver]

I just can't help but be curious how the majority of our fan base perceive Freeman.  Is he elite?  Is he average?  Better than average?  A really really good receiving back with some decent rushing chops? I could be totally wrong but I get the impression that for the most part,  Freeman is viewed as a very good if not great RB. I have always believed in results trumping bias or perception.  Using results at least gives us some concrete/tangible info to base things off of. 

 

Quinn made it pretty clear that they have no problem using a committee approach.  Do you see this as a good thing? 

[Lord Sarcomere]

I don't think there's enough of a sample size to consider him elite. I do, however, think he's a very good RB. Top 7 RB for sure, potentially even top 5.

EDIT: To answer your last question, I think it might be for the better. Free started out very hot last year but he definitely wore down towards the end of the season. I have no problem with the RBBC approach/ riding the hot hand. 

[k-train]

To me personally, Freeman has some great attributes, but is just good overall.

His drive, work ethic, and humble attitude are all great. However, his ability to move the chains at this level seems just slightly above average. He started out really well last season, but then just fell off big time. To me, that says other teams figured him out. IMO, if a team can watch tape on you, and then make you noticeably less effective, you just don't have IT enough to be truly great. Truly great players will find a way to get it done, even when the opposing team does everything in their power to stop them. Freeman has all the heart in the world, but that's just not enough to make him great.

Julio is great.
AP is great.
Tony G. was great.
Freeman is not on that level.

[Factz]

Meh, i've been saying for awhile now Freeman isn't that good. He's a below average lead back in my opinion, but a very good complimentary back, who can come in and do good things here and there.

[Dirtybird56]

I don't think he's as good a runner as most around here seem to, but not because of his stat line. Overall he's still a plus back because of his all around capability - running, catching, and blocking. It helps he's in the exact ideal scheme for his skill set. 

Basically TeCo better get going here if we're going to have a real running game throughout the season 

[k-train]

6 minutes ago, Dirtybird56 said:

I don't think he's as good a runner as most around here seem to, but not because of his stat line. Overall he's still a plus back because of his all around capability - running, catching, and blocking. It helps he's in the exact ideal scheme for his skill set. 

Basically TeCo better get going here if we're going to have a real running game throughout the season 

Yeah, we basically have a less talented version of Warrick Dunn in Freeman... lots of heart, good speed/quickness, decent blocker, good hands out of the backfield

With a Jerious Norwood clone in Coleman... potential to take it to the house every time he touches the ball, but just as much potential to end up hurt for 6 weeks, too

RBBC is definitely the way to go with these guys IMO... keeps them fresh & dangerous, and keeps the opposing D guessing.

[HEIST]

He's a good dude who plays hard. Easy to root for.

He overachieved a lot last year (specifically in that 5 week or so stretch) and then came back down to earth. 

 

[Dem Birds]

Lol, comical. I guess Freeman will have to prove himself again. 1,000 yards, 14 touchdowns and 70 catches just isn't enough. When there isn't a DT in the back field every other play, then you can worry about his average. Which, his average was right at 4.0 at the end of last season, this last game dragged it down some. 

[Snafu]

Average runner but really good running back. His ability in the passing game is what makes him.

[Diesel_Bird]

Be prepared for "all KS fault"

[Knight of God]

3.5 YPC is actually avg. 3.86 is in that slightly above avg range. I'm not a huge fan, but he's good enough.

[xiv_T_E_C_O_]

I'll agree it's a small sample, but the kid has got talent. All I know is we need a W, or else players will start getting thrown under the bus left and right on these boards.

[Moist Words]

39 minutes ago, k-train said:

To me personally, Freeman has some great attributes, but is just good overall.

His drive, work ethic, and humble attitude are all great. However, his ability to move the chains at this level seems just slightly above average. He started out really well last season, but then just fell off big time. To me, that says other teams figured him out. IMO, if a team can watch tape on you, and then make you noticeably less effective, you just don't have IT enough to be truly great. Truly great players will find a way to get it done, even when the opposing team does everything in their power to stop them. Freeman has all the heart in the world, but that's just not enough to make him great.

Julio is great.
AP is great.
Tony G. was great.
Freeman is not on that level.

I don't know of a single poster that has put him on that level. You're talking hall of fame level players with those comparisons.

 

Freeman is an above average RB in other schemes but I think he could border on being a top 5-10 RB in this particular scheme. Coleman's ceiling is a little higher in my opinion but Free isn't just some complimentary piece.

[ChickenBiscuit]

He's proven that he's capable of being a top 10 rusher in the right scheme with half-decent blocking.

Is he elite? No, but that doesn't really matter, either. The best RBs in the league fluctuate so much because it's entirely based on scheme and blocking, guys like Arian Foster will fall off one year, then spring back up the next year. Coleman/Freeman is a good runningback committee, and I doubt our front office is questioning either of their ability.

[ShmevinShmarris]

49 minutes ago, Knight of God said:

3.5 YPC is actually avg. 3.86 is in that slightly above avg range. I'm not a huge fan, but he's good enough.

I'll take 3.86 yards every play

[Knight of God]

2 minutes ago, ShmevinShmarris said:

I'll take 3.86 yards every play

It would win every game.

[SkerFalcon8710]

2 hours ago, Dem Birds said:

Lol, comical. I guess Freeman will have to prove himself again. 1,000 yards, 14 touchdowns and 70 catches just isn't enough. When there isn't a DT in the back field every other play, then you can worry about his average. Which, his average was right at 4.0 at the end of last season, this last game dragged it down some. 

Go look at his game logs.. He had a 6 game stretch that covered up the other 10 games he was sub par. 

[Drunken Minotaur Zebra]

3 hours ago, Atlfanstckndenver said:

I just can't help but be curious how the majority of our fan base perceive Freeman.  Is he elite?  Is he average?  Better than average?  A really really good receiving back with some decent rushing chops? I could be totally wrong but I get the impression that for the most part,  Freeman is viewed as a very good if not great RB. I have always believed in results trumping bias or perception.  Using results at least gives us some concrete/tangible info to base things off of. 

 

Quinn made it pretty clear that they have no problem using a committee approach.  Do you see this as a good thing? 

Free for his size is not IMO a ground and pound RB, but he can wear the **** out of defenses if the OL is doing its' job. 

Free makes his bread in the fact that he is arguably the 3rd best receiver on the field at any given time, and when he gets an opening he's gone. 

I prefer him over TeCo till he gets his game down a bit more. 

[⚡Slumerican⚡]

Inconsistent is the best word to describe him

[Power I]

Just a little bit more athleticism and he would be great, but he gets the most out of what he has. 

[Bobby.Digital]

3 hours ago, k-train said:

To me personally, Freeman has some great attributes, but is just good overall.

His drive, work ethic, and humble attitude are all great. However, his ability to move the chains at this level seems just slightly above average. He started out really well last season, but then just fell off big time. To me, that says other teams figured him out. IMO, if a team can watch tape on you, and then make you noticeably less effective, you just don't have IT enough to be truly great. Truly great players will find a way to get it done, even when the opposing team does everything in their power to stop them. Freeman has all the heart in the world, but that's just not enough to make him great.

Julio is great.
AP is great.
Tony G. was great.
Freeman is not on that level.

Guess Todd Gurley doesn't have what it takes to be great since he's only avg like 70 yards rushing in his last 9 games. 

Anyways alot of Freemans decline in production has to do with our run blocking. It's pretty been bad since about midway of last season.

With that being said Freeman was never a top 3 RB like his numbers indicated. I think he's defienlty a good RB if you employ a zone blocking scheme however I don't think Freeman would be as impactful in a power running scheme. He's good enough for what we need in a RB we just need our oline to block better. 

[Bobby.Digital]

28 minutes ago, Drunken Minotaur Zebra said:

Free for his size is not IMO a ground and pound RB, but he can wear the **** out of defenses if the OL is doing its' job. 

Free makes his bread in the fact that he is arguably the 3rd best receiver on the field at any given time, and when he gets an opening he's gone. 

I prefer him over TeCo till he gets his game down a bit more. 

TeCo doesn't impress me at all in the running game. No vision and he goes down so easily. I just don't see him ever being a #1 back. 

[k-train]

15 minutes ago, Bobby.Digital said:

Guess Todd Gurley doesn't have what it takes to be great since he's only avg like 70 yards rushing in his last 9 games. 

Anyways alot of Freemans decline in production has to do with our run blocking. It's pretty been bad since about midway of last season.

With that being said Freeman was never a top 3 RB like his numbers indicated. I think he's defienlty a good RB if you employ a zone blocking scheme however I don't think Freeman would be as impactful in a power running scheme. He's good enough for what we need in a RB we just need our oline to block better. 

We'll see. Still way too early to be naming Gurley as the next Walter Payton, Barry Sanders, etc. He was good in college & has flashed some promise... Right now he's just another Darren McFadden, time will tell if he's more than that.

As for Freeman, you can blame the blocking, and there's likely some level of truth to that, but it's a 2-way street.

[k-train]

3 hours ago, Jpowers said:

I don't know of a single poster that has put him on that level. You're talking hall of fame level players with those comparisons.

 

Freeman is an above average RB in other schemes but I think he could border on being a top 5-10 RB in this particular scheme. Coleman's ceiling is a little higher in my opinion but Free isn't just some complimentary piece.

The question was whether Freeman was great or not... I showed what I consider to be great.

[Wjcorner]

A pretty good one in a scheme that fits his talents...