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Ward looked pretty good?
- Thread starter silvrhand
- Start date
When he scored that TD I was hoping that he wouldn't get caught from behind and stripped...
But he DID look good though.
Texecutioner
Hall of Fame
Yeah, I was pretty happy about that as well. Slaton even had a few nice runs finally. The entire running game looked great yesterday. We finally have a running game on the Texans.
drewmar74
disgruntled
He got caught up in a numbers game in TB. He had a starter before him and some young kid with fast wheels behind him.
They deemed him expendable and we got a backup tailback out of it.
Texan_Bill
Hall of Fame
Tampa was fairly disappointed in his production, so they released him. They thought they had signed the 1,000 rusher that he was in New York...
Hardcore Texan
Magnet Man
Yeah, I was pretty happy about that as well. Slaton even had a few nice runs finally. The entire running game looked great yesterday. We finally have a running game on the Texans.
I would bridle the optimism, or at least I am anyway, given how terrible Oakland's run D is.
The Pencil Neck
Hall of Fame
I want to see more work from him but the way it looks now, Foster is the main guy, Ward is the guy that spells him in a normal situation, and Slaton is a guy we bring in situationally to take advantage of specific match-ups and tendencies.
Texan_Bill
Hall of Fame
OTOH so was Tampa last year. I have a feeling the real Derrick Ward is somewhere in the middle.
Texecutioner
Hall of Fame
Yeah, but we're heading out of week 4 now with 2 great running performances already this season and a guy who is a stud #1 RB, and our back ups played very well yesterday. I couldn't be happier with the running game currently, and it's such a huge step from the direction that Kubiak's had the running game in for the majority of the time that he's been here. He finally has it going very nicely this season, and it's great to finally have confidence in that part of our offense.
HardKnockTexan
Rookie
I thought he showed excellent patience. That sweep to the right took a long time to develop and he just slowly slid along the back of the line and Vonta until the very last second; then he turned the corner and got a solid gain.
Maddict5
Hall of Fame
that would be tyvon branch who is pretty fast. he returns kicks and ran a 4.31 at the combine in 2008
TexansSeminole
Hall of Fame
He looks like exactly what I thought he would be. He was the #2 back on that 2007 Giants SB team, and he was their most effective RB the following year on a team that ran the ball very well. It was not a good situation for him in TB where they were trying to develop young talent and get Cadillac back acclimated to playing football again. I thought this was a great pickup when we made it and it looks like its starting to pay dividends.
I think the running game in the past was more a product of the lack of talent Kubiak was left with along the OL and at RB .... They have built that line and RB group on his watch.
Texecutioner
Hall of Fame
Kubes made some terrible decisions early on by thinking Lundi could handle the job along with Morency and then he had faith in Green of all people and then Brown. He's been pretty bad with RB's and that history doesn't just erase itself. He sort of got lucky with Slaton somehow having that huge season and then stinking it up. He also kept Foster out of the mix last year as and could have had him playing. I'm just glad that we've got a work horse now and that the running game is finally consistent and effective. This is the running game that people expected Kubes to bring in when he came here. It wasn't supposed to take him until his 5th season to make that happen though. I'm just glad that's it here now.
The Pencil Neck
Hall of Fame
The history's a little wrong there, I think. I'm not arguing that mistakes weren't made but...
Kubiak never had any faith in Morency and Morency never played a down for Kubiak. Kubiak traded Morency in the preseason for Samkon Gado, a guy who has ended up being in the league a lot longer than Morency. That first season, we ended up relying on Dayne.
And Kubiak never expected to have to rely on Brown as more than a backup for Slaton. But he ended up putting Brown in the line up a lot more than he wanted to because Brown was the one running back we had that we could trust to pick up the blitz.
This is pretty accurate. I don't know, but I wonder how many backs they went through in Denver while he was there. We all remember Gary, Davis, Portis and there was another guy there, I just can't recall his name... but I wonder how many castoffs they had to go through. It seems like they built up a stable and picked and choose from there. I don't really know but its something to look at. Here I think there was a lack of talent. You can't really be mad at him for last year and honestly he inherited a team on which the RB was the best player on the field (DD and we don't know what his injury status was at that time really). Look at the roster turnover. There is bound to be some position that we're looking at today and saying "can't believe he tried this guy and this guy and this guy".
Mike
barrett
All Pro
Specifically relating to Ward, he looked very good in my opinion. Specifically, his zone vision. For having as little time with the team it's clear that he already understands the concept better than Slaton ever will. Slaton is just too instinctive. Ward did a much better job of being patient and reading the line. He's going to be a very good option as a #2.
True to the Denver concept, it's not about guys being superstars. It's just about finding the guys who understand how to read it. Ward, after basically one game, seems to get it.
True to the Denver concept, it's not about guys being superstars. It's just about finding the guys who understand how to read it. Ward, after basically one game, seems to get it.
The Pencil Neck
Hall of Fame
We need to see him play against some other teams because the Raiders aren't exactly known for their run stopping. But I agree that he seems to have a much better grasp of the approach needed to run in a zone system. I hope that Slaton will learn something from watching Foster and Ward run because if he could develop that patience and vision, Slaton would scary again.
Don't forget Chris Taylor who looked like he could be the answer in 2007 with a good season-ending game in '06 and a great camp in '07. Then proceeded to get hurt for the whole 2007 season. He even held on with the Pats until the last cuts this season.
I've heard it from several people that running in a zone blocking system is a lot different from regular blocking schemes. Some runningbacks are good in both, but most are either good in one or the other. I think Ward has enough vision to know where to run.
I think a 3 headed beast is a great idea. Keeping Arian fresh can both extend his career and make him more effective. If Tate comes back and is able to perform, we are going to have a good and interesting problem next year.
I think a 3 headed beast is a great idea. Keeping Arian fresh can both extend his career and make him more effective. If Tate comes back and is able to perform, we are going to have a good and interesting problem next year.
rush2112mn
Rookie
You know he will be itching to get into the game against the Giants.....he wants to beat that team bad.......I say let him get some more carries....he looked good Sunday.
Anytime a player gets to go against his old team he has added inspiration.....Ward will be highly motivated Sunday.....
I am sure he is going to be looking forward to it....
Anytime a player gets to go against his old team he has added inspiration.....Ward will be highly motivated Sunday.....
I am sure he is going to be looking forward to it....
Texecutioner
Hall of Fame
That's right, he traded Morency for Gado, but he was high on Lundi and thought that he would be the guy for us. That was bad.
No, he brought Brown in to be the guy. Slaton was only supposed to be a 3rd down change of pace back and then started playing better than everyone while Chris Brown got hurt and he kept getting hurt over and over, which is exactly why bringing in Brown was a mistake, and Kubes kept playing Brown last season which cost us 3 games actually. He's made some awful mistakes in the running department and there's just no way around that being a fact.
Again though, he seems to have it fixed now, so my original point was that I'm stoked about that finally happening.
drewmar74
disgruntled
If by "pick up the blitz" you mean "curl up in a ball".... then yeah. He was pretty awesome at it.
The thing I think that makes Ward a better fit, is his ability to break a tackle. That's always been a big thing with the Denver running backs, not just pushing the pile, but breaking tackles.
That 33 yarder that Ward ran in, it's not like he was completely untouched, he shed a couple of blockers off of him.
That 74 yarder Foster ran in, he shed Michael Huff as he was sprinting down the sideline.
Slaton was supposed to bring an elusiveness with him as he gets into the open field, but more times than not, if he can't make that first guy miss, or shed that first tackle, he won't be as successful as guys like Foster, Ward, Portis, Anderson, Gary, etc...
GuerillaBlack
Hall of Fame
Which is why we need to run more sweeps and screens for Slaton, instead of trying to pound him right up the middle. I don't understand why they keep doing that.
The Pencil Neck
Hall of Fame
This is not right from a historical perspective. And, again, I'm not arguing that mistakes weren't made... I'm just saying that you're pointing out a mistake that didn't happen.
Green was the Guy. Brown was brought in to challenge Green and to be the backup but he wasn't ever intended to be the Guy. If Brown was able to get healthy and return to form, great -- but he wasn't expected to carry the load. He was, at most, expected to share it. Slaton was drafted to be the third down COP guy and after Brown and Green went down, Slaton took over the job and had a great season.
Kubes kept playing Brown last year because:
1) He was the only one of our backs who could consistently pick up a blitz.
2) He had the fewest fumbles per attempt of any of our running backs. I know he had fumbles in some really terrible points but overall he had fewer fumbles per attempt than Slaton, Moats, or Foster.
The RB mistakes that Kubes has made were:
1) Expecting DD to return from injury. This left us to scrabble for someone to carry the load.
2) Expecting Lundy to be able to be a good back. And Lundy started off looking good. He just had some discipline issues. He had the talent to be a good back.
3) Thinking that Green could come in and be the guy. Personally, it's hard for me to hold this against Kubiak because Green was the highest rated FA running back on the market and Sherman vouched for him.
4) Thinking that Moats/Brown were a good combo to back Slaton up. I don't think there's any way to predict that a guy like Slaton is going to have a sophmore slump.
But the mistake with Brown wasn't in expecting him to be The Guy but in expecting him to be a quality backup. Unfortunately, in a lot of situations, he was just the best we had.
The Pencil Neck
Hall of Fame
Slaton's problem for me is that he makes bad reads on the outside zones and doesn't see the cutbacks or the holes to run through. He makes bad decisions and doesn't follow his blockers. He goes full blast right into the pile. Even on screens sometimes, he's not patient enough to let his blockers do their jobs.
Curiousity Question:
Looking forward to next season, which RB drops off the map when Tate comes back (assuming he shows that he's 100% back in T/C and P/S).
Now think on it for a minute before you guys kneejerk the name "Slaton" out there. Even with limited carries, Slaton is averaging 5.5 ypc
Oh and did I mention that Ward turned 30 this past August.
Looking forward to next season, which RB drops off the map when Tate comes back (assuming he shows that he's 100% back in T/C and P/S).
Now think on it for a minute before you guys kneejerk the name "Slaton" out there. Even with limited carries, Slaton is averaging 5.5 ypc
Oh and did I mention that Ward turned 30 this past August.
I thought we only signed Ward to one year.
dc_txtech
All Pro
Ward critical of former team
Houston Texans RB Derrick Ward blames the Tampa Bay Buccaneers for spreading the word that he was overweight and unfocused, according to Mike Garafolo, of The Star-Ledger. Alhough head coach Gary Kubiak concurred Ward was out of shape and challenged him to "get down," Ward claims he was only 2 pounds over the 233-pound goal Houston set for him. He said he weighed 232 with the New York Giants. Ward's bitterness toward his former team revealed itself when he said the Texans are "a team that actually wants to block for their running backs, actually wants to win and doesn't set their goals to a (lower) standard." Ward added he even said he's blocked out his time in Tampa. "I feel like I went straight from New York to Houston," Ward said.
Read more: http://www.kffl.com/gnews.php?id=67...ck-ward-critical-of-former-team#ixzz11h8kJcfS
Houston Texans RB Derrick Ward blames the Tampa Bay Buccaneers for spreading the word that he was overweight and unfocused, according to Mike Garafolo, of The Star-Ledger. Alhough head coach Gary Kubiak concurred Ward was out of shape and challenged him to "get down," Ward claims he was only 2 pounds over the 233-pound goal Houston set for him. He said he weighed 232 with the New York Giants. Ward's bitterness toward his former team revealed itself when he said the Texans are "a team that actually wants to block for their running backs, actually wants to win and doesn't set their goals to a (lower) standard." Ward added he even said he's blocked out his time in Tampa. "I feel like I went straight from New York to Houston," Ward said.
Read more: http://www.kffl.com/gnews.php?id=67...ck-ward-critical-of-former-team#ixzz11h8kJcfS
Lundi honestly didn't look too bad, he just turned into a turd. He had a few decent games and looked promising, but he was a loser off the field.
The Cowboys and Redskins both have at least decent D's, and Foster looked good in those games. Vs the Colts, Foster had 100 yards on MJD vs their defense. He is more than just a one hit wonder.
El Tejano
Hall of Fame
Glad to see he likes it here.
The Pencil Neck
Hall of Fame
I totally agree with you about Foster.
It's just that we were talking about Ward. So far, we've only really seen him play against the Raiders and he looked good against them. We need to see him against some defenses that are more stout.
OTOH, he's playing against his old team this week. We should give him a good number of touches to get some revenge.
My bad. I should read everything next time. I agree on hesitant optimism. If he can run like he did Sunday, we're in good shape.
Texas T
Veteran
Actually I like how he feels the Texans want to win!
Nice change of pace to years past.
El Tejano
Hall of Fame
Yeah, it's nice to hear someone come in here and say that our attitude is clearly about winning. I think all those years of mediocrity are going to pay off.
HJam72
Hall of Fame
If by "pick up the blitz" you mean "curl up in a ball".... then yeah. He was pretty awesome at it.
Yeah, that's pretty much what I meant.