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Derrick Ward Released

michaelm

michaelm

vox nihili
I don't have a link I can share, it was sent via email alert from one of the fantasy football web sites, but it looks like Tampa Bay released Derrick Ward.
I think he still might have some value to a team like the Texans.
 
michaelm said:
Thanks for picking up my slack.
Click to expand...

Man, the reports have been awful on the guy though. I'll admit that I haven't watched him myself, but I'm not sure he's worth even a sniff after some of the stuff I've read and he just got thrown off the Bucs who don't have anything at RB really.

Here's the latest on him.



Ward
Bucs released RB Derrick Ward.
It may seem hard to believe that the Bucs would cut ties with Ward one year after signing him to a four-year, $17 million contract, but anybody watching him run in preseason action could see the writing on the wall. Ward has lost more than few steps, and the difference in burst between him and Kareem Huggins was stark. Huggins will move into the change-of-pace role while Cadillac Williams solidifies his standing as the lead back. GM Mark Dominik's seat continues

http://www.rotoworld.com/Content/headlines.aspx?sport=NFL


Sounds like another older broken down back to me, but I guess you wouldn't have to pay him anything really.
 
I knew he would bust out in Tampa as a featured back. He was a product of the Giants system. Brandon Jacobs would beat up the defenses and then they would put in Ward to change up the pace. Ward had some speed and performed well after Jacobs had already worn down a defense. He should have never left NY but he did get over paid in Tampa so I am sure he has no regrets.
 
HoustonSportsFan09 said:
Other names that you may or may not be interested in.:kitten:

Big name, once-productive vets might be on the NFL chopping block

-Colt McCoy
-Laurence Maroney
-Pat White
-Willie Parker
-Sam Hurd
-Kris Brown
-Sinorice Moss
-Deion Branch
-Chris Simms
-Rhett Bomar

More names that could be cut or traded :

Matt Leinart
Willie Parker
Michael Clayton
Dennis Northcutt
Brandon Stokley
Clint Ingram
Darren Sharper
Sage Rosenfels
Gosder Cherilus
Jake Grove
Jason Spitz
Alphonso Smith
Click to expand...

Smith and Mccoy are the shocking players on the list. Smith was a 2nd round pick last year & the Broncos also traded their first this year to draft him. Cutting him after just one year would be terrible for Mcdaniels. As for Mccoy: I don't understand why the Browns wouldn't just place him on their roster & try to develop him. Even if he has struggled so far in training camp & preseason there really is no downside to keep him on the roster to try to develop him. Cutting him right now would just be wasting a third round pick.
 
HoustonSportsFan09 said:
Other names that you may or may not be interested in.:kitten:

Big name, once-productive vets might be on the NFL chopping block

-Colt McCoy
-Laurence Maroney
-Pat White
-Willie Parker
-Sam Hurd
-Kris Brown
-Sinorice Moss
-Deion Branch
-Chris Simms
-Rhett Bomar

More names that could be cut or traded :

Matt Leinart
Willie Parker
Michael Clayton
Dennis Northcutt
Brandon Stokley
Clint Ingram
Darren Sharper
Sage Rosenfels
Gosder Cherilus
Jake Grove
Jason Spitz
Alphonso Smith
Click to expand...

I would love Maroney in a Texans uniform
 
JB said:
Why? He has never played a full season, nor has he broken the 1000 yd mark.

Might be a decent backup, but probably way too costly.
Click to expand...

Good in the return game and special teams if nothing else.

I think he could be a good 3rd back with Slaton and Foster as well.
 
HoustonSportsFan09 said:
Other names that you may or may not be interested in.:kitten:

Big name, once-productive vets might be on the NFL chopping block

-Colt McCoy
-Laurence Maroney
-Pat White
-Willie Parker
-Sam Hurd
-Kris Brown
-Sinorice Moss
-Deion Branch
-Chris Simms
-Rhett Bomar

More names that could be cut or traded :

Matt Leinart
Willie Parker
Michael Clayton
Dennis Northcutt
Brandon Stokley
Clint Ingram
Darren Sharper
Sage Rosenfels
Gosder Cherilus
Jake Grove
Jason Spitz
Alphonso Smith
Click to expand...

Sign me up for

Grove-Upgrade or good backup to Myers.

Northcutt-Punt returner,Gunner on ST's, allows JJ to concentrate on WR full time.
 
HoustonSportsFan09 said:
Other names that you may or may not be interested in.:kitten:

Big name, once-productive vets might be on the NFL chopping block

-Colt McCoy
-Laurence Maroney
-Pat White
-Willie Parker
-Sam Hurd
-Kris Brown
-Sinorice Moss
-Deion Branch
-Chris Simms
-Rhett Bomar

More names that could be cut or traded :

Matt Leinart
Willie Parker
Michael Clayton
Dennis Northcutt
Brandon Stokley
Clint Ingram
Darren Sharper
Sage Rosenfels
Gosder Cherilus
Jake Grove
Jason Spitz
Alphonso Smith
Click to expand...

Rosencopter! :jk:
 
HoustonSportsFan09 said:
Other names that you may or may not be interested in.:kitten:

Big name, once-productive vets might be on the NFL chopping block

-Colt McCoy
-Laurence Maroney
-Pat White
-Willie Parker
-Sam Hurd
-Kris Brown
-Sinorice Moss
-Deion Branch
-Chris Simms
-Rhett Bomar

More names that could be cut or traded :

Matt Leinart
Willie Parker
Michael Clayton
Dennis Northcutt
Brandon Stokley
Clint Ingram
Darren Sharper
Sage Rosenfels
Gosder Cherilus
Jake Grove
Jason Spitz
Alphonso Smith
Click to expand...

I would take any of the highlighted guys if the price is right. Mostly as backups, but A.Smith could be a very good corner if he got halfway decent coaching. The Denver staff has screwed with his head and jacked up his technique.
 
I thought I'd dig up this thread because I don't have very many correct predictions about our players.
I always thought Ward would be a good fit for us, dating back to before he became a FA from the Giants.
I was also pimping Arian from his first action in camp last year. Yaaay me!

I hate patting myself on the back, but the whole Kubiak situation has me desperately in need of ANYTHING positive to talk about.
Please forgive my self-indulgence.
 
michaelm said:
I thought I'd dig up this thread because I don't have very many correct predictions about our players.
I always thought Ward would be a good fit for us, dating back to before he became a FA from the Giants.
I was also pimping Arian from his first action in camp last year. Yaaay me!

I hate patting myself on the back, but the whole Kubiak situation has me desperately in need of ANYTHING positive to talk about.
Please forgive my self-indulgence.
Click to expand...

Oh, shut up and take your rep. :goodpost:
 
I liked the pick-up too. He looked more like the DW of the Giants fortunately for the Texans. If the Texans release him I would like to see him go back to the Giants especially since who knows what is going to happen with Jacobs.
 
Ward is a free agent now, right? I would imagine he'll have some good offers after his limited performance with us. I would like to see him back with us, but I wish him luck where ever he goes.
 
4Texans said:
Ward is a free agent now, right? I would imagine he'll have some good offers after his limited performance with us. I would like to see him back with us, but I wish him luck where ever he goes.
Click to expand...

I hope the team learned about going young this time around and realize that Ward was a good veteran back that could not only get us some good carries and score from outside the 20 but was a very durable blocker.
 
Mr teX said:
What about Tate? & don't forget about slaton. I just don't see a spot for him once tate comes back healthy.
Click to expand...

Ward beat Slaton out as the #2 RB this year. Slaton didn't have a carry after the Giants game in week 5 where he had two carries for -1 yards, which should tell you his status with this team. I expect to see a Foster-Ward-Tate backfield should Ward decide to come back. If he doesn't Houston will likely get another RB either in free agency or the draft. Slaton will probably compete in preseason as depth, but I don't expect him to make the roster next year.
 
The thread title made me saw WTF? :thud:

I hope we keep the guy around. He seemed to fit in very well with this team. I think it would just be good insurance, with the uncertainty of Tate coming off injury.
 
JCTexan said:
Ward beat Slaton out as the #2 RB this year. Slaton didn't have a carry after the Giants game in week 5 where he had two carries for -1 yards, which should tell you his status with this team. I expect to see a Foster-Ward-Tate backfield should Ward decide to come back. If he doesn't Houston will likely get another RB either in free agency or the draft. Slaton will probably compete in preseason as depth, but I don't expect him to make the roster next year.
Click to expand...

Slaton should up stayed on IR this year, or at worst, started the season on PUP. He was clearly not right and still dealing with effects from the neck injury. If you noticed, in the Jacksonville game on Sunday, he ran harder/better on those kickoff returns than he has ran in a year in a half. I'm hopeful that he's finally feeling better and that is the reason for the sudden explosiveness on the field.
 
dalemurphy said:
If you noticed, in the Jacksonville game on Sunday, he ran harder/better on those kickoff returns than he has ran in a year in a half.
Click to expand...
Thanks I'm glad you mentioned that, because I also thought I saw a different player out there Sunday but then wondered, "did I just imagine a difference" ?
I sure hope Kubiak dosen't release Slaton if he does in fact have as much "left in the tank" as others we've sent packing like Babin & Gaffney.
 
The story of Steve Slaton should be regarded by Texans fans as a cautionary tale about the lifespan of running backs in the NFL. It was just two years ago that Steve Slaton was widely hailed by many (if not most) Texans fans as the long term answer at RB after rushing for 1282 yards. In 2009 he rushed for 437 yards and this year he ran for 93 yards. Steve Slaton has not suffered any serious injuries, such as an ACL tear or microfractures in the knee. He had one really good year, and now he is being eased out of the lineup.

I hope Arian Foster continues to perform at the level we saw this year for the next 10 years or more. Unfortunately, statistically speaking, this is not likely to happen. The Texans need to keep the queue of capable running backs filled if they hope to be able to effectively run the ball, which they have not done a very good job of really until just this year. In addition to trying to keep Foster, Ward, Tate and Slaton, the Texans also need to try to add another back late in the draft and also pick up one or two potential keepers in free agency. The Texans staff has to know that there can be no resting on their laurels here.
 
infantrycak said:
Not so much since Ward was signed 5 months after Tate was drafted.
Click to expand...
Ward is strictly incidental, as Foster is the guy that Kubiak obviously failed to correctly evaluate and therefor expended a vary valuable 2nd round pick for a rookie who clearly was targeted not as a reserve or Fosters backup but as the Texans marquee back in their offense. This then was wasted 2nd round pick.
 
The ascent of Arian Foster just goes to show that you do not need a high draft pick at running back to succeed in this league. Some other spots are much more dependent on high draft picks for success, including QB, CB and DE. But running back, not so much.
 
MojoMan said:
It was just two years ago that Steve Slaton was widely hailed by many (if not most) Texans fans as the long term answer at RB after rushing for 1282 yards. In 2009 he rushed for 437 yards and this year he ran for 93 yards. Steve Slaton has not suffered any serious injuries, such as an ACL tear or microfractures in the knee. He had one really good year, and now he is being eased out of the lineup.
Click to expand...

Somebody inform Mojo that Slaton had fusion surgery in his neck after playing his sophomore season with numbness in one arm.

IDEXAN said:
Ward is strictly incidental, as Foster is the guy that Kubiak obviously failed to correctly evaluate and therefor expended a vary valuable 2nd round pick for a rookie who clearly was targeted not as a reserve or Fosters backup but as the Texans marquee back in their offense. This then was wasted 2nd round pick.
Click to expand...

Totally ridiculous. Slaton had a great rookie season and people wisely wanted backup for him. Foster had two good games last year and the wise course was to enhance the backfield. Look around the league and you'll find teams with multiple 1st and 2nd round picks in their backfields. Getting Tate was not wasting a pick. Nobody had any clue Foster would do this well. Not surprising since no undrafted free agent RB has ever done so well before. There isn't a responsible GM or coach in the league that would have just sat tight on Foster and Slaton after last season. Quite the contrary the great majority of the discussion here and predictions around the draft had the Texans possibly taking a RB even earlier as in the 1st round.

MojoMan said:
The ascent of Arian Foster just goes to show that you do not need a high draft pick at running back to succeed in this league. Some other spots are much more dependent on high draft picks for success, including QB, CB and DE. But running back, not so much.
Click to expand...

Top 10 RB's
UDFA - 1
1st - 4
2nd - 2
3rd - 1
5th - 1
7th - 1

7 1st day picks with 6 of those in the top 2 rounds v. 3 2nd day picks (none of whom were drafted to be starters).
 
infantrycak said:
Totally ridiculous. Slaton had a great rookie season and people wisely wanted backup for him. Foster had two good games last year and the wise course was to enhance the backfield. Look around the league and you'll find teams with multiple 1st and 2nd round picks in their backfields. Getting Tate was not wasting a pick. Nobody had any clue Foster would do this well. Not surprising since no undrafted free agent RB has ever done so well before. There isn't a responsible GM or coach in the league that would have just sat tight on Foster and Slaton after last season. Quite the contrary the great majority of the discussion here and predictions around the draft had the Texans possibly taking a RB even earlier as in the 1st round.
Click to expand...
Not only that, but imagine had Tate remained healthy through the pre-season....how many times did the Offense have to settle for FGs when they couldn't punch one in? Tate COULD have changed that. We might not be in the playoffs, but we might have an additional win or two.
 
I-cak, I agree with you Tate wasn't a wasted pick.

But instead of spending a 2nd rd pick on Tate. I wanted a 4th rd pick to be spent on Blount.

I wanted a FS in the 2nd Morgan Burnett. That wouldn't have worked out either. Burnett played well for the Packers before tearing up his knee.
 
I want to thank Infantrycake for making my own point for me better than I did when he said "nobody had any clue Foster would do this well". Afterall "having clues" is what McNair to a large extent pays both Kubiak and Smith the big-bucks for when it comes to evaluating talent. And together both of them for years and years watched backs out of nowhere just like Foster having 1000 + seasons in Denver. Ward (or another vet back like him), was always the kind of guy they should have got as the co-runner for a promising young back like Foster, not a huge reach with the overkill of a 2nd round pick. And then there was also Slaton, though to be sure with concerns about his health ?
2nd round picks are, well, 2nd round picks - exceeded in value only by first round picks. If they had "just a clue" about Foster and if they had "just a clue" about how much help they needed on their defense, they could have made a far wiser application of thier 2nd round pick.
 
IDEXAN said:
I want to thank Infantrycake for making my own point for me better than I did when he said "nobody had any clue Foster would do this well". Afterall "having clues" is what McNair to a large extent pays both Kubiak and Smith the big-bucks for when it comes to evaluating talent. And together both of them for years and years watched backs out of nowhere just like Foster having 1000 + seasons in Denver. Ward (or another vet back like him), was always the kind of guy they should have got as the co-runner for a promising young back like Foster, not a huge reach with the overkill of a 2nd round pick. And then there was also Slaton, though to be sure with concerns about his health ?
2nd round picks are, well, 2nd round picks - exceeded in value only by first round picks. If they had "just a clue" about Foster and if they had "just a clue" about how much help they needed on their defense, they could have made a far wiser application of thier 2nd round pick.
Click to expand...

And if Foster turned out to be the second coming of Chris Brown, you would be crucifying Smithiak. There's no question the Tate pick was playing it safe, because they just didn't trust Foster/Slaton/??? to carry the load. We all saw how bad the run game was before when they had Slaton/Brown/Moats, and it was a position of need, especially with Slaton coming off neck surgery. With the uncertainty of Slaton's return and the inexperience of Foster, there is no way you go into that draft thinking you are set at RB. They had to pick one and they chose Tate after a trade back and a trade up. Nothing wrong with that, they couldn't possibly predict the injury to Tate. In 2011 we'll get to see Tate and finally evaluate how good he is.
 
IDEXAN said:
Ward is strictly incidental, as Foster is the guy that Kubiak obviously failed to correctly evaluate and therefor expended a vary valuable 2nd round pick for a rookie who clearly was targeted not as a reserve or Fosters backup but as the Texans marquee back in their offense. This then was wasted 2nd round pick.
Click to expand...
I don't get all the blame on Kubiak regarding Foster. I think part of what has made Foster into such a great RB is Kubiak being on him and pushing him. Foster has even said so much. This isn't Madden '11, players develop for all different reasons. Foster didn't just come into this league the RB he is now. He worked his ass off to get here. It would be extremely shortsided to think the Foster we saw this year would have been able to do the same Game 1 of the 2009 season and the remaining 15 games after that.
 
steelbtexan said:
But instead of spending a 2nd rd pick on Tate. I wanted a 4th rd pick to be spent on Blount.
Click to expand...

Spinning off this rather than being critical, this illustrates how inexact an art player evaluation is. You would have given up a 4th. No GM in the league chose to draft the guy at all. Tennessee got him UDFA like we got Foster. Then they kept Jevon Ringer and Herb Donaldson over Blount who has gone off to have a 1000+ yd rookie season.
 
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