I'm really starting to warm up to the idea of drafting McFadden

Earl Campbell never won a Super Bowl

We don't need to use the #1 overall pick, and spend over $50 mil. on running back depth, or a game breaker. You can grab quality depth at that position in almost any round of the draft, or via free agency. This team needs quality lineman on both sides of the ball. Great teams are anchored at the point of attack. Worry about quality depth after you've got quality starters!

We never seem to tire of the hyperbole surrounding the running back position. McFadden is just the latest example. Just two years ago Reggie Bush was going to revolutionize the position, he was destined for the Hall of Fame, he was Gale Sayers reincarnated. The Saints would be grateful if Bush became Joe Washington at this point. Did Earl Campbell win a Super Bowl with the Oilers? Did George Rogers get the Saints above .500? Did O.J. Simpson make the Bills a contender? Bo Jackson and Billy Sims were running backs selected with the first overall pick, Sims played brilliantly, for a couple of seasons, but never made the Lions respectable. And had Bo Jackson gone to the Bucs he would have never seen the light of victory, and he knew it, which is why he refused to play their.

Some of what you are saying is, with all due respect, crazy. This offense is no where near a top 10 unit. This offense cannot score at all. Beck's future is uncertain. Ginn is at best mostly potential. We have no young, good prospects at the #2 receiver, or at tight end. At least three of the offensive linemen are dubious, and probably not long-term fixes. Where is even the potential of a top ten offense in that mess? And it's ironic that you would single out Albert Haynesworth since the Titans are a completely different team without him. They've interchanged running backs at will--LenDale White, Chris Brown, Chris Henry, Travis Henry last year, and they don't miss a beat. Haynesworth gets suspended, or injured, and the team falls apart. Top flight linemen are a hell of a lot more important then running backs. Mediocre running backs look like world beaters behind great lines, see Dominic Rhodes as an example, or any number of Steeler backs the last 15-years. Ask any linebacking corps, or secondary in the NFL how important the DL is to their success.

 

Why take the chance that we "can grab quality depth at that position"? McFadden could be a player in this league for the next decade.

now this is rich, the Saints made the playoffs Reggie Bush's first year, they started slow this season but have improved greatly as the season has progressed and that is even with McAlister being out with injuries, Bush gives the Saints a chance to score any time he handles the ball.

Did the Oilers make the Super Bowl with Campbell?

The Oilers were stuck behind the Hall of Fame laden Steeler's of the 1970's they would have a 10-4 record and not make the playoffs as there were not the wildcard slots available then as now.

George Rogers did improve the Saints, he also had a drug problem, he did help the Redskins make the 86 super bowl the year Tim Smith rushed for 199 yds.


OJ Simpson led the Bills to their only playoff appearance of the 70's, of course they played the Steelers in round 1...

And Sims led the Lions to the playoffs one season, then he shredded his knee, he also was 25 when he entered the NFL.

Bo did lead the Raiders to the playoffs, and BTW, the defacto #1 pick that year was DT Tony Casilas, he was cut by the Falcons in 4 yrs or so...

The offense is closer to being "fixed" then the Defense is by a long way, all of our eratsz talent that we have drafted is on the offensive side of the ball, McFadden could be the piece that takes the unit past dealing with "Ronnie is injured again" status, and help Beck develop.

And keep in mind that the Titans were bad for about 3 seasons, they were in salary cap limbo, and lost all of their best players to free agency, and then they also smartly drafted Vince Young even though they didn't "need" him...

And we need a run stopping DT, not a #1 pick run stopping DT, if Dorsey could play end his pick would make much more sense for us.

 

Re:Earl Campbell never won a Super Bowl

Why take the chance that we "can grab quality depth at that position"? McFadden could be a player in this league for the next decade.

Because 1) running back is a freaking luxury at this point, you have a franchise player and his bloated contract already on the roster. 2) the chances of our grabbing quality depth at running back is historically very good, dominant lineman are a hell of lot tougher to come by however.


now this is rich, the Saints made the playoffs Reggie Bush's first year, they started slow this season but have improved greatly as the season has progressed and that is even with McAlister being out with injuries, Bush gives the Saints a chance to score any time he handles the ball.

Talk about rich. You're crediting Reggie Bush with the Saints making the playoffs? Personally I'd credit Drew Brees. After all, he had an All-World season in 2006. Reggie Bush on the other hand had a 3.6 ypc average rushing the football, which is pitiful, a number he's improved to a whopping 3.7 ypc this year. He has 10 career rushing touchdowns, 6 of them scored in 2 games!

Much praised for his receiving ability out of the backfield, his yards-per-reception is actually 2.7 yards worse this season, then last. So for a guy that is a threat to score every time he handles the ball, as you say, he doesn't score much-14 touchdowns total in his career on 473 touches! Maurice Jones-Drew, selected in the second-round last year, at about 1/10th the cost of Bush has 23 career touchdowns on 373 touches! Jones-Drew has a career ypc average 1.5 yards better than Bush's, and averages 2.3 yards more on receptions than Bush. And contrary to your impressions, the Saints have not progressed much, they were terrible, had a few wins, then were terrible again.


George Rogers did improve the Saints, he also had a drug problem, he did help the Redskins make the 86 super bowl the year Tim Smith rushed for 199 yds.

Correction, the Saints actually got worse. They were 8-8 the year before they drafted Rogers, the Rogers-led Saints had 9 total wins his first three years! And doesn't Timmy Smith's success in the Super Bowl really undermine your whole point, while buttressing mine? Smith was a nobody who broke a rushing record in the Super Bowl, George Rogers was the first overall pick. No team in recent memory signifies the unimportance, and interchangeability of the running back position, and the supremacy of linemen more than the Redskins during Gibbs' Super Bowl run--Joe Washington, John Riggins, George Rogers, Gerald Riggs, Kelvin Bryant, Ernest Byner, etc, etc. Bobby Beathard didn't spend the first overall pick on any of them.


OJ Simpson led the Bills to their only playoff appearance of the 70's, of course they played the Steelers in round 1...

You forget to add that in six-years the Bills with Simpson rushing the ball managed 17 wins--total. In 9 years with the team, the Bills had a winning record, just barely, twice. Compare that to the success the Bills had with second-rounder Thurman Thomas. This is not to say that the Bills were great solely because of Thomas, or bad in the seventies because of Simpson, it only demonstrates that a Hall of Fame back is available almost anywhere in the draft, and that a running back taken at the top of the draft never translates into the ultimate success. It's not good value.

And Sims led the Lions to the playoffs one season, then he shredded his knee, he also was 25 when he entered the NFL.

Not sure what Sims age has to do with it, but the fact that he shredded his knee is again, an exhibit on how fragile the running back position is, but you wish to invest the most valuable pick in the draft, and untold millions on a position that is neither a priority, or difficult to find.

Bo did lead the Raiders to the playoffs, and BTW, the defacto #1 pick that year was DT Tony Casilas, he was cut by the Falcons in 4 yrs or so...

The Raiders didn't spend the #1 overall pick on Bo Jackson either, they drafted him in the seventh-round for crying out loud! He only played four seasons because of again, a catastrophic injury, and he barely had more yards than Marcus Allen the year they went to the playoffs, and he scored seven fewer touchdowns. So again, this strengthens your take a running back with the top pick theory how? Suppose Jackson had played for the Bucs, compare his production, longevity and value to say, Terrell Davis, selected in the fifth-round? After all, Jackson was one of those "once in a generation" types, there is no such thing at the position. See Ricky Williams, a guy supposedly so valuable a team was willing to trade its whole draft for him. He wasn't even the next Earl Campbell, George Rogers maybe.

The offense is closer to being "fixed" then the Defense is by a long way, all of our eratsz talent that we have drafted is on the offensive side of the ball, McFadden could be the piece that takes the unit past dealing with "Ronnie is injured again" status, and help Beck develop.{/I]

Assuming of course McFadden is as good as advertised, and he too can stay healthy!

And keep in mind that the Titans were bad for about 3 seasons, they were in salary cap limbo, and lost all of their best players to free agency, and then they also smartly drafted Vince Young even though they didn't need him

Two points here. The Titans were in desperate need of a quarterback when they selected Vince Young. McNair was finished. Secondly, Vince Young ain't the reason the Titans are contenders. He's flat-out pitiful. Twice as many interceptions as touchdowns. Even his rushing numbers are way down this year. The Titans are playoff contenders because of their defense which is 5th overall in the league, and that defense plays lights-out only when Haynesworth is in the middle. Demonstrating his value. Vince Young has hurt the Titans more than he has helped them. Aside from a couple highlight reel scrambles his rookie year, especially against the Giants, the guy has put his team in a position to lose more often than not with his turnovers, and the defense has bailed his butt out.

 

For one Beck actually has velocity on his ball.

 

McFadden is all the buzz on the Jets boards too. I'm not sure drafting the guy makes sense if you don't have an O-line that can maximize his value though. There are sure to be more then a few teams that would love to jump up and pull him off the board if he lasts to the 3-5 spots, which is what I as a Jets fan am hoping for.

You guys are in bigger need of a WR, DB's, and lineman. Kinda the same boat as the Jets less the DB part.

Then theres the prospect of the Pats drafting him. Wouldn't that just be great...

 

But you don't draft a player just to keep him away from that team. That's exactly what the Patriots will want you to do as a division rival; they know that we are settled at running back with a complete package in Ronnie Brown, and I bet they will go as far as saying they are highly interested in the player to force the rival team picking ahead of them to draft the player in a position they aren't in need.

I get the feeling the Patriots are looking at Chris Long at the moment. Richard Seymour has not been as dominant as before since his injuries.

 

I don't want the Jets to draft McFadden unless they bring in a few monsters on the O-line. Then and only then would I be ok with the pick. I don' think the Pats will be in a position to force the Jets to do anything in this draft. I suspect they'll be picking before us.

Mangini did draft last year according to what the Pats did in the offseason though. Can't complain that much though because we ended up with a good DB and a potential all pro LB. As good as the Pats are though, it seems to make little sense to try to counter them at this point as opposed to just drafting for need. I'd be surprised to see the Jets take him, and even more so if the Phins did. A combo of Brown and Booker would seem pretty potent to me, although it seems Brown is proving not to be very durable.

It just seems to me that taking a RB when there are so many other pieces of the puzzle missing doesn't make a whole lot of sense. I think both the Jets and the Phins have bigger questions at QB then at RB. I'd say both are 'solid' at that position. McFaddens real value is the potential of gaining an extra pick as things stand right now.

 

McFadden would be great if we didn't already have Ronnie. Having both of them would be great as well but it won't happen. Ronnie already has a big contract and whoever we draft will probably get around $40mil guaranteed. We can't afford to invest that money at running back when there are so many bigger needs. Dorsey looks like a match made in heaven and would fill a position that we absolutely must upgrade.

 

Here here Mr.Majestik.

Defense wins championships.