Beerball Posted March 30, 2011 Share Posted March 30, 2011 Unknown.....but if Cam ends up being the pick sooner rather then later I would think So you're counting on an uninstalled offense being run by a QB they will likely (IMO) not pick to help Spiller have a breakout season? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tennesseeboy Posted March 30, 2011 Share Posted March 30, 2011 Spiller needs a quality run blocking offensive line.He will certainly live up to his potential. My suspicion is that while he might live up to whatever potential he has, if he indeed is not a good runner between the tackles, he doesn't have all that much potential to live up to. If that is the case, and I hope it isn't, he will definitely be a major bust. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
roccitybillsfan Posted March 30, 2011 Share Posted March 30, 2011 Agreed. Let him get a line that can open a whole and he's gone, between the tackles or not. Just don't count on him to create his own holes on a regular basis. I also agree that a QB like Newton will only help to open things up for him. POW!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John from Riverside Posted March 30, 2011 Share Posted March 30, 2011 So you're counting on an uninstalled offense being run by a QB they will likely (IMO) not pick to help Spiller have a breakout season? Actually...not counting on it but I think Fitz can run it also. And i dont think it has to be Newton in order for Chan to tweak his offense. What is going to cause CJ to be much better this year is the fact that he is way to talented not to be. He was progressing as the season went on and i thought his in between the tackles running was getting better..... BUT in order to run between the tackles we got to get a PUSH between the tackles......I think that Eric Wood will be back to 100 percent as we all know he couldn't even practice during the week last year and solidifying the RG and RT positions..... I believe in CJ....I think he is a player Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dave mcbride Posted March 31, 2011 Share Posted March 31, 2011 I was a defender of the Spiller pick last year (stupidly), but let's call a spade a spade: he wasn't any good last season. RB is a position where guys excel early on, and he showed no signs of that. I hope he gets better, but he was a far worse player in his first season than Antowain Smith (1997), McGahee (2004), Lynch (2007), and even Travis Henry. And let's not forget Terry Miller and Joe Cribbs. At any rate, judging from Gailey's commeents, I think he's seriously questioning his earlier advocacy of Spiller. I hope I'm proven wrong. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NoSaint Posted March 31, 2011 Share Posted March 31, 2011 should have never drafted him, however hope he turns out great but just don't see it. He doesn't have the size for an every down back and will basically will be another Reggie Bush. If you scrap last season with the broken leg, bush has 30+ touchdowns in 4 seasons with those limited touches. Without pulling the stats (again, before playing on a broken leg this year) he averaged a TD every ten-ish touches. If you watch any significant amount of saints football, you would see what a huge cog he is. Draws two defenders every time he's on the field, and that's regardless of the weapons they have out there with him. He is key to making that team run right. Oh yea, he's their best pass blocker too. I won't cry if we have Reggie. Even when he has 4 carries for 3 yards, and 1 catch for 5, he adds a ton of production. Those games he tends to have 2-3 guys shadow his every move and while he runs little bubble routes, he's pulling a LB and a safety - because when he's not doubled, he houses damn near everything he touches (see Arizona playoff game- zona was one of very few teams that year to put the game in his hands, and you saw why that's a bad choice). Won't see the HoF, or have the prettiest career but I'd take him on my team 8 days a week. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alphadawg7 Posted March 31, 2011 Share Posted March 31, 2011 (edited) I'm not at all suggesting he is in or near "bust" territory but he certainly has played nowhere near his potential. I think more than any other player he may benefit from reps in the offseason. The guy has all of the physical tools but seemed to strugle with how to use his speed and the mental aspects of the game. Gailey will get more creative in finding ways to use him. However, Spiller may not have enough time and repetions given the likely loss of OTA's and even camp. I hope to see him turn into the exciting player that his upside shows. I think 70% of the problem with Spiller last season was his inability to pass block. This had a two fold effect on him. 1) It prevented him from being on the field more as he became a liability in pass protection, which was made even worse with all the injuries to the OL and TE's. So his touches were limited, also preventing him from finding any kind of rhythm, especially with a capable back ahead like FJ. 2) With him being a liability in the passing game and limited in his plays and touches, it became very easy to scheme against him when he came in the game. If Spiller was in, we were most likely going to run the ball because he was not very good at pass protection and FJ was much better at that than him. So teams could gear up to stop the run pretty much every time he was on the field unless he was in as a reciever in an obvious passing situation. I think the other 30% was the combination of being a rookie trying to adjust to the speed of the game and trying to get comfortable behind an OL that was constantly changing with injuries and mid season pickups. So, I think what we saw from him in preseason is a strong sign of his potential, and with a year under his belt now and a full offseason and training camp to work on his pass blocking, I really think we will see him on the field a lot more this year. I could be wrong, but I really feel like this kid is going to be a serious weapon and big time playmaker for us for a long time, and I expect big things from him this next season. His physical skill set is off the charts, now he needs to raise his understanding of the game. Edited March 31, 2011 by Alphadawg7 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rico Posted March 31, 2011 Share Posted March 31, 2011 Pollyannas like to portray those who are disappointed in first year players as thinking "it's either Pro Bowl or BUST". As always, they are WRONG. I think most non-Pollys (not all, but most) are at least somewhat satisfied if a high draft choice at least "looks the part", even if the production isn't there yet. Now, it's not much to hold onto, not at all.... but even though CJ did pretty much nothing in the regular season, he looked damn good against the Colts in the pre-season. So I'll give him at least another year. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
reddogblitz Posted March 31, 2011 Share Posted March 31, 2011 I think the other 30% was the combination of being a rookie trying to adjust to the speed of the game and trying to get comfortable behind an OL that was constantly changing with injuries and mid season pickups. I think part of the 30% too was the play calling. During pre season when he had all the good runs, a lot of them were designed cut backs. Early in the season Coach Gailey did try to put him in motion and get him down the field but Trent didn't throw it to him. Saw it a few time in the opener vs the Fish. After that, the motion etc. stopped as did the designed cut backs and he was used primarily between the tackles. I don't know that he'll ever succeed without a little more creativity on Coach Gailey's part. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hapless Bills Fan Posted March 31, 2011 Share Posted March 31, 2011 Towards the end of the year I thought I saw improvement from CJ in running between the tackles...... Believe it or not I think that running Gaily's pistol offense will actually help CJ in this area......spread everything out....make the QB a threat to run the ball as well.....create space a little easier in the middle of the field........make CJ a threat to both catch and run the ball from there...... BUT I do think I saw CJ get better between the tackles as the year went on....truth be told.....there just didn't look like a lot of space in there. I felt I saw this too. I also felt I saw improved blocking, though not quite where one would like it to be. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
billsfreak Posted March 31, 2011 Share Posted March 31, 2011 It can't be any worse than the 2010 season for Spiller, who without a doubt was the most disappointing rookie in the entire draft class when you consider where he was drafted, the hype and what was expected from him. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alphadawg7 Posted March 31, 2011 Share Posted March 31, 2011 (edited) It can't be any worse than the 2010 season for Spiller, who without a doubt was the most disappointing rookie in the entire draft class when you consider where he was drafted, the hype and what was expected from him. Adding to that, he also led the preseason in rushing and scoring despite not playing in all the games and threw down some ridiculous runs...going into week 1 everyone was salivating at seeing him get the chance to start and pounce on the Fish... His preseason success, the cuts and moves he made, all really had me thinking that FJ and Lynch were going to have a very hard time keeping him off the field and that with enough carries he was going to make a serious run at ROY. Of course, this is not how the season went...I rarely put much stock into a perfromance in Pre Season, but this kid was dazzling and crushed it and I fell victim to the preseason hype. Edited March 31, 2011 by Alphadawg7 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John from Riverside Posted March 31, 2011 Share Posted March 31, 2011 I still submit that had he been given more carries he would have been more productive not less..... And I love Fred Jackson....what a great story he is. But we drafted the best RB in the draft and then didn't play him. It drove me nuts to watch the Lyons play their RB a ton of carries while Chan wouldn't let CJ off the bench..... You play to get better....it was going to be a down year for us anyway. I also felt the same way about Carrington and Troupe....thought they should have played a lot more last year. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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