Dopey Posted January 2, 2013 Share Posted January 2, 2013 (edited) He guys. happy New Year!!!! Now that the season is over, I would like some opinions on CJ Spiller. He is a dynamic player who can score from just about anywhere on the field. During the season we kept asking for MORE CJ. I get it and I agree. My question is, how do we use CJ to get the most out of his talents? My thoughts quickly turn to how the Chargers and Saints used Sproles in there system. I just don't see CJ as an everydown RB in the way Freddy, Peterson, or Foster are used. To me, CJ was at his best when Freddy established the run and CJ was brought in and that change of pace caught defenders by suprise with that speed. To me, he cannot be our everydown back. I really love how the Chargers and Saints used him and his explosiveness. He can't be depended on to block in pass protection(I really don't want him pass blocking anyway) like a traditional back. Any thoughts would be great. Edited January 2, 2013 by Dopey Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eball Posted January 2, 2013 Share Posted January 2, 2013 CJ was at his best this year when Fred was injured; the notion of him being a "change of pace" back is a falsehood. CJ may not be able to handle 25 carries per game, but he is far too talented to not get a minimum of 20 touches. Next season I'd like to see Freddy as the "change of pace" back or the guy you give the ball to on 3rd and 1, and we need an OC who can actually get them both on the field concurrently. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BuffBill Posted January 2, 2013 Share Posted January 2, 2013 He guys. happy New Year!!!! Now that the season is over, I would like some opinions on CJ Spiller. He is a dynamic player who can score from just about anywhere on the field. During the season we kept asking for MORE CJ. I get it and I agree. My question is, how do we use CJ to get the most out of his talents? My thoughts quickly turn to how the Chargers and Saints used Sproles in there system. I just don't see CJ as an everydown RB in the way Freddy, Peterson, or Foster are used. To me, CJ was at his best when Freddy established the run and CJ was brought in and that change of pace caught defenders by suprise with that speed. To me, he cannot be our everydown back. I really love how the Chargers and Saints used him and his explosiveness. He can't be depended on to block in pass protection(I really don't want him pass blocking anyway) like a traditional back. Any thoughts would be great. Not worth thinking about until they name a coach and an offensive coordinator and find out what type of offense they run. I agree with the thought that he can't be an every down back, and should be on the sideline when it is whatever down and short and a run up the gut is called for. They need to get him in space and he can be the best back in the league. If he is used as a normal every down back like a Steven Jackson or Ray Rice he will either get hurt or run out of gas. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mrags Posted January 2, 2013 Share Posted January 2, 2013 Priest Holmes. That's all I'm going to say. Or maybe ill add Marshall Faulk to that. On second thought, maybe we can just ask Vermiel to come out of retirement. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bangarang Posted January 2, 2013 Share Posted January 2, 2013 Give him the ball and let his legs do the rest. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
reddogblitz Posted January 2, 2013 Share Posted January 2, 2013 I have not even seen this mentioned on here. Everyone wants CJ to be "the guy" and get all the carries and doesn't Fred etc. Well, CJ got his chance against the Jets and had 24 carries for 59 yards. The only good play he had was on the pass from Fitz that he ran with. Everyone was so freaked out over the Fish game, where he had some good runs, but finished 23 carries for 91 yard or so. This tells me he is not "the guy" that can get the bulk of the carries. He needs another guy like Fred to pound and then come in and get the big runs. He can be very effective as long as he not the only guy in there running between the tackles. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dopey Posted January 2, 2013 Author Share Posted January 2, 2013 CJ was at his best this year when Fred was injured; the notion of him being a "change of pace" back is a falsehood. CJ may not be able to handle 25 carries per game, but he is far too talented to not get a minimum of 20 touches. Next season I'd like to see Freddy as the "change of pace" back or the guy you give the ball to on 3rd and 1, and we need an OC who can actually get them both on the field concurrently. I agree he needs more touches, it's the types of touches he gets that has me concerned. Sproles gets plenty of touches, it seems he gets his touches in the non-traditional plays that a RB gets his touches, screens, etc. We can't just run him up the gut to get the touches. Thanks for the input. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maury Ballstein Posted January 2, 2013 Share Posted January 2, 2013 CJ was at his best this year when Fred was injured; the notion of him being a "change of pace" back is a falsehood. CJ may not be able to handle 25 carries per game, but he is far too talented to not get a minimum of 20 touches. Next season I'd like to see Freddy as the "change of pace" back or the guy you give the ball to on 3rd and 1, and we need an OC who can actually get them both on the field concurrently. couldn't have said it better. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dopey Posted January 2, 2013 Author Share Posted January 2, 2013 Not worth thinking about until they name a coach and an offensive coordinator and find out what type of offense they run. I agree with the thought that he can't be an every down back, and should be on the sideline when it is whatever down and short and a run up the gut is called for. They need to get him in space and he can be the best back in the league. If he is used as a normal every down back like a Steven Jackson or Ray Rice he will either get hurt or run out of gas. Thanks. more in my line of thinking. Having said that, do we stay with Freddy or do we look for a younger traditional type of RB? Freddy has ended the last 2 seasons on IR. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
filthymcnasty08 Posted January 2, 2013 Share Posted January 2, 2013 early and often Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
You herd it hear last Posted January 2, 2013 Share Posted January 2, 2013 his potential will be used to sell tickets, that's for sure Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eball Posted January 2, 2013 Share Posted January 2, 2013 I have not even seen this mentioned on here. Everyone wants CJ to be "the guy" and get all the carries and doesn't Fred etc. Well, CJ got his chance against the Jets and had 24 carries for 59 yards. The only good play he had was on the pass from Fitz that he ran with. Everyone was so freaked out over the Fish game, where he had some good runs, but finished 23 carries for 91 yard or so. This tells me he is not "the guy" that can get the bulk of the carries. He needs another guy like Fred to pound and then come in and get the big runs. He can be very effective as long as he not the only guy in there running between the tackles. I haven't seen anyone (including myself) suggest CJ should be a "pound it up the gut" RB, but to suggest he shouldn't touch the ball as much as possible is foolish. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BillsWatch Posted January 2, 2013 Share Posted January 2, 2013 We use him in a trade for multiple first round picks since so many 'experts' have called him the best RB in the league and hope some GM believes the same thing. He was good in relief getting large average number of yards because how he was used but the more times he is used, the more ordinary he looks like. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
XXL Franchize Posted January 2, 2013 Share Posted January 2, 2013 CJ was at his best this year when Fred was injured; the notion of him being a "change of pace" back is a falsehood. CJ may not be able to handle 25 carries per game, but he is far too talented to not get a minimum of 20 touches. Next season I'd like to see Freddy as the "change of pace" back or the guy you give the ball to on 3rd and 1, and we need an OC who can actually get them both on the field concurrently. You hit it right on the head. CJ is an every down back and so is freddy. CJ is more dynamic so he should touch it more than Fred. And all the talk of a dual backfield never got established. They just took carries from away from each other. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
reddogblitz Posted January 2, 2013 Share Posted January 2, 2013 Thanks. more in my line of thinking. Having said that, do we stay with Freddy or do we look for a younger traditional type of RB? Freddy has ended the last 2 seasons on IR. I say we keep Fred and also bring in another RB who is more on par talent level with Fred and CJ than Choice. Fred and CJ both got hurt this year. We need more depth. don't necessarily think we need to draft anyone. Get a FA. Buddy found J Bell 3 years ago. Find another guy like that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
toddgurley Posted January 2, 2013 Share Posted January 2, 2013 Easy. Get him 20-25 touches per game. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BuffBill Posted January 2, 2013 Share Posted January 2, 2013 Thanks. more in my line of thinking. Having said that, do we stay with Freddy or do we look for a younger traditional type of RB? Freddy has ended the last 2 seasons on IR. I think you keep Fred and draft a back maybe in the 4th round or so. Freddy has been on the IR but not the nagging type of injuries, but the freakish ones that could happen to anyone. It has been 2 and a half months, and I still don't believe how quick he came back from the injury in the opening game against the Jets, i thought he was a goner looking at that hit. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RealityCheck Posted January 2, 2013 Share Posted January 2, 2013 For those of you who use the Jets game as your body of evidence to say that CJ can't be "the guy", then explain to me what the Jets did to limit him in that game. I saw a Jets D focused completely on stopping CJ and gave up some big pass plays because of it. Besides, the O-line struggled mightily to run block in that game and who won again? With competent QB play I would welcome any defense to load up and stop CJ at the line of scrimmage if it opens up the passing game and we win. If he gets 180 yards on the ground and we lose, what good is that? The Jets sold out to stop the run which opened up the field down the stretch. I personally could care less what a win looks like as long as it's a win. When CJ is on the field every defensive player has to be alert to where he is at all times. No other offensive player on this team warrants that, it's not even close. So why have him on the sideline if he isn't hurt? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kelly the Dog Posted January 2, 2013 Share Posted January 2, 2013 Everyone here seems to think CJ was misused by Gailey but CJ absolutely loved the way Gailey used him and couldnt stop gushing about how the play design and use of him this year allowed him to run better than any time in his life, including college. I would have liked to have seen a couple more carries a game, but I think CJ knows and basically said himself he was used correctly. We need Freddy back. CJ should start obviously and be the focal part of the offense. But he is very likely more effective with 20 touches a game than 25. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BRAWNDO Posted January 2, 2013 Share Posted January 2, 2013 I have not even seen this mentioned on here. Everyone wants CJ to be "the guy" and get all the carries and doesn't Fred etc. Well, CJ got his chance against the Jets and had 24 carries for 59 yards. The only good play he had was on the pass from Fitz that he ran with. Everyone was so freaked out over the Fish game, where he had some good runs, but finished 23 carries for 91 yard or so. This tells me he is not "the guy" that can get the bulk of the carries. He needs another guy like Fred to pound and then come in and get the big runs. He can be very effective as long as he not the only guy in there running between the tackles. With a QB who can stretch the field, it should open more room for Spiller. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wayne Cubed Posted January 2, 2013 Share Posted January 2, 2013 Step 1: hike ball Step 2: hand off, throw, toss, lateral to CJ Spiller Step 3: repeat steps 1 and 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobobonators Posted January 2, 2013 Share Posted January 2, 2013 in every which way, and often. RB WR Punt Returns Kick Returns CJ "Slash" Spiller. See if he can throw the ball..maybe we could use him in wildcat too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HumbleAndHungry Posted January 2, 2013 Share Posted January 2, 2013 use him the same way reggie bush, sproles, and rice are used. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
49er Fan Posted January 2, 2013 Share Posted January 2, 2013 Spiller should not see more than 300 carries in a season. But he should get 80+ receptions. He could be great like Marshall Faulk but needs the supporting cast. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eball Posted January 2, 2013 Share Posted January 2, 2013 Spiller should not see more than 300 carries in a season. But he should get 80+ receptions. He could be great like Marshall Faulk but needs the supporting cast. 380 / 16 = 23.75 touches per game. I think we're all on board with that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
billsfan1959 Posted January 2, 2013 Share Posted January 2, 2013 I have not even seen this mentioned on here. Everyone wants CJ to be "the guy" and get all the carries and doesn't Fred etc. Well, CJ got his chance against the Jets and had 24 carries for 59 yards. The only good play he had was on the pass from Fitz that he ran with. Everyone was so freaked out over the Fish game, where he had some good runs, but finished 23 carries for 91 yard or so. This tells me he is not "the guy" that can get the bulk of the carries. He needs another guy like Fred to pound and then come in and get the big runs. He can be very effective as long as he not the only guy in there running between the tackles. Twice this year, Adrian Peterson had games where he gained 86 yards on 25 carries...as well as three or four others with almost equally modest numbers. When a team puts 8 - 9 men in the box to stop the run, they can generally stop the run. Particularly when they have absolutely no fear of the passing game Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
49er Fan Posted January 2, 2013 Share Posted January 2, 2013 http://www.footballdocs.com/running_back_carries.html 380 is actually pretty high for today's NFL. Excerpt from linked article: Through the 2011 season and out of the 24 running backs in the history of the league with 370 or more carries in season, in the very next season of play, 18 experienced a significant decline in fantasy production, 4 tore their ACL, and 6 effectively had their career ended. Only Eric Dickerson, Walter Payton, and LaDainian Tomlinson did not show any real effect or drop-off in fantasy point production in the season following their 370+ carry season. Stop and think about the names of Dickerson, Payton, and Tomlinson for a minute. They are arguably the best backs to ever play the game. The other 21 backs listed aren't exactly slouches and represent some of the creme of the crop in the history of the NFL. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thewildrabbit Posted January 2, 2013 Share Posted January 2, 2013 No idea why Gailey didn't use Spiller more as a WR considering the lack of talent in the WRs on this team. Imagine the Bills offense with Lynch the main RB (like Seattle), Jackson the 3rd down back like Sproles in NO and Spiller as the option WR. Just move the guy around as WR / RB to drive defenses crazy trying to keep him covered. But give him at least 20+ touches a game. It was almost criminal to watch Gailey only giving Spiller 7 touches a game. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dorkington Posted January 2, 2013 Share Posted January 2, 2013 I have not even seen this mentioned on here. Everyone wants CJ to be "the guy" and get all the carries and doesn't Fred etc. Well, CJ got his chance against the Jets and had 24 carries for 59 yards. The only good play he had was on the pass from Fitz that he ran with. Everyone was so freaked out over the Fish game, where he had some good runs, but finished 23 carries for 91 yard or so. This tells me he is not "the guy" that can get the bulk of the carries. He needs another guy like Fred to pound and then come in and get the big runs. He can be very effective as long as he not the only guy in there running between the tackles. This is my exact opinion. It's clear that CJ can be productive. But he's not an every down back. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eball Posted January 2, 2013 Share Posted January 2, 2013 Somebody needs to come up with the definition for "every down back" because I don't know of a single RB in the NFL who plays every offensive down. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
San Jose Bills Fan Posted January 2, 2013 Share Posted January 2, 2013 Somebody needs to come up with the definition for "every down back" because I don't know of a single RB in the NFL who plays every offensive down. Would you settle for "workhorse?" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JPS Posted January 2, 2013 Share Posted January 2, 2013 Ride him. Let Fred be the change of pace and/or 3rd down back. Of course, if Fred comes in on 3rd downs, Spiller should be on the field somewhere instead of our 3rd best WR. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ColdBlueNorth Posted January 2, 2013 Share Posted January 2, 2013 Unless you want our future QB killed or just his brains scrambled, CJ has to get a whole lot better at reading and picking up the blitz and overall pass protection. Teams want to be able to setup the run with the pass and the pass with the run and the reason Chan would use Fred back there and keep CJ on the bench is that Spiller while undoubtably the better pure running back threw the most craptastic "look-out" blocks I have ever seen when in pass protection. Out of Chan's single back multi-receiver formations the back has got to be able to pick up the odd blitzer and still be a threat running the ball, and that is why Spiller spent as much time warming the bench as he did, though I am sure Gailey was trying to keep peace in the locker room as well by keeping the veteran Jackson involved in the game plan. If Spiller can improve that one area of his game he will go a long way to solidifying his star role and the support of the next Bills QB. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BillsFanM.D. Posted January 2, 2013 Share Posted January 2, 2013 Hand him the ball and have him follow this sage advice.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rockinon Posted January 2, 2013 Share Posted January 2, 2013 If you want to get the most out of Spiller, you hire Chip Kelly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EmotionallyUnstable Posted January 2, 2013 Share Posted January 2, 2013 I'd like to see Fred and CJ on the field at the same time more often. It really opens up our offense and alleviates some pressure. Chip Kelly would do a good job of this. However, I fear bringing someone without NFL experience in. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KRT88 Posted January 2, 2013 Share Posted January 2, 2013 I'd love for both CJ and FJ to spend some time in the backfield together. Try to get CJ isolated via motion out of the backfield on a linebacker and let him either draw additional coverage or use his isolated coverage to create big play opportunities. Plus you line him out wide and motion him back into the backfield to create lots of shifting within the defense opening up other favorable matchups a good offensive coach can exploit. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rob's House Posted January 2, 2013 Share Posted January 2, 2013 He guys. happy New Year!!!! Now that the season is over, I would like some opinions on CJ Spiller. He is a dynamic player who can score from just about anywhere on the field. During the season we kept asking for MORE CJ. I get it and I agree. My question is, how do we use CJ to get the most out of his talents? My thoughts quickly turn to how the Chargers and Saints used Sproles in there system. I just don't see CJ as an everydown RB in the way Freddy, Peterson, or Foster are used. To me, CJ was at his best when Freddy established the run and CJ was brought in and that change of pace caught defenders by suprise with that speed. To me, he cannot be our everydown back. I really love how the Chargers and Saints used him and his explosiveness. He can't be depended on to block in pass protection(I really don't want him pass blocking anyway) like a traditional back. Any thoughts would be great. You hit the nail on the head. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris in Syracuse Posted January 2, 2013 Share Posted January 2, 2013 CJ is the feature back. FJ can spell him when he is tired. Put them in together and let CJ play as a WR. Chan has gradually brought him along brilliantly. If CJ can get a little stronger and improve his endurance I think he can handle a bigger work load. I would like to see 2000 yards rushing next year if the right OC comes in and our OLine can stay healthy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ganesh Posted January 3, 2013 Share Posted January 3, 2013 I have not even seen this mentioned on here. Everyone wants CJ to be "the guy" and get all the carries and doesn't Fred etc. Well, CJ got his chance against the Jets and had 24 carries for 59 yards. The only good play he had was on the pass from Fitz that he ran with. Everyone was so freaked out over the Fish game, where he had some good runs, but finished 23 carries for 91 yard or so. This tells me he is not "the guy" that can get the bulk of the carries. He needs another guy like Fred to pound and then come in and get the big runs. He can be very effective as long as he not the only guy in there running between the tackles. That will change when you get a decent QB who puts fear on the opposing defense with the ability to make a long play. When Spiller is your only weapon, then the opponents are going to stack the line. CJ is the feature back. FJ can spell him when he is tired. Put them in together and let CJ play as a WR. Chan has gradually brought him along brilliantly. If CJ can get a little stronger and improve his endurance I think he can handle a bigger work load. I would like to see 2000 yards rushing next year if the right OC comes in and our OLine can stay healthy. If Norv Turner is the OC, I can see Spiller enjoy a great season with him Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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