Like A Mofo Posted November 10, 2004 Share Posted November 10, 2004 Willis Scouting Report Scouting report: Bills RB Willis McGahee The War Room / TSN Posted: 20 hours ago Strengths: Has good size (6-0, 228) and running skills and is quickly developing into an explosive back. Has ideal speed and power and excellent burst to the hole. Has vision and patience, finds cutback lanes and shows great stop-and-start ability. Has an explosive second gear once he breaks through the line and is a threat to score every time he reaches the second level. Has great ability to turn the corner. Is a decisive outside runner who picks his crease and has terrific acceleration in the open field. Is developing his potential as a receiver and uses his natural athleticism and explosiveness well in space. Weaknesses: Tends to run a bit too high and takes a lot of shots to the body. Must learn to run with better leverage and body lean. Blocking skills need to improve. Can slide over to pick up the blitz but has marginal technique as a blocker and needs to be more aggressive. Needs to improve his route-running skills, which should come with experience. Has decent hands but has had trouble catching passes away from his body. Bottom line: McGahee was selected in the first round of the 2003 draft but sat out his rookie season while recovering from a major knee injury. He has bounced back well, but durability remains a concern because his running style makes him susceptible to taking a pounding. Im not sure if this is an old scouting report re-released, but the durability issue had me concerned. I am just as excited about Willis as the next Bills fan, but the Bills cannot afford to have Willis take this kind of pounding every week. The coaching staff needs to find a way to get Willis 25 carries or so and get TH involved for 6-10 carries as well. I dont want to see Willis become another Eddie George and wear down quickly, he can be great for a long long time. Any thoughts? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stuckincincy Posted November 10, 2004 Share Posted November 10, 2004 Sounds like a re-release. I recall much of that before he was drafted. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JÂy RÛßeÒ Posted November 10, 2004 Share Posted November 10, 2004 Actually Travis' running style is worse for punishment than Willis' IMHO Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CosmicBills Posted November 10, 2004 Share Posted November 10, 2004 I think a lot of that comes down to expierence. Emmitt Smith used to say it took him almost 2 seasons to learn how not to take "that big hit". And so far, I haven't seen Willis take any "big hits", but since he is such a big target, it's only a matter of time. One thing to factor into this scouting report is that during the year Willis had to rehab, the Bills' training staff bulked him up, TD said he added over 15 pounds of muscle since he was drafted. It is almost as if the staff was already preparing Willis for the pounding his style induces. Just some thoughts. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MRW Posted November 10, 2004 Share Posted November 10, 2004 I don't know, it doesn't seem to me like he's taking that much of a pounding, late hits out of bounds aside. I think durability is a concern for any back if they're running 37 times a game, so hopefully we can get some production out of other guys and not have to have McGahee take quite so many. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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