Five possible draft replacements for DeMarco Murray in Dallas

[Jiggyfly]

I don't really get the "can't carry 20 times a game" part of that. Plenty of smaller NFL backs carry work loads. Look at guys like Jamaal Charles (Under 200 lbs) and LeSean McCoy. Abdullah will probably play in the 205 lb range in the NFL. He has had no problem shouldering the load in college football. This is a guy with back to back 1600+ yard seasons for the Huskers. So we aren't talking about a Felix Jones type situation where we are taking a part time player.

The fumbles are the issue though. He had 4 fumbles this past year and 5 the year before. Basically slightly better then Murray last year.

The other part of the equation is he is going to be a monster catching the ball out of the backfield. I know his numbers in this area at Nebraska don't show it but they will at the next level.

Jamal Charles is a bad example he has been consistently hurt and McCoy is a back who never takes the big hit Abdullah takes a lot of contact.

You have to draft him as a specialty back and hope he turns into a everydown type IMO.

 

[Cowboysrock55]

Jamal Charles is a bad example he has been consistently hurt and McCoy is a back who never takes the big hit Abdullah takes a lot of contact.

You have to draft him as a specialty back and hope he turns into a everydown type IMO.

People are idiots when it comes to the size of RBs. Abdullah hasn't missed a single game the last three years but he is too small to be an every down back. Todd Gurley on the other hand has been injured the last two years. His size makes him a massive target and his legs tend to get bent up and twisted as a result. Yet he is viewed as a 20 carry a game type guy.

Sorry, between the two, the guy you need to be worried about not being able to take the pounding is Gurley, not Abdullah.

 

[ravidubey]

I like Duke Johnson's combination of size, balance, vision, and breakaway speed and find him most intriguing out of this really good RB class.

He has skinny legs though and does not run with power. Building leg strength would help lower his center of gravity.

 

[boozeman]

Abdullah fumbles alot and I don't think he's a guy you want to count on carrying it 20+ times a game but if he can learn to hold on to the ball he could be a real weapon. Ajayi is probably the most well-rounded, most likely to be a bell cow type of RB after Gurley and Gordon.

Ajayi has a bit of a ball security problem himself but if a back is going to fight for yards, it sometimes happens. It is not a deal breaker for me since he is as close to a bell cow as you are going to find after Gurley.

 

[Jiggyfly]

People are idiots when it comes to the size of RBs. Abdullah hasn't missed a single game the last three years but he is too small to be an every down back. Todd Gurley on the other hand has been injured the last two years. His size makes him a massive target and his legs tend to get bent up and twisted as a result. Yet he is viewed as a 20 carry a game type guy.

Sorry, between the two, the guy you need to be worried about not being able to take the pounding is Gurley, not Abdullah.

I am no great fan of Gurley so I don't know what that means to this discussion.

The fact remains RB the size of Abdullah don't last long add in the fact he likes to finish runs with contact and its a bad bet to depend on him long term.

Maybe he is the exception to the rule but asking him to be a 20 carry guy a plus blocker and stay healthy is asking a lot.

 

[Jiggyfly]

I like Duke Johnson's combination of size, balance, vision, and breakaway speed and find him most intriguing out of this really good RB class.

He has skinny legs though and does not run with power. Building leg strength would help lower his center of gravity.

He stays knicked up too often to depend on but he might be the best pure runner.

 

[Cowboysrock55]

I am no great fan of Gurley so I don't know what that means to this discussion.

The fact remains RB the size of Abdullah don't last long add in the fact he likes to finish runs with contact and its a bad bet to depend on him long term.

Maybe he is the exception to the rule but asking him to be a 20 carry guy a plus blocker and stay healthy is asking a lot.

It's an example of the fact that the size of the RB has nothing to do with durability or longevity. The fact is the LeSean McCoy's and the Jamaal Charles of the world have had just as long of careers as the other "bigger" RBs currently in the NFL. Abdulleh doesn't take that many hits. He is just less likely to avoid contact the way Duke Johnson does by stepping out of bounds.

 

[Jiggyfly]

It's an example of the fact that the size of the RB has nothing to do with durability or longevity. The fact is the LeSean McCoy's and the Jamaal Charles of the world have had just as long of careers as the other "bigger" RBs currently in the NFL. Abdulleh doesn't take that many hits. He is just less likely to avoid contact the way Duke Johnson does by stepping out of bounds.

Charles is knicked up constantly and has never been a 20 carry guy, so why do you keep using him as an example?

 

[Cowboysrock55]

Charles is knicked up constantly and has never been a 20 carry guy, so why do you keep using him as an example?

Because he has more 1000 yard seasons then most of the big backs in the NFL you claim that are more durable and have more longevity.

 

[boozeman]

BTW, my 2015 Joseph Randle RB I Can't Stand Award goes to David Cobb. Coleman is the runner up.

 

[Cowboysrock55]

BTW, my 2015 Joseph Randle RB I Can't Stand Award goes to David Cobb. Coleman is the runner up.

For some reason I thought you were the guy who loved Cobb? Am I losing it or did your opinion change?

 

[boozeman]

For some reason I thought you were the guy who loved Cobb? Am I losing it or did your opinion change?

That's Carp.

 

[fortsbest]

BTW, my 2015 Joseph Randle RB I Can't Stand Award goes to David Cobb. Coleman is the runner up.

What's your issue with Coleman?

 

[VA Cowboy]

Ajayi is a 2nd-3rd round back but I don't see him lasting til our late 3rd round pick. I'd take him in the 2nd round with a Brown/Goldman in the 1st and be thrilled. But it's possible Ajayi goes before us in the 2nd. If that's the case I like Duke Johnson or even Coleman, even though I have some reservations about him.

 

[Jiggyfly]

Because he has more 1000 yard seasons then most of the big backs in the NFL you claim that are more durable and have more longevity.

What are you talking about?

Show me anywhere I have advocated for any type of back, we just disagree that Abdullah should be considered a 20 plus carry guy and Charles injury history bears that out.

 

[ravidubey]

He stays knicked up too often to depend on but he might be the best pure runner.

Certainly early in his career, but his final season he changed his workout regimen, stayed healthy and had more carries than his first two seasons combined while still maintaining 6.8 YPC.

I don't like his small legs and the lack of power it implies, but the kid has balance, moves, and speed to make up for it.

I'm not stuck on him by any means, though.

 

[Cowboysrock55]

Certainly early in his career, but his final season he changed his workout regimen, stayed healthy and had more carries than his first two seasons combined while still maintaining 6.8 YPC.

I don't like his small legs and the lack of power it implies, but the kid has balance, moves, and speed to make up for it.

I'm not stuck on him by any means, though.

My only fear is the way that Duke Johnson runs away from contact. I get not trying to knock people over as a small back but when I watch him he misses out on yards because he avoids it. I also see a lot of "college style" runs where he basically just uses his speed to beat everyone. Runs that in the NFL will end up as TFL because you can't just outrun everyone anymore.

 

[boozeman]

What's your issue with Coleman?

Reminds me of a wimpy Murray. If he ran with more violence and power, he would be off my shit list. But he's the runner up.

Cobb, I just don't get. He is just...there. Dependable, I guess, but not special in any way.

 

[boozeman]

My top RBs for the Cowboys:

1. Gurley
2. Ajayi
3. Gordon
4. Yeldon
5. Johnson
99. Coleman
100. Cobb

 

[Texas Ace]

My top RBs for the Cowboys:

1. Gurley
2. Ajayi
3. Gordon
4. Yeldon
5. Johnson
99. Coleman
100. Cobb

What concerns you about Gordon that you would rank him behind Ajayi?