Mike Lombardi has jumped on the James Davis bandwagon. Lombardi writes in the National Football Post: “(The Browns) found a back in the later rounds this year, sixth-round pick James Davis, who looks like the real deal. I’m still not sold that Jamal Lewis will make the team.”
I’m not going this far.
I think Lewis makes the team, because at this point nobody is sure if Davis is a preseason flash or the real deal.
A few years back … well … a lot of years back the Browns had a guy named Larry Poole in preseason. Poole was a great player at Kent State. Back then they played like 14 preseason games and this was the day of Ed Garvey demanding a percentage of the gross and the owners saying no to something that now is at the foundation of the game. So the players went on strike. And a guy named Larry Poole from Kent State (born in Akron) had a heck of a training camp. But his career didn’t follow. Poole played four years, 28 games, and carried the ball 133 times. He had a 4.4-yard average, so I don’t know why he didn’t get more carries, but he didn’t.
At any rate, Davis makes me think of Poole. Because Poole had a great preseason, like Davis.
I think Davis shows real deal potential. He’s quick, he attacks and he makes people miss. The guy looks like a good back.
But because the Browns aren’t sure I’m not sure they can give up totally on Lewis.
That being said it would not be a total surprise if they do. As I’ve said in the past, Denver has made a living out of late-round running backs. What does this have to do with the Browns? Nothing, except that it shows a team can find a back late in the draft. So it would not be a stretch for the Browns to find one late in the draft.
I still think they keep Lewis and Davis, and perhaps Jerome Harrison too. Provided he gets off the bike.
What's not to understand about Poole? He played for the Browns when Forrest Gregg was the coach. In 1976– as he was starting to win some playing time– he fumbled twice.
That was all Gregg needed to see. Poole was glued to the bench for the rest of Gregg's tenure in Cleveland. Forrest wasn't big on fumbling– he did the same thing to Mike Pruitt (who was his #1 pick) in 1976.
Poole might have been able to revive his career when Sam the Sham was hired, but the Browns drafted Larry Collins in the third round– and then traded for Calvin Hill. It he lost the dreaded "numbers game".
I don't know why the Browns can't keep Lewis, Harrison and Davis.
If I had to pick only one, I'd go Davis. He's pretty horrible at picking up the blitz– but Lewis is pretty horrible at gaining yards. The second seems more important.
Was Larry Poole ranked in the top 5 NCAA running backs in preseason magazines? Did Larry Poole play for a college football program with a national championship and 17 conference championships?
Truth is Larry Poole is like Harrison. Over achieving NCAA running backs who lit up inferior talent and the exact reason they couldnt get into a real program in college is the same reason they will not (did not) succeed in the NFL.
Every year on almost every team there's a player who stands out unexpectedly. He shouldnt have to turn back the clock to 1975 for a far fetched comparison.
BTW Patrick you know nothing about football. Here's some names to think about and find a common ground between: Michael Turner, Steve Slaton, Ryan Grant, Brandon Jacobs, Frank Gore, Derrick Ward, willie parker, marion barber.
Thats just 2008. It's not just Denver that does it. It's over 50% of all NFL teams that do it. Feel free to check it out.
For the record, that last post was kinda dumb. There is no common ground in that recitation of running backs other than they weren't drafted in the first or second rounds. Most were drafted higher than the 6th, a couple were vagabond free agents never drafted and didn't do anything during the preseason. On the other hand, Poole was drafted relatively late, when the draft had 3,054 rounds, and had a terrific showing during the preseason as a rookie. So if you really want to argue something that doesn't require an argument, the Poole comparison to Davis is indeed far more on point.
Regardless, what I've learned about Internet comments sections is that facts are besides the point. Sorry for the interruption. Carry on.
Lewis is obviously not a part of our future, and does anyone believe we have a "present?" Then why are we wasting carries on a guy who treads mud?