Blogs

Jonathan Lopuch

Second Fiddle

July 8, 2007 10:17pm CDT

It is a good thing for anyone taken in the second round of the NFL draft that football is so much different than basketball. NBA teams often treat their second-round selections no better than a street free agent and those guys are rarely guaranteed a roster spot. That's not the case in football, where teams have 22 starting spots to fill and often find just as much value in the second round as in the latter portions of the first.

This year's draft featured three running backs taken in the second round (four if you count Brian Leonard, a fullback/tailback hybrid) and as I continue to tweak my rankings for our upcoming magazines, I took a look back at what some recent second rounders did as rookies. Sure, each player enters a unique situation when drafted, but there are some case studies worth examining.

2006 LenDale White, Titans

RUSHINGRECEIVING
YearGRushYdsYds/GYPCTDRecYdsTD
2006136124418.84.0014600

Comment: Hopefully none of this year's second-round picks suffer the same fate as White, whose gluttony is matched only by Pizza the Hut. The fact is LenDale had a chance to compete for the starting job in Tennessee last season if he had kept himself in shape and out of trouble. Of course, that didn't happen and he was useless to fantasy owners as a result. In an odd twist of fate, it was White's ineptitude that forced the Titans to use another second-round pick this season on Chris Henry and those two will battle for the starting job in training camp.

Maurice Jones-Drew, Jaguars
RUSHINGRECEIVING
YearGRushYdsYds/GYPCTDRecYdsTD
20061616694158.85.713464362

Comment: On the other end of the spectrum from White you have Jones-Drew, who was not expected to do much of anything besides contribute on some third-down duty, but turned into one of the year's biggest surprises. He proved that despite his Lilliputian stature, he could deliver at the goal line (seven of his touchdowns were from Goal-to-Go distance) and finished the year scoring in 10 straight games. If something happened to Rudi Johnson, Kenny Irons could learn from MoJo, as Irons is expected to be only be a third-down back this year.

2005 J.J. Arrington, Cardinals
RUSHINGRECEIVING
YearGRushYdsYds/GYPCTDRecYdsTD
20051511237024.73.32251390

Comment: The Cardinals desperately wanted Arrington to take the starting job from Marcel Shipp, but he proved to be a bust who couldn't produce much of anything. This is the worst-case scenario for anyone who believes in Brandon Jackson.

Eric Shelton, Panthers
RUSHINGRECEIVING
YearGRushYdsYds/GYPCTDRecYdsTD
2005
200698232.62.90160

Comment: Well, to be fair, this is the worst-case scenario for Jackson or any player. Shelton was unable to play a single snap as rookie because of a foot injury. He was doing nothing in training camp before the ailment and has done nothing since, as evidenced by his second year numbers, which I included for your viewing. The Panthers may forever regret passing on Frank Gore, who went with the first pick of the third round.

2004 Tatum Bell, Broncos
RUSHINGRECEIVING
YearGRushYdsYds/GYPCTDRecYdsTD
2004147539628.35.335800

Comment: Bell is now a Lion, but he began his career as one of the many cogs in the Broncos running back machine. He faced a crowded backfield and never emerged as a reliable fantasy threat, mostly because he was unable to unseat Reuben Droughns from atop the depth chart. This is a similar battle to the one Jackson faces in Green Bay, although Droughs has had a more successful NFL career can Vernand Morency can boast.

Julius Jones, Cowboys
RUSHINGRECEIVING
YearGRushYdsYds/GYPCTDRecYdsTD
20048197819102.44.27171090

Comment: Jones battled veteran Eddie George for carries as a rookie, although George's career was on its last legs. Julius suffered a shoulder injury that cost him seven games and a rib ailment that sidelined him for one, but once he returned he went off for seven touchdowns, which remains his career high. He also finished the year 803 yards in seven games.

Greg Jones, Jaguars
RUSHINGRECEIVING
YearGRushYdsYds/GYPCTDRecYdsTD
2004166216210.12.633130

Comment: Jones came into the pros being called a fullback, which may lead you to compare him to Leonard. However, Greg was a pure fullback who was used as a goal-line battering ram. Brian, on the other hand, is a versatile player in the mold of a H-back who will be catching passes out of the backfield and is expected to see time as the second-string tailback.

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