Post by Deleted on Apr 6, 2017 17:02:17 GMT -6
This offseason the Vikings gave Latavius Murray top 10 RB money to replace Adrian Peterson. Here’s a summary of his career up to date. He was a 6th round pick for the Oakland Raiders in 2013 draft. He was a physical freak coming out of college but was only drafted in the 6th round. His rookie year he ended up on injury reserve before the regular season even started. The next year he was finally given a chance in the back half of the season and provided a spark for the worst run game in the league. By his third year he was finally a starter and ended up with a 1000 yard season with a 4.0 ypa while also receiving an oh so coveted pro bowl nod (lolz). Last year, although he technically remained the Raiders starter, he lost a lot of snaps to the combination of a 5th round pick and an UDFA, even while running behind an elite OL he couldn’t improve his yards per attempt although his pass blocking greatly improved. In the offseason the Raiders decided to stick with their 2nd year backs and let him sign with the Vikings with zero resistance.
Here’s how he stacks up in the run and pass game.
RUN GAME:
Latavius Murray was a physical freak coming out of college but was only drafted in the 6th round. Watching his tape running it’s easy to see why. Murray has very good long speed and a big body for a RB but that’s about it. He has the speed to hit the edge or get solid gains off of a cutback back, but those attributes will never be maximized because of his below average vision and feet. He constantly misses opportunities for solid gains and instead chooses to run into the back of his blockers. When he does manage to hit a hole he doesn’t show the consistent ability to make anybody miss, whether it’s LB or DB. At times he even seems afraid to challenge DBs which is probably due to the fact that although he weighs 230lbs he goes down on first contact regularly, rarely even falling forward for marginal gains. He loves making jump cuts but lacks the ability to make subtle cuts so when he does make a defender miss many more are there to limit the run.
On the Raiders with a top 3 OL Murray was able to pick up good yardage by running into the back of his OL because the push they got down the field was that great. Unfortunately, the Vikings don’t have that luxury so he’ll need to seriously step up his game to even replicate his mediocre production from last year.
PASS GAME:
Murray was brought in to be a 3 down back and while he technically fills the role don’t expect a whole lot outta him. He’s a great pass blocker and was graded top 5 by PFF (put whatever stock you want into that) on film he understands his assignment IDs defenders and blocks them up. He doesn’t exactly blow anyone up but he gets the job done and that’s what we want. When it comes to catching the ball he can be used on swing routes, screens and basic checkdowns but that’s about it. Don’t expect him to be split out wide running a full route tree anytime soon.
Murray brings solid pass blocking skills combined with good enough pass catching skills which aren’t exactly upgrades but shouldn’t be negatives.
5 PLAYS THAT SHOW HIS STRENGTHS
He's an excellent pass blocker and here he IDs the CB blitz and easily picks it up
Has the speed to turn simple checkdowns into long gains
When he does see the cutback he has the speed to hit it and outrun defenders angles
He also has the speed to threaten and get to the edge of a defense
He can make simple catches on checkdowns
5 PLAYS THAT SHOW HIS WEAKNESSES
He shows a lack of faith in his reads and poor vision overall which minimizes his ability to pick up consistent yardage
His below average feet consistently limit his gains even when there's a massive lane
He goes down with zero fight even if it's a DB meeting him in the hole
The oncoming defender makes him lose concentration and drop an easy pass, if it was a one off event I wouldn’t think much about it but he consistently shows aversion to contact
He takes to many steps on his speed cuts and is unable to make defenders miss because of it
Overall, Latavius Murray isn’t going to be the upgrade most Vikings fans think he will be. At most I see him being an average RB and that’s if he makes massive strides in his 5th year. In the run game he’s Matt Asiata with speed and that’s about the only difference. While that leads to some longer runs it’s not exactly going to transform the running game. He’s still going to run into the back of his OL, miss obvious holes and go down at any hint of contact. Pass blocking wise he’s an upgrade from AD and probably on the same level as Asiata. Hopefully, we didn’t sign a RB for blocking, but then again we re-signed Asiata before for that exact skill so... And I’m sorry for the folks who thought we were getting a dynamic pass catching back but he’s literally no better than AD, but hey he’s not AD so that’s enough for some. To sum it up the Vikings gave an RB, whose best skill is pass blocking, top 10 RB money instead of just drafting someone. Hopefully, he proves to be a valuable piece, but if he doesn’t don’t be surprised. If the Vikings want a running back who can actually run the ball they’ll have to find one in the draft.
Here’s how he stacks up in the run and pass game.
RUN GAME:
Latavius Murray was a physical freak coming out of college but was only drafted in the 6th round. Watching his tape running it’s easy to see why. Murray has very good long speed and a big body for a RB but that’s about it. He has the speed to hit the edge or get solid gains off of a cutback back, but those attributes will never be maximized because of his below average vision and feet. He constantly misses opportunities for solid gains and instead chooses to run into the back of his blockers. When he does manage to hit a hole he doesn’t show the consistent ability to make anybody miss, whether it’s LB or DB. At times he even seems afraid to challenge DBs which is probably due to the fact that although he weighs 230lbs he goes down on first contact regularly, rarely even falling forward for marginal gains. He loves making jump cuts but lacks the ability to make subtle cuts so when he does make a defender miss many more are there to limit the run.
On the Raiders with a top 3 OL Murray was able to pick up good yardage by running into the back of his OL because the push they got down the field was that great. Unfortunately, the Vikings don’t have that luxury so he’ll need to seriously step up his game to even replicate his mediocre production from last year.
PASS GAME:
Murray was brought in to be a 3 down back and while he technically fills the role don’t expect a whole lot outta him. He’s a great pass blocker and was graded top 5 by PFF (put whatever stock you want into that) on film he understands his assignment IDs defenders and blocks them up. He doesn’t exactly blow anyone up but he gets the job done and that’s what we want. When it comes to catching the ball he can be used on swing routes, screens and basic checkdowns but that’s about it. Don’t expect him to be split out wide running a full route tree anytime soon.
Murray brings solid pass blocking skills combined with good enough pass catching skills which aren’t exactly upgrades but shouldn’t be negatives.
5 PLAYS THAT SHOW HIS STRENGTHS
He's an excellent pass blocker and here he IDs the CB blitz and easily picks it up
Has the speed to turn simple checkdowns into long gains
When he does see the cutback he has the speed to hit it and outrun defenders angles
He also has the speed to threaten and get to the edge of a defense
He can make simple catches on checkdowns
5 PLAYS THAT SHOW HIS WEAKNESSES
He shows a lack of faith in his reads and poor vision overall which minimizes his ability to pick up consistent yardage
His below average feet consistently limit his gains even when there's a massive lane
He goes down with zero fight even if it's a DB meeting him in the hole
The oncoming defender makes him lose concentration and drop an easy pass, if it was a one off event I wouldn’t think much about it but he consistently shows aversion to contact
He takes to many steps on his speed cuts and is unable to make defenders miss because of it
Overall, Latavius Murray isn’t going to be the upgrade most Vikings fans think he will be. At most I see him being an average RB and that’s if he makes massive strides in his 5th year. In the run game he’s Matt Asiata with speed and that’s about the only difference. While that leads to some longer runs it’s not exactly going to transform the running game. He’s still going to run into the back of his OL, miss obvious holes and go down at any hint of contact. Pass blocking wise he’s an upgrade from AD and probably on the same level as Asiata. Hopefully, we didn’t sign a RB for blocking, but then again we re-signed Asiata before for that exact skill so... And I’m sorry for the folks who thought we were getting a dynamic pass catching back but he’s literally no better than AD, but hey he’s not AD so that’s enough for some. To sum it up the Vikings gave an RB, whose best skill is pass blocking, top 10 RB money instead of just drafting someone. Hopefully, he proves to be a valuable piece, but if he doesn’t don’t be surprised. If the Vikings want a running back who can actually run the ball they’ll have to find one in the draft.
... and neither is this Chris guy.