Is LenDale White helping or hurting this team?

Discussion in 'Tennessee Titans and NFL Talk' started by TheSureThing, Sep 30, 2008.

?
  1. Helping

    63 vote(s)
    75.0%
  2. Hurting

    9 vote(s)
    10.7%
  3. Neutral

    12 vote(s)
    14.3%
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  1. TheSureThing

    TheSureThing Straight Cash Homie

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    Is LenDale White helping or holding us back?

    Lendale White (through 4 games)
    60 Rushes - 161 Yards - 2.7 AVG - 0 Rec - 0 yards - 5 total TD

    Chris Johnson (through 4 games)
    67 Rushes - 337 Yards - 5.0 AVG - 10 Rec - 65 yards - 3 total TD


    I was talking to a friend last night about the 4 and 0 Titans, and the topic of Lendale White came along and I had this to say..

    Lendale has done nothing but slow this team down. Every touch he gets I almost feel bummed out its not Chris Johnson. Why? The stats don't lie. LenDale has been simply unproductive this season, and Fisher seems to want to reward him for it. White has 5 touchdowns, all from 2 yards or closer, and I don't think he deserves them.

    First off, before we get everyone bringing Jerome Bettis into this, Bettis was a lot different, Jerome was way more powerful then Lendale, and he was wearing more muscle then fat in his day. His spot among the record books prove it. Jerome was also built a lot better then Lendale, and Jerome didn't ride another back all the way to the goal line then get off his saddle and do it himself when it counted. 4 of Bettis' 8 1,000 yard seasons he averaged 4.4 ypc or more (topping at 4.9). Lendale has a career 3.6 and in his lone 1000 yard season he carried a 3.7 ypc average. Not to mention Jerome Bettis caught 55 passes his first 2 seasons for a 9.5 ypc average, Lendale has caught 34 for a 6.7 ypc average. So for everyone that is trying to say there is a place on this football team for a player that gets to the line of scrimmage and falls over and gets 5 touchdowns in 4 games along with a juicy contract for it is insane. The "Goal line" Situation backs are simply overrated. And Runningbacks have proved it. Take Marion Barber for example, hes nowhere near the biggest guy out there, but he gets the goal line carries and is almost unstoppable in the situation. Westbrook is another prime example.

    Now here is why I think LenDale is hurting this football team. Obviously his 2.7 ypc average is atrocious, but aside from that, its deeper on many different levels. As I mentioned before, when I see LenDale get a carry, I'm almost bummed out that its not CJ, and when LenDale gets a 5 or 6 yard sprint where the hole is gaping, you can't help to think about what Chris Johnson would of done with that carry.

    Also, I can't understand why we give LenDale all these goal line touches, when we haven't even given Chris Johnson the oppurtunity to score. All the coaching staff is doing is building LenDales ego, and when pay day comes and his contract runs out, I'm afraid he will be overpaid based on the touchdowns he scores rather then the absence of production.

    The fact that Chris Johnson and LenDale White have anywhere near the same amount of carries is absurd. I don't see how a guy who is clearly overweight and out of shape, averaging 2.7 yards a carry, can get rewarded with the highest in-game honor that is a touchdown when In my eyes the other guy who is doing all the hard work could do it just as easy.

    All that said, my question to you guys is how do you feel about Lendale? Is he helping or hurting this squad?
     
  2. Ubiq

    Ubiq BAMF

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    MYTHS

    - LenDale White is a bruiser.
    - LenDale White is a "closer".
    - LenDale White has 5 TDs; therefore he is valuable.
    - We are 4-0, so he must be doing something right.

    FACTS

    - LenDale White kills the Titans' offense.
    - LenDale White doesn't run over anyone.
    - 95-99% of RBs in the NFL could out-produce LenDale White in this offense.
    - LenDale White has the LOWEST YPC of ANY RB in the NFL with at least 30 carries.

    CONCLUSION

    - Fish/Dinger pull your heads out of your asses. Give CJ the ball more. Give Henry/Ganther a chance. LenDale White is absolutely terrible. He kills the offense completely. He's lazy and has no professionalism. Let him ride the pine, and see what someone else can do that actually gives a flip about their profession.
     
  3. psychotictitan

    psychotictitan Its About That Time...

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    Their two different styles of runners thats why. Lendale is a banger and CJ is a slasher and the way we're using them is perfect. In my opinion, i dont think CJ could last a hole nfl season getting a 30 carries a game. He has been unbelievable so far but i'm not ready to make him the workhorse his rookie year. I think Fisher is going about it the right way rotating them. It may not seem like Lendale is doing anything special gaining 3-4 yards a carry but hes wearing down a defense. The last thing a defense wants to do is go chase a back with 4.2 speed after getting banged on. I rather use Lendale on the goaline and save CJ for the rest of the game. Someone is always going to have fresh legs and thats always good
     
  4. wplatham

    wplatham U of M Class of 2012

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    Myths:
    White is useless.

    White kills the offense. Our offense looks better than it has in years.

    Facts:
    We don't want CJ having to run the ball up the middle against defenses like the Jaguars and Vikings. So we let White do most of the inside running instead. This is why his YPC are so low.

    We don't want CJ running the ball 30 times a game.

    LenDale rushed for 1100 yards last year. He didn't suddenly forget how to run the ball.

    Our redzone offense was horrible last year. White is helping us get in the endzone this year. It is harder to stop 250 lb. White from one yard up the middle than it is to stop 200 lb. Johnson.

    Conclusion: White isn't flashy, but he is getting done what we ask him to. The Titans are 4-0, and White has scored half our touchdowns. I don't see the problem here.
     
  5. Ubiq

    Ubiq BAMF

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    He does none of that. Just because he's fat, doesn't mean he bruises, bangs, wears down, or runs over people.
     
  6. wplatham

    wplatham U of M Class of 2012

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    He always fall forward. How many times have you seen him get hit and go backwards? If somebody hits him, and he keeps going forward anyways, then that's banging.
     
  7. TheSureThing

    TheSureThing Straight Cash Homie

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    Some of you guys are taking this the wrong way, I'm not saying Chris Johnson should be getting 25-30 carries a game (300 carries a season). I'm saying, LenDale is useless and this "Thunder and Lighting" nonsense needs to be put to rest. As someone else mentioned, get someone else in there and let them try they're luck. Why do some of you think if you average 2.7 yards per carry and your 250 lbs then your a banger? Backs with power are guys like Marion Barber, Steven Jackson, Jerome Bettis, or Brandon Jacobs. Just because you can get to the line and fall over the endzone marker doesn't make you an asset to a football team.

    God forbid we didn't draft Chris Johnson, then where would our offense be?
     
  8. The Playmaker

    The Playmaker pineapple pizza party

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    Anyone can score a goal line TD. Heck, CJ pretty much had 2 against the Vikings. I think White is eventually going to get on track. He's just adjusting to splitting carries with Johnson.
     
  9. Ubiq

    Ubiq BAMF

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    I agree. The offense looks great, but honestly it doesn't have much to with LenDale. LenDale comes in, runs for 2-4 yards on 2 carries, steals an easy TD, and that's it.

    I also agree that CJ doesn't need, and shouldn't get, all the carries. But at least have something that at least resembles a running game when he's not in there. CJ is averaging 5 ypc. Imagine how good this offense would be if we had a back-up to him that could squeeze out close to 4 ypc, if not more?

    Our o-line is too good to have a RB that averages 2.7 ypc. Period.
     
  10. wplatham

    wplatham U of M Class of 2012

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    And here I was thinking that finishing in the endzone was the most important part.

    That 2.7 includes games against the Jags and Vikings! Those are tough teams to run inside on. The Texans front seven is pretty good too. Chris Johnson has been great, but he only averaged 3.8 last week and his only two rushing touchdowns were both inside the five too.
     
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