Running Back Blurb Breakdown: Steve Slaton

Slaton is another back who people are either very high on or very wary of.

Questions about him are many: Is he too small to carry the load (ala Maurice Jones-Drew)? Will he lose carries to a second back (ala Joseph Addai)? Will he have issues if (maybe when) quarterback Matt Schaub or wide receiver Andre Johnson go down?

Let's take a look at these very valid concerns and see if they hold up and if so (or if not), what that truly means.

First of all, size. While I have been researching an article on Jones-Drew, I've taken a hard look at the sizes and weights of many NFL running backs. Slaton is a tad on the short side, although at 5'-9 I still think that's not a huge concern.

What might be a concern is his weight. Slaton rolls in as a trim (maybe slight is a better term) 203 pounds. While he isn't Darren Sproles (5-6, 181lbs!) the thin frame is worrisome.

Even Slaton knew this - that's why he added about nine pounds of muscle to help with the pounding. That pulls him closer to some of the slightly taller backs (in the 5-10 to 5-11 range) and help him with his short yardage work.

Now, as we're concerned with size, it would stand to reason the Texans would be as well. But they didn't bring in a power back to cut into Slaton's carries at all. In fact, the backs behind him consist of a fragile runner, an underperforming back who runs like Slaton, a pair of rookies and a perennial camp body.

Not really a group striking fear into Slaton's heart. Of them, most likely to succeed in any way is rookie Arian Foster, who impressed in OTAs and at 6-1, 225 pounds can fulfill the power back role. This might harm Slaton's overall touchdown total as an awful lot of his TDs were short yardage - four were a yard or less and a fifth was just two yards.

Two thoughts - one, Slaton sure seemed to be ok going short yardage and not only was he effective on the goal line, but he played well getting first downs. Could it be that Houston didn't acquire a full-on short yardage back because they believe Slaton can do it, with Brown (or now Foster) spelling him?

Alternatively, you have to be concerned that if he does loose his goal-line attempts, his touchdown totals are decimated.

Slaton did have about seven 40+ runs, though, including one over 71 yards which resulted in a touchdown. He can break away from tacklers and if the offense is more consistent, that could offset any loss in the short yardage game.

Still, most of his ten touchdowns were short yardage. So it definitely could be a problem.

Finally, there is the concern that if Johnson or Schaub goes down with an injury, Slaton could face too many defenses selling out to stop him.

Well, with Schaub on the bench injured and Sage Rosenfels striking fear into the hearts of nobody, Slaton performed pretty well for the most part last season.

While the depth behind Schaub is even more shaky this year (Dan Orlovsky and Rex Grossman - WOO HOO!), I still expect Slaton to play as well as he did last year and with another year under his belt, have the potential to be even better.

Overall, Slaton ran the ball well throughout the 2008 season. He had some good games against good run defenses (Minnesota), some ok run defenses (Jacksonville) and some bad run defenses (Detroit, Green Bay & Indianapolis).

He also had some disappointing games against poor run defenses (Cleveland) and some great run defenses (Pittsburgh, Miami, Baltimore). That's to be expected from a rookie. This year he needs a little more consistency before he is considered a true stud.

Overall, I like Slaton quite a bit this year.

I think he will not lose much in the way of carries or targets and has already said he feels like he knows what his coaches want and how to achieve it. I think he has no more or less questions than any back in front or behind him, has no real challengers for carries and I believe the offensive line has continued to improve over time.

His questions are very real, however, and must be considered when drafting him.

If Slaton stays healthy and the offense plays well, he has the opportunity to not only crack the top ten again, but potentially the top five as well.

The risk is; with just one season to look over we don't know if last year was the rule - or the exception.

And that risk will keep him from the top of a lot of people's Fantasy Draft boards.

Shock And Awe: The Winners and Losers for Day 1 of the 2009 NFL Draft

It's a little bit folly to try and really declare winners and losers for a draft that isn't even finished, much less a day old. Players haven't even stepped on a NFL field yet, and some may not pay off for several years to come, forget this season.

Still, by the end of Saturday, it's a worthwhile endeavor to examine some teams who have ended up looking smart and others....

Well, not so much.

So with the realization in mind that we still don't know everything - here are the teams who made our jaws drop, though not always for good reasons.

The Shock

Oakland Raiders
Maybe Al Davis and his Raiders will prove us all wrong, but right now their draft can be summed up in an exchange I saw between Sam Farmer of the Los Angeles Times (where the Raiders once resided) and Raiders beat writer Jason Jones of the Sacramento Bee (which is close to Oakland i suppose).

Farmer: Why were the Raiders reaching like that in the second?

Jones: They reach because that's what they do.

They weren't going to go offensive tackle, despite the need, because that's not really the Raiders way.

And I knew they weren't going to grab Crabtree, whether or not he was the best wide receiver on the board at the time. Crabtree's lack of timed 40 speed made it impossible because Davis is crazy for speed like the bird in that cereal commercial is coo-coo for cocoa puffs.

But I never thought he would bypass Missouri's Jeremy Maclin, who had the speed and a more developed game. I'm a little nonplussed.

Don't get me wrong, I don't wish Heyward-Bey a failed career and he will probably turn out ok. But picking him up at 7, when they could have traded back and picked him later?

That's just not achieving maximum value.

Worse, the team manages to follow it up with an even bigger reach in choosing Ohio Safety Michael Mitchell, a guy most people didn't even have ranked in their drafts much less the second round.

Mitchell also may develop into a solid player, but right now he looks like a workout warrior and a huge reach as the third safety off the board behind Patrick Chung of Oregon and Louis Delmas of Western Michigan.

It's one thing to fall in love with a player. It's another to waste a pick five rounds early.

The Raiders have five picks on Sunday, two in the fourth round. They can recover, given the tremendous value still on the board, but if they keep picking like this, they might as well throw darts at a list on the wall.

Dallas Cowboys
How can I say it's a bad draft when they didn't draft anyone?

Bad enough the Cowboys didn't have a pick for the first round due to last year's wheeling and dealing, but they then traded out of the second.

Meanwhile, value continued to tumble by them in the form of solid safeties, wide receivers and defensive ends.

Maybe it's not bad in the sense the Raiders draft was on Saturday but it's shocking to watch the usually wheeling Cowboys nuetered and missing out on the value on the board.

Cleveland Browns
The Browns made a big move back when the Jets traded for the fifth pick and Mark Sanchez (more on that in a minute) and were poised to grab some great value all day long.

Instead, they kept moving backwards accumulating more and more picks. And when they did spend them, it's questionable whether they took the best value on the board.

I can't argue with the selection of Alex Mack. The center from Cal is a versatile lineman who can work at almost any position along the line. And Brian Robiskie is a polished, fast receiver who runs a solid route tree and will contribute early, especially if Braylon Edwards is traded on day two.

But the Browns can't rush the passer and need a linebacker or top flight defensive lineman.

I say need because while Mack is a great center, USC linebackers Clay Matthews and Rey Maualuga as well as Ohio State linebacker James Laurinaitus were on the board still.

Maualuga was in fact still on the board when Robiskie was picked. While offensive line and wide receiver were needs, the pass rush was a bigger one and with several very good linebackers on the board, the Browns chose to fill less important needs.

They also bypassed shoring up their need at cornerback by letting Vontae Davis and Alphonso Smith sneak away as well.

And as much as I think Hawaii defensive end/linebacker convert David Veikune will be a good upside pick, wide receiver Mohamed Massaquoi was a luxury, especially behind the Robiskie pick.

Massaquoi may become a good possession receiver down the road, but they could have grabbed a corner, safety or even replace Winslow at tight end.

For a team with so many holes who is rebuilding, it seems like they filled few of them with four picks in the first two rounds.

The Browns have four more picks on Sunday - one in the fourth and three in the six. Lots of defensive talent remains on the board and I hope they can recover from a lackluster day one.

The Awe

New York Jets
Jet Nation is a tad split over the selection of USC quarterback Mark Sanchez, especially given the talent that slid out of the first round and through the second. But when you look at the price they paid, it's more than reasonable for a possible franchise quarterback.

Defensive end Kenyon Coleman, quarterback Brett Ratliff and safety Abram Elam were players who in all likelihood would get cut before camp or in Ratliff's case, clearly hadn't impressed the new regime all that much.

Aside from that, adding the second rounder to a swap that spanned twelve spots between first rounders is a marginal price to pay.

The Jets have put themselves in a position where they cannot make many mistakes on day two though. They have four more picks on Sunday spread across four of the five rounds.

As I said with the Browns, there are many value picks to be had but the Jets have to be conservative to a great extent. They already rolled their dice once and that's as much as they can risk.

Detroit Lions
I will openly admit - and it's a shock to nobody who has read my work the last few months - that I do not agree with the Stafford pick. It's not an awful pick - just not one I believe had to happen this year.

Yet, Stafford could develop into a nice franchise quarterback and he is far from awful. While I may not agree with the strategy to rebuild the franchise, it's a solid pick.

On the surface, Brandon Pettigrew at 20 made me wince as well. But, like Stafford, Pettigrew is considered the top at his position and on top of it, he's a tremendous blocker.

He's no offensive tackle but he will be able to stay in and protect Stafford. A pick that is more shrewd than i gave it credit for at first. As Stafford and the oline get better, Pettigrew can release and become more of a pass catching tight end.

Finally, hard hitting cornerback Louis Delmas. Again, top at his position. And Delmas is the type of hard nosed player who could help give this defense a personality - something it greatly lacks.

The Lions are looking to become more physical on the defensive side of the ball and Delmas will bring that in spades. They also need some help in the secondary and this fills that hole.

Three picks. Three players arguably at the top of their class. They may not have filled all their needs but the ones they did fill were given top talent.

With five picks on day two, including the first in round three and another later the same round, the Lions stand to pick up some very good value. They could easily pull someone like Jarron Gilbert or Michael Johnson to help fill the defensive line hole, pick up the top guard on the board in Duke Robinson or even a decent tackle like South Carolina's Jamon Meredith.

New England Patriots
The rich get richer. And richer. And richer.

How the organization ended up with the same amount of picks they started with, but also an embarrassment of riches in players is beyond me, but that's how they end up being the great team they are every year.

Four picks in the second and every one a value.

Patrick Chung, second best safety in the class brings some thump to the secondary and will make receivers pay dearly.

Defensive tackle Ron Brace got overlooked a bit with BJ raji getting the love at Boston College, but will stuff the run as good as anyone in the draft class and is likely to take over for Vince Wilfork at the nose tackle.

Darius Butler, one of the top corners in the draft, probably won't start this coming season but will take over in the aging secondary within the next year or two.

And while Sebastian Vollmer is a project for the offensive line, he will develop into a nice right tackle and used to play tight end, so he has the versatility to move around for trick plays if need be.

And, oh by the way - they have seven more picks. By the end of the draft they may have multiple picks for next years draft as well.

Before I let you go, dear reader, here are a few teams I am on the fence about. Tomorrow could be pivotal for them.

San Francisco 49ers: One pick, but what value. But you better build on Crabtree use your remaining six picks wisely.

Houston Texans: Methodically took care of two key needs with picks of USC LB Clay Matthews and DE Connor Barwin. Six more picks to shore up the corners and get a back to compliment Steve Slaton.

Jacksonville Jaguars: Almost made the Awe list, but as much as I loved watching them grab two very good offensive tackles in Eugene Monroe and Eben Britton, passing on Crabtree and Maclin and then a host of good defensive line prospects makes me wonder if last season's Oline injury woes didn't get in their head too much.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Did you really need to leap up and pay the price you did to move a few spots? Especially since nobody in front of you was likely to grab your choice of Josh Freeman? Six picks on day two and like the Jets you'd beter make them count. Unlike the Jets though, your new franchise quarterback is a far bigger project and has more question marks.

Matt Schaub Out 4 weeks - mayeb for season

Foxsports.com is reporting that Houston Quarterback MattSchaub suffered a torn MCL and will miss at least four weeks. The Texans would also place him on Injured Reserve if the damage ends up being bad enough.

A pretty significant blow to Schaub's owners. Schaub had compiled 1762 yards, 10 TDs and 8 INTs this season but had been on a torrid pace since he week four compiling 1233 yards, 9 TDs and just 3 INTs.

We'll see if Rosenfels can match that or even come close. Owen Daniels looked liek a favorite target from the Sagemeister, not slowing down his day with Schaub out and Andre Johnson also looked good with Rosenfels in there.

UPDATE! MATT SCHAUB OUT- ROSENFELS TO START

ESPN has just reported Matt Schaub is sick and will NOT play today - I thought Mort was kidding but no joke here - Sage Rosenfels will get the start. Make sure you cover your rear and get a playing QB in there.

Surprise, surprise!

Baltimore vs Houston Postponed again? UPDATED AND CONFIRMED

Hey folks -

This isn't official BUT both ESPN and the NFLN have reported that the game between the Texans and Ravens may be postponed again. According to the NFLN news blurb I just saw, a conference call between the teams and the NFL is scheduled for sometime this afternoon.

I will follow up with news as I hear it - may I suggest for commisioners to do the following:

1) Alert your league - don't let it to chance and run the risk that they don't know, aren;t following and get pissed later. Maybe the 'shark move' is to let them sink on their own but you are the Commish - keep them informed.

2) Either warn them off playing any players from those teams OR have them submit a sub list in case the game is canceled last minute. It probably won't - we will probably know by tonight what will happen. But again, keep yourself covered.

As always, thoughts and prayers for the affected region. I was in Los Angeles for both the riots and the Northridge Earthquake. Neither one was any fun and I can assume a Category 3 Hurricane ranks up there as well.

UPDATE
According to this article at NFL.com the game between the Houston Texans and Baltimore Ravens has been postponed. Here is what they are doing according to the article.

The Ravens-Texans game originally scheduled to be played Sunday, then rescheduled to be played Monday night due to Hurricane Ike, will now be played in Week 10. The originally scheduled Bengals-Texans game in Week 10 has been moved to Week 8 (game time 4:05 p.m. ET), and the Bengals' bye week moves to Week 10.

If you have seen the footage of Houston, you know this had to happen, although a move to another city would have been an option.

Again, thoughts and prayers to those in the region.

Houston/Baltimore game moved to Monday

From the NFL:

09/11/2008

BALTIMORE AT HOUSTON GAME RESCHEDULED FOR MONDAY NIGHT DUE TO APPROACHING HURRICANE IKE Due to the importance of allowing the Houston area to focus on its recovery from the expected arrival of Hurricane Ike on Friday, the Houston Texans' home game Sunday against the Baltimore Ravens has been re-scheduled for Monday night at Reliant Stadium at 7:30 PM Houston time (8:30 PM ET). The game originally was scheduled to be played on Sunday, September 14 at 3:15 PM Houston Time (4:15 PM ET). The Texans-Ravens Monday night game will be televised on local CBS stations in the primary and secondary markets of the Texans (Houston, Beaumont-Port Arthur, and Bryan, Texas) and the Ravens (Baltimore; Washington, DC; Salisbury, MD; and Harrisburg, PA).

Makes a pain for Ravens/Texans owners but it's vital to settle this now rather than wait for something to happen. You'll just have to wait and see - we'll talk about this on The Drive Block tonight at 7pm PST (10pm EST) and probably on The Jake Stevens Show on ESPN1230 tomorrow at just after 7:30am PST (10:30am EST).

As always I am sure I join you in sending our thoughts and prayers to the affected region and one hopes everyone stays safe and well.

Houston/Baltimore game not cancelled as of now

Hey folks

I just spoke with folks at the Texans who confirmed what I suspected (due to the lack of any news other than one Sirius report) - no decision has been made yet on what to do with the BAL/HOU game.'

Not saying they won't change something but the person I spoke with said unequivocally nothing has been canceled yet. They are still talking about options, but no decisions have been made.

This is what I bring to you folks - you need the answers? I got them. Media access, the whole 9 yards.

End of Wednesday News

Hey folks - show went well - you can download it here or on ITunes or listen via the streaming shows on the right side of this page. Also had a great appearance on Reality Football with Marc, Brian and Cakes. Quick but good. Show was fun to listen to as well.

Let's wrap things up so I can get some beauty sleep....

New England Patriots
So Tom Brady may or may not be hurt - who can ever tell with New England - but he practiced like a man who was feeling no pain. Like I said multiple times today, you weren't going to bench him. I also am not of the mind that the Pats will run the heck out of the ball whether or not Brady is hurt. If they do, it will be a RBBC, not just Maroney. Regardless, while Brady will suffer a drop off from last year (who wouldn't) he will play - and probably play well given that KC is a mess.

Miami Dolphins
As I mentioned on the show tonight, Greg Camirillo has moved into the first team offense and according to HC Tony Sparano, he may see a lot of action against the Jets. He spoke pretty glowing of him -

"We really haven't given him a lot of opportunities to be on the field for long periods of time," Sparano said. "He's got really good awareness. He gives the quarterback a pretty sound target. The guy has excellent hands, can run after the catch. He's sneaky fast. I really like what the guy has done."

I wouldn't start him this weekend with Darelle Revis and rookie Dwight Lowery at the corners, but he could be good to stash on your bench and see what pans out.

Houston Texans
First of all, HC Gary Kubiak denied ever having Tatum Bell in for a visit. That's how low things have sunk for Tater - he may have been misunderstoon in this mess (yeah, I had problems saying it like you did reading it) but it seems unlikely that he will catch on anywhere.

And with the RB situation as murky as it is, maybe they could have used another RB. Ahman Green is 'healthy' and the starter - but only until he gets hurt which will probably be.... right..... about ......... NOW. Seriously, I call Chris Brown 'Mr. Glass' but Green must be the original owner of that name. He'll be hurt - so is it Steve Slaton or Chris Taylor. They will use all three this weekend but you won't know who to start. However keep an eye on the game anyway - Taylor or Slaton could break out and give you an idea of the next RB you need to own in Houston. (Myself, I like Slaton.)

New Orleans Saints
TE Jeremy Shockey is not on the injury report - which means he will debut (finally) for the Saints against the Bucs this weekend. He may be a mismatch for that secondary so he should casue soem real problems for the defense. How much will he do, stats-wise? Hard to say. I feel wierd saying start him given he hasn't played a snap in any game in quite some time. But the matchup isn't bad and if you run TE-BC you could do worse.

That's all for now unless something reveals itself during the repeat of NFL Live starting now. I will see you all tomorrow for the morning post and the Thundering Blurb Daily News Stampede at noon EST/9am PST.

Show Notes and News

Hey folks

So I just finished editing and re-uploading the Thundering Blurb Fantasy Podcast. There were some massive technical difficulties and I had to download the show, edit out about 20 minutes of silence, then reupload it - all of which took about 2hours.

If you tried to listen to the show earlier than midnight Wednesday night - give it another shot sometime Thursday and you should be good to go.

They are getting the bugs out now, so this should be unlikely to repeat in the season.

Some late news - the lateness of the hour may make tomorrow's initial update a little tardy itself.

I'll make it up to you baby, I swear!

News and Notes

Atlanta Falcons
Matt Ryan, Brian Finneran and DJ Shockley were involved in a car accident Wednesday but nobody was hurt - they were rear ended at a stop light in slippery and wet conditions. They made the team's plane for Baltimore and I think Art Blank just about had a heart attack.

Baltimore Ravens
Chris Mortenson is at it again - although he's probably right on this one for sure. Looks like the earlier report that Kyle Boller might have a torn labrum and the Ravens are hoping soem rest and rehab might do the trick as surgery will end his season in all likelihood. In a move sure to salve all Raven-fan's worry, they claimed QB Casey Bramlet off waivers from San Diego. Yup, THAT Casey Bramlet. Wait, you don't know who he is? He's.... um, hold on.... he's uh - oh yeah, he was a former World Bowl MVP who was picked by the Bengals in 2004.

How could this team be interested in John Beck when they have Bramlet? Know what this smells like? Disaster. If the Ravens don't do something soon, this season is going to go very, very badly. Hope Troy Smith's tonsils get better soon.

Houston Texans
In a move to save his rear from the firing squad, Ahman Green has restructured his contract. He's taking a lot less money, but if he plays a lot this season, he can earn a ton more money.

Yup, I don't believe he'll see a dime either. I love Ahman Green's fire and heart - but his body just doesn't hold up anymore. He'll hang around this year - with little no no fantasy value mind you - and then probably call it a day.

That's all for now. I'll have a post tomorrow morning - maybe lunchtime for you Easterners - and don't forget the Drive Block goes live at 10pm EST/7pm PST for two hours of me, Sigmund Bloom and Cecil Lammey.

And 2 hours of Lammey is a lot of Lammey - you get your money's worth.