Matt Jones- Think He Has What It Takes?

[Wyvern]

I chose B, because Matt Jones is at the point in his career where he needs a better coach than Skins RB Coach, Randy Jordan. While Coach Jordan was a solid college coach, and a longtime NFL running back -- he may not be that great of an NFL-level RB coach.

The Skins running game has declined since Jordan was brought in to replace Bobby Turner, and not all the blame should be placed on the offensive line. The poor running decisions, the indecisiveness looking for a point of attack, and poor understanding of scheme responsibility, etc is not just a problem with Jones -- we saw these deficiencies in most of the younger Skins RBs, (and even Morris!) in 2014 and 2015. Moreover, since McCloughan has been drafting RBs who for various reasons were not the marquee bell-cow RBs in college, those RBs tend to need to be coached up a lot more, in order to succeed at the NFL level.

So while I think Jones could get better -- I think time's running out for his short window to be coached up with better running technique, before Jones' body starts to decline from all the hits. And since Gruden is sticking with Jordan this season, I think it'll be the next RB drafted who benefits from the eventual coaching change -- and THAT rookie RB will wind up replacing Jones.

[The Mayor of Fed Ex Field]

Pierre Thomas is damaged goods. He was in the car when Will Smith was killed and there is a lot of weirdness with that entire situation.

Arian Foster, Matt Jones, Thompson and Marshall would be a good RB by committee in my mind.

[Darth Tater]

Had to go B.  Don't think we will do bell cow (the only way you can be A).  At most, he (or probably any back while Gruden is HC) could be the lead back in a RBBC system.  Seems Gruden likes to approach the RBs kind of like the Patriots or the Saints.  He'd probably love a young P Thomas.

[DJD2]

Sample size is too small.

Until he can demonstrate that fumbling problems are in the rear view mirror I will be holding my breath every time he takes a handoff.

He has flashed talent, and can be a violent runner, but too often becomes reckless.

I hope he can fix things because if so he could be a load.

[RandyHolt]

I thought for a 3rd rounder, he would be more.... polished, as mentioned by Warhead36. My biggest concern on draft day were his injuries.

 

I don't know how much injuries had a play in his inconsistent year, but have thought of all the positions drafted on offense, RB was one of the easier to transition to the NFL. He came out with a strong game early in the year, but then struggled. He was not alone in that regard of course, and I expect the odd fumble, missed blitz pickup type of things.  Maybe our offensive approach, what I call a hybrid of zone and power, left him a bit lost as a rookie.

 

Coaches need to find a way to get more than 3.4 out of him.

[bird_1972]

RB, like NT, continues to be a need. Can't have everything

 

So does C ....

[Morneblade]

there has to be something between "dominate the league" (Adrian Petersen) and "serviceable until replacement can be found". (CJ Spiller)

 

How about i go with.. I think he has what it takes to be an effective running back once he learns to hold the ball properly.

He has shown good vision and good burst,,  if but for the fumbles.. which i will chalk up to youth.

 

~Bang

I'm with you Bang. I see him as a guy that can rush for 1000-1200 per year and do some damage in the passing game, but not a guy that is going to put up 1500-1800 or, really get close to it. Decent back, solid back, but not a great back.

[Hail4Life]

Sorry to go off topic here but what is the status on Silas Redd?  Will he be back in 2016?  I liked what I saw from the limited carries he has had in the past.  Jones, Redd, Thompson could be good.

 

*EDIT - nevermind, just saw that Redd is suspended indefinitely.

[mgiven28]

I think MJ has enough to gain us 3-4 yards on early downs...I really think Marshall is going to be a home run hitter kind of like Devonta Freeman...

[DC9]

Damn, KB... no choice for "He's a situational specialist who is ideal for 3rd downs and eventually short yardage?"

 

You're cold-blooded, man

[CTskin]

I place the majority of the blame for our terrible rush attack on the OL, not the backs. Sure, Matt Jones could have held the ball better, but the line never opened a hole for him, or any RB for that matter. We let them off the hook because their pass blocking was top notch. But if they don't improve their run blocking, it doesn't matter which running back we have back there, it won't work.

 

#1 I trust McCloughan. Right behind him is Callahan. I'm expecting a lot in year two.

[Koolblue13]

Damn, KB... no choice for "He's a situational specialist who is ideal for 3rd downs and eventually short yardage?"

You're cold-blooded, man

I was going to start a poll for what poll questions should a poster ask, before starting a poll, but there just isn't enough poll options for that poll.

I'm with you Bang. I see him as a guy that can rush for 1000-1200 per year and do some damage in the passing game, but not a guy that is going to put up 1500-1800 or, really get close to it. Decent back, solid back, but not a great back.

he's a good receiver too, so if he could put up 1k on the ground and another 500 catching, that's pretty dominant. As long as CT or Kult of Kieth-anality can put up 800/200.

[Lone Star Skin Fan]

I believe the big reason they had a hard time rushing last year were the injuries to Paul and Paulsen. The other TEs could not block the edge AT ALL. 

[AlvinWaltonIsMyBoy]

I think Jones has some skills.  I think he's the type of back that takes a couple steps to get going, and I worry about his negative plays or plays where he picks up no yardage.  To my highly untrained eye, it seemed like Al Mo (historically speaking) got as much as he could when nothing was there.  I don't get the same confidence with Jones.  

 

So I voted "not as good as Al Mo at making the first guy in the hole miss, but seems like a guy I would like to have a few beers with".

[Morneblade]

I was going to start a poll for what poll questions should a poster ask, before starting a poll, but there just isn't enough poll options for that poll.

he's a good receiver too, so if he could put up 1k on the ground and another 500 catching, that's pretty dominant. As long as CT or Kult of Kieth-anality can put up 800/200.

That would be a lot, I see maybe 1500-1600 combined as his ceiling (with a good run blocking OL, which we didn't have last year), so maybe 200-300 out of the backfield. We really don't utilize RB's much outside of screens and little flair patterns, so I don't see a huge production there, due to scheme.

 

It's obviously a big question mark right now, letting Morris go drops the load on Jones, and he's hasn't had to run the ball 20+ times in college or the pros. And then there are the reports that one of his issues is not keeping his head in the game 100% of the time. That is a little worrisome now that he is going to be "the guy". Hopefully he gets it this offseason.

[Audible_Red40]

I too would go with something in between dominant and serviceable.

 

There is no reason why the kid can't contribute at a high level.  There should be a great deal of improvement this year.

[Conn]

So I wrote a post filled with details about something here that sparked my interest only to click the back button and see it all disappear. So not sure this is the right place where any one would see it but let me ask you guys a question. Can we examine the idea that

Matt Jones has a fumbling issue

To best define this my question to each of us is....

How many carries do you think is acceptable before the running back fumbles the football?

Is it once every 50 carries, once every 100 carries, once every 125 carries, or what? The more carries a running back has the greater the chances of them fumbling the football. Same can be said in a different position with the QB and interceptions. The more passes he throws the greater the chance he throws a pick right?

Can we come up with a baseline for acceptability of fumbles like this knowing we all think the answer should be the running back never fumbles but that's far from the truth for any running back? Once we can define this we could then see how Matt Jones and others stack up against one another in this area

I've always thought that fumbling was an overrated issue for RB's, period. Good RB's don't fumble their way out of the league, because they are good enough to be allowed to play until they have enough experience to correct it.

Every stud RB that ever had real fumble issues...just continued to be a stud and eventually got over their issues.

If someone fumbles their way out of the league, it's not the fumbles that were the biggest issue but their talent and production otherwise. We see examples over and over again of teams putting up with really good RB's despite their early fumbling issues (AP, Tiki). The only guys to truly fumble their way out of jobs are guys that are marginally talented to begin with who don't have the upside (Pats' Ridley, and even he got injured before he could earn his way out of the doghouse).

So if Matt Jones doesn't work out here, it won't be due to any fumbling problems. It will be because he isn't good enough to begin with, or (knock on wood) healthy enough.

Hard to say at this point how talented he is, but it seems he has all the tools and Scott saw something in him, enough to use a late 3rd on him. So I'd say anyone sweating the fumbles is missing the bigger picture.

[Philip Pease]

I think he has the ability to be a dominant runner.  That said, I hope our OL will improve their run blocking; otherwise he (and any other RB the Redskins have) will be average at best.

[50yrSKINSfan]

I like MJ alot. Think he is a good back but I think he needs more carries per game to get better. Is there a chance we could get Ray Rice? Is he eligible to play? Guy was a all pro and he has a SB Ring. Think he has anything left? Any thoughts?

[Koolblue13]

I like MJ alot. Think he is a good back but I think he needs more carries per game to get better. Is there a chance we could get Ray Rice? Is he eligible to play? Guy was a all pro and he has a SB Ring. Think he has anything left? Any thoughts?

we don't sign scumbags

[Gibbs Hog Heaven]

In a word, 'NO!' 

 

But ti is what it is for another year at least. 

 

Hail. 

[Koolblue13]

In a word, 'NO!'

But ti is what it is for another year at least.

Hail.

that's it? Man, I saw that post and thought "oh boy, wait til GHH gets a hold of him". Ols

Getting soft in your old age?

[Gibbs Hog Heaven]

that's it? Man, I saw that post and thought "oh boy, wait til GHH gets a hold of him". Ols

Getting soft in your old age?

 

 

Trying to save my fingers by typing less. 

 

Should of left it at 'NO' but I'm not quite there yet. 

 

Hail. 

[Reaper Skins]

I think the way our offense is designed, we need our RB to be a "cog" in the system, rather than the focal point.  Whether or not Jones has the ability to be a dominant running back seems sort of a non issue for me.  Obviously the more talented the better, but nothing I've seen out of him makes me think he cant handle being our "system" back if that makes sense.  

 

We have enough other playmakers on the team that ultimatley, Jones is probably like 3rd on the depth chart of "playmakers we need to get the ball to".  If he grows and gets better its a good thing, but I like the fact that were not going to be completely crippled if he doesn't ascend to top tier RB status this year.  He is one of a handful of weapons at Kirk's disposal with the upside for more, but we CAN still win games without him having a huge day.  

 

I'm actually surprisingly comfortable with our RB situation this season.  Jones is reliable ENOUGH to be the baseline back (or "control" in the RB experiment), but we're also not so dependent on him that we can't experiment with a few other guys to see if there is more upside elsewhere.

 

I also think another year of continuity with Callahan teaching our o-linemen will give Jones (and our whole running game in general) a much bigger boost than some on this site seem to anticipate.

[Jumbo]

http://www.csnmidatlantic.com/washington-redskins/colt-mccoy-matt-jones-ready-own-redskins-backfield?p=ya5nbcs&ocid=yahoo

 

COLT MCCOY: MATT JONES READY TO OWN REDSKINS BACKFIELD

A third-round pick in 2015, Matt Jones showed flashes of immense talent as a rookie running back last year as early as Week 2. That game, a 24-10 win over the St. Louis Rams, Jones rushed 19 times for 123 yards and two touchdowns. 

 

The future looked very bright then, however, the results dried up after that early outburst. It wouldn't be until November before Jones broke the 100-yard barrier again in a blowout victory over the defensively challenged New Orleans Saints. Injuries - and fumble issues - slowed Jones as a rookie. 

 

But it's not totally fair to look at Jones' rookie year without considering that he was the clear-cut backup to veteran Alfred Morris. While Jones and Morris always said the right things about playing together and competing for carries, that kind of situation almost inherently creates an uneasy atmosphere. This fall, Morris will be playing for the Cowboys, and Jay Gruden and Scot McCloughan have made it clear they expect Jones to take over the top running back job for the 'Skins.

 

On Friday, backup QB Colt McCoy talked about Jones on the ESPN 980's Cooley & Kevin. McCoy was bullish about Jones for this season.

"I think Matt Jones is ready to kind of own that backfield and take charge of that position," McCoy said. 

 

Last season, Jones accounted for nearly 800 yards from scrimmage, showing both toughness and speed. But his average yards-per-carry was a problem at 3.4, as was the Washington run game in general. One major difference between the departed Morris and Jones was the ability to catch balls out of the backfield. Morris struggled in the pass game, Jones does not. He had 19 catches for 304 yards and two TDs through the air last season, good for 16 yards-per-catch.

 

"He has the ability to be a guy you want to get the ball in his hands," McCoy said of the former Florida Gator.

 

As for Jones, McCoy senses he's ready to take advantage of his big opportunity.

 

"He’s asking a lot more questions than he was as a rookie. He’s wanting to get coached more out on the field."

 

Much talk will be made of Kirk Cousins having an entire offseason as the cemented starting QB, and how much that will help his development. The same could be said of Jones; who split practice carries and reps as a rookie, but will get the bulk of those chances throughout this summer and fall. 

 

"It just seems like in the locker room he’s more open," McCoy said.

 

For Jones, being more confident will not just be about running the football. He needs to be better in pass blocking and understanding NFL blitz schemes. There's also the simple stuff, like putting the ball on the ground in a December win over the Bears thinking the play was over. That can't happen.

 

Jones made rookie mistakes in 2015, and while that's understandable, it can't be the case in his sophomore season if he and the Redskins are to find success in the run game. 

 

"He just feels more comfortable," McCoy said. "That's a big step, an important step, to that translating to trust on the field."