why betts picked this yr

[bsmsss]

looking at the draft of 2003--it is very very slim at running back--early predictions have 1 running back going in the first round--that player is lee stuggs--he is coming off and acl tear

so if davis refuses to redo his deal ,the skins cant pay him the 11 mil he is do next yr--they were looking at the future and realizing there is no rbs in nexts yr draft and very few impact rbs make it to free agency--so the skins did a good job planning ahead--

[OrangeSkin]

Strange time for RBs. The stars are all late round picks (SD, Mike Anderson, Terrell Davis (well, former star)) and first rounders seem rarer and rarer. How many people think Duckett and Green will develop into all-pros?

[Dale]

Correct me if I'm wrong, but wasn't the concern with the Ladell Betts selection more or less where he was chosen than the fact that you took a RB? It seemed to me that there were better talents available and that was why the pick was questioned. Additionally, I have read that Betts doesn't seem to be the sort of RB who is a future every-down type, rather, he's more of a 3rd down back.

I could be way off base on all that though, so please do correct me if my statements are false...

[RF4L]

bsmsss - you sure are posting a lot, couldn't you think of a more, uh, colorful handle? Something like Louie or Guido? bsmsss? what's that?

orange - what's up with the Kurt Russell photo in all of your posts these days? just kidding, but how about saving it for Sunday school, though? some of us are still heavy into s,d and r&r.:cool:

[bulldog]

Betts' bio indicates he is an inside runner, who rarely gets tackled for a loss but also a player that doesn't have the ability to break the big play.

I just don't see Betts as one of the top 50 college players this past year. I think the Skins could have had him where they got Russell or Bauman.

in the meantime there were some very good players taken in the top 10 to 12 picks of the second round, guys I think we will be hearing about for some years to come.

I would have preferred we make the move for Gurode, Fonoti or Weaver.

All of those guys fill an immediate need and are also prospects that had first round potential.

Betts I don't think was rated that high by anyone other than the Redskins.

[Thinking Skins]

From what I've heard I'lve liked Betts. I think he might be a good replacement for Davis. There may be guys that could do better than him, but could they fit into Spurrier's system? I think that this guy may be a perfect fit for us after Davis departs.

So what if he didnt break the long runs in college. If Spurrier's offense works as we think it will, then he should be able to make a lot of 15-20 yard runs just because teams are afraid of the deep ball. Throw in a little cutback and those runs can turn into touchdowns.

Maybe he shoulda been drafted later, but point is, I think we got a good collection of guys in this years draft/rookie free agents. If we can get contributions from Russell, Betts, the Rock, and that long snapper, then I wont be mad.

[JonBlaze]

Betts' bio indicates he is an inside runner, who rarely gets tackled for a loss but also a player that doesn't have the ability to break the big play.

Sounds like Stephen Davis. I didn't agree with the Betts selection either, mainly because I felt there were better quality players at other positions still available. A backup/replacement RB I can understand, but I would have preferred to go after what I considered a higher rated player in round 2. For instance:

Michael Lewis - SS, Colorado

Antonio Bryant - WR, Pitt

Fred Weary - OG , Tenn

But what do I know, I'm just a football fan. I trust the Skins scouts that they got the right guy in Betts.

[NavyDave]

While I was screaming for an OG for the second year in a row, I'm going to reserve my rant until I see what he can do.

Who is faster Betts or Rock cartwright?

[otdoggpound]

Betts is the perfect fit for the fun n' gun, and is a hell of a lot cheaper than Davis. How many pure running backs did Spurrier have at Florida??? Not too many. Ladell will open a lot of people's eyes.

[PennState11]

My best friend is a huge nebraska fan so i watched their game against Kansas St. and Rock Cartwright is a steal. He makes very solid blocks and runs very hard. Did anyone see his blcok on Roy Williams on the highlights. A sign of things to come

[Skins24]

If betts is perfect for this system, then other teams should be fearing for their lives of what Davis can do. From everything I've read...Betts is nothing more than the inexperienced clone of Davis.

They need to do everthing in their power and then some to keep him.

I would like to see Rock in action. Real live action, not just highlights and stuff. August can't come soon enough!

[bulldog]

well, the point is not to just get a 'serviceable' player like Betts in round 2 as some call him. It is to get the best player available within sight of the team's needs.

I don't think the team did that.

We currently don't have starters at a number of positions and instead we took a guy that is coming in as a clear backup candidate.

In addition, the one thing I don't like is his 4.6 speed.

You've got a guy 5'10 and 220, not big enough to be a bruiser but also not small and fast enough to be a breakaway back.

Maybe you get lucky and the guy becomes a Terry Allen type, inside runner with good vision and physical toughness.

But there is just as much of a chance that Betts won't be fast enough to get outside and not a good enough runner inside to make up for it.

To my way of thinking you should be selecting a player with more definites than that in round 2.

Remember, a lot of round 2 guys are borderline #1's that fall a number of spots.

Can you say that about Betts?

I think he was a late #3 or early #4 player that got lucky being drafted where he was.

To me this pick was a lot like the one for Lloyd Harrison 2 years ago - the coaches were high fiving each other in the War Room and the rest of us were asking ourselves 'who is this guy?' :shootinth

[OrangeSkin]

I'm no scout, but I agree with bulldog. Betts looks like the type of player that is decent in college but just doesn't have the array of skills neccessary for the position...I could be totally off base with this, and hopefully I am, but that's just my impression. I still think we should have traded a few of those picks we acquired and maybe packaged in a player or two to move up and select Gurode or Fonoti.

[W&M]

Actually, I think the critiques of Betts can be narrowed down to two words ... Weaver & Bryant.

All of us wanted a DT (though the reviews of Weaver were mixed), and we all agreed that Bryant was a first round talent, and probably the best value at that point. As for OG, all of the "ready to start" OG's were gone by this point.

So the critiques are relative to what was left, and certainly value is immensly important.

But of course, I don't think many of us realized that S.Davis may (or most likely will) be gone in a year, which sort of changes the perspective of our core needs.

Also, Betts was more than servicable in college, he was very, very productive. And although he lacks the top-geer on straight-away speed, he does have exceptional quickness ... so weren't not dealing with someone with all-aroudn marginal ability.

Personally, I'll take quickness & durability over straight line speed any day ... particuarly if that speed fools the RB into thinking he can always dance and break it outside (i.e., Skip Hicks & Reggie Brooks).

Plus, he had 70 catches in college, and surely that ability will mesh with Spurrier.

Finally, the Skins were not the only one that had him rated that highly. Many people (including Keiper) had Betts rated ahead of the 2 RB's selected in front of him.

Time will tell whether this was wise. If he can play, it was a great pick ... particuarly if it's already been decided that Davis is gone.

[Sailor]

Who can say what Betts will do? Seems to me that anyone beyond the first four or five picks is a crapshoot. Oops, cancel that. Forgot about Ryan Leaf. Can we say the whole thing is a crapshoot?

When was Davis picked? Wasn't it in the fourth round? He would have been a reach had he been picked in the second. Anyone know why he didn't go higher? What was the rap on him?

I still remember when Davis and Skip Hicks were in competition for the starting job. And Hicks was favored :laugh:

[fish]

The "rap" on SD was that Terry Bowden changed the offense to more of a down field / passing attack. That and also, he was hurt at one point while in college.

I'm doing this all from memory but, that's what I remember.

Last Friday ESPN classic ran GA v Auburn (Terrell Davis v Stephen Davis). SD was the MAN. The Auburn O-line was just pummeling the GA D.

[panel]

If we don't try to get Davis back after this year so Betts can replace him, we will all be in for an unpleasant surprise. Davis is very under rated, when you combine the rushing yard over the last 3 years, only Curtis Martin has more than Davis out of all players in the NFL(C. Martin has also had the best offensive Line over that period). I don't understand why people don't seem concerned about the possibility of loosing him.

[W&M]

Everyone knew that S.Davis's stats went down once the offense turned into a downfield passing attack ... but the real knock on him was:

1) S.DAvis couldn't fit into a passing attack. They thought he could catch or adjust to this kind of system.

2) Davis was fast and big, but he ran straight up & down, and that doesn't cut it in the NFL. They didn't think his style would work. And they were right. It wasn't until Davis learned to lower his pads (i.e., playing fullback) that he became great.

[fansince62]

so we're building toward a sb run in the next year or so. oooops....gotta wait again until we get a rb. if the comparisons about development time are valid, then we're in for a slow burn for several years waiting for betts to learn the ropes. 10 to 1 bets (no pun intended) that if we lose S. Davis next year we are in the FA market in half a little lamb's heartbeat looking for a veteran replacement. gotta side with bulldog - this was not a value pick for a second rounder if all we were looking for was insurance against an unknown future event.

[SkinsNorth]

IMO, Betts did offer good value. He was rated by many publications as a second round pick and 1 of the top 5 RB's in the draft. Betts is a very similar player to current Gator RB Earnest Graham, as both are about the same size and both play physically. Betts is a good fit for the system and while he may not be a burner, he is a downfield runner. There are not many backs with Betts' size that run a true 4.4.

As far as Betts being BPA, that is arguable, as none of us were in the redskin draft room. A lot of the other players whose names have been bandied about as better picks also have ??? surrounding their play and/or character.

[BogeyMan]

Stephen Davis was considered probably the top running back in the country and a Heisman trophy candidate after his junior year at Auburn. Then he had a nagging knee injury and Auburn was trying to make their offense more pass oriented, so he had pretty weak stats his senior year. He must have been pretty unimpressive in the draft combines as well.

I just remember thinking the Redskins got a steal when they got him in the 4th round. He got off to a slow start as an NFL running back - he seemed to always dance around waiting for a hole to develop and get tackled for no gain. After he won the starting job I think he finally got enough carries to get comfortable with his vision and timing and hit the hole hard.

[NavyDave]

Wile I want S Davis to remain with the team like th pokes Emmitt is doing he has to renegotiate for this to happen.

Not even Favre is worth 11 million per year so it boils down to either he wants to stay here or its we need to have plan B (Betts?) ready.

S Double not being stupid will platoon several RBs with S Davis to see if we have a capable back this year as well as giving them reps if its inevitable that we are going to have to release S Davis.