SB Nation User Blog: Robert Rence

Running Backs with and without Favre.

Robert Rence — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 13:52:39 -0000

A LOT has been said about the differences between the Quarterbacks. Stats have been hashed up, injuries have been scrutinized, and recently Defensive Indifferance made an in-depth post about it, as was pointed out on Gonzo's Viking Vegur. So, remembering how well Thomas Jones ended up doing last year, I decided to do a side by side comparison. And not to be incomplete, I figured I'd check Ryan Grant's stats as well from Green Bay.

Here are Thomas Jones' stats from the 2007 season.

G	Att	Yds	Avg	Lng	TD	Rec	Yds	Avg	Lng	TD	FUM	Lost
16	310	1119	3.6	36	1	28	217	7.8	25	1	2	0

And here are his stats from the 2008 season.

G	Att	Yds	Avg	Lng	TD	Rec	Yds	Avg	Lng	TD	FUM	Lost
16	290	1312	4.5	59T	13	36	207	5.8	19	2	2	1

Ryan Grant in the 2007 season.

G	Att	Yds	Avg	Lng	TD	Rec	Yds	Avg	Lng	TD	FUM	Lost
15	188	956	5.1	66T	8	30	145	4.8	21	0	1	1

And finally, Ryan Grant in the 2008 season.

G	Att	Yds	Avg	Lng	TD	Rec	Yds	Avg	Lng	TD	FUM	Lost
16	312	1203	3.9	57	4	18	116	6.4	17T	1	4	3

Is there a noticable difference? I would certainly say that, yes, there is. In rooughly ten percent less attempts, Thomas Jones ended up with a nearly one yard increase in his average and an additional 12 touchdowns over the course of the season. His reception average went down however getting less yards on more receptions.. As he is a Running Back however, I consider the first part more important.

Meanwhile, Ryan Grant's rushing dropped significantly. In nearly 140 more attempts in 2008, Ryan managed another 250 yards, and his average run dropped 1.2 yards in length. Additionally, in nearly twice the carries, he got half as many touchdowns as he did in the 2007 season.And without Favre, his average receptions went up as well, by nearly two points. On under twenty receptions. Another stat to be thrown out.

I would like to do some follow-up analysis on this as well, by getting the average YAC for Green Bay and the Jets in 2007 and 2008. If my guess is correct, the Green Bay average increased in 2008, while the Jets would decrease. If that is the case, I believe this will show that opposing defenses did consider Favre in their game plans, allowing for a noticable increase in the running game at the expense of the passing game. If someone would know where to look those stats up, I would greatly appreciate it.

Childress actually speaks on record about the Favre issue.

Robert Rence — Wed, 10 Jun 2009 15:21:42 -0000

This is not a drill. Childress has actually gone on public record about this now during a morning interview on KFAN. And much thanks to Kevin Seifert at ESPN for the following article summarizing it:

http://myespn.go.com/blogs/nfcnorth/0-12-37/Childress-speaks-on-Favre----in-the-present-tense.html

Highlights are as follows:

Minnesota coach Brad Childress made two key points Wednesday morning in his expansive comments on the Vikings' pursuit of quarterback Brett Favre:

He established no deadline for Favre to sign a contract.

He wants Favre to join the team if his arm is healthy.

Asked whether he thinks Favre can help the Vikings in 2009, Childress said:

"My opinion is that he was a great player. He obviously had a setback last year and was playing very well early. If in fact he's had that surgery, I'm anxious to see exactly what he has left in that cannon. Because he had a pretty good arm, as we know."

But Childress left little doubt that his interest in Favre remains in the present tense and is tied to the physical condition of Favre's arm. He has explained the situation to his current quarterbacks, Tarvaris Jackson and Sage Rosenfels, and said, "I'm not worried about" their reaction.

"I've talked with Sage and Tarvaris," Childress said. "They're competitors. Do they like any of the conversation? Absolutely not. But they know this: I'm charged with adding and subtracting players from this team to make us better. Every day when I walk into this office, there's not a day that I don't try to look and see if we can't get better at some position. If this is going to make us better down the road, and if this has got a chance to happen, I'm going to take care of the Minnesota Vikings."

The partial podcast can be found at the link below:

http://a1135.g.akamai.net/f/1135/18227/1h/cchannel.download.akamai.com/18227/podcast/MINNEAPOLIS-MN/KFAN-AM/PWRTRIP061009_ChildressFINAL.mp3?CPROG=PCAST&MARKET=MINNEAPOLIS-MN&NG_FORMAT=sports&SITE_ID=612&STATION_ID=KFAN-AM&PCAST_AUTHOR=KFAN_AM_1130&PCAST_CAT=Sports_Radio&PCAST_TITLE=Purple_on_Demand_-_Vikings_Podcast

Okay now that this is actually up, I can add a commentary. Damn other fans who I need to beat to the blogging punch.

*Shakes fist*

For the most part, this is Seifert's article with the opinions cut out. So now I'm tossing in my own opinions.

By actually coming out and saying this, Childress has effectively shut all the (will they/won't they) speculation up. And I'm fine with that. Now the speculation will focus on two things: Favre himself and WHEN not IF he will join the team. Which gets one spotlight off of our training camp. He has also spoken with the QBs about it and while he knows they're not happy, he doesn't give a damn.

This is a first for me, but I think this is the first time I've seen Childress show proper leadership qualities.

So what we're left with now is... repair time. And I'm fine with that. There are those who say "OMG, y aren't u studying or with the team NOWWWW?!?!?" And the flat answer is, he doesn't know if he can. If his arm still isn't feeling well eight weeks post surgery, why the hell would he be here in the first place? Additionally, most teams will run a player through a physical before signing them and I don't see any reason why that should change now. Our worst case scenario is that on August 3rd, Favre shows up and says he's ready. At which point he gets only six weeks with the first team before heading out onto the field against Cleveland.

Coached by Mangini.

This should be interesting.

The Brett Favre drinking game

Robert Rence — Fri, 08 May 2009 21:45:00 -0000

Might as well enjoy our time being innundated with Brett Favre news. I advise that you do not play this game with Skol-aid or any other alcoholic products. You should be working during the day. Not drinking.

Or camping out on the DN's front lawn.

But I digress.

Have a swig of soda if:

There is a "new" News story about Brett Favre.

An un-named source is sited.

They mention, "mowing the lawn", "using his tractor", or "wrangler jeans"

Bus Cook is quoted as saying "Brett Favre will remain retired" or a variation on the theme.

Have two swigs of soda if:

A Viking is quoted for their thoughts on the matter.

Ted Thompson is mentioned in the article.

Have three swigs of soda if:

A Packer is quoted for their thoughts on the matter.

Down your drink if:

The news is actually a substantial development.

Politics and Favre

Robert Rence — Wed, 06 May 2009 19:15:53 -0000

In all honesty, those two words shouldn't go together. At all. But this is an angle I feel it is important to highlight in it's own post.

Minnesota Gov. Pawlenty had this to say (courtesy of the Associated Press):

"He says it would be "a wonderful little salt to rub in the eyes of some of our Green Bay Packer friends."

Pawlenty laid out the scene: "Can you imagine Brett Favre going into Lambeau Field in Viking purple and maybe even wearing No. 4? There would be audible gasps. There would be 60,000 audible gasps as he came out of the tunnel."

Now, ever since Zygi has come to own the Vikings, he has had two priorities:

1) Spend the money necessary to improve all facets of the Vikings organization. Winter Park went from being a step above the Y to a top of the line center. The coaching staff swelled from bare-bones over-stretched also-rans to well-compensated specialist... also-rans (Zing! Eat it Childress!)

2) Get a new stadium, complete with a large real-estate park nearby. While publically, this one shows up once every few months, this is certainly the most important to Zygi. And at every turn, Pawlenty has shot the idea down. In fact, this is the first time I can recall Pawlenty saying something positive about the team. And Zygi knows the political game. (Thank you Viking83 for pulling up the wheel-greasing here) He did real estate in Jersey, he can do it here. And now he has a weak point to needle at with Pawlenty.

Additionally, according to Access Vikings, ESPN has pointed out that there may be a possible sticking point with Favre not wanting to work out during the mandatory off-season training camps. If the result of the meeting is that Childress says "No, I don't want him." I think Zygi would over-rule him. So far, Zygi has simply been willing to sign the checks to get what he needs. And if Childress appears to be an active barrier preventing the Vikings from getting a new stadium. Zygi will likely give Childress two options. Stop bitching or get shit-canned.

I've given my perspective on it from more of a organizational standpoint. Do you think I'm off my rocker? Or does Favre REALLY give us a better shot at a stadium?

Stop me if you've heard this one before

Robert Rence — Thu, 23 Apr 2009 18:25:20 -0000

If you're going to be watching the draft this weekend, I'm sure you're going to be hearing about past drafts. Specifically, a draft where the Vikes allowed their pick to slip during the first round. And just in case you're thinking people MAY have forgotten about the event. DJ Gallo's already dragging the joke out of the grave and brushing the dust off.

So:

How many times do you think the talking heads will bring up the event?

Scheduling heads up

Robert Rence — Thu, 09 Apr 2009 20:51:41 -0000

Saw this on ESPN today. Rip it all you want, it's still the first place I check for info.

The NFL schedule will be released Tuesday at 7 p.m. ET, in prime time for the first time. The entire 2009 regular-season schedule, including sites and times for all 256 regular-season games, will be released.

So, in a little under a week, we get to find when we get to yell at Packers, Bears, and Lions fans more frequently than usual. Politely, of course.

Bus Cook makes play for most obnoxious agent since Drew Rosenhaus, Scott Boras

Robert Rence — Mon, 16 Mar 2009 20:45:56 -0000

The folks over at Mile High Report made a point that I had to think about for a bit today, and I feel it's important enough to open up a topic over here.

Last year, a few of you may remember a certain quarterback wanted to be released, and have no restrictions on to where he could sign. (He also wanted a chance to actually compete for his job, but I digress)

This year, we have another quarterback who was slighted by his team, wants out of town, and let's be completely honest here, we, as fans of the Vikings, see nothing wrong with stirring the pot in order to see him wearing Purple and Gold.

However, the major link between these two players is that they share an agent who appears that he's gotten a taste of the spotlight, and seems to be enjoying it too much.

Which leads me to believe that even if we did get Cutler, we'd have about two years before this leech would stir the pot again, and then it would be us going through the extremely fun situation that folks in Denver are going through now.

So, am I being overly paranoid, or will we see another Bus Cook agent causing similar stress fractures this time next year?

As a side note, I still believe that Scott Boras is the most obnoxious agent there is. Announcing during the World Series that your client is available? Low.

Shennanigans!

Robert Rence — Mon, 02 Mar 2009 05:24:44 -0000

Hey folks, sorry I've been away for a while. Real life's been busy, and I had to do some comp maintenance, which caused me to lose my password to this site, which caused...

You don't actually care, do you?

Alright, so just a few comments on the NFL dealings as of late:

The Williams Wall is set for trial in June. Which means it'll wrap up around the end of training camp. I still see the case as that yes, while the Williams' did break the NFL code of conduct, the NFL has an obligation to the health of it's players to disclose it's knowledge of harmful suppliments. So while it's likely that they'll end up suspended, hopefully the NFL will change it's policy. Also, some other players are affected, but I care significantly less about them.

Two NFL players are currently lost at sea and things are looking grim. Hopefully they show up soon along with the other two people on the boat.

Houshetc... is currently spending the night in the cities, and he'll have his decision tomorrow. Hopefully he's happy wherever he ends up. More hopefully, he'll be wearing purple and gold next year. C'mon Zygi!

The Patriots dealt Vrabel and Cassel to the Kansas City chiefs for a 2nd round draft pick.. After franchising Cassel ( which would require TWO first round draft picks in order to steal from the Pats) and after the Broncos supposedly offered a 1st round pick for him. Additionally, as of note, former members of the Pats organization are also now in the KC and Denver organizations at the GM level and Head coach level respectively. What does this cause?

1) People wondering about a lot of backroom deals.

2) KC and Denver hate each other more.

3) Denver's QB is demanding a trade.

And, hey, will ya look at that? The Pats play the Broncos this year. Funny that they wouldn't want to give them their quarterback, now, isn't it.

Bill Belichek(sp?) is pretty damn crafty. And I'm sure that if he could find a way to cause a team he would play later in the year undue amounts of stress that would primarily be directed at another team, he'd do it in a second.

that covers about all the areas that I think needed mentioning. I wish we'd gotten Garcia instead of Rosencrants, but hey, you work with what you got. Hopefully Childress will give him an actual chance to win the starting job instead of handing it to Jackson. Again.

Post super-bowl reactions.

Robert Rence — Mon, 02 Feb 2009 03:31:27 -0000

Man... I wish we kept Tomlin.

It wasn't the best Super Bowl I'd ever seen, but I'd rank it solid third, behind the Rams/Titans and last year's flat out awesome game.

The best commercials went to Hulu's Brain Drain, followed by Conan O'Brian shilling for Bud Light in Sweden.

All in all, good game, I'm glad I watched it, now I'm gonna go let the Nyquil do it's trick.

Something fans of the Eags and the Vikes will enjoy

Robert Rence — Fri, 02 Jan 2009 17:00:11 -0000

Taken from Bill Simmons column today:

** Philly's Andy Reid will be battling former assistant Brad Childress on Sunday in a matchup Peter King described as "teacher vs. pupil." Teacher vs. pupil???? That explains everything! Do you think Reid tutored Childress in classes like "Screwing up a Two-Minute Drill," "Hanging Your QB Out to Dry," "Dumb and Possibly Damaging Field Goal Attempts," "Idiotic Short-Yardage Calls," "Special Teams Collapses," "How To Blow Your Challenges," "Leaving Yourself With No Timeouts" and "How To Remain Calm As You're Getting Booed By Your Own Fans"?