Crowell/duke jr

[Litesout13]

I could see them being used the same way Gio/Hill were used. Might be a game by game basis on who gets more of the workload with the idea of Crowell being the between the tackles RB and Duke being the pass catching back.

[ninotoreS]

To add to this comment.. if crow does get hurt does hue honesty Duke or terrel Watson as early down back?

In the event of a Crow injury, I think it's likely the Browns would try Duke out for at least a few weeks as a 3-down starter. I could see Watson immediately taking over the short-yardage carries, though.

[ninotoreS]

My thing with Duke Johnson is the same as my thing with Tyler Lockett (yay, a two-fer take!). Their smaller size combined with their concussion history scares me because it could just take one or two hits to end their careers, a la Jahvid Best.

Tyler Lockett doesn't have any known concussion history. Only some vague issue with a cat-scan's result that was apparently refuted upon further examination. Whatever the case, Lockett never missed any games in college with a concussion.

Duke has two concussions in the last three years of football. That's not great, but also not so bad, relatlvely speaking, particularly since the two didn't occur close together. Also, Duke at 210lbs really isn't all that small for the position.

Jahvid Best had one extremely, EXTREMELY severe concussion, which effectively killed his career. The guy was unconscious on the turf for minutes. I don't care if you're 190lbs or 280lbs, anyone that gets concussed that badly probably isn't long for the league.

And extra body weight and height doesn't give your brain any more cushion in your skull. Being tall and heavy vs short and light doesn't have any particular bearing on head trauma vulnerability. Linemen, linebackers, and tight-ends are very well represented among the ranks of players diagnosed with CTE.

[evorzan]

My thing with Duke Johnson is the same as my thing with Tyler Lockett (yay, a two-fer take!). Their smaller size combined with their concussion history scares me because it could just take one or two hits to end their careers, a la Jahvid Best.

Tyler Lockett doesn't have any known concussion history. Only some vague issue with a cat-scan's result that was apparently refuted upon further examination. Whatever the case, Lockett never missed any games in college with a concussion.

Duke has two concussions in the last three years of football. That's not great, but also not so bad, relatlvely speaking, particularly since the two didn't occur close together. Also, Duke at 210lbs really isn't all that small for the position.

Jahvid Best had one extremely, EXTREMELY severe concussion, which effectively killed his career. The guy was unconscious on the turf for minutes. I don't care if you're 190lbs or 280lbs, anyone that gets concussed that badly probably isn't long for the league.

And extra body weight and height doesn't give your brain any more cushion in your skull. Being tall and heavy vs short and light doesn't have any particular bearing on head trauma vulnerability. Linemen, linebackers, and tight-ends are very well represented among the ranks of players diagnosed with CTE.

Hmm, looks like I was mis-remembering the cat scan thing as being a concussion thing. I could be perceiving them incorrectly and I'm willing to admit that's a blind spot of mine. I don't own them anywhere.

[FiremanEd]

If I own Crowell I use this temporary hype to sell at an inflated price. Seems inevitable his stint is short lived, and I'm not sure his production this year will be difference-making anyway. This seems like a glimmer of hope moment to me.

[Jason3123]

All that matters for either of these backs is that Hue Jackson is their coach. They will be successful.

[PurpleHAze20]

I bought a few shares for cheap before the draft and tried to encourage others here viewtopic.php?f=5&t=113370&p=957444#p957444 Im guessing his price will be a little to high for me now though. The time to buy was before the draft in my opinion.

[Bot101]

Ill buy these guys for sure, but only for cheap. If you are relying on Duke/Crow on having big seasons than you are overdue for a rebuild...

[49ersFaithful80]

I'm pretty disappointed in you guys.

A year or so ago all I heard around here is that Crowell is a super elite talent who was the number 1 recruit coming out of high school.

What's changed? back then I'd see a thread every time there was a positive rotoblurb about him.

I was expecting to see a "Crowell is a guaranteed top 5 RB this year" thread with how the off-season has gone for him.

I actually bought him in a couple leagues this off-season despite the fact that I think he's been wildly overrated his entire career. If he can put a couple solid games together I'll be selling high.

[themburns]

I think often concussions go undiagnosed, and particularly Duke Johnson probably has more than 2 concussions. My completely unscientific baseline is to just assume all players start with 1. High school football is no joke, but the medical staff can be. Particularly, Duke has 2 diagnosed ones, but many others that if they did not qualify as concussions, were definitely harsh sub-concussive impacts. Let's not forget Cleveland's medical staff is among the worst in the league, and much of the last concussion protocol was influenced by their negligence in the past.
From 2013: http://articles.sun-sentinel.com/2013-0 ... ssion-test
http://www.sbnation.com/college-footbal ... -miami-hit

I've got him as a danger zone guy. Equal parts dynamic ability and fragility.

[homer]

First, someone mention avoiding a player cause he is afraid of an injury. Should never pass on a player because you are afraid he will get hurt. I was not looking to trade for Cowell/Duke but during my rookie draft. I was offered Crowell/Duke and 4.03 for Forsett and 2.09. I already have Gurley, Zeke and Rawls, so I figured why not. I like Duke better than Crowell. I believe Duke will be a really good PPR back like Woodhead.

[Never Veto1]

As far as rushing for 1000, it's not the craziest thing I've ever read, although it will not be easy as their O-line lost quite a bit of talent in FA with Schwartz and Mack leaving. Could Cro get 1000 total yards this year? That's a bit more likely, even with Duke around.

I think Duke will be a solid low end PPR RB2, a poor man's Gio Bernard, is my guess. Looking at your team, I'd wait for the second one of them strings 2 double digit games back to back and I'd cash out, as i don't love either long term.

My guesses:

-Crowell: 800-900 rushing, 100 receiving, 6 TD's
-Johnson: 400-500 rushing, 300-400 receiving, 4-5 TD's

You do realize Duke pretty much matched or eclipsed those numbers last year. I'd imagine with Hue coming in he will improve on those numbers for sure.

[ninotoreS]

It seems like people don't realize that the 61 passes Duke caught as a rookie already exceeds the number Gio has caught in any of his seasons. Duke isn't another Gio; at this point it's more apt to compare him to Woodhead or Sproles or Dion Lewis. Or if he eventually becomes the starter and reaches what I'm guessing is his ceiling, Brian Westbrook.

I can see no particular logic in projecting him to regress or just mirror his 2015. Duke compiled the numbers that he did despite the coaching staff being criticized several weeks last year for apparently just forgetting to use Duke in the second-half of games (when questioned about it by the media, the typical response was: "we don't have an explanation, it just kind of happened like that despite Duke being so effective in the first half... on a related note I'm looking forward to my vacation slash unemployment in 2016!" ...okay maybe he didn't say that last part); so that is to say, Duke could've easily had more than 61 receptions if DeFilippo hadn't been so lost and out of his depth as a first-time coordinator.

[evorzan]

First, someone mention avoiding a player cause he is afraid of an injury. Should never pass on a player because you are afraid he will get hurt. I was not looking to trade for Cowell/Duke but during my rookie draft. I was offered Crowell/Duke and 4.03 for Forsett and 2.09. I already have Gurley, Zeke and Rawls, so I figured why not. I like Duke better than Crowell. I believe Duke will be a really good PPR back like Woodhead.

Not pass, necessarily, but I'll liberally move a player down my rankings and draft board if they present a significant risk. That sports injury predictor website has Duke at 82%. I tend to defer to them when evaluating injury risks and he came back absurdly high. There is a point at which I would definitely take him. It just happens to be lower than 70% of dynasty players so the odds of me owning him are quite low.

[splendorlex]

I'm a huge fan of Duke, I was a fan of him last year (and drafted him), and I'm a fan of him now. I think if he gets a shot at a 3 down role, he will do very well. He was one of my favorite running backs on tape coming out of college, and in that tape I saw a guy that could do anything, run anywhere, and catch the ball with exceptional skill. I think he may be 2016's breakout RB.