I can see McKnight making the team as a Special team specialist, but that's it. He should have exactly zero touches on offense unless miraculous changes have been made to his game. Greene- 11 fumbles on 822 carries McKnight- 6 fumbles on 112carries It's a BIG difference. Not to mention McKnight has exactly zero tds both rushing and receiving.
It's a lot easier to fumble on special teams than as a RB, therefore I won't count special teams fumbles against him as a rusher. I'm definitely not saying that he doesn't fumble or that he doesn't need to work on it.
His fumbles have been a problem, yes, but not enough to warrant a release. When you factor in rushing attempts, kick returns, punt returns along with receptions he's had his hands on the ball 212 times throughout his first 3 seasons along with I believe 6 fumbles. 5 of those fumbles have came during punt/kick returns. Which means out of the 129 times he's possessed the football during rushes/receptions he's only fumbled the ball 1 time. That's not bad. Now fumbles during punt returns and kick returns are another story, because it's been one too many and/or a little too often but when being objective we shouldn't pounce on his kick return fumbles when he's put up 2,145 kick return yards off an average of 29.3 yards per kick return to go along with two TD's over the previous two seasons. Has he fumbled during rushes and receptions, no. Has he fumbled during punt/kick returns, yes. But at the same time he's also proving to be one of the most explosive/dangerous kick returns in the game today therefore as a fan I appreciate McKnight and just hope to see him learn from mistakes while protecting the football better during returns.
But he also has a better YPCarry avg, Has a run twice as long as Greenes longest run in his 4 year career, Not to mention he can catch the ball out of the backfield, Actually outrun a defender, or <Gasp> make a move and actually force the defender to miss. I'm not down playing fumbles, But I'd much rather take a chance with McKnight learning how to hold onto the ball then to have Greene learn how to be an NFL RB#1. Plenty of backs have shown the ability to overcome the fumbling issue, Lets just hope that he spent the entire off-season carrying around a football and keeping himself in shape.
JetsVilma28, you're lumping rushing attempt fumbles with kick return fumbles. It's a different beast. With all due respect but you're wrong. McKnight has not fumbled the ball 6 times off 112 carries. He's fumbled the football 1 time off 112 carries (when in regards to the RB position). His fumbles have came during returns but he's only fumbled the football 1 time during the 129 times he's touched the football when in regards to rushing attempts/receptions. You also mention the fact that he's yet to score a rushing TD, but then again he's yet to be featured as a RB along with never getting any red zone carries. Judging a RB off of TD's isn't a way to judge a RB but instead, yards per carry is a much stronger indicator of a HB's talents and Joe McKnight not only has a career average of 4.5 yards per carry but also averaged 6.0 yards per carry last season. When judging McKnight on TD's and/or yards per carry it's all a moot point due to small sample size but it's not accurate to consider him a fumbler on the offensive side of the ball (rushing attempts/receptions) when he's only fumbled the ball 1 time during 129 possessions. Now kick return fumbles, that's another topic of discussion but a topic of discussion where he's impacted overall.
[YOUTUBE]2g80WQJqwLA[/YOUTUBE] [YOUTUBE]SmyN-7jBZ1A[/YOUTUBE] [YOUTUBE]L8dtySlji1A[/YOUTUBE] 38 seconds in: [YOUTUBE]iGtGlXrzSFU[/YOUTUBE] 2:06 [YOUTUBE]NUEGi-UdMP0[/YOUTUBE] Shonn Greene is a running back in the NFL. Joe McKnight is a special teamer and major liability at running back.
Well...we don't have Shonn Greene anymore. I think Ivory is a running back in the NFL. I think Goodson has the potential to be a starter, too. I think Powell is a good 2nd back in this league given his performance last year, and I think McKnight has potential as well, especially in special teams if he stops fumbling. We don't need Greene.
I just don't see McKnight as a reliable, professional running back on this roster. I am hoping we have, much, better stock than McKnight.
You were able to find 5 "highlights" for a 5 ( 822 carries ) year career. And I agree all of those are special plays. But, Now put together a compilation of the 1 yard runs and how many times he fell over the line of scrimmage or just put his head down trying to run through someone and failing. I bet it's more then 5.
I am excited about all three of those players. Powell, actually showed some serious promise last season. I love the running game and I love Idzik approach, so far, bringing in competition. Maybe, McKnight has something that I have not seen, but it's year 4 so I kind of doubt it. On Special teams McKnight has made some notable plays. 2 kickoff tds is nice, but 5 special teams fumbles sounds like a lot in 3 seasons. The Dallas punt block is one of my all time favorite moments. I think he has a shot to compete on special team roster, I don't see him as a play maker on the offensive side of the football.
Greene was banged up over the years. He made some HUGE impact plays in the playoffs. If you watch the end of the 2009 season the guy was on 4+ yds a clip all the way through the playoffs until the rib injury in Indy. 2010, he contributed the same way as a #2 back behind aged LT. He had some BIG runs for the New York Jets. Where was McKnight? I'm not, at all, saying I want Greene back. I think #23 is pretty wore down running back, not a feature back, but a solid NFL #2 running back. I think he will do well in Tenn in that role. I think we have 3 solid running backs on this roster in Ivory, Goodson and Powell. I don't think McKnight has a shot at all.
Not the first time McKnight said he would step up. Goodson and Ivory will be a strong 1 2 punch. I doubt McKnight gets many carries. He is a good STer though.
I agree. Highlights can make anyone look great. I've always considered Shonn Greene as nothing more than a very solid backup because he truthfully makes for a down right horrible starting RB (as a #1 option). Reminds me of LaMont Jordan. Really nice backup, although not so much as a feature back. Using a youtube video to show off Greene as a running back would be like an Oakland Raiders fan posting a Youtube video of JaMarcus Russell in order to debate that Russell wasn't a bust. And believe me, there are lots of youtube clips making Russell out to look like a "great quarterback" when in reality, he's the opposite. Same with Shonn Greene. For every nice highlight, he'll put up 4 or 5 stinkers.
I just want to point out that "never talked to me" may not literally mean that Sparano never talked to him. People use that term very loosely. He may have just not have had frequent conversations with McKnight. Sparano is a retard but McKnight needs to prove himself to the coaches in practice before he sees many touches in a game.
I blame the jets for alot of mcknight's issues.it was fairly evident early in his career that he wasnt gonna be a "ground and pound" back.He lacks trucking ability, collision endurance & consistent ball security. They just kept playing that card repeatedly,however, and as a result we've seen durability & consistency issues. Mcknight is a guy you need to get out in space & maximize his carries.Bottom line is jets have failed to put him in optimal situations.
Thank you. I have been saying this for the past 2 seasons. He has been so underutilized it's crazy. Hopefully Morningwheg will actually speak to him and give him a nice package of plays to make use of his talents. Oh and for people thinking he's going to get cut - he's a top 5 KR. That ain't happening.
He's a top 5 KR with Westhoff running special teams. We were spoiled for years, it would be shocking if we could continue the same success without him.
