Countdown to camp: A look at the running backs
With the help of a team trainer, Falcons running back Michael Turner stretches his leg muscles at OTAs on June 13. (Curtis Compton, ccompton@ajc.com)
Birdland – With the Falcons‘ training camp opening on Thursday, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution will take a look at some key positions every day. Today: the running backs.
The 10-day “Countdown to Camp” series started out with the defensive line and followed by the linebackers, cornerbacks, safeties, offensive line, offensive line, special-teams units, wide recievers and tight ends.
The players report for training camp Wednesday and take the field for the first practice at 10:40 a.m. the next day.
THE REALLY BIG QUESTION: How will the Falcons split up the carries between running backs Michael Turner and Jacquizz Rodgers?
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He’s rushed for 5,281 yards and 50 touchdowns over the past four seasons. Only Minnesota’s Adrian Peterson has rushed for more yards (5,411) and touchdowns (52). Tennessee’s Chris Johnson (5,645 yards and 28 touchdowns) and Jacksonville’s Maurice Jones-Drew (5,145, 40) are the only other players in the 5,000-club over the past four seasons.
So why is there a rush to give some of Turner’s carries to second-year running back Jacquizz Rodgers?
Turner, who turned 30 this offseason, is set to enter the last year of his contract. Also, he’s had 1,189 carries of the past four seasons and showed some signs of slippage last season.
Atlanta Falcons' Jacquizz Rodgers (22) celebrates his touchdown catch against the Carolina Panthers with teammate Joe Hawley (61) during the third quarter of an NFL football game in Charlotte, N.C., Sunday, Dec. 11, 2011. AP
Despite leading the NFC in rushing in 2011, there were nine games in which he was held under 76 yards rushing. In four key losses to Tampa Bay, Houston, New Orleans and the New York Giants, he was held to under 50 yards rushing.
Running backs coach Gerald Brown has resided over Turner and fullback Ovie Mughelli’s climb to Pro Bowl status. The 27-year coaching veteran will have his most challenging year with developing a Turner/Rodgers plan and finding a replacement for Mughelli.
“Michael has been our workhorse for a few years,” Brown said after minicamp. “We discussed the possibility of making sure that we monitor his reps so that he can stay strong for us through the season and into December. We feel very good about Jason Snelling and Jacquizz, too.”
Falcons coach Mike Smith has stated that Rodgers will be an integral part of the offense and Brown believes he can get Rodgers ready to play more.
“What he was able to do with not having an offseason, we thought was really good for us [last season],” Brown said.
Mughelli was released in a salary-related move. Fifth-round draft pick Bradie Ewing will compete with veteran Mike Cox and undrafted rookie Lee Meisner for the fullback spot. Snelling can also play some fullback.
“Ewing has done some really good things since he’s been here,” Brown said. “We are happy about the competition that we have at the position right now.”
FIVE GOALS FOR THE RUNNING BACKS IN 2012
1. Find a replacement for former Pro Bowler Ovie Mughelli at fullback.
2. Cut Michael Turner’s carries.
3. Get second-year man Jacquizz Rodgers move involved.
4. Run with more power in short yardage situations.
5. Catch more passes out of the backfield, especially in the new screen attack.
Here’s a look at the running backs:
Michael Turner: He has 50 career touchdowns with the Falcons and needs seven to move past Andre Rison (56) and eight to land in first place in team history ahead of Terance Mathis (57).
Jacquizz Rodgers: He averaged a sub-par 3.6 yards rushing per carry, while picking up 205 yards on 57 carries as a rookie. He also had 21 catches for 188 yards and one touchdown.
Jason Snelling: He led the running backs group with 26 catches last season and could find a role in the team’s new screen passing attack.
Antone Smith: He shined on special teams last season and could compete for the open kickoff return job.
Robbie Frey: He played three seasons in the Big East at Connecticut before transferring to Division II Kutztown. He returned a kickoff for a 95-yard touchdown against Oklahoma in the Fiesta Bowl in Jan. 2011 while with the Huskies.
Dimitri Nance: He’s back for his second stint with the Falcons. He played 12 games with the Green Bay Packers in 2010 after they signed him off the Falcons practice squad.
Lee Meisner: He was invited back after performing well during a rookie minicamp tryout.
Bradie Ewing: He registered 30 touchdown-resulting blocks as he cleared the way for running back Montee Ball. He caught all 28 passes targeted to him last season and 19 of those catches went for first downs and 16 were of 10 yards or more. He was a team captain.
Mike Cox: He played in nine games and made five starts in 2011. He was used almost exclusively as a blocker and caught just two passes for 8 yards.
Training camp Dates, Practice Times (public availability)
Thursday, July 26 Walkthrough 10:40 – 11:25 a.m. (closed to the public)
Practice 3:30 – 5:50 p.m. (open to the public)
Friday, July 27 Walkthrough 10:40 – 11:25 a.m. (closed to the public)
Practice 3:30 – 5:50 p.m. (open to the public)
Saturday, July 28 Walkthrough 10:40 – 11:25 a.m. (closed to the public)
Practice 3:30 – 6:05p.m. (open to the public)
Sunday, July 29 Practice 3:30 – 6:05 p.m. (open to the public)
Monday, July 30 Walkthrough 10:40 – 11:25 a.m. (closed to the public)
Practice 3:30 – 6:05 p.m. (open to the public)
Tuesday, July 31 Walkthrough 10:40 – 11:25 a.m. (closed to the public)
Practice 3:30 – 6:05 p.m. (open to the public)
Wednesday, August 1 Players’ Day Off
Thursday, August 2 Walkthrough 10:40 – 11:25 a.m. (closed to the public)
Practice 3:30 – 6:05 p.m. (open to the public)
Friday, August 3 Practice 10:40 – 11:25 a.m. (closed to the public)
KIA Motors “Friday Night Lights” at Peachtree Ridge High School
6:45 – 9:10 p.m. (open to the public)
Saturday, August 4 Players’ Day Off
Sunday, August 5 Walkthrough 10:40 – 11:25 a.m. (closed to the public)
Practice 3:30 – 5:50 p.m. (open to the public)
Monday, August 6 Walkthrough 11:10 – 11:55 a.m. (closed to the public)
Combined Practice w/ Tennessee Titans
Coahulla Creek High School – Dalton, GA — 4:30 – 7:15 p.m. (open to the public)
Tuesday, August 7 Walkthrough 10:40 – 11:25 a.m. (closed to the public)
Practice 3:30 – 6:05 p.m. (open to the public)
Wednesday, August 8 Pregame Walkthrough – No Media Availability
Thursday, August 9 Falcons vs. Baltimore Ravens, Georgia Dome, 7:30 p.m.
Friday, August 10 Players’ Day Off
Saturday, August 11 Walkthrough 10:40 – 11:25 a.m. (closed to the public)
Practice 3:30 – 6:05 p.m. (open to the public)
Sunday, August 12 Walkthrough 10:40 – 11:25 a.m. (closed to the public)
Practice 3:30 – 6:05 p.m. (open to the public)
Monday, August 13 Practice 3:30 – 6:05 p.m. (closed to the public)
Tuesday, August 14 Walkthrough 10:40 – 11:25 a.m. (closed to the public)
Practice 3:30 – 5:50 p.m. (closed to the public)
Wednesday, August 15 Pregame Walkthrough – No Media Availability
Thursday, August 16 Falcons vs. Cincinnati Bengals, Georgia Dome, 8 p.m. – FOX (National Broadcast)
Friday, August 17 Players’ Day Off
Saturday, August 18 Walkthrough 10:40 – 11:25 a.m. (closed to the public)
Practice 3:30 – 6:05 p.m. (closed to the public)
Sunday, August 19 Walkthrough 10:15 – 11:45 a.m. (closed to the public)
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–D. Orlando Ledbetter, The Atlanta Falcons beat blog
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63 comments Add your comment
Michael M.
July 25th, 2012
3:54 pm
Hahahahaha…………Chase Daniel was so glad Breeze signed the deal because he thought he was going to be the one out on the football field getting his A&& beat up on ! But who can say……….it might just still wind up happening cause Breeze will be the target poster boy for all the teams the Aints were targeting this past season.
SeenThisB4
July 25th, 2012
4:05 pm
Chase Daniel wasn’t the only one that was glad Drew signed his deal. So was I and everybody else in the Crescent City.
Michael
July 25th, 2012
4:20 pm
Tired of reading the same old stuff about the team…”Weatherspoon is going to be a star, the O-Line needs work, Turner is going to have his carries reduced, the Falcons are going to use more screens…” Geesh! Enough already. DOL how about providing us with some information new; something that hasn’t already beeb written about ad nauseum?
Rick
July 25th, 2012
4:45 pm
Seen you are not being truthful. Most of your remarks always center back to your aints. So that is why most on here are just tired of it. The rivarly is fun and cool and its all good to trade “my facts on my team” but like many are saying you bring up the aints every time! We talk Birds on this blog man. I dont mind your remarks I expect them from a aint fan and its fun but what is not cool is the disrespect you give a team that has made it to the playoffs 4 out of 5 years. Regardless how they turned out. Respect the bloggers man, hit us with your “hate falcons lingo” but I think I speak for the RISE UP NATION when I say we dont want to talk Aints. And it gets old! Come on man! If you hate the Falcons that much just stay off the blog man, real fans here.
JSS
July 25th, 2012
5:11 pm
There were 40 minutes between 4:05 and 4:45, where’s “all” that erudite Falcons talk?
Michael, Ledbetter has much chance of getting something “informative”out of the “bunker” out at Foxborough South as a bail bondsmen has of getting any sleep the first weekend back in Athens!
technofalconeer
July 25th, 2012
6:47 pm
being a lifelong tech/falcon fan, I have deep interest in players from tech in the NFL–Mike Cox is a great FB –he led many td runs by pj daniels/tashard choice, jon dwyer among others. he then helped a weak KC team end up leading the nfl with jamal charles–read their web site-they state he was the most unheralded player since 2008–they let him go at the last minute because they thought leron mclain would be a bruising tb/fb player with jamal down with acl–mclain never panned out and is now with another team–cox also has great hands- noted by the gt/kc coaches- my bet is on my tech man when turner decides to stay with him/rogers rides his pants buckle the way the above rb’s have done–in fact, I think rodgers will do better re this[though I like a powerful hard runner such as turner] stay tuned
Mikey
July 25th, 2012
7:47 pm
IMost NFL teams would be quite happy to trade their running backs for this group. They are proven tough and they play with high impact. The scheme has been more of a problem than the players. I do hope that MT33 is practicing his pass receiving skills like never before because it could be his elevation to much higher levels than he has already demonstrated. Can’t wait to see this group in action with a creative scheme. GO FALCONS!
Falcon James
July 25th, 2012
7:58 pm
Had no idea Ewing was such a strong candidate. Those are some pretty impressive stats. Turner has been slipping. It seemed last season that Turner fell down at the line alot. Of course it was not hard to figure out from a defensive perspective that on first down, Turner was coming up the middle. Am I wrong in saying alot of his total yards came on just a couple of long runs? I did not see a consistant 5 to 6 yards per carry. I saw alot of carries with a yard or less result, and then in the 3 rd or 4th quarter a 50 yard gain followed by the 1 yard gains. No disrespect to Turner, but I hope that limit his carries and mix it up.
Stop Trolling
July 25th, 2012
7:59 pm
I’m sure I speak for the majority of Saints fans when I say, this girl Seen B4 is a disgrace to the N.O. fanbase. Every week, the turd trolls opposing team’s blogs to trash their team and fans. But she is absolutely facsinated with the AJC, which is why you can’t get rid of her. The majority of fans visit opposing team blogs to scout their strengths & weaknesses, especially division opponents. But they’re mature enough to avoid posting garbage to stir the fanbase, while unknowingly humiliating themselves. So please let me say, this turd Seen does not represent the Saints fanbase. Just a useless troll who won’t leave mom’s basement. As we do on the NOLA blog, ignore the troll and eventually it’ll go away. Good luck this season – it’s going to be a tough division for all of us.
Flacons never learn
July 25th, 2012
8:21 pm
2 words
Tippy Toes Turner!
DR. FALCON
July 26th, 2012
12:42 am
FATHER TIME CATCHES UP WITH ALL OF US, ESPECIALLY POWER RB’S! TURNER LOOKS GOOD IN T-SHIRTS. AND SHHORTS, BUT, WHEN THE PADS ARE ON, HE LOOKS SLOWER, THAN HE EVER HAS. ESPECIALLY IN HIS START-OFF! IT HAPPENS! LUCKILY, WE HAVE 2 QUALITY BACKUPS, WHO CAN GIVE OUR BELL-COW, SOME RELIEF, LATE IN GAMES!
DR. FALCON
July 26th, 2012
12:46 am
HEY SEENTHISB4, I WILL STILL TAKE MICHAEL TURNER OVER YOUR 2ND YEAR RB, MARK INGRAM, WHO HAS SIGNIFICANTLY YOUNGER LEGS! CAN WE SAY WASTED DRAFT PICK? TELL YOUR FRIEND, HIRAMSAINT, THAT THE FALCONS ARE COMING! DON’T USE SUSPENSIONS, AND INJURIES, AS AN EXCUSE FOR YOUR 5-11 SEASON, THAT SAINTS FANS WILL ENDURE! LOOMIS IS A JOKE, AS A GM!
Tokenwhiteguy
July 26th, 2012
11:19 pm
@SeenthisB4 Get a life! Stop being a troll. Grow the f*** up already.