The-Hogs.net - Washington Football Discussion, Redskins to Commanders Era

I think it was "Jake" that was pushing Duce Staley as a possible solution at RB for the Redskins next year.

I was standoffish at first because I hate anything "Eagles" and the idea of Duce coming to D.C. just left a bad taste in my mouth.

Now, I gotta tell ya, I've been very impressed with how Duce performed in the playoffs for the Eagles. He runs with a lot of power and heart and he is an excellent threat out of the backfield!

If the price is right, I am now 100% in favor of this team going after Duce for next year.

I mentioned Duce a couple of times.

I like him in terms of what we're after in a back... it's just his injury history that bothers me.

I like his toughness and running style though.

He'll be a way better cap number than Dillon and while he may not be as good... Duce and Kearse would be better.

I wish there was some way we could get Mike Anderson the FB for the Broncos who can be a starter at RB for many other teams.

The Broncos also have a quality DE who is a free Agent- DE Bert Berry 11.5 sacks this year (his best year) in his sixth year. He would be a good solid pickup who can get pressure on the QB

While I was rooting for Carolina, I was also rooting for Duce Staley to have a solid game, which he did. I don't think we need a thousand yard back to win games, just a really good one. I don't like the Eagles but I like Staley, although his holdout really rubbed me the wrong way. I also feel like I know him because we have something in common, we both can't spell chrysanthimum. (the hilarious United Way commercial)

I think Duce would be the solid feature back that Trung wasn't.

while he may never be in the likes of sweetness or barry, he may not be a bad option. with the cap in effect, you are never gonna have the best players at every position. he may be the type of affordable talent that this team could use.....kind of a best bang for the buck scenario that would allow us to fill a few other needs. i still dislike him for the fact that he was an eagle, but time heals everything i guess.

Gibbs convinced one back to unretire why not another one?

While Trung may not be our feature back, I wouldnt be so quick to dismiss his possible value under the Gibbs regime.

I would not object to bringing in Duce if the numbers were favorable. I just dont want to hand him the keys to the vault like we seem to do when we target a top player. We can use the money elsewhere, not just at RB.

Wingman wrote:While Trung may not be our feature back, I wouldnt be so quick to dismiss his possible value under the Gibbs regime.

Hey Wingman, I think you've hit the nail on the proverbial head, dude. Trung could be that third down type back that Gibbs likes to use as well as the big back. Having a guy like that in the backfield, even lined up WITH a bigger back, gives you so many more options from the power sets.

If we can land GJones in the second round, I say keep trung as your third down back, and let Ladell and Jones split the bulk of your running game, it seemed to work well with Philly this year, and I'm sure would work even better with a Joe Gibbs offense.

hailskins666 so eloquently wrote:

but time heals everything i guess.

Yes it does....and so does multiple touchdowns which Duce would surely provide!

I say get Barry out of retirement, I mean whats he up too anyway...nothing. Give him a billion dollar contract and Superbowl here we come.

Realistically, screw dillon too old and too overpaid, get Duce or draft Greg Jones from FSU or Jackson from Oregon State.

I would be totally opposed to bringing in Duece...come on what next we are all screaming Duuuuuuece at the games next year?? Also aren't we concerned about attitude around here?? Look at what Duece did last year, so we ink him to a small two or three year deal he has a good season under Coach Gibbs and says I want more money. RB is not the most pressing need on this team. I think we could pluck one from the draft.Many of you here have argued that a good D-Line will let us get away with having average DB's, deoesn't the same hold true for our RB's if we have a good O-Line. How can one even begin to evaluate these RB's under the fun and Gun???

I agree with you on that DEHog - none of these backs was used consistently - even when Spurrier did use the backs it was in fits and starts...

I still say Trung is better than what we saw last year due to the injury and the offensive scheme

I also agree with You DEHog. While Duce is a good back what we have to pay for Him and His attitude might be to much with other more pressing needs. Betts, Trung and maybe from the draft Jones or Turner could be just as effective as Duce. Defense should be the 1st priority.

I think it would be a good idea to bring in Duce just for the fact that hes a veteran and could teach our RBs some things..that is if the money is right.

noshirtforyou wrote:I think it would be a good idea to bring in Duce just for the fact that hes a veteran and could teach our RBs some things..that is if the money is right.

Isn't that what coaching is for?? We are strapped this year with the cap, we will know more after the Champ saga is address. RB is just not a area we can afford right now with the D-Line needing a upgrade. As I said before I would like to see Gibbs go into this year with basically the same team, evaluate and make changes next year...I truly believe he can instill a winning addtitude with the players currently on board

Yeah I guess youre right..we do have other priorities than RB.

skinsfaninroanoke writes:

I agree with you on that DEHog - none of these backs was used consistently - even when Spurrier did use the backs it was in fits and starts...

Let's not forget that, in addition to Spurrier's use of an revolving door at RB, another reason our RBs weren't used consistently last year was because they all kept getting injured!

While the DL is surely our primary objective in improving this team, I think RB is a close #2....and I think an upgrade is necessary.

(I like the idea of Trung being our 3rd down back that many have suggested.)

Wingman wrote:While Trung may not be our feature back, I wouldnt be so quick to dismiss his possible value under the Gibbs regime.

I would not object to bringing in Duce if the numbers were favorable. I just dont want to hand him the keys to the vault like we seem to do when we target a top player. We can use the money elsewhere, not just at RB.

thats my theory all along,don,t go big on one thing when you can go after other needs such as defense,DL,DB SS etc.
but then again i would choose the draft on DL espc the DT in the middle.

no more mercenaries... let's get a young guy to build up, not an older guy, probably past his prime, who is injury prone and a holdout. this team doesn't need more egos, cap drains or old, hurting men. let's have patience... let the coaches build up a younger guy.

I probably have as much respect for Duce as a running back as anybody, but one thing really bothers me about brining him in as a FA for 2004:

Over the past couple of years, the Philly front office has shown an uncanny ability to predict when a star player is going to fall off the cliff. Letting Hugh Douglas go before last year looked like a terrible move at the time, but I think it is safe to say the Jags probably wish the Eagles had kept him. Brian Mitchell was absolutely awful this year with the Giants, and Trotter has been nowhere near as good in Landover as he was as an Eagle.

In Staley's case, the Eagles have made no secret of the fact that they had no interest in keeping him past 2003. Maybe this is just a cap thing, but I have a feeling that they would have at least kept their options open if they thought he would be a productive back beyond this year.

I love Duce, but I worry that the Eagles see something that the rest of us don't. I'd rather we avoid the risk and spend our cap space elsewhere.

KCW

My two cents on this:

I agree with 'keep choppin..' in that I don't feel gettin Duce would be the best move. I'm of the strong opinion that had Correll Buckhalter not blown out his knee at the beginning, Duce would've been dealt for some picks. He was making too much money for the production he was giving (2.9 per carry average the year before or something like that). He subsequently held out because he knew he was going to get frozen out. So I don't think the Burgundy and Gold should head in that direction, we can get 3 yards a carry from Trung for all that.

Other names mentioned here:

Dillon - good talent, poor attitude, but if you've suffered with the Bengals as he had, I'd have one too. Still, I question the intelligence of a guy who begs for a trade a week AFTER the deadline has passed, don't think he'll qualify for Joe and his 'smart' requirement (but then again, Dexter couldn't read so...)

Bertrand Berry - I was surprised with the play of this guy, he wasn't on my radar at the beginning of the season, but he might be the type of free agent who flies under the radar but will provide a solid effort in a much needed position, and at below market value possibly (altho the money ain't my problem..)

Greg Jones - If the team could snatch him up in the second round, he would be an excellent pick-up, and could prolly solve the woes at RB...he reminds me of Gerald Riggs back when he was in Atlanta...in any case, he runs over people like a truck, period.

Dont forget about Chris Perry from Michigan and Michael Turner from Northern Illinois, both great backs who can probably be found in high second round

I still believe that Kellen Winslow is too talented to passup, with the plethera of quality backs this year one can be found in the second round, we can adress our line via Free Agency Sam Adams, Jevon Kearse, and so forth

I don't think it's a question of Philly seeing something in him that they want to get rid of so much as seeing so much in Brian Westbrook that they don't want to pay what it will cost to keep Duce for a backup. The Eagles FO is notoriously frugal.

I agree with all sentiments expressed about the Eagles' ability to foresee talent on the decline... they have done a great job... I just think Staley's departure has more to do with Westbrook than anything else.

As I said before I would like to see Gibbs go into this year with basically the same team, evaluate and make changes next year...I truly believe he can instill a winning addtitude with the players currently on board

thats what puscells did in dallass. he brought in a good coaching staff, a few guys he knew could contribute, had a very solid draft and bang......playoffs. they know for a fact it would be a good idea to look for a RB and a QB now, but at least they got a shot. and they sit 10 mil or more under the cap this year because they didn't rush into anything last year.
i wouldn't be suprised to see gibbs do the same.