http://www.nfl.com/fantasy/story/9580931
Fantasy Extra reports:
Rhodes, Addai compete
(Aug. 3, 2006) -- Note: The following items were posted today as part of the exclusive daily training camp updates on NFL.com's Fantasy Extra. For the most comprehensive training camp news, expert fantasy mock drafts and unbeatable fantasy analysis, subscribe to Fantasy Extra today.
Colts: Addai Impressing; Stokley More Involved?
There's no doubt that one of the hottest camp battles for fantasy owners this year is between RBs Dominic Rhodes and rookie Joseph Addai.
As expected, Rhodes entered camp with the edge because he's been in the offense for several years.
"Dominic deserves it. He has the most experience. He has played, he is a 1,000-yard rusher and number two behind (former starting RB) Edgerrin (James) last year. That's where it is and we'll see what happens," head coach Tony Dungy.
While that may be the case, team observers noted that Addai has clearly been the most impressive in camp of the two. What has surprised many has been his ability to catch the ball out of the back field and his understanding of a very complex offense.
"The biggest thing about Joseph so far, I think everyone on the staff has talked about, is composure. We do a lot of things on offense and he's run with the first group, been in with (starting QB) Peyton (Manning), had some plays changed at the last second, and none of that has flustered him. He did a good job in pass protection in the two drills that we had. He understands how to play the game. He has tremendous speed. He's a little bit better in the hole than we thought. He's made some people miss in the hole in his first three days, but more than anything, he doesn't seem to get flustered and that's going to help him," Dungy said.
Manning has also been impressed with Addai's hands.
"I think that's one reason that (Colts' President) Bill (Polian) drafted him. He loved his running game, but he knows in this offense our backs are going to be called on to catch the ball on swing routes. I think Bill saw that he caught the ball well, or he wouldn't have taken him. His hands have been a nice bonus in his game."
Both backs will have to be good pass protectors. James was one of the better blocking backs in the league. "Pass protection is critical for us and all of those guys know it. That's one thing where Edgerrin was really underrated. I think he was a tremendous protector. So, they have big shoes to fill, but the positive is you want to be in the game and that's the situation. You have to be able to protect and they know that," the head coach said.
Manning knows that it will be hard to replace James.
"Certainly we have high expectations. We are going to put a lot on those guys. We are not going to call different plays because Edgerrin James is not here. Edgerrin has spoiled us for a long time with some of the things he's been able to do. For us to be the kind of team we need to be, we have to be able to run the same plays and make the same checks and call multiple plays in the huddle and to have that flexibility. Dominic has been here for a number of years. He's getting more repetitions than he's ever had. With Joseph we don't have a lot of patience with rookies. We put a lot on these guys. That's what the mini camps and summer schools are for. He has responded brilliantly up to this day as far as his real intent to learn the offense. There is a real difference between learning the offense and memorizing it. Some guys just memorize the scripts but that's not really learning the offense. You learn it by understanding why we do things. Both of those guys are doing a good job of getting comfortable with what we are doing. We expect big things out of the running game this year."
Elsewhere, No. 3 WR Brandon Stokley's numbers dropped quite a bit last season and Manning is well aware of it.
"Brandon is a great teammate. Brandon is the No. 3 receiver in the slot. He is probably a number one or two on many other teams. We're lucky to have guys like (No. 1) Marvin (Harrison) and (No. 2) Reggie (Wayne) that make so many plays. Brandon is an unbelievably unselfish guy, and at the same time, very competitive. He loves football and everything about it, with the blocking and the mental aspect. He understands how important that is. He is my roommate here in camp, so he is one of my buddies. Last year was probably a frustrating year because he came off this 10-touchdown, 70-catch season and had one touchdown last year. That's our fault. That's my fault and (OC) Tom Moore has made it a point to get him involved, because when he gets the ball in his hands, big things happen. That's been a point of emphasis for us, to get the ball in Brandon's hands to hopefully make us more explosive."
Fantasy Analysis: We expected them to give Rhodes the first crack at the job out of respect to him, but he's not built to handle 15-20 carries a game long term. That's why they drafted Addai. We see this as a running back by committee situation early on, but look for Addai to take the job by Weeks 3-4 of the regular season. We see him as a decent No. 2 RB this season for fantasy owners. Rhodes is worth selecting for depth.
Fantasy Extra reports:
Rhodes, Addai compete
(Aug. 3, 2006) -- Note: The following items were posted today as part of the exclusive daily training camp updates on NFL.com's Fantasy Extra. For the most comprehensive training camp news, expert fantasy mock drafts and unbeatable fantasy analysis, subscribe to Fantasy Extra today.
Colts: Addai Impressing; Stokley More Involved?
There's no doubt that one of the hottest camp battles for fantasy owners this year is between RBs Dominic Rhodes and rookie Joseph Addai.
As expected, Rhodes entered camp with the edge because he's been in the offense for several years.
"Dominic deserves it. He has the most experience. He has played, he is a 1,000-yard rusher and number two behind (former starting RB) Edgerrin (James) last year. That's where it is and we'll see what happens," head coach Tony Dungy.
While that may be the case, team observers noted that Addai has clearly been the most impressive in camp of the two. What has surprised many has been his ability to catch the ball out of the back field and his understanding of a very complex offense.
"The biggest thing about Joseph so far, I think everyone on the staff has talked about, is composure. We do a lot of things on offense and he's run with the first group, been in with (starting QB) Peyton (Manning), had some plays changed at the last second, and none of that has flustered him. He did a good job in pass protection in the two drills that we had. He understands how to play the game. He has tremendous speed. He's a little bit better in the hole than we thought. He's made some people miss in the hole in his first three days, but more than anything, he doesn't seem to get flustered and that's going to help him," Dungy said.
Manning has also been impressed with Addai's hands.
"I think that's one reason that (Colts' President) Bill (Polian) drafted him. He loved his running game, but he knows in this offense our backs are going to be called on to catch the ball on swing routes. I think Bill saw that he caught the ball well, or he wouldn't have taken him. His hands have been a nice bonus in his game."
Both backs will have to be good pass protectors. James was one of the better blocking backs in the league. "Pass protection is critical for us and all of those guys know it. That's one thing where Edgerrin was really underrated. I think he was a tremendous protector. So, they have big shoes to fill, but the positive is you want to be in the game and that's the situation. You have to be able to protect and they know that," the head coach said.
Manning knows that it will be hard to replace James.
"Certainly we have high expectations. We are going to put a lot on those guys. We are not going to call different plays because Edgerrin James is not here. Edgerrin has spoiled us for a long time with some of the things he's been able to do. For us to be the kind of team we need to be, we have to be able to run the same plays and make the same checks and call multiple plays in the huddle and to have that flexibility. Dominic has been here for a number of years. He's getting more repetitions than he's ever had. With Joseph we don't have a lot of patience with rookies. We put a lot on these guys. That's what the mini camps and summer schools are for. He has responded brilliantly up to this day as far as his real intent to learn the offense. There is a real difference between learning the offense and memorizing it. Some guys just memorize the scripts but that's not really learning the offense. You learn it by understanding why we do things. Both of those guys are doing a good job of getting comfortable with what we are doing. We expect big things out of the running game this year."
Elsewhere, No. 3 WR Brandon Stokley's numbers dropped quite a bit last season and Manning is well aware of it.
"Brandon is a great teammate. Brandon is the No. 3 receiver in the slot. He is probably a number one or two on many other teams. We're lucky to have guys like (No. 1) Marvin (Harrison) and (No. 2) Reggie (Wayne) that make so many plays. Brandon is an unbelievably unselfish guy, and at the same time, very competitive. He loves football and everything about it, with the blocking and the mental aspect. He understands how important that is. He is my roommate here in camp, so he is one of my buddies. Last year was probably a frustrating year because he came off this 10-touchdown, 70-catch season and had one touchdown last year. That's our fault. That's my fault and (OC) Tom Moore has made it a point to get him involved, because when he gets the ball in his hands, big things happen. That's been a point of emphasis for us, to get the ball in Brandon's hands to hopefully make us more explosive."
Fantasy Analysis: We expected them to give Rhodes the first crack at the job out of respect to him, but he's not built to handle 15-20 carries a game long term. That's why they drafted Addai. We see this as a running back by committee situation early on, but look for Addai to take the job by Weeks 3-4 of the regular season. We see him as a decent No. 2 RB this season for fantasy owners. Rhodes is worth selecting for depth.