Brandon Lloyd
Smooth as silk.
I have to say that when I heard about the acquisition of Brandon Lloyd that I wasn't particularly excited. He was the number one option in a woeful offense. He gained 733 yards last season. In an earlier post I compared him to Rod Gardner. Gardner was also the number one option in a woeful offense his rookie year and he went over 1,000 yards (barely).
Lloyd makes some acrobatic catches capable of making the highlight reels. But I never saw any explosive speed from him. I never saw him run past anyone. I didn't see him take over a game and be a difference maker in any games. At least Randle El has explosive potential in addition to the excitement of versatility for trick plays. To me, Lloyd doesn't bring the speed or sharpness that would make him a great number two receiver.
In a group where we're set at H-back (now TE) with Chris Cooley and fullback with Mike Sellers, regularly playing 3 receivers means that we're taking one of those guys out of the equation. More often than not, it'll probably be Cooley since Priest Holmes and Larry Johnson ran behind fullback Tony Richardson to great rushing seasons. Cooley isn't as big or fast as Tony Gonzalez. Nor is he as fast as any other receiver to be split out wide on a regular basis. Therefore, you end up sitting one of your best weapons from last season.
I dearly hope that Brandon Lloyd proves me wrong. I'd like nothing better.
3 comments:
As a Skins fan, I have to say I agree with you for the most part. I think that you may be taking the wrong angle on this though. The 49ers SUCKED @$$ last year and this kid's ability to make plays and be a star was probably hindered by a rookie quarterback and poor offensive line. The Skins demolished them last season with an offense that sputtered throughout most of the season. I agree that I hope Lloyd is a great acqusition, but when you have Santana, Cooley, Portis, and Randle El who are basically proven players, I don't think that Lloyd's performance will be that much of a factor. What I mean is, if he underperforms, then we can start Randle El in his position. If he overperforms, then it's a plus. We went with two small receivers last year and were pretty successful. So I don't see a problem with 3-wide receiver sets with Patton, Moss, and Randle El.
Him and Santana - two burners - is scary. Even if Brunell went down, they'll make life easy for Campbell.
I wouldn't call Lloyd a burner. He ran a 4.63 at the combine when he came out for the draft. He's probably no faster now -- in fact, probably a bit slower because he hasn't been training for the combine.
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