Felix Surpasses Barber . . . In Weight
Posted by rphillips at 7/25/2010 7:22 PM CDT on truebluefanclub.com
No, Felix Jones hasn't supplanted Marion Barber as the starting running back. Barber is still in the backfield when the first-team offense trots out there, and you can argue both should be considered co-starters because they'll both play a lot.
Jones, even if he's not the "starter", will get his share of touches. Jones has clearly bulked up in anticipation of more work, and Wade Phillips pointed out a general oversight that can be confirmed in the 2010 media guide: Jones actually weighs more than Barber, the supposed thunder to Jones' lightning.
Both players, along with the rest of the roster, made their reporting weights. Phillips said Jones is roughly at 220 and Barber 214.
Barber has indeed looked a little quicker in practice -- a motivation for the weight loss -- but some of it has to do with being healthy. He didn't consistently look like himself in 2009 due in large part to a strained quad.
Meanwhile, Jones hasn't seemed to lose a bit of his trademark burst. Both players ripped off big runs in Sunday's practices. It's very, very early, but that's a good sign for the offense.
-Rob
Posted by rphillips at 7/25/2010 7:22 PM CDT on truebluefanclub.com
No, Felix Jones hasn't supplanted Marion Barber as the starting running back. Barber is still in the backfield when the first-team offense trots out there, and you can argue both should be considered co-starters because they'll both play a lot.
Jones, even if he's not the "starter", will get his share of touches. Jones has clearly bulked up in anticipation of more work, and Wade Phillips pointed out a general oversight that can be confirmed in the 2010 media guide: Jones actually weighs more than Barber, the supposed thunder to Jones' lightning.
Both players, along with the rest of the roster, made their reporting weights. Phillips said Jones is roughly at 220 and Barber 214.
Barber has indeed looked a little quicker in practice -- a motivation for the weight loss -- but some of it has to do with being healthy. He didn't consistently look like himself in 2009 due in large part to a strained quad.
Meanwhile, Jones hasn't seemed to lose a bit of his trademark burst. Both players ripped off big runs in Sunday's practices. It's very, very early, but that's a good sign for the offense.
-Rob