Welcome aboard Melvin Gordon!

[DENVERSB50CHAMP]

Glad we have Gordon now

If only we could use him correctly he was averaging like 5.0 ypc and the OC does not use him to grind out the clock when Denver got the ball back on the 50 Yard Line all we had to is run the ball run the clock out kick the FG and win the game.

[Hadez]

Glad we have Gordon now

Ian Rapoport
@RapSheet
#Broncos RB Phillip Lindsay, who is battling turf toe, is still receiving a second opinion. But don’t be surprised to see him miss the next few weeks, just based on the nature of his injury and the position he plays. But it’s not considered long-term.
8:12 AM · Sep 16, 2020·TweetDeck

[lvbronx]

Ill disagree with you twice.
Shane Ray and Lindsay being the 1a

Define 1a? 40% of the combined carries between the two? And how can you disagree when I never made a pick and only set the odds?

[Capt. Jack]

I hope we have a great 1-2 punch in our running game.

[underrated29]

No. Ray's wrist was never "fine" after the injury. But the point is Lindsay had the same injury and it is a serious injury and not about Ray.

Lindsay 4.9 ypc for his career
Gordon 4.0

My point being that some are saying Gordon has already won the job. I'd say Gordon's biggest advantage is his contract, but Lindsay is the last person I would ever count out. I'd set the odds of being #1 RB at about Lindsay at +275 and Gordon at -30 or so.

Ill disagree with you twice.
Shane Ray and Lindsay being the 1a

[samparnell]

Except for QB and T, the offensive positions are deep headed into TC.

[HDbroncos02]

Looking at Shurmur's recent comments, I think it's safe to say that he understands the talents of both Gordon and Lindsay, and they will split time as 1A/1B backs instead of a bellcow vs. backup relationship. Instead of framing Gordon's addition as him taking Lindsay's spot, let's readjust our perspective to Gordon being an upgrade over Freeman-- which he is. In terms of skill-set, I see Gordon as being a necessary back in our backfield. He is simply a better pass catcher than Lindsay and a better blocker than Freeman. The amusing thing I noticed last season was that, despite their body types and playing styles, Freeman was leaned on in the receiving game more than Lindsay, and Lindsay was a much more dependable pass blocker than Freeman. Gordon brings steady talent to those two important aspects of being a RB in today's NFL. He may not have the best YPC and he does struggle with ball security, but I have faith in Shurmur to maximize Gordon's abilities while keeping the backfield stable fresh by giving Lindsay his fair share of touches.

[lvbronx]

Gordon’s ypc numbers are deceiving. When you look at his splits they compare pretty well to most RBs. Or at least I’d assume so, I’ve only looked at how he compared to Lindsay.

Lindsay:
1-3 yards - 2.8
4-6 yards - 3.5
7-9 yards - 4.2
10+ yards - 5.6

Gordon:
1-3 yards - 2.8
4-6 yards - 3.7
7-9 yards - 5.2
10+ yards - 4.2

Fairly similar numbers with Lindsay getting a .2 edge. I do think Lindsay has had a better run blocking oline but on the flip side Gordon has had Rivers to take some pressure off the run game in theory.

Either way I don’t think there’s much of a drop off if any between the two which is a big boon to the offense because there was a considerable drop off between Lindsay and Freeman.

On the topic of Freeman, I don’t think he’s a bad RB either he just needs a little extra time to get a head of steam where as Lindsay can make things happen in a hurry due to his explosion. Gordon is more explosive than Freeman and less than Lindsay but I think he’s better at manipulating defenders to get his own space. I think Gordon will probably fall somewhere between 4.2 and 4.6 ypc this year. Lindsay will still probably end up higher than that though.

Lindsay 4.9 ypc for his career
Gordon 4.0

My point being that some are saying Gordon has already won the job. I'd say Gordon's biggest advantage is his contract, but Lindsay is the last person I would ever count out. I'd set the odds of being #1 RB at about Lindsay at +275 and Gordon at -30 or so.

[lvbronx]

Shane ray sucking ended Shane Ray's career. Didnt do much here. Did squat while with baltimore. Wrist was fine there and when we cut him. He just wasnt very good.

No. Ray's wrist was never "fine" after the injury. But the point is Lindsay had the same injury and it is a serious injury and not about Ray.

[beastlyskronk]

I'm not 100% convinced Gordon is the better back. He's better on 3rd and as a pass catcher. But as far as running the ball Taz averages almost a yard per carry more for their careers.

IMO Gordon is the favorite to be the #1 guy but Taz isn't someone I'd automatically count out either. Lindsay being angry at us signing Gordon then turning his focus to competing is vintage Lindsay. Plus...Taz was a pretty good receiver at CU his Jr year. I wonder how much his wrist injury hurt him last year...it was pretty much the same injury that ended Shane Ray's career.

Gordon’s ypc numbers are deceiving. When you look at his splits they compare pretty well to most RBs. Or at least I’d assume so, I’ve only looked at how he compared to Lindsay.

Lindsay:
1-3 yards - 2.8
4-6 yards - 3.5
7-9 yards - 4.2
10+ yards - 5.6

Gordon:
1-3 yards - 2.8
4-6 yards - 3.7
7-9 yards - 5.2
10+ yards - 4.2

Fairly similar numbers with Lindsay getting a .2 edge. I do think Lindsay has had a better run blocking oline but on the flip side Gordon has had Rivers to take some pressure off the run game in theory.

Either way I don’t think there’s much of a drop off if any between the two which is a big boon to the offense because there was a considerable drop off between Lindsay and Freeman.

On the topic of Freeman, I don’t think he’s a bad RB either he just needs a little extra time to get a head of steam where as Lindsay can make things happen in a hurry due to his explosion. Gordon is more explosive than Freeman and less than Lindsay but I think he’s better at manipulating defenders to get his own space. I think Gordon will probably fall somewhere between 4.2 and 4.6 ypc this year. Lindsay will still probably end up higher than that though.

[underrated29]

Shane ray sucking ended Shane Ray's career. Didnt do much here. Did squat while with baltimore. Wrist was fine there and when we cut him. He just wasnt very good.

[lvbronx]

I'm not 100% convinced Gordon is the better back. He's better on 3rd and as a pass catcher. But as far as running the ball Taz averages almost a yard per carry more for their careers.

IMO Gordon is the favorite to be the #1 guy but Taz isn't someone I'd automatically count out either. Lindsay being angry at us signing Gordon then turning his focus to competing is vintage Lindsay. Plus...Taz was a pretty good receiver at CU his Jr year. I wonder how much his wrist injury hurt him last year...it was pretty much the same injury that ended Shane Ray's career.

[Capt. Jack]

I'm glad we have him, and I hope he does well !

[beastlyskronk]

The Gordon deal is a rare scenario where everyone wins. Gordon’s deal does not hinder our ability to sign anyone still out there as once Simmons gets extended it’ll lower his cap number and we can sign any of the names listed if we can’t already. We also get a top 10 ish RB (after the top 3, 4-20 are pretty interchangeable.) And its only a 2 year deal, there aren’t any cap ramifications beyond next year if he doesn’t play well. If he doesn’t play well, Lindsay is making peanuts on the dollar and has been playing well, similar to the Flynn/Wilson situation in Seattle except Lindsay and Gordon have both proven what they’re capable of already. Gordon wins because it’s about as high as any FA RB is going to get for awhile, he’s on a team that’s trending up with an improving oline (better than his previous for sure), a young QB that will rely on the ground game at times, and it’s still a short enough contract to where he can parlay it into a similar if not better contract when this one expires.

The media just wants to have a story and I think the whole Klis/Schefter Twitter spat gave enough fuel to this fire to keep it going for awhile. People can point to Gurley, but Gurley likely took a little less from Atlanta because he’s from Georgia and the Rams still owe him money so that’s a different situation. Plus Gurley seemingly has to be monitored day to day to keep his knee in check. Gordon’s been very vocal this offseason, which I presume is because he’s been let’s just say sufficiently agitated by the talk around him being “overpaid”. It’s a good source for motivation and he’ll use it push himself which will in turn make Lindsay push harder.

[HDbroncos02]

I was wondering why Stokley was starting trouble with our new star FA signing?
He Seems like a trouble maker to me?
(Shouldn't we be happy to have another Race horse in the Stable)

The media narrative is that we overpaid for a RB in free agency. The analytics indicate that paying crucial millions of cap towards a veteran RB is not the way to go, which is a fair assessment. What is not fair is what Stokley responded to Gordon with—essentially telling him to his face (on Twitter) that he was a mistake because “cap could have been used elsewhere”. It’s not Gordon’s fault that Denver offered him a contract, and if we were in his position and poised to make much more money on our first contract outside of a rookie deal— of course we would take it too. I think it’s all being blown out of proportion by the media because Gordon is only locked in for two years, meaning that by the time his deal is up— we will have money to start re-signing our 2018 draftees and have some cap flexibility overall. Why not add a nice piece to complement Lindsay too? Keeps #30 fresher and lessens our overall dependency on Freeman. Plus, Gordon is a better receiving back than Lindsay and a better blocker than Freeman. We need that veteran presence in the backfield behind Lock. I think it was a good move by our FO. At most, we have arguably one of the best RB duos in the NFL. At worst, we have an upgrade over Freeman.