Where is C. J. Spiller?

When the Saints signed C. J. Spiller in the offseason to a 4 year $16 million contract, I think I can speak for most Saints players when I say it was an exciting addition. The Saints missed the Reggie Bush/Darren Sproles element to their offense in 2014 and I think most of us saw that element returning to the offense in a big way with Spiller. Unfortunately Spiller missed most of training camp with a knee injury that eventually necessitated a scope and would result in him missing the first game of the season.

Since then, Spiller has rushed for 86 yards on 22 carries and no scores in 8 games. That’s an average of 2.75 carries per game for 10.75 yards. He also has 24 catches for 198 yards and 2 touchdowns. That’s an average of 3 catches per game for 24.75 yards. In total the Saints are paying Spiller an average annual salary of $4 million to give them less than 6 touches a game for less than 36 yards. If not for Zach Hocker missing a chip shot against Dallas, which forced Spiller to win the game in overtime with his best play as a Saint going 80 yards for a walk off score, Spiller would be averaging 5.6 touches per game and 25.5 yards from scrimmage. Not to be flippant, but the Saints could be getting that kind of production from a lot of players at the minimum salary. Marcus Murphy, a rookie on the roster with a 7th round draft pick contract, could likely produce at this rate if given more opportunities. We know Sean Payton salivates for shiny new toys in the offense and he needs them now more than ever with Jimmy Graham gone, but the investment in Spiller has been a disaster through 9 weeks. It’s maximized because the Saints are so far up against the cap they really couldn’t afford to shell out real money to guys that are not producing. We won’t even get into the contracts of Brandon Browner, Jairus Byrd, Junior Galette, Keenan Lewis or Zach Strief in this post. It sure would have been nice to spread that 4 years and $16 million out to other role players that could have made more of an impact on this team. Imagine having a decent guard replacing Lelito for that money, or another defensive lineman in the mix that’s a huge upgrade over Tavaris Barnes. Or a veteran receiver. So why is Spiller so absent, anyway?

First off, he’s seems to still be slightly injured. The Saints are being careful with him and slowly working him back in. He’s fresh off a knee procedure and the Saints don’t want to risk re-injury with a heavy workload. When you see him run, he seems a little stiff at times. Secondly, Sean Payton explained in his press conference that with the pass protection problems in the Titans game the Saints had a bigger necessity for Mark Ingram. Ingram is a polished blocker that helps buy time for Brees, something Spiller is not as adept at. But you have to wonder if the issues aren’t bigger than that. This isn’t a one game matchup issue. Spiller’s lack of touches were a problem long before the Titans game. The fact that a season long injury to Khiry Robinson at least through one week has shortened Spiller’s workload further is a major surprise. Is he in the doghouse? Did he have a setback? Does he not know the offense? Whatever the problem may be, he’s active and clearly not playing enough to help this team be more explosive on offense.

If I’m the Saints and I’m sitting at 4-5 with this putrid defense, I open up the playbook and go heavy on Spiller. Ingram is and will always be a big part of the running game as long as he’s a Saint. I’m fine with that. But I’d like to see 10-15 touches for Spiller moving forward. The offense can’t afford not to score, this much is clear, and they need to get a return on this investment. As much as I respect what Ingram has done the last two seasons, Spiller’s game breaking ability can’t be taken advantage of if he’s not on the field.