A few weeks ago, Dallas Cowboys running back Joseph Randle had an interesting criticism for former running mate DeMarco Murray, stating that he believed that Murray “left a lot of meat on the bone” last year when he led the league in rushing and broke the Cowboys franchise rushing record. Head Coach Jason Garrett addressed Randle’s statement by, basically, stating that the comments were, indeed, innocent but could easily be taken out of context and depicted harshly.
Andy Benoit, a sportswriter for mmqb.si.com and founder of NFLTouchdown.com, wrote about Randle’s comments and agreed with his assessment of Murray’s performance last season stating in the article (full article here) that:
Murray’s strength is his ability to get square downhill, even off contact. His weakness is in his hips, which are a little stiff, and his feet, which are sometimes too heavy to maintain balance when changing direction. But based on some of the decisions Murray made last season, you wonder if he even knows these things about himself.
Benoit then goes on to compliment Randle’s ability as a runner highlighting his 6.7 yards a carry average in a reserve role for the Cowboys. But here’s the thing: Benoit is, actually, correct in his observations of Murray.
His analysis is simply incomplete and it lacks all the necessary context.
On its face, Randle’s criticism, which I also take to be Benoit’s opinion, has a fair amount of accuracy. On some runs, Murray took wrong lanes, and when he did choose the correct lanes (which he did the overwhelming majority of the time), he did not possess the quick feet and top end speed necessary to cut and break off longer runs more often.
But here is where that context comes into play.
Randle and Benoit’s critique of Murray’s performance last season is like saying Michael Phelps could have swam even faster in the 2008 Bejing Games if he didn’t have to breathe. It’s a true statement, but the barometer for greatness is not whether or not someone swam a race perfectly or picked up any and all possible yards on every play. The barometer for greatness is measured by how close someone can get or has gotten to perfection.
Being a starting NFL running back is no easy job. The physical wear and tear on the body is the reason the shelf life for the position is so short in comparison to other positions. Murray averaged 24.5 carries per game last season for the Cowboys and was rarely subbed out as Randle only averaged about three rushing attempts per game to spell him. It would be an unfair expectation to expect a running back to hit the correct hole every running attempt and acquire the greatest amount of yards possible while doing so every single time.
If people were like Madden where you could play 16 games with the energy gauge and the injuries switched to ‘off’ in the settings, then Benoit would have a greater point but it is impossible to tell how many injuries Murray could have played through on any number of his 392 carries and what his energy level was on any of those carries.
In weeks 13 and 14 of last year’s regular season against the Chicago Bears and the Philadelphia Eagles, Murray attempted 63 rushes and compiled 260 yards rushing. However, (after adding context) Murray ran wild all over the Bears for a total of 179 yards on 32 carries. The following week was a completely different story though. The Cowboys called Murray’s number 31 times against the Eagles but only compiled a dismal 81 yards as a result. The Cowboys faced a much more talented front seven in the Eagles but still decided to run Murray into that brick wall repeatedly while spelling him with Randle only twice in the entire game. That kind of physical punishment has a ripple affect on the physical capabilities of the runner. Am I the only one who believes that a fresher Murray could have produced more on some of those carries where he literally put his head down and plunged forward, possibly out of sheer fatigue?
Not many running backs will be fresh enough to make all the correct moves and decisions after incurring that level of physical contact with a 14 day period.
No one accused Murray of having stiff hips and heavy feet when he ran for 100 yards in eight straight games. No one accused Murray of “leaving a lot of meat on the bone” when he was crowned the offensive player of the year. No one criticized Murray for being the warrior that he was and never complaining about the grueling workload he received on a weekly basis. It wasn’t even until after DeMarco Murray signed with the Eagles that anyone believed his production was completely replaceable.
The “anyone” I mentioned in the previous sentence refers to one single group of people — Cowboys fans.
Contrary to popular belief (and common sense), the Dallas Cowboys are America’s team because of the sheer size of their fan base and the rabid loyalty they possess for their team, playoffs or no playoffs. Everyone knew the Dallas offensive line was a great line to run behind but no one attributed all of Murray’s success to the line until after he left. Even Jerry Jones involved himself with this idiocy by stating that he believes that his running back group is better than it was last year.
(Yeah Jerry, you have a better running back group now that the NFL’s leading rusher has left your team and has since been replaced by Darren McFadden. Sure you do.)
Randle and Benoit’s criticism of Murray could have been a result of film study or still photos but hindsight is, and always will be, 20-20. It is easy for someone to point out mistakes in slow-motion and claim someone COULD have been better but are we willing to say that Joseph Randle has the stamina and the ability to duplicate Murray’s production from last year simply because he can now run behind this offensive line? I would be dumbfounded and intrigued all at the same time if someone tried to make a case like that, even if they were a Cowboys fan.
So sorry Mr. Randle and Mr. Benoit. The basis for your argument is true and based in facts but it is incomplete and doesn’t provide the background necessary to tell the full story. The real power in convincing someone is giving all the facts and letting someone choose your way of thinking as their own logical choice, not picking the facts you wish to include and guiding a person’s thought process.
That’s borderline lying.
Add The Sports Daily to your Google News Feed!
