Okay, I have said that I don't expect much in free agency. That's nominally true, but we do have several signings this stage -- nothing earth shattering, but still worth noting here.
The most interesting to me is signing veteran
RB Julio Henson, away from the defending AFC #1 seed Patriots. So, why would we be spending $9m/yr on a 45/45 rated running back, when we just traded for and extended our 75/75 rated RB1
Brody Carpenter?
Well... (#WarnerWolfVoice) let's go to the video tape (/Wolf).
Last season, our guy Carpenter was our main ball carrier, and posted 273-1166 for 4.27 ypc and 8 TD. A decent season.
The last two seasons, also as the RB1 for a winning team, Henson averaged 198-1098 for 5.5 ypc and 13 TD. That's great.
Now... the Patriots were not even in the bidding for this guy. So, it very well could be that they just feel they have a plug-and-play system that will turn their RB1 into a stats horse. Definitely a possibility, I claim no deep insight into game planning in general, especially for the running game.
But...Henson does have one thing. A standout rating, and it's in the right place - 97 Hole Recognition. Sprinkle in a 64 Breakaway and a slightly higher endurance than Carpenter... and maybe that makes the obviously lesser guy the better guy, at least for purposes of toting the rock on first and ten. I don't know, but with cap space to spare, I will take this risk. The real risk is when we get to the once-a-season (here) decision on who gets the ball. Do I take a third of the workload away from my two horses and give it to this low-rated ratings stud? Perhaps I do, indeed.