‘23 AL RB Khalifa Keith (Tennessee)

[volbeast33]

He should. He also seemed to correct the fumble problem late in the year. And the wrist surgery should also help correct that. I think his new NIL deal is evidence that he’s projected to have a big year next season.

Start small…… bang him up the middle…. Bring in Wright to get bigger runs….. wrights Carrie’s should go up this year though if he continues to prove he can hang onto the football.

 

[JO VOL]

And Smallnwas 2nd in the SEC in TDs

Misleading. How many big plays ended up in the red zone. Then he just punched it in. How many runs did he break that actually lead to a touchdown. He benefited from the offense. Not vice versa.

 

[swchandler1988]

Weight is bigger and faster. He should be the starter next year.

Wright is faster, absolutely. Definitely not bigger. A simple google search will help with that. And just because someone is bigger and faster doesn’t mean they should be the starter. JWT was bigger and faster than Small

 

[tn4elvis]

He should. He also seemed to correct the fumble problem late in the year. And the wrist surgery should also help correct that. I think his new NIL deal is evidence that he’s projected to have a big year next season.

I wouldn’t be surprised to see him get 1 k on the ground for the year.

 

[Vol in Buckeye Land]

Small is your high school girlfriend who is a 6 on a good day. Wright and Sampson are the two 8s you met the first month at college. At some point it’s time to let go of ole reliable for the potential of a greater payout.

Ah geez, not this “attractive players are better” thing again…

 

[MarcoVol]

Misleading. How many big plays ended up in the red zone. Then he just punched it in. How many runs did he break that actually lead to a touchdown. He benefited from the offense. Not vice versa.

How is it misleading to post an accurate stat?

 

[SweetasSoda]

Wright had some goal line carries too. Over the course of 150+ carries, those goal line carries aren’t enough to make that much of a difference. Wright averaged 1.2 more ypc. The difference was clear. And Wright is getting better.

As others have said, the reason Small got more carries was bell security and pass protection.

I like ball security and pass protection. Glad we have both.

 

[SweetasSoda]

Misleading. How many big plays ended up in the red zone. Then he just punched it in. How many runs did he break that actually lead to a touchdown. He benefited from the offense. Not vice versa.

Hendon and Jaylin benefited from the offense also. Had people saying they didn’t deserve the awards because of it.

 

[sjt18]

Honestly the biggest difference is vision. That’s the hardest thing to teach and Wright has great vision and patience, then he bursts through the holes

You are likely right. But IMO that was a significant weakness for Wright when he first started getting playing time. He seemed to be pretty straight line. It seems to be a strength now. If he improves at a similar rate over the next off season then he could really create some commotion.

I think speed and burst are also advantages for him. He gets around the corner and outruns angles.

 

[sjt18]

Wright is bigger and faster. He should be the starter next year.

Good problem to have... but the most physically gifted is probably Sampson. If he makes an off season jump then he could be 1A.

With the slot position looking thin at the moment, we could see those 3 guys in pairs a lot.

 

[LittleVol]

Small had long TD runs against South Carolina and Vandy. He runs with good pad level. Doesn't fumble. Great hands and makes guys miss. It's hard for a coach to bench a guy who does everything well.

Wright is always one tackle away from housing it! This season he broke free of that last tackle a few times. He's the fastest back in the conference. And when he squares up even 235 lb Linebackers have trouble getting him down.

Small runs hard, but Wright runs with more impact at the point of contact.

 

[UTMVol76]

Small had long TD runs against South Carolina and Vandy. He runs with good pad level. Doesn't fumble. Great hands and makes guys miss. It's hard for a coach to bench a guy who does everything well.

Wright is always one tackle away from housing it! This season he broke free of that last tackle a few times. He's the fastest back in the conference. And when he squares up even 235 lb Linebackers have trouble getting him down.

Small runs hard, but Wright runs with more impact at the point of contact.

Seems to me that Small does the "battering ram" work in wearing a D Line down (along with the O Line) and Wright comes in to finish the deal.

 

[LittleVol]

Seems to me that Small does the "battering ram" work in wearing a D Line down (along with the O Line) and Wright comes in to finish the deal.

They both run the same plays, because they start a series and stay on the field until the offense scores or punts.

Small is a better receiver. But Wright runs with more power. They both attack from inside out all day.

 

[rdk4121]

I think Small has a few things he does better than Wright, but the main things are shiftiness and pass catching. Small has 12 receptions, 106 yards, and 2 TDs. Wright has 2 catches for 8 yards. They both play about the same amount of snaps anyway, I'm not sure why the argument really matter that much. I expect Wright will get a few more carries next year than he did this year as he was very successful this year and I think we'll run the ball even more next year.

 

[walkenvol]

Small had long TD runs against South Carolina and Vandy. He runs with good pad level. Doesn't fumble. Great hands and makes guys miss. It's hard for a coach to bench a guy who does everything well.

Wright is always one tackle away from housing it! This season he broke free of that last tackle a few times. He's the fastest back in the conference. And when he squares up even 235 lb Linebackers have trouble getting him down.

Small runs hard, but Wright runs with more impact at the point of contact.

Gibbs appeared faster to me. JMO

 

[LittleVol]

Gibbs appeared faster to me. JMO

Quickness and lateral speed. Sure.
Won't argue with that.

But I'll take Wright 10 out of 10 times in a break away TD no defender in front of them.

 

[LittleVol]

I think Small has a few things he does better than Wright, but the main things are shiftiness and pass catching. Small has 12 receptions, 106 yards, and 2 TDs. Wright has 2 catches for 8 yards. They both play about the same amount of snaps anyway, I'm not sure why the argument really matter that much. I expect Wright will get a few more carries next year than he did this year as he was very successful this year and I think we'll run the ball even more next year.

Some are minimizing Small's efforts and talent.

Me personally, I just see a better RB for our offense with Jaylen Wright. But he wasn't better than Small 18 months ago. Not even 6 months ago. But now, imo he's a higher caliber player.

 

[Orange.]

If there's any news about Khalifa Keith would someone post it to the football talk thread? Thanks.

 

[LittleVol]

If there's any news about Khalifa Keith would someone post it to the football talk thread? Thanks.

What's stopping you haha?

 

[alexvol]

What's stopping you haha?

I share his frustration ...this tread was hijacked ......nothing about Keith in last several days .Some of us actually click on a post /thread actually expecting something that the thread title indicates is the topic of interest.

 

[OrangeMoundTNVol]

Small had long TD runs against South Carolina and Vandy. He runs with good pad level. Doesn't fumble. Great hands and makes guys miss. It's hard for a coach to bench a guy who does everything well.

Wright is always one tackle away from housing it! This season he broke free of that last tackle a few times. He's the fastest back in the conference. And when he squares up even 235 lb Linebackers have trouble getting him down.

Small runs hard, but Wright runs with more impact at the point of contact.

Wrights physical stature was night and day from year 1 to year 2. Kid will be yoked next season, with another year of Coach Mack working on his vision(which is a very underappreciated quality of Coach Mack) I expect the kid to have 1200 yards next season. Wright is a NFL back, Small is a good college back who's development is stunted due to offseason shoulder surgery every season.

 

[butchna]

I share his frustration ...this tread was hijacked ......nothing about Keith in last several days .Some of us actually click on a post /thread actually expecting something that the thread title indicates is the topic of interest.

Manage your expectations. Conversations morph on here. At least it’s geared towards running backs and how he compares.

 

[BigALWiLson]

Misleading. How many big plays ended up in the red zone. Then he just punched it in. How many runs did he break that actually lead to a touchdown. He benefited from the offense. Not vice versa.

Your opinion is sh1t. He gets the carries because he has earned them by blocking correctly and being the guy with the best ball security. Yes Small had several runs over 20 and and also banging it in inside the 10. He also caught the ball when given the opportunity. And yes he broke a couple of 30 plus. Small does a good job he isn't an NFL all pro but he doesn't deserve the bullsh1t some of you spew. He is consistent and doesn't turn the ball over. The coaches play him and thats what matters. Not your sh1t opinion

 

[walkenvol]

Quickness and lateral speed. Sure.
Won't argue with that.

But I'll take Wright 10 out of 10 times in a break away TD no defender in front of them.

Pics or it didn’t happen - need a clip where Gibbs was chased down from behind?

 

[LittleVol]

Pics or it didn’t happen - need a clip where Gibbs was chased down from behind?

When was Wright chased down from behind?