Will the Bucs running attack be three-pronged or only two?

[DanTurksGhost]

http://blogs.tampabay.com/bucs/2009/03/cadillac-rolling-toward-another-comeback.html

It's way too early to start making predictions or including RB Cadillac Williams in the Bucs' plans for this fall. But there are indications the 2005 Offensive Rookie of the Year is making significant progress in his battle back from his second serious knee injury in as many years.

The most optimistic account comes from fellow RB Earnest Graham. In talking this week about his expectations for the Bucs' new offense, Graham mentioned Williams as a significant part of the attack. That got my attention, so I asked him to elaborate on Williams' status.

[kmitchell]

Graham/Ward will carry most of the loads. I also think Clifton Smith will get some carries as well. I'm not really looking forward to see Caddy out there again.

[dalbuc]

Not all that concerned about Caddy's physical status since this injury wasn't supposed to be as bad as his first. I just wonder if he can mentally trust his body anymore and can be the same player he was. Then you wonder how long his body will actually hold up given his track record.

[kmitchell]

I think Caddy would be a better asset to this team as a RB coach. I do not want to see him take another hit, it might be the one that puts him in a wheel chair.

[Booker Reese]

Why does everybody want to turn so many of our current and past players into coaches? It's not like the best coaches in NFL history were great players.

What Caddy does is instinctive - my guess is he'd be an awful coach.

[CAROLINABUC]

Caddy will help keep Graham and Ward fresh. 10 to 15 carries a game or maybe even less

[Booker Reese]

10 - 15 is a little more than fresh - that's a little less than half the average carries we had per game last year, and we had more than most.

[kmitchell]

I can see Graham getting 10-15, Ward getting 10-15, and Smith or Caddy getting around 5 total.

[anterrabae33]

5 pronged

[DanTurksGhost]

5 pronged

Then it will fit like a glove.

[Simms2Clayton05]

Once Caddy is back he will need to work his way back into it. He will have to deserve every carry he can get. And hey if he is better than Graham or Ward then we want Caddy out on the field. I think if he proves that then you have to use all three.

[Pick6]

Not all that concerned about Caddy's physical status since this injury wasn't supposed to be as bad as his first. I just wonder if he can mentally trust his body anymore and can be the same player he was. Then you wonder how long his body will actually hold up given his track record.

at this point, he almost has to figure he's got nothing to lose.  if he were a player with less will, his career would've been over twice by now....he got his Top 5 pick bonus, a hell of a college career a ROY trophy - if I were him I'd play my butt off like I always have and consider every snap from here on out a bonus....if you get hurt, what can you do?  he's still a violent runner to try to tackle late in the game, we have 3 backs that can all punish you if he comes back, but caddy is still the biggest breakaway threat of the group if he has the same burst he came back from the first injury with.  his vision should shine even more in this system.

if he can keep his body together, i can see him moving ahead of one of those guys on the depth chart and at the end of the day he's still 4 or more years younger than either guy even though they all probably are close in career carries.

[Blaze688]

Not all that concerned about Caddy's physical status since this injury wasn't supposed to be as bad as his first. I just wonder if he can mentally trust his body anymore and can be the same player he was. Then you wonder how long his body will actually hold up given his track record.

caddy is still the biggest breakaway threat of the group

I hate this myth.

Guess how many 40+ yard runs Cadillac has in his career?

One.  And it came in his first career game.

Guess how many Earnest Graham had by week 4 last year?  THREE.

As sad as it is, if there was a homerun threat in this over the last few years, it was Graham.

over-hyped, one-dimensional, oft-injured back that lacks break-away speed and is a liability both as a pass protector and pass receiver.

[Pick6]

Not all that concerned about Caddy's physical status since this injury wasn't supposed to be as bad as his first. I just wonder if he can mentally trust his body anymore and can be the same player he was. Then you wonder how long his body will actually hold up given his track record.

caddy is still the biggest breakaway threat of the group

I hate this myth.

Guess how many 40+ yard runs Cadillac has in his career?

One.  And it came in his first career game.

Guess how many Earnest Graham had by week 4 last year?  THREE.

As sad as it is, if there was a homerun threat in this over the last few years, it was Graham.

you have to take circumstances into account, and look at the lines each player was running behind.  5 yards past the LOS, there's not a run graham can make that caddy couldn't equal or beat.  if i'm not mistaken all 3 of graham's runs came in the 4th - when was the last time caddy was getting alot of carries in the 4th quarter?  aside from maybe the game against the lions this year, maybe 2006 sometime - that's before the right side of the line was there, before jeff faine, davin joseph's rookie year playing between john wade and who-the-heck-knows at LT

as an all-around RB, he's not the weapon that ward and graham are, but as a runner, he was rounding back into form as one of the best of the bunch...i don't know enough about the composition of ward's 5.3 ypc, and that has to be respected, but i don't think that caddy's stats in a vacuum give you a proper sense of his abilities relative to graham.