Terry Metcalf, Lionel James, Darren Sproles, Tarik Cohen

Bryan · Post by **Bryan** » Fri Aug 09, 2019 9:01 am

I find it interesting that throughout history the NFL will have a little all-purpose RB who racks up big yardage...Metcalf and Mack Herron traded single-season yardage records...I think Little Train James broke it in the 80's...Darren Sproles has been around forever...Cohen came from NC A&T to kick start the Bears offense. But its kind of an irregular event. After Metcalf hit it big with the Cardinals, you didn't really have other NFL teams clamoring to find those type of players. Sproles was kind of the only RB with his skillset for a number of years.

You'd think the NFL would be able to find these small RBs in college football and use them in the NFL. I remember Anthony Davis of USC and Johnny Rodgers of Nebraska not getting much of a look in the NFL (and not doing much), yet they were big time college stars. Is the NFL just simply reluctant to use small RBs despite previous success of these players? Is there something in Metcalf/Sproles/Cohen's ability that completely separates them from other similar college RBs?

Rupert Patrick · Post by **Rupert Patrick** » Fri Aug 09, 2019 1:15 pm

Mack Herron's career always puzzled me. He had two outstanding years in the CFL, got kicked off the Winnipeg team for drugs, went to New England, where he led the NFL in kickoff returns in 1973 and led the league in all purpose yards in 1974. Herron, in my opinion, was the key ingredient in New England's turnaround in 1974. In 1975, Herron caught a total of five passes during the eight weeks before he was released, he never carried the ball more than 13 times a game despite a higher rushing average than in 1974 when he rushed for over 800 yards, and he returned a grand total of two kickoffs and 12 punts with the Pats. According to the wikipedia (which is a dubious source at best for the truth), it states that Herron was cut because of his lack of performance and his throwing a party for Leon Gray. I hate to point this out, but it isn't a lack of performance if you're not throwing the ball to him or not allowing him to return kickoffs. Must have been quite a party; wish I were invited. Anyhow, he was cut, went to Atlanta to four games, and his pro football career was over. Not having Mack Herron was surely the main reason for the Patriots dropoff in 1975, and with their great draft class of 1976, they were able to get back to where they were in the first half of the 1974 season. I've always felt that the late 70's Patriot teams with a healthy Mack Herron might have been unstoppable; he might have been the missing piece that could have put them over the top in 1976, and maybe 1977 also.

Rupert Patrick · Post by **Rupert Patrick** » Fri Aug 09, 2019 1:47 pm

He might be a little big (5-9) for this type of player but Stump Mitchell was kinda in this species where he returned punts and kickoffs and rushed and caught some passes and was pretty good at everything despite being a little guy but not quite as small as the other little guys. He also led the league in punt returns yards as a rookie and later had a 1,000-yard rushing season. He played eight seasons and was pretty durable. Mitchell still holds the career rushing records at The Citadel and is currently the Running Backs Coach with the Cleveland Browns.

RRMarshall · Post by **RRMarshall** » Fri Aug 09, 2019 2:21 pm

Re: Terry Metcalf, Lionel James, Darren Sproles, Tarik Cohen
Post by Rupert Patrick » Fri Aug 09, 2019 1:15 pm

Mack Herron's career always puzzled me....

Reply to Rupert-
I heard that Herron's drug use didn't end in Canada. That's why the Patriots' let him go, and if you notice he
didn't catch on any place else, tragic really. Having watched his performance in 1974 it was a thing to behold, you kept your eyes on him whenever he was on the field. C.J. Spiller was that kind of player for several years in Buffalo but they are a rare item to be sure. Why aren't there more? Perhaps a lack of size leads them to pursue other sports, directed by either family members or coaches.
BTW the recent induction of LT Leon Grey into the Patriots' Hall of Fame raised questions about why they traded him to Houston in 1979. Most think it was because the Patriots didn't want to pay him but a solid source told me his drug use was a major factor and they figured to trade him while his value was high. He had three really good years in Houston and then finished his career in New Orleans. I know QB Steve Grogan was sorry to see him go, but he jokes his peripheral vision improved quite a bit after he left!

SixtiesFan · Post by **SixtiesFan** » Fri Aug 09, 2019 7:29 pm

Bryan wrote:I find it interesting that throughout history the NFL will have a little all-purpose RB who racks up big yardage...Metcalf and Mack Herron traded single-season yardage records...I think Little Train James broke it in the 80's...Darren Sproles has been around forever...Cohen came from NC A&T to kick start the Bears offense. But its kind of an irregular event. After Metcalf hit it big with the Cardinals, you didn't really have other NFL teams clamoring to find those type of players. Sproles was kind of the only RB with his skillset for a number of years.

You'd think the NFL would be able to find these small RBs in college football and use them in the NFL. I remember Anthony Davis of USC and Johnny Rodgers of Nebraska not getting much of a look in the NFL (and not doing much), yet they were big time college stars. Is the NFL just simply reluctant to use small RBs despite previous success of these players? Is there something in Metcalf/Sproles/Cohen's ability that completely separates them from other similar college RBs?

Johnny Rodger was a WR, not a RB. In his 1978 Scout's Guide to the NFL, Joel Buchsbaum wrote: "Johnny Rodgers (5-9, 180) (4.5) can do things no other receiver in football can match, but he's always complaining and never seems to be healthy."

Rodgers (source pro football reference) played in only six games in 1978. His career was ended by a "freak knee injury." Rodgers was waived in 1979, according to pro football transactions.

BD Sullivan · Post by **BD Sullivan** » Fri Aug 09, 2019 11:23 pm

Herron did host a party that had some rumors about drug use attached to it. Fairbanks was already annoyed by Herron's on-field dropoff, which largely factored on his weak punt returning in 75. Presumably to save his legs for the running game, he was rarely used as a kick returner. His injury was Andy Johnson's gain, with Johnson's versatility and athleticism getting Fairbanks' attention.

With regard to Rodgers, he had a couple of off-the-field incidents at Nebraska that raised some red flags in addition to his size. In May 1970, he inexplicably took part in a gas station robbery at the end his freshman year and pleaded guilty to larceny a year later. The entire take for he and his two cohorts was $90, so he got two years probation and also had to pay his share ($30) of the t money. In April 1972, he was arrested on suspicion of pot possession, but the charges were dropped.

BD Sullivan · Post by **BD Sullivan** » Fri Aug 09, 2019 11:23 pm

There was also 5-foot-4 Buddy Young in the 40's and 50's.

rhickok1109 · Post by **rhickok1109** » Sat Aug 10, 2019 6:57 am

Back in the early '50s, many of my friends and I liked Billy Cross of the Cardinals, probably because he was closer to us in size than anyone else in the NFL. He was 5-6 and listed at 150 pounds but he might not have been that big.

https://www.pro-football-reference.com/ ... osBi20.htm

Of course, if you want to go way back, there was "Two-Bits" Homan.

sheajets · Post by **sheajets** » Wed Aug 14, 2019 12:48 pm

rhickok1109 wrote:Back in the early '50s, many of my friends and I liked Billy Cross of the Cardinals, probably because he was closer to us in size than anyone else in the NFL. He was 5-6 and listed at 150 pounds but he might not have been that big.

https://www.pro-football-reference.com/ ... osBi20.htm

Of course, if you want to go way back, there was "Two-Bits" Homan.

His trading card dubbed him "Little Billy"

JohnH19 · Post by **JohnH19** » Fri Aug 16, 2019 1:28 am

Mack Herron was an absolutely brilliant player in his two years here in Winnipeg and then in 1974 with the Pats when he set the NFL's all purpose yardage record with 2,444.

It has always bothered me immensely that Herron was robbed of the 1972 Schenley award as the CFL's Most Outstanding Player. Instead, they gave the award to Hamilton's Garney Henley, essentially as a reward for his brilliant 13 year career to that point.

Herron's 1972 rushing stats were 258 carries for 1,527 yards, a 5.9 avg., and 11 TDs. He caught 39 passes for 451 yards for an 11.6 avg. and 4 TDs. He also returned 17 kickoffs for a 32.5 avg. and a 120 yard TD from 10 yards deep in the end zone. It was the opening kickoff against Edmonton in a game that the Blue Bombers went on to win 49-16. I was there as I was for all of Herron's games in Winnipeg.

Garney Henley was one of the greatest players in CFL history but his 1972 season paled in comparison to Mini-Mack's. Henley was primarily a DB throughout most of his career but coach Jerry Williams switched him to flanker for the '72 season. He responded with 36 receptions for 881 yards, a tremendous 24.5 average, and 7 TDs. He wasn't going to win the Outstanding Player award as a DB so the writers gave it to him when he was more visible as an offensive threat. Henley would go on to play three more years, retiring after the 1975 season. He was voted the sixth greatest CFL player of all time in a TSN poll in 2006.