Penny

I was an early supporter of Penny but I've become skeptical as to his ever becoming the "feature" back he should be given his first round choice.
After being out for just a few games he seemed to be hesitant and befuddled when in the game. He plodded with a few plays and was never seen again. Are the rumors as to his having trouble with the playbook true?
Could the Hawks get squat for him? Has the league seen enough of him to say "No Thanks!"?
Frankly I could see a lot of players/positions we need to fill rather than continuing an experiment that isn't materializing.
Between him and Procise we have a 51 man roster.

TreeRon":2qjtlqsa said:

I was an early supporter of Penny but I've become skeptical as to his ever becoming the "feature" back he should be given his first round choice.
After being out for just a few games he seemed to be hesitant and befuddled when in the game. He plodded with a few plays and was never seen again. Are the rumors as to his having trouble with the playbook true?
Could the Hawks get squat for him? Has the league seen enough of him to say "No Thanks!"?
Frankly I could see a lot of players/positions we need to fill rather than continuing an experiment that isn't materializing.
Between him and Procise we have a 51 man roster.

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More of a concern for next year but early returns are definitely not promising. Just my guess but I think confidence (or lack thereof) is a big issue for him. He seems to go down easily too, and always looks to bounce to the outside.

these snap judgement IMO are silly.

2nd year usually is a significant jump. Look at Carson he's better in year 2. Marlon Mack has emerged for the Colts after an average rookie year. Penny has had a decent rookie year. I would suspect he'll make significant improvements in year 2.

Probably the least pro ready of the RB draft picks this year so I'm not too surprised. Small school guys can take a bit longer to adapt. Still have seen enough explosive plays form him to know he has the athleticism to excel in the league. Just needs to figure out what he can and cannot get away with.

You give him that hole that Carson ran through yesterday and Penny scores.

Not this nonsense again.

Penny showed more than enough this season to show he could be a very good NFL back, right now he's just behind Chris Carson who could be a great NFL back.

The answer to this nonsense is carries. You cannot judge a RB on less than a handful of carries a game. That is essentially what he has gotten when Chris Carson has been the featured back. In the games Carson was out and Penny was the featured back he did just fine. Quit looking for 20 yard gains on the few times he touches the ball and you will be much happier about the RB depth on this team.

Need him for depth. His main issue is giving up on the run too early. If you watch. As soon as contact is made he goes into a "protect the football and fall forward mentality. This is a good thing for a first year back. Hopefully as time goes on and he gets more comfortable/confident, he will look to keep his legs under him better.

Carson and Marshall were/are great at keeping their legs under them.

A few facts on Penny.

1) He was drafted in the 1st round.
2) Chris Carson is a better RB than him.
3) Mike Davis is a better RB than him.
4) Chris Carson was a 7th round pick.
5) Mike Davis was released by another club (4th round pick) before the Hawks picked him up.


Is Penny a bad player? Not necessarily, but compared to the fact that he is the #3 RB on our depth chart and we expended far more resources towards acquiring him, I cannot see how he would be viewed as anything except a disappointment.

I simply cant stand the instant knee buckle on first contact. Drives me friggin bonkers. That being said, he would have scored on Carson's long break away run because he's simply faster. But please dont make me watch arm/slap tackles on a professional running back.....EVER

I am looking forward to watching Penny develop, improve and learn his craft in the next couple years

Yep, he didn't make the pro bowl his first year... Must be a bust!
The Seahawk's as a team are in pretty tall cotton right now, 10 win season, back in the playoffs...
Thankfully, we still have 'fans' who can find something to complain about.

He is averaging 5ypc. Does he need to average 6ypc or 7ypc to make people happy?

I think it's just his style of running is frustrating to watch. -1, +2, -2, 0, +38, -3...... For me anyway, that is tough. But he's a completely different story when he decides he wants to just GO. So I suspect when the game slows down for him a little more in his head, that desire to GO will be there way more often. I remember watching Gurley his first year..and thinking "yikes", he'e not what was advertised. A year later...he's a beast. It'll happen with Penny, question is how long till then. Right now, his role is perfect. Keep his weight down, and learn the nuances of the NFL, then unleash!

ImTheScientist":p2zllq5r said:

He is averaging 5ypc. Does he need to average 6ypc or 7ypc to make people happy?

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YPC by itself is a bad measure of a RB's quality.

It's been a confidence and processing development with Penny. We started to see some of what we drafted him for before he got hurt to the point where he was playing decisively instead of the choppy feet we had been seeing, but then got hurt that's where it's at.

Two carries after weeks away isn't much to go on, let alone not having a lot of reps throughout the season so the game can slow down for him. I would urge some to remember that he was getting more reps than a healthy Davis just before he got hurt.

All that said, his coming in at 236 pounds to TC is interesting to me. I'm inclined to think that him playing behind Carson, seeing Carson’s extreme work ethic and tenacity, is exactly the kind of example that the Rook needs. I expect that Penny comes in next year at a fit 225, takes all the reps of a 2nd string of a 1-2 combo, and has the game slow down for him in year 2 for a really nice season.

lukerguy":5w2hsv37 said:

A few facts on Penny

3) Mike Davis is a better RB than him.

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Man, just stop. This is 100% bull. Yes, Davis ran over Arizona and to an extent, the Rams. Two bottom 5 run defenses. Davis is nothing special. Don't lie to yourself.

With that being said, while I love Penny's potential and upside, he has a ways to go. The vision, burst, and speed are there. But he definitely needs to toughen up. It's no secret he goes down way too easily, which is a bummer. He lead the nation in yards created after initial contact for RBs last year. For reference, I believe Nick Chubb leads the league in that category this year (at least I know he did two weeks ago). I still think he can be the RB of the future here, but he's not there yet. He needs to commit himself to a strict regimen this off-season in regards to his diet and strength/conditioning. I think he will and that he'll be extremely motivated come OTAs.

Another pile of stupid regarding Penny is how he goes down so easy. This is relative. Your example is Lynch and Carson, but that's by no means normal. Penny actually has a quick jab of a stiff arm and can helicopter a dude with a head of steam. He's not necessarily going to turn a 2 yard loss into a 2 yard gain consistently like Lynch and Carson, but again, that's not normal. Barkley is probably the only back in the league right now that does that particular thing better than Carson.

Penny is a different back than Carson and by sometime next year you should really start to appreciate the different looks you get from a 1-2 combo like that.

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Also, call me greedy, but the Jags just voided Fournette's contract guarantees and I'd love to have him if they cut him. He'd still back up Carson, but Carson, Fournette, Penny, Scarborough would all but guarantee Terra Firma Domination next year as well.

Penny’s a great 3rd back. How many other teams have three solid backs?

I get thaf people want a 1st round pick to be immediately dominant, but the guy didn’t get a training camp because he got hurt and then had to take carries away from our two veterans to learn his craft.

If Carson or Davis were garbage we’d feature him, he’d have learned faster and most likely have the stats that his critics lust for. But we didn’t need to do that. Carson emerged in training camp — and more importantly stayed healthy.

Penny has flashed the kind of talent that made him a first round pick, along with the mistakes and inconsistencies of a rookie. I fully expect him to be competing for the starting spot out of training camp next year. And if he doesn’t take the spot from Carson it won’t because he’s a bust or bad pick, it will be because Carson has developed into a pro-bowl caliber back.

It would be awesome if Carson, Davis, and Penny all show 1,000 yard back potential next year. That would mean we are set at the position for the next 5+ years, our backs would stay fresh throughout the season, and that we might have a trading chip in case we need it.

If I'm Davis I go to a team that needs a starter or doesn't have a lot of depth. He'd be stupid to come back when he could just put himself up at auction for the highest bidder or just go someplace with a chance to start. Business is business.