Anybody else watching Trent Richardson's NFL career go down the drain?

Im happy with Lacy on my Packers

I loved Trent at Alabama. But it's hard for me to feel sorry for someone who signed a 13 million dollar signing bonus, and then will make over 20 million more by the time his contract has expired. That being said, I would like to see him on a team where he will be used like he was as Alabama. I just don't see him putting his head down and hitting the hole like at Bama, except for the play where he hit the defender so hard his helment went flying

for whatever reasons, trent's game simply did not translate to the pros.

that being said, he's a good blocker and decent receiver...is there any chance that he could be transitioned into fullback?


I know his height (5'9") would preclude him being used as an H-back, but what about as a straight up blocker and occasional pass catcher?

If I was his agent that is what I would sell.

davefrat said:

for whatever reasons, trent's game simply did not translate to the pros.

that being said, he's a good blocker and decent receiver...is there any chance that he could be transitioned into fullback?


I know his height (5'9") would preclude him being used as an H-back, but what about as a straight up blocker and occasional pass catcher?

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Here's my two cents...if Trent's "style" wasn't "translatable" into the pro game, did the scouts blow it? Is whoever signed him really incompetent? I really want to know, because it seems to me he wasn't doing that badly before the rule change (not great by any stretch, but a couple of other slow starters come to mind - Reggie Bush and MI), then afterwards his production went to practically 0.
I think the problem resides either a) in his personal life or b) between his ears. I just don't think his "style" is the reason; if it is, whoever is responsible for giving him so much money blew it big time. Seriously, wouldn't scouts look hard at his running "style" in college? Especially before giving him millions of dollars to fail?
IIRC, MI did the same thing in NO for a while - couldn't/wouldn't find creases, constantly ran into plugged holes and was too slow to change direction. Is that still a problem for him?
I wish TR the best, and I hope he can overcome whatever is holding him back. I don't think it's his physical talent. JMO

Him being fullback isn't going to solve the problem. Like other and I have stated in the earlier thread..( This thread is getting too long) That he needs to drop 10-20lbs in the offseason, and He needs to Find a RB coach or go back to Alabama and work with Burns to work on his skills... then He needs to leave Colts. the team he has been with aren't good with blocking. He excels in zone blocking offense. I wouldn't be suprised to see him signing on to another team that might have Ingram/Lacey on it... His confidence is shot. He needs the right guy to put the message in his ear... that he can do it.

Good point. Sometime it's not him, it's the team. If you watch the team, the hole would get blow up by the OL men... so he never really had a chance to get " started" but for the other RBs, all of suddenly, OL will open up... I think it's the locker room issue.

twofbyc said:

Here's my two cents...if Trent's "style" wasn't "translatable" into the pro game, did the scouts blow it? Is whoever signed him really incompetent? I really want to know, because it seems to me he wasn't doing that badly before the rule change (not great by any stretch, but a couple of other slow starters come to mind - Reggie Bush and MI), then afterwards his production went to practically 0.
I think the problem resides either a) in his personal life or b) between his ears. I just don't think his "style" is the reason; if it is, whoever is responsible for giving him so much money blew it big time. Seriously, wouldn't scouts look hard at his running "style" in college? Especially before giving him millions of dollars to fail?
IIRC, MI did the same thing in NO for a while - couldn't/wouldn't find creases, constantly ran into plugged holes and was too slow to change direction. Is that still a problem for him?
I wish TR the best, and I hope he can overcome whatever is holding him back. I don't think it's his physical talent. JMO

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twofbyc said:

Here's my two cents...if Trent's "style" wasn't "translatable" into the pro game, did the scouts blow it? Is whoever signed him really incompetent? I really want to know, because it seems to me he wasn't doing that badly before the rule change (not great by any stretch, but a couple of other slow starters come to mind - Reggie Bush and MI), then afterwards his production went to practically 0.
I think the problem resides either a) in his personal life or b) between his ears. I just don't think his "style" is the reason; if it is, whoever is responsible for giving him so much money blew it big time. Seriously, wouldn't scouts look hard at his running "style" in college? Especially before giving him millions of dollars to fail?
IIRC, MI did the same thing in NO for a while - couldn't/wouldn't find creases, constantly ran into plugged holes and was too slow to change direction. Is that still a problem for him?
I wish TR the best, and I hope he can overcome whatever is holding him back. I don't think it's his physical talent. JMO

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IIRC, he was touted by many as the most complete running back prospect since Adrian Peterson.

then again, on the flipside, how wrong were the scouts on tom brady.

in the espn thing they did "brady to manning" or whatever it's called, they asked belichick how it was that so many other teams missed on brady and he responded "well, we missed on him too since we waited until the 6th round to draft him."

they downgraded brady because he ran like a chicken and had the body of Ichabod Crane...the same people probably overrated trent because he's a physical freak of nature and his college game film at times looked like jim brown running over kindergarteners.

JustNeedMe81 said:

Him being fullback isn't going to solve the problem. Like other and I have stated in the earlier thread..( This thread is getting too long) That he needs to drop 10-20lbs in the offseason, and He needs to Find a RB coach or go back to Alabama and work with Burns to work on his skills... then He needs to leave Colts. the team he has been with aren't good with blocking. He excels in zone blocking offense. I wouldn't be suprised to see him signing on to another team that might have Ingram/Lacey on it... His confidence is shot. He needs the right guy to put the message in his ear... that he can do it.

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His weight on the Colts' website is 225. His weight in the BCS Championship Game media guide was 224. I thought for awhile he needed to lose weight, but one pound more isn't going to cause him to have the problems he's had.

Yeah, we can say the Colts' OL has been bad. They're bad for all the RBs. That hasn't stopped them from producing.

RTR91 said:

His weight on the Colts' website is 225. His weight in the BCS Championship Game media guide was 224. I thought for awhile he needed to lose weight, but one pound more isn't going to cause him to have the problems he's had.

Yeah, we can say the Colts' OL has been bad. They're bad for all the RBs. That hasn't stopped them from producing.

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Don't believe those weights...for all kinds of reasons. He looks bigger and slower than in college.

Padreruf said:

Don't believe those weights...for all kinds of reasons. He looks bigger and slower than in college.

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Let's look at this reported weight...

Rivals recruiting page: 210
2009 Alabama media guide (page 15): 220
2011 Alabama media guide (page 16): 224
2012 NFL combine: 228

Those weights seem to be right in line with each other. Don't see a big discrepancy with the exception of the recruiting weight, which could have been taken his junior year of high school.

I don't think his size is really a problem. Alfred Morris has the same measurables. Le'Veon Bell is taller and heavier by measurables. However, Trent is more muscular than any of them. I think the only way size is his problem is that it allowed him to dominate in HS and college so he never had to build a wide repertoire of skills. He could just drag defenders downfield like he did in college so many times. He's not dragging any NFL defenders downfield.

In high school, he was a track star. In college, he still had really great speed. In the NFL, he runs like a defensive tackle. Somewhere, his speed vanished. I wonder if he ever fully recovered from his knee surgery.

You can argue causation all day long, I guess, but the reality is that Trent has been quite bad and the Colts running game was far better yesterday with him on the inactive list. Even taking OL play into consideration, other Colts tailbacks have just been far more productive than he has.

I generally think very highly of the kid and am grateful for the impact he had at UA -- which was tremendous, both on and off the field and in his own recruiting efforts -- but at the level he has been playing at he really doesn't deserve to be in the NFL. The Colts will probably cut him in a few weeks, and unless he really improves in the offseason, he will probably be out of the NFL altogether. At this point, his viable goal probably needs to be to find some way to string out another year in the league so he can at least qualify for a pension.

FWIW, I think Trent's problem is that he has gotten far too big. I know his listed weight is about the same as it always was, but he looks noticeably bigger now than he did even as a rookie in Cleveland. His burst is gone, and without that you really can't play tailback in the NFL.

I think the worst thing that happened to him was that he got drafted so high.It was hard to live up to the expectations of #3 overall.And i think it got in his head.

GreatDanish said:

I don't think his size is really a problem. Alfred Morris has the same measurables. Le'Veon Bell is taller and heavier by measurables. However, Trent is more muscular than any of them. I think the only way size is his problem is that it allowed him to dominate in HS and college so he never had to build a wide repertoire of skills. He could just drag defenders downfield like he did in college so many times. He's not dragging any NFL defenders downfield.

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Couple of points:

(1) Like I mentioned above, I don't think his measurables (5'9 and 225) are accurate. He weighed in at 228 pounds at the Combine, and, again, he looks significantly bigger now. If I had to guess, I would put him somewhere around 240 pounds. He ran in the high 4.4s at the Combine, and honestly I doubt he could even break the 4.6s at this point. Just no explosion or burst, and I think it's mainly a weight issue with him having too much muscle mass.

(2) For the most part, no one is dragging any NFL defenders downfield these days. Defenders have just gotten entirely too big for that in the modern era, so if you're having success in the NFL, it's with quickness and athleticism. The days of 235+ pound bruising runners moving piles are largely over. Even most of the guys considered "power" backs these days are in the 215-220 pound range.

I know for a fact he was asked to tone down in terms of weight and muscle if need be to try and get quicker. They said during the offseason he had lost 20 pounds. If he did I have NO idea where he lost it.

Alasippi said:

Glad to see your support for former Tide players.(That would be blue font)
Ya know, in order for your opinion to be right, a great player has to fail in his career.
If you really want to "rest your case" for the sole purpose of being correct, then congratulations.
But don't call yourself a Bama fan.
You're not. You're a "YOU" fan.
sip

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Loyalty doesn't have to be blind.

It was fun watching TR in college. I'll never forget the run against Ole Miss. But unless something drastic changes, his days in the NFL are numbered.

BigEasyTider said:

Couple of points:

(1) Like I mentioned above, I don't think his measurables (5'9 and 225) are accurate. He weighed in at 228 pounds at the Combine, and, again, he looks significantly bigger now. If I had to guess, I would put him somewhere around 240 pounds. He ran in the high 4.4s at the Combine, and honestly I doubt he could even break the 4.6s at this point. Just no explosion or burst, and I think it's mainly a weight issue with him having too much muscle mass.

(2) For the most part, no one is dragging any NFL defenders downfield these days. Defenders have just gotten entirely too big for that in the modern era, so if you're having success in the NFL, it's with quickness and athleticism. The days of 235+ pound bruising runners moving piles are largely over. Even most of the guys considered "power" backs these days are in the 215-220 pound range.

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I agree with you, and I was trying to say what you said in #2... Not that he should be dragging NFL defenders. But there's no way he can.