The Patriots pulled Mike Gillislee out of Buffalo, and that has a significant impact on two backfields in the AFC East. Two good backfields. The Bills put up huge rushing numbers last year – the 2nd-best rushing numbers (using standard fantasy scoring) in the last 20 years. And the Patriots crank out 17-plus rushing touchdowns every year.
With Buffalo’s backfield, they’ll need a new No. 2. They can’t go into the season thinking LeSean McCoy will do it all on his own. He’s an older, smaller back and historically hasn’t been very good in short-yardage situations. He’s not a pile pusher.
So I guess we can all start thinking about Jonathan Williams, who could be moved up into that Gillislee role. Williams didn’t make much of an impact as a rookie. If they have concerns about his ability to grow into that role, I suppose they will either sign a free agent or draft somebody later in the week.
With the Patriots, they previously signed Rex Burkhead and already have James White and Dion Lewis, so I don’t think they’re bringing LeGarrette Blount back. (We’re sticking with 53-man rosters this year, right?) So it should be Gillislee getting the bulk of those 1- and 2-yard touchdowns, putting him in play for a dozen touchdowns.
Gillislee isn’t as big as Blount. At 220 pounds, that’s about a 30-pound downgrade. But he’s faster and more explosive. He averaged 5.7 yards per carry two years in a row. A pretty good player, and I think the Bills misplayed things letting him get away. They made the same mistake last year with Chris Hogan. In both cases, they could have put a higher tender offer on the players, making it less appealing for another team to make an offer.
Gillislee is a player I’ll be taking a long look at. There are lots of running backs in that New England backfield, but I think he’ll be their main option at the goal line. He’s bigger and more rugged than those other three. Last year in Buffalo, he was one of the most effective players on those kind of plays. They used him 17 times when they needed 1 yard to either score or keep a drive alive (on third or fourth down) and Gillislee was successful on all but two of his attempts.
| "AND ONE" RUSHING, 2017 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Player | Good | Att | Pct |
| John Kuhn, N.O. | 10 | 11 | 90.9% |
| Robert Turbin, Ind. | 9 | 10 | 90.0% |
| Mike Gillislee, Buff. | 15 | 17 | 88.2% |
| Ezekiel Elliot, Dall. | 17 | 21 | 81.0% |
| Matt Forte, NYJ | 8 | 10 | 80.0% |
| Matt Jones, Wash. | 8 | 10 | 80.0% |
| Jonathan Stewart, Car. | 12 | 16 | 75.0% |
| LeVeon Bell, Pitt. | 9 | 12 | 75.0% |
| Mark Ingram, N.O. | 11 | 15 | 73.3% |
| LeGarrette Blount, N.E. | 19 | 27 | 70.4% |
| DeMarco Murray, Tenn. | 14 | 20 | 70.0% |
| Isaiah Crowell, Clev. | 7 | 10 | 70.0% |
| Latavius Murray, Oak. | 14 | 21 | 66.7% |
| Melvin Gordon, S.D. | 14 | 21 | 66.7% |
| Todd Gurley, L.A. | 13 | 21 | 61.9% |
| David Johnson, Ariz. | 16 | 26 | 61.5% |
| Bilal Powell, NYJ | 8 | 13 | 61.5% |
| Devonta Freeman, Atl. | 10 | 17 | 58.8% |
| Spencer Ware, K.C. | 10 | 17 | 58.8% |
| Jeremy Hill, Cin. | 9 | 17 | 52.9% |
| Zach Zenner, Det. | 5 | 10 | 50.0% |
| C.J. Anderson, Den. | 5 | 11 | 45.5% |
| Devontae Booker, Den. | 5 | 11 | 45.5% |
| Matt Asiata, Minn. | 8 | 19 | 42.1% |
—Ian Allan