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D'Onta Foreman

Texans give up on third-year running back

The Texans have made the big move of the day, releasing D’Onta Foreman. Hold off on those Lamar Miller obits, at least for now.

A third round pick in 2017, Foreman was supposed to be Houston’s starting running back by now. He ran for 2,028 yards his final season at Texas, and he showed some breakaway ability as a rookie, using his size and speed to bust loose on some long gainers.

But Foreman tore his Achilles late in his rookie season, then spent most of his second season rehabbing.

The Texans gave up on him today, placing him on waivers. No doubt he’ll get looks from other teams, but he’s done in Houston.

This leaves Houston with pretty much just Lamar Miller at tailback. He’s 28 and entering the final season of his contract. He’s averaged 60 rushing and 16 receiving yards in the 30 games he’s started the last two years, with 12 TDs. Behind him, they have a few lightly regarded prospects – Damarea Crockett, Buddy Howell and Josh Ferguson weren’t even drafted coming into the league.

The Texans have the 2nd-most cap space in the league, and I’m figuring they’ll add another notable body to their backfield before long. If the Chargers have any interest in trading Melvin Gordon, the Texans are the team they would call. Duke Johnson wants out of Cleveland; that’s another team that could call.

I don’t think there’s any way the Texans would go into the season with just Miller and lightly regarded youngsters at tailback. They need to add somebody.

Foreman’s career isn’t over. This may serve as a wakeup call for him. But he doesn’t look particularly likely to win a No. 2 tailback job in 2019. But for now, add him to the lengthy list of players who thrived at the college level but were unable to reach greatness in the pros.

There’s a website with sortable college stats, Sports-Reference.com. They list the 31 college running backs who’ve run for over 2,000 yards.

Only 14 of those players went on to run for over 1,000 yards in an NFL season.

2,000-YARD RUSHERS
PlayerYardsYearSchool
• Barry Sanders2,6281988Oklahoma State
• Melvin Gordon2,5872014Wisconsin
Kevin Smith2,5672007Central Florida
• Marcus Allen2,4271981Southern Cal
Rashaad Penny2,2482017San Diego State
• Derrick Henry2,2192015Alabama
Jonathan Taylor2,1942018Wisconsin
Troy Davis2,1851996Iowa State
Andre Williams2,1772013Boston College
• LaDainian Tomlinson2,1582000Texas Christian
• Tony Dorsett2,1501976Pitt
• Mike Rozier2,1481983Nebraska
Donnel Pumphrey2,1332016San Diego State
• Matt Forte2,1272007Tulane
• Ricky Williams2,1241998Texas
Bryce Love2,1182017Stanford
Ron Dayne2,1091996Wisconsin
• Larry Johnson2,0872002Penn State
Donald Brown2,0832008Connecticut
• Lorenzo White2,0661985Michigan State
Damien Anderson2,0632000Northwestern
• Rashaan Salaam2,0551994Colorado
Charles White2,0501979Southern Cal
Tevin Coleman2,0362014Indiana
Ron Dayne2,0341999Wisconsin
D'Onta Foreman2,0282016Texas
• Christian McCaffrey2,0192015Stanford
J.J. Arrington2,0182004California
• Ray Rice2,0122007Rutgers
Troy Davis2,0101995Iowa State
Byron Hanspard2,0001996Texas Tech

—Ian Allan

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