Rookie Report Card: Week Seven

In my weekly column, we take a long look at two more rookies.  I compare their performance to date against my original expectations of them.  Let’s continue the 2013 series by looking back at Arizona Cardinals running back Andre Ellington and Tampa Bay Buccaneer quarterback Mike Glennon.  Neither were first round dynasty picks in the spring or summer, but both may impact your fantasy playoff fate this season and the next couple.

Andre Ellington, RB ARIZ
Here is what I saw in college from Ellington: The young running back gets small in the hole, has enough vision to read his blocks and takes good angles to make defenders miss. He uses spin moves and has quick lateral movement thatcan  get defenses off-balance.  He keeps his feet churning after contact is made, is more agile than he is fast and seems to bounce too many of his runs outside.  Ellington is more of a finesse runner because he is lacking in the power department.

The young runner is not a good pass blocker, but is an exceptional receiving option out of the backfield. Ellington has a big catch radius and is able to run a deep pattern like a wide receiver.  He was effective when lined up outside.  I doubt Ellington will ever be the athletic player that Jamaal Charles has become, but he can certainly be an important part of a running back by committee situation.

This is what I saw from Ellington against the Seahawks: My first thought was – why aren’t they using him more?  The young running back has good hands and does well making defenders miss in space. The Cardinals lined him up in the slot a few times and his first target slipped between his fingers.  It might have been the excitement of playing in front of a national crowd, but it was disappointing.

On his first carry, Ellington got a bit too excited as he hurdled his fallen tackle trying to create space.  I’m all for using athletic plays to create separation, but those moves are quite dangerous around piles of bodies.  Because of the Arizona o-line struggles, Ellington continued to get stood up on the line of scrimmage.  When the young runner gets the chance to find the cutback lane, he is quite effective.  He takes great angles, making people miss in the open field.

Ellington looks a bit too skinny and may never be capable of carrying the load for an offense.  It was very surprising that he wasn’t used more as a receiver as the Cardinals trailed for much of the game.  He is a better option than is Rashard Mendenhall. His best “almost” play of the night was a 15 yard wheel route into the end zone that was almost a one-handed grab in which he simply ran out of real estate.  Ellington has long-term upside as I expect him to become a strong RB2/RB3 flex play once Arizona fields a more athletic quarterback.

Mike Glennon, QB TB
This is what I saw Glennon do in college: While Glennon throws for a high completion rate and passed for a lot of yardage, he is a very inconsistent. Given enough time within the pocket, the young signal caller can place the ball where only the receiver could get to it. He has a powerful arm, which can be a good thing or a bad thing, depending on the pressure applied on Glennon.  He is a very streaky player.  When he is ‘hot’, his play improves dramatically.  The opposite is true as well – once Glennon makes a mistake, the mistakes compound exponentially.

Glennon’s footwork is a mess as when he takes the time and sets his feet, he is quite accurate; however, when he throws the ball with only his upper body, one never knows where it will go.   He’s more effective running bootlegs as this opens up one side of the field and gives him more time to throw. Glennon is not very mobile and needs to work on feeling pocket pressure. His brittle scarecrow frame is also a point of concern.  Quarterbacks in the NFL get hit a lot, so he needs to be built to take more of a pounding.  He needs a season or two to get acquainted with the NFL to be effective.

Here is what I saw from Glennon playing against Atlanta:  “Steady, but not spectacular” is what initially comes to mind when I describe the rookie’s effort playing the Falcons.   The young quarterback has a strong enough arm, but does not know how to control it.  He overpowers some throws and then will turn around and float the ball on his next attempt.

Glennon isn’t overly phased by pressure, but his game might be better if it was.  He got hit early in the game and coughed up the ball for a defensive touchdown to start the scoring.  It was concerning, also, that he tended to throw behind his receivers, not anticipating where they would be in their routes.  Thankfully, Vincent Jackson has a big catch radius, but even then they had more misses than hits (Jackson caught ten of his 22 targets).   The signal caller was better at aiming his passes using the sidelines as a safety net.

Glennon’s arm-strength was on full display on his 59 yard touchdown pass to Jackson.  The receiver made a nice one-handed grab look easy.  It’s Glennon’s ability to step up and away from pressure in the pocket that makes those plays possible.  In that regard, Glennon is one of the most calm young quarterbacks I have seen in quite a while.  He is still making some rookie mistakes, though, like staring down his first read and occasionally throwing the ball where a receiver is unable to protect himself.  He’s also willing to take off and run if the defense isn’t taking it away.

I can’t say that I am totally sold on Glennon being more than a QB3 for your dynasty team, but he just might be better with a better offensive minded coach or coordinator than what he has now.  If Doug Martin can fully recover from his latest injury, Glennon will be able to exploit some great match-ups to Jackson and Mike Williams.  If you can buy cheap, why not get Mike Glennon?

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