If you need a refresher on the rules for the series or a run down of previous match-ups? Here is the rules and history thread:
"Close Calls 2006" - A Sportsoutlaw.com Exclusive
Remember, this is based on re-draft leagues.
Today's Match-up:
Chester Taylor - RB - Min *vs* Reggie Bush - RB - NO

Last Year's Stats:
Chester Taylor - 487 ru yds - 0 TD's - 41 rec - 292 yds - 1 TD (back-up)
Reggie Bush - N/A - Rookie

Interesting match-up here with 2 unproven guys. Taylor has received his shot after 4 years as a back-up to Jamal Lewis in Baltimore. He moves to Minnesota where he will be given every chance to be the main back in that offense. He has shown flashes of potential in limited action, can he handle the full load? His opponet is one of the most hyped rookie RB's in recent memory. However, he goes into a competitive situation with a former pro-bowl RB. Will he get enough touches to make some noise this year? These are the questions you will have to answer in today's "Close Call."

__________________

Banner by Mark Clapper

call me a homer, but this one is a joke. its all about number of touches, and it wont be close. bush should get a good number of catches, but taylor is a good receiver too (top 10 in receptions last year as a backup). bush has to share carries with deuce mcallister. taylor should be the man in minnesota, or at worst share carries with mewelde moore. bush's line is medicore at best. taylor's line has the potential, if healthy, to be one of the best.

if deuce goes down and bush gets 20+ offensive touches a game, then watch out. otherwise, unless bush ends up with at least 5-7 more TDs than taylor, it wont even be close.

I have to agree...assuming HC in Minny runs an offense similar to what he did in Philly, he will pass alot to the rb, so Taylor could pretty much equal what Westbrook has done. I simply don't see NO going away from Duece enough to warrant huge numbers for Bush. I actually could see numbers similar as in Denver with Bell and Anderson last year. But still, I favor Taylor right now.

__________________
Expert on nothing, opinionated on everything...

I'm just not sold on either of these guys to be honest. Yes Taylor is a good receiver, but so is MeMo and I still feel he will see significant time cutting into Taylor's work load, and numbers. Taylor also has a good chance of getting pulled at the GL in favor of a GL back.

Bush on the other hand is unproven as well, but clearly the better talent of the 2. he also has competition from a much greater talent then anyone Taylor will compete with in Deuce. However, an ACL tear is very significant for a RB, and I believe it takes RB's 2 years to be a full strength. Deuce will be limited this year by that injury IMO giving Bush a chance to show what he can do. Especially in the receiving game. But with this hidge podge of touches he will get be enough to make him a consistent #2 RB? I have my doubts.

In the end, I think I'm going to have to go with the superior talent and hope the talent wins out in the end, but I severly doubt you will see me taking either of these 2 backs in a re-draft. My vote hesitantly goes to Reggie Bush.

what goal line back is chester taylor going to get pulled for? we dont really have one. its obviously not memo, since they didnt use him for it last year. and they tried it with fason last year, and he was awful. the only one i could see is possibly tony richardson, but thats a stretch.

i know how childress pulled westbrook at the stripe, and tried to give goal line carries to buckhalter or whoever else... i just dont see anyone on the roster who he can do that with. taylors the best option on the team there, by default.

This is a tough call to make for multiple reasons.

• Minnesota's running game is an unknown. They used a goalline back in the past, however this is a new coaching staff. You can't assume things will stay the same.
• We don't honestly know who will be the starting running back in Minnesota for the bulk of the season. Many assume Chester Taylor, however I have my concerns as the Ravens were not intersted in him for a couple reasons, one rumored to be work ethic.
• Reggie Bush - Don't get me started here. Seriously, while drafting this guy early in your redraft league could end up being a gold mine, the fact is, he hasn't played a down in the NFL and his ability against NFL defenses is an unknown. Is he going to be the next great thing just like Blair Thomas was supposed to be for the Jets?

I am going to lean toward Chester Taylor on this one for the fact that he does have experience at the NFL, and he appears to be the frontrunner for the starting job in Minnesota. I would draft neither as my #1 or #2 running back, and honestly wouldn't feel comfortable with either as my #3 running back right now.

I watched most of the Ratbird games last season and can state without hesitation Chester was the best player on the field for them. He will be a beast this season with rushing and receiving yards. Total athlete who now has a shot to be the man. His major drawback is he now has Doug Johnson tossing the rock....now that I think about it Doug is a big improvement from Boller. Wow, look out.

and just wait til he finds out that its brad, not doug...

I like Bushs' potenial over Taylors "possible" stability.

Bush is a sexy pick - IMO!!!

I like Bush. I like Bush, alot. Always have, always will. Bush is good. Mike doen't like Bush. Isn't there a Man Law about liking Bush? On the public courses of Philly the rally cry was "ya gotta have a Johnson" ta win...gimme Bush and winning or losing just don't seem ta matter as much.

lol, SD, very poetic spin!

And the Bush contingent has seemed to arive and is making a match out of this one. I would love to hear someone who is very pro Bush give me some insight into why. I voted fgor him, but very marginally.

Reggie Bush versus some dime-a-dozen Minnie RB. Why is there even any contest?

I would have loved to been around all of you guys over the past several years talking about these players.

Not saying you guys are gonna be wrong about Reggie Bush, but I don't know how you can be so sold on him before he has sniffed the NFL. So many times these unstoppable stars have hit the NFL only to be outdone by later picks or undrafted free agents. Small school guys that didnt have the visibility by scouts to be able to play in the big colleges. So many of these "next great things" that are not even in the NFL after 5 years.

Reggie Bush is getting taken in the 2nd round in some mocks, I just dont understand it.

Now, come preseason, if I see him jukin and jivin around guys like Ray Lewis or Roy Williams, you can bet he is shooting up my draft list. For a guy that split carries throughout college though, I gotta see something from him at the NFL level.

no one has any good rational reasons for choosing bush, just a great guy feeling about how flashy and fun he would be. as for rational real reasons? there are none.

He's the new hot prom date...we'll just have to see if he puts out or not. With no body of work in the NFL it's tough as hell to project what he'll do. Like the prom date with the big rack and tight ass we can only hope...

Doh!

Wow, dime a dozen? Not in truth: 4.2 and 4.5 yds per carry average and 7.1 and 6.1 yds per catch average for the 05/04 seasons respectively). Take that consistant production and project them for a full season as a starter and I'm sure you'd see more than a dime a dozen rb:

1080 rushing, 568 yds receiving

That's some good production for a starter IMO.

But that's only if he's the starter all year. There are just too many names in the Minny RB game to be sure. I just don't see the high ceiling with Taylor. He could easily hit the solid numbers you tsted, but even then he's just that solid. There's also Moore and Fason in Minny. Moore has proven to be just as successful in Minny as Taylor was in Balt, maybe more so. You brought up Taylor's 4.5 & 4.2 ypc, well over those same 2 years, Moore has 5.8 & 4.3. Taylor has also had 30 rec for 6.1 ypc & 41 rec for 7.1 ypc while in the same 2 years moore has put up 27 rec for 8.8 ypc & 37 rec for 9.2 ypc. Moore's biggest obstical has been himself and staying healthy, if he does, I think he has just as good of a shot to win this job as Taylor, and at the least will split some time with him.

Bush, your right, there are alot of reason's to be pessimistic, but the high ceiling is there. I'm not wild about him, and won't be drafting him in a redraft due to where he's going, but if it came down to one of these 2, I'm starting to lean towards Bush more and more. Bottom line is he's more talented, and both situations are njot ideal. So when the situations are equally murkey, I'll lean towards the talent.

I personally think everyone is stuck with the mentallity of RBBC in Minn. Personally I think we will see Minn. start to work away from this RB approach. Two reasons, one is that it just didnt work there. number two, it wasnt, in my opinion, a traditional rbbc set up. They didnt have RB's that played a specific role. It seemed to me that they just kept plugging in RB's in a desperate search for any production at all. I think Taylor has a good chance to get the starting position and produce. Moore may spell him from time to time but I dont think hell take that big a bite.

You say Taylor has a good chance to get the starting job, but wouldn't that mean Moore has at least a fair chance given he has posted superior numbers to taylor when given the shot? By your thinking (which may be right on, I wouldn't be shocked to see a main back in Minny) your spending a 3rd-4th rd pick on a guy with a 60-70% shot of winning the starting job, if he doesn't win the starting job, you believe it will be primarily a 1 back show, so he would be worthless from a fantasy perspective. That seems like a lot of risk to me.