My dad recently came to me and asked me why I don’t share more of my own insights that I’m constantly yapping about on the beautiful and wonderful game of American Football to the rest of the world, since I’m planning on one day working in this sport. It was a good point. I was nervous initially to shoot on it, because I didn’t know how my opinions on the game would be received, or that I wasn’t qualified enough to give my own takes. However, I realized that’s foolish and that who wouldn’t want to hear me talk sh*t about the Saints for two pages, or glaze how unbelievably good Derrick Henry is at running through grown men to score TDs.
Which brings me to my next point. My era of football has been known to be called “The Passing League”. If you can’t attack through the air or defend just as well, well then you were basically irrelevant when it came to being a winning football team. While I was growing up I bought into this notion; of course it didn’t help that I got to see a beautiful HOF connection that was Matt Ryan to Julio Jones. My philosophy changed, however, watching the 2020 Tennessee Titans go 11-5, and having their star RB, Derrick Henry, rush the ball for 2027 yards and 17 touchdowns. This team of course exited the playoffs relatively quickly before slowly breaking down over the next couple of years, but it showed the league one thing… A powerful running game takes all of your defenses attention, making the offense overtly versatile, enhancing each and every other positions playmaking ability, which allows a team to win football games. The Titans faltered however with poor situational play calling (especially after losing Arthur Smith in 2021 to your vert own Atlanta Falcons) and putrid player management and player + coach sustainability. Which means we didn’t get to see the philosophy in full effect until the 2024-25 NFL season thanks to one trade.
Saquon Barkley was the cherry on top of a wedding cake Howie Roseman, the Philadelphia Eagles General Manager, had spent years baking since the miracle Big D*ck Super Bowl run in 2018. Howie had to sustain an elite defense, while building a new offensive culture alongside a new head coach, to have any chance of getting back to the promise land. The formation of this offense started by fixing a problem the team had biting them since that said super bowl year, the QB position. This was done by picking up an elite steal in the second round of the 2020 NFL draft, Jalen Hurts, a QB dejected by the media (even to this day… after winning a Super Bowl MVP…) and rejected by his former school, the University of Alabama. People hated on this pick (to each their own), however, he couldn’t be more perfect for the identity that Roseman was installing. Jalen Hurts was the QB that could manage this offense at the highest level. He’s smart, he’s accurate, and he knows when to tuck and run. Skipping over a couple other key additions (Jalen Carter, Devonta Smith, Darious Slay), a trade nobody should forget about is the 2021 AJ Brown trade, for one first round pick (who would eventually be a bust, Treylon Burks). These key additions (+ELITE offensive line play, headed by captains Jason Kelce and Lane Johnson) and well rounded defensive play gave them a chance in 2023 to win it all, but one key piece was missing (as well as some much needed key defensive positions)… a RB. Not just any RB, but one that would put fear and doubt into each and every one of the eleven men standing on the other side of that blue line.
Roseman knew this and somehow, by god, was able to pluck off a RB that looked elite behind one of the worst offensive lines in the NFL, off his own divisional rival, the New York Giants… Can you believe it? Roseman knew that a Derrick Henry was the only way the Eagles were going to be able to beat these new high octane, spread offenses and 3-4 passing defenses. He needed a player that forced every single man on a defense to PAY ATTENTION. He was going to take what Vrabel, Smith, and the Tennessee Titans introduced and he was going to perfect it. The Eagles won the Super Bowl against the KC Chiefs 40-22, behind elite defensive play and an MVP performance from reject Jalen Hurst, coming off a season where Barkley rushed for 2005 yds and 13 TDs.
All this to say, I think when you’re building a team, the identities YOU NEED to have in place in order to sustain wins are to run the ball effectively, win TOP, win the turnover battle, be dominant in the trenches, and have a QB who can effectively manage the game all together. When writing in the future, I keep this in mind. Especially on my rebuilds. The point is, it takes an elite team and a lot of time in order to build a team that can win it all, but one thing must be true in order for them to be great… You have to Run the Ball!
