Ridley me this.
Stevan Ridley has the second-best yards-per-carry average, a stellar 4.8, of all rookie running backs. This is a better average than superstar backs Frank Gore, Maurice Jones-Drew, Steven Jackson, Ray Rice, and even Adrian Peterson. Granted, they have all had many, many more carries than Ridley has, but for 48 carries this still makes a statement.
Ridley scoring a touchdown on a 33 yard run against the Raiders.
Coming out of LSU, Stevan Ridley wasn't expected to make any sort of splash in the NFL. His performance at the Combine was definitely not desirable, and he was only an average halfback in college. Yet so far in the NFL, he has the eighth most rushing yards of all rookie running backs with 231, and he plays for the New England Patriots. He has done fairly well in many of the nine games he has run the ball, with his best performance coming in week 4 against the Oakland Raiders, where he blazed for 97 yards on 10 carries. His ball-carrier vision, something which I believe is possibly the most important non-stat feature of a running back, is excellent. His biggest issue is simply speed, which he makes up for in strength. His size lets him push piles as he runs, and he is always churning his legs and keeping his feet moving, a technique all running back legends, notably Walter Payton, LaDainian Tomlinson, and now Adrian Peterson, used. Along with speed however, he struggles with the catch, especially in getting YAC. So on the many pass plays the Patriots run, he has developd into a very durable blocker. Stevan Ridley I believe has launched his opportunity of playing in the NFL off to a very intriguing start. Now if he can just get more carries...
