Often times in matters of pro football, neither the fans nor the sportswriters have enough information with which to make truly informed opinions. The New Orleans Saints' current situation with rehabilitated running back Deuce McAllister, however, is not one of those times.
For those not in the know here, Deuce McAllister is one of the most dedicated, toughest athletes ever to put on any uniform in any sport. He tore the anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee early in the 2005 season and then returned the next year to run for over 1,000 yards along with ten touchdowns (by comparison, Edgerrin James, considered to be one of the premier running backs in the NFL at the time of his ACL injury back in 2001, accumulated almost as many yards - 989 to be exact - but with only two touchdowns in his first season back from ACL surgery in 2002). In the third game in the 2007 season, Deuce tore the ACL in his left knee, requiring yet another off-season of intense rehabilitation. Anybody who had ever watched Deuce McAllister's efforts with the Saints (including myself) had absolutely no doubt that Deuce would be able to return successfully from a second ACL surgery at the age of twenty-nine, an age that is considered "old" by NFL running back standards. (Frank Gore is the only other running back currently playing in the NFL who has had ACL surgeries on each leg; Gore, however, suffered both injuries while in college at an age when the body is much more able to rebound from such formerly catastrophic injuries.). And thus far, in what little Deuce has been allowed to show in the 2008 season, he appears to have made the successful comeback he had expected to make.
Despite Deuce's proclamation to be ready for this season as well as his having ably carried the load in the first half of the last exhibition game versus the Miami Dolphins, head coach Sean Payton has given the ball to the remarkable running back only twice all season. The only thing Deuce did with those two carries is gain ten yards for a 5.0 average, which is far better than either Reggie Bush or Pierre Thomas has been able to average in much more extensive action. Coach Payton's decision to leave Deuce on the bench was especially puzzling (and downright enraging, really) when the Saints failed to convert on a 4th-and-goal from the 1-yard line in the first half and then again on 3rd-and-1 in Denver territory late in yesterday's loss to the Broncos. The question almost every Saints fan has been wondering (besides, "What in the name of Carl Smith was coach Payton thinking when he called the same play that had failed three previous times on 3rd-and-1?") was obvious: "What in the name of Carl Smith was Deuce doing standing on the sidelines when the Saints needed a mere one yard to all but win the game yet again?" It is this question that Sean Payton simply cannot answer in a satisfactory manner.
All the evidence is there: Deuce was healthy enough to carry the ball eleven times in a meaningless exhibition game against the Dolphins - when injuries are not any less likely to occur than in a regular season game (just ask Osi Umenyiora of the Giants) - but is now being held out of games until Payton feels that Deuce "is ready." In essence, Sean Payton is saying that he's not willing to risk having Deuce re-injure his leg in order to help the team in crucial situations, but he is willing to risk having Deuce re-injure his leg with absolutely nothing to gain in the process. Does this rationale make any sense to anybody over the age of six? If Deuce is going to get hurt, coach, I guarantee you that he would prefer to get injured while trying to make a relevant contribution to the team, not while mopping up the floor with meaningless carries. That would be a complete waste, wouldn't it be? And almost every fan would agree, I'm sure.
Furthermore, as John DeShazier of the Times-Picayune pointed out, if coach Payton is so sure that Deuce is not ready to carry the ball, then why does he allow Deuce to dress for the game at all? Why not activate an extra player on defense, where injuries have taken a huge toll on its abilitiy to stop opposing offenses? Does this decision mean that coach Payton can't determine a mere two days before the game whether or not Deuce will be able to carry the ball at all? He can determine whether or not Scott Fujita, Aaron Glenn, Aaron Stecker, Mike McKenzie and every other injured player is physically able to participate, but that Deuce's physical condition is so extraordinary that his ability cannot be determined at the same time? Ridiculous, I tell you.
The most damning piece of evidence, however, is Deuce McAllister himself: granted, it was only two carries, but Deuce looked as good as any other Saints RB in those two carries versus Washington. Not only that, but Deuce has historically been the RB to carry the ball in short yardage situations - and he has historically been good at delivering what the Saints needed, too.
I've heard some people speculating that Payton is "saving" Deuce for later in the season when the Saints will "really" need him. Well guess what: those late-season games won't be nearly as important if the Saints don't start winning today. And obviously neither Reggie Bush nor Pierre Thomas is having much success on 3rd or 4th & 1, which leaves no logical explanation for Sean Payton's decision to keep Deuce on the bench.
We can only hope that coach Payton sees the error of his ways before yet another late-game short-yardage failure costs the Saints another victory. If this happens just a couple of more times, any action Deuce - along with everybody else on the Saints' roster - sees after mid-season will have been rendered completely meaningless by the head coach's currently inexplicable way of making decisions.
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