Sunday, November 05, 2006
Mid-Season Comparison: Terrell Owens v/ Javon Walker
When the Broncos took Javon Walker in the off-season there was some serious second-guessing concerning why they didn’t make a serious effort to pick up Terrell Owens. Owens didn’t have the injury baggage, he was widely considered to be one of the best wide receivers in the league, and he made some positive noises about coming to Denver.
My view was always that the Broncos needed a good player and a good citizen--someone who would fit both on the field and in the locker room, who wouldn’t be a distraction, and who would throw his quarterback under a bus at the first sign of difficulty. Obviously, Owens wasn’t the guy I would have chosen. It’s true, though, that Walker had a bad break up with the Packers and he’s a vocal presence when he isn’t getting the opportunities that he thinks he should be getting.
What do the stats tell us half way through the season?
Javon Walker
| Receiving | 39 receptions | 669 yards | 17.15 yards per catch | 83 longest | 5 touchdowns |
| Rushing | 6 rushing attempts | 120 yards | 20 yards per attempt | 72 longest | 1 touchdown |
Terrell Owens
| Receiving | 44 receptions | 558 yards | 12.68 yards per catch | 46 longest | 6 touchdowns |
So, TO has caught more balls, but for fewer yards and they’ve both accounted for the same number of touchdowns. The biggest difference is that Walker has bigger plays both rushing and receiving (and, I believe, more big plays). That could well be a function of the talent on their respective teams, though. Romo is still, even in his fourth year, learning his position and Drew Bledsoe was having a miserable season before being yanked in favor of his understudy. By contrast, Plummer, despite a rough start to the year, has looked impressive over the last few games.
TO’s contract is a staggering $25 million over three years--$10 million of which came this year between his $5 million signing bonus and $5 million salary. Walker’s contract is nearly as impressive at $40 million over six years, although he’s due only (only?) a few million dollars this year.
But eight games into the season, I think it would be safe to say that Owens hasn’t done much to make the 4-4 Cowboys a significantly better team while Walker has given the 6-2 Broncos a hell of a receiving threat. Without Walker’s sure hands and big play ability, would the Broncos win a tough game in Pittsburgh this weekend? I think it’s doubtful.
I would say that Walker gets a small edge in this comparison--but that’s more than enough to keep me happy that TO isn’t playing in a Denver uniform.
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Comments & Trackbacks
AND add to the fact that he is on my fantasy team and what else can you ask for?
Seriously though, due to the low completion percentage that Plummer has had this year. I sense a shift to becoming a big play offense rather than a chain moving west coast style offense. If you are going to throw incompletions anyway, why not throw them downfield to Walker?
This is going to suck tomorrow finding out the extent of bronco injuries. If the offense were a chain moving, big drive offense, the defense would not have been on the field as long.
Then again, it was the defense that won the game for the Broncs on Sunday.
Actually, I think it was more of a Stiller loss than a Bronc win. Big Ben and Co. were handing out turnovers like it was still trick-or-treat time. If it wasn’t for those, you’d be looking at a very different result.
Oh crap. Almost forgot.
Dave, would you be willing to be arbiter on a little side wager Robert and I have going?
Not sidetracking away from football. Honestly.
But at least it involves beer.
I think it’s instructive to take a look at the other incredibly disruptive, big-name WR whose name was bruited about for acquisition by the Broncos recently:
Randy Moss: 26 receptions, 371 yards (14.3 mean), 51 longest, 3 TDs, 2005 salary = $7.75M
And none of these consider how the players involve affect their teammates. In the case of Owens and Moss, I suspect that each has caused his teammates to work just a little bit less hard on game days. In a league with as much competitive balance as the NFL has at the top, even a tiny reduction in effort can have a big effect on outcome.
Doug, I think you’re right.
One thing that is amazing to me is that I didn’t even consider putting Moss’ name into the mix. He’s fallen so far that his name is hardly mentioned any more and certainly not in the same breath as the current best receivers in the league. In the few Raiders games that I’ve seen this year, he has looked like he doesn’t even want to be on the field. He puts forth minimal effort, he makes only the easy catches, and he doesn’t seem (in interviews) to accept any responsibility for helping his team get better.
And, Matt, I’m still waiting to hear more about those injuries, too. Brandon’s looked, by far, the worst, but all of those concussions…