Andre Ellington to Get 25-30 Touches Per Game?
The Arizona Cardinals aren’t being shy about what they intend to do on offense for the 2014 NFL season. And while specific plays and formations won’t be revealed until the preseason or later, the Arizona coaching staff is already making sure everyone knows that running back Andre Ellington is going to be a huge part of what they do.
In fact, head coach Bruce Arians has already stated that Ellington is indeed the Cardinals’ number one running back and that he will aim to get 25-30 touches per game.
It’s an insanely high touch projection, one that would estimate Ellington being driven into the ground with 400+ total touches through 16 games.
The projected touches number is even crazier given Arians’ own public admission that Ellington may not have the size or durability to handle the rigors of a featured workload.
Perhaps that will end up being true, but while there is some risk involved, Arians clearly sees the upside, as well. Ellington was simply too good as a rookie in 2013, when he blasted out for a ridiculous 5.5 yards per carry average on 118 rushing attempts.
While Ellington proved to be a very effective change of pace back, he was equally effective as a receiver out of the backfield, hauling in 39 receptions for 371 receiving yards and a touchdown to go with his four other scores on the ground.
Should Ellington pan out and be the complete back the Cardinals are pegging him to be, he would stand to put up mammoth numbers. More importantly, the presence of a legit rushing attack and versatile receiver out of the backfield could open up the offense and make the Cardinals a much more imposing opponent.
Considering Arizona doesn’t have a ton of talent behind Ellington and they just released Ryan Williams, it looks like Arians’ praise and estimation might actually need to be taken seriously. That’s good news for Cardinals fans, and potentially awful news for the rest of the NFC West.
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