Alfred Morris is not the next Terrell Davis, he's the first Alfred Morris. To my eyes he's distinguished by having elite vision and anticipation. He doesn't just see the holes, he sees them before they open up, and slashes right through.
But I want to compare Morris to Terrell Davis anyway, because the similarities are uncanny. Obviously both are hand-picked Shanahan backs drafted in the 6th round. But there's more.
For example, both are really really slow.
Among successful NFL running backs, Terrell Davis ran the slowest 40 time ever, a snail-like 4.72. You know who else ran a snail-like 4.7 (4.67 to be exact)? Alfred Morris. Of the 25 running backs at the 2012 combine, only 5 ran slower than Morris. Three defensive lineman and seven linebackers ran faster than Morris.
The similarities continue. In his rookie year under Shanahan, Terrell Davis played in 14 games, and ran for 1,117 yards at 4.7 yards-per-carry. In Morris' rookie year under Shanahan, through 12 games, he has run for 1,106 yards at 4.8 yards-per-carry. Pretty similar starts to their respective careers.
If anything, Alfred Morris is off to faster start than Terrell Davis. And that final, game-sealing first down against the Giants tonight was all Morris. It's an exciting time to be a Skins fan.
I had no idea A. Morris was having such a stellar season. I haven't paid much attention to him, but he sounds like an elite running back in a fullback's body. He kind of reminds me a little bit of Ahmad Bradshaw, only slower. His ability to break tackles and get north-south is a huge asset.
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