"Cadillac Out... Who's In?"

To be honest, I am perplexed! I can make arguements for both runningbacks, but not enough for me to decide who I would pick-up and play.

I am going to lay out the arguements and let you decide.

MICHAEL PITTMAN: I am a fan of Michael Pittman. Originally drafted by the Arizona Cardinals (10th Season). He has exceptional size (6'0, 228 lbs) and speed. The best thing going for Pittman is that he has all ready developed a relationship with Jeff Garcia as a third down specialist. He has great hands (ranked 2nd on the team with receptions last year). Jeff has just come from an offense (PHI) where they utilized the RB out of the backfield more than most. Michael has all the parts in place to be an effective "West Coast" offense that Garcia prospers in. The unfornate thing is that is not how the offense is truly built. It does show flashes of this, but relies heavily on running inside the guards....lots of dives. They could alter their approach and play Michael at least 75% of time, but just as easily split the carries. He should not lose his third down duties, so the question is, does "Chuckie" split 1st and 2nd, giving Pittman more of the carries, using Graham on goal-line attempts, or lean more to Graham on 1 and 2nd and give them both shots at the endzone.

EARNEST GRAHAM: All ready excelling with kick-offs and returns (his forte), he has shown that he can take his hard-nosed approach and run it right into the belly of the defense, putting up 3 TDs in 4 games. He has a storied college career and has done all the right things over the past three years to earn him this opportunity. At 5'9", 225 lbs, he is thick, fast, and hard to tackle. Will he be the "Sammy Morris, Marion Barber" that takes away TDs but acquiesces to the Yardage total? It's apparent that he has a vote of confidence from the coach and has performed well when handed the "rock", the question truly is, has it been enough to upend a veteran with the skills of Michael Pittman?

FINAL THOUGHTS: Each has 30 carries, with Pittman averaging 5.7 YDS (above league average) to Grahams 4.5 YDS (about par with league average), however, Graham has the advantage of proving he can get it in the end-zone when it counts [Graham-3; Pittman-0]. Pittman has 9 receptions for 78 YDs (8.7 YD Avg.) while Graham only has 2 for 17 YDS (8.5 YD Avg.). The truth is, they are fairly dead even when it comes to statistics. The difference is experience at being a number 1 starter (Pittman) as opposed to being a career special teams guy (Graham). Coach "Chuckie" doesn't rely on that, but does rely on what he sees.

It may come down to match-ups and who does well in the scheme for that particular week (based on practice and injury potential). Truthfully, I cannot decide, believing that both have a solid chance to touch the ball more than the other. I may be splitting hairs in reality, but fantasy-wise, it could be close or a huge difference in fantasy points.

You decide... Who would you pick-up, fantasy-wise, and why?

Statistocrat