Tim Hightower has been an impressive runner in his rookie season for the Arizona Cardinals. Edgerrin James, in what seems like his hundredth NFL season, has not.
Hightower's average yards per carry is low, but that's due to his usage as the goal-line back. He has scored six touchdowns already this season, the majority of which have been from inside the five yard line.
Edgerrin James is averaging only 3.5 yards per carry, and that's mostly without short-yardage touches. He's also got a ton of tread on those aging tires, as he nears 3000 carries in his illustrious career.
Common sense would dictate a change in the backfield is near ... and those thoughts are emanating from Cardinals camp this week:
(L)istening to the goings-on around the Cardinals on Monday, you got the feeling that a move from Edgerrin James to rookie Tim Hightower as the starting running back in the coming days or weeks is a distinct possibility.
The rest of the story has a few quotes from Hightower, Edge, and Coach Ken Whisenhunt ... where they basically didn't tell us anything. It was all politcal speak.
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There was one thing that was never said, though ... no one ever said that Edgerrin James is definitely the feature back. I found that telling. To me, it sounds like the job is shifting from one man to the other. When asked if this was true, here's how Edge responded ...
"That's the way it was heading anyway, so it's cool."
Wow. It almost sounds like he doesn't even care.
Fantasy Spin:
You must add Hightower immediately in all formats. If he takes the starting job this week, he'll have a great opportunity to make a huge impact against the Rams sub-par run defense. Edgerrin James is relatively worthless in most formats even when he's starting at this point. He had one good week, and one decent one ... other than that he's been a waste this season. Let's hope, for our purposes, that the Cards move on.
Tim Hightower Close to Taking Arizona Starting RB Job from Edgerrin James originally appeared on NFL FanHouse on 2008-10-28T16:53:00+00:00. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
