If you’re on twitter like I am, its become pretty clear by now the masses have lost all faith in Tennessee Titans 2nd year running back, Bishop Sankey. Perhaps it was his middling 2014 YPC average of 3.7, or maybe it was due to his lack of touchdowns in 2014 (2), or maybe its the fear David Cobb is going to push Bishop for some or even all the available work in 2015. As a “crusader for Sankey” I cannot say I buy into any or all these points. So for those of you who have lost complete faith or have a wavering trust in Bishop, let me give you 4 reasons to still believe.
Shuddering just thinking about how many times Bishop Sankey went 1.1 in dynasty rookie drafts last year. Sheeeeesh.
— Joe Dolan (@FG_Dolan) June 9, 2015
Number 4: Bishop’s Overall RB Grade
I am a firm believer in the work being done over at Pro Football Focus, and therefore I integrate it into a lot of my writing. Watching tape is one part of the game, but understanding the advanced statistics is an entirely different thing — this is where PFF is so important. Believe it or not Sankey actually graded out as the 23rd overall RB in 2014 per PFF, finishing ahead of other running backs such as: Matt Forte, Carlos Hyde, Tre Mason, Gio Bernard, Alf Morris and LeSean McCoy just to name a few.
The expectation universally is no running back is going to wildly excel in his first NFL season, but despite an uphill battle Sankey still graded out at or above average (-0.5) last season. This is probably news to fantasy owners because public perception of Sankey was there are 30+ running backs people would have rather had than him, PFF would disagree though. Sankey’s rushing grade (+3.1) was even good for 17th overall in the league — this grade is taking into account the entire situation around him as well, so again… don’t let Twitter be your only form of player analysis.
Number 3: Bishop vs Le’Veon vs Recency Bias
This will probably get me tarred and feathered by the people who take it the wrong way, but I am actually ok with it — my skin has not been exfoliated in forever. Recency-bias is all consuming, as a matter of fact I would be willing to bet most anybody if you polled all your buddies on what Le’Veon Bells rookie year YPC were they would say 4.0+ — that my friends would be incorrect though. As the dynasty community’s unanimous #1 overall back (deservedly so) most people just assume Le’Veon Bell posted a stellar rookie season. What if I told you his rookie season YPC vs Bishop Sankey’s rookie season YPC were actually worse? It would be true.
As a rookie Le’Veon Bell, in an infinitely better situation in Pittsburgh posted just 3.5 YPC as a rookie, so its pretty impressive to consider despite the mediocre 3.7 YPC Bishop posted in 2014 it was actually better than Bell’s. Sure — different situations, health vs coming off injury, and whatever else you want to argue. The point I am making is there is clearly a light at the end of the tunnel for Sankey heading into year 2.
Number 2: The David Cobb Effect
Look, if you’re going to run scared every time something unpleasant happens than you may as well build a pillow fort and stay inside of it forever. I am actually a fan of David Cobb’s college production and I believe he is definitely in the mix as the number 1 or number 2 running back in this offense. We have to be honest with ourselves, this is the NFL and coaches will only sit idle for so long — sometimes it only takes a single season to lose your job. With that said I am also a firm believer in analyzing the actual decisions of NFL organizations rather than just comparing player vs player. As a 2nd round pick Bishop Sankey was the first running back selected in the 2014 draft, this in itself is a big time investment and co-sign from the Titans organization.
Now, David Cobb was not nearly the same cost as Sankey when we are discussing round value. Selected in the 5th round of this years draft David Cobb wasn’t even the first ball carrier selected by the Titans in this 2015 class. What you say? Yes, you heard me correctly the Tennessee Titans actually spent a 4th round pick on a full-back out of Alabama (Jalston Fowler) with one their two fourth-round draft picks. A curious draft position when you consider they passed on other running backs graded higher than Cobb along the way. The Titans knew they had to kick start this offense and their first three draft picks support this claim: QB – Marcus Mariota, WR – Dorial Green-Beckham, & OG – Jeremiah Poutasi. Cobb is that big back we see often in committee backfields now days, but because of all the reasons I listed above — I am not folding my hand on Sankey.
Bishop Sankey forced more missed tackles than Jeremy Hill — on 70 less carries.
— SEA Nate (@AnOutragedJew) June 26, 2015
Number 1: Missed Tackles & Elusive Rating
And here comes the 101 MPH fastball right down the pipe.
In 2014 Mr. Sankey graded out as the 19th best running back in the NFL in terms of forced missed tackles with 29. Yes, believe it or not Bishop Sankey didn’t always go down like a sack of potatoes on first contact as others would lead you to believe. In fact, Bishop’s 29 missed tackles on 152 total carries was one of the leagues best missed tackle to carry ratios in 2014. Sankey’s. His 29 missed tackles in 2014 were actually more than: Jeremy Hill, Tre Mason, Carlos Hyde, Isaiah Crowell. The sad reality is anyone reading this is probably higher on every player I just named than Sankey, but for what reason? Aside from team usage (goal line) and his season ending YPC I am not really sure what IS NOT to like about Bishop. Let us dig further though.
One of the most impressive statistics PFF offers for running backs is their own statistic they call the “Elusive rating”. This rating is an isolated look at what a running back was able to accomplish without the help of his blockers. In this repect Bishop Sankey was rated the 10th highest at the running back position last year. It really speaks volumes to his abilities as a runner when you consider he was labeled with “bad footwork” but even still graded out as high as he did overall, in elusive rating, and in the forced missed tackle category. For perspective his elusive rating (48.8) was also higher than these notable names: Demarco Murray, Jeremy Hill, Alfred Morris, Tre Mason, Lamar Miller, Matt Forte, LeSean McCoy and Isaiah Crowell. An impressive list to rank higher than in an avenue he was often criticized for a lack of refinement in (footwork).
The Verdict
Bishop Sankey has done a lot more with his limited opportunities than most would give him credit for, and its clear in the numbers. A first year running back playing in a porous offense with an awful quarterback situation was not ideal, yet Sankey still stayed afloat. Entering 2015 he is still my favorite to win this job, and I believe with the new offensive threats at wide receiver and quarterback in Tennessee Bishop could really flourish — even with David Cobb nibbling at some big back work and goal-line carries. So until more news arises we are in a holding patter with Bishop Sankey.
Happy Hunting.
