Dec 15, 2013; Oakland, CA, USA; Kansas City Chiefs running back Jamaal Charles (25) catches a 71 yard touchdown pass against the Oakland Raiders in the third quarter at O.co Coliseum. The Chiefs defeated the Raiders 56-31. Mandatory Credit: Cary Edmondson-USA TODAY Sports
While the love Andy Reid has for Jamaal Charles on the football field is obvious, where does it go from here? Can we expect Jamaal to once again lead the team in yards both through the air and on the ground, to both catch passes out of the backfield and pass protect for Alex Smith? Personally, I say we can expect it, at least from Charles. Throughout his time with the Chiefs, Jamaal has consistently shown up to voluntary workouts and done whatever has been asked of him. If Andy Reid asked Jamaal to have 300 touches on the ground and another 100 through the air, Jamaal would put his head down and do his best to score on each one of those touches. What I don’t expect is for Andy Reid to do that. While he does love versatile running backs, Reid also understands the value of backs who can do the things he wants. Jamaal is a great fit for Reid’s system, and because of this Reid will want him around for as long as he can still produce. While questions of Jamaal’s age are going to be brought up soon, turning 28 this upcoming season, he is still fairly young and if anything, still in his prime, even if he is on the tail end of it.
While Ben Nielsen already looked into the running back situation behind Jamaal in his article, I do think that Knile Davis is going to have to play a bigger role this next year. All the problems that Ben mentioned: the fumbles and injuries, worry me as well. The thing is, just like Ben said, we don’t have another every down type of back behind those two. Knile Davis is going to have to be our guy to give Jamaal breathers consistently, and more importantly shield him from taking too many big hits. In order to help keep Jamaal around and to help secure his own future, Davis is going to have to step up and stay up on the field.
Besides Knile Davis helping to limit the touches Jamaal gets, a key aspect of the workload Jamaal carries will be the use of De’Anthony Thomas. Officially listed as a running back, expect DAT to line up all across the field. Possibly the most important change in the play calling could be DAT being the recipient of those multitude of screen passes and wheels out of the backfield. If Davis doesn’t prove up to the task of being a consistent backup to Jamaal, either injury wise or fumbling, look for DAT to line up behind Alex Smith as a traditional running back, as he did at Oregon on occasion.
As far as I know, Andy Reid could have absolutely no intentions on lowering the amount of touches Jamaal is going to get. Right now, he could be scheming at ways to let Jamaal even throw a couple touchdowns this year as well (circa LT back in the early 2000’s?). Looking at all these factors, however, I think we should look forward to consistent doses of Knile Davis and DAT both out of the backfield and lined up wide. What do you think, Addicts? Any thoughts on the future of our All-Pro running back, or thoughts of how we are going to use him this next season?