New York Jets running back Chris Ivory has played a huge role in his team's surprising 3-1 start, and his game drew high praise from fellow Jets wide receiver Brandon Marshall on Thursday. In a report by the New York Post's Steve Serby, the 31-year-old Marshall believes that his teammate is the best running back (RB) in NFL.
"He's already the best running back in the league right now. Just watch the tape -- speed, quickness, agility, vision, endurance -- he has it all," Marshall said on Wednesday.
"(Ivory) runs really violently, he has great feet, great vision. He's humble ... and he doesn't even know how good he can be, and that's the scary part. I remember having a conversation when I first got here with him, and he was like, 'I want to have 1,000 yards. I just want to get there.' I said, 'What?' I said, 'No, the goal's gonna be 1,500 or better.' And now he's there, he's like, 'Man, I see it,' and that's the good thing," he further explained.
It might be too early to crown Ivory as the best running back in the business, given that the 27-year-old RB never had more than 833 rushing yards in a single season. However, he is now in his sixth season (his third with the Jets) and he is currently tied for the league lead with 104.7 rushing yards per game.
Moreover, Pro Football Focus' (PFF) analytics service ranks Ivory as the third-best tailback in football with an 85.2 score, so his not off by much. Le'Veon Andrew Bell, a running back for the Pittsburgh Steelers, earned PFF's first spot. The Jets RB also ranks him 17th in the league in rushing yards for the current this season. He is tied for first in yards per game with the St. Louis Rams' Todd Gurley.
Meanwhile, Jets head coach Todd Bowles finally got an opportunity to lead a team during the offseason, following 15 years of serving as a defensive coach. He will face his former team, the Washington Redskins, on Sunday. He already squared off against the Redskins a handful of times in the past but the upcoming game will be his first time to do it as head coach.
During a conference call on Wednesday, Bowles made a short comment on how he feels about going against his former team. "Anytime you mention the Redskins, there's a soft spot in my heart because that's the team that gave me my [start]. A lot of guys are gone from there, but I have a lot of friends down there. So I'll always be grateful and thankful for the opportunity Coach [Joe] Gibbs and those guys gave me," Bowles said, via the Washington Post.
