by Dan Hasty

Question for the fellas out there; have you ever had two good looking girls interested in you at the same time, and had to make a choice between which one you wanted to be with? Well if you’re like me, you haven’t, “But you can imagine what it’d be like if you did!”. Today’s question brings us to one of the more intriguing NFL backfields; the Carolina Panthers. The duo of DeAngelo Williams and Jonathan Stewart has perfected the concept of a two-headed monster in the backfield for the better part of three seasons under Head Coach John Fox.

It’s no secret that the two running back system is becoming a major trend in the NFL, and few teams have pulled it off better than the Carolina Panthers. Heck, you could even make a case to say that it was the Panthers idea, and that everyone else followed. To me, there is one huge benefit that each of these two have going for them in their current situation:

-    There aren’t many teams in the NFL who you know from day one, will base the success of their offense primarily on running the football.

From my count, I’d say the Panthers, Ravens, 49ers, Titans, and Rams (because they’ve had no offensive talent not named Steven Jackson) are the teams that year-in and year-out, you know are going to run the football well, simply because they rely on it so much. One thing that aids both Stewart and Williams is the amount of carries they’ve had over the course of their career. Over the course of Jonathan Stewart’s first two seasons in the NFL, he’s averaged 203 carries. Surprisingly, DeAngelo has averaged fewer (189) over his four seasons in the league. To put those numbers into perspective, Packers RB Ryan Grant has averaged 260 carries a season, and that’s for an upper-echelon fantasy running back. Vikings RB and fantasy superstar Adrian Peterson has averaged a whopping 305 carries over his first three seasons, each of which has seen his yards per carry drop since his first season.

On the flip side, the Panthers have an average-at-best passing game. Matt Moore isn’t exactly the second coming of Joe Montana, and they might be breaking in a rookie at some point this season sooner than later in second round draft pick Jimmy Clausen. Neither of these guys are going to help take any pressure off these running backs, although I’d give an obvious edge to Moore, considering the solid performances he put up at seasons end, even if his team was already out of playoff contention. Keep in mind, either of these options is better than color-blind Jake Delhomme, who’s now in Cleveland.

Let’s look at each of these two individually, beginning with Williams.

DeAngelo Williams
The first thing you notice about the Memphis product has world-class field vision. He’s elusive, can improvise on a broken play, and is a better receiver than Stewart. He generally saw more of the action between the 20’s when he was healthy. After Williams’ injury in week 12, Stewart saw the majority of the carries, which evened the numbers by default. Another positive for DeAngelo is the fact that his all-pro left tackle in Jordan Gross will be back after recovering from a broken leg which caused him to miss the second half of the season. For a back that runs outside the tackles as much as Williams does, he stands to benefit more from having Gross on his line.

Williams’ detractors will say that even though the vision is there for Williams, he lacks top-end speed and separation ability that enables you to take long runs into the end zone. Others will point to the fact that he dances too much and doesn’t run north and south like his backfield mate Stewart. With Williams’ east/west running style, it should be something his owners should be able to live with, given his production. Did we mention that it’s a contract year for DeAngelo? Yeah, he’ll be motivated.

Jonathan Stewart

Who doesn’t love a young running back who always keeps those legs churning north and south on the field? From all indications, Stewart is in line to have his first healthy start to a season in 2010. Add to that, he’s only 23 years old, four years younger than his backfield counterpart in Williams. The former Oregon Duck was also used plenty in the red zone, nearly doubling Williams’ opportunities near the goal line (Stewart: 22 Attempts; Williams: 13). It’s obvious that John Fox trusts his grinding-style running back to put the ball in the end zone, which is no surprise. Those goal-line and short-yardage conversions go a long way into getting more playing time. Why? Because it builds trust from head coach to that player. John Fox knows what he’s getting from Stewart and can rely on him to deliver, when Williams doesn’t specialize in short yardage and goal-line situations at the same level that Stewart does.

Stewart also comes with a few knocks on him. Ever talk to somebody who says that getting tattoos are addicting? Stewart must feel the same way about surgery. The running back is coming off surgery (this time on his heel) for the third time in three seasons. Although many claim he will be fine for week one of the NFL season, get used to seeing reports of him not practicing during the week, just as a precaution. When he is in, there’s no question he’s effective, but out of the two were discussing, Stewart relies more on the correct play call to get his yards. Williams is the type of back who can make something out of nothing. With Stewart, you can tell his success is predicated on the correct play call, plus, the offensive line doing their job, plus him making the right cut when he sees the hole in the defense. I really believe with this being his third year in the league, and with the way he ended last season, Stewart may be embarking on a great opportunity (even if he started training camp on the PUP list, which I’m sure he’ll be off of soon).

Which one to Take?

In my most competitive keeper league, I’ve had DeAngelo for a season and a half now. Make no mistake, if you take him, you’re going to get a quality running back in Williams, but surprisingly I’d take Stewart.

When I evaluate players, I like to look a lot at their age and how many opportunities they get at the goal line. You have to ask yourself, if the Panthers believe in DeAngelo, how come they haven’t offered him a new contract yet? You just don’t take the chance on a player with that kind of talent having a superb season, and then having to pay market value for him. The Panthers know they are going to lean on the young guy in Stewart, and he’s under contract for three more seasons. Either way, if you draft one of these players, be ready to despise the other. The past year, I’ve been yelling loud enough at my television after a Jonathan Stewart touchdown, I’m waiting for neighbors to start knocking on my front door. I’m sure if you end up with Stewart, you’ll wonder

Remember those two good looking girls you had to pick from? The moral of this story is; Take the younger one! She’ll look better longer than the older one will. Not to mention it can’t hurt if you pick the one that gives you the best chance to score. What?

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