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Topic: Great stuff on the HEAVY Hambrick! (Read 248 times) |
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Tony_O
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Great stuff on the HEAVY Hambrick!
« on: May 22nd, 2003, 12:56pm » |
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Troy Hambrick has shown the potential and skill to be a top quality fantasy runningback, but will he take advantage of his opportunity to be the "MAN" this year?
Here is a few discouraging articles on Hambrick......
Posted on Thu, May. 22, 2003
Hambrick's chance being eaten away
By Clarence E. Hill Jr.
Star-Telegram Staff Writer
At 250 pounds, Troy Hambrick is too heavy to serve as the primary runner in the Cowboys' ball-control offense, coach Bill Parcells said.
STAR-TELEGRAM/DARREL BYERS
In addition to slimming down, Troy Hambrick says he is ready to tone down his outspoken personality in order to fit in with new coach Bill Parcells.
IRVING - Running back Troy Hambrick was given the opportunity he always wanted when the Cowboys released Emmitt Smith in February.
Now he just has to stop eating.
Hambrick, Smith's backup the past two seasons and the heir apparent to the starting job, ballooned to 260 pounds in March before dropping 10 pounds. Coach Bill Parcells has ordered him to get to 240 or less by the time training camp opens July 26.
"I feel like a fat boy," Hambrick said between two-a-day minicamp practices Wednesday. "I can't seem to come out of my breaks quick enough. I've got to get under 240 pounds. That's where he wants me to be, and I've got to give it to him."
Hambrick, who blamed his added weight on "momma's cooking," said, "I think I am going to put a couple of plates [aside]. I hate to have to do it, because I love to eat."
Parcells said Hambrick has no choice if he hopes to have a chance of being the Cowboys' starting running back in 2003.
"Troy Hambrick will not play running back for the Cowboys at 250 pounds," Parcells said. "His opportunity is here. He has to recognize and appreciate it and take it for what it is, because the circus doesn't stay in town forever."
Hambrick has not been promised the starting job even if he loses the weight. Michael Wiley and Aveion Cason are in the fray, and someone from the outside -- perhaps Ron Dayne, who is expected to be released by the Giants in June -- could enter the mix by training camp.
But Hambrick is the front-runner, and Parcells likes the three-year veteran, who has risen from undrafted free agent from Savannah State to the top of the depth chart.
They have had several conversations about Hambrick's uncle, baseball great Jim "Mudcat" Grant, whom Parcells saw play.
Parcells likes Hambrick's potential as a running back -- he has 924 yards on 198 career carries for an average of 4.7 yards per carry. Even more intriguing is his blend of size and speed. In the 2002 off-season, a 235-pound Hambrick ran the 40-yard dash in about 4.3 seconds.
However, he didn't maintain his weight during the 2002 season. Running backs coach Maurice Carthon said there was a noticeable difference in Hambrick's play from 2001, when Hambrick rushed for 579 yards and finished third in the NFL with a 5.1 yards-per-carry average, to last season, when he rushed for 317 yards on 79 carries.
Besides that, Parcells is adamant about his weight requirement. He believes being overweight is a sign of poor discipline. He also believes a heavy Hambrick can't play to the level he expects from his running backs, especially in the fourth quarter. It's not unusual for backs in Parcells' ball-control offense to get 11 consecutive carries late in the game.
"He won't be able to do it at 250 pounds," Parcells said. "His stamina and endurance will not be what I want it to be. We won't have any of this helmet-tapping for guys who want to come out of the game. We don't have that here anymore. When you are dead, they come and get you and take you out. Until then, just get back to the huddle."
To that end, Parcells said the way Hambrick loses weight is just as important as the loss of weight.
"He said to me today, 'I am only eating twice a day.' I said, 'Eat once,' " Parcells said. "I don't want him taking diuretics or doing anything in an effort to make weight that eventually ends up hurting him, because two days later he pulls a muscle because he dehydrated his body. We basically have to stop eating here for a while."
As hard as it might seem for someone who loves Momma's cooking, Hambrick knows he has no choice but to stop eating.
Coincidentally, that might not be the hardest change Hambrick is trying to make.
After garnering national attention last year by openly campaigning for Smith's job and making controversial statements regarding the ability of the league's all-time leading rusher, Hambrick says he will try to tone it down in 2003. Considering Parcells' intolerance for loose cannons in the locker room, Hambrick knows too much is at stake.
"I believe in what I say when I say it," Hambrick said. "But I am trying to be smart. There is no need in blowing an opportunity that way."
The seemingly maturing Hambrick acknowledged he learned a lot from Smith and said he misses not having him around.
"I was always the guy behind Emmitt," Hambrick said. "I had a chance to learn. It's a little different now. People are shooting at me.
"But knowing I have a chance to take over for the greatest running back ever is great. This is the chance I wanted. I want to make the most of it. But it's up to me to do the right things."
First, he must stop eating.
Can Hambrick carry the full load for Cowboys?
Running back will get chance to be No. 1 - if he loses some weight
05/22/2003
By JEAN-JACQUES TAYLOR / The Dallas Morning News
IRVING – This is the opportunity running back Troy Hambrick has always wanted.
He's at the top of the depth chart and the coaching staff is going to give him every opportunity to win the job and replace Emmitt Smith.
Coach Bill Parcells and offensive coordinator Maurice Carthon have made one request: lose 10 pounds before training camp begins on July 25.
It is not optional.
"I don't want him taking diuretics or doing anything in an effort to make that weight that eventually winds up hurting him because two days later he pulls a muscle," Parcells said. "Troy will not be able to play running back for the Dallas Cowboys at 250 pounds because he isn't going to have the stamina or the endurance.
"He has to get himself established and take advantage of the opportunity because he has to recognize the circus doesn't last forever."
Thus far, Carthon said he's pleased with Hambrick's off-season work ethic. So is owner Jerry Jones.
Still, losing the weight will be an indication of whether Hambrick is serious about becoming the focal point of the offense. He's also playing for a lucrative contract.
Hambrick will be a restricted free agent after the season, which means he can negotiate with other teams, although the Cowboys will have a right of first refusal, if they tender him a contract.
He understands this is the most important year of his football career, so he's been paying more attention in meetings and watching extra film during lunch.
"He has passed the first step," Carthon said. "He has to show us that he can carry the ball 10 times in a row in the preseason and still get the job done. If he's able to do that, then he'll be the guy. It's no secret that when he was 235 and 240 pounds, he was a quicker and better player."
In 2001, Hambrick rushed for 579 yards and averaged 5.1 yards – third in the NFL in yards per carry. He weighed about 235 pounds.
In 2002, he gained 317 yards and averaged 4.0 yards per carry when he weighed about 245 pounds.
Hambrick is the only running back on the roster with the size to carry the ball 20 times a game and withstand the rigors of a 16-game season.
But Carthon won't have any problem giving the ball to Michael Wiley or Aveion Cason if Hambrick isn't in shape to carry the ball.
"I'm battling the weight right now and trying to get down," Hambrick said. "At this weight, I can't make my cuts the way I want, but I'll get down. I have the chance I wanted. It's up to me to do the right thing.
"...I would have thought I lost a couple of pounds after Tuesday's practice, but I didn't. I think I'm going to have to put a couple of plates away. I hate to have to do it because I love to eat."
It will be interesting to see if Hambrick can break out this year!
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Philosopher King
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Re: Great stuff on the HEAVY Hambrick!
« Reply #1 on: May 22nd, 2003, 1:17pm » |
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First off, Mr. O, AWESOME, PITHY post! 
I must note, though, that I find all this talk of Hambrick's "ballooning" up to 260 and now being at 250, needing to be at 240 and having been as low as 235 a little, well, funny considering the fact that he is listed at 255 in last year's Street & Smith's preseason pro football guide.  The guy's big, bottom line, and Parcells knew that and still (was party to) let(ting) Emmitt go without a fight and has not, and probably will not, bring in another back to compete with him. Why? Because he likes him. Now, in classic Parcells style, he and Maurice Carthon, the running backs coach and a Parcells disciple, are pushing him. That's all! They just want to get the best Troy Hambrick they can get and that means workin' out hardcore during the offseason. Calling you "fat boy" will surely light a fire under your ass!  All the rest is just newspaper spin! I mean to suggest going from Hambrick to... Ron  Dayne! 
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| « Last Edit: May 22nd, 2003, 1:26pm by Stegfucius » |
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