In an earlier era, before running backs lost the value they do today, John Elway was carried by the young Hall of Fame legs of Terrell Davis to the elusive first and second Super Bowls of his Hall of Fame career.
Elway was 37 and 38 years old when he hoisted the Lombardi Trophy at the end of Super Bowls XXXII and XXXIII after three previous losses, and he had Davis to thank for his back-to-back seasons of 1,750 and 2,008 rushing yards and 15 and 21 touchdowns, respectively.
It’s unrealistic to expect Aaron Rodgers to be MVP at age 40, after his Achilles season in 2023. However, it’s not unrealistic to assume that Breece Hall can play a key role in getting Rodgers back to the elusive Super Bowl if he can find his mojo on Thursday night against the Patriots or shortly thereafter.
The beast is unleashed.
Breece The Beast could very well be the AFC’s version of Christian McCaffrey. And while McCaffrey is sidelined with Achilles tendinitis, Breece the Beast reminds the NFL what a dangerous weapon he is to run and catch the ball when healthy.
When asked how he would rank Hall among NFL running backs, Jets RG Alijah Vera-Tucker said, “Top 3. Not 3, not 2, you know what I mean? I think Breece is an insane talent. Once he gets going, nobody catches him in the open field. I think he does a good job of creating gaps and running lanes for himself and helping us out by assisting our blocks by setting up the runs. And as you saw last Sunday against Tennessee, he was able to catch a nice ball from Aaron on that wheel route.”
Hall’s 26-yard touchdown catch against a linebacker was an eye-opener, and after a 76-catch season as a sophomore, he had a 12-91-1 touchdown record entering Thursday night. He led all RBs with 591 receiving yards last season.
“If you look at the video, even back to Iowa State, he always said he had good hands (laughs), and he definitely showed that last week,” AVT said. “That was really cool to see. Also, I think his blocking has improved.”
Hall (30-116-1 TD) finished last season with 994 rushing yards after starting the year with a pitch count due to a torn ACL in Week 7 of his rookie season.
“Whoever somebody puts at the top of their list, he’s going to be at the top,” CJ Mosley told the Post, “whether it’s 1, 2 or 3. He’s dangerous coming out of the backfield, he’s obviously got a lot of quickness and power, he can run between the tackles, on the outside, so he can do everything any of the best running backs in this league can do.” Mosley had one more thing to add. “Also, great pass protection,” he said.
The 220-pound Hall has been a mentor to promising 240-pound rookie Braelon Allen. Asked about Hall’s running style, Allen said, “Explosiveness. Evasiveness. Playmaking. He can hurt the defense in a variety of ways, as you saw on Sunday with the circus catches, he looked like a receiver out there. He’s extremely hard to tackle, very fast, definitely deceptively fast. He’s got long strides, high knees.”
Allen followed Hall’s exploits in Wisconsin.
“He runs really, really fast,” DE Takk McKinley told the Post. “Breece is in top shape. His speed is incredible, his vision is incredible. And overall, he’s just a complete running back. He’s just someone who’s unstoppable.”
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Once WR Mike Williams is more integrated into the offense, Garrett Wilson won’t be the only beneficiary. Hall should benefit as he will have more room to run and improve his 3.9 yards per attempt, which was 4.7 in his career.
“There are a lot of talented running backs out there. I don’t want you to disparage any of them for what they’ve done in their careers, but 20s is definitely a special talent,” Tyler Conklin told the Post. “He has such an upside in the passing game and the running game, being an all-around back like that and a three-down back, he’s up there with the best of them.”
When he was drafted in the second round in 2022, Hall told us he was the best running back in his class. When the 2023 season ended just under 1,000 rushing yards, Hall said, “I wasn’t really disappointed because everyone in the league that watches me knows I have the potential to probably be the best running back in the NFL.” If he can do that, not only will MetLife yell “BREEEEECE!” but Aaron Rodgers will too.
