05-12-2020, 12:18 AM
(05-11-2020, 07:26 PM)Nicomo Cosca Wrote: Dillon came in 97 (and had 1129 yds & 10 TD his rookie season) Blake started 25 games for us between then and when he left after 99. Akili only started 4 games in 99.
Corey was there in 1997, but Ki-Jana was the starter for the vast majority of Blake's 11 starts that year. People forget, but that 4-1 run at the end had as much (maybe more) to do with Dillon starting than Boomer. Dillon had 635 yards and 7 TD's in those 5 games. Only 494 yards and 3 TD's in Blake's 11 starts, again because he was sitting behind Ki-Jana.
The only other significant time Blake spent with Dillon was 1999, which was a cluster___ of a year. We drafted Akili, so Blake knew the end was near. Coslet was checked out, then quit after 4 games. Then they decided to start Akili for 4 weeks. Then went back to Blake again for the last 8 weeks.
In the 10 games Blake got to start and finish, and Dillon actually played (he missed game 16) the Bengals averaged a solid 22.8 ppg (which would've ranked 10th that year) and Blake's passer rating that year ranked 19th among qualifiers. Not great, but considering the situation (awkward coaching transition, bouncing QB's back and forth, league's worst defense, etc) it was a respectable performance.
To sum it up, Blake never really had a good shot with Dillon. At least not with any sort of stability whatsoever.
The training, nutrition, medicine, fitness, playbooks and rules evolve. The athlete does not.
