Kenneth Darby Will Need To Wait

TBO did a little piece on Kenneth Darby, the rookie seventh-round running back, and how he could find his way into the rotation.

Williams currently heads to the sidelines in favor of Michael Pittman on a lot of third-down plays and the time may come soon when he's surrendering some of those critical third-down snaps to newcomer Kenneth Darby.

That's pretty optimistic. Pittman had another excellent season in 2006 despite the team's overall results. He averaged 4.9 yards per carry on 50 rushes. He was also the #2 receiver behind Joey Galloway, which is pretty impressive considering the roster has three first-round receivers on it. Unless Pittman gets hurt or suspended, there's little chance he is going to lose his third down/change-of-pace position for 2007.

More likely, Darby will have to beat out Earnest Graham for a spot. Graham tied for the team lead last year in special teams tackles with 20, so Darby will have to show that he can at least come close to replacing that production. He'll last through the preseason, but I see him as a practice squad player this year. The Bucs are pretty deep at running back and after seeing Darby's production last year at Alabama, I don't think he can beat out Mr. August.