Tag Archives: St. Louis Rams

NFL

Jones, Robert (2)

flr95 rjones cla92 rjones pset92 rjones  stpics92 rjones gday93 rjonesgday92 rjones phomem15 rjones
Cards: Star Pics 1992, Gameday 1992, Gameday 1993, ProSet 1992, Fleer 1995, Classic 1992, Photo Memorabilia.
Acquired: In Person, Bud Light Signing San Antonio
See Also: Robert Jones

I braved a monsoonal torrent down I-35 in traffic for a hour to HEB only to discover after an hour of milling around that store that Gameday Sports Tours had moved the event to another location without notifying anybody.  It was literally the perfect storm, as Gameday had become fed up with behavior of other members on a message board and just decided not to update things anymore. While I understand why they did it, overall it strikes me as unprofessional and immature to check out like that. Left in the lurch, the manager at the HEB was able to eventually direct me via the phone to the correct location approximately 5 miles away for the event. With Robert running slightly late (- maybe due to the weather or the driver who also took him to the wrong location,) he expressed a need to leave early due to wanting to watch his son’s football game; However, he heartily signed anything and everything fans had.  Robert also is on Twitter and is very vocal about his Alma Mater’s current state of affairs in college football.

Some great cards here of Robert, it was difficult to choose which ones to get autographed. Luckily he hit all these cards for me and penned this garish photo of himself. I had always wanted to get his college cards autographed. Both Star Pics and Classic have fallen by the wayside in the garbage of dead companies over the years but I enjoyed their issues very much at the time. The Gameday and ProSet were all exceptional photoshots of Robert, while the Fleer was just a set grab. There’s probably just one or two more of Jones I’d like to get signed at this point, but otherwise, the event and the haul turned out to balance out a poorly set up event.

NFL

Gurley, Todd

sage15 gurleyCard: Sage 2015 (212/250)
Acquired: Twitter Promotion 2015, C/o SA-GE Collectibles

I had never won a promotion before through Twitter, but when SA-GE Collectibles announced a giveaway, I had to take a shot downfield. SA-GE was looking to see fans player collections, so I emptied my binder of all my SA-GE autographed cards and sent them a photo. Pretty soon thereafter I was followed by a few copycats, but the message had been sent, and I made an impression. A few weeks later I received 2 cards. I thought that I’d get an Alfred Blue card, but lo and behold I received this awesome Todd Gurley card along with a really nicely designed Anthony Harris card. After thanking SA-GE for the card, I was spammed by a few interested buyers, but I’m not in it to sell it.

I had been following Todd Gurley for a while. On my long drives to Houston for Texans signings, I had listened to pundits talk about how good he was and his numbers spoke volumes.  Although injuries derided his 2013 and partially his 2014 campaign, Todd graded out rightfully so with a first round grade.  In 3 years at Georgia, Todd rushed for 3285 yards on 510 carries with 36 TDs.  Considered a rare blend of speed and power, Gurley would have been the #1 overall pick if not for an ACL injury that sidelined him for the remainder of the 2014 campaign and through the combine.

The St. Louis Rams looking for that bell cow back selected Gurley with the 10th overall pick of the 2015 draft.  Todd got on the field near the end of September against the Steelers, and had his first bust out game against the Cardinals the following week rushing for 146 yards on 19 carries- the first of four straight 100 yard games. He scored his first TD against the Browns on 10/25 and finished with 1,106 yards on 226 carries and 10 TDs, propelling Gurley to the Pro Bowl and NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year Honors.

NFL

Walker, Darius

sco07 dwalkerCard: Score 2007
Acquired: 2014, Albany Acquisition

Darius Walker was a solid runningback at Notre Dame from 2004-2006. Clocking in at 5’11”, 205, Walker ran for 3,249 yards and 17 touchdowns, but also was a great receiver out of the backfield, setting the school mark for runningbacks with 56 catches in 2006. He declared after his Junior season, but after a subpar combine, was not drafted. Walker was in the process of signing with the Chicago Bears, when he had a change of heart and signed with the Texans. Darius felt he had a better chance of making the Texans roster, after the sudden injury retirement of Dominick Davis/ Williams the previous season.

Hoping that Ahman Green was the answer, the Texans signed him to a contract, but injuries limited his effectiveness.  In the end Ron Dayne ended up with the lion’s share of the carries and the yards. Darius finally saw game action in week 13 and helped the team go 3-1 down the stretch. During week 16, Walker rushed for a career high 86 yards on 10 carries, and his first professional touchdown against the Jacksonville Jaguars.

He’d join the St. Louis Rams in 2008, but was unable to secure a spot on the squad. With Green back on IR the Texans resigned Walker during the season, but he wouldn’t see time on the field. Darius also spent time with the Broncos and Cowboys in 2009. He’s spent time as a sideline reporter and as analyst for Fox.

I had forgotten about Walker. He was the poor man’s Arian Foster to me, but much rougher. I was pretty disappointed after he signed with the Rams, and hoped he was going to be our long term answer at runningback.  Although he saw action in 4 games, he ran well and did not put the rock on the ground. With the glut of backs out there looking for jobs, Walker always seemed lost in every roster’s number game.

G/Gs     4/2       Rush   58     Yds  264      Td   1        Lg   41    |       Rec  13       Yds  81       Avg 6.2     Td 0      Lg  9