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Chad Spann: the Next Antonio Brown?
Special
Pre-Game by PalmerSucks As
some of you know, I was yapping about Antonio Brown long before last season.
That’s because I watch a lot of MAC football.
That’s
why I was struck as I watched a name scroll across the waivers: Chad Spann,
running back. Like Brown, Spann was a MAC standout – in fact, he was once the
conference’s offensive player of the year. Spann’s finest hour came against
Big-Ten Minnesota, when he shredded the Gophers for 223 yards. Considering he
was playing for NIU, that’s quite an achievement.
Thanks
to injuries to Mendenhall and Moore, Spann will now get a shot with the
Stillers.
I
don’t know if Spann will see any playing time Sunday, but if he does, here’s
what you’ll see: a fireplug who plows through holes and tacklers, and is faster
than he looks. He’s also really football smart, as this piece shows: http://fifthdown.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/04/20/q-and-a-with-chad-spann-underrated-rb-prospect/
Spann’s
been compared to backs like Priest Holmes, but there’s another guy I think he
resembles: Ray Rice. He can catch the ball, and provides a nice change of pace
to the jumbo duo of Redman and Clay. Watch for him as the Stillers playoff run
goes on – and maybe even beyond.
--Palmer
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