Posted by radan in 
LaDainian Tomlinson is having an abysmal year. Everyone knows it, yet he’s still owned in just about every league out there. I’m guessing that it’s because people are hoping that he’ll make one last LT-like run before the season is over. I’m not really sure that’s going to happen, though.
Injuries have obviously slowed him down the past two seasons, but what he’s done while he has been on the field hasn’t been very impressive; definitely not impressive enough to make him anyone’s #1 or even #2 option.
Let’s look at his numbers since 2006, starting with the rushing stats:
| YEAR | CAR | YDS | YPC | TD |
| 2006 | 348 | 1815 | 5.2 | 28 |
| 2007 | 315 | 1474 | 4.7 | 15 |
| 2008 | 292 | 1110 | 3.8 | 11 |
| 2009 | 91 | 289 | 3.2 | 3 |
He’s on pace this season to have career lows in every category. I mean, since when does a guy who’s averaging 3.2 yards per carry deserve to start each week? These numbers could be even worse, too. If not for an otherwise poor effort against the Raiders a few weeks ago in which he scored twice, he’d be having a poorer season than a lot of #3 running backs in the league. He’s definitely done breaking off a bunch of huge gains around the outside, which is going to limit his yardage and make his team use him as more of a power runner. That’s just not his game.
It’s not too surprising to find out that his receiving numbers are dropping off as well:
| YEAR | TARGETS | REC | YDS | YPR | TD |
| 2006 | 80 | 56 | 508 | 9.1 | 3 |
| 2007 | 86 | 60 | 475 | 7.9 | 3 |
| 2008 | 77 | 52 | 421 | 8.1 | 1 |
| 2009 | 16 | 9 | 40 | 4.4 | 0 |
Yeah, you’re seeing that right. 9 receptions in the 6 games he’s played this season. These stats should be even more frustrating to anyone who has LT on their team because his receiving skills were unmatched at the running back position just a few years ago. You could count on Tomlinson to get an additional 40 to 60 yards through the air most of the time. This threat would also keep defenses on their heels and would open up the running game even more for, guess who, LaDainian Tomlinson.
That certainly has changed, though. There haven’t even been glimpses of the old LT this season, and it’s not just because of the injuries or the performance of Darren Sproles. Honestly, he just doesn’t look like he has the fire that he used to show every week.
Maybe he’ll pick his game back up and have another semi-solid season or two, but I have a feeling it won’t happen. This is probably just another case of a 30+ year-old running back who is just past his prime and ready to move on to other things like coaching or broadcasting.
So in conclusion, no, I don’t think he’s worth starting any more. I don’t even know if he’s worth keeping around at all if there’s any other decent RB available. It really sucks because this guy used to be a lot of fun to watch… and own.
