Falcons Give Turner a Chance, and He Returns the Favor
January 3
New York Times
"His body is to die for, if you are an N.F.L. franchise dying for a durable running back. A double-wide from neck to toe, bulging with muscle, fast-twitch and otherwise, it packs an amazing amalgam of locomotive power and speed.
His body of work? It was thin entering the last off-season, and it was a concern among teams rummaging through the cast of costly ball-toting free agents.
His name? Michael Turner.
In four years with San Diego, Turner heard his number called less often than an unlucky bingo player. He had 228 carries and started once as an understudy to LaDainian Tomlinson.
The Falcons spliced together enough video of the Chargers to fall for him head over heels, which also describes some of Turner's would-be tacklers after collisions with him.
"He is a load," Gerald Brown, Atlanta's running backs coach, said of Turner, whose 244 pounds are compressed into a 5-foot-10-inch frame. "Tremendously strong lower body.
"And fast. His body doesn't show that."
While most hosannas for the team's about-face have been directed at quarterback Matt Ryan, Atlanta would be in hibernation right now if not for Turner. Instead, the Falcons are staring down the Arizona Cardinals as they prepare for a first-round National Football Conference playoff game Saturday.
The Falcons' first-year head coach, Mike Smith, found a sublime fit for his macho ground game in Turner, who rushed for 1,699 yards and 17 touchdowns, second in both N.F.L. categories. All this despite facing defenses eager to entice Ryan to throw and aligned to deter running plays.
A typical tailback, after breaking huddle, counts the opposing jerseys positioned to stop him, hoping the sum is less than eight. Turner does not bother. Because there are eight in the so-called box so often, he assumes that will always be the case.
As Turner is not counting, his blockers are reciting their mantra: play through the whistle. Do not relax just because you have pancaked or momentarily locked up your man.
"He makes so many people miss that you want to stay with your block longer, in case he takes it to the house," guard Tyson Clabo said.
Turner's chief escort, fullback Ovie Mughelli, must choose whom to aggress as the play develops. "If I see an arm sticking out, I don't even bother," he said, knowing that Turner treats a tackler's extended limb like a turnstile.
Generally, nothing less than full contact stops Turner. He shed 44 tackles this year, most in the N.F.L., according to Stats, LLC.
"Mike makes a lot of it happen on his own," center Todd McClure said. "He's a joy to block for."
Gerald Riggs, a former Falcons running back whom Turner has surpassed on some franchise rushing honor rolls, described him as a throwback. "He doesn't have a lot of flashy moves," Riggs said. "He's at his best on 3- or 4-yard gains, when he has nothing.""
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