In an earlier era, before running backs were devalued the way they are today, John Elway was carried to the elusive first and second Super Bowls of his Hall of Fame career by the young Hall of Fame legs of Terrell Davis.
Elway was 37 and 38 when he hoisted the Lombardi Trophy at the end of Super Bowls XXXII and XXXIII after three previous losses, and he had Davis to thank for his back-to-back 1,750-yard and 2,008-yard rushing seasons with 15 and 21 TDs, respectively.
It’s unrealistic to expect Aaron Rodgers to be the MVP at age 40, after his Achilles season in 2023, but it’s not unrealistic to suggest that if Rodgers starts to find his mojo — against the Patriots on Thursday night or shortly after — Breece Hall could be instrumental in leading him back to that elusive Super Bowl.
The Beast is being unleashed.
Breece The Beast could very well be the AFC’s version of Christian McCaffrey. Although McCaffrey is sidelined with Achilles tendinitis, Breece The Beast reminds the NFL how dangerous he is when healthy, running with the ball and catching it.
Jets right guard Alijah Vera-Tucker, when asked where he would rank Hall among NFL running backs, said: “Top three. Not top three, not top two, you know what I’m saying? I think Breece is an unbelievable talent. Once he gets loose, nobody catches him in the open field. I think he does a good job of creating space and creating running lanes and helping us do that, helping our blocks create the runs. And as you saw last Sunday against Tennessee, he was able to run that wheel route and catch a good ball from Aaron.”
Hall’s 26-yard touchdown reception off a linebacker was a revelation, and after a 76-catch sophomore season, he had 12 catches for 91 yards and a touchdown entering Thursday night.
His 591 receiving yards last season led all running backs.
“When you watch the tape, even from Iowa State, he always said he had good hands (laughs), and last week he showed that for sure,” Vera-Tucker said. “It was great to see. Another thing too is that I think his blocking has improved.”
Hall (30 carries, 116 yards and a TD entering Thursday) finished with 994 rushing yards last season after starting the year on a pass count following a torn ACL in Week 7 of his rookie season.
“Whoever is first on the list, he’s going to be up there,” CJ Mosley told the Post, “whether it’s first, second or third. He’s dangerous coming out of the backfield, obviously has great speed and power, can run between the tackles, on the outside, so he can do everything any of the top running backs in this league can do.”
Mosley needed to add something: “He also has great pass protection.”
Hall, who weighs 220 pounds, has been a mentor to promising 240-pound rookie Braelon Allen.
Asked about Hall’s running style, Allen said: “Explosiveness. Elusive. Playmaker. He can hurt defenses in a variety of ways, as seen on Sunday with the circus catches, he looked like a receiver. He’s extremely difficult to tackle, very fast, deceptive for sure. He’s got long strides, high knees.”
Allen followed Hall’s exploits at Wisconsin.
“He runs very, very hard,” defensive end Takk McKinley told the Post. “Breece is in great shape. His speed is amazing, his vision is amazing. And overall, he’s a complete runner. He’s someone who is Mr. Unstoppable.”
Once receiver Mike Williams becomes more integrated into the offense, Garrett Wilson won’t be the only beneficiary. Hall will benefit from more room to run and improve his 3.9 yards per game, down from his career mark of 4.7.
“There are a lot of talented running backs, I don’t want to discredit any of them for what they’ve done in their careers, but 20 (is) definitely a special talent,” Tyler Conklin told The Post. “He has a huge upside in the passing game along with the running game, he’s such a versatile back as a three-down back, he’s up there with the best.”
When he was selected in the second round of the 2022 draft, Hall told us he was the best running back in his class. When the 2023 season ended six yards shy of 1,000 rushing yards, Hall said, “I wasn’t really upset because everyone in the league that watches me knows I have the potential to probably be the best running back in the NFL.”
If he does, it won’t just be MetLife shouting “BREEEEECE!”, but Aaron Rodgers as well.
