I thought Neal looked a lot better LAST year- but unfortunately, Chaney only wanted to use him as a decoy. I expect big things from him this season.
Hmm, agree/disagree. As I posted below, our rush offense last year was the best since 2004, and before that, you have to go back to the glory years of 98-2000. And in that, Neal was the leading RB, so you can't say we didn't use him.
That isn't to say that Chaney often failed miserably to use him in obvious running situations. Chaney had too much of a tendency to gamble on 3rd and short...we all noticed that.
But to me, this is just a continuation of the good work Neal did last year. I think he likely is one of the top 3-4 backs in the SEC right now, running behind what is considered the best OL in the SEC. I think he has a banner year.
If our passing game can gell and keep opposing Ds honest, we might have a decent offense this year. Big if, I know.