Field Yates needs to see more out of Cardinals rookie Jeremiyah Love

Five games into his NFL career, and Arizona Cardinals rookie running back Jeremiyah Love hasn’t lived up to his first-round status.

Just about everyone sees it and that simply cannot continue to happen, says ESPN analyst Field Yates.

“We got to get a whole lot more out of this player. … You have this player that you drafted very high at a non-premium position and he’s being used as basically a co-starter,” Yates told Arizona Sports’ Wolf & Luke on Monday.

“I’d like to see Jeremiyah Love become the focal point for this offense,” Yates added. “Tyler Allgeier is a solid player and they have to throw a lot when they’re down big, but I would imagine that there are some fans that are frustrated by how infrequently he’s been utilized through the first five weeks of his career.”

You don’t have to imagine, Yates.

Through five games, Love has recorded 245 yards and a touchdown on 67 carries. He’s averaging 49 yards per game and 3.7 yards per carry.

The explosive plays just haven’t been there for the rookie at a consistent enough clip, though.

Instead of stacking home runs, it’s been a whole lot of singles (if not groundouts) from Love five games in.

His timeshare with Allgeier only limits the rookie’s potential that much more. It also adds to that frustration.

And with Love’s lingering ankle issue and his inability to really separate himself in the backfield, the veteran running back will continue to get his touches in LaFleur’s offense.

“It’s just surprising that Jeremiyah Love with this abundance of talent at probably the most transferable position in the NFL … that we just really haven’t seen Jeremiyah Love burst onto the scene this year other than that second half of the San Francisco game,” Yates said.

But it’s Love’s lack of production as a pass catcher that has really caught Yates (and a lot of us) off guard.

Five games in, Love has just 36 yards and a score on 11 catches (15 targets). Allgeier, who is more known for his bruising running style than his hands, is outproducing him in catches (12) and yards (44).

It’s been especially rough of late, with Love totaling just one catch for -8 yards across the past two games combined.

If Arizona wants to unlock Love’s big-play potential, those types of numbers cannot continue to happen.

“One of his superpowers is that you could put him on the short list the minute he walks into the NFL as one of the best pass-catching running backs in the NFL,” Yates said. “He had zero receiving yards yesterday. He got negative eight over the past two weeks.”

It’s also not all on Love.

Head coach Mike LaFleur can do more to get him involved for a full four quarters.

The offensive line can also do its part and get some positive movement up front for Love to run behind.

There’s also the fact that the franchise just doesn’t have the proper pieces around him to thrive.

“My concern in taking him at No. 3 was, ‘Are you ready for the icing on the cake? Are you ready for the last piece of the puzzle?’ Because sometimes these elite running backs can be that,” Yates said. “Saquon Barkley was that in Philadelphia. Maybe Kenneth Walker III is that for the Chiefs based off how things have looked through the first four games for them this season.

“But running backs taken in the top 10 have not led to a ton of winning for the team that takes them, especially in the first three years of that player’s career.”

Related

Cardinals deal Marvin Harrison Jr. to Texans with updated trade termsCardinals’ home losing streak is longest since the WWII-era Card-Pitt teamsCardinals, Michael Bidwill sued for racial discrimination among several claimsThe changes Mike LaFleur must make amid disastrous stretch for CardinalsMike LaFleur, Jacoby Brissett react to Marvin Harrison Jr. trade newsRapid reactions: Cardinals fall to Lions, their fourth straight loss