Nuthin personal, but this kind of comment cracks me up. Those QBs looked awful, but this one just had a bad day..........sounds to me like all of them had a bad day, or they all looked awful. I guess it just depends if you LIKE a certain player on how bad he was.
I guess I should have elaborated more on that statement... if you watched the game you would know what I meant in regards to Weeden. On his first interception Weeden tripped on his own feet during his drop back, which can be expected from a QB that isn't used to playing under center. Then after he got tripped up he tried to make a play and was hit while throwing the ball and thus he threw the ball up for an easy interception. Other than this one drop back he looked great all day with his drop backs. He was exceptional on his play-action fakes from under center; which takes QBs a while to learn normally. He did it all naturally and rhythmic, especially considering most of his plays at OSU came from the shotgun. On the second interception, the ball just didn't come out right. It looked like he either was gripping the ball too hard when he threw it or he didn't release it clean. You could tell because the ball was wobbling in the air and it just didn't look right. Weeden usually throws very tight, clean spirals so while the second interception was his own doing it was very atypical of him usually. Other than those two plays (which I consider to be flukes or at the very most kinks that can be worked out) he had a very solid day and looked the part. The other QBs didn't look good in their decision making, ball placement, arm strength, etc. etc. While evaluating players you can see the difference between having a bad game and looking awful.
That makes it even less of his fault. I couldnt see that well because I watched it at a bar without sound.
I'm seeing a lot of coples to Miami being mocked!! Also the normal John Martin riff Reilly then curry in the 2md. Ps anyone else see a little j peppers in coples?
I see less of a first step. He can be dominant, but I also question the consistency of his motor. That part is also Peppers-like.
It won't cost them 22mil to franchise him. http://www.nfl.com/news/story/09000...-values-will-be-down-across-the-board-in-2012 Was he franchised last season? If not the cap value for this season for LB is $8.8mil and for DE is $10.6mil. If he was franchised last season, then he gets 120% of his 2011 base salary, which was #13.8mil http://www.spotrac.com/nfl/houston-texans/mario-williams/
He was franchised last year he's gonna make like a bank robber if they tag him again...Houston is banking on him wanting to stay but he know he will get a huggeeeeeee deal if he leaves.... Nfl is a business he probably knows that by now
I was presented with kind of a daunting question. Let's say the following happens: 1. Indianapolis - QB Andrew Luck 2. St. Louis - CB Morris Claiborne 3. Minnesota Vikings - OT Matt Kalil 4. Cleveland - QB Robert Griffin, III 5. Tampa Bay - WR Justin Blackmon 6. Washington - QB Ryan Tannehill 7. Jacksonville - DE Quinton Coples What then? Blackmon, Tannehill, Griffin, Coples and Claiborne all off the board. What do you do, if you're Miami? To me the elite players left on the board would include David DeCastro and Trent Richardson. Don't know if I'd say that guys like Riley Reiff, Jonathan Martin, Michael Floyd, Nick Perry, Courtney Upshaw, Luke Kuechly or Dre Kirkpatrick are really elite football players and prospects like DeCastro and Richardson are. But man, taking an interior OL again? Taking a tailback? That's not fun. That's just unpleasant to even think about.
If we get pick 8. Hopefully we can trade down to someone wanting to get in front of Carolina for a corner or WR.
Given the above situation that would probably be my first and second choice as well. Third would be either Richardson or Reiff (I keep changing my mind).
If we are to compete with the Pats, we need fast agile LBs to help cover those TEs, so I'd strongly consider Zach Brown either at 8/9 or after a trade down 5 spots or so.
I'd either take Trent Richardson or trade down and get Alshon Jeffery or Kendall Wright. My preference is trade down.
Given the obvious connections with Iowa, and the extremely well-publicized gaffe with Colombo at Right Tackle in 2011, as well as Philbin's experience in Green Bay where they took Bryan Bulaga in the 1st round recently...I think Riley Reiff would probably be the pick in the scenario I described, whether I like it or not. BUT, keep in mind at that point Miami may have already acquired Matt Flynn. I mean let's say that in Free Agency the Dolphins keep Paul Soliai and Will Allen, sign SLB Manny Lawson and FS Reggie Nelson from Cincinnati, pick up someone like Cory Redding from Baltimore to be a run stopping Defensive End, and pick up QB Matt Flynn. Then in the Draft they grab a RT Riley Reiff in the 1st round, TE Coby Fleener in the 2nd round, DEs Bruce Irvin and Kyle Wilbur in the 3rd and 4th rounds, WR Ryan Broyles in the 5th round, QB Chandler Harnish in the 6th round, and FB Cody Johnson in the 7th round. You can always pick up some tailback like Jonas Gray or Darrell Scott as a UDFA, to fill out the position. At that point you've got an offense run by Matt Flynn, backed up by Matt Moore, with Chandler Harnish as a developmental guy. In the system Philbin brings with him, that's a good combination of guys that can move and throw on the move. Flynn will have Jake Long and Riley Reiff at the bookend positions, protecting him. Mike Pouncey will be in the middle. At Guard you have some combination of Richie Incognito, Nate Garner and John Jerry. I'm going to go ahead and guess that Philbin would have Garner starting somewhere. The Tight End position would now feature Anthony Fasano and Coby Fleener with Charles Clay moving around as a joker. The Wide Receiver position would still have Brandon Marshall, Brian Hartline, Davone Bess and Clyde Gates, but Ryan Broyles would be waiting in the wings rehabbing his knee and learning Philbin's offense, ready to step in for whichever of the four guys above him just isn't getting Philbin's offense and/or isn't developing chemistry with Matt Flynn. At Running Back you bring back the combo of Reggie Bush and Daniel Thomas to see if they can make it work better in a second go around, especially Thomas. You can have guys behind them that fill out the position. I mentioned Jonas Gray. I like him a lot, think he's destined to go to a team as a UDFA because of the injury but when he gets healthy could be a gem. Darrell Scott is huge and runs well, kind of like Brandon Saine whom the Packers grabbed last year. On the defense one would assume this is going to be a 4-3 with Soliai, Starks, Odrick and McDaniel manning the middle in rotation. If you look at the snap breakdowns on the Bengals, you see big bodies like Geno Atkins (796 snaps), Domata Peko (699), Jonathan Fanene (486) and Pat Sims (297) all getting plenty of snaps. Cory Redding would step in at Left End in base downs and play like Robert Geathers did (544 snaps). Cameron Wake would have to play Right End on base downs and personally I think it would be about time he started playing that side a little more often. He can still play Left End on pass rush downs, just like Cincinnati did with Carlos Dunlap. You'd have Bruce Irvin and Kyle Wilbur competing for playing time in some of those pass rush opportunities at Right End. Both are a little undersized. Irvin is vertically explosive and can run, and could compete for backup roles at linebacker in addition to pass rush downs with his hand in the dirt. Wilbur showed a lot of savvy and ability all week in Shrine practice and I think he could compete at Defensive End for backup roles. This would be an example of some of the doubling up we've seen from Miami in the past, in that these guys would compete against each other for some roles but could also still both find themselves on the field at the same time. At linebacker you now have a position that is flexible with Karlos Dansby in the middle. I don't know if he's perfect for the role but he seemed to get better in Channing's role as the year went on, and that would lead me to believe he could be a Mike in the new defense, especially if he's forced to have some Tampa Two type Mike responsibilities, because Dansby is extremely athletic and can get to extreme depth in his coverage, for a linebacker. Kevin Burnett would probably man the Will spot and then Manny Lawson would take the Sam spot, with Koa Misi rotating in situationally and fighting for different roles. Then in the back end you'd have Sean Smith, Vontae Davis, Will Allen and Jimmy Wilson back again, with Reggie Nelson at Free Safety and at this point you might have ended up cutting Yeremiah Bell at Strong Safety and putting Reshad Jones in there. It's worth a try. I think a big problem with the secondary last year was at the safety position. They played Reshad Jones at a position he's not suited for and he gave up big plays. Maybe Reggie Nelson will give up fewer plays. I doubt you're going to find a 6'0" and 200 lbs safety prospect in this Draft that runs a 4.35 in the 40 with a 6.67 second cone drill, and has averaged 1 interception every 4 games over the last two years. I think Nelson is a good get, and Clemons and Jones at the very least provide good depth.
You can have him. I think Zach Brown is extremely overrated. He couldn't even cover full back Brady Ewing deep down the field, and you expect him to cover guys like Gronkowski and Hernandez?
He's physically capable. If one doesn't have that as basis to work with, little else matters. I'm open to any other suggestions on how to better neutralize Gronk and Hernandez.
Other than I'd prefer Clemons over Jones as the SS, you should print this post out and mail to Ireland. It's as close to an ideal scenario as I've seen yet. Also, in a fair competition I'm not sure Flynn would beat out Moore.
Physically capable in what way? Because he runs fast? As Simon once said, Christine Ohuruogu runs fast. Does that mean she has the basis to work with for covering Gronkowski and Hernandez?
The only nits I would have with my own plan there would be: 1. Lack of depth on the offensive line 2. Matt Flynn better be for real 3. Relying too much on Reggie Bush Otherwise I think it's a good plan that covers a lot of potentialities. Between Cam Wake, Manny Lawson, Koa Misi, Bruce Irvin and Kyle Wilbur you would have plenty of guys that could really compete for pass rush roles. Basically, you run a bunch of pit drills in camp and keep score and the guy that earns his keep best ends up on the field in those opportunities. At linebacker you'd probably have Bruce Irvin training at Will behind Kevin Burnett, while also competing for pass rush opportunities. Koa Misi could probably back up at both the Sam and Mike positions, and has some versatility to back up at End in situations as well. As I said Manny Lawson would be a starting Sam backer and a very good run stuffer, and you could also plug him in at End in pass rushing situations IF he earns it. In nickel situations you'd have Burnett and Dansby on the field with heavier coverage responsibilities. At tailback, as I said you are relying a bit overmuch on Reggie Bush to either repeat or build off essentially a career year that most in the league would have thought he'd never have, but at least you've still got Jeff Nixon coaching him so you improve your chances of repeating or building off that year. Daniel Thomas, you would HOPE would improve naturally from year one to year two, as that's typically a big improvement. The guy I added to the mix but didn't get to say much on was Cody Johnson of Texas. I think with him, you add back some of what the Dolphins lost in short yardage situations when Jeff Ireland decided to part with Lousaka Polite. That was actually a big problem this year. There were multiple touchdowns you could argue we did not score simply because of short yardage issues. Cody Johnson averaged 4.25 yards per carry at Texas, had 340 carries and only lost a total of 19 yards in his college career. That's outstanding. He was a 4-Star recruit out of High School as a fullback. You knew he was a fullback, and he's still a 4-Star recruit. Dane Brugler compares him well with a guy that I liked last year as my favorite fullback in the Draft, Anthony Sherman of Connecticut. Pro Football Focus had Sherman as the best rookie fullback this year. Though I have to admit, watching Bruce Miller play fullback, that's an idea that I really wish I had. I loved the way Bruce Miller played the game but you knew he wasn't going to make it either as a defensive end or an outside linebacker. San Francisco using him at fullback was a truly inspired idea. It's hard for me to see in that scenario how the defensive line would not be a big strength. I guess you'd have to wonder how there would be any room to sign Matt Flynn, Paul Soliai, Cory Redding, Reggie Nelson and Manny Lawson. That's the biggest criticism, probably. Might just be unrealistic.
Even so...I'm probably underestimating the "either-or" nature of the Soliai-Flynn tandem. You can probably get one, not going to get the other.
It's more than speed. If you're going to compare Brown to some chick runner, well that is being just a little silly don't you think? Brown is considered a 1st round talent with excellent size/speed ratio and good agility. He has the capability to be a good cover backer. Whether he does it or not on the pro level is another story. Like I said, I'm open to other suggestions on how best to deal with the Pats TEs.
And by the way, if that's the case then I'd rather shift the entire plan to get Weeden so that we have the money to re-sign Soliai and grab guys like Lawson, Nelson, and Redding via free agency. At that point you'd swap out Coby Fleener for Brandon Weeden, and then you'd probably swap out Chandler Harnish for Chase Ford or Josh Chichester. I'd probably prefer that anyway.
I think we'd be fine there. Your scenario suggests a line of Long, Incognito, Pouncey, Garner and Reiff. That leaves Jerry, Murtha and Cook for backups. Not a bad first 8 along the OL.
I'd rather we draft Weeden or Tannehill than sign Flynn no matter what. Less guaranteed money tied up in an less than totally sure thing.
Let's say my original plan is not doable because Miami doesn't have the resources to pay Flynn AND Soliai. Plan 1 SIGN - Matt Flynn, Manny Lawson, Reggie Nelson, Cory Redding DRAFT - Riley Reiff, Coby Fleener, Bruce Irvin, Kyle Wilbur, Ryan Broyles, Chandler Harnish, Cody Johnson LOSE - Kendall Langford, Paul Soliai, Yeremiah Bell Plan 2 GAIN - Paul Soliai, Manny Lawson, Reggie Nelson, Cory Redding DRAFT - Riley Reiff, Brandon Weeden, Bruce Irvin, Kyle Wilbur, Ryan Broyles, Chase Ford, Cody Johnson LOSE - Kendall Langford, Yeremiah Bell Between the two I'd probably rather the 2nd plan but that's just me. The perfectionist in me wants to find something better to do with those 3rd and 4th round picks.
Weeden would almost surely be cheaper from a commitment of resources standpoint but Ryan Tannehill would not.
The thing about the Patriots tight ends is that you have to find a way to matchup with them formationally. Think about this; Aaron Hernandez is in the backfield and Rob Gronkowski is the up-back in the backfield. How do you count them? Are they RB's or TE's? You have to find a way to defend both run and pass from that one personnel grouping but what is your personnel package then? Do you go base or do you go to your sub packages? The former sounds good but you're at a disadvantage (unless you're extremely athletic and tough ala 49ers) against the pass. The latter puts you at a disadvantage against the run. This is a huge problem and it's occurring before the snap. After the snap is a whole different story. After the snap, you're taking smaller, rangy athletes and trying to match them up with oversized pass catchers, which is what the two NE tight ends practically are. You are going to have problems covering their mass and stature when the ball is at its highest point. Those smaller, rangy athletes work fine against other teams because the other team is probably spreading you out with 3+ pass catchers and throwing the ball from rhythm drops or whatever. But that is not the case when you clash with NE. It will be interesting to see what the Giants do this weekend. The last time they met NE (week 9), they got torn up by the two tight ends despite utilizing their 30 and 40 Big Nickel (3 safeties) sub package. On another note, people often say to counter NE's tight ends, you should get bigger in the secondary, which is not the right way to go IMO. Bigger = slower, higher cut guys. You've got to get physical guys that can disrupt the rhythm of NE.
I'm not impressed by Zach Brown's being "considered a 1st round talent". That's not an argument that is ever going to fly with me unless it's a guy I've never seen play football. I bet Christine Ohuruogu would've covered that slow fullback better than Zach Brown did on that big catch in the Senior Bowl.
That's more along the lines of what I was thinking. Honestly I didn't think Baltimore did that bad a job of it.
The scenarios can drive you crazy. You have to kind of break them up. Scenario: Weeden the Garden COSTS: Matt Flynn, Peyton Manning, Ryan Tannehill, 2nd Rounder GAINS: Brandon Weeden, Paul Soliai, 1st Rounder, Free Agent $$$ Scenario: In There Like Flynn Wear COSTS: Paul Soliai, Free Agent $$$, Peyton Manning, Ryan Tannehill, Brandon Weeden GAINS: Matt Flynn, 1st Rounder, 2nd Rounder Scenario: Manninghill COSTS: Matt Flynn, 1st Rounder, Paul Soliai, Free Agent $$$, Brandon Weeden GAINS: Peyton Manning, Ryan Tannehill, 2nd Rounder
As much as it makes sense to look at all of our assets (money, picks) and determine the best overall use (i.e. go Weeden instead of Flynn because you believe keeping Soliai adds more overall value to our squad versus drafting Fleener), I don't think that's the way the decision will be made. I like your layout above of costs/gains for each scenario, but given what I've heard i think this will be a more linear decision making process instead of a whole approach. Specifically, they will determine #1 what QB they want and all other decisions will flow from there. If Manning is healthy or they expect he will be able to play, they will sign him. If Philbin believes Flynn is a franchise QB they will sign him etc. Only after the QB decision is made will they move forward to the type of costs/gains type analysis that you have done minus the QB. I just think they value QB so much that they will not let any other factors affect their QB decision within reason (i.e. even if they believe in Luck/RG3 they won't throw unlimited assets out there to get them).
