The Official 2012 NFL Offseason Thread

Discussion in 'Football' started by minerva, Mar 19, 2012.

  1. Auriaprottu

    Auriaprottu Member+

    Atlanta Damn United
    Apr 1, 2002
    The back of the bus
    Club:
    Atlanta
    Nat'l Team:
    --other--
    I don't dislike him at all, but he's an idiot. < 2:00 left in a game and you bench McNabb saying he doesn't have the wind left to go the rest of the game... then you say he didn't understand the playbook??? Just say you thought Rex was a good move (it wasn't, ultimately, but saying so would have made more sense).
     
  2. wallacegrommit

    Sep 19, 2005
    Well, hopefully he'll often have to bench RG3 with 2 min left in Redskin games, because after running for so many TDs he's out of breath.
     
  3. Auriaprottu

    Auriaprottu Member+

    Atlanta Damn United
    Apr 1, 2002
    The back of the bus
    Club:
    Atlanta
    Nat'l Team:
    --other--
    Well, my Steelers got themselves an offensive lineman- Luck's former protection David DeCastro, specifically. Now we gotta sign Mike Wallace. Without #17, this pipe dream Art II has of returning to a running game (in what is now a passing league) will backfire the minute everyone concentrates on Mendenhall.
     
  4. wallacegrommit

    Sep 19, 2005
    Based on the Skins' mystifying pick of Cousins, maybe you're right about Shanahan. ;) I guess the Jags plan on doing plenty of punting next season.
     
  5. Auriaprottu

    Auriaprottu Member+

    Atlanta Damn United
    Apr 1, 2002
    The back of the bus
    Club:
    Atlanta
    Nat'l Team:
    --other--
    I guess when he decides sometime next season that RGIII doesn't have the stamina (at age 22) to play the last 1:5? of a game, Cousins will come in for him :D

    I'm sure they don't plan on it, but barring some bizarre injuries, the punter'll be on the field more often than the guy who made the tweet. I know it wasn't a smart pick, but a 3rd string TE doesn't even get to hold a clipboard. Zach Potter needed to be quiet.
     
  6. taosjohn

    taosjohn Member+

    Dec 23, 2004
    taos,nm
    I think that Cousins was purely a value pick-- that they had rated him a bit higher than everybody else and to them he had fallen so far they couldn't justify letting him go further.

    Shanahan is pretty firmly in the "players play and coaches coach" school, and would probably be just fine with asking Cousins if he'd like to call up Case Keenum and Kellen Moore and they can have a four way discussion of who got screwed out of a shot at a starting job...


    As for Jacksonville, I think any thinking fan is aware of the impact that punters had on the seasons of the Giants, 49ers, and Broncos-- while Jacksonville must have noticed that having both the most punts and the worst results is a very bad thing...

    Only thing I would argue with is taking the wrong guy-- I thought the guy from Georgia was better.
     
  7. wallacegrommit

    Sep 19, 2005
    I understand wanting to improve your special teams, but I don't understand why they felt they needed to use a 3rd round pick to do it. The Georgia guy wasn't even drafted. The next (and last) punter was taken with the last pick in the 6th round. The Jags could have taken someone else (in what the experts thought was a deep draft) and still gotten their punter in a much later round.

    Similar with Cousins, it isn't that he's a bad player, but more where he was picked. I could understand it if was the 6th or 7th, like when the Packers took Matt Flynn after taking Brian Brohm earlier in the same draft, but after giving so many picks to the Rams to get a QB, I don't think it makes sense to use that pick on someone who you think will be your backup QB. It might pay off Kolb like if Griffin gets hurt like Vick, but I don't think Cousins is very good.
     
  8. Auriaprottu

    Auriaprottu Member+

    Atlanta Damn United
    Apr 1, 2002
    The back of the bus
    Club:
    Atlanta
    Nat'l Team:
    --other--
    I understand the pick --the Skins have RGIII and Rex. Griffin will start eventually, but Cousins might be able to battle with Rex for the backup spot.

    I still don't rate Shanahan very highly.

    Kellen Moore got "sent to Attica for running a stoplight" screwed. Either that or Boise State did. His teammates are in every draft round.

    This is the first year I've ever paid real attention to the draft. My Steelers got their typical late-round picks, but the Ravens getting Courtney Upshaw was a blow to our division ambitions.
     
  9. taosjohn

    taosjohn Member+

    Dec 23, 2004
    taos,nm
    Not sure what you mean here--FWIW I thought the Steelers had a very good draft.

    The offensive line should be pretty much fixed by midseason, Ta'amu should start a whole bunch of games for you eventually, Ramey is Percy Harvin in Darren Sproles' body, and Beachum at least has the physical package, although he's going to be a project. Even Clemons I'd give a 10% chance of getting into a rotation.

    I loved Spence as a college player-- but he looks as much like a Steeler linebacker as I look like Nadia Comenici. I'm guessing that he's a great special teams player and that they are going to change how they play nickle and need a safety sized backer for the new scheme.

    Admittedly I didn't see anything at all to like about Frederick, and Paulson runs lousy routes, has a little speed but no second gear, drops everything he can justify-- the only thing I liked about him was every block he tried was dead on. Which was somewhat less impressive than it might be in that almost every time he hit someone dead on, he fell down and they went on about their business...

    Left me to wonder, is he a long snapper extrordinaire, or just hell as half a two-man wedge, or they think he can play tailback or linebacker or he's freshly recovered from a two year injury or..?

    But if the worst I can say is that I didn't think much of a couple of seventh round picks, that's a pretty fair draft-- especially when it has nine bodies in it. I can be ignorant and stupid about four guys in it and you'll still get at least three players out of the deal.
     
  10. wallacegrommit

    Sep 19, 2005
    Don't feel too bad for Kellen. He landed in a great situation with the Lions. Hard to hand pick a better team for him.
     
  11. Auriaprottu

    Auriaprottu Member+

    Atlanta Damn United
    Apr 1, 2002
    The back of the bus
    Club:
    Atlanta
    Nat'l Team:
    --other--
    No, the draft was fine. I'm just saying we don't get close to the top guys because we get into the postseason almost every year, but I'm happy. That said, it's still going to be OL by committee because we do play and have played so many games. Someone who starts (not necessarily the same guy) is going to be hurt for 3-5 of those games, and as the season gets close to the end, maybe more.

    I don't know- Stafford is playing well and is only what- three seasons older than Moore? It'll be tough to break into the starter ranks in Detroit than, say, someplace that doesn't have a young high-$$ QB on the payroll.
     
  12. taosjohn

    taosjohn Member+

    Dec 23, 2004
    taos,nm
    Much as I love Moore and Boise-- spent my childhood there back when it was a small town-- I don't see Moore as a starter, or at least not much of one.

    Peyton Manning with Jeff Garcia's body and Steve Walsh's arm...

    What I do think he can do is be the new Gary Kubiak-- the best clipboard guy in the league, and one who can pull a rabbit out of his hat when the starter gets dinged in the fourth quarter, if he only has to go 15 plays...
     
  13. wallacegrommit

    Sep 19, 2005
    I agree with tj, Kellen Moore doesn't project to be a starter. But, he's smart and experienced and has the right type of personality to be a backup. Okay, his arm's not great, but he's accurate and when you have Megatron you don't need a cannon for an arm, just put it up in the right place and let him go get it. Plus, the Lions have Moore's former WR Titus Young on the team, so that helps. Best case scenario he becomes a poor man's Drew Brees. For now, however, the Lions would be happy just to get a cheap and young backup they picked up without needing to use a draft pick.

    Outside of the top 2 QBs, I didn't really like the others- that Ostweiler guy the Broncos drafted- I don't have a good feeling about him. Foles- hate him. Tannehill could be good, but he really is a 2nd round guy in a normal year. Weeden is similar- I like him but only as a 2nd round pick. Russell Wilson- fitting he goes to Seattle, because people compare him to former Seahawk Seneca Wallace and like Seneca he could be more of a career backup.

    Don't sleep on the Colts- people keep saying they won't win the first year and Luck could struggle- I think they could surprise and make a big jump maybe in the 8-8 range.
     
  14. Auriaprottu

    Auriaprottu Member+

    Atlanta Damn United
    Apr 1, 2002
    The back of the bus
    Club:
    Atlanta
    Nat'l Team:
    --other--
    I remember him, and yeah, the mental images are of him in a ball cap with the clipboard in his hand, not on the field. But it did get him paid well, and he ended up with a head coaching job as a result.

    Most of the Draft cast (there were four- Rev. Kiper was one, Jon Gruden was one and I can't recall the other two) nailed the lid down on Wilson's coffin while he was on camera. It was beyond classless to do that. Props to Gruden for not holding dude's height against him before he'd even been selected.

    It's not possible to have slept on a team that ends up going 8-8. Now that they have Luck, 7-9's about the least they ought to expect, even with Irsay as their leader.
     
  15. wallacegrommit

    Sep 19, 2005
    They just do that for TV, you know? It's the third day of the draft, people need a reason to keep watching.

    Cam Newton had a better team and went nuts last year... and his team finished 6-10.
     
  16. Auriaprottu

    Auriaprottu Member+

    Atlanta Damn United
    Apr 1, 2002
    The back of the bus
    Club:
    Atlanta
    Nat'l Team:
    --other--
    If that's the case, it would have been nice to first tell the kid whose career they were burying. But I dunno- Gruden looked and sounded upset for real, and he ain't that great of an actor. Maybe he didn't read the script?

    Well, Cam isn't Andrew Luck. No one is, or so we're being led to believe. I won't be surprised at 8-8 or 9-7.
     
  17. taosjohn

    taosjohn Member+

    Dec 23, 2004
    taos,nm
    You mightn want to take a look at their roster before you say that. 7-9 will be a terrific achievement if they cant improve the talent base a lot from here.
     
  18. Auriaprottu

    Auriaprottu Member+

    Atlanta Damn United
    Apr 1, 2002
    The back of the bus
    Club:
    Atlanta
    Nat'l Team:
    --other--
    I probably ought to have said I wouldn't be surprised at it. 8-8, 7-9, 6-10, 9-7 are all within range IMO. even 9-7. The Jags and Titans might be able to help them get there. Texans, too, if they're not as good as last season.

    Remember the 2009 Steelers? Anything can happen.
     
  19. wallacegrommit

    Sep 19, 2005
    Oh, I'm sure it is their honest opinions, but just like any other "reality" show the producer encourages them to play it up a bit. Gruden often plays the optimistic one and contrasts Kiper's general gloom and doom attitude. For example, if you go back and watch the 2010 draft when Tebow is selected, the camera shows Tebow celebrating with his family and at the same time Kiper is burying Tebow saying how he is going to fail as a QB, while Gruden is defending Tebow and says he loves the pick.

    Some who is real upset? The Colts (I think it was their GM) famously went off on Kiper after Kiper tore into them for drafting Trev Alberts in the first round.

    Overall, I like Kiper. He doesn't sugar coat things, he had a good eye for evaluating football players, he's a big reason the draft has become so popular these days and has now made it to prime time on more than one night.
     
  20. taosjohn

    taosjohn Member+

    Dec 23, 2004
    taos,nm
    I don't think he's playing; he has commented a number of times that people accuse him of liking everybody; and the whole thrust of "Gruden's Quarterback Camp"-- which I highly recommend-- is to address the knee jerk criticisms and to find and point out the actual weaknesses in each guy's game and suggest to them what they'll need to do about them. He put some little time into showing Wilson finding lanes and making throws over his own huge offesnsive line last season, and examples of Luck and Osweiler having passes slapped back in their faces...

    It is worth listening carefully to what he says in summation about each guy; for example he said something to the effect that Kellen Moore had a bright future in football even if it didn't turn out to be under center.

    He's not gonna come out and say "This guy can't play," because that's exactly what people said about him, and it failed to encompass the things he could do; but he's also not going to say "Blaine Gabbert's a can't miss prospect" if he knows its not true, because that's no favor to anyone either...

    (If you only watched the Andrew Luck and RG 3 ones you are going to think I'm lyin', because he basically said "Luck's the best prospect I ever saw and has no weaknesses" and spent most of the effort on RG3 probing his psychology to make sure the substance matched the show; in each case he pretty much endorsed the guy as can't miss because he couldn't find any real weakness.)

    Oh-- and keep in mind that Gruden himself was a quarterback unwanted because of his shortness...
     
  21. Auriaprottu

    Auriaprottu Member+

    Atlanta Damn United
    Apr 1, 2002
    The back of the bus
    Club:
    Atlanta
    Nat'l Team:
    --other--
    I was a bit put off by that when I watched GQC. I really thought Gruden was smart enough to know that the "show" was started by the media, not RGIII. I was wrong.

    I started wondering around mid-season if RGIII would have to stand in the pocket and take unnecessary hits in order to be called "solid/prepared" like Manning or Brady instead of "exciting/dynamic" like Vick or Cam. It seems on occasion like all you have to do is run once or twice successfully to get tagged with the "athletic" label.

    Yeah, he said that ("Guys my size")! I was cracking up! That's why I think he was upset for real at Rev. Kiper. It's true, tho, about the NFL's fetish for QB height- Doug Flutie's NFL career was wasted that way.
     
  22. Auriaprottu

    Auriaprottu Member+

    Atlanta Damn United
    Apr 1, 2002
    The back of the bus
    Club:
    Atlanta
    Nat'l Team:
    --other--
    FWIW, Jonathan Vilma is suing Goodell for defamation of character. Ought to be interesting to see how it plays out in terms of Goodell sharing with a real court the evidence he says he has.
     
  23. Auriaprottu

    Auriaprottu Member+

    Atlanta Damn United
    Apr 1, 2002
    The back of the bus
    Club:
    Atlanta
    Nat'l Team:
    --other--
    Kordell Stewart returned to Pittsburgh (contractwise, I guess, probably for one day) to retire as a Steeler. Let's pause for a moment to recognize his honorable service to the NFL and to its ambassador franchise.




























    Thank you. May his days be forever productive.
     
  24. Alberto

    Alberto Member+

    Feb 28, 2000
    Northern, New Jersey
    Club:
    New York Red Bulls
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Robert Griffin III can do everything. He can stand in the pocket and he can take off and run if necessary. He is a better prospect than Newton at this phase in their development. He is also way faster too. Flat out he is a track star that decided to concentrate on football. In the 110m high hurdles his personal best 13.46 seconds. He ran a sub 50s 400m intermediate hurdles and made the semi-finals at Heyward Field in the 2008 Olympic Trials! His time in the 40 yard dash at the NFL Combines is 4.38s. That is blazing. Two tenth's faster than Newton. Contrary to most of the scouts I think Griffin has a better arm than Newton because he is a more accurate passer. No doubt that Griffin has all of the tools to excel. The only area that Luck exceeds him is in the understanding and reading of defenses. Newton, reading defenses, well he has improved, but he made a lot of bad reads as the season progressed. Granted he has improved from the robotic quarterback that never made a read in a college game. He spent all his time looking to the sidelines for the play and the audible.
     
  25. Auriaprottu

    Auriaprottu Member+

    Atlanta Damn United
    Apr 1, 2002
    The back of the bus
    Club:
    Atlanta
    Nat'l Team:
    --other--
    There are 31 (well, 30 now that Griffin has been named the Skins starter) starters in the league that Griffin can be measured against. A few of them are in their first few seasons as a starter. Some of them probably started as rookies.
     

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