But I believe him when he said that he stuck with his board. He's been drafting players he/they see as best available.
Before the Mel Kiper fans come out second-guessing him, I must point out that any GM could tell you that their boards are often radically different than those put out by pundits. They also have more information than the pundits. Usually, they're also just plain better than the pundits.
If I sound like an apologist or a homer, it's only because I fight ignorance wherever I see it, and I see it most among the bashers. Ignorance, conceit, delusion, and sometimes downright insanity.
Also, Ray came here with a great reputation and a lot of respect from all over the league. I'll have to go three years down the road before I can "grade" it, since to grade him now would be like a first grader grading his teacher.
This is critical thinking. I am the anti-mob.
A few facts which are all but irrefutable after the first three rounds:
1: The Browns have drafted three new starters, each of which upgrades his position/group. The team is already better.
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| Scouts timing Charles Johnson |
2: Manziel has the potential to change everything.
3: Terrence West is just about Carlos Hyde. I don't like all the mileage on his tires, but the rest of his minor warts can be cleaned up. He can share time with Tate, so they can sort of save him for later.
Now, the debatable assertions:
Between free agency and the draft, Ray Farmer has transformed the Browns offensive line. There will be two new guards, and possibly a new right tackle. However it shakes out, it will be well-suited to Shanahan's zone scheme. NICE JOB!
The backfield is now loaded for bear, with two top-tier one-cut backs and highly underrated guys behind them. (And a fullback for Tony Grossi, if he isn't cut.)
All the real holes in the defense have been fixed: Inside linebacker and cornerback. There was no hole at safety. And I repeat: There is no free safety in the cover two. There is no strong safety, either. The incumbents from last season are better suited to this scheme than to the one everybody but me is still talking about.
I still won't believe the Gordon allegations until the league makes an announcement. There are still good wide recievers left in this draft, only they're mostly "West Coast" type possession guys, which is really all you need opposite Gordon.
I have one bizarre thought, if the flimsy, anonymous, unsubstantiated Gordon story and his pending suspension are true: All the "experts" say that without Gordon, Manziel should not start.
Well, since at least for now Hoyer is the better NFL quarterback anyway, that's good with me. Is it possible that the suspension is real and Ray has deliberately avoided drafting a playmaking wide reciever to protect Hoyer from the "knowlegable" mob?
It could make sense, since for this season, the offense with Hoyer and without Gordon could be better than it would be with Manziel and Gordon. Shanahan knows this. The mob who would automatically demand that the kid be thrown into the fire right away does not.
Like I said, there are ways to stop Manziel, and the defensive coordinators all have those tapes. They're professional defenses and they can do the same things. Until Manziel gets some more "polishing", rushing him in too fast is a good way to wreck him.
Just a wild thought.
Ray says they're good with their wide reciever depth. I haven't really checked out the bottom of the roster there (have YOU?) yet. Now I'll do that, and try to figure out what that means.
Greg Little: Well, there was a stretch where he wasn't dropping passes. Pettine, like Parcells, says that if you see a guy "show you something" here and there--that is his ability. It's then the coach's job to get him to do that every time.
If there's no Gordon, they'll have to give Little every opportunity, and try to do a head-extraction. I've seen Little be reliable--at least for a few games. I've got no choice but to hope that the coaches can fix him for good. I hope. Hopefully.
Oh-Burleson should be ok for the season. That helps a lot.
Otherwise, Shanahan will make the most of what he's got. A West Coast can work without a real deep threat--just not quite as well. And he will have a strong running game (take that to the bank).
Losing Gordon would really, really, hurt. But the offense could still be at least average and eat the clock to protect the defense, and the defense could well be downright dominating. It's very hard to cover Cameron, even with two guys.
The Ratbirds and Stoolers have had good drafts, but not compared to the Browns. They are old and have holes remaining, so the Browns with Hoyer could still have enough to knock them off their pedestals.
Now for day three. I'll bet you Ray has some sleepers up his sleeve.
This just in: Grand Valley State WR Charles Johnson was drafted last year by the Packers in the seventh round. He was not invited to the combine, although he had back-to-back thousand yard seasons.
He is 6'2", 215 and (now listen to this): At his Pro Day his slowest 40 was 4.38 seconds. He had an 11' 1" broad jump and a 39.5" vertical leap. This guy is a physical freak like Julio Jones. Here Peter Wallner wrote the most detailed article I could find on him.
He played at the lowest level of competition, of course, and had had acl surgery. Because I can't find more information, I'm assuming that the reason he was called a project LAST YEAR were technical flaws in his game.
These might be trouble getting off vs. press coverage, body-catching, sloppy routes--anybody's guess. But he's now had a year of NFL coaching, and you can just bet that with this freakish talent they've paid a lot of attention to this guy.
In the article, his quarterback said that he was "shifty", and could be a possession reciever as well as a big-play guy. That's telling me that he can explode out of cuts and get himself open--this is a quarterback talking, in the context of the NFL.
Ray might have this guy up his sleeve.
Wide reciever isn't a simple position for a small-school WR to adapt to. While press corners and running backs can often hit the ground running, the reciever has to practice precise routes, getting off the line, reading the defender and (in a West Coast) the rest of the defense, etc. BUT...
One year is sometimes enough for him to get rolling.
Josh Gordon himself is an example. Due to injury and legal trouble, he had less college experience than Charles Johnson, albeit at a higher level. He was very raw at first, but we all see how he just exploded in his second season. He was very good as a rookie, for that matter.
Even if Johnson is a year behind him due to not playing at all, it's just possible that Ray and Kyle could be looking at a rookie-year version of Josh Gordon here.
I once again have to apologize for spending too much time in Oblivia with the majority of Memorex Morons here, but I'm back again to tell you there just might be another Gordon already on the roster and all set to compete for a starting slot.
Ok NOW you're ready for day 3...of openly gay defensive end football.
Late Addition: DB Pierre Desir:
This guy needs work on tackling, but has room to get bigger than (6'1") 195 lbs. He's not a press corner, but can play off-man or zone. Like that Seattle guy drafted a round lower?
For these reasons and his size, he's kind of a safety/corner hybrid except for the tackling. If he improves in that area, he's a top notch cover two safety prospect.
In the meanwhile, he has great ball skills and smarts, and will compete for spots in nickles and dimes. Note: H could play outside while Haden or Wilkins take the slot. He's not a slot corner unless the other team uses a big guy there.
Forget his 4.59 timed speed. He plays faster, and did so in All-Star games vs. top competition. He gets turnovers; he makes plays. Great value here.
Sorry he's not a wide reciever.
Wow. What a secondary! What an offensive line! Backfield! So far so good except for the wide reciever thing. Have a little patience.
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