The Steelers second and third string vs the Browns first string looks a lot like the second overall pick to me. It's very Brownsian.
Some people, obviously including Hue Jackson, think beating the Steelers second and third string is more important. Hue, I understand. Those pundits and fans, I don't. The first overall pick also means the first pick on day two, then day three.
These are all highly tradeable, and exponentially more valuable than the picks behind them. Beating the Steelers starters might indeed be more important for morale and free agent recruiting, but beating their scrubs would be a sick joke.
But there is hope. The Steelers young secondary guys are very talented. I don't know exactly when DeAngelo Williams turned into chopped liver, but he can do almost as much damage on the ground and by air as Belle. Jesse James is also pretty good.
I'm excited to see Clemson take on Ohio State. Naturally, the Buckeyes will win, but let's see if DeShaun Watson kicks ass in a close loss.
Many analysts are taking a second look at Watson since early in this season he looked "hesitant". He's regained his 2015 form, and delivered in big games.
Let me be the first to make the smart comparison: Teddy Bridgewater.
Watson's actual weight and height might be under 6'2", 205 lbs. The differences between the two seem to be that Watson might have a slightly stronger arm, went deep a little more, and is a little faster...I assume he also has bigger hands.
But both are decisive and accurate. While Bridgewater got mixed reviews, analysts of Watson more consistently agree that with the right coach, and in the right system, he can be a "front line" quarterback.
My own favorite remains Trubisky, but what do I know? Hue might even like Watson better. Clearly, he is being very contrarian on RG3. I defer to the real expert here on the talent side, but can't on the health side. The dude is a race horse colliding with clydesdales.
The Browns can't count on RG3. They can't count on Kessler, either. He's looked pretty good for a rookie, but can he be a franchise guy?
Consensus says no. Hue might have other ideas, but as we see, he is starting Griffin. So the Browns WILL acquire another quarterback.
Because of Watson's stature and comparatively weaker arm, Kizer and Trubisky have a good chance of being drafted ahead of him, no matter what he does to Ohio State or at the combine.
The Garopollo option bears no further mention, except to say that he could be it, for the second first round pick and change.
All the pundits see da Bearss drafting a quarterback, but Rodney Barkleyfield is doing a great job. Why nothing he has done has changed any minds about him is baffling to me. The Bears may or may not draft a quarterback.
Everybody assumes that the 49ers will draft a quarterback, and that's more likely than not. The Colon has been up and down, and is of course rediculous and despicable, so he gets zero slack. You know they want to flush him down the toilet (a fitting analogy).
The possibilities are endless. The way Hue is treating RG3, it just could be that he likes Watson. Watson doesn't have the same kind of arm, and is more of a West Coast guy, but he's an elite athlete who is also on the small side.
As I've now learned, accuracy is his strong point, and like Hue himself said, that is number one on the list.
Meanwhile, as things stand, the Browns will be coaching one of the Senior Bowl squads.
Chad Kelly, nephew of Jim, is one to watch (Ole Miss). He's got the size and arm, and is a much better athlete than Uncle Jim.
He has a lot of correctable mechanical flaws, and has only started for one season. Chad got in trouble at at least two other colleges for off the field stuff. I don't yet know what those issues were, but assume that he wasn't arrested.
This is why every scout will cite maturity concerns, and that's a valid point.
One analyst says he has the "it" factor. He is tough; a real football player who will run you over if he has to, will throw with guys hanging on him, etc. He's very accurate with his feet set, reads through progressions well (BIG plus here), and delivers in the crunch.
Some of the negatives are typical (almost universal): He loses accuracy throwing off-balance (yawn) but oh! He's been more effective outside than inside the pocket, so hasn't really proven he can consistently stand and deliver.
One analyst says he doesn't look like the kind of franchise guy Goff or Wentz were thought by some to be, but looks like he'll be pretty good...after at least a year in the nursery getting misted, watered, and fertilized (ah, G. You just couldn't let it go by, could ya?)
Anyway, we can look forward to seeing Kelly in the Senior Bowl. That's where the likewise inexperienced Carson Wentz made his big move. I just hope he's on the squad Hue Jackson coaches.
If the Browns manage not to beat the Steelers scrubs, that is.
Hue replied to a question about Josh McCown cosching whenever he retires: Hue would take him on in a New York minute. That's great to hear. Josh McCown is a great person who just naturally adopts young quarterbacks. He does it free of charge.
Jim Garrett and Kubiak were both backup quarterbacks. Check out Prescott and Siemion.
Friday, December 30, 2016
Monday, December 26, 2016
Chicken Little, Joe Thomas, and the Cleveland Browns
It's so nice to get a glimpse of sunlight in this stifling, dark, suffocating dungeon of negativity. I'm not talking about the win over the Chargers, but the environmental change it has briefly wrought.
I suppose I can't fairly say that fans and pundits were overreacting to 0-14, but actually...you were.
As I've said, the paper bags, worst team in the NFL, etc. can't be argued with. But no talent?
And now I'm reading Mary Kay Cabbot talking about drafting more wide receivers, and multiple offensive linemen.
Even for her, no rookie at any position who has not been starting or who hasn't made an impact has permanently relocated to Oblivia.
That's an overreaction, for sure. When Big Ben has missed time, Antonio Brown disappeared. Did that mean the Steelers needed to draft more wide receivers? And these guys are rookies! And the Browns don't have anything like Big Ben!
Slow your roll, Mary! Give these guys a chance to at least get through their first off season and second training camp before you write them off!
What about offensive line? Well, PFF now rates everybody except Erving and Thomas as "average", including Drango, who is a rookie, and (read this, Mary): Not as good as he will become.
Reiter, Bitonio, and Greco will return from injury, and we need to draft multiple offensive linemen again? What are you smoking?
I was unable to watch or even listen to the San Diego game, but I know it was a Charger sack-fest. No analyst or pundit has thus far seen fit to tell me how this happened, but here is the rule of thumb:
85% of all sacks which occur more than four seconds after the snap are the quarterback's fault. In Cleveland, we started blaming the offensive line for every sack during the Kosar era, and never got over it.
I strongly suspect that Griffin and Kessler both held the ball too long, and that the hodgepodge offensive line was burned by inside stunts again. I didn't see it. You tell me.
In this article, Joe Thomas talks about why he still wants to stay here, and why he sees a brighter future for this team (in his career lifetime).
If you actually read Joe's actual words, they make sense.
Do you think he knows what he's talking about? I would, even if he didn't sound exactly like me. Are you rolling your eyes and smirking at Big Joe, too?
At least this is one guy I know isn't stealing my analyses without attribution.
The Browns need three offensive linemen. They are on injured reserve, and not in the draft. The Browns need wide receivers...to develop and mature at the normal rate.
The sky isn't falling. Wait til next year actually means something this time.
Thursday, December 22, 2016
Browns Draft Ruminilizations
There's no point even talking about the Buffalo game, except to mention that a few individuals (like Ogbah) showed continued improvement.
Hue Jackson might get stubborn about his pet project quarterback, but I think that's DOA. I know that Kessler has had two concussions, but has now been cleared for three weeks.
Even Hue has to throw in the towel on project number one. I know he hates that, because it means he has failed to resurrect the Pro Bowl rookie.
Terry Pluto is wrong about RG3 not being the same player physically (I don't know what he's looking at), but has to be right about his confidence.
Terry didn't like all the short passes, but that's what you do in arctic cold and swirling wind. It had nothing to do with spoon-feeding RG3'S ego. You go deep in that mess, and it might not come down in the right zip code.
As we all know, the bright side is coming: The off season and the draft. The Browns can at least win that, right?
There goes Black Cloud again jeez. THESE GUYS have only been here for ONE off season, BC. It is IRRATIONAL to expect the same results from a completely different group of people.
Objective analysts disregard everything that happened prior to this front office, coaching staff, and group of players.
It's fine to say they are the worst team in football and wear paper bags over your heads. That's happening right now, so it's not irrational.
There is no reliable history for THESE guys, since you can't judge a draft until AFTER three years. But you can look at the free agents Berry brought in, and pretty much give the man an A-plus for Calhoun, Collins, Cooper, Reynolds, Cam Johnson, Reiter, etc.
You can also look for some early indicators from this draft class. Drango and Ogbah are doing well, and for Drango, that's a nice suprise. If you pan the three other wide receivers because the Browns run a lot of two back or two tight end sets, and because the coaches are reluctant to bench Pryor or Coleman, or because you think all wide receivers enter the NFL playing like seasoned veterans, you are a dumbass.
Ditto for Shon Coleman. He needs work, like MOST offensive linemen not picked in the first round.
In general, that's why only mentally impaired people judge a draft before the end of season one.
Kessler is another one. No need to wait on seeing his floor. He is a really good backup at worst, which is really good for when he was drafted. Yeah yeah, Dak Prescott I hear you/agree, but 31 other teams screwed that one up too. The Cowboys themselves tried to trade up for Connor Cook before settling for Dak. Quit raising the bar--even the Seahawks miss one here and there good grief!
Thanks to the Eagles collapse (despite the greatest quarterback in history), as it stands, the Browns have eighth overall to go with their first overall.
Colin Cowherd seems to think that Jimmy Garopollo is Andrew Luck, and that Bill Belichick can rebuild his team in one offseason by trading him.
That's because this looks like a weak quarterback class. Indeed, Jimmy looks better than all of them. In fact, I went back over JG's predraft scouting reports, and think that draftable rookie would rank at least in the top three in this draft.
With his subsequent training and experience, he's the best bet here. If Bill trades him, he'll set a high price.
Colin, however, overestimates the market. Consider, if you would, Matt Barkley, Tom Savage, Russell Wilson, Dak Prescott, Teddy Bridgewater, Kirk Cousins, Derrick Carr, and no doubt a few I missed. I read all those scouting reports, and some of them looked worse than the ones on these guys. Savage's was...well, savage. They savaged him. Sorry.
Garopollo was a Belichick pick and a Brady understudy. He looked good with a strong supporting cast for all of two games. His contract expires in one year, and he will back up a Brinks truck when it does.
The potential draft picks will be locked up for four years, with a fifth year option, and will be much cheaper. Most have better physical tools. The fact that while Tom Brady has only missed time due to injury once, Jimmy couldn't last through his second start, is also a red flag.
I know, it sounds like I don't want the guy. I do. But Cowherd should probably not apply for any GM jobs if he thinks somebody will cough up half their draft for him.
Unfortunately, the Browns will have competition. The Bills are one likely suitor, but there will be at least two more. There will be bidding, so the price will likely get inflated.
UPDATE: Matt Barkley is probably as good as he is, and the Bears might realize this, even if nobody else does. If they're dumb enough to trade for Garopollo now, the Browns should trade for Barkley instead. This is amazing.
If I'm Sashi, I pretend I don't care, and wait for the other teams to make their pitches. I would consider using the second first round pick and some junk, but the price could well get just too high.
It's not about Bill Belichick. It's about how desperate and silly the other bidders become. Remember the RG3 bidding war? That was rediculous, and I wanted Mike Holmgren fired when I found out he matched Washington's offer. Everybody else wanted him fired for not bending over even farther good grief!
I admit: At the time, I thought Griffin would be great myself. But I wouldn't give up that many high draft picks for ANYBODY.
So I keep going over the draftables again, trying to figure out if there might be a Cousins, Prescott, or Savage here.
Think. Heading into his final college season, Barkley was expected to be a potential number one pick. But he had a bad season, and fell off the map. Everybody except ME laughed at the notion that he could ever be a real starter, even several years later. How assenine.
The Browns don't need an instant starter. They will not be contenders in 2017. They have Kessler. Griffin isn't quite off the ventilator yet. Hogan is being massively underrated.
If the Garopollo thing doesn't work out, you guys can have your tantrums and burn Sashi Brown in effigy for not trading away the team's future for him, but count me out.
Of all the quarterbacks, Mitch Trubisky is the only one I'd consider using the top pick on. He is almost 23 years old, and while he lacks playing experience, he's mature, dedicated, and mechanicly polished.
Coming from a spread, if he does enter the draft, he should sit for a season, but he has it all. If he were one year younger, and had ten more starts, he'd probably be considered "worthy" of the first overall pick.
He completes 60% in third and longs, and coming from behind late in games. That's very telling, and rare. He handles pressure well. He has the mental hardware. He can take a punch.
I have a hunch that my pal Bub will say "Nooo! Take the freak defensive end one man wrecking crew! We can get a good quarterback still in the top ten! This is the best player in this draft!" (Note: Garrett. Not the other guy. Garrett.)
Well, that's why I want Garopollo. I want that freak too.
But Watson? Kizer? Trubisky won't be there, and he is just plain better. You can improve accuracy and touch, but only so much. And it's much, much harder to come through in the clutch if you're not already wired that way.
Trubisky could be another Tom Brady. He's the only one in this class who shows these traits. Maybe Hue can find a Savage or Prescott in the junk pile I don't know, but even he has to cross his fingers and pray.
And Trubisky is a quarterback. And Black Cloud is wrong. The Browns won't draft first overall again. You can have two Ogbahs instead of a Garrett and an Ogbah. "Pretty good" works for passrushers. Not for championship calibre quarterbacks.
Well, let's hope they can land Garopollo, and that his injury was a fluke. Then we can all be happy.
Hue Jackson might get stubborn about his pet project quarterback, but I think that's DOA. I know that Kessler has had two concussions, but has now been cleared for three weeks.
Even Hue has to throw in the towel on project number one. I know he hates that, because it means he has failed to resurrect the Pro Bowl rookie.
Terry Pluto is wrong about RG3 not being the same player physically (I don't know what he's looking at), but has to be right about his confidence.
Terry didn't like all the short passes, but that's what you do in arctic cold and swirling wind. It had nothing to do with spoon-feeding RG3'S ego. You go deep in that mess, and it might not come down in the right zip code.
As we all know, the bright side is coming: The off season and the draft. The Browns can at least win that, right?
There goes Black Cloud again jeez. THESE GUYS have only been here for ONE off season, BC. It is IRRATIONAL to expect the same results from a completely different group of people.
Objective analysts disregard everything that happened prior to this front office, coaching staff, and group of players.
It's fine to say they are the worst team in football and wear paper bags over your heads. That's happening right now, so it's not irrational.
There is no reliable history for THESE guys, since you can't judge a draft until AFTER three years. But you can look at the free agents Berry brought in, and pretty much give the man an A-plus for Calhoun, Collins, Cooper, Reynolds, Cam Johnson, Reiter, etc.
You can also look for some early indicators from this draft class. Drango and Ogbah are doing well, and for Drango, that's a nice suprise. If you pan the three other wide receivers because the Browns run a lot of two back or two tight end sets, and because the coaches are reluctant to bench Pryor or Coleman, or because you think all wide receivers enter the NFL playing like seasoned veterans, you are a dumbass.
Ditto for Shon Coleman. He needs work, like MOST offensive linemen not picked in the first round.
In general, that's why only mentally impaired people judge a draft before the end of season one.
Kessler is another one. No need to wait on seeing his floor. He is a really good backup at worst, which is really good for when he was drafted. Yeah yeah, Dak Prescott I hear you/agree, but 31 other teams screwed that one up too. The Cowboys themselves tried to trade up for Connor Cook before settling for Dak. Quit raising the bar--even the Seahawks miss one here and there good grief!
Thanks to the Eagles collapse (despite the greatest quarterback in history), as it stands, the Browns have eighth overall to go with their first overall.
Colin Cowherd seems to think that Jimmy Garopollo is Andrew Luck, and that Bill Belichick can rebuild his team in one offseason by trading him.
That's because this looks like a weak quarterback class. Indeed, Jimmy looks better than all of them. In fact, I went back over JG's predraft scouting reports, and think that draftable rookie would rank at least in the top three in this draft.
With his subsequent training and experience, he's the best bet here. If Bill trades him, he'll set a high price.
Colin, however, overestimates the market. Consider, if you would, Matt Barkley, Tom Savage, Russell Wilson, Dak Prescott, Teddy Bridgewater, Kirk Cousins, Derrick Carr, and no doubt a few I missed. I read all those scouting reports, and some of them looked worse than the ones on these guys. Savage's was...well, savage. They savaged him. Sorry.
Garopollo was a Belichick pick and a Brady understudy. He looked good with a strong supporting cast for all of two games. His contract expires in one year, and he will back up a Brinks truck when it does.
The potential draft picks will be locked up for four years, with a fifth year option, and will be much cheaper. Most have better physical tools. The fact that while Tom Brady has only missed time due to injury once, Jimmy couldn't last through his second start, is also a red flag.
I know, it sounds like I don't want the guy. I do. But Cowherd should probably not apply for any GM jobs if he thinks somebody will cough up half their draft for him.
Unfortunately, the Browns will have competition. The Bills are one likely suitor, but there will be at least two more. There will be bidding, so the price will likely get inflated.
UPDATE: Matt Barkley is probably as good as he is, and the Bears might realize this, even if nobody else does. If they're dumb enough to trade for Garopollo now, the Browns should trade for Barkley instead. This is amazing.
If I'm Sashi, I pretend I don't care, and wait for the other teams to make their pitches. I would consider using the second first round pick and some junk, but the price could well get just too high.
It's not about Bill Belichick. It's about how desperate and silly the other bidders become. Remember the RG3 bidding war? That was rediculous, and I wanted Mike Holmgren fired when I found out he matched Washington's offer. Everybody else wanted him fired for not bending over even farther good grief!
I admit: At the time, I thought Griffin would be great myself. But I wouldn't give up that many high draft picks for ANYBODY.
So I keep going over the draftables again, trying to figure out if there might be a Cousins, Prescott, or Savage here.
Think. Heading into his final college season, Barkley was expected to be a potential number one pick. But he had a bad season, and fell off the map. Everybody except ME laughed at the notion that he could ever be a real starter, even several years later. How assenine.
The Browns don't need an instant starter. They will not be contenders in 2017. They have Kessler. Griffin isn't quite off the ventilator yet. Hogan is being massively underrated.
If the Garopollo thing doesn't work out, you guys can have your tantrums and burn Sashi Brown in effigy for not trading away the team's future for him, but count me out.
Of all the quarterbacks, Mitch Trubisky is the only one I'd consider using the top pick on. He is almost 23 years old, and while he lacks playing experience, he's mature, dedicated, and mechanicly polished.
Coming from a spread, if he does enter the draft, he should sit for a season, but he has it all. If he were one year younger, and had ten more starts, he'd probably be considered "worthy" of the first overall pick.
He completes 60% in third and longs, and coming from behind late in games. That's very telling, and rare. He handles pressure well. He has the mental hardware. He can take a punch.
I have a hunch that my pal Bub will say "Nooo! Take the freak defensive end one man wrecking crew! We can get a good quarterback still in the top ten! This is the best player in this draft!" (Note: Garrett. Not the other guy. Garrett.)
Well, that's why I want Garopollo. I want that freak too.
But Watson? Kizer? Trubisky won't be there, and he is just plain better. You can improve accuracy and touch, but only so much. And it's much, much harder to come through in the clutch if you're not already wired that way.
Trubisky could be another Tom Brady. He's the only one in this class who shows these traits. Maybe Hue can find a Savage or Prescott in the junk pile I don't know, but even he has to cross his fingers and pray.
And Trubisky is a quarterback. And Black Cloud is wrong. The Browns won't draft first overall again. You can have two Ogbahs instead of a Garrett and an Ogbah. "Pretty good" works for passrushers. Not for championship calibre quarterbacks.
Well, let's hope they can land Garopollo, and that his injury was a fluke. Then we can all be happy.
Saturday, December 17, 2016
There's Got to be a Morning After
In my last post, I mentioned Jonathan Cooper. Sobo recently looked at his performance vs the Bengals in depth.
I had to read over some parts a few times, very slowly, and think I understood most of it, eventually. It was very educational!
Click the link at your own risk, but if you feel lazy you should just trust my interpretation here.
First off, this time, the Browns ran an inside zone scheme which Isaiah Crowell kicks butt in HINT HINT. It so happens that this scheme is tailor made for Jonathan Cooper and Cameron Erving HINT H I N T.
This offensive line ran on the Bengals front seven, right AT Vontez Burfict, who Cooper took care of after handing a DT off to Pazstor.
Cooper has extra-long arms, giving him a reach advantage over most tackles and linebackers. He gets his hands on them before they can get moving, and then can push off them to peel off to the second level.
Erving also did much better picking up stunts, but Cooper was great at this, too. Much as I like John Greco, he has been beaten like a drum on stunts recently.
That's not unusual or anything; as I've said, stunts are very hard to stop for any guard or center. That's why Cooper's performance here was truly exceptional.
Per Sobo, Jonathan Cooper can get stood up in man blocking, but excels in space. In other words, he is a zone-blocker and a puller.
Hue Jackson, please please please just let these guys do what these guys do best and stick with the inside zone. If you do, you can run the ball with Isaiah Crowell. Even on Buffalo.
And the Browns HAVE TO run the ball in that nasty weather with Griffin at quarterback. This is a good chance for some zone read stuff (and play action off it).
The Browns will probably lose anyway, because of McCoy plus Tyrod's legs, but if they use ZONE BLOCKING they can run the ball on anybody in the NFL H I N T H I N T.
Anyway, I hope I didn't just put the whammy on Jonathan Cooper. I was just about to express optimism about him going forward.
It's a chain reaction. If Cooper succeeds (that is, if the Browns use a lot of zone blocking HINT), it means with the return of Bitonio, there might be a four-player competition for right tackle in 2017, and Greco could compete with two other guys to start at center.
Or, they can be stubborn about man blocking and indeed have to draft players better suited to that scheme, and let some of these guys go kick ass with other teams.
I had to read over some parts a few times, very slowly, and think I understood most of it, eventually. It was very educational!
Click the link at your own risk, but if you feel lazy you should just trust my interpretation here.
First off, this time, the Browns ran an inside zone scheme which Isaiah Crowell kicks butt in HINT HINT. It so happens that this scheme is tailor made for Jonathan Cooper and Cameron Erving HINT H I N T.
This offensive line ran on the Bengals front seven, right AT Vontez Burfict, who Cooper took care of after handing a DT off to Pazstor.
Cooper has extra-long arms, giving him a reach advantage over most tackles and linebackers. He gets his hands on them before they can get moving, and then can push off them to peel off to the second level.
Erving also did much better picking up stunts, but Cooper was great at this, too. Much as I like John Greco, he has been beaten like a drum on stunts recently.
That's not unusual or anything; as I've said, stunts are very hard to stop for any guard or center. That's why Cooper's performance here was truly exceptional.
Per Sobo, Jonathan Cooper can get stood up in man blocking, but excels in space. In other words, he is a zone-blocker and a puller.
Hue Jackson, please please please just let these guys do what these guys do best and stick with the inside zone. If you do, you can run the ball with Isaiah Crowell. Even on Buffalo.
And the Browns HAVE TO run the ball in that nasty weather with Griffin at quarterback. This is a good chance for some zone read stuff (and play action off it).
The Browns will probably lose anyway, because of McCoy plus Tyrod's legs, but if they use ZONE BLOCKING they can run the ball on anybody in the NFL H I N T H I N T.
Anyway, I hope I didn't just put the whammy on Jonathan Cooper. I was just about to express optimism about him going forward.
It's a chain reaction. If Cooper succeeds (that is, if the Browns use a lot of zone blocking HINT), it means with the return of Bitonio, there might be a four-player competition for right tackle in 2017, and Greco could compete with two other guys to start at center.
Or, they can be stubborn about man blocking and indeed have to draft players better suited to that scheme, and let some of these guys go kick ass with other teams.
Thursday, December 15, 2016
Cleveland Browns Update
1: Prior to final cuts, I predicted that the Browns would retain Taylor Gabriel and release fellow lilipution Andrew Hawkins. Younger and cheaper is better, and (ahem) better is better. But nooooo! I was right. The Browns were wrong.
2: Gabe Wright is a passrushing penetrator who needed work vs the running game. He is disruptive, but overruns plays. He has shown the ability to take on double teams, but needed to also work on shedding blocks. He has a great first step and short speed. He uses leverage well and is strong.
In conclusion, he might not suck.
3: Darius Jackson is a freak athlete with size, speed, and passcatching ability. He goes down too easily, isn't sudden out of his cuts, and lacks great vision.
In conclusion, he might not suck.
4: RG Jonathan Cooper got a "high quality" 84-plus grade from PFF vs the Bengals. (The Bengals have a pretty good front seven, in case you don't know.)
One game is not statistically reliable, but this is a good sign. The Browns just might have nabbed a long term stud for nothing. If he doesn't fall on his face or get hurt again. Or something.
5: All of Ogbah's pressures were on stunts identical to those Terrelle Suggs ran against the Browns. Ogbah was MUCH, MUCH faster though, and this was impressive.
I want to tell the Bengals fans their offensive line doesn't suck. Ogbah is just really good. Get it?
6: Terrelle Pryor isn't done yet. Trust me.
7: RG3 might be.
8: I have given up predicting a remote possibility of a Browns win. I expect the Bills to beat them.
...which means the Browns might win.
...Nah!
...I just said "nah", which means oknevermind
9: Mason Rudolph is another quarterback to watch. He plays for Oklahoma State, and is another underclassman who may or may not declare.
His scouting reports are all over the map. Some guys hate him, while others think he's pretty good. Everybody agrees that he is big, strong, athletic, and accurate short. One guy questioned his arm, but I threw him out because he was the only one---so Rudolph has an arm too.
Ok now the hell with everything before 2016 ok? He was still learning and developing. If you are scouting his sophomore year, you're a dummy. That is useful only for contrast, to indicate a rate of growth, and specific areas of mapped improvement.
Here is one of the most objective and fairest reports I've found on this guy. I can synopsize the other:
Rudolph does run a shotgun spread, but it's more sophisticated than most. Rudolph sets protections and changes plays. It's like the one Dak Prescott ran.
In his conference, most defenses run shell coverages, which means they concede short passes, but keep everything underneath to avoid big plays.
This is why most spread quarterbacks don't go deep.
Rudolph is different. He goes deep plenty, and completes over 52% of his passes over twenty yards (this is actually good, ok? Over twenty yards, right?) He averages 63% overall, which initially turned me off, until I found this out:
Rudolph CAN go deep vs shell coverage because he has exceptional accuracy and touch deep and to the sidelines. That is an NFL trait.
In his most recent start, it was raining. Rudolph had a mediocre game. Per that particular writer, he looked uncertain and shaky. It was a test NFL scouts needed to see him pass (bad weather), and he failed it, so his stock is falling.
Those who like him say that he's very accurate everywhere, has nice anticipation, extends plays with his legs (and size), and usually gets rid of it quick.
The writer who questioned his arm also said he locked onto his first option and couldn't check down. EVERYBODY else said he excels at finding his second and third options quickly, shifting his feet and hitting them on time.
Even those who like him put a second round grade on him. The guy who wrote the linked article had second round grades on Goff and Wentz, but wasn't too surprised they went as high as they did.
He thinks Rudolph is kind of like them.
Rudolph will play in the Alamo Bowl. If he lights it up, he could go in the first round (if he declares).
I do still believe that Jimmy Garopollo is the higher percentage play, and that the Browns will go after him. But if that doesn't happen, there could well be other options.
I don't know. I'm not Hue Jackson. But it will be fun to watch all these guys, and pretend we know what we're looking at. All we know for sure is, there will be at least one more quarterback coming in next year, and it could be Rudolph.
...if Bill won't deal Jimmy.
2: Gabe Wright is a passrushing penetrator who needed work vs the running game. He is disruptive, but overruns plays. He has shown the ability to take on double teams, but needed to also work on shedding blocks. He has a great first step and short speed. He uses leverage well and is strong.
In conclusion, he might not suck.
3: Darius Jackson is a freak athlete with size, speed, and passcatching ability. He goes down too easily, isn't sudden out of his cuts, and lacks great vision.
In conclusion, he might not suck.
4: RG Jonathan Cooper got a "high quality" 84-plus grade from PFF vs the Bengals. (The Bengals have a pretty good front seven, in case you don't know.)
One game is not statistically reliable, but this is a good sign. The Browns just might have nabbed a long term stud for nothing. If he doesn't fall on his face or get hurt again. Or something.
5: All of Ogbah's pressures were on stunts identical to those Terrelle Suggs ran against the Browns. Ogbah was MUCH, MUCH faster though, and this was impressive.
I want to tell the Bengals fans their offensive line doesn't suck. Ogbah is just really good. Get it?
6: Terrelle Pryor isn't done yet. Trust me.
7: RG3 might be.
8: I have given up predicting a remote possibility of a Browns win. I expect the Bills to beat them.
...which means the Browns might win.
...Nah!
...I just said "nah", which means oknevermind
9: Mason Rudolph is another quarterback to watch. He plays for Oklahoma State, and is another underclassman who may or may not declare.
His scouting reports are all over the map. Some guys hate him, while others think he's pretty good. Everybody agrees that he is big, strong, athletic, and accurate short. One guy questioned his arm, but I threw him out because he was the only one---so Rudolph has an arm too.
Ok now the hell with everything before 2016 ok? He was still learning and developing. If you are scouting his sophomore year, you're a dummy. That is useful only for contrast, to indicate a rate of growth, and specific areas of mapped improvement.
Here is one of the most objective and fairest reports I've found on this guy. I can synopsize the other:
Rudolph does run a shotgun spread, but it's more sophisticated than most. Rudolph sets protections and changes plays. It's like the one Dak Prescott ran.
In his conference, most defenses run shell coverages, which means they concede short passes, but keep everything underneath to avoid big plays.
This is why most spread quarterbacks don't go deep.
Rudolph is different. He goes deep plenty, and completes over 52% of his passes over twenty yards (this is actually good, ok? Over twenty yards, right?) He averages 63% overall, which initially turned me off, until I found this out:
Rudolph CAN go deep vs shell coverage because he has exceptional accuracy and touch deep and to the sidelines. That is an NFL trait.
In his most recent start, it was raining. Rudolph had a mediocre game. Per that particular writer, he looked uncertain and shaky. It was a test NFL scouts needed to see him pass (bad weather), and he failed it, so his stock is falling.
Those who like him say that he's very accurate everywhere, has nice anticipation, extends plays with his legs (and size), and usually gets rid of it quick.
The writer who questioned his arm also said he locked onto his first option and couldn't check down. EVERYBODY else said he excels at finding his second and third options quickly, shifting his feet and hitting them on time.
Even those who like him put a second round grade on him. The guy who wrote the linked article had second round grades on Goff and Wentz, but wasn't too surprised they went as high as they did.
He thinks Rudolph is kind of like them.
Rudolph will play in the Alamo Bowl. If he lights it up, he could go in the first round (if he declares).
I do still believe that Jimmy Garopollo is the higher percentage play, and that the Browns will go after him. But if that doesn't happen, there could well be other options.
I don't know. I'm not Hue Jackson. But it will be fun to watch all these guys, and pretend we know what we're looking at. All we know for sure is, there will be at least one more quarterback coming in next year, and it could be Rudolph.
...if Bill won't deal Jimmy.
Sunday, December 11, 2016
Kardiac Predicts: Garopollo to Browns
One of the first things Black Cloud, my little brother, learned was how to drive me nuts. So I have to take his 0-17 prediction for next season with a grain of salt.
Black Cloud, it isn't funny to make an ass of yourself just to piss me off. My response to you is this: Congratulations. You have just made an ass of yourself.
Black Cloud isn't as fixated on the Browns as I am, but nobody from this gene pool not quickly diagnosed with Downs syndrome is capable of being that stupid. Black Cloud is like the defensive back who never shuts up trying to get into a wide receiver's head. It's just plain silly.
Anyway, now the Browns have lost convincingly to the juggernaut Bengals at home. RG3 was mostly atrocious, dashing every faint hope I had for him as a real quarterback.
In fairness, I must mention several dropped passes by several receivers, and tell you that RG3 was almost average overall. Just not as good as McCown or Kessler or even the other guy.
The defense is sickening, and I strongly suspect that Ray Horton is a gmf. They kept sacking Dalton, and Dalton kept converting third and a miles (good job Andy/no offense).
They KNEW that the Bengals had to run the ball, had a week off to prepare for it, and still got run over. Not just by Hill, but by the Bengals number three running back. And once again, almost all of it was yards-after-blown tackle!
Well, the first overall draft pick is just about in the bag, along with the top day two tradeable draft pick. The Philly pick is looking like a top ten right now. Cody Kessler hasn't set the world on fire, but has played well overall.
Black Cloud, if you can't find anything objective to say, shut tf up. It's not funny, ok? There are plenty of real idiots out there for me to get pissed off at, ya know? Please give me a break.
Anyway, I'm now pretty sure what the Browns will try to do this off season.
Adam Shefter is THE most reliable source in my book (he's the anti-LaCanfora!), and he now says that the Browns are after Garopollo. Mike Lombardi says the same thing.
This is almost obvious, along with the strong possibility that Bill will make the deal, rather than simply lose him to free agency in 2018.
Here is Garoppolo's pre-draft scouting report. It's from 2014, at which time he was generally regarded as a low first or high second round talent.
Does this register? Two drafts before 2016, Jimmy Garopollo was rated there. This is not a sixth round pick who flashed. What he did in Tom Brady's place should NOT be considered a fluke.
I remember that draft. My crickets can tell you, I was hoping the Browns would draft this guy.
He has been a Tom Brady understudy, and has had time to get stronger (as Brady did), and hone his mental and physical skills.
Jimmy was drafted 62nd overall by the Sith Lord. Philadelphia's first round pick, and perhaps a compensatory fourth rounder, would not be too much to pay for him. He might come even cheaper! Maybe a top second rounder and a 2018 third rounder or something!
Garopollo, coming out of college, was a decisive, accurate sharpshooter with anticipation. As usual (yawn) some wondered about his arm (zzzzz). Think Hue might like Jimmy 2.0?
Now here's why:
The Browns get a VETERAN NFL quarterback who is far more prepared and less risky than any quarterback in this draft. They retain their top draft pick, and can draft Superman to substantially upgrade every phase of their defense.
I'm probably overpaying here, too. Bill has me all intimidated here, but math is math, and business is business. The Wentz first round pick alone should beat any other deal Bill could get for Jimmy. He might even accept the top second and a 2018 fourth rounder or something,
The Wentz pick would work for me, though, since I wouldn't have to waste a lot of time explaining to everybody how that was a smart move, ya know? Because I believe Jimmy Garopollo will ultimately be at least as good as Wentz.
And I hereby predict this: For a maximum of the Wentz first round draft pick, the Browns will acquire Jimmy Garopollo, and will draft Myles Garrett too. Garopollo will start immediately, and GET RID OF THE GDAMN BALL on time, and the defense will get the damn ball BACK too!
And the Browns will spend all their money keeping Jimmy, Collins, and Pryor.
I HAVE SPOKEN
Black Cloud, it isn't funny to make an ass of yourself just to piss me off. My response to you is this: Congratulations. You have just made an ass of yourself.
Black Cloud isn't as fixated on the Browns as I am, but nobody from this gene pool not quickly diagnosed with Downs syndrome is capable of being that stupid. Black Cloud is like the defensive back who never shuts up trying to get into a wide receiver's head. It's just plain silly.
Anyway, now the Browns have lost convincingly to the juggernaut Bengals at home. RG3 was mostly atrocious, dashing every faint hope I had for him as a real quarterback.
In fairness, I must mention several dropped passes by several receivers, and tell you that RG3 was almost average overall. Just not as good as McCown or Kessler or even the other guy.
The defense is sickening, and I strongly suspect that Ray Horton is a gmf. They kept sacking Dalton, and Dalton kept converting third and a miles (good job Andy/no offense).
They KNEW that the Bengals had to run the ball, had a week off to prepare for it, and still got run over. Not just by Hill, but by the Bengals number three running back. And once again, almost all of it was yards-after-blown tackle!
Well, the first overall draft pick is just about in the bag, along with the top day two tradeable draft pick. The Philly pick is looking like a top ten right now. Cody Kessler hasn't set the world on fire, but has played well overall.
Black Cloud, if you can't find anything objective to say, shut tf up. It's not funny, ok? There are plenty of real idiots out there for me to get pissed off at, ya know? Please give me a break.
Anyway, I'm now pretty sure what the Browns will try to do this off season.
Adam Shefter is THE most reliable source in my book (he's the anti-LaCanfora!), and he now says that the Browns are after Garopollo. Mike Lombardi says the same thing.
This is almost obvious, along with the strong possibility that Bill will make the deal, rather than simply lose him to free agency in 2018.
Here is Garoppolo's pre-draft scouting report. It's from 2014, at which time he was generally regarded as a low first or high second round talent.
Does this register? Two drafts before 2016, Jimmy Garopollo was rated there. This is not a sixth round pick who flashed. What he did in Tom Brady's place should NOT be considered a fluke.
I remember that draft. My crickets can tell you, I was hoping the Browns would draft this guy.
He has been a Tom Brady understudy, and has had time to get stronger (as Brady did), and hone his mental and physical skills.
Jimmy was drafted 62nd overall by the Sith Lord. Philadelphia's first round pick, and perhaps a compensatory fourth rounder, would not be too much to pay for him. He might come even cheaper! Maybe a top second rounder and a 2018 third rounder or something!
Garopollo, coming out of college, was a decisive, accurate sharpshooter with anticipation. As usual (yawn) some wondered about his arm (zzzzz). Think Hue might like Jimmy 2.0?
Now here's why:
The Browns get a VETERAN NFL quarterback who is far more prepared and less risky than any quarterback in this draft. They retain their top draft pick, and can draft Superman to substantially upgrade every phase of their defense.
I'm probably overpaying here, too. Bill has me all intimidated here, but math is math, and business is business. The Wentz first round pick alone should beat any other deal Bill could get for Jimmy. He might even accept the top second and a 2018 fourth rounder or something,
The Wentz pick would work for me, though, since I wouldn't have to waste a lot of time explaining to everybody how that was a smart move, ya know? Because I believe Jimmy Garopollo will ultimately be at least as good as Wentz.
And I hereby predict this: For a maximum of the Wentz first round draft pick, the Browns will acquire Jimmy Garopollo, and will draft Myles Garrett too. Garopollo will start immediately, and GET RID OF THE GDAMN BALL on time, and the defense will get the damn ball BACK too!
And the Browns will spend all their money keeping Jimmy, Collins, and Pryor.
I HAVE SPOKEN
Mocking Pete Smith's Browns Mock Draft Sorta
Good old Peter Smith (Spin Zone) never fails to impress me, and it happened again with his seven round Browns mock draft. Well, mostly. Peter went overboard on defensive linemen later on.
Peter may well be right about more of a 4-3 base coming if Jamie Collins is retained, so taking another true defensive tackle makes sense. Four down linemen, including two powerful, disruptive tackles, protects the linebackers from those big bully offensive linemen.
But later in his mock, Peter just keeps drafting defensive linemen. He's sort of just writing off Nassib and Ogbah, not to mention Meder, and everybody else, for that matter.
Des Bryant? Well I think Pete has a point there. The guy is pushing 32 and makes too much money. Nothing personal, but...
Anyway, Peter starts out with Myles Garrett, who is a defensive end (with OLB potential). This would give the Browns three with Ogbah and Nassib, including two who can stand up. Cam Johnson, Nate Orchard, and another "OLB" are also passrushing defensive ends, so Pete, we can leave that alone now, okay?
As I've posted, I can't argue with Garrett. He is just amazing.
Next, with the first round pick from Wentz, Pete picks CB Quincy Wilson. Since Wilson is a big 6'1", I like this pick a lot too. The Browns don't need cornerbacks. They need BIG cornerbacks (who can tackle by the way), and this addresses a real (as in not hallucinated) need.
I don't agree with those who think Joe Haden is washed up. I love Calhoun, Taylor, and even Howard. But all of them are at a big disadvantage vs big receivers, and they don't tackle well (except Calhoun, which is another reason I like him so much).
Washington State QB Luke Falk is why Pete doesn't take a quarterback first overall. He's another spread quarterback, but there is a timing element to his offense. He throws with anticipation, and does need to read coverage and check down.
He threw almost 1500 yards in three games and completed 70% of his passes. He plays on a mediocre team at a low level of competition, and has only started for one season. His scheme doesn't have him going deep much. He's shifty, but not a dual threat.
Unfortunately, as it stands, Falk is leaning toward returning to his college team for another season, so this might be much ado about nothing. But I like Smith's pick here, although if Falk does come out, he could go higher.
With Tennessee's second rounder, Pete picks TE Jake Butt, who is 6'6"/250. Jake is a real tight end who can block as well as catch. He's not a big play guy but is reliable. With Barnidge aging (and not a good in-line blocker), Telfer a good blocker but not good receiver, and DeValve more a huge wide receiver than tight end, this pick makes sense.
I must pause here to point out that Wilson and Butt add to the Wentz haul.
Atop the third round, Peter picks cornerback Adoree Jackson. Adoree might also return to college, but is a playmaker. Here I'm bothered by Pete's overestimating the Browns needs at cornerback, and ignoring the offensive line.
If you add the big tall cornerback in the first round, still have Haden, and now Calhoun, with Tracy Howard and Marcus Burley in the wings, you are in pretty good shape.
The Browns secondary has been torched by incorrect coverage calls and a lack of experience, continuity, and pressure on opposing quarterbacks. Cornerback needed to be upgraded, and has been by Calhoun, who is now starting opposite Haden.
Indeed, Joe Haden is the guy they throw at now. Give the man his props.
Atop the fourth, Pete crosses his fingers and hopes Pat Elflein out of Ohio State lasts this long. Pat is a stud center OR guard, and I like this one a lot, even if Cooper turns into a seventh overall draft pick.
This would actually give the Browns too many centers and guards, but as I've mentioned, Greco is getting up there, and I have to mention: He was not playing well when he got injured. In fact, he could find himself on a the bubble in 2017.
As I've mentioned, Coleman, Erving, Drango, and Paztor (who is actually better inside than outside) are all potential right tackles next season. Paztor rates as average now per PFF, so right tackle will be above average next season one way or the other. Adding a young guard/center is a great investment for a rebuilding team.
With a 4th round compensatory pick, Pete likes Jaleel Johnson, a wide-bodied disruptive defensive tackle out of Iowa who stuffs the run, but also had 7.5 sacks.
Pete sees him next to Shelton in a 4-man front meant to generate pressure without blitzing, and protect Collins, Kirksey and company from those big bullies.
I had high hopes for X Cooper and love Jamie Meder, but it's just not working. The presence of Joe Shobert, Scooby Wright, Jamie Collins, and Carl Nassib describes a 4-3 (or at least four man line) front, and...
I'm not so sure Ray Horton will be back.
Pete then drafts a 195 lb safety, a running back, a defensive end, a 6'7" defensive lineman (note: Tanoh Kpassagnon, who Doug Dieken hopes isn't drafted by the Browns, is a specimen. I couldn't argue with him in the sixth round. But he's a man among boys, and we'll see how he looks at the Senior Bowl).
As you will eventually see, I am right and Pete is wrong:
1: The Browns don't need a safety.
2: The Browns don't need more defensive ends (although I like Kpassagnon).
So I agree about 91% with Peter Smith on this mock draft. I really hope Luke Falk enters the draft. For all Pete or I know, Hue isn't as impressed by him as we are, but his entry would at least add to the field, and increase the chances that Sashi can draft Superman Garrett or.......trade down.
Notes on this: Falk would not be expected to start immediately. RG3 could pull something out in the last four games, and Kessler has showed enough to be a bridge guy, once he gets over his taste for pigskin and figures out how to hit Pryor in stride for a change, and throw to the big guy in the middle once in awhile.
He did run a spread, does have things to learn, does have bad tendancies and mechanical flaws.
Today the Browns play the Bengals in the cold and snow. The Bengals got the dirtiest player in the NFL back on defense this time, but are missing Green, Wright, and Bernard this time, giving Rg3-led, Cooper at right guard Browns a chance this time.
Well, GO 49ers (except that brainwashed POS quarterback)
Peter may well be right about more of a 4-3 base coming if Jamie Collins is retained, so taking another true defensive tackle makes sense. Four down linemen, including two powerful, disruptive tackles, protects the linebackers from those big bully offensive linemen.
But later in his mock, Peter just keeps drafting defensive linemen. He's sort of just writing off Nassib and Ogbah, not to mention Meder, and everybody else, for that matter.
Des Bryant? Well I think Pete has a point there. The guy is pushing 32 and makes too much money. Nothing personal, but...
Anyway, Peter starts out with Myles Garrett, who is a defensive end (with OLB potential). This would give the Browns three with Ogbah and Nassib, including two who can stand up. Cam Johnson, Nate Orchard, and another "OLB" are also passrushing defensive ends, so Pete, we can leave that alone now, okay?
As I've posted, I can't argue with Garrett. He is just amazing.
Next, with the first round pick from Wentz, Pete picks CB Quincy Wilson. Since Wilson is a big 6'1", I like this pick a lot too. The Browns don't need cornerbacks. They need BIG cornerbacks (who can tackle by the way), and this addresses a real (as in not hallucinated) need.
I don't agree with those who think Joe Haden is washed up. I love Calhoun, Taylor, and even Howard. But all of them are at a big disadvantage vs big receivers, and they don't tackle well (except Calhoun, which is another reason I like him so much).
Washington State QB Luke Falk is why Pete doesn't take a quarterback first overall. He's another spread quarterback, but there is a timing element to his offense. He throws with anticipation, and does need to read coverage and check down.
He threw almost 1500 yards in three games and completed 70% of his passes. He plays on a mediocre team at a low level of competition, and has only started for one season. His scheme doesn't have him going deep much. He's shifty, but not a dual threat.
Unfortunately, as it stands, Falk is leaning toward returning to his college team for another season, so this might be much ado about nothing. But I like Smith's pick here, although if Falk does come out, he could go higher.
With Tennessee's second rounder, Pete picks TE Jake Butt, who is 6'6"/250. Jake is a real tight end who can block as well as catch. He's not a big play guy but is reliable. With Barnidge aging (and not a good in-line blocker), Telfer a good blocker but not good receiver, and DeValve more a huge wide receiver than tight end, this pick makes sense.
I must pause here to point out that Wilson and Butt add to the Wentz haul.
Atop the third round, Peter picks cornerback Adoree Jackson. Adoree might also return to college, but is a playmaker. Here I'm bothered by Pete's overestimating the Browns needs at cornerback, and ignoring the offensive line.
If you add the big tall cornerback in the first round, still have Haden, and now Calhoun, with Tracy Howard and Marcus Burley in the wings, you are in pretty good shape.
The Browns secondary has been torched by incorrect coverage calls and a lack of experience, continuity, and pressure on opposing quarterbacks. Cornerback needed to be upgraded, and has been by Calhoun, who is now starting opposite Haden.
Indeed, Joe Haden is the guy they throw at now. Give the man his props.
Atop the fourth, Pete crosses his fingers and hopes Pat Elflein out of Ohio State lasts this long. Pat is a stud center OR guard, and I like this one a lot, even if Cooper turns into a seventh overall draft pick.
This would actually give the Browns too many centers and guards, but as I've mentioned, Greco is getting up there, and I have to mention: He was not playing well when he got injured. In fact, he could find himself on a the bubble in 2017.
As I've mentioned, Coleman, Erving, Drango, and Paztor (who is actually better inside than outside) are all potential right tackles next season. Paztor rates as average now per PFF, so right tackle will be above average next season one way or the other. Adding a young guard/center is a great investment for a rebuilding team.
With a 4th round compensatory pick, Pete likes Jaleel Johnson, a wide-bodied disruptive defensive tackle out of Iowa who stuffs the run, but also had 7.5 sacks.
Pete sees him next to Shelton in a 4-man front meant to generate pressure without blitzing, and protect Collins, Kirksey and company from those big bullies.
I had high hopes for X Cooper and love Jamie Meder, but it's just not working. The presence of Joe Shobert, Scooby Wright, Jamie Collins, and Carl Nassib describes a 4-3 (or at least four man line) front, and...
I'm not so sure Ray Horton will be back.
Pete then drafts a 195 lb safety, a running back, a defensive end, a 6'7" defensive lineman (note: Tanoh Kpassagnon, who Doug Dieken hopes isn't drafted by the Browns, is a specimen. I couldn't argue with him in the sixth round. But he's a man among boys, and we'll see how he looks at the Senior Bowl).
As you will eventually see, I am right and Pete is wrong:
1: The Browns don't need a safety.
2: The Browns don't need more defensive ends (although I like Kpassagnon).
So I agree about 91% with Peter Smith on this mock draft. I really hope Luke Falk enters the draft. For all Pete or I know, Hue isn't as impressed by him as we are, but his entry would at least add to the field, and increase the chances that Sashi can draft Superman Garrett or.......trade down.
Notes on this: Falk would not be expected to start immediately. RG3 could pull something out in the last four games, and Kessler has showed enough to be a bridge guy, once he gets over his taste for pigskin and figures out how to hit Pryor in stride for a change, and throw to the big guy in the middle once in awhile.
He did run a spread, does have things to learn, does have bad tendancies and mechanical flaws.
Today the Browns play the Bengals in the cold and snow. The Bengals got the dirtiest player in the NFL back on defense this time, but are missing Green, Wright, and Bernard this time, giving Rg3-led, Cooper at right guard Browns a chance this time.
Well, GO 49ers (except that brainwashed POS quarterback)
Thursday, December 8, 2016
More Browns Draft Blabberage about Quarterbacks
Thanks to these guys, I became aware of one Patrick Mahomes, who should enter this year's draft if he is sane.
This guy accounted for over 750 yards in one game. He set records all over the place with multiple five touchdown games. Mel Kiper ranks him second, behind Mitch Trubisky. Walter Football and others think he'd be the fifth best quarterback in this draft.
I haven't heard much detail about what's right or wrong with him, but do know his arm, size, and mobility are all fine.
40 tds, 10 picks, 65%, all pretty decent, but he runs an air raid system. Nobody has any idea if he can read a defense or change a play. And he looks a little like Colon Kaperdick. I don't judge a book by it's cover, but it does show you that for all we know, he could be mentally impaired too.
Kiper has to have reasons to rank Mahomes this high. He must think the kid can spell his name right, as well as run and throw.
He has been compared to Dak Prescott, but that's really optimistic. Dak played in a much more advanced system, in fact similar to the one he runs in Dallas. His ability to read and call plays wasn't a projection: they had it on film.
No, Dak just went out and got a dui DURING the combine. I'm kind of sick of political correctness. A whole lot of 21 year olds get dui's. You can have a couple beers, not do a damn thing wrong, and get nailed anyway. It doesn't mean anything. For Prescott, it might as well have been domestic violence. It's rediculous, and if that's why Hue and company chose Kessler over him, shame on them.
However, it's no longer true that quarterbacks picked first or second overall do that much better than other guys. Look at Prescott, Derrick Carr, Teddy Bridgewater. Let's hope Mitch Trubisky gets busted for something!
I'm naturally hoping that Hue Jackson, Berry, the scouting staff, and front office decide that they can draft a quarterback a little later, so they can go best availble.
But the mock drafts that expect them to skip a quarterback first overall based on their long one-draft history are pretty silly. Again, if Trubisky is rated perhaps the fifth or sixth best player overall on their own board, they should "overdraft" him there anyway.
How is the Wentz trade looking now? A whole lot better. Everybody was laughing at Paul DePodesta saying that the Browns didn't think he was a top twenty quarterback after he lit up the Browns. Well? In fact I think Cody Kessler is ahead of him.
Not that things will stay that way---Wentz will come back. Not that they're perfect---they could have had Prescott.
I'm trying to figure out how these guys compare to last year's guys. Mahones compares to Paxton Lynch. Trubisky is harder to nail down. He has Goff-like accuracy, Prescott size, and Wentz arm and experience.
Really, he is a bigger, stronger, less experienced Cody Kessler who hopefully will not acquire a taste for pig skin in the NFL.
He remains the front runner for first overall on my board. For what it's worth. Which is literally two cents.
This I do know: 1: Accuracy. 2: Anticipation. 3: Football intelligence. 4: Everything else. I have a hunch Hue will like him, a lot.
This guy accounted for over 750 yards in one game. He set records all over the place with multiple five touchdown games. Mel Kiper ranks him second, behind Mitch Trubisky. Walter Football and others think he'd be the fifth best quarterback in this draft.
I haven't heard much detail about what's right or wrong with him, but do know his arm, size, and mobility are all fine.
40 tds, 10 picks, 65%, all pretty decent, but he runs an air raid system. Nobody has any idea if he can read a defense or change a play. And he looks a little like Colon Kaperdick. I don't judge a book by it's cover, but it does show you that for all we know, he could be mentally impaired too.
Kiper has to have reasons to rank Mahomes this high. He must think the kid can spell his name right, as well as run and throw.
He has been compared to Dak Prescott, but that's really optimistic. Dak played in a much more advanced system, in fact similar to the one he runs in Dallas. His ability to read and call plays wasn't a projection: they had it on film.
No, Dak just went out and got a dui DURING the combine. I'm kind of sick of political correctness. A whole lot of 21 year olds get dui's. You can have a couple beers, not do a damn thing wrong, and get nailed anyway. It doesn't mean anything. For Prescott, it might as well have been domestic violence. It's rediculous, and if that's why Hue and company chose Kessler over him, shame on them.
However, it's no longer true that quarterbacks picked first or second overall do that much better than other guys. Look at Prescott, Derrick Carr, Teddy Bridgewater. Let's hope Mitch Trubisky gets busted for something!
I'm naturally hoping that Hue Jackson, Berry, the scouting staff, and front office decide that they can draft a quarterback a little later, so they can go best availble.
But the mock drafts that expect them to skip a quarterback first overall based on their long one-draft history are pretty silly. Again, if Trubisky is rated perhaps the fifth or sixth best player overall on their own board, they should "overdraft" him there anyway.
How is the Wentz trade looking now? A whole lot better. Everybody was laughing at Paul DePodesta saying that the Browns didn't think he was a top twenty quarterback after he lit up the Browns. Well? In fact I think Cody Kessler is ahead of him.
Not that things will stay that way---Wentz will come back. Not that they're perfect---they could have had Prescott.
I'm trying to figure out how these guys compare to last year's guys. Mahones compares to Paxton Lynch. Trubisky is harder to nail down. He has Goff-like accuracy, Prescott size, and Wentz arm and experience.
Really, he is a bigger, stronger, less experienced Cody Kessler who hopefully will not acquire a taste for pig skin in the NFL.
He remains the front runner for first overall on my board. For what it's worth. Which is literally two cents.
This I do know: 1: Accuracy. 2: Anticipation. 3: Football intelligence. 4: Everything else. I have a hunch Hue will like him, a lot.
Tuesday, December 6, 2016
Berry Good Browns Free Agent Moves
Browns Personnel Director Mary Kay Andrew Berry has quietly pulled off some sweet moves. Andrew is primarily responsible for the acquisition of veteran free agents and helping to facilitate trades.
That's the official line, but in reality they won't gagging him and locking him in the basement during the draft. In the real world, people who know talent know talent, period. Let's not overthink this, Mary Kay: Andrew Berry, like Hue Jackson and his assistants, will have a lot to say about the draft.
I don't know what Andrew had to do with Jamie Collins, and think Terrelle Pryor was more a Hue Jackson/Sashi Brown move, but Berry has contributed quite a bit here:
1: Center Gabe Ikard has been activated off the practice squad following John Greco's injury. Ikard came to the NFL in 2014, making him a third year player.
As a college prospect, he was called possibly the most athletic offensive lineman in his draft, with high grades for football intelligence and character.
Unfortunately, he also had a somewhat weak lower body, and a host of mechanical issues. He was a project.
The jury is still out on Ikard, but did I mention he just entered his third season? That means his lower body IS much stronger, and he WILL BE much more refined than he was over two seasons ago. Ikard could be released or establish himself as a long-term backup. He's a longshot to be much more.
2: Austin Reiter was a poorly-scouted, rediculously underrated college center who was entering his second season when he was injured in his very first Browns start.
He kicked ass. Cam Erving has now had time to audition at center for the Browns, and unless he closes fast, he is dead at that position entering 2017. Reiter is the defacto favorite to start there, and it's quite possible that his one-game performance was no fluke.
Yes, Austin Reiter might actually be as good as he looked. Honest: Just because he is now a Cleveland Brown doesn't mean he's going to fall on his face.
Reiter could be a long-term starter, and maybe even a Pro Bowler eventually. He could also crap out, of course, but his floor is far more likely a quality backup.
3: QB Kevin Hogan. I don't know when Hogan went from being a consensus top ten quarterback prospect (top five in many opinions) to being a joke, but I have a hunch it happened just about when the Cleveland Browns signed him.
I'm irked when other writers smirk at the outlandish notion that this guy, who was regarded by EVERYBODY ELSE as a better prospect than Cody Kessler, has any future at all in the NFL. That's ignorance on steroids.
Well, it's doubtful that Hogan is a franchise guy any time soon, but he does have franchise talent. As the Browns are certain to draft, and/or trade for a quarterback, Kessler is already here, and even RG3 has a puncher's chance, Hogan's upside here is capped.
But he does have a legit shot at remaining on the 2017 practice squad, with a chance at the 53 man roster as a backup.
His atheticism was almost completely ignored or dismissed by scouts. His arm was massively underrated, and his accuracy too. I have rarely in my life read a more innacurate and negatively biased evaluation of any player. He is the Donald Trump of quarterbacks.
4: George Atkinson III. George is a kick returner for now, but also the third running back. He is capable of replacing either Crowell or Duke in their respective roles, including wide receiver. He is a rare athlete and a playmaker.
5: Jonathan Cooper. No need to belabor this, but in my previous posts, I omitted injury as perhaps the main factor which has thus far derailed his career.
That is, he may have been released by the Patriots because they didn't trust his durability. It may have had nothing to do with his performance.
This is a potential Pro Bowl guard (or conceivably center). On the low side, his injuries could persist, and get him released. If he remains healthy, his floor may be as a top backup.
6: FB Danny Vitale is a blue collar jack of all trades. He doesn't have a lot of upside, but is versatile, tough, and a core special teamer.
7: Stephen Paea is a defensive tackle who has been exceptional in the past, and is still in his prime. Right now, he's low on the depth chart, but is an integral part of the line rotation.
8: OLB Tyrone Holmes was one of my sleepers in the 2016 draft. He was a big fish in a little pond with gaudy sack and tfl stats. His workout and combine results showed a good but not special athlete, and his stock suffered due to that and his low level of competition.
But we have already seen promising flashes from him in NFL games. We can't know how good he can become, but he has a good chance to hang around, be integral to special teams, and an active part of the OLB rotation.
9: One guy in Holmes' way is OLB/DE Cam Johnson. Johnson is a legit quarterback basher with speed and athleticism. This guy needed to become more disciplined and stop getting suckered so much, but the sky is the limit for him.
Cam Johnson, like anybody else here, could be off the roster in 2017, but unlike some, he could also be starting and get double-digit sacks. He is currently listed as a starter.
10: Cory Lemonier is another free agent OLB. He doesn't look great on paper, but has shown flashes, and is a pretty solid linebacker in any scheme.
11: ILB Demario Davis has not played well. It doesn't look like he will start next season. He might stick around as a backup.
12: CB Jamar Taylor HAS played well; sometimes exceptionally well! He's a starter, period. He's loaded with talent and upside, and could be another Pro Bowler. What did he cost, a fifth rounder? C'mon, give it up.
13: CB Briean Boddy Calhoun is another microbe, but has also played well. He's like Buster Skrine; great in the slot. Makes big plays. Another winner.
14: Ed Reynolds II (FS). When you look at this guy's scouting report, you see a guy with good size, but aren't too impressed. He just entered his second season, and has clearly made a big jump from where he was coming out of college.
Reynolds may never be an elite player, but his biggest contribution here has been in setting up the coverage (his brain). Apparently, the other guys were making too many mistakes.
When you see a "wide open" receiver, it's often because the free safety has made a bad call, and left somebody uncovered. Reynolds has improved coverage overall, and has also exceeded his scouting report both in coverage and against the run.
This guy might well be the long-term starter at safety, and does have significant upside left.
Look, my apologies to the 3-4 players I'm leaving out, but there are just too many of these guys.
Off this list of free agents which Andrew Berry nominally helped acquire, Reiter, Cooper, Cam Johnson, Taylor, and Reynolds are all potential or probable starters with star potential. Calhoun may be the nickel cornerback forever.
Atkinson should remain a key depth player and special teamer. The other guys are depth/special teams, though their cielings are lower.
Ignoring potential (Cooper, Reiter, Johnson, Holmes), what we have in the bag here is a starting free safety, cornerback, and nickel back with star potential (yes that includes Reynolds).
That's three key guys. We can safely predict that at least one of the other guys will start or contribute heavily next season, making that four key players.
Oh yeah. Collins. Make that five. He might have to play inside next season. All of these guys are young, with upside. No old geezers here, see?
Soon we will all fixate on the draft, but think about this: What if Berry does the same thing next season? Do you understand that there are only 22 positions?
Still think this will take five years? Time for some remedial math.
That's the official line, but in reality they won't gagging him and locking him in the basement during the draft. In the real world, people who know talent know talent, period. Let's not overthink this, Mary Kay: Andrew Berry, like Hue Jackson and his assistants, will have a lot to say about the draft.
I don't know what Andrew had to do with Jamie Collins, and think Terrelle Pryor was more a Hue Jackson/Sashi Brown move, but Berry has contributed quite a bit here:
1: Center Gabe Ikard has been activated off the practice squad following John Greco's injury. Ikard came to the NFL in 2014, making him a third year player.
As a college prospect, he was called possibly the most athletic offensive lineman in his draft, with high grades for football intelligence and character.
Unfortunately, he also had a somewhat weak lower body, and a host of mechanical issues. He was a project.
The jury is still out on Ikard, but did I mention he just entered his third season? That means his lower body IS much stronger, and he WILL BE much more refined than he was over two seasons ago. Ikard could be released or establish himself as a long-term backup. He's a longshot to be much more.
2: Austin Reiter was a poorly-scouted, rediculously underrated college center who was entering his second season when he was injured in his very first Browns start.
He kicked ass. Cam Erving has now had time to audition at center for the Browns, and unless he closes fast, he is dead at that position entering 2017. Reiter is the defacto favorite to start there, and it's quite possible that his one-game performance was no fluke.
Yes, Austin Reiter might actually be as good as he looked. Honest: Just because he is now a Cleveland Brown doesn't mean he's going to fall on his face.
Reiter could be a long-term starter, and maybe even a Pro Bowler eventually. He could also crap out, of course, but his floor is far more likely a quality backup.
3: QB Kevin Hogan. I don't know when Hogan went from being a consensus top ten quarterback prospect (top five in many opinions) to being a joke, but I have a hunch it happened just about when the Cleveland Browns signed him.
I'm irked when other writers smirk at the outlandish notion that this guy, who was regarded by EVERYBODY ELSE as a better prospect than Cody Kessler, has any future at all in the NFL. That's ignorance on steroids.
Well, it's doubtful that Hogan is a franchise guy any time soon, but he does have franchise talent. As the Browns are certain to draft, and/or trade for a quarterback, Kessler is already here, and even RG3 has a puncher's chance, Hogan's upside here is capped.
But he does have a legit shot at remaining on the 2017 practice squad, with a chance at the 53 man roster as a backup.
His atheticism was almost completely ignored or dismissed by scouts. His arm was massively underrated, and his accuracy too. I have rarely in my life read a more innacurate and negatively biased evaluation of any player. He is the Donald Trump of quarterbacks.
4: George Atkinson III. George is a kick returner for now, but also the third running back. He is capable of replacing either Crowell or Duke in their respective roles, including wide receiver. He is a rare athlete and a playmaker.
5: Jonathan Cooper. No need to belabor this, but in my previous posts, I omitted injury as perhaps the main factor which has thus far derailed his career.
That is, he may have been released by the Patriots because they didn't trust his durability. It may have had nothing to do with his performance.
This is a potential Pro Bowl guard (or conceivably center). On the low side, his injuries could persist, and get him released. If he remains healthy, his floor may be as a top backup.
6: FB Danny Vitale is a blue collar jack of all trades. He doesn't have a lot of upside, but is versatile, tough, and a core special teamer.
7: Stephen Paea is a defensive tackle who has been exceptional in the past, and is still in his prime. Right now, he's low on the depth chart, but is an integral part of the line rotation.
8: OLB Tyrone Holmes was one of my sleepers in the 2016 draft. He was a big fish in a little pond with gaudy sack and tfl stats. His workout and combine results showed a good but not special athlete, and his stock suffered due to that and his low level of competition.
But we have already seen promising flashes from him in NFL games. We can't know how good he can become, but he has a good chance to hang around, be integral to special teams, and an active part of the OLB rotation.
9: One guy in Holmes' way is OLB/DE Cam Johnson. Johnson is a legit quarterback basher with speed and athleticism. This guy needed to become more disciplined and stop getting suckered so much, but the sky is the limit for him.
Cam Johnson, like anybody else here, could be off the roster in 2017, but unlike some, he could also be starting and get double-digit sacks. He is currently listed as a starter.
10: Cory Lemonier is another free agent OLB. He doesn't look great on paper, but has shown flashes, and is a pretty solid linebacker in any scheme.
11: ILB Demario Davis has not played well. It doesn't look like he will start next season. He might stick around as a backup.
12: CB Jamar Taylor HAS played well; sometimes exceptionally well! He's a starter, period. He's loaded with talent and upside, and could be another Pro Bowler. What did he cost, a fifth rounder? C'mon, give it up.
13: CB Briean Boddy Calhoun is another microbe, but has also played well. He's like Buster Skrine; great in the slot. Makes big plays. Another winner.
14: Ed Reynolds II (FS). When you look at this guy's scouting report, you see a guy with good size, but aren't too impressed. He just entered his second season, and has clearly made a big jump from where he was coming out of college.
Reynolds may never be an elite player, but his biggest contribution here has been in setting up the coverage (his brain). Apparently, the other guys were making too many mistakes.
When you see a "wide open" receiver, it's often because the free safety has made a bad call, and left somebody uncovered. Reynolds has improved coverage overall, and has also exceeded his scouting report both in coverage and against the run.
This guy might well be the long-term starter at safety, and does have significant upside left.
Look, my apologies to the 3-4 players I'm leaving out, but there are just too many of these guys.
Off this list of free agents which Andrew Berry nominally helped acquire, Reiter, Cooper, Cam Johnson, Taylor, and Reynolds are all potential or probable starters with star potential. Calhoun may be the nickel cornerback forever.
Atkinson should remain a key depth player and special teamer. The other guys are depth/special teams, though their cielings are lower.
Ignoring potential (Cooper, Reiter, Johnson, Holmes), what we have in the bag here is a starting free safety, cornerback, and nickel back with star potential (yes that includes Reynolds).
That's three key guys. We can safely predict that at least one of the other guys will start or contribute heavily next season, making that four key players.
Oh yeah. Collins. Make that five. He might have to play inside next season. All of these guys are young, with upside. No old geezers here, see?
Soon we will all fixate on the draft, but think about this: What if Berry does the same thing next season? Do you understand that there are only 22 positions?
Still think this will take five years? Time for some remedial math.
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