David Njoku doesn't have an attitude problem. John Dorsey had problems with any player he himself didn't sign or draft. Did Rashard Higgins have attitude problem, Chad?
He could light it up, like he might not get a second contract. He does right now look more like a bust than a superstar, but his sophomore year did happen, and a lot of teams would take a small, predictable impovement over that, Chad, and eagerly fork over at least a 4th round pick for it.
The 4th round is where you take shots at raw athletes with great upside, and Njoku is a veteran who has already shown that upside. He's a much safer pick at a position of need than that mysterious 2021 4th rounder.
I know Chad would point to his league-worst Tight End drop rate. Well, Jim Thome nearly led the league in strikeouts at a time when he also nearly led in homers and RBI, and drops are more fixable than swinging (or not) at a tiny little ball.
Terry Pluto et al bash Njoku's blocking too much. He's actually become a mediocre blocker, which is a cut above crappy. This is another Memorex Moron thing going back to John Dorsey's public challenge to Njoku to improve in that area.
*At the time, I thought it was a GOOD move by Dorsey to motivate a player (and that's how David took it, too). I NOW know that at that time, Njoku wasn't a bad blocker either: Dorsey was pre-excusing the fact that Njoku was doomed, because he wasn't a Dorsey guy*
Anyway the blocking thing is largely propaganda:
Njoku is actually a supersized Wide Receiver. He's long and lanky. If he were to pump himself up over 250 lbs, he'd lose speed and agility. Anybody who checked him out pre-draft knew that he would never be more than a wall-off type in-line blocker (like Ozzie Newsome was).
Make no mistake: the 5 or so teams who are in the market for a Tight End are looking for a weapon first, and some of those teams are under pressure to diversify their passing attack.
A 4th round pick is likely, but more than that is very possible.
...but Chad was really funny describing what he thought the Browns could get for him (you can be funny and wrong. Check out the late night propaganda comedy shows!
Thomas Moore cites Bucky Brooks, who says the Browns offensive skill players might be, as a group of 5, the best in the NFL.
I pay extra attention to Brooks, like I did to Mayock, in re offensive skill-players, because he was a defensive back, and studied these guys for a living BEFORE they retired.
The 5 players Bucky lists are Landry, Mayfield, Hooper, and (ahem) Hunt and Chubb.
Tom might have erred in his title here, as OBJ is omitted in Brooks' comments. I assume that Bucky includes OBJ, so unless you kinda combine Hunt and Chubb it's 6 players (but I'm nitpicking who cares?)
The point here is that Bucky named a QB, 2 WRs, 1 TE, and TWO Running Backs.
Bucky Brooks never got the memo about Kevin Stefanski being a "2-Tight End" guy and Hunt collecting splinters, because he's just assuming a 2-back offense in 2020.
You have to excuse Bucky for this: He tends to assume that other people can see the obvious as well as he does.
Anyway, as Thomas points out, that top skill-player ranking by a credible analyst is impressive, and Sir Thomas also cites Bill Barnwell (in defense of ignorant Mayfield-bashing), who says that now that Dorsey Kitchens is gone and Stefanski is here, we get to see the 106+ QBR play action Mayfield instead of the crappy drop-back long bomber...which is something else Bucky Brooks assumes that sentient beings all comprehend (poor Bucky. Hillary Clinton came close 3 years ago...)
When you consider that Bucky Brooks ignored the massive upgrades on both sides of the offensive line this offseason, you'd almost think that the rest of the NFL should be nervous, but Noooo!
Well as you know, I get this. After all the pre-2019 hype and subsequent let-down, nobody (except guys like Bucky Brooks, who scrupulously ignore politics and "sentiment"), wants to stick their necks out again.
It's also the fact that this is the AFC North. The Ravens are awesome. The Steelers are overrated, but not by that much. That's easily a top 8-10 team with a truly scary, talent-laden defense, and an elite QB who can't be written off just yet.
Even real analysts have to water down their Browns' optimism.
But let's put it this way:
In the AFC, the Chiefs are the top dogs right now, and haven't weakened much.
The Ravens are BETTER than they were in 2019. The Steelers get Big Ben back and (just the facts man): some nice offseason upgrades.
(Redundancy alert) Kevin Stefanski could be the best Head Coach in history, with the most talented roster in history, but he's installing all new systems and there's a major influx of new players, including 2-4 rookie starters--amidst this Covid 19 mass-hysteria (the Reds are laughing their asses off at us but I digress):
The new CBA adds one more wild card team to each conference, so the "new kids" 2020 Browns have a good shot at the playoffs.
The 2020 Browns are arguably the most talented team in the Division, but it is "arguable" and close.
Every other Division rival (including the underrated Bengals) comes back in 2020 with established systems and coaches, and even less "turnover".
I hate to say this, but due to the Covid-19 hysteria, the Bengals could upset them, and the Steelers...
...ok I'm going overboard my own self here on the doom/gloom side:
1: If you ask any offensive lineman (on sodium pentathol) about the wide zone blocking scheme (or zone-blocking in general) they'll tell you it's idiot-proof.
2: It's the same for most running backs, because they get to rely on their instincts, and "run to daylight".
3: Most QBs love a great running game and play action, for obvious reasons....
The Shanahan scheme is simple, yet brillant. Guys like Hugh Jackson and Mywayorthehighway Haley try to outsmart it, but well...duh...
It's not complicated, and Stefanski inherits Hunt AND Chubb, and Mayfield in year 3 off a year of idiocy--
Nevermind last call okbye
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