Fmbl2187

So, THAT's where he is. I thought maybe he had a stroke.

I think Hands should be in on this thread.

It's a hard thing to imagine.

Interesting gauge of value. I guess it depends on how difficult it is for you to get a boner. Which players give you a boner? That's the question. Did you hear about the flasher who decided to retire? He changed his mind and decided to stick it out for another year.

That's how we got Mahomes, right? IMO, Veach has gotten an A. He has built great cap space ahead of needing to re-sign his key players. He is doing what super bowl winning GM's do when they have a great QB. Really, all he needs is a decent supporting cast sprinkled with a few stars, mainly offensive weapons for Mahomes. Let the coaching staff coach up the young draftees with potential, but get just enough FA's to win NOW. I know it isn't what we are used to, but he has built great depth and increased the cap space from a disaster to a good situation. I would give him nothing short of an A. Every team takes a chance in the draft, and many of the draftees never pan out. He is no worse in that regard than anyone else. I think we should stop complaining and give him accolades. He is doing exactly what he should be doing. Past GM's have done it differently, and how many SB's have we won that way?

Ward has been terrible, but for only one reason (it seems to me). It looks like doesn't turn his head to see whether and where the ball is coming, even though he is covering his guy like glue. That is how it appears to me. He is just doing his assignment but not tracking the ball. When he does try to track it and turns his head, his guy makes a move on him. It seems like a skill he could learn, but what the hell do I know?

You make too much sense But it is fun to consider how coaches game plan and the kind of deceptions they try to plant in the press using uncertainties about injuries and other things. I know they do things like that. It only takes a few seconds in front of the sports press or a designation on an injury report to sew a bit of confusion.

Or just keep trotting him out there at random times. Or maybe even put him out there on defense at times. Or as a referee. There are a dozen ways to confuse them.

More like puking words

OK, Mr. Jagger.

Yep. Easily could be the Texans. Really, all he needs is an MRI showing that the cartilage where his collarbone meets the sternum is fully dense with no incompletely healed areas. I don't think it is something he will feel. The MRI will say when he is ready. These posterior dislocations of that joint are rare, and recurrences are also rare. The only reason they are dangerous is because when the collarbone goes backwards, in can lacerate the main artery to the arm, the brachial artery...kind of a big deal. IF they weren't a danger in that rare case, he could play right now.

If he is not a quick thinker, then he does suck, and back to the drawing board. An LB has to be able to think and react quickly.

I could easily be wrong, but I think HItchens has gotten an unfair shake. He came into a horrible situation at LB with nothing really helpful around him and no familiarity with Sutton's defense. Now he has some guys he can fit with but is in a brand new system once again, with new assignments. He has not had a chance to be able to just react. When he has been able to just react on some plays he hits guys really, really hard and is fast. He's made some plays in coverage as well. I feel like HItchens might suddenly be looked upon as a key player once he feels comfortable in a stable system. He needs to be given a break, and he hasn't had one yet.

One thing to think about. HIll will likely first come into a game in the second quarter, kind of unannounced. We will just see him in the huddle. It will be an important game where he has been listed as questionable all week, so that the opponent will not be able to game plan for him. If they do game plan for him, our other guys will be more open. If they don't game plan for him, he will suddenly be one-on-one and will freak them out. That's the way Reid's mind works. I'm thinking this will happen either against the Packers or the Vikings. He will be totally ready, but the report will show him questionable all week.

I'll write to Veach and ask if he is on that. I hear that Blackledge has a kid who is doing really well.

I believe Clark is a major reason why Lamar Jackson could not really run around the edge on his side. He sets the edge. His pass rushing has been neutralized by doubling on him and chipping him, but that has allowed Jones to dominate. Pick your poison. Clark is fine. This thread has kind of worn itself out.

I don't that's true. Usually they play harder to build up their value on the market. Anyway, these guys have pride or they wouldn't be playing at the highest levels in their careers.

Why expose a crucial committee RB during a portion of a game when we are ahead? If we are behind and have limited time, it is a different matter. The way he holds the ball does worry me also, and it could have entered into the decision as well. But that is the way he has always done it, and he seems to tuck it away securely when he senses the tackle coming. I don't have any idea what his career stats are regarding fumbles.

Exactly. I feel compelled to say something else, not directed at you but just reminding everyone including myself. The destination is great. The goal is the holy grail. But the journey is the real point. Whether we hoist the Lombardi or not this year, every single game is an honor to watch these amazing athletes play such an amazing and complicated game that is a complete reflection of life itself, with successes, failures, joy and disappointment, anxiety and relief, people young learning, growing old and losing it, heroes, villains like Burflict, all playing out on a field and interrupted by thousands and thousands of commercials. We can sit on a couch and eat potato chips and still experience all of life compressed into a small space, interrupted only by the most necessary trips to the bathroom. I guess the only thing missing is sex, which is quite a bit actually.

Not like they will next season. But it will get better. As long as we have Mahomes, we will get to the dance. In a few weeks we will get Hill back. Sometime (soon, I hope), we will get Fisher back..and D.Williams. Mo Claiborne will help at some point. We have a fantastic coaching staff across the board, great game planning and play calling. We will likely lose to one of those teams in the meantime. But we can't expect the 1971 Miami Dolphins. We're going to lose some.

Yep. They are faster and more aggressive. They just don't have the system down enough to be intuitive and instantly react to things without having to think about it.

That was quite a blitz by Mathieu yesterday. I know Spagnuolo dialed it up, but wow, was he fast! Even discounting that, he is really strengthening the secondary and covering lot of ground. I want to see Thornhill do more. I know he is a rookie and is constantly trying to make sure he is where he is supposed to be on each play. He needs to spend a season doing that. But at the same time, Spags has got to occasionally give him the green light to do what he does so well...jump routes and get some interceptions. If he gets a few of those on film, opponents' QB's will start avoiding his area more. That would really shore up some things. If Claiborne proves to be better at tracking passes and contesting catches than Charvarius Ward, that would be a huge boost to the D also.

Yeah. I was expecting more from him. Hope it happens. He's pretty expensive. Maybe it will happen when the "chips" are down.

Spags prior teams were not really good until year 2.

Absolutely. I was thinking the same thing last week. A great offense is going to expose the D a lot more. They are going to have to play more minutes. They are also going to be playing prevent defense a lot also, just making teams use the clock. That produces really bad defensive stats.