Oline depth

[gdiaz0358]

Since its slow and I have been thinking about this for a while, I wanted to get all of your opinions on this topic.
Would you be open to brining back players like Clabo and Mckinney for DEPTH? I dont want them starting, but if after the draft we come out with 2 rookie starters, would you feel comfortable with D. Thomas, Gardner, and Brenner as your back ups? I think if they accept back up roles and come cheap we have to bring them in and I would even contact Wade Smith who played in Houston last season under our OLine coach.
I just worry we would be back to last years line if Albert, Pouncey or Smith go down to injury or if the one of the rookies struggles early on.

I would want to bring in McKinney for LT, Clabo for RT, and Wade Smith for Guard. I feel that Brenner is a good back up, but we need 2 guard back ups any way, and I have no idea what we have in Dallas Thomas so I dont want to rely on him at all. Gardner has been solid so he deserves one back up spot if we dont bring in Clabo or Mckinney.

 

[rent this space]

Clabo and McKinnie should be available after the draft. Although Fox was already signed for veteran depth, I would be open to adding one of those guys for a near minimum deal.
I'm also hoping to see 3-4 new O-linemen after draft weekend.
There are about 4 slots open so I would be signing in multiples

 

[So Be]

Hard to say until we see what comes out of the draft. No interest at all in Wade or McKennie, both were horrible, pass and run, all of last year. Clabo has an outside chance.

I think Brenner and Dallas are locks with Garner very likely. His $1.8M hit is a lot for a backup. Fox is gonna have to impress in camp to have a chance. Didn't we carry 9 on the OL last year? Things got confusing with Cog, and Martin, Watkins and Yeatman.

 

[FSU Truth]

Hard to say until we see what comes out of the draft. No interest at all in Wade or McKennie, both were horrible, pass and run, all of last year. Clabo has an outside chance.

I think Brenner and Dallas are locks with Garner very likely. His $1.8M hit is a lot for a backup. Fox is gonna have to impress in camp to have a chance. Didn't we carry 9 on the OL last year? Things got confusing with Cog, and Martin, Watkins and Yeatman.

I want to say "8" dressed, but they carried 9...

 

[So Be]

I want to say "8" dressed, but they carried 9...

Yeah, I'm pretty sure that's what it was. Thanks. So, chances are we will carry 4 backups on the OL.

 

[phintim]

Shula's last year in the league we drafted a right OT first round and guard second round in the draft neither worked out. So going into the draft this year expecting guarenteed results is playing russian roulette with 2 bullets in the gun instead of one. Just look at how horribly Jonathan Martin turned out and the dude was suppose to be a first round talent that slid into the second that we stole. Lets face it Andrew Luck and his mother made Jonathan Martins NFL carreer for him. Moving on out offensive line is currently a disaster outside of Pouncey. Albert is OK but has never finished a season healthy until last year. Thats why we did not resign Jake Long. Come on. Smith is another guy they think they depend on who has never been one and has been in the NFL for awhile now as just a backup. He was backup for a reason. So right now we have nothing proven on the right side of the line, a possible/ hopeful guard and a left tackle you hope does not get injured.
Take this all into consideration and the new plan for the offensive line appears to be shifting some to run blocking which is not Brenner to D Thomas strong points.

So what do I do first I bring back McKinny as insurance right now cheap before he accidently gets picked up for depth and insurance. If affordable Wade Smith for guard. Then you go into camp with Albert, Smith, Pouncy, Smith and Mckinny. Pick the best offensive lineman available in the draft wether it be a center, guard or tackle knowing you can shift Pouncy to guard if needed and hopefully some of your draft picks hit. Your only real hole might be Smith in this situation but Gardner could fill that void other than he is injury prone also. Still you have a better chance with this lineup. Next focus is a linbacker who can play run and pass another crucial part of our missing puzzle

 

[So Be]

Shula's last year in the league we drafted a right OT first round and guard second round in the draft neither worked out. So going into the draft this year expecting guarenteed results is playing russian roulette with 2 bullets in the gun instead of one. Just look at how horribly Jonathan Martin turned out and the dude was suppose to be a first round talent that slid into the second that we stole. Lets face it Andrew Luck and his mother made Jonathan Martins NFL carreer for him. Moving on out offensive line is currently a disaster outside of Pouncey. Albert is OK but has never finished a season healthy until last year. Thats why we did not resign Jake Long. Come on. Smith is another guy they think they depend on who has never been one and has been in the NFL for awhile now as just a backup. He was backup for a reason. So right now we have nothing proven on the right side of the line, a possible/ hopeful guard and a left tackle you hope does not get injured.
Take this all into consideration and the new plan for the offensive line appears to be shifting some to run blocking which is not Brenner to D Thomas strong points.

So what do I do first I bring back McKinny as insurance right now cheap before he accidently gets picked up for depth and insurance. If affordable Wade Smith for guard. Then you go into camp with Albert, Smith, Pouncy, Smith and Mckinny. Pick the best offensive lineman available in the draft wether it be a center, guard or tackle knowing you can shift Pouncy to guard if needed and hopefully some of your draft picks hit. Your only real hole might be Smith in this situation but Gardner could fill that void other than he is injury prone also. Still you have a better chance with this lineup. Next focus is a linbacker who can play run and pass another crucial part of our missing puzzle

Agree that counting on rookies to fix the OL problems as being far fetched, especially if one does not fall to us at #19. It could happen but, is not likely.

Wade was much worse than Shelly last year. He was about the same in pass protect, although Shelly only payed a third of the snaps. To give you a better idea, Wade was a lot worse than Jerry on the run. Many are going by his name and not what he has done lately. End of story.

McKennis was almost as bad. Not an option.

I'm expecting some good players on the OL to become available after the draft. There are going to be a lot drafted in the first two rounds, making vets with higher contracts expendable. Not what we all wanted but, some good band aids to cover this year.

Another option is having Brenner and Dallas coming into next week's voluntary workouts, and being much stronger than last year.

 

[KTOWNFINFAN]

Agree that counting on rookies to fix the OL problems as being far fetched, especially if one does not fall to us at #19. It could happen but, is not likely.

Wade was much worse than Shelly last year. He was about the same in pass protect, although Shelly only payed a third of the snaps. To give you a better idea, Wade was a lot worse than Jerry on the run. Many are going by his name and not what he has done lately. End of story.

Got news for ya, Shelly Smith was worse than John Jerry in pass pro also, by quite a large margin. Shelly is not a starting guard or Ryan is not going to finish the season. Shelly is a solid backup and can be used on goalline sets, because he is a solid run blocker, but he was one of the worst in the league last year in pass pro.

 

[So Be]

Got news for ya, Shelly Smith was worse than John Jerry in pass pro also, by quite a large margin. Shelly is not a starting guard or Ryan is not going to finish the season. Shelly is a solid backup and can be used on goalline sets, because he is a solid run blocker, but he was one of the worst in the league last year in pass pro.

Yes, both Smith's sucked, compared to Jerry, in pass protect. I posted "on the run."

 

[crashfan]

Got news for ya, Shelly Smith was worse than John Jerry in pass pro also, by quite a large margin. Shelly is not a starting guard or Ryan is not going to finish the season. Shelly is a solid backup and can be used on goalline sets, because he is a solid run blocker, but he was one of the worst in the league last year in pass pro.

I think Beaton see's something in him. Otherwise we would not have signed him.

 

[uk_dolfan]

id worry about actually filling the 3 open starting spots before worrying about the backups lol

 

[PHINSfan]

depth??? what about starters?? As of right now we only have 2 sure starters on the OL, 2 recently adquired question marks, and a few more back up players. We better pick up a few probable starters during the draft, and maybe a few more post-draft release veterans in order to make our line competent. As of now...its still a work in progress!!

 

[fins99]

depth??? what about starters?? As of right now we only have 2 sure starters on the OL, 2 recently adquired question marks, and a few more back up players. We better pick up a few probable starters during the draft, and maybe a few more post-draft release veterans in order to make our line competent. As of now...its still a work in progress!!

At this point in the off season the only way to guarantee we fill those spots before the season stars is to make a trade or get lucky and land a late off season cut. Either's chances of happening are small, Hickey needs to get the draft right or it will STAY a work in progress!


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[PHINSfan]

At this point in the off season the only way to guarantee we fill those spots before the season stars is to make a trade or get lucky and land a late off season cut. Either's chances of happening are small, Hickey needs to get the draft right or it will STAY a work in progress!


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Agree!

 

[spiketex]

Got news for ya, Shelly Smith was worse than John Jerry in pass pro also, by quite a large margin. Shelly is not a starting guard or Ryan is not going to finish the season. Shelly is a solid backup and can be used on goalline sets, because he is a solid run blocker, but he was one of the worst in the league last year in pass pro.

While I hadn't even heard of him, demand for Shelly Smith's services was pretty high. There was a race to sign him with a number of teams competing.
That's why he got well compensated while lots of other O-linemen are struggling to draw any interest at veteran minimums. There is a reason why Miami targeted him and I expect that he will be standing next to Albert and Pouncey on day 1 at training camp. If as you say he's worse than John Jerry, we will probably hear about this pretty quickly. Don't be too quick to dismiss him as just a solid backup. One of my learnings in football is to follow the money. When there is strong competition from a number of teams to sign a backup Guard from St Louis and he gets signed quickly in Free Agency, there is normally a reason. Jerry was available for weeks after that before the Giants picked him up for a lower amount.

Footnote - About 5 or 6 years ago, there was an undrafted Penn State OLB/DE who got kicked off the NY Giants training camp and then with 2 years experience playing in Canada - there were many teams competing to sign him and they didn't hesitate to pay him. Cam Wake has turned out to be one of Jeff ireland's very best signings. My point is that if a number of teams are bidding for a relative unknown, there is normally a good reason. When in doubt, follow the money.