vinivedivichi
So you're telling me there's a chance...
- Joined
- Jul 21, 2005
- Messages
- 1,133
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- Age
- 41
1). Kendall Langford becomes a stalwart of our defense - the guy is perfectly suited to play end in a 3/4 defense. He's got rare size/athleticism and he is in the perfect situation to succeed. Make no mistake; Langford was targeted by the 3/4 teams and would not have been available in the fourth round. In fact, some thought that he would be drafted sometime in the second round. Great pick.
2). Phillip Merling will be a disappointment - Although we got good value by picking up Merling @ 32, it's already a mystery as to how he fits our defensive scheme. The guy has all kinds of ability, but can you pencil him in at DE in the 3/4 right now? I don't think so. Could he play OLB in a 3/4 right now? Again, probably not. Without projecting weight gain/loss, he was probably a better fit for a 3/4 team as a DE on 1st and 2nd downs and maybe a tackle on 3rd down. Can he be a good player for us? Of course, but he's going to have to work at it. If I had to predict a "bust," relative to draft position, this would be my pick.
3). Jalen Parmale becomes a valuable insurance policy - I think Dolfans are pretty much united behind Ronnie and Ricky. However, though both runners have been around and have had success, it would be naive to depend on both to be productive all year. Ronnie is coming off ACL surgery and history says it really takes 2 years to get the burst back. Ricky is Ricky. He is a positive test away from being out of the NFL, and how much can we depend on a guy that hasn't really played NFL football in 3 years? Parmale has pedigree, good size and good speed/quickness. He's a Marion Barber type that really fits well into a ball control offense. I really, really like this pick for our offense. I think we got a real steal here.
4). Jake Long is as advertised - A #1 overall pick can't really surprise...he really either plays as expected, or is worse than expected. I love Long's makeup. I'll take a huge, nimble linemen that probably is a top 5 run blocking tackle from day one any day. Will he "struggle" with speed rushers? It's possible, but this guy is athletic enough to be an elite LT. Once he gets his technique fine-tuned, this is a position we don't have to worry about for 10 years. His run blocking ability will be a huge plus for this offense - he and Smiley on the left will open up huge holes for our talented runners. Having Carey on the other side means that defenses have to stay honest and can't focus on just the left side. This was the only logical choice at #1, but that doesn't mean it wasn't a great pick.
5). Dotson and Hilliard are Practice Squaders - This is not necessarily an indictment of the players, it's more a numbers game. Hilliard wouldn't be our best short yardage RB (Ronnie and Ricky both are probably better) and he probably wouldn't be the best blocking FB due to his lack of size. He's got a chance to be our 4th RB/3rd FB, but it depends on how other positions pan out. Dotson probably needs to get bigger and stronger before he can be a player for us. Ferguson, Starks and Solail are probably better NT than Dotson at the moment, and depth all of a sudden is not a real concern on the DL. I think he gets stashed on the PS with hopes that he can get bigger and develop into rotational NT.
Thoughts? Feel free to make your own bold predictions.
2). Phillip Merling will be a disappointment - Although we got good value by picking up Merling @ 32, it's already a mystery as to how he fits our defensive scheme. The guy has all kinds of ability, but can you pencil him in at DE in the 3/4 right now? I don't think so. Could he play OLB in a 3/4 right now? Again, probably not. Without projecting weight gain/loss, he was probably a better fit for a 3/4 team as a DE on 1st and 2nd downs and maybe a tackle on 3rd down. Can he be a good player for us? Of course, but he's going to have to work at it. If I had to predict a "bust," relative to draft position, this would be my pick.
3). Jalen Parmale becomes a valuable insurance policy - I think Dolfans are pretty much united behind Ronnie and Ricky. However, though both runners have been around and have had success, it would be naive to depend on both to be productive all year. Ronnie is coming off ACL surgery and history says it really takes 2 years to get the burst back. Ricky is Ricky. He is a positive test away from being out of the NFL, and how much can we depend on a guy that hasn't really played NFL football in 3 years? Parmale has pedigree, good size and good speed/quickness. He's a Marion Barber type that really fits well into a ball control offense. I really, really like this pick for our offense. I think we got a real steal here.
4). Jake Long is as advertised - A #1 overall pick can't really surprise...he really either plays as expected, or is worse than expected. I love Long's makeup. I'll take a huge, nimble linemen that probably is a top 5 run blocking tackle from day one any day. Will he "struggle" with speed rushers? It's possible, but this guy is athletic enough to be an elite LT. Once he gets his technique fine-tuned, this is a position we don't have to worry about for 10 years. His run blocking ability will be a huge plus for this offense - he and Smiley on the left will open up huge holes for our talented runners. Having Carey on the other side means that defenses have to stay honest and can't focus on just the left side. This was the only logical choice at #1, but that doesn't mean it wasn't a great pick.
5). Dotson and Hilliard are Practice Squaders - This is not necessarily an indictment of the players, it's more a numbers game. Hilliard wouldn't be our best short yardage RB (Ronnie and Ricky both are probably better) and he probably wouldn't be the best blocking FB due to his lack of size. He's got a chance to be our 4th RB/3rd FB, but it depends on how other positions pan out. Dotson probably needs to get bigger and stronger before he can be a player for us. Ferguson, Starks and Solail are probably better NT than Dotson at the moment, and depth all of a sudden is not a real concern on the DL. I think he gets stashed on the PS with hopes that he can get bigger and develop into rotational NT.
Thoughts? Feel free to make your own bold predictions.
