kungfoodude

Unsurprisingly, you aren't really understanding what I am saying.

I think on paper it definitely isn't an upgrade, especially considering Okung. Even without it is basically a push. My concern is that Darnold has been a massive bust and at least a portion of that can be attributed to a poor offensive line. I was not a fan of the Teddy signing nor was I a fan of his play but we do have to fully admit that he made our OL look much better than it was, even while dinking and dunking to an ineffective overall offense. Darnold isn't that guy. He is a classic gunslinger and they traditionally fare very poorly when pressured. So, to me that is a big concern. The kid has been an absolute disaster in his career so far and putting up a poor offensive line in front of him is not the path to success, even with our plethora of offensive weapons. Ultimately, we need to set him up to be successful, not just with scheme and weapons but with OL talent, as well.

I would be surprised if our 3rd rounder makes the starting lineup. It would be(hopefully) a very pleasant surprise. I was low on him during the draft and I haven't seen really any early takes that make me think otherwise. But, this is also where the rubber meets the road. We should know in the next couple of weeks at least what our two deep looks like. Outside that, it will take a few games to see what we have as a unit. And, that is under the assumption that we can stay healthy. That is honestly one of the biggest concerns. Our FA signings have very big injury red flags, so continuity may suffer if we aren't able to keep them healthy. It was a big problem with last year's unit, as well.

I think we made a huge upgrade in our two deep but basically no upgrade in our starting OL. This is, of course, all theoretical. They have taken no actual snaps as a unit yet.

We added basically nothing and lost little if you don't include Okung. So, I suppose if you don't include him it is a push. And it was a much, much worse line than some of the stats even indicate because of Teddy.

Well, I have functioning eyeballs and a brain. It does help. Similarly, I actually watched our games.

I can't make you be smarter.

On paper is is probably worse. Okung, despite being missing for most of the year was leaps and bounds better than whatever we are considering for LT(assuming Moton stays at RT). The OG's guards are either a push or worse. IMO, there is a very high probability we are worse than last year along the starting line but better at the backup slots.

Well he is likely to be behind one if the worst OL's he has ever had, so I don't know how exciting that stat is.

Agreed. I am glad to have him back but his playcalling left a lot to be desired last season. He wasn't bad but far, far from perfect. Hopefully he keeps improving like our young players do.

Think about how bad it would be if he wasn't our QB1.

I understand the thought process but still would caution that he is a rookie and this is the NFL. Traditionally rookie WR's tend to struggle. I just don't like to see runaway expectations for young players that lead to unwarranted fan disappointment. Glad to see him making some plays in TC but I am not going to get too excited or upset until he has a few games under his belt.

The easiest work he will get all season is against our non-Moton OT's.

We'd have to give up a 1st for them to take Greg Little.

I thought that was who it was. Makes it that much more impressive for Marshall.

Let's let them get some actual games under their belt first. I don't like saddling a bunch of rookies with unfair expectations. Remember it took Samuel a few seasons to really hit his stride.

Who was that Marshall roasted?

Oh poo.....here we go....

Maybe he is just an M. Night Shyamalan superfan.

You can twist it anyway you want but we have a bust first round QB currently. So what would the difference really be?

I came here to say this. IMO this is really probably the worst scenario. Because now we likely have a top 5 draft pick, are in position to draft a franchise QB but have no idea what to do with Darnold. That is an easy choice for me, I draft a QB but I don't know that our staff and FO would feel similarly. Especially if they thought he looked good in camp. So, then you are looking at the potential of maybe passing on a franchise QB(twice) for a guy that ends up flaming out in 2022. To me that is the true nightmare scenario.

Gotta be DJ Moore at the top of that list.

Yep, just an accounting trick make it easier to stomach that big lump sum.

I don't really envision a scenario where we are trading for him if there is question as to his status. We are not describing similar scenarios at all.

This is a no-brainer, really. I liked Samuel but his situation is the textbook "don't pay this guy" scenario. Moton, on the other hand, is a top tier OT in the NFL. We simply couldn't afford to let him get away.