CamTheMan

But he wasn't because talent combined with production gets you drafted high. There are guys who don't have talent but get it done anyway and there are guys with all the talent in the world who fail. I'd rather we took someone with both the talent and history of success. For goodness sake, he went 2-8 as a senior at a public high school. He straight up is not a winner and I think that matters a lot.

It 1000000% matters. Believing a guy is going to magically improve because he touches an NFL field and faces way harder competition is not realistic. Just because it has happened before does not mean it is the recipe for success. People like to use Josh Allen as an excuse like he wasn't manhandling linebackers and launching the football 70 yards in the air. He got put into a perfect NFL system for him and developed great. It happens sometimes. The bottom line is that the overwhelming majority of successful NFL players were also successful in college.

Seriously. Some people need to go back and watch some of Cam Newton in college. He didn't have that great of a team either but damn near singlehandedly went undefeated. He is one of the most dominant college athletes ever and AR15, respectfully, is not even in the same conversation.

I'm confused as to how Anthony Richardson performing well at the combine changes anything. Did anyone not know he was super athletic and big? Him being that crazy of a physical specimen and still not being that great of a college football player isn't alarming to anyone? I might be the only one that feels this way but I don't actually get that impressed when he runs. He's talented and the athleticism is clearly there but he didn't seem to be consistently running through or around people. Every once in a while he'd make a straight up insane play (his highlights are crazy), but I watched half of their games and was just kinda underwhelmed the entire time. Taking him at #9 and trying to coach him makes a lot of sense but trading up for him seems like the risk is substantially greater than the reward imo

In my opinion, you shouldn't be giving up future assets for prospects who don't satisfy one of these requirements: a) realistic potential generational talent b) guaranteed above average talent (I know there is never such thing as a guarantee in the NFL, but some guys come close enough) Personally, I don't see anyone in the class that fits either of those. Stroud is the closest in this class to being a guaranteed above average quarterback and I can see why people would have him in that category, so I wouldn't be upset if we did move up for him. For the first time in my life as a fan, we actually have a staff that makes me feel comfortable almost no matter what we do. Barring a trade in which we completely tank our future assets, I trust them to make good with whichever decision they make.

Darnold actually has a higher winning % than Brissett and Darnold's winning % is pretty similar to Teddy's in the past 3 years. Brissett went 4-7 with a Cleveland team that isn't too much better or worse than ours. Teddy went 7-7 in Denver and 0-2 in Miami. I'd agree that Teddy is probably better than Darnold in a lot of ways but personally, I'd rather watch Darnold chuck it to the other team than watch Teddy throw 3 yard passes every play and refuse to push it down field regardless of the situation or who is open. Don't disagree. Lots of average quarterbacks to be had, comes down to a value thing and how much they are going to want from us. That is why the argument for Darnold is dependent on a great contract, as has been repeated many times. Regardless of who we get, we still need to plan for a replacement.

That game wasn't removed though? If I had, the following would have been his stats: 3740 yards (10th) 24 TDs (10th) 3 Ints (1st) 105.4 Rating (2nd) I included that game in the original post though. He played objectively average football throughout the course of 6 games. I wouldn't count on that regressing after he goes from McAdoo to Reich, personally. Seems like if anything, he'll get better. Most of the people against him are basing their arguments on how they personally feel about him, which is totally fine. Just say you want to move on because you're scarred from how bad he was in 2021. Completely acceptable take. What isn't an acceptable take is to pretend like he was genuinely bad last year.

Guy, if you're going to respond to what I just said with "but he had a bad game in a week 18 matchup where both teams were already eliminated and half the players were out," just let me know now so I can know not to engage further.

Darnold showed signs of improved processing and clearly improved mentally. Even those who don't want him back have to acknowledge that. He looked WAY calmer in the pocket and his footwork took a big step forward. He's younger than a few guys in this draft. I don't get why people are going balls to the wall to crap on him when pretty much everyone who wants him back is saying they want him on a cheap, short-term deal. Nobody is saying he is the future. Nobody is denying he has had a poor career. His coaches were Adam Gase (he is literally failing as a high school OC right now) and Matt Rhule (self explanatory). He played 6 games in his career without them and here are his stats stretched through a full season and where they rank in the league: 3238 yards (15th) 20 TDs (15th) 8 Ints (9th among QBs with more than 8 starts) 92.6 Rating (13th) 11-6 record There is damn near no objective way to say he is not worth a backup level contract.

There are so many different ways to approach this offseason and the QB position that I change what I want us to do every week. I'm mostly interested in seeing how he evaluates where we are as a team. If he thinks we're ready to seriously compete, I think we move for a specific quarterback. If he thinks we're a few years away, might be a bit more passive. It's going to be a fun few months

I'm pretty high on Jaren Hall. He has some raw talent and his intangibles seem to be off the charts. Main concern seems to be age and injury history. Clayton Tune is the one I think could be a real stud though. He's big, not too old (23 now, 24 by draft), mobile, and is damn good at football. Smaller college, not great competition. I think once you get past that and just look at his talent and production alone, he's a baller. I'm not saying he should be a first rounder, but some of his film flashes that kind of talent. SMU game is crazy good film imo. Clayton Tune - Houston QB #3 vs SMU (2022)

He works with Brandon White. General tip for those who may not be aware and are really into the draft, check some of the top personal trainers (GoldFeet, Brandon White, routegod) around the league. Scouting becomes a whole lot easier once you identify some of the important circles. Those guys churn out the best of the best throughout the entire draft. You can easily find some 4-7th rounders who turn into legitimate stars just by seeing who works with who. As they say, you are who you surround yourself with. (Clayton Tune is a dog too btw)

Pick up a real anchor up the middle in free agency and draft Calijah Kancey (check his film holy balls) in the 2nd. Run downs OLBs: Burns, YGM DEs: Kancey, Derrick Brown NT: Free Agent Mixed downs OLBs: Burns, Haynes DEs: Kancey, Ioannidis NT: Brown NASCAR DEs: Burns, Barno DTs: Kancey, Ioannidis If a quarterback doesn’t fall to us and we can’t trade back, I’d fugg around and take another edge or corner at #9. I know we need a qb, but at this point I’d be down to build a perennial top 3 defense, match it with a great OL/run game, then just chuck Corral in and see if he sucks or not. If he does suck, go all in next year and put the rookie qb in an insanely good position to succeed.

WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO BRIAN BURNS IN A 3-4 WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

I keep seeing people on social media saying that Wilks won't last long until getting hired someone, I think everyone is going to be surprised. He was the definition of a mediocre defensive coordinator and while he is amazing at inspiring a team, I just don't think that he has the connections or skills to make him a legit HC candidate. One of the green flags about Reich is the fact that a ton of elite teams were ready to take him as their OC if we didn't hire him. He's super well respected around the league. I get the argument for wanting a younger HC instead of a 60-year-old, but I'm just happy to have someone we know is a capable coach and has earned a lot of respect around the league.

imagine the fear in the heart of defenses around the league when alpha male sam darnold and alpha male frank reich step onto the field with their glorious alpha male beards

Feel bad for Wilks but I do think this is an upgrade. How the locker room reacts and who he gets at DC will determine his success. If they buy in and we can get Fangio, our ceiling is way higher than it would have been with Wilks. If they don't buy in and we hire a bad DC, floor is considerably lower than it would have been with Wilks. Kinda weird we didn't even give Ryans an interview, would have loved to pair Reich (at OC) with a young, relatable, and intelligent defensive mind who could maximize all the young guys on defense. Oh well.

Or... and hear me out on this... people have a different opinion than you. O_O Scary, I know. Please don't bring the whole "different opinion = racist" thing into conversation against people you don't know. It shuts down the entire dialogue and only continues to further divide. If you disagree with someone, say what you disagree with and try and help them understand it from your perspective. People are more willing to listen than you might imagine.

The NFL sucks balls god damn. 2011-2018: The only team with a minority head coach and minority quarterback 2018: Owner says a no-no word and gets the entire team taken from him 2019: New guy guts the team and replaces the coach and quarterback with white people with no personality 2019-2022: Team eats poo, new minority head coach as interim 2023: Has a woman as a leading decision maker in the hiring process, but can’t make a hire until we interview enough black people (interim coach doesn’t count cause, yknow, that’d be racist?) … Some asshole getting paid a 6-digit salary with the job title “league inclusion officer”: woah woah woah, you didn’t complete your inclusive hiring training bro? u some kinda racist? you have to interview the coaches the way WE tell you to or ELSE!!! At a certain point this has to get demeaning to minorities but this probably isn’t the best place for that discussion heh

Yeah, that 60-64th overall pick is really gonna come in handy! We traded a hall of fame talent for a bunch of mid rounders because we didn't know how to properly utilize him, I'd hardly call that a win-win. They're on their 3rd string quarterback and haven't lost a step on offense because of him. It's like trying to pretend you’re okay with hearing your wife get fugged every night because at least she let you hang a poster in the basement and her new boyfriend brings you a happy meal sometimes. You weren't able to please her in the bedroom for years and you've slowly been growing apart and then she suggested you open the relationship. You wanted to disagree but you don't make enough income and you work too long hours as it is, so you can't really afford to lose the house to her in a divorce and all the lawyer fees, etc. You just sheepishly accept it and every night you have to listen to another man pleasing her while you drink and play Xbox 360 (you couldn't afford any newer consoles) in the basement, turning the volume up to try and drain out the noise. But it doesn't work. It NEVER works. That is this fanbase. Our wife is getting fugged right now. They're going to win a superbowl with him while we sit at home trying to cope, pretending our crappy second round pick is a fair trade.

Chill out, sam darnold is like 2 peoples golden boy on the thread. Most people (accurately) can point out our team sucks and needs to be improved in a lot of ways, including coaching and wrs. Watching these games and honestly thinking the quarterback is the reason we suck is beyond dumb. We’re way last in the league in receivers being open

I can’t imagine watching these games and having the complete lack of critical thinking skills to think the quarterback is the reason for the ineptitude. Holy poo. This isn’t even a defense of darnold lmao we obviously need to upgrade sooner rather than later but there is absolutely nothing open and he’s getting pressured as he gets the ball. Both of these teams are awful

He didn’t quit, he’s stuck between two jobs because the defense was very predictable and the offense was repeatedly attacking the vulnerabilities of the defensive scheme.

I’d hesitate to blame any of this on defensive backs. We were in cover 3 a whole lot, the exact opposite of what you want to do against Brady and the opposite of what Arizona did the week before. Why that passing concept worked repeatedly and why it isn’t the corner’s fault for giving it up: playing soft cover 3 leaves the flat wide open and the buccaneers took advantage often with the slot or TE doing quick outs. Doing so left that outside corner as the primary tackler for many of these plays. If you watch it back, you’ll notice them setting up the deep shot by repeatedly throwing under Evans, using the fade as the clear out. Our refusal to adjust to this left our corners in a constant dilemma. If he hesitates for a second, he gets beat over the top by an all pro WR and the greatest quarterback ever. If he stays with the receiver, the receiver in the flats has a huge gain after the catch. It was just horrible game planning with even worse adjustments. It was embarrassing.

Fair, I took my frustration with the game and some of the general excuse making for Wilks out on you. My apologies. Wilks has done admirably and I have a lot of respect for how quickly he turned our culture around. I’m just extremely tired of being terrible. Being average isn’t really ideal either and I think that’d be our ceiling with Wilks. I want the organization to stride for better than what I believe he’s capable of.