Quote:Gene Smith's first year looked awesome, and started chants of "In Gene We Trust". Caldwell looks promising, but I'm not ready to anoint him as the savior just yet. However, the arrow does appear to be pointing up.
Exactly.
Right. Everyone should be negative. To hell with you if you have a positive outlook.
I had a discussion yesterday with a friend who is totally drinking the Gus and Caldwell juice. It's OK to be optimistic, but he made the Uche Nwaneri cut seem like these kind of decisions will put us over the top.
I quickly said that it's OK to cut Uche but more importantly, you have to actually UPGRADE the position, not just plug in some journeyman backup veteran or use one of your own backups.
If we don't go after the best FA O-lineman and if we don't draft one in the first 3 rounds, you could almost call it sabotage.
Quote:Right. Everyone should be negative. To hell with you if you have a positive outlook.
I'm positive, but cautiously positive.
To me, Caldwell's draft class is no better than Gene's first one. You could even argue that Smith's first draft class was better 1 year out than Caldwell's.
I think we have a lot to be positive about. We've got an owner that wants to win, and keep the team here by improving the stadium and facilities etc. We've got a talented GM that is making the right moves so far. A talented head coach and staff that look to be getting the team on the right track. And a roster with a good base to build on.
So yes, it does feel good to see the team seemingly head in the right direction. But time will tell if it amounts to what we all hope that it will
Like I said, Gus Bradley to me looks like a real star in the making. That is what I'm most excited about.
I don't think we have a base of players to build on, I don't think our roster is deep, and I'm not sure that Caldwell will make the right calls. I hope he does, but we don't know that he will, at least not yet.
Quote:I had a discussion yesterday with a friend who is totally drinking the Gus and Caldwell juice. It's OK to be optimistic, but he made the Uche Nwaneri cut seem like these kind of decisions will put us over the top.
I quickly said that it's OK to cut Uche but more importantly, you have to actually UPGRADE the position, not just plug in some journeyman backup veteran or use one of your own backups.
If we don't go after the best FA O-lineman and if we don't draft one in the first 3 rounds, you could almost call it sabotage.
I agree with everything you said up until the last sentence. Football roster management is about upgrading, not just replacing. You don't just drop a guy that you don't like until you find someone better. Now, there are always extenuating circumstances like avoiding roster bonuses and things like that, but it's a good principle to keep to, in my opinion.
As for your last sentence, I don't think that upgrading the position requires a Weekday draft choice or a top tier Free Agent, whatever that is. All that it requires is a player playing at or above Nwaneri's level for a lower price. Guards really aren't that hard to find, although really good ones are. Upgrading Nwaneri shouldn't prove to be all that difficult I would think.
Quote:I had a discussion yesterday with a friend who is totally drinking the Gus and Caldwell juice. It's OK to be optimistic, but he made the Uche Nwaneri cut seem like these kind of decisions will put us over the top.
I quickly said that it's OK to cut Uche but more importantly, you have to actually UPGRADE the position, not just plug in some journeyman backup veteran or use one of your own backups.
If we don't go after the best FA O-lineman and if we don't draft one in the first 3 rounds, you could almost call it sabotage.
I agree with the principle above, just disagree on the value/ play given to use by Uche. IMO, that won't be hard to equal, and only slightly more difficult to upgrade.
Quote:Guards really aren't that hard to find, although really good ones are. Upgrading Nwaneri shouldn't prove to be all that difficult I would think.
If they're not that hard to find, why are we still having trouble with our interior offensive line? I mean we haven't had a good LG since Manuwai, and besides Uche being pretty good a couple of years, he's been pretty average too.
Our history indicates that for whatever reason, finding a guard isn't that easy.
I do hope we find a couple that are instant upgrades, though.
We need to sign a guy like Naoele. He was pretty expensive, but he played at near pro bowl levels for quite a few years for us.
Quote:If they're not that hard to find, why are we still having trouble with our interior offensive line? I mean we haven't had a good LG since Manuwai, and besides Uche being pretty good a couple of years, he's been pretty average too.
Our history indicates that for whatever reason, finding a guard isn't that easy.
I do hope we find a couple that are instant upgrades, though.
When's the last time it was addressed? Rackley was the last interior lineman that was drafted and his development has been hindered to say the least, before him it was Uche. I'm not advocating that UDFA's can be expected to do the job, but Guard just seems like one of those positions where you "throw people at the problem" until it gets fixed. I am all for the team signing or drafting someone to take the spot, I just don't think it will be that hard to replace Nwaneri "like for like".
Quote:I'm positive, but cautiously positive.
To me, Caldwell's draft class is no better than Gene's first one. You could even argue that Smith's first draft class was better 1 year out than Caldwell's.
How many of those guys are still on the team again?
Quote:We need to sign a guy like Naoele. He was pretty expensive, but he played at near pro bowl levels for quite a few years for us.
When they initially signed him, I don't think it was for much. He was considered a first round bust for the Saints and came in on a prove-it type deal. He worked out, they took Manuwai the next year and they had a nice set of guards for a few years.
Quote:When they initially signed him, I don't think it was for much. He was considered a first round bust for the Saints and came in on a prove-it type deal. He worked out, they took Manuwai the next year and they had a nice set of guards for a few years.
If I remember correctly he signed a pretty large contract with us. He was a stud.
Quote:How many of those guys are still on the team again?
I said 1 year out, not now. We don't know how many players from the 2013 draft class will be on this team in 2017.
Offensive guards are the least-studied player on the football field for most.
The trick is to find the right pair to match your style of play. Some with less girth are nimble and able to pull and trap, but get jacked up into the backfield. Others with lots of girth are never gonna get moved out of the way, but can't pull and trap.
You can push and pull that in two directions and probably find a guy that does both well.
Last season indicated that David Caldwell and Gus Bradley relied heavily on what was said about players to them by scouting personnel. Now they've seen for themselves and are making changes accordingly.
Quote:To know where on the right path this time. To know the years of mediocrity and inept management are coming to a close. This is the start of something special, were gonna be a great team in the future.
Sucks to be Cleveland though
You're putting the cart before the horse. This regime might be more successful, but so far they've played it safe. Until they actually do something to find a franchise QB they having done anything to show they're the answer.
The 4-12 record last year should have been 2-14 again, the texans falling apart was suspicious and they were still by far the better team. For them to lose to the Jaguars was a disgrace.
If Caldwell thinks he can make his career on a guy like Henne he'll be gone soon.
Quote:You're putting the cart before the horse. This regime might be more successful, but so far they've played it safe. Until they actually do something to find a franchise QB they having done anything to show they're the answer.
The 4-12 record last year should have been 2-14 again, the texans falling apart was suspicious
Yes to all this - especially that last part.
Quote:If Caldwell thinks he can make his career on a guy like Henne he'll be gone soon.
I am quite confident in saying that Caldwell will not attempt to "make his career" on Henne
I'm not ready to say we are going to be awesome, but I like our staff a lot better than our last rebuild. Our HC seems like he actually is a real HC and not just a DC trying to play the part.