(03-29-2024, 02:38 PM)jaglou53 Wrote: [ -> ] (03-29-2024, 12:39 PM)Caldrac Wrote: [ -> ]2022 hasn't been that bad. Walker took significant strides in the right direction in year two. Lloyd did as well, felt like a night and day comparison from year one to year two. Had he not had that injury with his hand, midseason surgery and a cast on it I think he would have played even better.
Fortner is a bust. We all know that now. Bringing in Morse as a 10th year veteran at the Center position signifies this. It also shows growth with Baalke as a general manager. He got it wrong, he gave it two years, he's making amends for it now in year three.
Muma was a head scratcher. I am thinking that was an insurance plan incase Oluokon didn't pan out. Baalke gambled twice, he ended up being right with Oluokon, which, for the money and price difference? I'll take that over missing on a 3rd RD pick. He can try and ship him off and recoup. Conner was bad. We all know that.
To round out 2022's class he landed Junior and Buster Brown in the secondary. They're still on the roster and both players have showed a little development in the right area. Especially Brown.
To go ahead and comment on 2023's class. The two biggest issues are Strange and Bigsby. They had woefully disappointing rookie seasons and we're hoping to see massive leaps forward in year two. Which is possible. If we can get a total of 1,000 yards of offense between the two of them I will take it. Anything over that? Gravy.
I loved The Anton Harrison selection. Said he was my dark horse pick the night before the draft. We landed him. I think he has all-pro caliber qualities for a RT. Didn't care for the Miller and Lacy selections. Would have preferred Nick Herbig over Lacy. I was excited about the Abdullah selection. Antonio Johnson was considered a draft day steal. In the limited action he had as a rookie? I can see why. I expect big things out of him in year two already.
Washington was serviceable last year as a WR and a returner. I think he'll be better in year two. He at least got some points on the board after Kirk's injury happened. Braswell was a good CB coming out of Rutgers. I think he's somebody to watch in this defense in year two. Cooper Hodges, if he can stay healthy, he's a steal of a 7th RD pick. Even if he ends up as a back up.
Hallett, Vohasek and Parish didn't work out. Hallett had good slot coverage marks on him coming out of Pittsburgh. Didn't know much about Vohasek. Parish was a freak of nature at the combine, had a good RAS, had some FB and DE qualities to him. Just couldn't find himself on the roster here. Was pulling for the guy though.
It's really impossible to grade any particular draft class after just one season. As you said, the Harrison pick definitely looks like a winner. Regarding the remaining 12 picks, the eventual grades are TBD. It is certainly possible that one or more of last year's selections take a big jump and become key contributors in 2024. The coaches are clearly counting on Antonio Johnson to replace Jenkins at safety. He showed some good signs in his limited playing time, but I'm still waiting to see how he does as a starter. If he doesn't play well, they will have the option of moving Savage from nickel. Braswell, Hallett, Abdullah, Hodges and Lacy are all in the same boat- as far as I'm concerned. They will all have the opportunity to earn significant playing time with impressive play in the pre-season. On the other hand, it is also possible that none of these mid to late round picks even make the final roster. Parker Washington is in a slightly different category since he did produce when called upon to play receiver or return punts despite a couple of bad fumbles. His role as a returner is likely to be limited due to the acquisition of Duvernay and his lack of speed will limit him as a receiver.
Regardless of how the mid to late round picks fair, the best possible grade I see this draft ever getting is a C+. The selections of Strange and Bigsby rank as two of the worst 2nd and 3rd round picks in team history. Strange will never be more than an average tight end and Bigsby showed his limitations to the extent that Pederson didn't even trust him to be on the field at key times. Even without the fumbling, he's just average and his main value will be to give Etienne less carries to extend his long-term value to the Jaguars.
Baalke made the claim that he tried to trade up in round 2, but no team would do this. The reality is that he likely tried to get too greedy in what he offered. The Jaguars had definite needs on the offensive line (even after taking Harrison), nickel and pass rusher. Sitting there at the top of round 2 was Brian Branch, whom most projected as a 1st rounder. Would the team have been better with Branch in place of both Strange and Bigsby? How about pass rusher Keion White or offensive lineman Steve Avilla? All fit needs and could have been drafted by trading up. Finally, let's say Baalke just stayed put in round 2 and selected Torrence (before he traded back). Would he have been a better pick than Strange? Taking average players in rounds 2 and 3 instead of better ones at positions of much greater need is plain and simple INCOMPETENCE. I'm clearly not yet over this and Baalke's good record in free agency doesn't negate his draft failures.
I agree with you there. I think most of us echo those same sentiments exactly. Strange and Bigsby absolutely make or break that entire draft class and they get dogged more so for the fact that our 8 - 3 start happened without them and our 9 - 8 finish happened because we couldn't count on them when injuries started piling up.
Once Kirk went down and Zay was in and out of the line-up. You would have hoped the offense could have maybe got a little bit more creative by incorporating maybe looks that involved Bigsby from the backfield with Etienne splitting out wide, or, maybe Strange supplementing inside and playing more in-line so Engram could do more on the outside.
Instead, we were dead in the water. That will be something they have to figure out moving forward. I think me looking for a combined 1,000 yards or more of total offense between the two of them in year two is being a little modest, as, most teams would expect a whole hell of a lot more from just their second round selection alone in regards to output.
Bigsby has to work on ball security. It was the biggest concern I immediately raised up about him on the day we drafted him in the actual thread. He didn't have a ton of carries at Auburn but he had a eyebrow raising amount of fumbles. That carried over into his NFL career and it was frustrating going all the way back to preseason with him.
Strange, for me, I had higher hopes at the time of the selection. Now, to be fair, in a deep TE class? He wasn't on my radar. Especially in RD2. In fact, didn't have him anywhere near any of my projections or mocks. However, when I looked at his highlights, his ability to block, motion in and out of the backfield, I started envisioning him as the Trey Burton TE that Doug had on his team with the Eagles.
A guy he would keep stashed behind Ertz and Celek but use here and there in special situations. Even then, that kind of role seemed like you could have filled much later on. Like another guy I liked on day three that the 49ers took, in Brayden Willis at TE. Lower risk there and more forgiving if you fail.
Strange was considered a 4th RD graded prospect and his comparison was Tyler Conklin. Which, is a bit of a bummer. Because Conklin didn't really break out as a receiving threat until his fourth year. And even then, he was middling at best and didn't offer much inside the redzone as a receiving option.
Conklin was at least a 5th RD selection though. To add further insult, when you line Strange up next to his fellow classmates from this really, really good TE group? It's awful.