(03-12-2021, 09:26 PM)Bullseye Wrote:

(03-12-2021, 08:34 PM)TheO-LineMatters Wrote: I don't know why you aren't grasping this concept. Experienced does not equal good. Cam is ranked near the bottom on almost every list of starting OT's in the NFL, so even if we find an average LT in the draft, he'd be a little better than what we now have. That's not just my opinion. Just watch ESPN and follow the "experts" outside of Jacksonville, who do this stuff for a living. Very few people outside of this team have a decent opinion of either one of our OT's. How is keeping a bad LT, a good move? You have to take risks in order to get better. You are apparently too "gun shy" to try and get better, so you settle for the garbage you have. That makes no sense!

Being callous and cheap is keeping a subpar LT like Robinson and expecting him to magically become good enough to protect Lawrence's blindside. 

It's not a high risk bet. It's relatively low risk, because our OT's are so bad. Take those rose colored glasses off and see what everyone outside of Jacksonville sees. Our starting OT's are not good. They aren't even average. We HAVE to take a risk, if we wanna take that next step. What if we did get stuck with the #2 pick instead of #1 and Trevor was gone? Would you avoid taking a QB, because they might be worse than Minshew? I certainly would hope you'd still take a QB. It's the same difference with OT.

I agree with you on the need to upgrade our tackle spots.

But at what point do you draw the line regarding the availability of a better option in the draft?

In the last two to three days, three more teams-Minnesota, Las Vegas  and Kansas City-were added to the list of teams needing to address that same position.  All of those teams that need a T-specifically a LT-pick ahead of us except Kansas City.

Ruling out for the moment the possibility of us trading up in the first round (more on this in another post to come), there is a good chance there will be a substantial run on the position.

Conservatively speaking, these are the teams that could use a T (besides us)

2.  Jets
3.  Miami
5.  Bengals
6.  Eagles
8.  Panthers
9.  Broncos
13.  Chargers
14.  Vikings
17.  Raiders
18.  Miami
19.  WFT
20.  Bears
21.  Colts
23.  Jets
24.  Steelers
25  ---------------------------------------------Jaguars

27.  Ravens (assuming a Brown trade)
31.  Chiefs

This list excludes Dallas, Denver, San Francisco (if they lose Williams), and Seattle, who could have a pick ahead of us if they are dumb enough to trade russell Wilson.

The chances of there being a run at the position ahead of us are high.  So assuming there is a run at the position on some late rising Ts, at what point would it not be worth taking a T in the first round?

There is nothing I wouldn't do to get an upgrade at OT. If that means I have to slightly overpay to move up in the draft and get one of the franchise OT's, I will. If all the guys I wanted at #25 are gone. Then I use that pick and next year's first round pick to trade for a good, young, established NFL OT. I'm not gonna reach for a guy at #25 that I have graded much lower, but I absolutely refuse to go into next season starting a subpar LT like Cam Robinson. We will have too much invested in Trevor Lawrence to risk both of our edges being wide open due to bad players at the OT spots. 

I agree that more NFL teams are gonna be looking for OT's in the draft and now it looks like not much will be left at #25. Instead of franchising Cam as some misguided insurance policy. I would pull that tag today and bring in Riley Reiff on a 3-4 year deal. Since it looks like Trent Williams is set to re-sign with the Niners, Reiff is the next best option. I'd front load the crap out of a contract, guarantee almost all of the money and make it virtually impossible for any team to outbid us. He would be a HUGE upgrade at either OT position. I agree with D6 that he is an ideal RT, but based on how he played last season at LT, (only 1 sack and 1 penalty surrendered in over 1000 snaps,) he has proven he is a good LT as well. 

I have thought about every possible scenario and I have plans for everything. Yes, most of them involve overpaying, but I'd get good players in return and you have to take some risks in order to get better. As I have said on many occasions, LT is the second most important position on a football team. When you settle for subpar players at key positions, you will never make significant steps to move forward. I'm willing to take some risk. We are lucky enough to be in a position where we can overpay, be it in free agency or trading draft picks to get good players at key spots like LT. I would take advantage of this and do what is necessary.

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