(03-01-2024, 01:37 PM)Cleatwood Wrote:

(03-01-2024, 01:30 PM)Caldrac Wrote: Goes back to the whole scouting and decision making process then. Even if Engram was tagged, you had him for a year, did you REALLY need to drop the 61st overall pick on a TE that ultimately ended up being one of the most disappointing players as a rookie from that TE group?

TE was STACKED across the board last year in that draft class. Strange was nowhere near anybody's radar throughout most scouting communities and mock sites. We swapped our first RD picks with Buffalo who landed a good one in Kincaid. Detroit obviously got it right with LaPorta. 

Meyer was decent in Vegas on a bad coaching staff and a dysfunctional QB situation. Green Bay landed Tucker Kraft and Luke Muskgrave and got good production out of them immediately. 

I agree, that, a player can't prove their value if they don't see the field. Which, again, goes back to the whole scouting and decision making progress. 61st overall pick on a guy that had one good overall showing during the road win against the tinhorns and maybe a handful of other plays that were overshadowed by holding calls or false starts on his end.

Reeks of incompetence. This team used the 61st overall pick on a glorified and oversized FB on an offense that was already having challenges with distribution when you looked at the WR group + Engram in front of him already on the depth chart. 

If this team flounders again in 2024? That whole 2023 draft class will be the one that gets scrutinized the most, and, rightfully so. Baalke had ample opportunities to make some true waves and right off the bat it seems overwhelmingly disappointing. 

Need to see MASSIVE differences in Strange and Bisby in 2024. Has to be night and day out there for them and it needs to be early.

Exactly.

LaPorta was option #2 in that Lions offense. If LaPorta (or any rookie TE) were on the Jags, they would have been option #5! Ridley, Kirk, Zay and Engram were always going to get theirs. I don't care if other teams ran two TE sets. This Jags team was never going to run it very much based on their personnel.

Taking Strange was always strange even if they thought Engram would have just played on the tag. No rookie TE was going to get targets on this team in 2023.