Wyvern

Hmmm. ...It'll be okay, as long as you didn't start a new thread.

After looking at Forbes' on-field play and off-field interviews, I think he'll be a good cornerback, a dedicated football player, and mesh well with the locker room. He showed lots of positives at the college level, and exhibited good combine metrics. However, his slender frame does raise issues about being able to keep on the field for a full season, tackling runners, press performance at the line, and fighting the larger WRs for the contested passes. However, I suspect Forbes will eventually fill out his frame more over a season or two. My main concern with this pick, is that this draft was deep in CBs, and great value at that position could still have been obtained, either by trading down in the first round or selecting a CB in the 2nd or 3rd round. There were a lot of good players at positions of need available in Round-1, but due to the thinner depth of quality candidates, won't be available at 47 or later. So, while Forbes was not technically a reach, he showcases how Washington's FO drafting team didn't seem to be thinking very strategically during this first round, and opted to simply make what they felt was a safe pick when their turn came up. Moreover, the speed of the pick makes it seem like they decided to stand pat at 16, regardless, and not fish for trades. There were a lot a trades going on and Washington went conservative, during this trading frenzy. 😐 ... It's possible an extra 4th, or improved position in rounds 2 & 3 might have been out there if Washington was willing to move down a little. Anyhow, time will tell how safe that pick is (and whether Forbes can replicate his college play and durability vs. NFL opponents). However, if Gonzalez winds up really excelling at the NFL level, Ron's pick at 16 will still judged harshly by some local fans.

It will be fun to watch the Commanders FO and HC trying to put lipstick on this "Major Tuddy.". 😑

I was hoping Washington might get Jones.

Darn, that increases the chance that the Eagles could pick Carter

I'm hoping Detroit takes Carter

I'd guess Carter too.

Wow! That was quick. I was agreeing with KDawg

Okay, guessing time ... Who's the second pick? (An interesting way to pass the next 10 minutes?)

I'll admit the Eagles certainly were creative. Its still a mystery how these mega-contracts don't trigger very big impacts on the team's overall cap. For example, I'm really curious how the Eagles can spread out Hurt's $23,294,000 signing bonus, his $15,000,000 in incentives and his $179,300,000 guaranteed over the term of his contract ending in 2028, and only have about 71 million of cap hit in the first 4 years. It makes me think that the last two years of his new contract would have to be huge - and likely would require another extension to avoid huge cap impacts (or incur appx. 50 million in dead cap per year) for the 2027 and 2028 seasons. Whatever, the Eagles better have a big insurance policy to recoup their costs should Hurts get some kind of injury like Alex Smith had. (As I recall, we wound up with some dead cap from that contract.) As for those saying how these mega-deal signings would not really be impacting Joe "Football Fan", I can't help but think some of these cost do get passed on down to the consumer, perhaps as advertising costs can get tacked on to the selling price of things we buy . As for media deals covering costs, lets see what happens to things like NFL Game Pass streaming prices. I'm not going to comment about the merits of who gets the money, rather just concern myself on how much more it might cost me (directly or indirectly) to closely follow NFL football in the future.

More to the point, that Chase Young agility drill video posted is from 2020, and showed what a pre-injury Chase Young could do. It's no guarantee of Young's current levels of quickness, strength and agility-- especially with those lateral drills or how strongly he can push off making those lateral moves. I don't recall any videos that Young's made recently, that showed him doing drills similar to those in the 2020 video. If they're out there, they would show better on what fans might expect from Chase in the upcoming season. Right now, all we have to gauge Young's current level of play, are replays of when he was on the field for a few games near the end of the season. IMHO, at that time, Young still didn't seem to be in peak shape, but he handled himself well enough ....for someone coming back from a serious injury.

So are there any more free agent LB'ers left worth looking at or discussing? Or at this point does the position have to be addressed in the draft? Then again, there's always the waiver-wire, but that's not usually the most effective way to bring in talent, especially if that vet may be needed to step into certain special LB sets (third down groupings, short yardage groupings, etc.) I still think the current LB group needed a veteran in the mix, and ideally one who'd had a time to get familiar with the scheme and its demands,as well as working with Barton and Davis Or maybe RR & Co. are planning for Eifler to be the solution? 🙄

This is my last post on this issue of Brissett vs. Minshew as a veteran mentor for Howell and backup QB, should Howell need to sit. After all, this is kind of moot now, since the deals were finalized. IMHO, Brissett had a much larger body of work in the 2022 season than Minshew, and had decent results with a less-talented supporting cast. I also didn't get the sense Minshew was doing that much mentoring of Hurts, as they're just two years apart in age. Minshew seemed more like a backup than a mentor, but its possible he might have helped Hurts, even though they have different skills sets and playing styles. While Brissett is like 7 years older than Howell, with a lot more games as a starter (or backup) than Howell has. As for character issues, I am not running down Minshew or suggesting he doesn't train hard, etc. I am just saying he seems more of a non-conventional, flamboyant personality, and maybe even a bit of a non-conformist. Now I don't really don't have the scoop on the full nature of Gardner's personality; he did seem to be well-liked by his team-mates, but he also seemed to like drawing attention to himself though various things he did. I guess the one that convinced me that Minshew favored being 'non-conventional,' was something he did for his training habits that got him dubbed, "The Jock-Strap King.". Maybe that's okay, and maybe it even adds to Minshew's " coolness", but in comparison, from what I've gleaned about Brissett, Jacoby seemed to be more of the down-to-earth, quietly conventional, nose-to-the-grindstone, kind of guy. ...And maybe that's what Rivera felt Howell might need more of as a role model, for this stage of Sam's development.)

In terms of mentoring Howell on the way to professionally approach upping Sam's game to the NFL, I think Brissett might be the better fit. If you're growing up, sometimes its better to have a focussed and hard-working older brother on which to model your behavior instead of a "cool" fun-loving older brother. While I'm sure Minshew isn't a flaky guy, I got the sense that Brissett seemed grounded and professional, wherever he's been, in whatever role he's been assigned.

Sorry Conn-- not letting this go through as fact. I disagree totally with you. You still want to look at Davis with Burgundy&Gold tinted glasses. I still saw a lot of issues with Davis, to the point they redesigned his responsibilities. Say what you want -- I'm not going to change where I saw he still needed work. More to your point, Davis was better, maybe even okay, but let's be realistic, he had NO starter level competition, after Holcomb went down. He was the last LB standing, because after Holcomb, Mayhew& Co had nothing signed as backup in the way of starter level.

Sorry, I was looking at Seattle vs. 49ers replay (full game) that took place right near the end of the 2022-2023 season. I was surprised to see Barton was not on the field regularly on 3rd down, especially if it was a passing situation

I hope so, but the pickings are very slim now. And looking at the Seattle games, they were pulling Barton out on 3rd downs and passing downs. He looks like a 2-down LB. Too bad Washington didn't try to sign Chargers FA LB Drue Tranquill. (He was about the best of the remaining LB'ers left now, because Wagner will be too expensive and Browns' LB Walker may not be the same after his injury.)

I still think Washington needs to upgrade its line-backing corps (at least its depth) especially after losing Holcomb in free agency. Davis is much improved, but still not any kind of elite LB'er. Now, many may not agree, but I still think Barton is a gamble -- I suspect Washington felt this was a cheap way to address the positional need and that they believe they can develop Barton into a quality 3-down starting LB'er. Even so, that's just two players for your starting LB'ers. As for the others, Eifler, Mayo and Hudson, ...they are short-term replacements and may not even be on the team should one of the practice-squadders up their game. (And I'm hoping Bostic doesn't get brought back because he always gets targeted by opponents.). It just seems like Washington doesn't consider improving its line-backing as a priority, which is odd because it didn't seem that great in 2021 or 2022. Even with the Barton contract, Washington is paying more for Kendall Fuller than they're paying for the entire line-backing corps. And it would seem that even with just a 2-LB'er scheme, (which isn't run 100% of the time) they'd be able to afford a quality 3rd LB'er (ideally a veteran) for depth and positional flexibility.

I suspect that not too many Washington fans would be vocally supportive for how the Rivera front office has dealt with the team's needs at linebacker over the last couple of years. Bostic was probably the most familiar example of the types of solutions offered for LB needs that seemed questionable. In part, it seemed like it was caused by the FO waiting too long to find a quality FA for depth. So they wound up with folks like Mayo and Eifler because Washington had no real depth. They lost about a season's worth of Davis' contract trying him in a role he didn't fit very well. Meanwhile, everyone complained on why the Washington defense had troubles stopping opponents converting on 3rd downs. It seems like the FO wants to "just get by" at LB, and maybe save some cap space... Now, Barton may be an "unearthed gem" that the other teams didnt know about, but there were a lot of proven LB'ers who were available in FA and many were signed at fairly reasonable contracts. Now, there are not so many left. Let's see if Washington find a decent solution among what's left...or perhaps obtain a quality depth solution via the draft.

We'll see. Frankly, I hope I'm wrong, and there is a really qualified O-line coach waiting in the wings. I'm also reacting to all the reports stating that Matsko was fired, not that he decided to voluntarily quit or retire.

Sorry, but I don't think much of Bieniemy's decision. He may have the power to do so, but, Bieniemy's late-minute call means Washington's going to have to scramble now to find a replacement O-linemen coach of a similar caliber. Now, Conn gave one possible reason why Matson got fired. However, I can't shake the thought that Bieniemy just wanted to flex his muscles and make sure only "his" guys will have key roles in the 2023 offense. Bieniemy strikes me as a my way or the highway personality. I giess Washington fans will have to hope he's got the right formula to rebuild, especially as it seems he's planning to blow up a few things. Too bad, I really liked Matsko -- he really was doing the most possible with the limited hand he'd been dealt for the O-line.

Maybe we there's someone with a similar "profile" from the pool of candidate draftees. And I suspect this guy would have a decent Wonderlic score. Apologies, this post made me dig up my contribution to the Look-a-like thread when Washington was playing Jacksonville. I was spoofing their punter Logan Cooke. (Below)

Actually it's a smart move by Heinicke. Falcons have a run-heavy offense, decent O-line, a great TE to throw to and at least one passable WR. The contract seems front-loaded, which is also good for Heinicke, because he'll have made a nice chunk of cash before Atlanta decides to move on. It's probably better for Washington that they can't default to signing Heinicke as a backup. (Top of the list of reasons, I'm not certain he'd fit what Bieniemy's offense might be looking for from its QB.). In any case, I am appreciative that Heinicke did try to give Washington the best he could muster, given his level of talent. (I still wished he'd run a little more often, but do understand how some folks might have been worried he'd get injured -- which wouldn't have been a good thing considering the QB depth behind Heinicke wasn't that great.) Right now for Howell's backup I'm leaning to someone like Dalton, or Brissett (if affordable) or even an old vet like Flacco. (Bridgewater seems like he'd fit, but seems kind of fragile.

I appreciate those who felt the one year thrill of RG3-driven, playoff season was worth giving up so many high draft picks. That were definitely some highlights we can relive time and time again on You Tube. But the reality was Washington mortgaged its future for one OROTY season followed by many disappointing seasons from Griffin, who was not durable enough for the playing style that best featured his skill-set. And as we saw even in 2012 Griffin still had unresolved technical issues that limited his effectiveness as a passing QB which became even more concerning when his mobility was compromised. If Washington had gotten 3 good seasons out of Griffin, perhaps this trade might have seemed better and not get included by those NFL analysts who like to compile lists of the worst trades in the NFL history. I think we should note that however St. Louis managed to squander their windfall of picks, it doesn't really figure into how one evaluates the trade -- from Washington's perspective. The real issue is what Washington could have done by using or leveraging those high picks in rebuilding their team (especially with the #2 overall position in the 2014 draft.). I keep thinking in the 2014 draft how Washington would have been able to pick someone like Khalil Mack for the roster, or Aaron Donald ... Instead Washington's "first" pick in 2014 was Trent Murphy, who, while decent, was not really at the same caliber of the players available to Washington if they'd been able to fully leverage their #2 position in the few rounds of that 2014 draft where they still had draft picks. Enough time has passed that this doesn't matter as much now -- but on the whole, the RG3 trade really hamstrung the rebuilding opportunities for Washington in the years afterwards. And I remember that, especially whenever I reflect on what came out of 2014.

The worst part was Washington picked Carlos Rogers with the 9th overall pick, a mediocre CB.with "stone hands"" that couldn't hang onto potential interceptions. Trust this franchise to draft the wrong "Rodgers", and then double down on that mistake by expending draft picks to get a chance to pick Jason Campbell.