inmate running the asylum Posted December 29, 2005 Share Posted December 29, 2005 Gibbs is at again .... molding another Super Bowl team made up of free agents, most of whom were undrafted! In 1981 the Redskins lost their first 5 games and then won 8 of their last 11 games to finish 8-8. Then in their 2nd season under Gibbs the Redskins went 12-1 and won Super Bowl XVII over the Miami Dolphins 27-17. But the surprising thing about that team as I recall, was it was made up of so many free agents which comprised more than 50% of the roster. Who needs draft picks? If the Redskins win Sunday, that will be 5 victories in a row. And just like he did in his 2nd year in 1982, Joe Gibbs is now quietly building another Super Bowl contending team in his same unique manner -- which only he can do -- which is mainly made up of free agents! Our current team has 24 undrafted free agents! They are: Mike Sellers, Brian Kozlowski, David Patten, James Thrash, Antonio Brown, Jimmy Farris, Ike Ndukwe, Ethan Albright, Nic Clemons, Aki Jones, Cedric Killings, Ryan Boschetti, Demetric Evans, Lemar Marshall, Khary Campbell, Chris Clemons, Ade Jimoh, Dimitri Patterson, Ryan Clark, John Hall, Derrick Frost, Brandon Noble, Melvin Jones, and Robert Johnson. Then there are the 13 players drafted by OTHER TEAMS but signed by the Redskins as free agents. They are: Tom Tupa, Omar Stoutmire, Christian Morton, Pierson Prioleau, Walt Harris, Shaun Springs, Warrick Holdman, Marcus Washington, Phillip Daniels, Joe Salave’a, Casey Rabach, Ray Brown and Randy Thomas. That means 37 players out of the 59 man roster (53 players, plus the 6 free agent players on IR - Clemons, Noble, Jones, Johnson, Tupa, Thomas), or 63% of the team is comprised of free agents. If you add in the present 8 man practice squad which are all free agents, then two-thirds of the team are now free agents! (45 players out a 67 man roster or 67%). For your further information I did some research on these little known practice squad players which I think are sleepers for 2006, who could blossom with another year of coaching. Richard Smith, wr 5-10, 191 lbs A former All-American track star at Arkansas, who was the Kansas City Chiefs leading receiver in the 2004 preseason and made their 53-man roster. He had 8 receptions for 190 yards in the 2004 preseason for an average of 23.8 yards per reception with 1 touchdown and a long of 53 yards! In the 2005 preseason he had 4 receptions for 85 yards for an average of 21.2 yards per catch. He then got hurt and the Chiefs released him. Calen Powell, te, H-back - 6-5+ 256 lbs Was not too productive playing for Duke (who is?), but is a former decathlon athlete and basketball player. Power cleans 360 lbs., and reportedly runs the forty in a fast (for his size) 4.65 seconds. Is smart too, being an academic All-American, which means he can probably also learn the H-back position. Dwight Ellick, cb - 5-10, 182 Was a two-sport athlete, being a former starting cornerback for Notre Dame and also a track star. In track, ran the 60 meter dash in 6.81 seconds, which is faster than Antonio Brown (6.87), but slightly slower than Santana Moss (6.77). Needs to develop his techniques further, which he should be able to do, now that he is only concentrating on one sport, which is football. Curry Burns, ss - 6-0, 200 lbs Good prospect. Has good strength and runs a reasonably fast 4.56 forty for his size. Has already played in 8 NFL games (starting 2) for the New York Giants, and has one interception to his credit. You say that’s no big deal? Well Ryan Clark had never made an interception in his entire career until this season. Robert Johnson, te - 6-6, 281 lbs Has been set back by nagging injuries so far, but has a lot of promise. Has good hands and averaged over 10 yards per reception in his career at Auburn, which indicates he has good speed for his size. Has the size (6-6, 281 lbs), that Joe Gibbs likes in his tight ends. Christian Morton, cb/punt returner Has real good speed for a CB, and already has about 8 games of NFL experience. He even played as a backup CB for Atlanta against the Eagles in last years NFC championship game, indicating the coach’s had confidence in the rookie. He was also a good punt returner at Illinois, so he may be breathing down Antonio Brown’s neck soon, if Brown doesn’t get his act together on punt returns. Nick McNeil, olb McNeil was a DE in college, so he needs time to make the adjustment to playing LB. But he was voted ALL-NFL Europe this past summer and at 6-2, 245 lbs., runs a fast 4.65 forty. I thought it was noteworthy that Greg Williams cut Zak Keasey from the practice squad a couple weeks ago, and not McNeil, even though McNeil had been with the team a lot less time. So there you have it Park City Skins. Another exclusive. :laugh: Who says Inmate is just a pretty face. :laugh: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SkinsFTW Posted December 29, 2005 Share Posted December 29, 2005 Yeah, I don't get where fans of other teams and mediots all claim that Gibbs will suck this time because of the cap and that all of his old teams were filled with high priced superstars that he can't afford now. Who were all of those superstars? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LatinMind Posted December 29, 2005 Share Posted December 29, 2005 while im not for them oldschool coaches, mainly because the game has changed so much since the glory days of gibbs and parcells ..gibbs has done a fair job with the talent and injuries he's had this yr.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SkinsFTW Posted December 29, 2005 Share Posted December 29, 2005 while im not for them oldschool coaches, mainly because the game has changed so much since the glory days of gibbs and parcells ..gibbs has done a fair job with the talent and injuries he's had this yr.. Yeah, them oldschool coaches in the NFC East haven't done anything except turn around losing teams in Washington, Dallas and New York. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LatinMind Posted December 29, 2005 Share Posted December 29, 2005 Yeah, them oldschool coaches in the NFC East haven't done anything except turn around losing teams in Washington, Dallas and New York. i wouldnt call any of them teams turned around..especially in dallas..nobody knows what direction this team is going..they play gret 1 week then disappear for 3..same for the redskins..the most consistent team has been the giants..and even they arent very consistent..manning with them 27.0 qb ratings? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spiderman6 Posted December 29, 2005 Share Posted December 29, 2005 at it again doing what what sb team is he building? i didn't know this team was in the SB i didn't know this team was in the playoffs (even though you control your own destiny) and you know how synder always go out and get players each year anyway jumping the gun already Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
redskinsfan85 Posted December 29, 2005 Share Posted December 29, 2005 ^^ haha...uhh wake up a lil early today? don't hate man guy was just sayin gibbs IS (key word) building a super bowl team with a lot of undrafted and unknown players. the important thing about that is gibbs and his coaching staff have a series eye for talent that will fill what the TEAM is looking needs. He didn't say we've reached the superbowl, or even the playoffs. Basically pointing out Gibbs is a great coach and doesn't need millions to win, as some other coaches recently in redskins park have had a shot at but failed horribly! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SkinsGuy Posted December 29, 2005 Share Posted December 29, 2005 This is just Coach Gibbs once again showing his keen eye for talent, surrounding himslf with scouts and coaches that share his same attention to even the most minute detail, and adjusting to the players particular strengths. It's one of the primary reasons for his success. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gortiz Posted December 29, 2005 Share Posted December 29, 2005 very informative thread ... I really think Joe is doing a great job in the draft as well ... cooley, taylor, and how about those O-lineman that are quelitly marinating while Buges coaches them up ... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KingGibbs Posted December 29, 2005 Share Posted December 29, 2005 Just goes to show that there isn't that much separation in talent in this league. Yes, there are your bonafide superstars on every team, but it's the rest of the parts that make it a well oiled machine as long as you have the right coach. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigpoppa Posted December 29, 2005 Share Posted December 29, 2005 Gibbs has always and will always be great at building very solid teams no matter what sport. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Underwater Ally Posted December 29, 2005 Share Posted December 29, 2005 Well I certainly hope so. I think you can build depth and a good foundation that way, but you need more than that to make a real push toward being an elite team. Look at the Eagles. They were always on the verge, but couldn't quite break through because they lacked the stars to make the difference against the best teams. They didn't cross that threashold until they signed Owens. Also I think there are some glaring holes in our roster that we have not really been able to solve, and likely won't solve with undrafted players. Wide reciever is probably the most glaring one at the moment. Then there is the issue of a pass rushing DE, and good cornerbacks are very hard to come by in the undrafted pool. Oh, and of course there is the Offensive Line as well. Gibbs demands only the best for that position. I think the big difference has been players like Sean Taylor (1st rounder), Clinton Portis (2nd rounder I believe), Santana Moss (1st rounder), Chris Cooley (3rd rounder) Cornelius Griffin (not sure when he was drafted), Shawn Springs, Marcus Washington, Carlos Rogers (1st rounder)... Point is, most of our big difference makers were drafted. And we certainly DO need draft picks. Sure we can pick up good players in free agency or via trade several years into their career when they are already proven, but that is a much more expensive way to do business, and with our cap situation, we need to work on a less expensive method of team building. Your research is helpful, but the method you are endorsing just isn't a very viable means of making the leap to the status of Super Bowl contender. We could possibly get there this season, but if we want to be in the mix two and three years from now, we need to draft well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
barry wilburn Posted December 29, 2005 Share Posted December 29, 2005 Well I certainly hope so. I think you can build depth and a good foundation that way, but you need more than that to make a real push toward being an elite team. Look at the Eagles. They were always on the verge, but couldn't quite break through because they lacked the stars to make the difference against the best teams. They didn't cross that threashold until they signed Owens.Also I think there are some glaring holes in our roster that we have not really been able to solve, and likely won't solve with undrafted players. Wide reciever is probably the most glaring one at the moment. Then there is the issue of a pass rushing DE, and good cornerbacks are very hard to come by in the undrafted pool. Oh, and of course there is the Offensive Line as well. Gibbs demands only the best for that position. I think the big difference has been players like Sean Taylor (1st rounder), Clinton Portis (2nd rounder I believe), Santana Moss (1st rounder), Chris Cooley (3rd rounder) Cornelius Griffin (not sure when he was drafted), Shawn Springs, Marcus Washington, Carlos Rogers (1st rounder)... Point is, most of our big difference makers were drafted. And we certainly DO need draft picks. Sure we can pick up good players in free agency or via trade several years into their career when they are already proven, but that is a much more expensive way to do business, and with our cap situation, we need to work on a less expensive method of team building. Your research is helpful, but the method you are endorsing just isn't a very viable means of making the leap to the status of Super Bowl contender. We could possibly get there this season, but if we want to be in the mix two and three years from now, we need to draft well. If you look at the way Belichick got the Patriots back into contention you'll see that in his first few years he relied heavily on free agents (almost always low to mid price guys) and then over time filled in the roster with drafted players. We are in a decent position to follow that path, but I have serious doubts that our front office has the discipline required to make it happen. This offseason will be key. If we go out an spend a lot of money it will show a serious disregard for the future. The wildcard is Arrington, as cutting him will FORCE us to be thrifty for the second season in a row -- which will be kind of funny as two tight seasons would set us up beautifully for '07. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
inmate running the asylum Posted December 29, 2005 Author Share Posted December 29, 2005 Notice I did not say that this team is a Super Bowl team yet. The point I was trying to make is it appears Gibbs is building a Super Bowl team the same way he did it in the past. And that is mainly with free agents. In the 12 years he coached in the past, in only 4 years did the Redskins use their #1 pick to draft a player. That was in 81 (Mark May); 83 (Darrell Green) (91) Bobby Wilson and (92) Desmond Howard. Most of the time they traded away their #1 picks. Gibbs has often been quoted as saying that building a championship team in football is not about X's and O's. Its about character and finding the right people. And he is proving again he is right. That's not to say that you don't need some great athletes, but the most talented teams on paper, don't always win championships. Gibbs has a unique ability to see talent in unheralded players that other coaches don't, and get these players to play to their maximum ability. Those people who claimed that the game had passed him by, don't know what they are talking about. As he said: people are basically the same and don't change over time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bubba9497 Posted December 29, 2005 Share Posted December 29, 2005 Who says Inmate is just a pretty face nobody Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
altair4 Posted December 29, 2005 Share Posted December 29, 2005 I would like to start a thread at some point that attempts to distill the essence of "Gibbs football". I think it might be enlightening. One KEY datum is that a well-organized TEAM will always beat a super-star oriented squad. GW's defensive approach is a great example of this philosophy. That Gibbs in the past went to 3 superbowls with 3 differenet QB's is another example illlustrating this. Of course the players like to promulgate the "superstar" mythos, as it leads to product endorsements, higher salaries and other things, but it is a distraction to WINNING. The trick is to be able to pull it off and still come off as a genuine nice guy. That is what amazes me about JG. Even when talking to the press, he will 'let down his hair" occasionally, and just talk to them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MustangSteve Posted December 29, 2005 Share Posted December 29, 2005 He did the same thing in the 91 season, Almost went undefeated and won the SuperBowl with over half the team free agents. All the man does is builds Champions everywhere he goes and were next on the list baby!!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SonnyRules Posted December 29, 2005 Share Posted December 29, 2005 while im not for them oldschool coaches, mainly because the game has changed so much since the glory days of gibbs and parcells ..gibbs has done a fair job with the talent and injuries he's had this yr.. You Think????? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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