Are We Starting to Develop Our Draft Picks?

[DogofWar1]

Briefly, on Phillip Thomas, I wouldn't count him out just yet.  I had kind of written off K.Robinson for a similar reason, and he's showing off now in a great way.  If PT somehow does the same thing, which admittedly is a long shot (most people who are injured like that don't magically bounce back), it would be huge.

 

I do like that we're actually hitting on some draft picks that aren't 1st rounders.  The 2000s are like a massive wasteland, so much so that the 2010s look like a cornucopia by comparison.

 

2008 gives me heartburn, and I'm way too young to have heartburn.

[AlldaySkins]

First let me mention that it feels great knowing we will finally have a 1st round pick next year. I also want to note that RG3 did win Rookie of the Year and led us to our first division title since 1999. To say he isn't part of the group of players you mentioned would be a disservice to him. Yes he has been injured multiple times now and hasn't performed like he did his rookie year, however he is the franchise QB of this team. I love the list that you compiled and I feel very good about our depth on this team.

 

You can argue Trent is the 2nd or 3rd best LT in the league. Morris is still a stud RB in my opinion, it just hurts when you don't have a lot of push in the middle of the line. (Chester and Lavaou need to go. Kory L. is undersized)

 

I really think Amerson and Breeland are going to be our 2 main cornerbacks for years to come. Breeland will be our shutdown corner and Amerson will be our new defensive playmaker. Now we just need to draft for the BA secondary player or BA offensive lineman in the 1st & 2nd rounds.

[carex]

Akeem Davis is a special teamer and I'm not sure what if any experience Thomas has there so it makes sense to bring up Davis and not Thomas.

[Riggo-toni]

Paul is the big shocker for me. He was really nothing but a decent special teamer but now he's blossomed into a pretty good receiver.

Same here. I had predicted a breakout year for him last year, but he flopped. I had written him off and was even a bit disappointed we didn't cut him, but now I hope we can hang on to him. Dude has always been crazy fast. I think the switch to TE delayed his development, but now he's a solid threat.

[DogofWar1]

Yeah, Niles Paul is a pleasant surprise.  He probably isn't going to crack 100 yards anytime soon, but if he and Reed can consistently add 80+ yards of offense and be mismatch threats when paired against linebackers, we could have a good duo for a while.

 

Paul's development has been slow, but that might work to our advantage.  If he doesn't command a ton of money as a FA, we can bring him back and keep the 2 TE train rolling, and it also gives us a backup in case Reed goes down.  I love Paulsen, but he's not a long term guy; his effectiveness is proportional to how much a team underestimates him, which can be useful at times (See: Darrel Young), but not a formula for long term success.

[squijoo]

disagree with OP about morris.

 

he is a by product of zone blocking. he is not in a slump, he i just not able to as good as he was in the right scheme.

 

morris is an awesome dude and person, but RB is just too easy to fill, not much there to develop.. "here is the ball, run that way and dont fumble"

 

unfortunately he fumbles a lot, which is perplexing given his size, though his running style may lead him to be more prone to fumble

[Destino]

With all due respect, most teams that lose their starting qb are toast. We have 3 wins in the first half of the season. The colts won 2 games in 2011 when Peyton went down. No one said they were lacking talent.

Everyone said the colts were lacking talent. In fact most said RG3 would have a better year than Luck because he would have more talent around him. Go back and read the articles and you'll see it.

unfortunately he fumbles a lot, which is perplexing given his size, though his running style may lead him to be more prone to fumble

How many fumbles does he have this year? How many lost?

(1 fumble, 0 turnovers)

[Brokenstriker]

Speaking on the secondary, I just hope they can bottle up whatever they did to prepare for Dallas and use it the rest of the season. Cause Breeland is way too young to just contribute it to him knowing Dez' tendencies or whatever.. Cause he shut.him.down!! Whatever the did with the tape and preparation let us get a glimpse of what he and Amerson are capable of.. Those blitzes look sooo much better when the ball isn't consistently hitting a receiver who's wide open every 3rd down..

 

I literally pray they can take that same intensity and method into practice the rest of the year and put on more "exhibits" like we saw Monday night.. Improvement is all I/we ask for and Monday night, improvement is what we saw!!  Please keep it up so I can remove the Clown from my avatar..

I'm sure I'm over simplifying it ... but I think the big change is Haz put them into positions that asserted/assumed/forced them to play like studs.  1-on-1 coverage ... no more 10 - 15 yd cushions assuming we can't cover anyone ... I saw that as the only hope to win against the Pukes ... scheme like you're good enough to win and see what happens.

 

The good news appears to be ... they were good enough.  Granted blitzing everyone including the 12th man meant that they didn't have to cover very long ... but I really don't think there's ever been more than 5 DBs who can cover an NFL WR for longer than 4 seconds 1-on-1 so I don't see that as a problem.