A Continuous Journey: 2024 NFL Offseason Thread

I don't think Belichick thought that way. He wanted to move on from Brady because he felt Brady was overdue for his decline, and because since replacing him would be difficult, best to get the process started. He was wrong about the first, and frankly, the second isn't difficult, it's impossible.

 

You would have thought the Broncos ownership would have, um, checked around, or asked some folks how Wilson would fit into Payton's system before hiring the guy. Payton isn't worth the Wilson write-off. And he's not that good of a coach if he couldn't find a way to adjust his system. Even worse of a coach if he wouldn't. But I'm sure he told the Walton family, "Oh, it will be great for Russell, he's a lot like Drew Brees!"

 

I agree with this. If you look at Belichick’s history, he very much believes that it’s best to let a player go a year too early than a year too late. Ty Law and Richard Seymour are two who immediately spring to mind.

 

Bingo.

 

The Patriots pretty much ruined Jim Plunkett by getting the complete shit beaten out of him for season after season. His first resurrection effort with the 49ers was a flop, too. But then he won two Super Bowls with the Raiders. IMO this was primarily due to being placed on a team with good players instead of bad ones. Alas for Zach, that's not what he's getting in Denver. I also think it's hilarious that Peyton, who was his own offensive coordinator for most of his career, would put such a value on them as mentors.

 

Since the draft is coming up ... a look back at the QBs of the 2014 draft, 10 years later:
- Blake Bortles (No. 3, JAX)
- Johnny Manziel (No. 22, CLE)
- Teddy Bridgewater (No. 32, MIN)
- Derek Carr (No. 36, OAK)
- Jimmy Garoppolo (No. 62, NE)
- Logan Thomas (No. 120, ARZ)
- Tom Savage (No. 135, HOU)
- Aaron Murray (No. 163, KC)
- A.J. McCarron (No. 164, CIN)
- Zach Mettenberger (No. 178, TEN)
- David Fales (No. 183, CHI)
- Keith Wenning (No. 194, BAL)
- Tajh Boyd (No. 213, NYJ)
- Garrett Gilbert (No. 214, STL)

Wow, that's a GRIM class, though one wonders about the trajectories of Bridgewater and Garoppolo had they been able to stay healthy. Derek Carr the only one with a sustained career at QB, though Logan Thomas did well to transform to a tight end.

 

The Bears drafting a quarterback named "Fales" is just too perfect.

 

What does it say about me that I not only remember all but one of those guys 10 years later, but had been dead set on my team going after Boyd the year before?

 

I listen to various analyses and reports about various scouts' takes on these QB draft prospects, and it's like people don't think they remember the same things being said about previous year's QB draftees. "high upside," "big arm," "generational player."
It's the most analyzed position in the most analyzed sport, a game that has been played for over 100 years, and yet people who are paid good money seem to have little idea on who will be good and who will not be good.

I'd like to make a mock draft of team front offices. First pick - Baltimore, they just don't seem to make many mistakes, and they haven't picked in the top 10 very often. How many teams passed on Lamar Jackson? ALL of them?

 

Tee Higgins and Trey Hendrickson have requested trades, per Schefter.

 

Amon St. Brown getting $120/4 yrs and the others is making the 49ers keeping Aiyuk (2nd team All-Pro) a bit tougher. Still that guy fits the system perfectly and as long as he's not trying to be an outlier, sign him.

 

There really is something to be said about team's abilities to quantify a player's abilities before the rookie salary cap kicked in. Prior to the rookie scale - you'd see one, two, maybe three QBs taken in the first round - now five or six is pretty much the norm. It isn't like there are more QBs who are better than they were before - but the "mistakes" aren't as costly as they were. But they are still costly in terms of setting teams back two or three years having a "QB of the future" on board and not panning out.