NFL Week 1 Thread

Browns fan? Honestly, that was my impression as well. I just know the physical tools are there. That doesn't mean the light bulb will suddenly go on now that he has been freed from Cleveland.

I'm just trying to be optimistic. I keep thinking of Keenan Lewis, who sucked his first season or two in Pittsburgh, never really looked like anything until the final year of his rookie contract, then played extremely well his final season as a Steeler. Then again, I don't think he was a "head case" as you put it.

 

Ravens sign Devin Hester.
Ok.
Odds he's responsible for at least one special teams TD in a win over the Steelers this year? 2:1

 

Looking in from outside the fan base of both teams, I think the tailor man is correct. Gilbert was going to be cut if they couldn't find a sucker to give up something for him. The guy said he missed "a ton of meetings" last season because "I'm a hard sleeper." He was in a road rage incident that ended with his car in a ditch. His teammates were ready for him to go. When someone suggested to Donte Whitner during the off-season that Whitner had taken Gilbert under his wing, Whitner was adamant that he was doing no such thing and that Gilbert's attitude hadn't changed as much as he had been saying it did.

Cleveland is happy to be rid of him and thrilled to have at least gotten something for him.

 

I agree he's a big reach. And as big as he is, he is a serious candidate to get hurt because he's not going to evade some of the hits he needs to evade.

It's just a little hyperbole to say he'll be one of the worst contracts ever. If he's an average QB, and I think he'll probably be average, you're getting SOME value for your investment. People think it's a horrible contract, but that's unfortunately what teams have to pay for average play at the quarterback position unless they can draft someone who turns out to be good.

What determines, IMO, the worst contracts of all time is how little you get in return. The Falcons, Eagles and Redskins not only got almost nothing in return, those players hurt their franchises for years because of their big cap numbers.

The Texans are essentially paying a penalty for having no stability at that position. It's the same penalty the Ravens are paying, in a way. Flacco is obviously not worth Top 5 quarterback money, but the franchise has also seen the alternative, and it's a horrifying mixture of Anthony Wright, Steven McNair with a cane, Kyle Boller and Jeff Blake.

I know Houston's management and ownership was sick and tired of the revolving door at that position, so they essentially forced Osweiler on O'Brien, who wanted to make a go of it again with some journeyman. That's not a great situation, forcing a coach to take a player he's never even met with before he signs, but from what I've read, he's been decent this preseason. Obviously we'll see. I think 3,600 yards and 25 TDs with 18 INTs is realistic. They can win 10 games with that, easy.

 

I agree very much with this statement, and the league is full of such interesting cases.
And usually by the time they've finally spent the money and seemingly filled the hole, their window has closed.

 

Yes, I am an angry Browns fan. The Gilbert pick was dumber than the Manziel pick as insane as that sounds.

Here's a good article that highlights Gilbert's ineptitude and aloofness from his first two seasons.
Disastrous Cleveland Browns Season Was Set Up to Fail From the Start

Another Gilbert story that circulated was from the Oklahoma State pro day two years ago when a NFL scout approached Gilbert saying they liked him, but wanted to know if he could help on special teams. The scout asked him to field some punts. Gilbert declined, claiming something along the lines of punt returns weren't his thing and referred the scout to his film. This was when previous GM Ray Farmer found it unnecessary to attend pro days, meaning the Browns drafted Gilbert without some of their scouts ever seeing or meeting him.

 

You'll see people praying in front of these on Sundays.

 

Top pick Goff to be inactive for Rams in Week 1

2015 third-round pick Sean Mannion is the backup.

That's not a good sign.

 

Ezekiel Elliott won't face domestic violence charges in Columbus. Lack of evidence.

 

I guess the hope is that two years of failure will wake him up, or that simply being in a better organization might help.

 

Gosh, I wonder why?

Troy Aikman sounds off on Fox signing Skip Bayless

“To say I’m disappointed in the hiring of Skip Bayless would be an enormous understatement,” Aikman said. “Clearly, [Fox Sports president of national networks] Jamie Horowitz and I have a difference of opinion when it comes to building a successful organization. I believe success is achieved by acquiring and developing talented, respected and credible individuals, none of which applies to Skip Bayless."

 

Wow, Troy brings the heat!