Category: Green Bay Packers

Top 10 Things You Can Do with 1000 pounds of Marijuana and Other Points of View

Bears

“I’ve never met an athlete who was more happy to be alive. ‘There’s no way you can always be as happy as you look,’ I would tell him.   And he would smile and say something about getting only one shot at life and making the most of it.  I always thought that was a great quality about Sam Hurd. But maybe not.”

I loved watching Hurd play special teams.  He was the kind of guy who jumped out on the screen as someone who was going with all out effort.  But sometimes players like that, while great on special teams, aren’t as appropriate for the offensive unit, where that kind of effort must be coupled with smart play.

Hurd isn’t some kind of master mind drug dealer.  He’s a guy who came to believe that money leads to success.  So he approached it just like he approaches football.  What’s the fastest way to make money?  “Drugs.”  What’s the fastest way to make a lot of money?  “Sell a lot of drugs.”  So he dove in with boundless enthusiasm and ambition and little else.  It’s a shame.  But looking back at it, maybe it’s not that surprising.

“Asked if Hurd’s shocking arrest will affect his own future, [Jerry] Angelo snapped at a reporter.

“‘Whistle Dixie,’ he said.”

“Barber declined to talk about the play with 1 minute, 55 seconds remaining in Denver when he bounced an inside run outside and went out of bounds to stop the clock for the Broncos, who were out of timeouts.

“‘I’m not trying to be disrespectful, but I just move on,’ Barber said. ‘Just bear with me.'”

Barber was interviewed by Larry Mayer, who works for the Bears owned website and Zack Zaidman who works the Bears game broadcasts (ie. the most Bear-freindly media members they could find). Zaidman told WSCR yesterday that the interview doesn’t tell the whole story. Barber isn’t dodging the questions. Apparently he has a real problem speaking to the media that sounds like it might be classified by some as pathological.

  • Dan Pompei at the Chicago Tribune writes an outstanding column that gives us all things to concentrate on in our disappointment over the Bears fall:

“Even good teams can’t win every game. But they always can learn.”

“With the moderate success of T.J. Yates in Houston, why not let Nathan Enderle play? It could not be any worse and at least you would know what you have. — David; Coral Springs, FL

“Because Nathan Enderle is not T.J. Yates. There is a reason [Caleb] Hanie was No. 2 on the depth chart and Enderle is No. 3. Throwing a quarterback on the field before he’s ready defeats the purpose of trying to develop him and can have negative short-term and long-term consequences. Maybe I could envision a scenario of allowing Enderle play if the Bears have no shot of making the playoffs in the final game of the season. Then it would be just like a preseason game. Otherwise, he needs to stay parked on the bench.”

“Don’t jump to any conclusions about Angelo retiring. But if Angelo were to leave the team, I think [Tim] Ruskell would by far be the leading candidate to replace him. I think the Bears would be looking to maintain some semblance of the program Angelo started. Coach Lovie Smith likely would remain, and would need someone he felt comfortable with. Ruskell is respected and liked throughout the league and at Halas Hall. As for his Seattle history that you refer to, I think it’s been portrayed inaccurately. Not everything he touched turned to gold, but Ruskell made a lot of solid moves in Seattle and presided over a team that made the playoffs three times in five years.”

I can only say in response that the Seattle media didn’t agree. They savaged Ruskell after he left. It appears that if things continue to go as they have over the last 10 years, we’re probably going to find out the right of it because Ruskell is clearly the next in line.

Elsewhere

“I’ll just say that I think, as players, we would probably like to finish this thing out if we get a chance,” Rodgers said Wednesday of the team’s goals for the stretch run, according to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. “And (have) a chance to maybe keep the Bears and the Lions out of the playoffs like the Bears tried to do to us last year.”

“According to two sources, a group of defensive backs raised concerns about Pagac’s play-calling — specifically, the timing and frequency of blitzes and man-coverage calls — within the first month of the season.

At times, some players simply refused to play the defenses called, yelling out their own coverages as they broke the huddle.”

  • Brain Stelter and Amy Chozick at The New York Times write about the stiff price we pay to watch the NFL on television. Here’s hoping those Internet alternatives they mention materialize soon. As someone who watches sports but very little else, something like being other types of shows on iTunes would be much more affordable. I’d love to get rid of cable.

One Final Thought

Given that its usually sold in “ounces” we’re pretty sure Sam Hurd wasn’t going to find enough people per week to sell his inventory to.  So here are some other possibilities for it:

10. Give it to a little pig for building material and then “Huff and puff and blow his house down”
9.  Burn it, pipe the smoke into Matt Forte‘s hyperbaric chamber and then resign him for a 7-Eleven burrito.
8. Spread it on Soldier Field on game day to cover up the mud.
7. Smoke a turkey with it and make everyone’s Christmas really merry.

6. Make the world’s biggest Christmas tree with it.

5. Pay the supplier with a check signed “Marion Barber” and make sure it bounces before game day.
4. Give it to Caleb Hanie as as a joke since drug tests are the only thing he can pass.
3. Bake it into Love Smith‘s pre-game brownies to settle him down a little on the side lines.
2. Distribute it to Soldier Field patrons and stage a historic re-enactment of the “Fog Bowl”.

and

1. Give Jay Cutler the “munchies” and laugh while he tries to find where you hid his insulin.

Suh’s Behavior Is a Simple Reflection of His Coach’s Personality

I was not surprised, by what I saw on my screen yesterday from Ndamukong Suh when he repeatedly banged the head of Packers guard Evan Dietrich-Smith into the ground three times and then stomped on him. The debate has been raging for months about whether he is a dirty player or not. But the key to this whole affair was understanding that the problem in Detroit goes way beyond Suh or any player. Michael Rosenberg at the Detroit Free Press agrees as he puts the Lions loss in perspective:

“The worst part? This wasn’t surprising. You could see it coming for two years. And it’s fair to ask: If the Lions had told Suh to reel it in earlier, instead of constantly defending him, would he have learned from his mistakes by now?”

Exactly. Specifically, if you want to know why Suh did what he did and reacted afterwards as he did, you need only look at Lions head coach Jim Schwartz as put very well by John Mullin at CSNChicago.com:

“The consensus is becoming it couldn’t happen to a more fitting bunch, given the enabling conduct of coach Jim Schwartz who, after the loss to the Bears, adamantly defended Detroit players’ conduct that was subsequently fined by the NFL.”

Dan Pompei at the Chicago Tribune quotes Green Bay quarterback Aaron Rogers who puts the difference between themselves and the Lions bluntly:

“Asked about not retaliating, Rodgers said, ‘Well, that’s just the way we’re coached.'”

I haven’t finished scanning all of the quotes but its not a surprise that one of the few players I’ve read who came out to make a firm comment on the situation played under Lovie Smith:

“‘I don’t want to put anything on anyone, but we can’t have that,’ Bear turned Lion Rashied Davis said. ‘It’s not Suh’s fault we lost the game. We lost this game as a team. But we can’t get that penalty.'”

But to really understand the problem, you have to recognize that it isn’t restricted to Suh. The entire Lions team is completely undisciplined and its costing them games. ESPN‘s NFC North blogger, Kevin Seifert quotes Packers guard T.J. Lang after this one:

“[Suh has] been getting dumb penalties all year. That’s something we talked about all week: They were probably going to do something stupid along the way. They’ve done it in almost every game.”

They certainly did here. Penalty flags flew all over the field this game as the Lions repeatedly shot themselves in the foot. Can such undisciplined play be surprising when the Lion’s are coached by Schwartz, a man who completely lost control after a loss to the 49ers? Who, after an admittedly overly enthusiastic handshake and slap on the back after the game, ran after 49ers head coach Jim Harbaugh down the field, ultimately climbing over people to get at him in a reasonable imitation of former Oregon runningback LeGarrette Blount?

So you think, “Well, now at least Suh understands the problem,” right? “He’s now going to stand up and take responsibility,” right? Think again. From Seifert:

“What I did was remove myself from the situation in the best way I felt, me being held down in the situation I was in. And further, my intentions were not to kick anybody, as I did not, removing myself as you see, I’m walking away from the situation and with that I apologize to my teammates and my fans and my coaches for putting myself in the position to be misinterpreted and taken out of the game.”

No one who saw the replay of this incident could possibly believe that Suh didn’t kick out at Dietrich-Smith on the ground. The truth is that Suh got blocked to the ground and didn’t like it.

Why would Suh react like this? We need only look at Schwartz’s response to the 49ers incident where he lost a game and completely lost his temper (via Bob Wojnowski at The Detroit News):

“Let me just say this. There’s a lot more to it than the backslap. And I’m gonna do whatever I can to continue to fight for the city of Detroit and for the Detroit Lions. I reacted and I wasn’t worried about how it was going to look. I don’t really pay much attention to other people. I’m sort of arrogant that way.”

Schwartz wasn’t thinking about the city of Detroit any more than Suh was “walking away from the situation” rather than kicking Evan Dietrich-Smith. The explanation is a weak attempt to dodge a responsibility where, regardless of Harbaugh’s behavior, Schwartz was obviously wrong. Like coach like player.

But even more important, Jim Schwartz has got to understand something if he wants to last as the coach of the Lions. His players, especially his young players like Suh, are always, always looking to him as an example of how to act. Every team in every walk of life to at least some extent reflects the personality of the person at its head. Its the nature of leadership. And his team will never play with the discipline and accountability necessary to win as long as he doesn’t display it himself.

Settle Down, Bear Fans. And Other Points of View

Bears

  • Not much interesting in the Sun-Times today.  Or so I thought.  Walter Payton?  Ancient history.  Cam Newton?  Enough already.  Hellooooo strippers.
  • Glad to see that Marion Barber will be back tomorrow.  He should look like a freight train to the Carolina defense after Matt Forte floats around in front of them for awhile.
  • Perhaps someone could explain to me why this nugget was relevant to Sean Jensen’s report in the Chicago Sun-Times:

“Rookie right tackle Gabe Carimi went to a 10 a.m. service Thursday for Rosh Hashanah.”

A lot was made about the fact that Carimi was jewish when he was drafted and fair enough.  But now that the season has started I think such things should fall by the wayside unless he misses practice.  I’m sure many players will go to mass on Sunday and hold days of obligation.  No one reports on it nor should they.

“Second-round pick Stephen Paea has yet to be in uniform for a game, and the team made the curious decision to dress third quarterback Nathan Enderle last week over the defensive tackle from Oregon State.”

“’He’s right in there,’ defensive coordinator Rod Marinelli said. ‘I think he is really gonna be a heck of a player. He’s got all the stuff we want. We’re just a little deep at that tackle position. To me it’s a great to bring him in the right way, earn your stripes, come in and work your way up. I feel really good.’”

Marinelli’s comment aside, Paea was getting well handled by third string offensive linemen in the preseason.  He looks like he’s got a long way to go before he’s going to be of any help.

“Even when [offensive coordinator Mike] Martz looks like he is going to start off the game with some running plays, he uses a delayed handoff, I’m assuming so that he could try and fool the defense. Why doesn’t he just call normal running plays? Sounds like a simple enough question, but apparently it isn’t. — Pete Hasa, Monterey, Calif.”

“I agree the Bears should call for more downhill running plays. The slow developing plays that have been called have a greater chance of turning into losses of yards.”

The delayed handoff is designed to cause linebackers to hesitate and allow pulling linemen to get across to where they are supposed to be to block them.  The problem with the Packers game was that the linebackers didn’t hesitate.  They crashed the line and got into the backfield too early.  I’m pretty sure that one of the reasons Martz stopped calling runs was because these delayed runs were a major part of the game plan and they had no hope of working.  I agree with both the emailer and Pompei that this has to be fixed.

  • A little advice for those of you headed out to the Bear game:

 

Be sure to adjust so that everything goes with the color of the uniform they’re wearing that day. Wow, what nonsense!

  • Steve Dahl argues that he’s not a jinx in this episode of “Angelo’s Ashes”:

  • Jimmy Plocharczyk thinks he’s Walter Payton in this cute little video:

You forgot the Vicodin and Tylenol at the end, Jimmy.

Elsewhere

“‘He was asking a lot of questions about what we did defensively,’ said Belichick, who then was the Jets’ defensive coordinator.

“‘You kind of don’t want to give too much information because, you know, he’s running the defense. He wasn’t really too interested in talking about offensive football.’”

“‘It really seemed like a waste of time, because I felt pretty certain that he wouldn’t hire a defensive coach, because he hasn’t since Eddie Erdelatz in [1960],’ Belichick pointed out. ‘It’s a parade of offensive coaches out there. He’s really a defensive coordinator and has been. You know.’”

 “Let’s see. If Berrian has been doing all the same things as usual, and he’s getting open, what could the problem be? Could it be new offensive coordinator Bill Musgrave or new quarterback Donovan McNabb? Berrian didn’t mention their names, but if Berrian is getting open and still isn’t getting the ball, it would seem to be an issue with the play calling or the quarterback.

Berrian has been on the field for 132 snaps, or 74.2 percent of the Vikings’ offensive plays. A receiver who’s on the field that much and has just one catch is basically a waste of space on offense, but he says he’s not stressing about everyone pointing out that he’s not much of a contributor.”

“The fans are revolting in Kansas City. They don’t have a head coach or a quarterback that can take them anywhere. I’m sure (GM) Scott Pioli had a plan, but what you find out once you start wearing the big-boy pants, sometimes you don’t get the time you need to carry it through. This is a what-have-you-done-for-me-lately league. They gave Matt Cassel a big contract. The one thing he needed was talent around him. (Tony) Moeaki and (Jamaal) Charles went out with ACLs. They have caught some bad breaks, no doubt, but look at how many injuries the Packers had last year. The Patriots got hammered by injuries when they were going to those Super Bowls. How many guys did the Saints have on I.R. when they won it? The good ones adapt. You look for excuses in this league, and you’re done.”

In fairness, all of those teams had years to build their roster.  A good part of Kansas City’s problems are probably associated with head coach Todd Haley.  Haley is extremely tough and there’s only so much of that you can take before it beats you down.  There’s a good chance he’s already lost the team.

One Final Thought

Pompei answers another question:

“Recently, Jerry Angelo blamed the Bear’s losses to poor execution and inconsistency on the part of the players. That may be partially true, however, perhaps a greater portion of the blame may revert to draft day and not drafting a player who could develop into a speedy go to receiver for Cutler and not drafting a bevy of potentially talented, offensive linemen with the rest of the picks. In addition, I sincerely feel the Bears played two of the top four teams in the NFL and they had a lot to do with the Bears’ losses. What do you think? — Gerald Healy, Rugby, N.D.”

“The Bears have been underdogs in all three of their games this year, so actually, they have done better than they were supposed to do. Their two losses may have come to the two best teams in the NFL. That being said, the nature of the losses has been disturbing. It’s safe to say we still don’t know who this team is. I’m not ready to write off the receivers or offensive line yet, either. Remember, Earl Bennett and Roy Williams have missed time at receiver, and Gabe Carimi and Lance Louis have missed time on the line. The offense needs some time to come together.”

I spent most of my week trying to talk Bear fans off the ledge and convince them that it would be OK.    A big part of the Bears offensive problems in the Packer game were drops and penalties.  Judging from what we’ve seen from this team in recent years, these mistakes are not typical.  The Bears don’t usually beat themselves with these kinds of mistakes, at least not to that extent.

For the record, I had the Bears going 11-5 this season and that was accounting for losses to both the Saints and Packers and the upcoming Lions game in week 5.  People who read this blog or know me personally know that I’m not the wildly optimistic type.  I stand by that prediction.

I’m not saying there isn’t cause for concern but as Pompei says in answer to another question later in the article, “Deep breath, everybody.”

Cuts Have Arrived and Gone but Roster Shaping Not Over Yet. And Other Point of View.

Bears

“This guy is straight out of a Rod Marinelli dream. Reed’s effort raises the level of play of everyone around him. And the word out of closed Halas Hall practices is the Bears haven’t been able to block him the last couple of weeks either.”

I have my doubts.  Reed had a good game and did flash some ability Thursday night but it was still against back ups.  He did n’t do a whole lot when given a chance before that with the big boys.  Reed might, indeed, be their guy but other teams are making their cuts as well and the last defensive end may not be necessarily on the roster yet.  Probably both he and Mario Addision should still be worried.

  • Pompei points out that second round pick Sephen Paea has been a disappointment so far.  Pompei thinks he still might be recovering from a Senior Bowl knee injury.  Paea certainly needs work regardless.  He doesn’t play with much leverage.  You can set all the bench press records in the world but it doesn’t mean anything if you aren’t a football player.
  • Fred Mitchell at the Chicago Tribune writes about wide receiver Dane Sanzenbacher.  Sanzenbacher will keep the last wide receiver spot.  But the job basically requires that you play special teams and what to do with him there appears to be an issue.
  • Greg Gabriel, Bears Director of College Scouting when Lance Briggs was seeking a new contract four years ago, comments for the National Football Post on Briggs’s current request for renegotiation:

 “If I’m the Bears I would tell both Briggs and [agent Drew] Rosenhaus to take a long walk on a short pier. If they don’t like it, then don’t play! Fine him the maximum for not living up to his contract. They will argue that he has outplayed the contract, but that’s not true.”

Elsewhere

Tommie Harris  Colts
Brad Maynard  Texans
Justin Gage  Titans
Lousaka Polite  Dolphins

  • Defensive end Jacob Ford, who played a key role for the Titans the last few years, was cut.  Via profootballtalk.com.
  •  The Sports Pickle brings you the Dancing Football Ref:

  • On a related note, Bears safety Chris Harris is apparently training to join him on the field as a dancing side judge:

 “The Texans believe they can get more out of safety Danieal Manning than the Bears did. Their plan is to play him closer to the line than the Bears did with their Tampa 2 scheme. Texans coaches believe Manning is more valuable around the ball. They are high on his toughness, talent and work ethic.”

The Bears knew that Manning would make a good strong safety and got plenty out of him at the position.  The problem is that they already have strong safeties and they needed Manning to be able to play free.  When failed in that role and as a nickel back, he was worth less than what teams like the Texans were willing to pay.

  • Pompei also points out that defensive end Ryan Kerrigan has looked very good for the Redskins so far.  I’m still wondering how the undersized Kerrigan will hold up in the 3-4.  I thought he was a better fit for a 4-3 team like the Bears.
  • Perhaps not surprisingly, the NFL season will begin without HGH testing as the NFL Player’s Union stalls.  I can understand why.  If testing is done such that players who are taking the hormone actually get caught, we would probably be looking at a very different game.   But I really doubt that will happen.

One Final Thought

What do you do when you receiver a brand new reel wrapped in a Packer’s bandana?  Perform an “exorcission” of course:

Carimi May Struggle and Other Points of View

Bears

“The downside with staying at Halas Hall is it would eliminate or greatly reduce fans’ opportunities to see the team practice, and it also would reduce the team’s ability to sell jerseys, car flags and foam Bearheads to those fans.”

“His jack-of-all-trades skill set has led to the idea that he isn’t an elite running back (he has no Pro Bowl or All-Pro nominations in his career), but a closer look at the numbers shows that he can actually go toe-to-toe with Adrian Peterson for the title of best running back in the NFC North.

“Really.”

Joyner then dives into the numbers which are pretty comprehensive.

Brad Biggs at the Chicago Tribune comments:

“The Bears have an immense amount of work to do to prepare for the season, but eventually they need to determine what they will do with Forte, who is entering the final year of his rookie contract.

“Few would select Forte over Peterson if given the choice, but Forte doesn’t have any apparent weaknesses and has been a workhorse for the Bears, not missing a game in his first three seasons.”

“The Bears safety is one of those players who not only has his responsibilities down pat, but also the responsibilities of the ten guys around him. He has a good football mind, and also is an armchair strategist who stays in coaches’ ears with ideas. Harris studies teams around the league, and sometimes comes up with blitz suggestions for his coaches, or points out potential vulnerabilities in coverages.”

I’m a bit surprised Pompei doesn’t include center Olin Kreutz in this list.

  • Pompei includes this very interesting section of his NFL Sunday Blitz column on the advantages of face-to-face visits and relationships in college scouting.
  • Pompei isn’t as high on the Bears signing Mike Sims-Walker as I am because of his off the field issues.  He’s got a point.
  • Bear fans might also take a message away from this item from Pompei:

“The lockout has dimmed the hopes of the Colts’ coaching staff for Anthony Castonzo. With the benefit of a full offseason, the Colts thought Castonzo might have been able to step right in and start at left tackle from day one. Without OTAs, the Colts are dubious about Castonzo’s chances to be an immediate starter. They do believe he will be a quick study however. It’s possible at some point during the season he will be ready to start.”

New Bears tackle Gabe Carimi won’t have the option of sitting the bench this year.  I find that there are a disturbing number of Bear fans out there who expect him to solve all the problems on the offensive line.  The truth is that he might be in for a rough time.  The Bears might still sign at least one free agent but, far from helping, Carimi may well be a liability for a while.

  • On a related note, Pompei expects the offense to be more efficient this year, the second under offensive coordinator Mike Martz.  They didn’t look too efficient against the Packers and without an offseason to improve over that and to train a new rookie tackle, I have my doubts that they’ll be much better, at least initially.
  • Kristin Cavallari and Jay Cutler are registered at Crate and Barrel and Williams-Sonoma.  Many of the items seem to be knives, presumably to secret away in various parts of his uniform to protect himself from pass rushers who running around J’Marcus Webb on the left.

Elsewhere

“I guess we’re getting ready to find out whether the Packers overslept or were the smart ones. I truly think the answer varies per team. But most of the Packers’ offensive players have been together for at least three years.“

True.  But they will surely be rustier than usual and arguably rustier than their counter parts in the NFC North.  And with no peer pressure to keep them motivated, there might – maybe – be more players out of shape.  We’ll see.

“I am amazed at the amount of players that were arrested during this uncalled-for lockout. My question is what punishment if any can the league bestow upon them…
Chuck Durante, Gulin, China

“All along, the NFL has maintained that they can punish players who ran afoul of the league’s conduct policy during the lockout. Whether they will, or whether they can get away with it legally, remains to be seen.”

I can’t imagine this is legal and I hope the league doesn’t try.  I’ve had enough of lawyers.

“Let’s hear what Dan Snyder thinks and then do the exact opposite.”

One Final Thought

Finally, Pompei comments on the NFL lockout:

“Looks like we’ll have a settlement right before anyone starts losing money. Isn’t that how we figured it would work all along?”

No.  Having lived through most of the baseball strikes of the eighties and nineties and having lost a World Series, no.  I did not expect it to end this soon.

And don’t tell me the NFL owners are too smart for that.  I’m not at all convinced that’s true.  Just as is the case in baseball, some of them undoubtedly are.  But not enough.  Not two-thirds.

I’m glad it looks like it will end soon and I could only speculate as to what the difference was now versus then (probably Roger Goodell).  But I’m grateful there was one because I could have easily seen this going into October.

Lambeau Should Be a Nice, Family Place This Year and Other Points of View

Bears

“‘[Jay Cutler] was one of the first guys who texted me and told me that they were throwing,’ Enderle said. ‘He was very helpful. He said I could stay with him if I didn’t have a place to stay. Everything he’s done has been very helpful to me.’”

14e89c8106b2d94f73cdc3cd414ac13d.jpg

  • Dan Pompei, also at the Chicago Tribune, wrote an interesting column on the lasting impact of the 1987 NFL player’s strike.  No surprise that Mike Ditka has no regrets about the way he handled the situation.  But pretty much everyone else would say that he couldn’t have done it much worse.
  • Skip Bayless, the only newspaper man in the business whose name tells you what to do with his column, picks Julius Peppers as his number one defensive player in the league in this ESPN video.

“With a (possible) franchise quarterback in Jay Cutler and a perpetually strong defense, expectations are high in Chicago for this coming season. But should they be?

“In reality, the Bears are a deeply-flawed team and last season’s success — including five games won by five points or fewer — masked Chicago’s true deficiencies. This year they will be hard-pressed to duplicate last season, and make it back to the playoffs.

“There are several reasons. But they boil down to the Bears’ offensive line issues, a lack of offensive playmakers and several intangibles working against them.”

This article is spot on, pointing to most of the issues we’re aware of and adding the difficulty of the schedule which I hadn’t thought of.  It’s worth a read if you have Insider access.

Elsewhere

“Before we get into the actual routes, we need to know when the WR is going to break. And outside of the 3-step game (Slant, Flat), every route breaks at a depth of 12-15 yards. Why is that important? Double moves. If you are playing defensive back and see the WR stutter his feet at a depth of 8-yards, expect him to get vertical up the field—because there isn’t a route that breaks at 8-yards. However, remember one very important detail: if the WR doesn’t break his route between a depth of 12-15 yards, you better open your hips and run. Because he is running straight down the field.”

“Michael Huff leaves something to be desired,” Sapp said. “I watched Huff for two years, not pick a pass off in practice. I seen him make a couple plays, lately. I’d really be interested to see his tape and watch his last couple of years because his first two make you want to throw up watching him practice.”

Huff is a free agent and work ethic is an issue with him.

“[Redskins Head coach Mike] Shanahan’s decision to trade for McNabb was the worst of his career. Then Shanahan and his son, Kyle, Washington’s offensive coordinator, compounded the error while clumsily all but removing the six-time Pro Bowler from a 6-10 team.”

“The Shanahans did so much to devalue McNabb that the Redskins should not expect to receive much in exchange for a player beginning his 13th season. Also, teams are expected to ask McNabb to rework his contract to facilitate a trade, so the Redskins will need his cooperation, limiting potential trading partners.”

There’s little doubt it was a huge mistake.  In my opinion McNabb never fit the offense and Shanahan was far too stubborn to adjust it to make it fit.  And I’ve always thought McNabb was overrated, anyway.  But a conditional sixth round pick?  He’s better than that.  It says here they get a fourth rounder from someone desperate for a veteran quarterback.

  • Many NFL rookies come with a little baggage in the form of an asault charge or a failed drug test here and there.  But the case of New York Jets third round pick Kendrick Ellis may be a little extreme:

“Ellis was indicted a month before the April draft on the charge of malicious wounding, a Class 3 felony in Virginia. If convicted, he faces up to 20 years in prison.

 

A potential complication is that Ellis is not a U.S. citizen, ESPNNewYork.com has learned. Ellis, a native of Jamaica who moved to Florida at the age of 11, has “permanent resident” status. A permanent resident convicted of an aggravated felony is deportable, according to immigration law.”

  • At least one un-named league executive isn’t convinced that Jon Gruden’s glowing assessment of Terrelle Pryor is the end of that story.  Via Evan Silva at ProFootballTalk.com:

“’He’s not a well-liked kid,’ the unnamed exec told John Keim of the Washington Examiner. ‘Very self-absorbed. He doesn’t have the leadership you want in a quarterback. I’ve got more issues with that than his arm.’

“The executive did acknowledge that Pryor has NFL-caliber physical tools.”

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One Final Thought

Liquor, guns and football.  Good luck with that, Wisconsin.

More Preparation Time Gives Some Teams Big Lockout Advantage But Not Bears

Dan Pompei had this comment in last week’s Sunday Blitz at the National Football Post that stuck in my mind:

“Some people around the league are anticipating some interesting game planning and scheming early in the season, more so than normally is the case. Why? Coaches have more time on their hands this offseason than usual without players to coach. Bill Belichick, for instance, tells me he has been spending some of his extra time studying opponents.”

I bring it up because Bears head coach Lovie Smith confirms that the Bears coaches are also spending the extra time studying film in this video from ESPNChicago.com.

This all strikes me as significant.

The lockout is going to give certain teams more of an advatange than others.  For instance, everyone agrees that this time off is killing teams with new coaches who are bringing in new systems.  This may be another case of that.

Its great that Lovie Smith is spending time looking at film.  But they don’t exactly play fancy, “make a lot of adjustments and do something clever” defense in Chicago.  As former NFL safety Matt Bowen put it very well, again for NFP:

“Teach landmarks, run-pass keys and specific techniques that apply to the front seven and the secondary. The rest? Just play football. The exact theory behind the Tampa 2 scheme under Tony Dungy and what we see today in Chicago with Lovie Smith.”

On the other hand, as Pompei points out, this could be huge for teams like the Patriots and, I’m sorry to say it, the Packers.  Dom Capers looks to me like he could do good things with this time off.

Its possible that Bears offensive coordinator Mike Martz might be able to sit down and think of some more interesting things to do against upcoming opponents.  But that doesn’t help the Bears without an offense that can execute to make those ideas a reality.

All and all I think the Bears strength as a team is in thier fundamentals on defense.  And you can’t work on those without players no matter how much opponents film you study.

Carimi: Guard, Tackle, Left or Right? And Other Points of View.

Bears

  • Jeff Dickerson at ESPNChicago.com reports that “Jay Cutler led workout with offensive players”.  I think he means “Greg Olsen got the players together for a workout and Cutler was there throwing passes.”
  • Why do I say that?  Well this typical answer to a fan’s question from Dan Pompei at the Chicago Tribune has a lot to do with it:

“Interesting comment in a recent mailbag about a possible leadership void on the team.  Jay Cutler just doesn’t strike me as a leader, and a successful quarterback has to be one. Look at Peyton Manning, Tom Brady, even Jim McMahon when he played. Am I way off base here? Rick, Spanaway, Wash.

“The best way to be a leader is to throw touchdown passes. If Cutler does that, nothing else really matters. But he certainly can be a better leader in other ways. Remember, one of the reasons he was available in a trade is he wasn’t everything that Manning and Brady are in terms of intangibles. The Bears’ hope is that he matures into a leader. We’re waiting.”

  • Pompei also weighs in on the debate about where newly drafted offensive tackle Gabe Carimi should play:

“Dan, I have read numerous times since the draft that Gabe Carimi will play right tackle with J’Marcus Webb the left side. I must be confused as Carimi played left at Wisconsin and faced three first-round draft pick defensive ends from the Big Ten this year and played four years at the position…  I say let Carimi play himself out of the position at least. Could you explain it to me please? I am baffled by this nonsense. Trainedape, Kenosha, Wis.

“I understand your confusion. When the Bears project Carimi to play right tackle and Webb to play left, they are looking at athletic and physical traits of both players. The left tackle usually is required to be a little lighter on his feet and have better hand quickness and length. The right tackle usually is a more powerful player who can get leverage and engulf smaller defenders. Carimi has more right tackle traits and Webb has more left tackle traits. That doesn’t mean Webb can play the left tackle position better than Carimi, or vice versa. It just means that Webb at left and Carimi at right probably is going to be the starting point. And even though Carimi was a left tackle in college, every NFL team I have spoken with thought he would be best as a right tackle in the pros.”

“For a number of reasons, Carimi’s short- and long-term destinations fall somewhere short of certain. The Bears’ offensive line remains an unfinished puzzle, and in the immediate aftermath of the draft, coach Lovie Smith wouldn’t even commit to whether Carimi will play tackle or guard. Offensive line coach Mike Tice acknowledged it is more likely that Carimi ends up playing tackle — ‘I think he’s an outside player, personally,” Tice said — but made clear that the full picture won’t be visible for a while. ‘”

It is entirely possible that the Bears plan to try Carmi at left tackle but they don’t want to say so.  If you say “left tackle” the agent’s eyes light up with dollar signs.  If you say, “guard”, he’ll scoff but at least you’re starting the negotiation at the bottom.  Having said that, I could be way off base.  Most of these draft picks are more or less slotted and there might not be that much money at stake.

“I was wondering if the Bears coaches are seeking out you and other Bears beat writers more to use you to give messages to the players. Since the coaches can not communicate with the players or their agents, might it be possible that they use the media to pass along information to their players?… Thanks. Jayson Becker, Minneapolis

“Speaking for myself and the other media members who I am in contact with, I have not found that coaches are trying to use the media to send messages to players. Even during the lockout, there are other, more sensible ways for coaches to send messages to players without having to go through the media. And I’m sure they have sent messages through backdoor channels.”

“[Bears offensive coordinator]  Mike Martz usually evaluates quarterbacks a little differently than a lot of other people. And his track record suggests he knows what he’s doing. The player he really liked in the first tier of QBs this year was Andy Dalton. Martz measures quarterbacks mostly based on accuracy, intelligence and toughness, and he tells me he thought the new Bengals signal caller had all three in spades. He was very impressed with the new Bengal’s grasp of the game. In the second tier of quarterbacks, Martz liked the player he’s going to be coaching, Nathan Enderle.”

  • Pete Prisco at CBSSports.com reviews the 2008 draft from a 2011 perspective. His evaluation of the Bears looks to be more or less on target.

“The Bears had 12 picks, but little to show for it. First-round pick Chris Williams was tabbed to be a tackle, but he struggled there and has been moved inside to guard. That’s not a good thing. Second-round running back Matt Forte is a starter who had a good rookie season, struggled in 2009 and bounced back to play well in 2010. He’s a good pick. None of the other 10 picks started for the Bears in their title-game loss to the Packers. Receiver Earl Bennett (third round) and tight end Kellen Davis (fifth) and corner Zack Bowman (fifth) did play. Two others from this draft, defensive tackle Marcus Harrison and safety Craig Steltz, were on the roster but did not play. They had too many picks not to land more than one quality starter.

“Grade now: C-
“Grade then: B+

“Questionable Fit:
“Stephen Paea, Chicago Bears: Like the three teams listed above, the Chicago Bears entered the 2011 draft with considerable needs along their defensive front, especially inside at defensive tackle. The Bears elected to release former first round pick Tommie Harris and may need to fill a hole at nose guard should scheduled free agent Anthony Adams play elsewhere next season. Like Adams, Paea is shorter than most teams want at defensive tackle and relies on a combination of explosive strength and leverage to control his opponent. Should the Bears plug Paea in at nose as a replacement for Adams, I don’t know that the former Beaver will prove as successful as Adams has been in Chicago. Simply put, Paea is not a particularly instinctive defender. He’ll blow up his share of plays due to his incredible strength (Combine record 49 reps of 225 pounds), but he won’t make many plays outside of the guard-center-guard box. Even worse, Paea is not ideally suited to take over for Harris. Besides the lack of instincts, Paea isn’t particularly quick, making him a tough projection as a three-technique who is expected to penetrate and create havoc in the backfield. I like Paea’s upside, his value in the mid second round and the fact that he’ll be reasonably protected by Julius Peppers on the outside. However, Paea is not the dominant force his reputation has led some to believe.”

Elsewhere

“Though we’re not yet ready to drop a shovel of dirt on McNabb’s 12-year NFL career, it’s a possibility that we no longer would regard as shocking. McNabb will demand being installed as the Day One starter, and he’ll want the kind of financial package that inherently will demonstrate that the Eagles were wrong to trade him and that the Redskins were wrong to dismiss him. At this point, we can’t think of a team that will do it — and we can’t envision McNabb accepting any lesser terms in order to continue playing.”

“According to the Sports Junkies [at 106.7 the Fan], citing multiple unnamed sources, coach Mike Shanahan asked McNabb to wear a wristband after he struggled to remember plays. McNabb declined, explaining that it would make him look stupid. (More accurately, McNabb said, ‘It’s bad for my image.’)”

  • Summary: Aaron Rogers tells ESPN 540 this story about a “brawl” that took place during a TV timeout before the Super Bowl coin toss:

“Well, over to the left, about 10 cameramen have been trying to get in place to get the best shot, and two of them are fighting. They’re yelling at each other in different languages, flipping each other off. The one guy is flipping him off, and the other guy below him is just taking all these pictures of it….

“So they’re screaming at each other. The up guy is flipping him off and the down guy is taking all these pictures of him. So then the [low] guy stands up and he starts taking pictures of him. So they’re both screaming at each other taking pictures of each other for a good minute and a half.”

“Rational minds may disagree, but we’d rather give up a third or fourth-round pick for Orton than whatever Kevin Kolb is going to cost in draft picks and money. (Kolb is obviously out of play for Minnesota, but our opinion holds true for any team.)”

“The quarterback situation has made Minnesota an easy pick for last place in the NFC North. With Orton, should that come to pass, the Vikings suddenly become far more formidable simply because of the projected reduction in stupid quarterback tricks.”

Mullin’s got a point.  I keep hearing over and over and over ad nauseum about the Lions but with any kind of a decent veteran QB the Vikings are going to be very underrated.  Only the apparent loss of Pat Williams-type defensive tackle in the middle makes me hesitate.  The NFC North is going to be very, very good next year.

“I saw it during my own career, and [Eagles defensive coordnator Juan] Castillo has a point when he says (via the Philadelphia Inquirer): ‘To play fast, you can’t be thinking.’

“Teach landmarks, run-pass keys and specific techniques that apply to the front seven and the secondary. The rest? Just play football. The exact theory behind the Tampa 2 scheme under Tony Dungy and what we see today in Chicago with Lovie Smith.”

“I took a survey of front office men last week to ask if they liked having the draft before free agency, and the overwhelming response was they did.  Only one man said it didn’t matter to him because it didn’t change his team’s philosophy of drafting the best available player.

“But six others said they like it this way, even though there is little hope of it remaining like this.”

“Only five out of the league’s 32 play-callers called plays from the coaches’ booth last season, according to research from the Baltimore Ravens’ public relations department.”

I still can’t imagine it isn’t easier to think in the booth.

“BREAKING: Rex Ryan About to Say Something – SportsPickle News”

[Our] source cites the fact that Ryan has contracted his cartoonishly large stomach and filled his lungs with enough breath to conceivably pass through his vocal chords, an evolutionary process generally befitting a human being who is about to form sounds, as evidence that Rex Ryan is about to say something.”

All of New York waits with baited breath…

Also from the Sports Pickle we get excerpts from some of the more famous commencement adddresses by sports figures.  Here’s a sample:

One Final Thought

This song isn’t half bad.  But perhaps I’m a tad biased…

Duerson’s Brain a Cautionary Tale for Critics of New Rules and Other Points of View

Bears

“‘I am very comfortable with these three quarterbacks,’ Martz said when asked if the need for a veteran backup still exists. ‘Nathan will compete with Caleb for the backup position. I would expect that Caleb will end up being the guy, but Nathan is good enough to be that player.'”

I’m guessing that the fourth quarterback on the roster, Matt Gutierrez, must be feeling good about being all but eliminated from consideration in May.

Pompei also had this for those who say Enderle was a reach in the fifth round:

“Critics wondered why the Bears chose Enderle so high when they had other needs. Enderle represented good value in the fifth round. I had a fourth-round grade on Enderle based on opinions from three front-office men from other teams I spoke with prior to the draft.”

“Enderle doesn’t have a cannon like Cutler. That’s OK. The three things Martz prioritizes in a quarterback are accuracy, intelligence and toughness.”

Martz goes on to say that he doesn’t have to make mechanical changes with Enderle, and he played in a “very sophisticated offense” that asked him to do a lot of the things he will be asked to do with the Bears.

I’ll accept that Enderle might be competition for Hanie but the odds are very low that he’ll do so effectively if the lockout doesn’t end reasonably soon.  Despite what Martz says, from what I can tell, Enderle has a lot of work to do shortening that occasionally long wind up of his.

“Nate Enderle took a boatload of sacks at Idaho, so he’ll fit right into Mike Martz’s system.”

“Free safety Chris Conte (California) was quietly viewed by some as the best developmental prospect of this year’s weak safety class. Speaking of developmental prospects, Idaho quarterback Nathan Enderle, at 6-4, 240 pounds, has the build and arm strength well worthy of his fifth-round selection.”

“Now, more than ever, I believe the Detroit Lions, not Chicago, is the team to challenge Green Bay in the NFC North. With Nick Fairley and Ndamukong Suh paired at defensive tackle, the Lions’ D-line becomes an extraordinary pass defense, while the addition of Titus Young gives the club an explosive wide receiver opposite Calvin Johnson. Yeah, I know, the Lions still need cornerbacks, but quarterbacks won’t have much time to exploit whoever is there. I’m already making Detroit this year’s sleeper, and there’s plenty of room on the bandwagon. This is a vastly improved team that won its last four starts — including one over Green Bay — and just beefed up an already impressive defensive line.”

Elsewhere

  • Rob Rang at CBSSports.com gives his thoughts on the draft:

“No. 1 pick Nick Fairley gives the Lions a potential tandem at defensive tackle, with Ndamokung Suh, that is the best not only in the NFC North, but in the NFL. Suh is the Lions’ best defensive player but Detroit strengthened that area in a way that also projects to aid the secondary with improved pass rush.”

Did anyone else notice how angry Fairley looked when they finally called his name?  He wasn’t happy lasting to 13 after being projected so much higher in January.  I would expect he’ll start trying to make the rest of the NFL pay for their doubt.  (Picture from US Presswire)

Fairley

  • Tom Kowalski at mlive.com contrasts current GM Martin Mayhew‘s draft room with former GM Matt Millen‘s.  He repeats this storry about the 2006 draft when the Lions were on the clock debating about whether to take guard Max Jean-Gilles.  Kowalski doesn’t mention it explicitly but the first problem was that they hadn’t worked this out in advance rather than debating it for five minutes while actually on the clock.  Here’s the second problem:

“The Lions spent so much time talking about Jean-Gilles that, when they decided not to draft him, they didn’t have another option ready to go. As they wondered what to do, a voice in the back of the room (the identity of which I haven’t confirmed yet) said ‘Take Brian Calhoun.’ So they did.

“In his two-year career in Detroit, Calhoun had 54 rushing yards and 55 receiving yards and never scored a touchdown.”

“Look, Mayhew isn’t going to be perfect and he’s going to whiff on some draft picks (cough, Derrick Williams, cough). But one of the tricks to a successful draft is limiting your mistakes by being thoroughly prepared. It’s one thing to miss, it’s another thing to not know what the hell you’re swinging at.”

“Don’t tell me the lockout didn’t have an impact on this year’s draft because it did. I’ve never seen so many reaches, starting with Aldon Smith with the seventh pick of the first round, continuing with quarterbacks Jake Locker and Christian Ponder and moving through the bottom of the round, then on into the next two days. There were stretches everywhere, and I have to believe it was because clubs drafted for need. Usually, you hear “the-best-player-available” explanation for choices, but not this year. The past three days clubs gambled everywhere to fill needs they would have already solved through free agency or trades.”

“The Seattle Seahawks allowed opponents to score 33 or more points in nine of their past 12 starts, including the playoffs, and ranked 25th in points allowed. So what do they do? Draft offense with three of their first four choices. Someone please explain.”

Not only did they take offense, they didn’t even take good offense, reaching for guard James Carpenter in the first round:

“OT James Carpenter to Seattle: Most people had him rated somewhere in the middle of the second round, yet the Seahawks took him with the 25th selection … with Gabe Carimi and Derek Sherrod still on the board. The Seahawks envision Carpenter as their next right tackle and say they love his versatility and nastiness. OK, I’ll buy that — just not at the 25th spot.”

How much of a reach was the selection of Carpenter?  Even Alabama coach Nick Saban couldn’t believe it:

Finally, we have this from coach Pete Caroll:

“’We are happy with Charlie and hoping he is going to continue to flourish and blossom. I’m not feeling like we missed out on a quarterback opportunity’ — Seattle coach Pete Caroll on Charlie Whitehurst and the Seahawks’ failure to draft a quarterback.

Bottom line Caroll is starting to remind me why he didn’t make it with the Jets all those years ago.  With him at the helm the Seahawks may have been as good last season as they’re going to be for a few years.

“I’ll tell you what I find intriguing about quarterback Blaine Gabbert: When the Washington Redskins had a chance to choose him they didn’t. Instead, coach Mike Shanahan traded out. Shanahan knows how to develop quarterbacks, and he needs a good young one in Washington. But instead of taking Gabbert after he unexpectedly lasted until the 10th pick, Shananan passed. Then he just avoided the position altogether, refusing to use any of his draft picks on a quarterback. Keep that in mind as Gabbert’s career unfolds”

The guess here is that Washington didn’t “avoid the position altogether” on purpose.  They probably traded back thinking they could pick up Christian Ponder.  The Vikings were rumored to like Jake Locker and the Redskins probably thought they’d pass on Ponder.  They didn’t.

“When one team held an audition for him, no receivers from Auburn showed up. You got to be kidding me. You’re Cam Newton, and you can’t get anyone from your offense to come to your workout?”

I’ve heard people say that Newton’s character concerns don’t necessarily translate to the field.  I think this translates.

“With so many pressing needs on the roster, they still want to fix RB? And they get Murray who is best known for his ability to catch the ball (he had 71 receptions in 2010). This redundancy with Felix’s new-found catching ability is quite a statement.”

“True, Elmore has posted videos of him both jumping out of a pool and into a truck on YouTube. But it’s also worth noting that Elmore actually had more production last season than his more-famous teammate, defensive end/linebacker Brooks Reed.”

Wonder how he would have done without Reed on the other side garnering the attention.

  • Sturm also had this to say about the fact that Cowboys owner Jerry Jones called Larry Lacewell, Butch Davis and Barry Switzer for advice on various picks:

“Previous draft disappointments haunt the Cowboys. And when Jerry tells us that he is not listening to his scouts, but more about how he listens to his old buddies about picks, then we should assume that the draft process has not changed very much. I needed Jerry to tell me that Tom Ciskowski and his staff have targeted this player and we trust them. Instead, he tells me that Switzer signed off on the Cowboys taking an Oklahoma RB.”

Amen.  At least when Jerry Angelo stands in front of the media, he can tell you how much his coaches and area scouts whose business it is to watch these prospects for months and years like the picks and why.

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again.  No matter what else you think of them, thank heavens the Bears have ownership that doesn’t interfere with the day-to-day running of the personnel department.  Generally speaking it is a route to disaster long term for any franchise.

“Detroit Lions — Nick Fairley and Ndamukong Suh give the Lions two young, strong players who can help carry Matthew Stafford off the field when he’s injured”

One Final Thought

Finally Judge welcomes Patrick Peterson to the NFL with this sarcastic response to a quote from him:

“‘Everybody loves the game of football. I can’t see the world without it. How do you think the world would be without it?’ — Arizona CB Patrick Peterson. I dunno, Patrick, but why don’t you ask the people who survived the 57-day strike in 1982. Better yet, ask someone in Libya.”

I’ll tell you exactly how they the world will be.  Full of people surprising themselves by finding better things to do on Sunday.  NFL beware.

The Significance of “Scheme Versatility” and Other Points of View

Bears

“Top needs: OL, DT, CB, OLB
“Summary: The top needs I saw for the Bears were on the offensive line and along the defensive interior, where they’ve had some recent attrition. [Gabe] Carimi was a great value that late in Round 1, and is a player that can be moved along the line (presumably to right tackle) to help right away. [Stephen] Paea isn’t a guy who will get a lot of penetration, but he’ll help the Bears’ linebackers avoid blockers. They also added some safety help, and took a shot on [Nathan] Enderle, a kid with a big arm who could develop behind Jay Cutler. I don’t see Enderle as a starter, but a backup is a nice thing to have, and backup quarterback was actually a need position for the Bears, particularly given all the hits Cutler takes. Solid draft for the Bears, who got to get back in the early mix this year.”

  • John Mullin at CSNChicago.com gives his thoughts on the Bears draft:

“But they again selected a safety in the third round (Chris Conte of California) and later added a quarterback (Nathan Enderle of Idaho in the fifth), which many considered luxuries the club couldn’t afford.”

Jensen does a good job of reviewing the up coming (some day) free agency period mentioning a number of possibilities including some name wide receivers.

  • John Mullin at CSNChicago.com asks a very good question: “Where does new Bears defensive tackle Stephen Paea play?” He’s big enough to play nose tackle:

“But 4-3 teams do not often trade two draft choices for purposes of moving up to grab a nose tackle. What the Bears gave themselves with Paea is options in the form of someone who could play either tackle position. A nickel unit with Melton and Paea paired inside is potentially a better interior rush tandem than the Bears have had in several seasons.”

As Mullin implies, Paea may find himself moving between the inside and the three technique depending on the situation. But I’m not sure that’s how the Bears are going to roll. They like to rotate guys in and out and given thelimited number of snaps they’ll probably want to leave Paea at one position. But the possibility of moving him around is intriguing.

Elsewhere

“He prefers a quarterback meet these seven criteria before selecting him high in the draft: More than a three year starter; has started 30 games; has won 23; has thrown at least two touchdowns for every interception; has completed 60 percent of his passes; is a senior; is graduating.

    “Which quarterbacks held up from the class of 2011? Andy Dalton and Ricky Stanzi. Greg McElroy was three starts shy of qualifying.”

    • The minute I saw Michael Irvin on the set of the NFL Network during the first round, I know I wan’t going to be able to stomach it for more than short doses. So I think it is unfortunate that the ESPN broadcast was also subpar.

    Did anyone else think that Mel Kiper and Jon Gruden talked less than usual between picks? I thought Chris Berman was going to go horse from having to fill so much. I don’t get it.

    “‘[Vikings first round pick] Christian Ponder is Elvis Grbac,’ Dilfer said. ‘He’s Elvis Grbac. Elvis Grbac was a beautiful thrower. He threw for 4,000 yards. He did a lot of nice things. Every time it got tough, he melted.'”

    “Peyton Hillis being named cover boy of Madden 12 by a vote of fans is more evidence why Pro Bowl voting should be done by professionals.”

    As long as they don’t decide to do it like the Hall of Fame…

    One Final Thought

    Mullin also makes a point I’ve been thinking about. The Bears like to claim that good players who fit their scheme are falling to them because of the popularity of the 3-4 around the NFL:

    “Fronts in 3-4’s typically employ space-eaters, 320 pounds or bigger, even the ends.

    “That then leaves a talent like Paea, at 6-1, 305 pounds, available for a scheme like the Bears. Same with a Melton, who now is up to more than 290 pounds.”

    There’s a point to be made here but I think its become less true this year not more. The buzz word I heard dozens of times over the course of the draft is “scheme versatility”.  Defensive coordinators are starting to play multiple fronts and move their personnel around more to create mismatches. This is starting to break the mold of the typical player fitting one scheme. The Washington Redskins are a good example. Their first round pick, Ryan Kerrigan, is a bit undersized for 3-4 defensive end and not really athletic enough for outside linebacker. I thought he was really a better fit for defensive end in a 4-3 scheme. But the Redskins drafted him for the 3-4 anyway, probably figuring they could take advantage of his traits in multiple ways in different situations. That’s the trend.