Are You Ready for Some Football - Week 4

[-Jrabbit]

It's based on timing, accuracy on short routes, and reading the field quickly. Vick doesn't do any of those things well.

...Vick is never going to complete 60% of his passes, and he's never going to be more than a decent passer.

Good points. Now, let's play GM. If it's going to take so much coddling and special coaching to make a talented player a success, how many seasons would you be willing to waste? Remember -- your job is on the line.

Vick is inconsistent, he's inaccurate, and he fumbles once per game -- these are not great qualities for a QB.

Given prep time and quality athletes, a Vick-led team can be contained by playing to his weaknesses. I have given him the benefit of the doubt -- grudgingly -- due to his high upside and unique skills.

But the more I watch, the more I'm convinced that Michael Vick will not be a long-term success as a QB in the NFL.

Meanwhile, San Diego has had LT and a real QB...

[Jaguar]

Gameplanning around the strengths of your most talented athletes is . It was the combination of Marshall Faulk's talent and Mike Martz's schemes that got Faulk 2400 yards in a season. It was the combination of Lawrence Taylor's athleticism and Bill Parcell's creative blitzes that got him 22 sacks in a season.

With better coaching and better planning, I don't think 900 rushing, 3000 passing is out of the question.

[MRT144]

let henry run! why didnt they let henry be the #1 back for the titans earlier!?!?

and jones!?!?! WOOWOO GO JONES! GO DETROIT!

my fantasy team had barber, jones, and henry, but i could only play two...a shame really

[Jaguar]

Originally posted by -Jrabbit
Good points. Now, let's play GM. If it's going to take so much coddling and special coaching to make a talented player a success, how many seasons would you be willing to waste? Remember -- your job is on the line.

Do I have him already, or are we asking whether I would have drafted him in the first place?

If I were GM in 2001, I probably would have stuck with the 5th pick and taken Marcus Stroud or Richard Seymour. I'm a strong believer in front seven first-round draft picks, and Atlanta badly needed help on defense back then. Fortunately for hypothetical-GM-Jaguar, DT bust Gerard Warren was already off the board. Hypothetical-GM-Jaguar doesn't necessarily know that HB Jamal Reynolds is about to completely fall apart, so he might not pick LT2, which would be, in hypothetical retrospect, a bad decision by hypothetical-GM-Jaguar.

If I'm a hypothetical Falcons GM now, I stick with him, absolutely. The Falcons can win pretty frequently with Vick. Was 2004 a "wasted season?" Vick's better-than-average quarterbacking doesn't hold the Falcons back nearly as much as the poor rush defense and the mediocre secondary. If you look at the Falcons' offseason moves, like signing run-stopper Grady Jackson and drafting Virginia Tech cornerback Jimmy Williams, it seems like the Falcons front office is working to improve the team much the same way I would.

[Imran Siddiqui]

Good points by Jaguar, and I especially agree with the last one. I just don't understand the pigeonholing of Vick into a West Coast mindset. I understand that Knapp was a West Coast style guy, but you have to adapt. I think Vick would flourish in a Whisenhunt Steelers' offense, which does focus on the run, but the passing game is less based on timing than a West Coast one is.

Hypothetical-GM-Jaguar doesn't necessarily know that HB Jamal Reynolds is about to completely fall apart

Jamal Anderson... and yeah, I mean Anderson ran for over 1000 yards in 2000 after an injury filled 1999 season. In 2001 he returned to his injured ways and was done, but I'm not sure a GM would have known that for sure and may have seen a return to Anderson's 1998 levels where he ran for over 1800 yards.

That's a good point, which I think is lost. The Falcons likely wouldn't have taken LT even if they stay at 5.


Now the problem is that Mora has to either replace the offensive coordinator or he needs to go, even though he has had some relative success with the Falcons (remember this is a franchise that has never had back to back winning seasons, so Mora has done a wonderful job compared to others in Falcons history).

Saying that, I think Reeves could have gotten the best out of Vick. Reeves rubs QBs the wrong way and tends to make them conservative, but he is good for their development... Hell, look at Elway. Mora doesn't seem willing to drastically change his offense to work to the skills of the team (they can run the ball very well, another 200 yard rushing game for the team yesterday, and with Lelie and White can throw the bomb).

Also, White has to be the 3rd WR and Lelie has to start. The fact Mora hasn't done this is very strange.

[SlowwHand]

Lelie is a WR you can't count on. He's gone from Denver because of that, and attitude. He couldn't understand why they didn't appreciate his not going 100% on every play.
A lot of potential, but his brain got in the way.

[Imran Siddiqui]

Yeah, but he's better than Roddy White, who needs to know this isn't college anymore.

[SlowwHand]

Jag's best point in his dissertation was paying rookies
exorbitant salaries before they've even touched the ball.
I understand about injuries and the average length of an NFL career. That sways me none.

[Imran Siddiqui]

Well the one thing that struck me with Japher's post and his Lohan comparison is that I hope the same thing doesn't happen to Reggie Bush. Maybe being a backup to McAllister is the best thing that happened to him.

[SlowwHand]

That, and they're doing what we spoke of regarding Vick. They're utilizing his talents. Multi-purpose player.

[Ming]

New Orleans will figure out how to get RB 15 to 20 touches a game... The term "backup" is almost meaningless. I like how they using his skills. A great coach figures how to maximize the talent he has, not limit it to some preconceived notion of how it fits into his game plan.

[Lord Avalon]

Originally posted by Jaguar
So whether or not Vick's presence helps the halfbacks run better is still a matter that's up for debate.

If you go by Jaws' analysis of the spread option, then he does help. Jaws said the key read is the DE. At the potential handoff, if the DE is staying inside to cover Dunn, then Vick keeps and runs outside. If the DE stays wide to cover Vick, then handoff goes to Dunn inside.

[Lorizael]

Originally posted by Lorizael
If Washington loses to Tennessee, which they certainly could, I'm for tanking the rest of the season giving backups, like Campbell, time to play.

Well damn. Season over for the Redskins. We ain't beatin' the Colts in Indianapolis. 2-5 going into the bye sounds real good. *shrug* put in Campbell. Can't really get any worse, and it might possibly spark the team. If only the Cowboys could have followed suit.

[SlowwHand]

Why does that have anything to do with it?

[Lorizael]

Obviously, because any true Redskins fan follows the principle that you should root for two teams: The Redskins, and whoever's playing Dallas.

In all honesty I don't really care, but after a 'Skins loss, it always makes me feel a little better if the Cowboys do the same. Unfortunately, I had no such consolation this time.