Positional Depth

[Diomedes]

It's not hard to write a good article when a guy gives you such great quotes.

[ice grillin you]

thats what i was talking about when i gave my training camp 'report' a  few weeks abck....the guy is one of the most down to earth good natured nice athletes ive ever seen

[Diomedes]

I'd keep him over Jaqua.  You know, if I was in charge.  Ha.

[reese125]

I see a soon-to-be ex-athlete auditioning for the coaching squad. good way to start is give every player and coaches props.

not a knock on him....but a great pitch

[Diomedes]

If he's not auditioning for a job in Philly, then he's certainly laying some good groundwork for somewhere else.  He's def. got the teacher/coach mentality...can't make that up.  The quotes are textbook without being cliched. 

[vicsportsaddict]

Maybe I'm wrong, but perhaps the point rjs is getting at is that the depth on this team for each position is all or nothing.  It's either really good depth or poopy depth rather than being a little more even across the board. 

I'm sure that most other teams are like that as well but his post does illustrate a dramatic difference in depth for all the positions on this team. 

[rjs246]

Just wanted to revisit the original theme of this thread.

WR
                 - An unproven #1, an undrafted rookie #2. Hot garbage backing up.
                 - TERRIBLE DEPTH

Hopefully the initial "Stallworth is a lock to get 1100 yards!!!1!!1!1" crowd has released the penises from their collective mouth and we can re-evaluate the WR position.

- The starters are young and talented. One is a speedster that has also shown that he can play physically, the other is a second year player with promise who should have good opportunities to show what he can do playing across from a proven burner. He's still a question mark, but the team no longer has to rely on him as their true number one and that is a very good thing.
- The backups don't have a lot of natural talent. What they have is a good variety of skillsets. Gaffney has good hands and doesn't shy away from the middle. Avant is also a possession guy. Grew Lewis has some speed for a 4th/5th WR. McCants has size and has been doing well on STs. Baskett has been playing above his head, so who knows what the team has there.
- This trade improves the depth tremendously, but I'm not ready to annoint Stallworth (who is always injured) and Brown (who is a total question mark) to be the next Rice and Taylor. I would say that this group has been improved to the level of the average WR corps in the league. And frankly, that is one hell of an improvement.

[General_Failure]

Average WRs are a huge improvement, yes. Throw in Westbrook and an LJ that appears to know how to hold on to the ball now and you've actually got a well rounded offense. On top of that, McNabb has looked both accurate and ready to run when nobody is open. The only thing that seems to be missing is a decent fullback, but I'm ready to blindly hope Tapeh can do something there.

[Drunkmasterflex]

This actually could be the deepest the Eagles WRs have been since AR has been here, eventhough that doesn't really say much.  They at least have more poetential than any group that has been here in a long time.

[Feva]

Again, with Stallworth's addition... I really like this WR corps.   I saw the problem before Stallworth not so much a lack of talent as it was that every seemed to be miscast.  We had a #2 (at this point in his career) in Reggie cast as the top dog of the group, Baskett as the second starter who probably shouldn't be doing anything other than learning the slot position this year.  Gaffney who was supposed to be a candidate for the slot, was slow to learn his head from his ass in the offense.  Lewis and McCants were slated to play a notch higher on the depth chart than they should be.

Donte's prescence... knocks all the other WR's down a slot and into positions where they can actually flourish instead of playing a role on the team that they're not capable of playing.  Reggie doesn't have to be THE guy, instead he can play and produce alongside another quality WR while he progresses.  It puts guys like Baskett, Avant, Lewis and McCants down into the positions of depth where the offense doesn't need to rely on them, but can put them in good situations/matchups to step in and contribute when needed.

[ice grillin you]

stallworth does not provide the wr with any depth...what he does is prevent a #4 type wr like hank baskett from starting

hank baskett and greg lewis as your #3 and 4's does not = depth

they did go from having one of the worst wr'ing corps in the nfl to the middle of the pack....and thats a very good thing

[PoopyfaceMcGee]

Basically, all the WR position had was "depth" before.  Now, there is adequate starters in front of it.

[Drunkmasterflex]

stallworth does not provide the wr with any depth...what he does is prevent a #4 type wr like hank baskett from starting

hank baskett and greg lewis as your #3 and 4's does not = depth

they did go from having one of the worst wr'ing corps in the nfl to the middle of the pack....and thats a very good thing

Ok

[PhillyPhanInDC]

Back to Running Backs

Rush to judgment: Green, Suggs hoping to stay with Browns
By TOM WITHERS
Associated Press Sports

Updated: 2:53 p.m. ET Aug 30, 2006
CLEVELAND (AP) -Lee Suggs shrugs his shoulders, offers a nervous smile and twirls the orange helmet by its facemask.

Once Cleveland's leading rusher and the club's best breakaway threat, his days with the Browns seem to have dwindled to a precious few. His future uncertain, Suggs still dreams of touchdowns and 1,000-year seasons.

But right now his goals are much simpler.

"I just want to be on a team somewhere,'' he said.

When the Browns (2-1), who conclude their exhibition schedule Thursday night against the Chicago Bears (1-2), reduce their roster from 75 to 53 this weekend, Suggs knows he could be left behind.

The oft-injured 26-year-old speedster, traded on Aug. 14 to New York only to be returned as damaged goods when the Jets claimed he failed their physical, may soon be without an NFL home.

"I don't know what's going to happen,'' Suggs said following practice on Tuesday. "I may be here. I may not. I have no control over that.''

William Green, too, is facing the prospect of getting waived by the Browns.

Cleveland's leading rusher in 2002 and 2003, the former first-round pick who has overcome personal problems, has run for just 18 yards on 11 carries in the preseason.

"I'm not in the coaches' minds,'' Green said when asked of his chances of making the cut. "I don't know what they think. The only thing we can do is go out there and work hard. I'm sure that's what all the running backs do.''

The club currently has five backs: Reuben Droughns, Suggs, Green, rookie Jerome Harrison and Jason Wright. Droughns, who ran for more than 1,200 yards and the shifty Harrison, who has had a spectacular preseason, are locks. That leaves Wright, a second-year back, fighting it out with Suggs and Green.

Somebody's not making it.

Suggs and Green are expected to get plenty of chances to shine in Cleveland's final tuneup for the Sept. 10 opener against New Orleans. The Browns' starters will get limited playing time, giving backups and players on the bubble one last chance to impress coaches.

"I just know when I go in there and get the ball, I have to make something happen,'' Suggs said. "It could be make or break, I don't know. I just look at it as playing ball.''

The Bears' plan is to get out of their fourth preseason game healthy. Last week, defensive end Alex Brown dislocated his right shoulder on the second play of a 23-16 loss to the Phoenix Cardinals.

Brown will sit out, along with running back Cedric Benson, also nursing a shoulder injury.

Chicago's starting offense has had its own aches and pains, failing to score a touchdown so far. Quarterback Rex Grossman isn't too worried about the drought.

"Everyone's confidence is still pretty high, even though offensively we haven't scored a touchdown,'' he said. "It's coming. I know it's coming and everyone in this locker room knows it's coming. It's just a matter of going out and doing it and proving it, and time will tell.''

Despite the lack of scoring, Bears coach Lovie Smith, who still has roster decisions to make at wide receiver, defensive line and safety, has been pleased with Grossman and the first-team offense.

"We set a bar the first game and what I wanted to see from all our players - just not Rex - is improvement and I think that's what we've gotten, especially from Rex,'' he said. "He's improved from week to week. We hope to see some improvement this week and, of course, we want to be ready for Green Bay.''

Suggs says he's as ready as he can be for the next career roadblock.

After missing 23 of 48 games with a variety of injuries, he has overcome adversity before. The shock of being traded and then sent back still lingers. It's only when he's on the field that Suggs is able to clear his mind.

"It's hard not knowing what's going on, where I'm going to be next week,'' he said. "It's hard, but it's just part of the business.''

Suggs I am not crazy about, but I think the thing with the Jets was B.S. They sent him packing for a surgery he had in college when they knew they could get Barlow, but I still think the dude is an injury waiting to happen. Green, at 6' and 220lbs, has some talent, and has showed toughness in the past. He would be much better in a limited role than Stephen Davis in my opinion. I would hope that if either or both get cut, the Eagles would give them a much harder look than Stephen Davis.

Anyone else know of any RBs that may shake loose in the cuts that look like decent guys to bring in?

[PoopyfaceMcGee]

Buckhalter doing well in the last couple of games means they won't pick up a running back until/unless someone gets injured for an extended period of time.