Off-Season Things To Look At
 

1) Will Charles Spencer be back and, if so, as what?

2) Will Ahman Green be a June 1st cut?

3) Does a CB tandem of Petey Faggins and Jacques Reeves have you thinking about marmalade?

4) Is there anyone from this April's draft that will make an immediate impact?

5) If we can hire somebody to break Kyle Orton's leg, can we trade Sage to the Bears?

1) Will Charles Spencer be back and, if so, as what?
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I sure hope he makes it back, but I'm just not too optimistic. I'm real
skeptical about his leg holding up when and if he gets the pads on and
into some full-blown contact. But between center Myers from Denver and
draftee OT Brown we've made some real valuable addiitons to our OLine.
But I wish Spencer nothing but the best luck, he's got it coming after
what happened to him back in 2006.
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2) Will Ahman Green be a June 1st cut?
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Feeling more optimistic here, I'm gonna say yes. I think Chris Brown and
the back they picked up who use to play for the Titans & Colorado U and
rookie Slaton will look good enough so they can drop the high-cap Green,
who may continue to have injury issues of his own.
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3) Does a CB tandem of Petey Faggins and Jacques Reeves have you thinking about marmalade?
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"marmalade is a sweet preserve with a bitter tang made from fruit, sugar, water, and (in some commercial brands) a gelling agent. American-style marmalade is sweet, not bitter." Say what ???
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4) Is there anyone from this April's draft that will make an immediate impact?
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Except for the first and last picks, I think any and/or all have that capability.
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5) If we can hire somebody to break Kyle Orton's leg, can we trade Sage to the Bears?
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Who knows ?
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Obscure reference, I'll admit. What might you spread marmalade on?

I'd guess Bennett will be one of the starters at CB. I doubt Faggins will start at the beginning of the season.

An English muffin ????

I was with you Bob.....TOAST. I did have to think about it or a second though.

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1) Will Charles Spencer be back and, if so, as what?
NT - he can rotate with Frank Okam.

2) Will Ahman Green be a June 1st cut?
I think they've made a bed that they have to sleep in for one more year. Of course if Taylor looks good in camp....

3) Does a CB tandem of Petey Faggins and Jacques Reeves have you thinking about marmalade?
A tandem of Bennett and Molden has me thinking of Jokers.

4) Is there anyone from this April's draft that will make an immediate impact?
See, item #3.

5) If we can hire somebody to break Kyle Orton's leg, can we trade Sage to the Bears?
We might not need to go to such drastic measures. Perhaps they'll come to their senses once the see Orton throw some wounded ducks in camp.

1. Which combination will eventually fill the FS and SS positions? Do we have reason to believe it will be something other than Earl and Brown, together again?

2. Can Brandon Frye impress Alex Gibbs enough to make Weary a back-up? Imagine, 2 Hokies on the OL!

3. Will Mario Williams build upon last year's performance or will teams neutralize him.

4. With the addition of several LBs this offseason, who will get the most playing time (Thompson, Bentley, Adibi, Moffitt, or Richardson).

5. How potent can the passing game be if we keep AJ, JJ, AD, and Matt Schaub healthy?

6. Now that Okoye has his rookie year under his belt, will he make the type of jump in production that Mario did in his second season? Are we prepared to have a "sophomore slump" out of last year's 1st rounder?

I would add Owen Daniels and Kevin Walter to these three. Taking all five, from top to bottom, we have one of the strongest receiving corps of all 32 clubs.

[QUOTE=Roy P;678]1. Which combination will eventually fill the FS and SS positions? Do we have reason to believe it will be something other than Earl and Brown, together again?

Kubes really liked that combo before Earl was hurt, but I thought Will Demps played well enough in his time to be the starter going into camp. Besides his butterfingering some INT's, (at least he was in position to make a play) he had that big forced fumble that really helped turn the tide against the Buc's and when he was insterted against the Raiders played physical and continued to play physical the remainder of the year.

I am interested in the Brandon's. We do need more speed at the SS spot. I think CC will be the FS, and Demps and one of the Brandon's at SS. Earl might be in a fight for a roster spot.

yeah, i am interested in seeing how harrison looks as well.

First off, we do not play SS & FS, we play left side & right side. We ask all of our safeties to do the same things. Supposedly this help to disguise the coverage.

And yes, I want to see the Brandons at safety, and I want to see how the other Brandon, Orr is progressing.

Let's hope the same things this year do not entail running after wide open WR's and Dallas Clark.

Good reads, all. One thing....I don't think Petey makes it out of TC, JMHO.

unless they bring in some veterans from somewhere I don't see how he doesn't. Bennet, Reeves, and Molden are locks. I'm assuming Fletcher gets one other spot. I would guess that we would carry at least 5 CB's. That means that Derick Roberson?, Derrick Johnson?, or Jimmy Williams?. It's possible that one of those guys could come out of nowhere (like Faggins did when he was sort of a feel good story). I don't think faggins will be done any favors by the coaching staff, but based on what else is on the roster I would think he would at least be penciled in to make the team.

I don't know anything about any of these other CB's listed, so if someone has reason to believe one of them has some potential please fill me in.

If you were expecting him to be a starting level corner, no way he makes that, but he is a solid nickle or dime guy. I just don't see anyone else that they would really trust in those spot this year that's on the roster. Now in 09, that's a whole nother deal.

1) Will Charles Spencer be back and, if so, as what?
i think so, as a guard/tackle backup

2) Will Ahman Green be a June 1st cut?
someone said something about a bed for a year but probably if chris taylor looks good. i agree.

3) Does a CB tandem of Petey Faggins and Jacques Reeves have you thinking about marmalade?
faggins certainly does. i don't know anything about reeves so i'll leave him alone

4) Is there anyone from this April's draft that will make an immediate impact?
molden definitely, brown will have an impact though not sure if it will be good or bad, slaton may break a few off, adibi's got something to prove, okam may be the biggest boom or the smallest bust out of all.

5) If we can hire somebody to break Kyle Orton's leg, can we trade Sage to the Bears?
yes we can do that.

1. Which combination will eventually fill the FS and SS positions? Do we have reason to believe it will be something other than Earl and Brown, together again?
i think demps get his spot. played well although his skills (and his entire right arm) are limited. earl's got plenty to prove to get his spot back, but i think brown hits up the other spot. the brandons are probably depth.

2. Can Brandon Frye impress Alex Gibbs enough to make Weary a back-up? Imagine, 2 Hokies on the OL!
he can....it's just if he will

3. Will Mario Williams build upon last year's performance or will teams neutralize him.
maybe for a game or two. i foresee 15 sacks at least for the big man.

4. With the addition of several LBs this offseason, who will get the most playing time (Thompson, Bentley, Adibi, Moffitt, or Richardson).
thompson who i read may play as a pass rusher opposite mario. other than that bentley may challenge diles for the starter spot but i know kubiak likes diles a bunch so...adibi probably starts out on special teams.

5. How potent can the passing game be if we keep AJ, JJ, AD, and Matt Schaub healthy?
potent? does that mean unstoppable? :D VERY!!! lets see....andre johnson. i read jacoby was looking good with good hands at camp in andre's place. coupled with his size and speed the sky is the limit for the kid. davis is a 20+ yard strike waiting for the slightest opening. schauby....health & consistency is what it takes for him to be in the top 5 or so qb's.

6. Now that Okoye has his rookie year under his belt, will he make the type of jump in production that Mario did in his second season? Are we prepared to have a "sophomore slump" out of last year's 1st rounder?
well....no and no. i don't think we can expect 14.5 sacks out of a DT. it would be nice...but it would be nice if he got to 10. and if he slumps his way through this year it's going to be awfully rough on mario who is going to get WAY more attention than ever before.

In response to item #6 - if we can get 6-8 sacks from our DT, we will be in some nice tall cotton. Double didgits for a DT with a guy like Mario playing is a bit much IMO. I would certainly take it, just don't expect it. What I would like to see from him is for him to flush the QB out of the pocket with middle presher. If he makes the QB uncomfortable and gets 6-8 sacks and controlls the middle run to his area, he will have done his job well IMO.

yeah 10 sacks for a DT would be absolutely huge. I think if anyone has expectations like that they are setting themselves up for disappointment. DT is one of those positions that tough on a player in regards to popularity with the fans. Not that that really matters at the end of day, but people expect a lot from high first round picks....a DT can have a great game and have it go unnoticed by the fans. Okoye is still on his honeymoon so to speak, and he did show flashes last year, but if he can just get 6-8 sacks and do his job in the middle against the run then he's done a good job.

1) Will Charles Spencer be back and, if so, as what?
I think he will be. Kubes has been giving him the play time at RG even though he hasnt gotten contact I dont think he would be giving him the reps if there wasnt a huge posibility.

2) Will Ahman Green be a June 1st cut?
Agree with the bed comment. Ahman Green is too much of a cap hit and potential threat to cut. There isnt a RB on the roster that can challenge him for starting time IMO, including Brown. Now if he gets injured this year or doesnt have a good year, bye bye 2009.

3) Does a CB tandem of Petey Faggins and Jacques Reeves have you thinking about marmalade?
Not so much. One - Bennett will start over one of them. Two - I think Faggins is better than most give him credit for.. I have no idea what his deal was last year though. Three - I think that Reeves' performance last year was a product of a scheme that didnt fit and horrible S play from Roy W., whom it arguably the worst S in coverage ever.

4) Is there anyone from this April's draft that will make an immediate impact?
Well it would be great if Brown did. Okam and Moulden have the best shot, but Okam is a first year DT which typically means no. LB is soo deep that Adibi will most likely only see his time on ST.

5) If we can hire somebody to break Kyle Orton's leg, can we trade Sage to the Bears?
I know a guy.

1. Which combination will eventually fill the FS and SS positions? Do we have reason to believe it will be something other than Earl and Brown, together again?
Demps is pretty locked in at one spot i believe. IIRC Kubes was huge on Earl last year and would love to see him play.

2. Can Brandon Frye impress Alex Gibbs enough to make Weary a back-up? Imagine, 2 Hokies on the OL!
I think the question is can he beat out Brisiel or Studdard. Weary is backup if he makes the team at all IMO.

3. Will Mario Williams build upon last year's performance or will teams neutralize him.
From all accounts so far he is going to build a scyscraper ontop of last years performance. The biggest factor is how the other DL play. The DT's had some pretty good pressure up the middle when Mario got some of those sacks last year. But Mario also dominated his guy or 2 on a couple of plays also.

4. With the addition of several LBs this offseason, who will get the most playing time (Thompson, Bentley, Adibi, Moffitt, or Richardson).
Hard one to call. With Diles as the annointed starter they are all put on the back burner. Bently has the best shot to beat Diles, but if Thompson can move down to rush we may see him more than other. Adibi get ST time this year.

5. How potent can the passing game be if we keep AJ, JJ, AD, and Matt Schaub healthy?
I would have to argure that OD is way more integral in the passing game than JJ is, baring injury. I think AJ is the key though, not that the passing game sucked last year (It was better than we have seen in a long time) but the other two are not even close to AJ in terms of what he brings to the table.

6. Now that Okoye has his rookie year under his belt, will he make the type of jump in production that Mario did in his second season? Are we prepared to have a "sophomore slump" out of last year's 1st rounder?
I hope not. Even though I believe that it takes about 3 years to develop a DL, he showed some good stuff last year, even later in the year (See Broncos Game). I am hoping there is no slump for him though, I expect to see him get better technique wise and more consistent.