Evaluation Time

[barrett]

As the year winds up I start thinking about the offseason and what I'd love to see.

Offense
QB - I want to see Schaub back. If we get an offer for Rosenfels like last year I'd take it (vikings 3rd). Not because I have a problem with him, but because he is going into the last year of his contract and we have a chance to get something for him. If we can't I think he is a good backup. I also wouldn't mind a 2nd-5th round pick on a QB. Schaub is solid but does lack mobility in a system that calls for it. If a guy drops like a Bradford, Sanchez, etc with above average mobility in addition to the QB tools, I say pull the trigger now before we have a desperate need (similar to the broncos with cutler and plummer).

RB - Bring back Slaton as the starter and everyone else goes. Draft a short yardage back somewhere in the middle rounds. Sign a low end, cheap, DURABLE vet who will simply be available for 16 games. Don't get cute with an old guy again.

FB - Leach is a stud and will be back. I bet we sign an undrafted rookie to play training camp FB.

WR - Bring back AJ, Walter, Davis, and Anderson in the same roles. Davis wasn't a big part of the passing game this year because we stayed healthy but he was great on special teams. He covers punts about as well as anyone in the NFL. He blocks well. Does whatever we ask of him. As for Jacoby, I am not sure. The talent is there but he doesn't appear to have grown up in two years. I bet his offseason determines his job status next year. I am sure we will sign a rookie or two as camp competition for him.

TE - Bruener needs to be put out to pasture. Very happy with Daniels and Dreesen. Would not mind a project type receiving TE who could be a red zone target. You know, the basketball PF type. But only as a low pick or udfa.

T - solid here as long as they think Salaam can still be the backup.

G - We are ok with who we have but we can definitely upgrade here. RG is not a glamour position but it would help the short yardage cause. I would hope at least one G is picked in the middle/late rounds.

C - See Guard.


Defense
DE - we need a true edge rusher and it can be a DE or a OLB. Either way it needs to be someone we turn loose. I don't think it has to be a high draft pick, since it COULD be a part time player, but we need someone who plays all out on passing downs. They tried Colvin and that was no good, we need to do better this time. I want to see Mario, Buhlman, cochran, and potentially Weaver back (weaver depends on a pay cut and what else we do).

DT - I want them all back but Zgoniga. TJ, Okoye and Robinson have shown good things the 2nd half. Nading has earned a chance to fight for a job in camp. Okam is intriguing enough to bring back through a full offseason and camp. But we also need to add one BIG body through FA or the draft. It would do wonders for Okoye and our LBs if we had a space eater in the middle.

MLB - Demeco is great. We have no true backup here. Like to see a MLB drafted somewhere.

OLB - Diles, Adibi, and Bentley all played well and can handle these two spots. Greenwood needs to go. If a good OLB/pass rusher can be signed in FA do it and put him in a 3 point stance on 3rd down.

S - Ferguson played well against the Raiders but is nothing special. Wilson has good range and ball skills. At least one needs to be upgraded. Just watch what Ed Reed does for Baltimore's pass defense, what bob sanders does for the colt's run defense, or what polamalu does all over the field. Maybe the 3 most valuable defensive players in the NFL. As the league has gone to more and more passing, the FS position has replaced MLB as the heart of the defense. We have to get better here.

CB - Re-sign Dunta whatever it takes. He is not an elite CB but he is irreplacable because the good ones almost never become available. Plus he is a great football guy with a big heart. Bennett and Reeves are fine as the 2nd and 3rd man. Molden deserves to come back just on the strength of his special teams play and he may unseat one of the other two.

K/P we are fine

Coaching Staff
Head Coach - Kubiak will get another shot. Stability is rewarded in the NFL so I am fine with staying the course another year. The players obviously care about him and play hard or they would have given up on the season and his job 6 weeks ago.

DC - fire richard smith. I said it last week and people said he had saved his job with the good stretch of play. But to me the good stretch doesn't save it and the bad game yesterday doesn't get him fired. I fire him simply because I don't think we'll ever put a GREAT defense on the field with him as our coordinator.

ST coach - Has any team been caught with their pants down more in the last few years than us? He should be fired.

[NBT]

I am pissed about Kubiak's lacadaisacal attitude about the Oakland game, but agree he will be back for another year as HC. All other offensive coaches seem to be doing an OK job, with maybe a C/G to firm up the Oline. A big TD maker RB in the red zone would be nice.
DC - Richard Smith? Ehhh, seems to be on, then off, then on again. Don't know if it is Kubiak yanking his chain (of command), or not? We need more stability on this side of the ball, so I want a pass rushing DE to replace woe begone Weaver. I would like another big DT to stop the run. I am on record for wanting MLB James Laurainitis to spell DeMeco so he can move out to WLB. I want a head hunting FS on the order of Polamalu. And another CB to coach up would be nice. The defensive coaches have not done that good of a job. I would not be surprised to see some changes there.

[Roy P]

Originally Posted by barrett

DC - fire richard smith. I said it last week and people said he had saved his job with the good stretch of play. But to me the good stretch doesn't save it and the bad game yesterday doesn't get him fired. I fire him simply because I don't think we'll ever put a GREAT defense on the field with him as our coordinator.

I thought that once we got Frank Bush Jr. on board, he was going to be the man. Well, that didn't happen.

The Eagle's Secondary coach Sean McDermott would be my first choice. This is based upon what the NY Giants were able to do with their Jim Johnson-Disciple.

[TexicanMexican]

According to Pro Football Weekly, a Texans insider is saying that Smith has probably done enough to return next season.

I don't see how he can save his job based on the whole body of work vs. the last few weeks.

[nunusguy]

Kubiak should be back and almost surely will be brought back. And I'm not in favor of bringing him back because I think he's done a great job because any success the offense has had needs to shared by him with little Shanny and most of all Gibbs. And frankly I wouldn't mind if Gibbs was made the HC, but realize that won't happen. But for the second year in a row Kubiak will have atleast a medorce record which by Texan historical standards ain't bad.
The thing is Kubiak just hasn't been that steady in my book, especially on the sidelines on gameday and I don't really think Smith is any less steady than Kubiak. I still can't get over the HC turning away from the field on key plays ?Not exactly the reassuring kind of gesture one wants from their commander-in-chief on Sunday ?

[nero THE zero]

Good post and I agree on most points.

You guys have really started to sell me on drafting a safety. Provided that we think one of these guys will be a game changer in the NFL, I think we have to draft them. I would set that as my draft priority and set my FA priority to doing whatever I can to sign Asomugha. We have the cap room, so we need to do whatever we can to sign him. Those two improvements will change the face of our secondary and, thus, our defense.

[WMH]

All in all, I am happy with the offense. Brown progressed enough for me not to bitch about the pick.......Schaub, when healthy, is pretty damn good, Slaton needs some Thunder but is more than we ever expected, and out recieving group has got to be among the league leaders.

Defense - I am looking for a Polamalu type, head hunting, fear of God bringing safety, and someone to make people think twice about doubling Mario.

Oh yeah....can we officially end the Jacoby Jones experiment? The guy has talent, but if he only catches the damn ball 50% of the time, that doesn't do us much good.

Given the current regime's draft record, I am pretty excited about next year, especially with us having all of our picks available.

We are a Rosencopter and coin flip from being a 10-6 team. Still out of the playoffs (according to this season), but playing meaningful games in December would be pretty damn fun!

[coloradodude]

I must say, I'm pretty happy with how the season turned out. We won 5 of our last 6 games...not bad.

I would like to see us address:

1. the secondary

2. DE

3. either supporting cast of LB to Demeco

4. a bruiser for an alternate RB, thinking converted LBer that can run hard for 6 to 10 yards

Now I realize this is list is too much but if we went after one or two late round DE's just think of how they would affect the secondary, LB's and Mario's play. I say two because of injury probability.

[Roy P]

Originally Posted by TexicanMexican

According to Pro Football Weekly, a Texans insider is saying that Smith has probably done enough to return next season.

I don't see how he can save his job based on the whole body of work vs. the last few weeks.

Jay Glazer reported on Fox Sunday that Kubiak is safe but the "defensive staff is gone." I'm wondering if Richard Smith is the only one who will be fired or if they will clean house with the position coaches too. Would we be interested in Rod Marinelli if he's no longer the head coach in Detroit? Would Kubiak bring in Jim Bates?

[WMH]

Originally Posted by Roy P

Jay Glazer reported on Fox Sunday that Kubiak is safe but the "defensive staff is gone." I'm wondering if Richard Smith is the only one who will be fired or if they will clean house with the position coaches too. Would we be interested in Rod Marinelli if he's no longer the head coach in Detroit? Would Kubiak bring in Jim Bates?

Mangini would be an interesting thought too......

[Roy P]

Originally Posted by WMH

Mangini would be an interesting thought too......

Just as long as he doesn't want to run a 3-4 defense.

[painekiller]

Originally Posted by WMH

Mangini would be an interesting thought too......

I doubt any of the 3-4 guys would be considered right now. This is a young defense that has spent 3 years gathering very young and definite 4-3 type players. I don't see Kubiak or McNair discarding the core of guys they have.

I think Kubiak keeps Smith. I think he knows the trouble is personnel, and they can draft defense heavy, getting younger yes, but getting more athletic also.

It's time for the last of the Casserly FA to let go, and time to finally upgrade the LBs, and get a true stud safety, not a late round special teamer, street FA guy.

[NBT]

OH, then it was personnel on the defensive side of the ball that didn't bother to show up until the second quarter. All of a sudden the same group became headhunters, and did a better job of holding Chicago somewhat in check. NO I still think Richard Smith is to blame, and should go.

[nero THE zero]

Originally Posted by painekiller

I doubt any of the 3-4 guys would be considered right now. This is a young defense that has spent 3 years gathering very young and definite 4-3 type players. I don't see Kubiak or McNair discarding the core of guys they have.

I think Kubiak keeps Smith. I think he knows the trouble is personnel, and they can draft defense heavy, getting younger yes, but getting more athletic also.

It's time for the last of the Casserly FA to let go, and time to finally upgrade the LBs, and get a true stud safety, not a late round special teamer, street FA guy.

I don't get this.

What about our personnel is strictly 4-3?

Mario is your prototype 3-4 DE. Bulman, Cochran, and Weaver are as well. DelJuan is a legitimate NT. Ryans is a star LB in any system. Adibi and Thompson are legit 3-4 OLB. The only question I have about a hypothetical transition is Okoye and (1) he's been underperforming in the 4-3 as it is and (2) LZ thinks he's a great fit for a 3-4 for what that's worth.

We would need more depth at LB and NT, but we need that as it stands anyway. I see no reason to shy from a 3-4 DC if we think he gives us a shot at a great defense.

Plus, both the Colts and Titan offenses struggle against 3-4 D's, so that's another reason to seriously consider it.

Draft a 3-4 OLB in the first and you can roll out this front seven:

Weaver - Robinson - Williams
Adibi - Ryans - Diles - Stintim/Brown/Curry

Seems like a nice front 7 to me.

[painekiller]

Originally Posted by NBT

OH, then it was personnel on the defensive side of the ball that didn't bother to show up until the second quarter. All of a sudden the same group became headhunters, and did a better job of holding Chicago somewhat in check. NO I still think Richard Smith is to blame, and should go.

Yes it was players that decided to be big boys and tackle.

Only 3 plays on our defense could be unquestioned starters on all the playoff teams. That is a dearth of talent on that side of the ball.

Now a few of the 7 other guys are young and still learning, so they will get a pass by me, but we have to upgrade the talent. Why? Because players play, and if you sub par talent no coach can correct that.

[painekiller]

Originally Posted by nero THE zero

I don't get this.

What about our personnel is strictly 4-3?

Mario is your prototype 3-4 DE. Bulman, Cochran, and Weaver are as well. DelJuan is a legitimate NT. Diles is a star LB in any system. Adibi and Thompson are legit 3-4 OLB. The only question I have about a hypothetical transition is Okoye and (1) he's been underperforming in the 4-3 as it is and (2) LZ thinks he's a great fit for a 3-4 for what that's worth.

We would need more depth at LB and NT, but we need that as it stands anyway. I see no reason to shy from a 3-4 DC if we think he gives us a shot at a great defense.

Plus, both the Colts and Titan offenses struggle against 3-4 D's, so that's another reason to seriously consider it.

I think Mario is closer to a 3-4 OLB than a DE. Most 3-4 DE are really just quick 4-3 DTs, think Gary Walker. As for DelJaun as a 3-4 NT, not really IMO. I look at most 3-4s and see the 320+ guys at NT. Guys like Okam.

Our LBs are all 4-3 types, way top small to play in the 3-4. Adibi is not bigger than most teams SS. The LBs in a 3-4 are prototypically the larger less athletic type LBs. BTW this draft as a lot of 3-4 OLB types in it. Also the 3-4 usually is not rookie friendly in the front 7, so drafting takes time and numbers.

[nero THE zero]

Originally Posted by painekiller

I think Mario is closer to a 3-4 OLB than a DE. Most 3-4 DE are really just quick 4-3 DTs, think Gary Walker. As for DelJaun as a 3-4 NT, not really IMO. I look at most 3-4s and see the 320+ guys at NT. Guys like Okam.

Our LBs are all 4-3 types, way top small to play in the 3-4. Adibi is not bigger than most teams SS. The LBs in a 3-4 are prototypically the larger less athletic type LBs. BTW this draft as a lot of 3-4 OLB types in it. Also the 3-4 usually is not rookie friendly in the front 7, so drafting takes time and numbers.

You're right about Deljuan, I thought he was bigger than he is for some reason.

I couldn't disagree more about Mario though, how many 290lbs OLB are there? You want your 3-4 DE to do 2 things; (1) tie up blockers, (2) play the run. Mario does both of those things very well in addition to being able to beat that double teams, which would effectively give you an extra rusher on plays.

Maybe I'm wrong, but I thought you wanted your 3-4 OLB to be able to rush the passer. I was under the impression that's what their job was. That's why I think Adibi would be a good fit there. But, it is true that 3-4 OLB are DE/OLB tweeners, and that Adibi is not. So maybe he's not a good fit there. But, we do have guys like Nading and Thompson to fit that role and, like you said, this draft is very heavy in these tweeners.

Again, I think we have the personnel to run the system. We might be short on NT and LB, but that's the case in the 4-3 as it is. And if we bring in a good 3-4 coach I'm sure he could plug those holes fairly quickly.

I'd just hate to see us pass on a potentially great coach like Crennel or Mangini to settle on someone mediocre simply because we're afraid to change schemes.

[papabear]

Originally Posted by nero THE zero

I don't get this.

What about our personnel is strictly 4-3?

Mario is your prototype 3-4 DE. Bulman, Cochran, and Weaver are as well. DelJuan is a legitimate NT. Ryans is a star LB in any system. Adibi and Thompson are legit 3-4 OLB. The only question I have about a hypothetical transition is Okoye and (1) he's been underperforming in the 4-3 as it is and (2) LZ thinks he's a great fit for a 3-4 for what that's worth.

Mario would be fine as a 3-4 End...I just don't know why you want to take our only pass rush threat and put at him a position that, by design, doesn't get many sacks or chances to make big plays. He's also the only end we have that I see even having a shot as a 3-4 OLB. I don't want to take a guy who has become a dominant end and start having him do something that he has never done before by playing with his hand off the ground and dropping back into coverage.

The key to a 3-4 is the NT. If you don't have a good one, then nothing else will work. We don't have one who can play that position right now, even in the much less demanding 4-3 version. All of our DT's are better as penetrating 1 gap players...even though Smith doesn't always let them do that. 3-4 NT's are not easy to find either. A rookie is going to need quite a bit of time to grow into it and 3-4 teams aren't going to let a good one go.

Okoye, Bullman, Robinson, and Weaver would all be fine in a 3-4 at end. I don't think any of them can handle NT. I think all of our LB's are undersized for a 3-4, and I don't see any of them as a big threat pass rushing from the OLB position except Mario. I don't feel comfortable moving him there.

We've already got one Dominant end for the 4-3. A great MLB, and a young LB in Adibi who should continue to Develop. Okoye played much better over the last few games, and I hope that the light started to come on for him this year and we will start to get some ROI from him next year. We need a big hog to anchor the middle, a speed rusher specialist, and maybe one more LB. That's much easier than the major overhaul that I think we would need for a 3-4, not to mention the painful transition period. We've got a good base for a good 4-3 defense right now, and I see no reason not to build our front 7 around what we already have.

[barrett]

Originally Posted by nero THE zero

You're right about Deljuan, I thought he was bigger than he is for some reason.

I couldn't disagree more about Mario though, how many 290lbs OLB are there? You want your 3-4 DE to do 2 things; (1) tie up blockers, (2) play the run. Mario does both of those things very well in addition to being able to beat that double teams, which would effectively give you an extra rusher on plays.

Maybe I'm wrong, but I thought you wanted your 3-4 OLB to be able to rush the passer. I was under the impression that's what their job was. That's why I think Adibi would be a good fit there. But, it is true that 3-4 OLB are DE/OLB tweeners, and that Adibi is not. So maybe he's not a good fit there. But, we do have guys like Nading and Thompson to fit that role and, like you said, this draft is very heavy in these tweeners.

Again, I think we have the personnel to run the system. We might be short on NT and LB, but that's the case in the 4-3 as it is. And if we bring in a good 3-4 coach I'm sure he could plug those holes fairly quickly.

I'd just hate to see us pass on a potentially great coach like Crennel or Mangini to settle on someone mediocre simply because we're afraid to change schemes.

Just because Mario can do it does not mean it is how you want to use him. Peyton Manning CAN hand the ball off but I am not going to pay him 15 million a year to do that 50 times a game. Mario would be a wasted talent as a 3-4 End.

As for the LBs, average size for a 3-4 OLB is about 260. Adibi and Diles would have to attempt to move inside or be gone. We currently have nobody who would be a 3-4 OLB unless you go with Mario and then he has to play coverage sometimes. Not to mention that a giant NT may be piece #1 in the 3-4.

Our personnel is terrible for the switch. AND it won't happen.

[barrett]

Originally Posted by papabear

Mario would be fine as a 3-4 End...I just don't know why you want to take our only pass rush threat and put at him a position that, by design, doesn't get many sacks or chances to make big plays. He's also the only end we have that I see even having a shot as a 3-4 OLB. I don't want to take a guy who has become a dominant end and start having him do something that he has never done before by playing with his hand off the ground and dropping back into coverage.

The key to a 3-4 is the NT. If you don't have a good one, then nothing else will work. We don't have one who can play that position right now, even in the much less demanding 4-3 version. All of our DT's are better as penetrating 1 gap players...even though Smith doesn't always let them do that. 3-4 NT's are not easy to find either. A rookie is going to need quite a bit of time to grow into it and 3-4 teams aren't going to let a good one go.

Okoye, Bullman, Robinson, and Weaver would all be fine in a 3-4 at end. I don't think any of them can handle NT. I think all of our LB's are undersized for a 3-4, and I don't see any of them as a big threat pass rushing from the OLB position except Mario. I don't feel comfortable moving him there.

We've already got one Dominant end for the 4-3. A great MLB, and a young LB in Adibi who should continue to Develop. Okoye played much better over the last few games, and I hope that the light started to come on for him this year and we will start to get some ROI from him next year. We need a big hog to anchor the middle, a speed rusher specialist, and maybe one more LB. That's much easier than the major overhaul that I think we would need for a 3-4, not to mention the painful transition period. We've got a good base for a good 4-3 defense right now, and I see no reason not to build our front 7 around what we already have.

I should have read to the end of the thread to see that you already answered the post with a better version of what I was saying.