Day-umm.

trouble is Heath is having(had) some kinda surgery ... been seeing mention of if and it's discussed in a thread on this board. sounds serious and perhaps he can't play this coming season. don't think you use a draft pick at #14 on that kind of player unless he is an Earl Campbell. Matt Jones mite be real interesting at some point. it'll be interesting to see where mocks see him going after his combine performance. in any case, i agree with ya that it would be nice to have a great pass-catching TE. there are also a couple of others that are being mentioned as possible 2nd rd picks.

mangum is a very good blocker but he is no threat in the passing game. seidman has not looked good but he looks to have potential and he was coming off injury. i have my doubts on him but a lot of players have really improved under fox. he does have size and hands and looks fluid so who knows. i really like gaines but the staff seemed to get down on him last year. i'm hoping that it was a huge learning experience for him and he makes giant strides this year.

i think we have still have needs this year and won't be drafting BPA if it doesn't fit an immediate need ... we will be looking at impact this year with at least the first pick and then possibly immediate replacements for next year.

my figuring, which to date this offseason has been crap ('cept for letting Moose go and getting an OL in FA though i'm still stunned that they would up for such a good young one):

critical: FS, WR (Ricky needs to retire; don't think we can count on Carter)

possibly critical: RB (if Davis isn't going to mack it back; the thought of going into the playoffs with goings as our starter and/or our only decent back makes me uncomfortable), RT (if wahle is truly the LG), SS (future need? or immediate), LB (if we don't retain Fields)

other: DT, backup C
wishful: TE

i think rite now i'm wishing for FS (Rolle), RB (thrilled with any of the big 3) or WR (clayton) with that first pick. SS (Davis) would be strong second. kinda worried about Johnson (DT) and don't see any others that would seem to either have a possiblity to fall to us or rate high enough to take with the first pick and fill a need. but, am waiting on Mags to tell us who would be good value at our pick.

 

I thought Siedman was coming on towards the end of the year. Sometimes these guys take longer than a year to get back to form after an injury.

 

Especially considering TE's get treated like red-headed stepchildren in this offense. Seidman can play, when given a chance. He's not Gates, but Gates wouldn't be Gates in this offense. He's completely adequate for the power run and an occasional outlet receiver.

 

Disagree.

In one day, we've got high end bookend tackles (yeah, I know Wahle's penciled in at LG, but I'm not buying it yet) and corners, and all four are under 30 years old. That's a quality move right there.

RMJ proved last year the equalizer for his lack of height was aggressive bump and run coverage. Once that was taken away, his game suffered. His best shot to contribute now is in the slot, and we needed bigger talent on the outside. Lucas fits the bill.

That one move could have a snowball effect on the rest of the defense, and even the offense. Tighter coverage means three things: 1) more turnovers, 2) more DL production, and 3) fewer defensive snaps.

That means more ball control for the offense, and more time to run, thereby lessening (but not eliminating) the need for redundant top end WR's. The reverse is not true.

 

I was not aware he had injury issues. Certainly not a 1st round pick if he might miss the entire season.

I wish there was more talent at linebacker available. I am more worried about our future at linebacker than WR, particularly in light of the Wahle and Lucas contracts. If we do resign Fields you have to wonder how many years he can still contribute. If Witherspoon gets a decent offer I'm not sure we will be able to match it. If he does not get a offer and we retain him under a 1-year contract tender then what happens next year. I believe this is Morgan's final season. It's difficult to imagine us signing both Witherspoon and Morgan to long term extensions this year or next. So, it's a real possibility that as early as the 2006 season we won't have Spoon, Morgan or Fields. I sure would like to bring a top young linebacker into the fold this year.

 

There's probably a huge drop-off after Derrick Johnson, so I think a LB at 14 would most likely be a reach.

 

That's exactly why I said I wish there was more talent available at linebacker. There simply won't be someone there in the first round and I really see a linebacker problem for us in the very near future. If Morgan stays healthy.....a real long shot......but if......then he's going to command a HUGE contract and I don't see how we will be able to do it. If he has a huge year and stays healthy....and his contract is up after next season (not sure), then I will be the 1st to predict Morgan will be Franchised. I have a bad feeling that were going to lose Witherspoon, but I will keep my hopes up. It would be awesome to see Fields, Morgan, Witherspoon play together for a couple more years, but it just does not seem very realistic.

 

Sorry, I skimmed right over that part about wishing for more LB prospects.

 

I just checked nflpa.org and based on the that site Morgan's last year under contract is 2005. Do you think we can afford to keep Fields, Morgan and Spoon? Fields is a FA, Spoon is a RFA and Morgan is in the last year of his deal. I am worrying to much or is our linebacking corps about to see a major face lift?

 

It's quite possible, I'm hoping we can get something long-term worked out with Spoon before the 1-year tender runs out. I figure we'll take a cautious approach with Morgan considering his injury problems. I figure one of them will end up leaving, especially if Morgan stays healthy all year and puts up monster numbers like Moose did. I think it's more important to keep Spoon in the long run. He's shown the ability to play inside or outside, and other than overplaying his gap sometimes, he's generally in the right place. I'd almost try Morgan outside if Fields ends up leaving, but Fields is our best choice to cover TEs. I think Morgan would be an awesome weakside backer, like Derrick Brooks. He'd be in the position to make lots of plays, but weakside is the best position for Spoon too, so who the fuck knows.

Also the huge deal that Antonio Pierce and Trotter signed will skew the numbers for big-time LBs in the future.

I think I'd like to get that guy from So. Miss in the 3rd, Boley I think is his name.