MasterStrategist

All your comments on coaching, I disagree with: 1. Colts game: was more about our lack of physicality. No coincidence we basically turned over the entire dline in 1 offseason. 2. 13 seconds: alot went wrong, but if you want to point a finger at coaching, then let's start with the ST coordinator....now gone. Next, looking at how we aligned to defend the chiefs, no way Wallace played his position correctly or Milano was out of position. I'd put that on players. If anything, I would have ran a 3 man line and brought in Neal as an extra DB...thats the only mistake I could see, no saying that would have worked though. 3. TB OT game: our defense shut them down most of that 2nd half. It wasn't Edmunds role to play that WR 1-1 on that play, he scraped off his "man" making it appear like it was. TB executed well and caught us in a look, I'm not blaming the staff after they made great adjustments throughout. I'm in the camp thinking we had an "average" dline last year...at times good, other times they were a liability. Coaches schemed ways to make this a #1 unit, plus below average competition at several points helped too. Let's see what happens with the makings of a more well-rounded defensive group.

On Defense: 1. Physicality up front 2. Lack of front 4 pass rush 3. Corner speed (without Tre) On Offense: 1. Lack of balanced attack (albeit mich improved in playoffs, this was on Daboll) & redzone offense. 2. More YAC/playmakers 3. OL play On defense: 1. they attacked FA to improve the top 2 areas. Very showing that they let 4 prominent P/T guys go. 2. Von brings an entire different dynamic to our pass rush, hopefully helping Oliver too. But agree with posters saying we need 1 of our 3 young guys to take a big step. 3. Elam brings speed at corner and offers alot of different coverage options. I think this will be a great area of strength once Tre is back. On offense... 1. Daboll always had a way to frustrate me, more than impress, with how he ran his offense. Yes, playoffs was fire, but he was also conservative on a few drives to start 2nd half in the KC game that hurt us. Dorset is an unknown, but hopefully he along with the additions of Howard, Cook, and others will allow us to be more balanced, and lead to more consistent results. 2. the additions of Cook/Crowder/Howard/Shakir >>>>> Breida/Beas/Sweeney/Sanders. We needed more Yac and someone other than Diggs/Josh to be top contributors. It also took forever to get McKenzie and Davis more involved in the offense, that alone should help this year 3. OL: can't say we did alot, which may be ok and again probably my least concern. But will say Saffold >>>> Williams, OL continuity is a great thing, Bates helped our OL click toward end of year, and bringing back Kromer should only help. I'm hopeful for players such as: Brown, Bates, and Ford (yes him too). My biggest concern is backup C, maybe Mancz is good enough to be the man, but I don't like the idea of Bates being the backup there.

I look at this way: 1. AJE is still 'young'/developing: we all know by now that his rookie nfl strength/conditioning did not go to plan. Extreme weight loss/COVID forced these guys to spend much more time "virtually". He showed brief flashes last season/overall improvement, I think it's worth being patient to see if that continues. 2. Dline rotation: we know that our dline rotates heavily. Need 4 solid players. He's in competition for #3 role, but he's also 1 injury away from being "for sure" in our top 4, for those viewing him and Shaq as competing for the 4th spot. Likely to keep 5 DEs on the 53 roster as well. 3. Trade value: what do we truly gain by trading a depth/young developing piece? You risk jumping the gun perse, and becoming a Wyatt Teller/Jerry Hughes type. But let's say AJE is already close or at his ceiling, what position would we target? OL - maybe, DB - not likely, unless Tre is behind rehab schedule. Bottom line, I see more value in seeing if he turns into a valuable piece. Too quick to give up on a player at a premium position, on a cheap rookie deal, and think that whoever we trade for will make this team/receive PT similar to what AJE likely will. After this season, sure.

Just my opinion: 1. AJE is a near lock, he isn't getting cut...I'd take that to the bank. Heading into year 3, Beane isn't going to give up on him. Maybe next year, if he doesn't perform. 2. Crowder is a surefire lock: Beane specifically signed him as our replacement in the slot. Shakir is a 5th round pick, yes I have hopes for him, but historically Coach has brought rookies along slowly at WR and I'm not expecting our best slot WR to be cut. Shakir will be the #4, just as Beane stated recently. 3. Quessenberry is 'meh': Agree he's not a lock, but likely one of our top 8. I'd actually consider Ford more of a lock, go listen to Beane and he isn't going to give up on him yet. Ford has 'starting talent', obviously not reached that potential, but hopeful with a healthy offseason+Kromer, it will make a difference. Mentioned Ford above, but also would consider Moss and Hamlin locks. Again, Beane didn't mince words saying Moss was still battling back from his ankle surgery. Hamlin is going to eventually be a starter for us, maybe a season or two away.

I agree. The Hill/Kelce combo was lethal, perfect compliments to each other. Add in Mahomes unique/great skills and Andy Reid, one of the best offensive minds, and you have a near unstoppable offense. Great pass rush is the only thing that can slow it down. Trading Hill will cost them in the near term. I'm predicting them to finish 3rd in the division, behind the Chargers and Broncos. Afc West is loaded, and everyone is gunning for KC.

Fantastic analysis and write-up! I'm really interested how they use all their WRs this season. Thought they did a great job adding complimentary pieces, that will allow them to be extremely versatile with sub-packages. I'm not ruling out Speedy having a great camp. He impressed until he was injured last year, and was a standout playmaker at Houston. Battle for the 6th WR spot, and seeing if they keep a 7th WR again, will be fun to watch.

Some guys are more "football fast", than track speed guys. At least in Speedy's situation, he went out for track when in high-school and wasn't considered a great "out of the blocks" type. So I could see why he doesn't time in the 40, as expected. Hoping both these guys turn in great camps, we can find a spot for both of them on the 53. Speedy can play outside, but he's more a slot type as well. Pretty certain that the coaching staff was working him into the Mck offensive role last year. But it wouldn't surprise me to see him excel in year 2, he needed some nfl training, getting off the press and route tee combinations that he didn't necessarily get accustomed to in Houston. Hope he can crack the 53 again, and think he's a much better returner than the small sample size we saw in the Reg season.

Yeah I don't think the coaches had alot of confidence in Kleins coverage/zone fit in our defense. He was very instinctive, but if he took 1 falsestep, he didn't possess the speed/quickness to recover. Hence his use in blitzing, which he did well. We got lucky several times his man dropped the ball out of the backfield, ie: Patriots playoff game. Enter Bernard, who has been talked up a superb leader, great instincts, strong blitz ability for the position (which alot of this is instincts/timing), and coverage skills. Gives McD alot more options to take Taron off the field against 12 personnel (which NE will run alot of) and replaces Klein at a reasonable cost. Win/Win

Completely agree. He's a super competitive player, not sure why he was getting labeled "soft" (maybe just a myth on these boards). I'm most excited about the complimentary skills he brings. Tre locks down the quick/shifty receivers extremely well, but Levi struggled with defending any players with 'length', ie: Claypool, Parker, etc. Really gives Frazier/Mcd alot more versatility/flexibility with playcalling. Not to get off the Elam topic, but that was a theme this draft...get morr athletic and create a lot of scheme versatility. Might be that we haven't had a roster this talented in a long time, but I really liked the overall draft strategy.

Yes, Crowder and Shakir can play outside. Maybe not fulltime, but either could play 20-30% of their snaps in that role. Which is what each has basically done historically. That would leave say maybe 50% of snaps to "potentially replace". But then keeping in mind Diggs moves around the offense alot (ie: motion to the "#2", lines up in the slot), we run bunch formations (which IMO who cares who is the "1/outside"), line up a TE or RB at the "1", etc. So in reality, we don't need to fully replace Diggs or Davis outside snaps with a similar/same player, many options exist to mitigate a short-injury duration (ie 2-3 weeks). Kumerow may not be ideal, but serviceable, if called upon. Speedy is a huge unknown, he was liked enough to keep on the 53 and coming off a foot injury that possibly kept him from being at full health last year. He's likely a "slot guy" too. He struggles when pressed, hopefully something he improved with a year of NFL tutelage. He can be a playmaker for us, another McKenzie type. Long way of me saying, I think we run enough "empty" sets that favor versatile playmakers. We can split out Cook, Motor, Knox, OJ (doesn't have to always be Diggs or Gabe), and feature our slot guys as well (we have an abundance of them). Key thing is getting more RAC/YAC this year.

Yes, only if Dion goes down. I'm not advocating for Brown as our swing tackle. He's our 2nd best LT on the roster

1. Backup LT: Spencer Brown, they will either plug Quesenberry in at RT, or if Doyle progresses then Tommy. 2. Backup Outside WR: not sure why this is so complicated, we can bump Shakir and/or Crowder outside, not full time but 20-30% snaps per game. In addition, we split out a TE or RB to the "1" position alot in our empty sets. Same as last year when Manny was around, Shakir/Crowder will fill his role. Then yes, Jake will get some time if needed. 3. Backup S: Yes, IMO, Hamlin could be our starter in another year or so. He and Johnson certainly capable of filling in, not all pro, but Dane Jackson level talent. So yes better than the DBs you listed. 4. Backup G: this is the one position I agree I'm concerned with depth, however Beane specifically mentioned Cody in his post-draft presser as a player they expect to improve this season. I'm still not investing in a Rd 1/2 G though. Sweet spot would have been Round 3, but they liked Bernard. Quesenberry can kick inside to G as well. New coaches want "their guys", so I trust Kromer had plenty of say in what he needs up front. Potentially Boetgger is ready midway through season as well. 5. Zone CB philosophy: we've "managed" the CB position in past years, but that hasn't got us over the top. We need talent at both corner spots against top tier QBs, plain and simple. You should go back and watch the Kc game, then listen to Beane and McD post season presser and pre-draft presser. All point to this team needing more "speed and versatility", and continuing to get after the QB upfront. Which is exactly what they achieved, via FA and draft.

Agree, good call out! We have almost exclusively run 4-2-5, a base nickle package, the past few years....that people sometimes forget that McD ran an athletic 4-3 defense in Carolina before joining us. Just need the right blend of LBs, which we might have now.

Im hoping Tre is back week 1, as that is what Beane said this week. And I never said the season was over last year without Tre, not sure where you pulled that comment from. You just are making up things now. You list WR, LT, DE, S, and G. That's all i need to know about your misguided opinion. You say round 1 should be used on high-price FA types, then jnclude S and G? Newsflash, we just drafted two DEs last year, let them develop, not to mention signing Von Miller. I could go the list of positions that you listed and do the exact same thing. G, I would give you, but again I'm picking CB over G all day, unless thr player value doesn't align. There were 0 Gs left worth taking at that point, Beane even stated Elam was their last 1st round graded player remaining on the board (hence the trade up). You picked a strange hill to die on, with these arguments with everyone. Let's see how things play out. Unlike your poor memory accusing me of what I said (didnot) about Tre, I will remember to carry on this conversation once season starts.

You are incorrect in alot of this, just my opinion. There are two ways to improve the roster, FA and draft. If you disagree that we should have targeted a CB in FA, fine name him. But we had a HUGE hole at corner. As you said, "if we were a press man" team, well now we have thr ability to run more multiple looks on defense, ie: man, press man, press zone. Not to mention that big/long WRs killed Levi. Who cares about scheme, Devante Parker owned Levi as did Claypool in game 1 against Steelers...cost us big. Elam fixes that problem and gives us much needed skill at that position group. You don't overload talent at a single position, and leave a gaping hole elsewhere. That's like building a pool, while your basement is flooded. Not a good investment, and "balance" while improving the team with quality players is key.

Great analysis. 1. WR (outside depth): I'm less concerned about this. Shakir can play both, same with Crowder, albeit not their best positions. Remembering we are basically in the same boat as last year, minus Manny and Beas...where Crowder/Shakir can be the Manny replacement and Beas never could translate to outside. We also have plenty of ways of "splitting out" Dawson, Cook, Oj etc 2. I know nothing about Tenuta, except the VT coaches raved about him, ie: Teller esque praise, but that's all to say he will be a developmental project that has an outside shot of the final lineman slot. 3. Speed and versatility: the type of players that we added, just speaks to the job Beane does to improve weaknesses and continue evolving this roster. My biggest beef with last year's draft, was lack of speed that we added...it was a meat/potato draft. This year we get our dessert and the speed should be apparent early in the season. 4. Immediate value/complimentary players: should see many guys contribute this season, but I'm most excited about the complimentary skills they added to current position groups, ie: speed/receiving back, press corner ability, Yac receiving skills, etc. Going to be a fun/athletic group.

Thanks for the great analysis and write up! Agree with alot of your thoughts. My review: 1. We had 1 pressing need entering the draft, and we took care of that Round 1. 2. If there were two "traits" that I thought we needed to address in the offseason, they were team speed and physicality in the trenches. Physicality was addressed via FA, and we GREATLY improved team speed on both sides of the ball through the draft. I'm always optimistic that we nailed the draft, and it likely be a few years before we know for sure which team "won" the draft. But I'm confident our first two picks will bring immediate value.

Completely agree. On top of this, McDermott and the Baylor coach have a great relationship. It helps to know you can trust a college coach who has seen him develop for multiple years, how he approaches practice/leadership, etc. We need to wait and see what role the coaches have in mind, but these are all valuable for a 3rd rounder: 1. Primary LB backup and STs: we know Milano has issues staying healthy for all 17 games, need a more athletic/cheaper replacement for Klein. 2. Certain coverage/3rd down packages: he could be a mathchup dependent chess piece, ie: against talented TEs, or could be deployed in the "Zo" role and how they used Klein at times, as an edge rusher/blitz packages. Kid has the athletic/leadership traits to be a good player, might need time to get stronger but coaches will find a role for him. We needed more team speed on defense, he's a piece toward that.

Wait a minute....so round 1 an athletic corner, with man/zone press skills and recovery speed. Then now this is round 3, an instinctive cover LB who can lock up on TEs. Seems like we are trying to fix something that must have been a glaring weakness against KC. Not sure why so many feel the need to say "I had so and so as a 6th rounder", or what value is he going to bring. Hello, Beane and staff know what they're doing, and have a plan to keep adding the necessary pieces to put us over the top. I'm sure if you go back and rematch thr KC game, our lack of speed on defense will stand out in more than 1 occasion. We needed to fix that, and our physicality at the DT spots...check and check

If Skyy Moore is still available at our pick, he would be an instant playmaker from the slot and someone that Diggs could groom for future outside role.

Agree, about the 4th being valuable. However, disagree with the rest. Elam is extremely hard-working, already has a professional attitude and likely will have his "fundamental flaws" coached out of him by the end of training camp. He's going to start and be a good one for a while. Giving up the 4th round pick to secure the player they wanted (many will also say 'needed'), is the price Beane was willing to pay. He's earned my trust, especially given their track record with secondary acquisitions.

Dalton can play multiple, but likely going to be a safety with Bates in Cincy

Great press zone/man type, with loads of athletic ability. Let's not forget what happened against KC, getting absolutely toasted by Hill and Kelce. We had a HUGE need for speed, both at CB and playmakers. 2nd rounder will be a speed guy on offense.

Willis to Steelers will happen, if he's on the board. Steelers might even move up a few spots for him. He's exactly what Tomlin wants, and with Colberts last year as their GM, I think he will look for the next franchise QB to add onto his legacy there.

I think it was postponed, back in January...so sorta old news. But agree, frustrating to many and prayers to the kids/family.