Paup 1995MVP

I was talking w people about Shavers also. He had a big game against Tampa Bay. And then we did not throw to him against Houston or Pittsburgh. And finally threw one time to him on the sidelines, on a back shoulder throw in the second half against Cinci. Give the guy some targets. Lets see what he can do with a full route tree. Maybe he can be a solid top 4 receiver if we throw to him more then a dozen times a year.

People are not overly pessimistic. We want a championship. Nothing wrong with that. We haven't played in the Super Bowl since after the 1993 season. That is over a generation ago. We are an intense rabid fan base. Most NFL teams, in fact most sports franchises have that kind of fan base. We live and die each week with our team's results. The coaching has been good, but not great in the McDermott era. The roster has been good in certain areas, great at QB, and lacking in others. Two that really come to mind is at WR and DE. We are seriously lacking playmakers at WR, and our pass rush is terrible. And this has gone on for several years now. And is a serious fail on our GM. There is nothing wrong with fans critiquing the team. That's what's fun about being a fan. We go through the misery of the losses, and don't get paid to do it. But most of us get tremendous joy out of the big wins. The wins this year over Baltimore, Carolina, Tampa Pittsburgh and especially KC and Cinci were awesome. (The Cinci game was easily top 5 in entertainment value in the league this year) I think this era has been very good and fun to be a part of, because of #17 and #4. But we need to at least get to the Super Bowl to call any era amazing.

Josh is having a much better year than Mahomes. We literally have next to nothing at WR on the roster (Shakir is Ok, but they have dumbed him down by at least 3 notches with the routes they have him running) and he is still making plays and finding people open all over the field. And when they are not, he is running as well as he ever has. There is no QB teams want to face less on their pure talent in the NFL than Josh Allen. Sure Stafford and Maye are having great years. But my god, look at the receivers they have to throw to.

I don't think we win despite McDermott. I think he has us prepared most weeks to compete. He has become more aggressive in going for it on 4th down, which I like. I do not like him taking time outs on defense in the second half before the end of the game when we are losing, like he did twice against Cincinnati. Lets see the game plan and mindset we bring against New England this week. Everyone seems to think Vrabel is such a great coach. McDermott has a chance to show the NFL world that he can go toe to toe against Vrabel. The results will be interesting. I do agree with your last statement. We definitely do not have any consistently great players on defense. We don't even have any consistently very good players on defense. Benford can be that. And Shaq Thompson is a consistently good player. And Ed Oliver and Bishop should be that. Bishop could approach Benford's level if he keeps on an upward trajectory. And I would go out on a small limb to say that Hancock and Hairston could very well be consistently good by next year. But we do need better play from our D line. And that seems to be more on Beane than McDermott.

I think Johnson's height and weight are not 5'11 and 192 pounds. I think watching enough NFL you can get a pretty good feel for the height and weight of most players. Johnson at most looks 5'9 and 180 pounds. I think he looks smaller then Cam Lewis. A safety group next year of Bishop Hancock Savage and either Hamlin or Poyer, and draft a prospect with some length sounds good to me.

Come on man. The guy is under 5’9. He is not playing safety on an NFL team. Or college for that matter. Time to let him go. And send Cam Lewis w him. They can’t cover anyone in the NFL at this point.

How about we worry about beating Cincinnati and New England. Let’s get on a roll and it shouldn't matter who we play in the playoffs. We have 5 regular season games left. Just enjoy the ride.

What year was that? Was that under Marty Schottenheimer, Bobby Ross, Mike McCoy, or maybe Norv Turner as head coach?

We had best be able to cover Hollins. Hard to believe but we are #1 in pass defense in the NFL. Probably still bottom 5 against the run. But the group we have in the secondary right now seems to be doing a pretty good job. Did Bosa hurt his hamstring late in the game? Lets hope he heals faster then Kincaid. Anyone have an update on Ms Kincaid? (That's Bill Parcells would call him. LOL) That guy is as fragile as a china doll. We could really use him on the field. I forgot about Morgan Fox. Has he had some good seasons in the NFL? Wasn't he on the 2021 Rams super bowl team, and played a lot of snaps on their D line?

I am more concerned about containing Mayes and his receivers. NE doesn't run great, but they give Maye all sorts of time. And their receivers are always open. I would load up and rush 5 on every play from all different angles. A couple of big shots on Maye is what's needed. Teams almost never send the house anymore. I think if a team started using the 46 defense of yesteryear, it would take some time for offenses to adjust. You just can't drill the QB under the chin anymore like the 85 Bears did constantly. But you can still bring heat. I am surprised that no DC's study that, and come up with a modern version. Instead they lay back and play a shell. Good offenses will bleed you to death like the Pats do. And then take shots over the top when you bring LB's up on the short stuff. I don't like Trey White against either the Bengals or Pats. They will target him.

Why can't we do the same with VandeMark? He will do just as well as Dawkins at this point in their careers. But agree with your premise that we need to come in takings shots down the field. If I am Al Golden the DC for Cinci, I am certainly loading the box. And the Bills had best be prepared. If not, fire Brady at halftime. (I would absolutely love that.)

I am a Michigan alumni. He was real good leading us to the Nat Championship. But again at Michigan we do not run a modern passing offense. He has the tools, arm strength, leadership, energy, and can move. But it remains to be seen if he can become the guy in Minnesota, or someplace else. Fingers crossed. Because I really like the kid. Its funny we used to pass the ball at Michigan a lot better. I was there from 83-87. And Harbaugh was our QB in 84-86. He broke his arm against MSU in 84. And we ended up 6-6. But played BYU in the Holiday Bowl when they had Robby Boscoe and won the Nat Championship after beating us. But their O lineman were holding us on every dropback. And then in 85 and 86 Harbaugh was chucking it all over the field. And was a gunslinger for that era. He ended up being drafted in the late 1st round after his career at Michigan. And was a good NFL starting QB. And then we had Brian Griese lead us to the 1997 Nat Championship. And he threw well for us. Especially out of play action. Think of a more mobile Jared Goff. And then Harbaugh comes and coaches us and we become ground and pound. (hope you appreciate some Michigan football history. Go Blue!!)

A great group?? That’s comical to even mention the word great when talking about our receivers. They border on non existent since Kincaid went down. He at least opens things up in the middle of the field. It’s a must that we get them going to a degree over the next few weeks. We will continue to run against Cinci and NE. But we will have to mix in some deeper pass plays to keep teams off balance when they stack the box. Any OC and HC should know that. And Josh Allen has to dominate w his legs. We have no other choice given how meh the WR group is as a whole.

So we like players because they do community stuff. But all of them pretty much go and see sick kids and hand out turkeys to the poor at Thanksgiving? That’s kind of standard operating procedure for most athletes. No reason to Keep his fat ass overrated hype on the team after this year. He is a mediocre player at this point. Do any of them hang in strip clubs anymore like PacMan Jones? Maybe the Dolphins. lol😂😂

He sure did against the Bears opening night in the 4th qtr. The kid has moxie. Their O line has been lousy. All he ever hears is how Minnesota should have kept Darnold. The kid is just 22. He did not play in an airial circus at Michigan. It was kind of like…our passing game this year. Give him an offseason to get comfortable. The kid is going to eventually ball out.