SABURZFAN Posted May 4, 2008 Share Posted May 4, 2008 I have a bad feeling this guy isnt going to translate into a legimate NFL WR. i hope you're wrong. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Captain Hindsight Posted May 4, 2008 Share Posted May 4, 2008 At least in buffalo we plan ahead If hardy is a bust then we wasted a draft pick Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
obie_wan Posted May 5, 2008 Share Posted May 5, 2008 I'm assuming this is sarcasm, however if it isn't you clearly haven't been watching any of Hardy's game film from Indiana. The guy got great separation from some of the top corners in the Big Ten, including burning Justin King from PSU for big yards. Also, Hardy runs great routes, particularly over the middle and has great hands. He also will GO UP FOR THE BALL in the endzone, something our current receivers have a lot of trouble doing. (See Lee Evans NOT even trying for a jump ball pass that was intercepted in front of him in the Dallas game last year). He also doesn't play slow. He looks slower than he moves because of his size and stride length. Like I said, I'm assuming your post was sarcastic, but felt the need to respond in the event that you were actually being serious. It's hard to tell on this board sometimes. Hardy is taller than all of the Big 10 CBs he faced, so he better come down with those passes. However, his ability to be effective outside of the endzone is a much bigger question mark. The issues I noted above are real and his production outside of the endzone will be further limited by the typical rookie WRs difficulty in adapting to the Pro game. Hardy's speed is more staraight line and he hasn't converted it well to getting off the jamb and running sharp patterns. Your problem is for your point of reference is that you are using Justin King as an example of a good CB -- not quite what hardy will be seeing on Sundays - which is why he will have trouble adjusting in 2008 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bob in STL Posted May 5, 2008 Share Posted May 5, 2008 I call bull sh--. No one can read this board for years and only now notice the immature fools. By the way...stupid topic. Why invent trouble years before you have to? Two good points here! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VOR Posted May 5, 2008 Share Posted May 5, 2008 Hardy is taller than all of the Big 10 CBs he faced, so he better come down with those passes. However, his ability to be effective outside of the endzone is a much bigger question mark. The issues I noted above are real and his production outside of the endzone will be further limited by the typical rookie WRs difficulty in adapting to the Pro game. Hardy's speed is more staraight line and he hasn't converted it well to getting off the jamb and running sharp patterns. Your problem is for your point of reference is that you are using Justin King as an example of a good CB -- not quite what hardy will be seeing on Sundays - which is why he will have trouble adjusting in 2008 Hardy will be taller than all of the CB's he'll face in the NFL as well. And with a 37" VJ... Read the negatives on Hardy on NFL.com sometime. All of the knocks on him, i.e. needs to add upper-body strength to beat the jam (he out-benched Devin Thomas BTW while none of the other top guys would do it, and if Lee Evans at 5'10" and 197# could learn to beat the jam...), running better routes, and blocking, are all things thatmost rookies struggle with, but which can be fixed/coached-up. His size/speed (and he was among the top performers in the agility drills) however cannot be taught. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
obie_wan Posted May 5, 2008 Share Posted May 5, 2008 Hardy will be taller than all of the CB's he'll face in the NFL as well. And with a 37" VJ... Read the negatives on Hardy on NFL.com sometime. All of the knocks on him, i.e. needs to add upper-body strength to beat the jam (he out-benched Devin Thomas BTW while none of the other top guys would do it, and if Lee Evans at 5'10" and 197# could learn to beat the jam...), running better routes, and blocking, are all things thatmost rookies struggle with, but which can be fixed/coached-up. His size/speed (and he was among the top performers in the agility drills) however cannot be taught. you are correct how productive he is in the NFL will depend solely on how hard he works and pushes himself to correct all of thoee deficiencies and learn the playbook inside out. He has the size and speed - chances are though that his tools do not translate to mch productivity on the field in 2008. It' all up to Hardy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VOR Posted May 5, 2008 Share Posted May 5, 2008 you are correct how productive he is in the NFL will depend solely on how hard he works and pushes himself to correct all of thoee deficiencies and learn the playbook inside out. He has the size and speed - chances are though that his tools do not translate to mch productivity on the field in 2008. It' all up to Hardy True, Hardy will need to put in the work to succeed. And that's true of any rookie/player. From the sound of it, he realizes this. But to say he won't have much productivity as a #2 WR is curious. If he were expected to be a #1 WR, I'd agree. But as a #2 WR, his main job will be to draw coverage away from Lee and to score TD's in the redzone, at least initially. Anything more than that will be a bonus. I don't see why he won't be able to do that. It's not like they can totally ignore him when he's lined-up opposite Lee. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
otisly00 Posted May 5, 2008 Author Share Posted May 5, 2008 Otis, this is your ridiculous thread. Go read your first post, slap yourself on both sides of your face, and then maybe you'll realize that it's you that needs a better grip. By the way...what if the entire LEAGUE is a bust? What if nobody can catch a pass this season? What if the Earth's crust shudders with unimaginable force as tectonic plates slip, unleashing lava flows and geysers where there were none before? Oh, and I'll take Hardy over an immature, finger-pointing Sooner with questionable knees and a one-year wonder whose best fit is a WCO. so dont read and/or respond to it if its so ridiculous. Or try catching up on what the post was meant in meaning for our # 2 WR. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sisyphean Bills Posted May 5, 2008 Share Posted May 5, 2008 Would 20 catches for 279 yards and 2 TDs be a bust or ok? Those numbers are on the low end. About double that would be very good for a rookie. Exceptional would be to post 80-100, over 1000, and 10+ TDs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fan in Chicago Posted May 5, 2008 Share Posted May 5, 2008 About double that would be very good for a rookie. Exceptional would be to post 80-100, over 1000, and 10+ TDs. If Hardy fulfills the first part (maybe a few more TDs) and Evans does the second, I will be happy with the progress. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beerball Posted May 5, 2008 Share Posted May 5, 2008 Or try catching up on what the post was meant in meaning for our # 2 WR. If I understand correctly, the meaning of this post was meant to mean that the Bills would be better off if they had hedged their bets by taking Thomas and Kelly vs. McCornerback and Hardy. Is that correct? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
otisly00 Posted May 5, 2008 Author Share Posted May 5, 2008 If I understand correctly, the meaning of this post was meant to mean that the Bills would be better off if they had hedged their bets by taking Thomas and Kelly vs. McCornerback and Hardy. Is that correct? No. I liked McCeldin, we needed a CB. Going into the draft it was obvious (and stated by DJ) that we needed a big physical WR (or TE) that could complement Lee Lee. As the days led to the draft there was more than enough discussion on who each thought was the best WR to fit our needs; along with the discussion of whether to draft in the 1st round b/c of the high probability of WR busts in the NFL. My initial reaction immediately after the draft was that i really hope Hardy pans out and takes that pressure of Lee b/c otherwise we are back to square 1. Our offense is very close to being very good IMO (I'm a fan of Trent); we just needed that one legitment physical WR opposite Lee. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beerball Posted May 5, 2008 Share Posted May 5, 2008 No. I liked McCeldin, we needed a CB. Going into the draft it was obvious (and stated by DJ) that we needed a big physical WR (or TE) that could complement Lee Lee. As the days led to the draft there was more than enough discussion on who each thought was the best WR to fit our needs; along with the discussion of whether to draft in the 1st round b/c of the high probability of WR busts in the NFL. My initial reaction immediately after the draft was that i really hope Hardy pans out and takes that pressure of Lee b/c otherwise we are back to square 1. Our offense is very close to being very good IMO (I'm a fan of Trent); we just needed that one legitment physical WR opposite Lee. OK. This is the part that cornfused me: I wouldnt mind sitting here today with Devin Thomas and Malcom Kelley on the roster...with the high probabilty of WR busts the skins hedged their bet.... I "FEEL" that Hardy will make us veddy veddy happy in the years to come. Just a hunch and I definitely wasn't sold on him prior to the draft, but I like his 'style'. I believe he's gonna work his azz off and be very good. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
otisly00 Posted May 5, 2008 Author Share Posted May 5, 2008 OK. This is the part that cornfused me: I "FEEL" that Hardy will make us veddy veddy happy in the years to come. Just a hunch and I definitely wasn't sold on him prior to the draft, but I like his 'style'. I believe he's gonna work his azz off and be very good. Believe me, I'll be the first to high five you if he turns into a solid receiver. He is def coming in with the right attitutude and seems willing to work for it. I was never bashing Hardy, I love him - he's a Bill! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
otisly00 Posted May 13, 2008 Author Share Posted May 13, 2008 I thought what better time than to get another Hardy thread at the top of the board. The title should have read - "What if Hardy is bustED" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pyrite Gal Posted May 14, 2008 Share Posted May 14, 2008 No big deal. He's a second round pick, won't make a ton of money, not a huge loss if he turns into a bust. I'd be more worried if I'm the Lions and Calvin Johnson turns into a bust. But I think people need to temper their expectations with Hardy. Almost all rookie WR's struggle. I'd be happy if all we get from him ithis year is a lot of redzone touches, and maybe 300-400 yards for the season. You are right that this is no big deal in terms of whether Hardy makes it or not. The draft system is designed in the CBA so that teams put a significant amount of $ into a draft pick, but really only so much that it keeps the salary for the best players at that position continually being amped up to satisfy the NFLPA as part of this agreement. However, the draft is set at only 7 rounds and the contracts are logged against the cap with proration so that the salary structure and competitive chances for a team are not killed by one player disappointing. The problem for the Bills though is that while it is not fatal to our cap situation at all, we unfortunately have been so at 6s and 7s with out O scheme that we have set this up so we have a ton riding on whether an unproven rookie can be our @2 WR. The strong likelihood based on past statistical accomplishments of all rookie WRs is that anybody we draft was going to be doing well if he even put up #s similar to what PP did as #2 last year. The draft is simply a crapshoot. Sometimes well regarded players turn out exactly like you want them to. Sometimes well regarded players are busts. Most of the time they disappoint in some ways and satisfy in other ways. The Bills have played with fire by getting seemingly only one player with the qualifications to be our second WR and now we are to some degree depending on him to work out even if he is that crapshoot of a well regarded rookie. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts