James Hardy Analysis

[Steely Dan]

Amen! Particularly with wideouts, who almost always take a couple of years to adjust to the NFL. And that goes for many of the good/great ones that have come in the league in the past.

 

It is too early to grade him but I don't think it's out of line to expect a bit more from him so far this year.

 

 

4th rounder I believe from Kutztown State. I think we took a WR in the third before him

 

You're right about Reed and the third rounder was Chris Burkett. The fact you can't remember him says a lot about his time in Buffalo. The only thing I remember about him is that he cried about Kelly throwing more to Reed than him. I wonder why?

 

 

I posted the same thing a few weeks ago and got slammed by people just like many have done about this guys article.

 

We all get it people, it takes WR's more time to develop. Problem is time won't create the athleticism to gain separation. It is so incredibly obvious Hardy lacks athleticism. He can't make cuts, he can't accelerate, and he can't out run people. Hardy will be out of football in 4 years or less.

 

Hardy isn't a good route runner and running routes well does create separation. He has the tools he just needs to hone his skills.

 

The cool thing about Johnson's emergence is that he's 6'2" and adds what Hardy can't add this season. He's 3-4" shorter than Hardy but at 6'2" he is 4" taller than Reed and Evans.

[thewildrabbit]

I posted the same thing a few weeks ago and got slammed by people just like many have done about this guys article.

 

We all get it people, it takes WR's more time to develop. Problem is time won't create the athleticism to gain separation. It is so incredibly obvious Hardy lacks athleticism. He can't make cuts, he can't accelerate, and he can't out run people. Hardy will be out of football in 4 years or less.

I sorta doubt that statement will hold up. The guy was a monster in collage and just needs to work on his route running and reads.

The only way he turns into a bust is if he fails to learn and or suffers a career ending injury. Given time he should be ok

[H2o]

T.J. Houshmanzadeh would look GREAT opposite Lee Evans. FA this upcoming offseason. WE NEED TO GET THIS DONE

[eliteqb]

what does rotoworld know about football ? They're the guys who cleaned out my sewer drain...

[Flutie Flakes]

There were a few other receivers that I would have preferred over Hardy but hindsight is 20-20. I will say however, that I was not excited about picking him up in the draft. He has all of the physical intangibles to be an above average WR as a pro.

 

What he appears to lack is HEART and PASSION.

 

I agree with the other posters that it is far too early to render a verdict on this guy and hopefully with time, he develops. Many of us had the same opinions about Josh Reed who has been a pleasant surprise as of late.

[commish95]

Took this from the Other Hardy post. Comments made by Tolbert.

 

“You’ve got guys who haven’t even played that are rookies,” Tolbert said. “Some guys who are rookies have sparingly played and some rookies have played a lot. I think it’s different with every team and every particular individual.

 

“We’re fortunate to have guys who can step in there and play and James can learn from those guys and kind of grow. He’s doing a good job of that. Nobody works harder than James on and off the field. He stays late, comes early. He has a laptop and he has all our cut-ups on it and he looks at it at home. Lee goes to his house and helps him study film. He works at it hard. It just takes longer than some guys than others.”

[VOR]

The only other realistic choice for the Bills was Limas Sweed, and he's done even less than Hardy. Royal and Jackson weren't going to be drafted by the Bills, and Royal's production has been a complete surprise. In relation to the WR draft class and what the Bills were looking for, you can't say Hardy was a bad pick (or you could say they all were bad picks outside of Royal, Jackson, Nelson and Avery, with the latter 2 going after the Bills picked), especially considering he's tied for 2nd in TD's among rookies with 2, and has 1 less TD than Evans.

 

But I've become tired of the coaching staff these past 4 weeks, in combination with what I saw last year. They are slow/unable to recognize talent on their own team unless injuries force their hands. They aren't good at halftime adjustments, much less on-the-fly adjustments. And they seem loathe to change. Despite Trent's poor play the past 4 weeks, at any time they could have inserted JP as a spark. They could and should have replaced McGee with McKelvin in the Miami game. There should be better game and clock management. Better challenges. Maybe a more fiery guy (behind closed doors) who will put fear into players. I don't know, but I'm praying that Jauron didn't get the extension and he's shown the door at the end of the year, unless the Bills make the playoffs, which seems remote (although I don't expect them to go far in them if they do).

[Thurman#1]

I sorta doubt that statement will hold up. The guy was a monster in collage and just needs to work on his route running and reads.

The only way he turns into a bust is if he fails to learn and or suffers a career ending injury. Given time he should be ok

 

 

 

 

An awful lot of promising young WRs never learn route-running to an NFL standard. And that includes many very high draft picks. We can only guess and hope.

[Thurman#1]

The only other realistic choice for the Bills was Limas Sweed, and he's done even less than Hardy. Royal and Jackson weren't going to be drafted by the Bills, and Royal's production has been a complete surprise. In relation to the WR draft class and what the Bills were looking for, you can't say Hardy was a bad pick (or you could say they all were bad picks outside of Royal, Jackson, Nelson and Avery, with the latter 2 going after the Bills picked), especially considering he's tied for 2nd in TD's among rookies with 2, and has 1 less TD than Evans.

 

But I've become tired of the coaching staff these past 4 weeks, in combination with what I saw last year. They are slow/unable to recognize talent on their own team unless injuries force their hands. They aren't good at halftime adjustments, much less on-the-fly adjustments. And they seem loathe to change. Despite Trent's poor play the past 4 weeks, at any time they could have inserted JP as a spark. They could and should have replaced McGee with McKelvin in the Miami game. There should be better game and clock management. Better challenges. Maybe a more fiery guy (behind closed doors) who will put fear into players. I don't know, but I'm praying that Jauron didn't get the extension and he's shown the door at the end of the year, unless the Bills make the playoffs, which seems remote (although I don't expect them to go far in them if they do).

 

 

 

Perhaps narrowing the choices down to only tall WRs was a mistake. I know I would trade Hardy for DeSean Jackson right now, and I liked DeSean before the draft too. We didn't need a tall reciever as much as we needed a good reciever. Maybe Hardy will become one. But it's far from a sure thing. And at this point, Jackson is a sure thing.

[commish95]

Perhaps narrowing the choices down to only tall WRs was a mistake. I know I would trade Hardy for DeSean Jackson right now, and I liked DeSean before the draft too. We didn't need a tall reciever as much as we needed a good reciever. Maybe Hardy will become one. But it's far from a sure thing. And at this point, Jackson is a sure thing.

 

 

Then you must not like Parrish?

 

 

Well Jackson might Florish in this offense now that Trent likes to check down 95% of the Time.

[Max997]

He is a rookie. He played like a rookie. I don't see anything wrong with how he is playing. Maybe Royal has better stats, but it is more of an exception. How about Malcolm Kelly, Devin Thomas, Mario Manningham, and Limas Sweed? Did anyone look up their stats?

 

The big difference between Hardy and the guys you mentioned is that Hardy has been given a chance and has done little with it. Kelly has been hurt and Thomas and Sweed have just started to see the field.

 

The fact is Hardy is not athletically gifted enough to play WR in the NFL with his size. He looks slow and lumbers more like a TE then a WR and that is exactly why I didnt want the Bills to draft him.

[Big Turk]

I guess a side point that the article is making is that a 7th round rookie appears to be ahead of the 2nd round rookie on the depth chart.

 

True, but many thought Johnson could/should have gone much higher as he did well against good teams and other NFL caliber players in the SEC. He torched a few higher drafted CB's while at Kentucky, so its not like he should be that under the radar. Honestly not sure why he lasted that long...the guy has some skills...

[BuffaloBill]

eddie royal would not look good here. he is the same the same type of receiver lee evans and roscoe parish are. he is a small burner with the ability to hit the long ball at anytime. if u read that more carefully u would see that it says "perfect fit oppsosite Brandon Marshall", who is 6'4 and 220 lbs. What we need is that Brandon Marshall type of receiver thats a "perfect fit opposite Lee Evans"

 

 

Lee Evans and rosoe Parrish are not the same receiver. Roscoe is a return specialist (punt returns at that) that has never proven to be an effective receiver.

[BuffaloBill]

True, but many thought Johnson could/should have gone much higher as he did well against good teams and other NFL caliber players in the SEC. He torched a few higher drafted CB's while at Kentucky, so its not like he should be that under the radar. Honestly not sure why he lasted that long...the guy has some skills...

 

 

In each draft there always seems to be a pleasant suprise. Johnson is this year's. Problem is that nobody else has hit full stride yet and the Bills really needed a good draft. We,ve lost ground on the rest of the AFC east again.

[VOR]

In each draft there always seems to be a pleasant suprise. Johnson is this year's. Problem is that nobody else has hit full stride yet and the Bills really needed a good draft. We,ve lost ground on the rest of the AFC east again.

McKelvin, Hardy, Fine, Corner, and Johnson have all shown flashes of ability. Bell looks like a good developmental prospect. Omon is largely unknown and Bowen got injured. I'd say that only Ellis has been a disappointment.

[flomoe]

That's a fair point. But in Steve Johnson, we may well have gotten a much better football player than you'd typically expect from the seventh round. Add in the fact that Johnson played in a more sophisticated college offense than did Hardy (and is thus more NFL-ready), and there you go.

 

There is a potential problem for Hardy though. If all the Bills' receivers were healthy, the best WR combination they could put on the field would be Evans, Reed, and Johnson. Evans is a proven WR, and Reed has quietly become an effective slot WR. It would be very difficult for Hardy to unseat either of those two.

 

The problem for Hardy is that while he may eventually become a good WR, he clearly isn't one right now. If his learning process takes too long, Johnson may secure one of the top three WR positions. If Johnson becomes a known commodity, if he proves to be a solid player, do you honestly think this coaching staff would send him to the bench in favor of a comparatively unknown Hardy?

 

Hardy had better hurry up and learn fast. Because once Johnson gets entrenched in one of the top three WR positions, he could be very difficult for Hardy to push past.

 

I guess it doesn't matter that the Bills don't have an offensively philosophy or a QB to get any of them the damn ball. It's a moot point at this stage of the game. Shoulda, coulda.woulda.

 

Might sound good tossing out names but if they only see the ball within 5-10 yards of the line of scrimmage and standing there waiting for it, what difference does it make. This offense, Quarterback and Team is built around mediocrity at this point. The talent is there, it's just not be used to it's potential.

[VOR]

I guess it doesn't matter that the Bills don't have an offensively philosophy or a QB to get any of them the damn ball. It's a moot point at this stage of the game. Shoulda, coulda.woulda.

 

Might sound good tossing out names but if they only see the ball within 5-10 yards of the line of scrimmage and standing there waiting for it, what difference does it make. This offense, Quarterback and Team is built around mediocrity at this point. The talent is there, it's just not be used to it's potential.

I disagree. The big plays are there. It was expected that Trent would take a step forward this year and start looking downfield more. He hasn't.

[flomoe]

I disagree. The big plays are there. It was expected that Trent would take a step forward this year and start looking downfield more. He hasn't.

 

 

I guess my point is..... The talent is there (on the field or on the bench), it's just not being utilized. The stubborness of the owner, front office and coaches, from top on down, seem to be keeping this team mediocre.

 

The same issues were being discussed with JP in there, so obviously either there is a problem evaluating talent at the most key position on the team.................or.......................it's a coaching problem.

[VOR]

I guess my point is..... The talent is there (on the field or on the bench), it's just not being utilized. The stubborness of the owner, front office and coaches, from top on down, seem to be keeping this team mediocre.

 

The same issues were being discussed with JP in there, so obviously either there is a problem evaluating talent at the most key position on the team.................or.......................it's a coaching problem.

My biggest fault with the coaches the past 4 weeks has been their refusal to make changes, like replacing McGee with McKelvin against the Dols or bench Trent in the Jets, Pats, or Browns game. As I said, the plays are there and Trent has been missing them.