Who’s the guy you want in the first.

[Whatever]

(03-19-2023, 10:14 PM)Crazyjdawg Wrote: My second choice would be at CB.

CB is in a similar position as OT is for us right now (assuming Jonah plays RT). We'd be drafting for the future because CTB and Awuzie are the clear starters next season with Hilton in the slot, so the draft pick would only come in for injuries or in super sub packages.

Safety as well. Our starters are set and we have an uber athletic back up that could develop behind the two starters so any safety drafted would only come in due to injuries or super sub packages. The difference with the safety position is our 2 starters are signed on for 3 more seasons (as opposed to Awuzie and Jonah who are in their final years), so I wouldn't even call safety a need at this point.

TE and RB are needs but they're also non- premium positions so spending premium picks on them is a hard sell when you have needs at premium positions like OT and CB. Rookie TEs rarely make a large impact and their breakout years are as late as their 3rd or 4th season in the NFL and RBs, well, the degree to which running back has been devalued as a position has been discussed at length. Unless it's Bijan, I wouldn't spend a first on a RB.

That's why I keep coming back to OT. You call it a fixation, but I see it as ensuring depth. Even at CB, Apple played well enough to win the Super Bowl coming in as a back up to Awuzie. We don't have that kind of depth at OT. Collins is coming off of injury and honestly was pretty horrible when he was in the game anyway. Jonah is on his final year and is obviously not going to re-sign with us. And everyone else is either a huge question mark (is Carman actually any good or did he just have a good 2 game stretch?) Or is outright bad (Adeniji, Ford). Considering Oline is the explicit reason we are not back to back Super Bowl champions right now, I think a little fixation may be warranted.

If we're talking need, CB(specifically outside CB), is a bigger need than T.  Awuzie is in a contract year, meaning you need a starter sooner, and there's really no young talent in development behind the starters except PS guys.  At T, we just signed OBJ for 4 years and have Collins and Carman for 2.  It's not uncommon for DB's to come out for a blow or because they got a little dinged here and there.  OL don't come out unless they're injured.

I am not comfortable declaring Nick Scott a starter.  Dude allowed 118.5 passer rating when targeted last year.  To me, he's a guy you sign to keep from handing a draft pick a starting job uncontested.  Anderson, frankly, did not look good last preseason.  He has physical tools and is probably worth keeping for ST's, but he has a long way to go.  I don't think there's a S worth our first, but if we reached for one, he likely starts.

I am not a huge fan of taking a TE in the first, as there is a steep learning curve at the position and guys don't start blowing up until year 2.  That said, Asiasi is currently our #1 TE.  It's way more needed than T.  Perine played 41% of the offensive snaps last year.  You need a 3 tool RB to replace him, which you likely aren't going to find Day 3.  

You don't spend a 1st on Plan D.  Second, Taylor favors a light TC, which is going to hamper our ability to draft and develop trench players like T's.  Unlike other positions, OL don't rotate to give bench players valuable live reps to learn and develop.  We will never know if Carman is actually as good as he showed last year if he doesn't get a shot to play.  

OL certainly deserves blame for coming up short the last two years, but it at least has injuries as an excuse.  Kupp clubbed Eli Apple like a baby seal on the GW TD drive in the SB, but Apple played good enough to win?  The only reason we didn't go to OT with KC is they got a huge punt return, yet I haven't seen any real push to address our returners or coverage teams. At this rate, the OL may be good enough, but the RB's, TE's, and S's won't be.