05-11-2023, 12:31 PM
(05-11-2023, 12:40 AM)Joelist Wrote: Assuming they both make the active roster, the WR room would be Chase, Higgins, Boyd, Irwin, Jones and Iosivas. Nice injection of speed, another good slot and it also means we can go 4 wide without the #4 not needing to be defended. Also means if one of the top 3 gets dinged again the base offense is still good to run.
I think your assumption both C. Jones and Iosivas make the roster is correct. But not so sure Irwin makes the 53. He didn't initially last year, either. By the end of last year, the roles were pretty clear.
Irwin was WR4. He played, by far, the most offensive snaps, 287 to Taylor's 148 to Morgan's 77. But next to none on special teams, 5 to Taylor's 72 to Morgan's 254. He catches everything, but struggles to get separation, and does not contribute on ST. 15 catches for 234 yds, 4 tds.
Taylor was WR5, 2nd most oftensive snaps (148), and our PR. Obstensibly the backup slot, but we often moved Chase there and put Irwin in if Boyd was down. Did a nice job on PR. Reliable hands, got north/south quickly. 6 rec for 62 yards.
Morgan did not have a catch last year. But he was our most important ST guy on the WR core and our best blocker. He actually olayed the most snaps out if the 3, albeit mist of them on ST.
The new guys muddy the roles somewhat.
Jones serms like a like for like replacement for Taylor. He makes the team for sure. Mostly slot guy, punt returner. And I think that is true, to an extent. But he also takes a pieces from Irwin, as I believe the guy who led the nation in catches becomes WR4, not Irwin. But it isn't clean. I mean, if we are choising 4 wides, then Chase/Higgins outside and Boyd/Jones inside is our 4 WR set. But if Chase/Higgins is out, we need another outside guy. Not sure if Jones can do that at this level. Did it some at Purdue, though. Was not slot exclusive.
Likewise, Iosivas is gonna make the team. No way you buy a lottery ticket like that & throw it away before the numbers get drawn. Not cutting him. But in what role? Ideally, he takes some from both Irwin & Morgan. But he has development to do either. And if he needs time, it is unlikely we keep all 4, though 7 WRs is not impossible. He needs to expand his route tree to really be the 1st outside WR off the bench. So if we keep Irwin there, then Iosivas needs to take Morgan's spot as a special teams ace/blocker. He has the size/speed to do it, but was not a special team's/coverage guy at Princeton, he was WR1. At worst, his deep speed provides us with something our other backups don't have.
I think which direction we go with the last spot depends on how camp goes. Can Jones play outside? How fast does Iosivas develop, both in terms of the route tree and ST/blocking? If the route development is slow, the likely Irwin stays. If he struggles on ST/coverage/blocking, then keeping Morgan becomes more likely. Though perhaps we could get ST help from other guys (Battle, Anderson).
I see a lot of folks assuming Irwin stays and Morgan goes. But I am not so sure. Simmons has a history of getting ST guys to stick, and Morgan made the 53 outright last year, not Irwin.
