04-08-2021, 08:26 AM
It may be reductive, but I think if Joe wants Chase more than he wants protection, you do that.
The big thing we have to be concerned with regarding Joe is disillusionment. If Joe is coming off an injury and, in some way, blames the Bengals for his injury (not saying he does, just a hypothetical), then you want to do everything you can to fix the Oline to show him you don't intend to Andrew Luck him.
If he has openly said "to fully unlock our offense, I really want Chase. Don't worry about protection, we'll work it out, I want weapons" then I definitely draft Chase.
The NFL has become a QB driven league over the last few decades, with this most recent generation of QBs really taking that seriously. Look at Russell Wilson, Deshaun Watson (before all of these allegations), Tom Brady and Patrick Mahomes. They all, for lack of a better term, control the team's direction and believe they should have input, if not final say, when it comes to players around them on offense. Wilson and the Seahawks are having internal feuding over this topic. Watson and the Texans were as well before Watson destroyed his career by allegedly sexually assaulting dozens of message therapists...
The point is, keep Joe happy and we will prosper. Our Oline isn't complete but if they believe they can find a starting guard in round 2, I say go for it. You can always replace Reiff next off season.
Or, if he plays well, you can resign Reiff and kick that RT can down the road a little further. We need good Olinemen, but our most glaring need right now is guard and I just don't think we need Sewell to play RG this season. Filling a guard with a top 5 pick, even if you plan to move him outside in a year or two, feels like overkill. That's something a 2nd round pick can handle. And, if we're not confident in RT in 2022, the 2022 draft or free agency is there as well.
It seems silly now because, literally, all season the entire fan base (for the most part) has campaigned for Sewell (like the sign at that game) and now we actually have a really good shot at landing him and we're turning away. That doesn't usually happen. Maybe this is a case of prospect fatigue and we're losing sight of just how good Sewell is, but I don't want the same thing to happen to Chase. If he's the superior prospect that takes our offense over the top, I say go get him.
The big thing we have to be concerned with regarding Joe is disillusionment. If Joe is coming off an injury and, in some way, blames the Bengals for his injury (not saying he does, just a hypothetical), then you want to do everything you can to fix the Oline to show him you don't intend to Andrew Luck him.
If he has openly said "to fully unlock our offense, I really want Chase. Don't worry about protection, we'll work it out, I want weapons" then I definitely draft Chase.
The NFL has become a QB driven league over the last few decades, with this most recent generation of QBs really taking that seriously. Look at Russell Wilson, Deshaun Watson (before all of these allegations), Tom Brady and Patrick Mahomes. They all, for lack of a better term, control the team's direction and believe they should have input, if not final say, when it comes to players around them on offense. Wilson and the Seahawks are having internal feuding over this topic. Watson and the Texans were as well before Watson destroyed his career by allegedly sexually assaulting dozens of message therapists...
The point is, keep Joe happy and we will prosper. Our Oline isn't complete but if they believe they can find a starting guard in round 2, I say go for it. You can always replace Reiff next off season.
Or, if he plays well, you can resign Reiff and kick that RT can down the road a little further. We need good Olinemen, but our most glaring need right now is guard and I just don't think we need Sewell to play RG this season. Filling a guard with a top 5 pick, even if you plan to move him outside in a year or two, feels like overkill. That's something a 2nd round pick can handle. And, if we're not confident in RT in 2022, the 2022 draft or free agency is there as well.
It seems silly now because, literally, all season the entire fan base (for the most part) has campaigned for Sewell (like the sign at that game) and now we actually have a really good shot at landing him and we're turning away. That doesn't usually happen. Maybe this is a case of prospect fatigue and we're losing sight of just how good Sewell is, but I don't want the same thing to happen to Chase. If he's the superior prospect that takes our offense over the top, I say go get him.
![[Image: oN5QAdY.png]](https://i.imgur.com/oN5QAdY.png)
