OLB has been a need for almost 10 years. I wouldn't be upset if we went in that direction just as long as we don't reach.
Me too. Now LB is not as strong as the DL, and so an OLB as BPA might work, too, but in general the OL is in much worse shape medium to long term than the front seven on D. you don't want to make too much of one game, but some metrics I read pointed out that Ferguson had a rather concerning game this past Sunday. At some point he's going to be in clear decline, and that is quite simply huge. Ftr I am today increasingly skeptical of the draft Mariota fantasy. It would be great to get him from all accounts, but the likely scenarios are just not looking, well, all that likely.
Redskins gave up a kings ransom to move up just a few spots for RG3. Every year there's at least one team, usually more, who covet a player but need to move up to get him. With that in mind, if I were GM I'd trade my 1st round pic every year for a mini-kings-ransom to some hungry, desperate team. I would parlay that strategy into 5-6 2nd and high 3rd round pics every draft. My team would never have a Calvin Johnson (or a 1st round bust), but it would have high draft pick talent at all 53 positions. Strong team top to bottom with zero glaring holes.
Personally I wouldn't mind if we go defense with all of our picks as long as they are the best players available. On paper we were supposed to have the best defense in football and suck on offense. Despite the outstanding play from our defensive line, our defense has been awful. We will need at least a couple years to rebuild the offensive line and skill positions. A balanced approach would not be the worst thing to happen to this team.
If we win the "Toilet Bowl" we very well might. Say we end up with the 6th pick it's hard to tell what would happen. We could trade up for QB, but it might not be worth it. We could trade down and pick up a pick or two. Winston could be there but the new regime could've taken him off their board. (hopefully not) We'd be more then happy to take Cooper but if he, Winston, Mariota are gone it'll be between Peat, A&M OT who's last name is escaping me and Randy Gregory.. I'd take Gregory I know a lot of the board would take OL but even if Rex is gone Mo/Snacks/Sheldon would be even more effective with a stud OLB something we haven't had. I sure hope we get our Franchise QB or Elite WR Cooper but I'm not going to flip shit if BPA is a top rated Pass Rusher.
Ogbuehi. This year has showed us that our o-line is a liability. Even if we do grab our 'Franchise QB' with our first pick, we need to build in the trenches. Hopefully, Idzik can troll us all and actually pull 1 or 2 out of a solid FA class this year. Iuptai/Boling Orakpo/Worilds/KJ Wright Chris Harris/Flowers All would be serious upgrades that can be made before the draft. That alone would allow us to take BPA regardless of the draft situation
I think we are picking top 3. If we cant get any Amari Cooper Id be fine with trading back and going O line. MM and Winston wouldnt necessarily upset me but Im not as confident in them as many here are.
While we do need to address some things on the O-Line going forward, I don't think it's as big an area of need as some people think. We have to keep in mind that Geno (and Vick to a lesser degree) is really bad at recognizing defensive formations and adjusting to them, which in turn makes the O-Line look worse than it is. If Geno could do what good QBs do and dump off quick screen passes against the blitz, that would be huge for our pass protection. Winters was the biggest culprit on the O-Line, and ever since he was replaced by Aboushi, I think our O-Line has been average at worst. You also have to keep in mind that went against some pretty good pass rushers lately (twice against maybe the best D-Line in the league in Buffalo, KC, etc). Mangold has been playing really well this year, showing no signs of a drop-off, and given that centers often tend to last a while, we should be good at center for a few more years, barring major injuries. Aboushi has also been playing relatively well since starting, he is actually one of the best guards in the league according to ProFootballFocus in run blocking, and while his pass blocking is much worse, it's still way better than Winters'. If he improves in any way with more experience, which seems reasonable, he should be an average level guard in the NFL. Colon needs to go after this year, but we might be able to plug that hole with Dozier without spending a ton on an elite FA guard. There is only so much money you have to spend under the cap, so I am a little wary of handing out massive contracts to Guards since it's a position that requires less talent than many others. Giaconmini has been worse than I thought, but at the same time, he is not terrible, so if he is still starting at Right Tackle next year, I can live with that. Brick is the big question. He is definitely declining now, but if we have a top 5 pick, which we might not have again for a while, I would rather spend it on a QB or pass rusher than an OL, especially in a year where there are no dominant ones. Maybe we can get an offensive tackle in free agency or in 2nd/3rd round.
IMO, get Cooper, BPA OL, BPA OL, BPA CB. Cooper, Decker, Amaro, Kerley will be a nice foundation of players who are locked up for at least 3 seasons together. Build OL like Dallas, you have decent running backs already, shore up pass defense. None of the QBs look like can't-miss prospects this season, but Cooper does, you should pick early enough to have a chance at him. For all the crap JJ gets in Dallas, his team is finally looking like they're heading in the right direction, it's not a bad strategy to mimic right now. They took a chance on an extremely talented WR in Bryant, also got Murray who was a steal, then built a great offensive line. It's as easy as "do this, do that, boom done." but it's someone to work towards. The biggest problem is that you guys don't have a QB the same caliber as Romo but many will also argue he's not a QB they want. But if you protect your QB and give him the proper pieces, you don't need Einstein behind center, look at what Dalton has managed at times, that kid is never gonna win MVP but he's put up some fantastic performances because he gets to play behind a usually solid OL with talented pass catchers and RBs.
First round - I'll take any player at any position who won't be a bust. Offense or Defense. Bring some talent to the team. I guess they call that BPA.
I dont think all 3 will be off the board by the time we pick. But who knows, depends on how the season plays out the rest of the way for us. It also should be noted that players draft stock rises and drops very quickly after pro days, combines, things like that. You never know who will emerge as the draft nears.
I think we are set on the left side with Aboushi (who is only gonna get better) and D'Brick if he doesn't decline too much. Mangold's our stud. That leaves the right side, Colon and Giacomini. I think Colon is underrated except for his stupid penalties and Giacomini is worse than Austin Howard was for us. We could definitely improve here in terms of youth and talent. I think if we could just get 1 more good player here, our offensive line should be solid.
Absolutely, Mariotta or trade down and fix this O-Line and receiving corps. I don't want Winston, rapin womens, stealing crab meat, missing games for jumping on the table screaming "fuck her in the pussy", the guy will be a disaster in NY and I don't think he's got the skillset for a top franchise QB in the NFL so why waste a top draft pick on him?
