What's left?
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In terms of legit talent that could start elsewhere on a top 12 (playoff) team, what do we have left? I'm going to make the assumption that Mack is leaving, and there's a decent change Gipson leaves, but with Ray Farmer out of the picture, it wouldn't shock me to see another 'charm offensive' from Jimmy and the gang, like with Mack.
Obviously Joe Thomas would start pretty much anywhere. Good. Moving on.
Joel Bitonio took a step back, but on his rookie form was one of the best guards around. A bounce back, and an injury free season I think sees him in the upper bracket of guards.
John Greco - maybe. He'd be fine somewhere that isn't so dependent on OL play. NE, not Seattle, for example.
Mitchell Schwartz - a top tier right tackle that we've drafted and developed ourselves, and re-signing him should probably be near the top of the to-do list for the new Scoutmaster General (Zombo - can we autocorrect GM to Scoutmaster General now?
)Yay, we have good linemen. So why the fuck can't we run the ball? Another thread...
Duke Johnson - if Dion Lewis can go from 'he looks decent in pre-season' to 'the best pass catching back in the league' then DUke Johnson would be scary good on a good team. Legit talent, hopefully he can take a step forward in the running game next year.
Gary Barnidge - sure. Nobody will reject a guy that gets a thousand yards on this team. He could be a good player for most good teams. He's not beating out Gronk, or Greg Olson, but he's up there, and if he keeps it up next year, he's going to have the strangest career arc this side of Kurt Warner. Shame he's not a QB I guess. Probably still better than Austin Davis.
Well, that was the O, I hope you liked it. Benjamin might get a look as a second or third receiver and punt returner, but that's clutching at straws a bit. Josh Gordon needs to show he's 2013 Josh Gordon, setting NFL records with scrub QBs, not 2014 Josh Gordon, disrupting the rhythm of the offense and not looking interested, and certainly not 2015 Josh Gordon. If he does that, sure, most teams would take him.
On the D side, we're clutching at straws a bit. Joe Haden has his flaws but is one of the best outside of the best - he's not Peterson, Sherman, Revis etc but in the next tier he's pretty solid.
Tashaun Gipson pre-injury would be great, I'm sure plenty of teams could use him.
Outside of that, we have a bunch of guys, really. Some better than others, like Dansby, Des Bryant, Whitner can be ok, but nobody that stands out. A lot of younger guys such as Shelton, Cooper, Orchard, Meder, that have looked good here and there, and hopefully they come good, but right now there aren't many great D pieces to go around. Probably why Pettine's scheme failed, since it relied on elite corners and a good pass rush (and fuck defending the run, who runs these days? Oh, everybody? Shit)
Bottom line - almost everyone on this team could stand to be upgraded with a decent draft pick or free agent pick up, but there are, especially on O, some solid players to build around.
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Our future looks so much better with 2013 versions of: Josh Gordon, Tashaun Gipson, Joe Haden, Alex Mack. Wishful thinking, but if we had that we're not nearly as deep in the dumpster.
Joe Thomas and Mitchell Schwartz probably the best LT/RT tackle combo in the game at the moment.
Bitonio will be fine - a bit of a sophomore slump but I still expect him to be a multi pro bowler.
Greco is a solid player.
Mack is gone.
JT is an anchor to this OL and it'd be a shame losing him, he definitely makes everybody next to him better.
DJ is a very great potential talent, but we need an every down back still.
Benji is a big play threat and would be much more effective if paired with a legit #1 receiver (hopefully Gordon)
On defense:
I expect Shelton to keep progressing towards a successful career. Nate Orchard started to come on as the season went on - hopefully he progresses.
K'waun is still a good slot corner if he can stay healthy.
We are desperate for anybody who can rush the edge. Pretty soon I suspect we'll be pretty desperate for an MLB too.
We CANNOT afford to miss with our high picks in the 2016 draft.
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Our future looks so much better with 2013 versions of: Josh Gordon, Tashaun Gipson, Joe Haden, Alex Mack. Wishful thinking, but if we had that we're not nearly as deep in the dumpster.
Joe Thomas and Mitchell Schwartz probably the best LT/RT tackle combo in the game at the moment.
Bitonio will be fine - a bit of a sophomore slump but I still expect him to be a multi pro bowler.
Greco is a solid player.
Mack is gone.
JT is an anchor to this OL and it'd be a shame losing him, he definitely makes everybody next to him better.
DJ is a very great potential talent, but we need an every down back still.
Benji is a big play threat and would be much more effective if paired with a legit #1 receiver (hopefully Gordon)
On defense:
I expect Shelton to keep progressing towards a successful career. Nate Orchard started to come on as the season went on - hopefully he progresses.
K'waun is still a good slot corner if he can stay healthy.
We are desperate for anybody who can rush the edge. Pretty soon I suspect we'll be pretty desperate for an MLB too.
We CANNOT afford to miss with our high picks in the 2016 draft.
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