My only concern there is that Duc is so raw as a player, I'd rather just stick him in one spot and let him develop at that spot from day one. Starting him too early may be bad enough, but then moving him out to tackle could make his transition to the NFL even more difficult.
I didn't really think it was the best idea to cut Faneca, since it wasn't very financially beneficial or conducive to winning, but I think it was a case of the Jets communicating to their young veterans that it's time for them to step up to the plate and become leaders, and if that's the case, I understand. If you spend a second round pick on an offensive lineman, he's usually starting, and I think the Jets are expecting Ferguson and Mangold to do for Ducasse what Faneca did for them. Ideally, they'd like him to get his feet wet. I think Slausson is a nice option to have on the roster, a guy who played the system at Nebraska and can fill in at multiple spots, but if he's starting it doesn't bode well for Ducasse. You draft swing backups where we drafted Slausson. You draft starters in round 2. -X-
Slauson. He's been here a year longer and has worked under Callahan for quite some time. Ducasse is coming from 1-AA UMass, I'd rather see him on the bench in 2010 and then maybe in 2011 he could be in line to replace Damien Woody at RT. Either way I still feel the cutting of Faneca may come back to bite us in the ass.
It really depends on Vlads progression during the offseason, but right now I like Slauson at guard. I like the idea of having a physical but raw talent like Vlad getting some experience watching how the line works in games from the sideline with Callahan and getting some spot duty here and there to learn. That being said, if Vlad is clearly the far superior talent, then you want to get him as much game experience as possible if you want him ready to a serious playoff run. It really depends on where they see both these prospects production at by the second half of the season.
If you're trying to say McKnight isn't a good runner between the tackles, I doubt you've ever seen him play.
I would agree with this. They can make up for how raw he is by moving him inside, but that very well could stall his development. Once he's playing guard, it's going to be tough to develop him into an NFL tackle, too.
I'm trying to say he'll get killed running between the tackles... not that he isn't able, but that it shouldn't be his primary role or he's going to risk a lot of injuries. In college he could pull it off... in the NFL with his body? Don't think so. to me he is a third down back. We saw what happens when you run third down backs (ala Washington who BTW was way bigger than him) between the tackles.
i have never seen vlad against nfl talent and i didn't take much notice of slauson last summer or during the season. if the jets see vlad as the eventual right tackle i think it would make sense to have slauson at the guard spot this season, assuming they see him as the long term answer at that position.
This is the first thing I thought of because moving Woody back inside (where he belongs) would only help him, but the problem I see is that now you are creating a situation where now you have two people trying to learn new positions (or in Woody's case...re-learn a position) instead of just one. If the coaching staff feels Woody can step right back in to inside guard without any problems then I'm all for it and trust them all the way. He is a veteran, and the transition back inside for him I'd guess shouldn't be as difficult. But, it will be an additional process they'd have to go through in him getting acclimated to the position once more. My guess would be we will probably just see Slauson take Faneca's old spot with Vlad waiting in the wings to take over at RT for Woody next season.
You don't think they're going to add some bulk to his frame? They can work on his body; his ability is the important thing, and he's an excellent runner between the tackles. The poster you were replying to was talking about McKnight taking over for Ladainian, which would happen two years down the line. You don't think that's enough time to bulk him up a bit so he can withstand those hits better? I think you're severely underestimating him. Interesting that you ignore the times that Washington DID run between the tackles and DIDN'T get injured. One exception does not prove the rule.
McKnight is 198lbs at 6'0" how much bigger can he get before loosing the quickness and the agility that make him the player he is? Washington is built in a much thicker way... he's 202 but at 5'8" (10 cm less!) and wasn't much smaller coming out of college. to be a 6'0" RB that CONSISTENTLY (not once in a while) runs through the middle you have to be at least 215... AT LEAST! I'm not saying you couldn't beef up McKnight to that wieght but why do so when he offers much more value as a pass-catching RB or a guy that runs mostly on the outside? To me you just risk ruining the guy. LdT is 5'10" and weighs 221lbs!!! to me that's quite a lot of difference in terms of body-type. Also don't confuse running through the middle in college and in the NFL.... DTs and LBs are much bigger in the pros...
I don't think 10 pounds is out of line by any stretch. People thought his quickness and agility were all he had coming out of high school. That's a big reason why they called him "the next Reggie Bush". All he did was prove himself to be a more complete back throughout college. If you want to take it back to the old misconceptions, that's fine, but I again question whether you ever saw him play. The greatest running back in Jets history was 210. Also, please show me where I said that his role is going to be to "consistently run through the middle". You said that the difference between McKnight and LDT was that LDT could run up the middle, implying McKnight can't. I'm arguing that he can and that he's a more complete, rounded back than you give him credit for. What, exactly, do you think the 30+ LDT's role will be with the team? You're acting like someone said he was going to replace Tomlinson as the lead back for the Chargers, not replace Tomlinson down the line as our #2 RB in a RBBC whose primary duties will be as that pass-catching RB, BUT who also has a complete arsenal. Of course he's going to run the stretch play a lot. Of course he's going to catch the ball out of the backfield. That's what Ladainian is going to be doing as well, primarily the latter. You're underrating McKnight by suggesting that his role will perpetually be as small as this CS made Leon's and suggesting he can't be our #2. He's also on the downside of his career and certainly not a 20-something back. Again, the poster was talking about LDT's role on the team. It will be McKnight's in a couple of years. McKnight has the skills, and will soon have the size, to have a more complete role than Leon did. Gee, the DTs and LBs are much bigger? Thank you so much for filling me in on that. You know what I think? I think you're just trying to condescend here because you're pissed that someone disagreed with what was a rather asinine original statement. I'm happy to return the favor. You're a fine poster, but I stand by the fact that you're clueless on McKnight.
If McKnight adds 10-15 lbs of solid muscle, I think he'll be fine. And this is something that tends to happen for a lot of backs at the pro level. He isn't going to need to be an in-between-the-tackles runner consistently, he just needs to have the burst and second gear to be dangerous when it happens - which he certainly possesses. A guy like him is able to run inside most times simply because defenses know he has the speed to bounce to the outside at any moment and that is in their minds.
Slauson should get it just because he scares the shit out of me and im afraid if I say vlad he will hunt me down.
If you ever saw Leon without his pads you'd be stunned to find out he's a professional football player. The guy is generously listed at 5-8 and 198. He appears to be more in the 5-7, 180 range. Curtis Martin wasn't much more than 200. It's all about making sure you don't take the big hit. Martin was great at that. Obviously, you're going to every once in a while, but smaller backs are increasingly successful in this league. -X-
