He certainly has the tools to be successful.. he's a physical specimen for sure. The problem is him getting it all together with the mental aspect.. knowing the schemes, and most importantly not getting our franchise QB killed. From that same write up after the bolded part: Now, I'm not trying to be negative about him.. in fact I really like him as a player and I have high hopes for his future. But we all know he's a project player, and we need him to improve a great deal this offseason if we are going to trust him at RT and to protect Mark Sanchez half as well as Damien Woody did. The NFL is a big step up from D2 at UMass, especially being asked to change from your college position to a new one, and then to another new one after your rookie year. I have full confidence in Callahan to develop him, but I think Wayne Hunter is more likely to start at RT next year than Vlad is.
I think the most important thing is to note the amount of progress he made from the preseason to week 17. Of course the mental aspect will be the most difficult but that will come with time and experience if Callahan is doing his job right.
The mental game can be taught....his physical talent can't. Like WSW alluded to...this is where Callahan will earn his paycheck.
Absolutely, I agree with both of you. He has all the physical attributes to be a dominant offensive lineman. Especially with Callahan coaching, and 3 pro bowl calibre players playing on the line with him, plus a year behind a very good pro like Damien Woody picking things up. I'm just saying that while he made strides from the preseason to his week 17 action, he still is clearly not ready to be a starting right tackle on a playoff contender as of now. He played against an awful Bills team, with a vanilla game plan, and still made plenty of mistakes. Could he really get it together this offseason? Sure he could, and I hope he does. I just think that Hunter is probably more likely to start next year if Woody is in fact released. But I certainly trust Rex and Callahan, and if they determine Vlad is ready to make the leap and protect our franchise quarterback, which is the most important thing, then I'm certainly on board.
It's hard to put all the things you've been learning together without being on the field playing. Give him a few games to settle in and really understand what he's doing.
You could be right. But we were voicing the same concerns when Slauson took over at LG during the preseason. Like you said, Vlad has had a good year to learn from Woody and others....he's got excellent coaching, and he's got all the physical talent in the world. He needs to be thrown in the fire next season (just like Slauson). Hopefully Wayne Hunter will be resigned...in case it's deemed that Vlad still isn't ready to start. But I think the Jets need to see what they have in him as a starter next year.
Lot of silly comments on here. Vlad is going to be a starter. He didn't play ball till the end of HS. He is an excellent physical blocker who is developing w/in the system. Perfect for RT. He was LT in college and an all american. He was drafted w/the knowledge that he was going to need to work on developing into a starting NFL player and that he was not going to play LT in the NFL. There is nothing surprising in the Jets focussing him on RT.
Vlad will be the starter and he'll do fine. After 6 months of learning how to play right tackle instead of the rookie limbo he did last season at guard, he'll pick it up. Guy is a giant and has the physical tools, he just needs his brain up to speed.
Douchbags like Cimini were saying he is worthless, so fans started going mentally insane. Then Chauncey Washington(meanwhile he fumbles 3 players later) causing a fumble got fans to go "ga-ga"
I stand corrected.. I went and found Rex's comments about him after the last preseason game when he fumbled yet again. He said how he's not going to be on the active roster, and that he doesnt trust him, etc.. not that he won't make the 53 man roster. But with the coach making comments like that, and him clearly not playing well in the preseason, it's hard to just blame Hard Knocks for fans souring on him. That being said, I was not one of the McKnight haters and I actually really like his potential. I liked all our draft picks this year, and still do, even though none contributed this season.
I think the bigger thing is that fans saw him as Leon's replacement. And then Woodhead's success in NE made things worse.
Yeah but you can't teach everyone the mental game. Can Callahan teach Ducasse the mental game well enough for Ducasse to be a viable starter? I have no idea.
Mental game should wordfilter into "instincts" You can't teach instincts. However, you can teach Ducasse his assignments and the defenses that he'll face.
No, that's the point. Some players just don't figure this stuff out well enough to implement it in game situations. I have no idea if Ducasse will or won't but with some players you just can't coach them enough to have them consistently block the right guy in zone blitz or whatever.
I'm admitedly always gun shy on cutting proving O lineman. Wasn't initially thrilled with the Mawae, Kendall, or Faneca moves. Being that we are up against the cap with key guys to sign, it seems cutting Woody might make sense though. If he's gone, we need to re-sign Hunter giving the luxury of letting Ducasse learn another year if he needs it. I'd also re-sign Turner if possible to keep that depth on the interior.
