i think it really depends on both how hill progresses, and what kind of rookie wr the team picks up. i mean, lets say we dont pick up a wr till the 3rd round... or say we draft that first round wr but hill takes a step forward and outplays the rookie. in those (and all similar) scenarios hill could be the 4th wr. also, with hills blocking we could run from a 4 wide set against the nickel coverage with either johnson makin em miss in space or ivory just busting through the middle... i dont think the team wants to give up on hill just yet, no matter whom they draft
I just meant that he doesn't seem to use his size as an advantage. Rather than attacking the ball at a high point outside of the DB's reach he tends to catch with his body which negates his natural advantage.
I think as the game slows down for him he will be able to better take advantage of his size. They put a huge emphasis on him catching balls last offseason and reducing the drops and rightly so, But I think this may have caused him to focus a lot on the catch rather then using his natural strengths and abilities during the run of the game. Anyone with a "Don't drop this pass" mentality isn't going to also have a "I'm taking this to the house when I catch it" mentality. Hopefully with a little more confidence and experience we can start to see him high pointing some balls.
Very well said. Anytime an athlete is allocating a higher than normal percentage of his attention/focus "thinking" about a particular aspect of his game, the less natural and fluid other important aspects of his game are bound to be. The hope is that after a while, Hill will be able to assemble and apply all the essential components (e.g. catching, running tight and precise routes, beating jams and otherwise getting off the LOS cleanly/quickly) so that it will all come naturally and instinctively to him without having to "think." If and when that happens, he should be a true and consistent offensive threat.
The problem with that is that outside of some type of injury that causes issues with your catching abilities NFL WR's should already be experts at catching the football when they enter the league. If they need to focus so much on catching the football that it is causing other skills to suffer you're talking about a big problem IMO. The other problem is that Hill has never demonstrated that he is exceptional in other areas so you can't assume that once he is comfortable with catching the football he's going to be comfortable in other areas. He is huge and really fast. That's why we drafted him. Now we have a huge, fast player who needs to learn to play receiver. Maybe. Hopefully. One day.
Meh i dont think its quite that hill needsto learn how to play receiver... Hills main deal is that he needed to learn the entire route tree and how to catch in traffic/over smaller corners. This seems like a lot, and ideally your drafting guys ready to go but occasionally youll get a guy with raw talent and the measurables, but he lacks experience. He knows how to play receiver he just needs to learn how to put it all together on the field Im not making excuses for the guy but i would assume that going from sparano's to marty's system might not be the easiest thing in the world when you still didnt fully grasp the former. Obviously the nfl is a league of results so the clock is ticking for him but i dont think that means he will never get it. I expect the jets to draft a wr to take his place but hill will still get a chance to compete
Fair enough. He has exceptional size and speed. He was a project when we drafted him so yours, mine and the team's hopes are that he will be able to learn and develop the skills necessary for him to exploit his natural gifts. Will he ever? No one knows for sure but time will tell whether he ends up busting out or just a bust. The FO rolled the dice when they drafted him obviously believing they could turn him into a productive offensive threat so until the story plays out (and since we can't go back in time and change the pick) I prefer to remain hopeful that Hill will make the progress we all want him to. If we are able to draft an NFL ready WR like Cooks or Lee, for example, using Hill as a third receiver might also put him in more favorable coverage and route options that will facilitate his development and enhance the possibilities for him to make successful plays even with his present shortcomings. When I think of Vick, CJohnson, Cooks, Cumberland, Decker and Hill on the field, that is an insane amount of speed for defenses to have to account for underneath, in the middle and up top which should create so many open opportunities.....
Agreed...I don't see many benefits coming from receiving corps, so that doesn't bode well for WR coach. All he seems to do is keeping bringing-in unproductive Raider cast-offs, who have no impact. I I like Brandin Cooks for Jets in 1st round; or trade down in 1st round & get CB Verritt who has best man-to-man cover skillz in draft & accumulate more draft picks. Jets need more players. At end of day...Jets need CB, OLB, T/G, Safety, WR, ILB, & Punter....In no particular order. *Keep this in mind...all WR play will be improved with Vick at QB. Hill & {Cooks if drafted} will be legitimate deep threats with Vick at QB.
