Posts of the Week

Love hearing this about Tunsil

Daniels is going to make folks remember all that stuff they were saying.

The Orlando Sentinel has live updates from Dolphin land and a Dolphin slant.

— Dolphins defensive tackle Zach Sieler is not participating in the joint practice, as Hafley said he will be week to week recovering from a new, undisclosed ailment ahead of the season.

— CB Chris Johnson, the rookie first-round pick, hasn’t been spotted partcipating in 1-on-1 or 11-on-11 drills. Johnoson’s absence meant the secondary was missing three starters considering CB JuJu Brents and S Dante Trader Jr. continued their absences. CB Alex Austin started as the nickel/slot in Johnson’s place.

— The weather is 80 degrees and cloudy with 71 percent humidity and a “feels like” temperature of 80 degrees. Compare that to Miami Gardens, where it’s 89 degrees with 69 percent humidity and a “feels like” temperature of 94 degrees.

— CB A.J. Green III had a PBU (pass break up) in 1-on-1s. Green, the fifth-year player who spent the last two seasons with the Los Angeles Rams and Minnesota, continues to flash. But Green, who has an interception in training camp, remains a longshot for the 53-man roster.

— WRs Malik Washington and Jalen Tolbert, projected starters, had TD receptions in 1-on-1 drills. Later, WR Caleb Douglas, the third projected starter, had a TD reception. That’s a good sign for the growth of the WR corps.

— Washington WR River Cracraft, the ex-Dolphins WR, had success vs. Miami’s nickel DBs in 1-on-1 drills. Cracraft has receiving skills but is more known for his blocking.

— QB Malik Willis had his pass intended for WR Caleb Douglas broken up by Washington CB Fabian Moreau, who attended Western HS.

— Willis came back to hit WR Malik Washington for a TD.

— Willis then hit WR AJ Henning for a TD, sparking a successful 1-on-1 drill for the Dolphins QB-WR combo over Wasington’s DBs.

— WRs Theo Wease Jr. and Jalen Tolbert and TE Cole Turner all flashed strong receiving skills in 1-on-1 drills. All could be keys to the Dolphins’ depth although it should be noted Tolbert is currently listed as a starter.

— In Dolphins OL vs. Commanders DL 1-on-1s, Washington won. LT Patrick Paul was beaten by OLB Odafe Oweb, LG Kadyn Proctor was beaten by a swim move by DT Javon Kinlaw, C Aaron Brewer had a draw with a DT, RT Austin Jackson was beaten by OLB K’Lavon Chaisson.

— In a second round of Dolphins OL vs. Commanders DL G D.J. Campbell did well vs. DT Jeffrey M’Ba, DE Drake Jackson got around OT Caedan Wallace, OT Marques Cox did well vs. DE T.J. Maguranvanga.

— Dolphins DL Zeek Biggers lured a Washington OL into a false start early in 11-on-11. It’s a subtle way that Biggers, a pass rusher and run stopper when he plays inside, and edge-setter vs. the run when he plays outside, is impacting the game.

— QB Malik Willis missed WR Jalen Tolbert on a throw near the goalline in 11-on-11. S Jeremy Reaves was the closest defender. The Willis-Tolbert connection remains a work in progress.

— RB De’Von Achane was stuffed on a run to the ‘A’ gap. Achane has had success at Dolphins training camp running the ball on the first play of 11-on-11 drills.

— OL Caedan Wallace gave up a sack to DT Jer’Zhan Newton against QB Cam Miller.

— DL Matthew Butler continues working as an “up back,” the blocker in front of the KOR. C Andrew Meyer and DL Zeek Biggers have also auditioned for that role.

— RB Jaylen Wright and WR Jalen Reagor continue working as KOR. WR Malik Washington currently holds that role.

— RB De’Von Achane had a two-yard loss on the first play of red zone 11-on-11.

— QB Malik Willis had a six-yard gain on a run left as he continues to slowly unveil his run game.

— CBs Jason Marshall Jr. and Marco Wilson start with the defense alongside S Michael Taaffe and LBs Tyrel Dodson and Trey Moore. Coach Jeff Hafley continues experimenting with personnel packages. And remember, CB Chris Johnson apparently isn’t practicing today for an unknown reason.

— WR Caleb Douglas drew a pass interference call after a third down pass fell incomplete. Douglas, who is speedy, lanky and athletic at 6-foot-4, 205 pounds, can be tough to defend. He frequently gets good separation.

— Washington WR Terry McLaurin had a sideline reception on the side of the field defended by CB Jason Marshall Jr. S Zayne Anderson and Michael Taaffe were nearby as the play ended. Granted, McLaurin is a Pro Bowl WR. But Marshall has been inconsistent so far in training camp.

— Washington QB Jayden Daniels is picking the Dolphins defense apart. TE Chig Okonkwo got past CB Miles Battle and S Major Burns for a nice gain up the seam.

— QB Malik Willis has a well-thrown completion over the middle to WR Caleb Douglas. That should be an exciting combination during the season.

— CB Ethan Bonner has a PBU (pass break up) on a long throw to WR Dyami Brown. Bonner hasn’t yet shown he deserves to be a starter but he’ll almost certainly be on the 53-man roster.

— CB Jason Marshall Jr. is beaten by WR Van Jefferson on a crossing pass from QB Jayden Daniels. Jefferson and Marshall are both Florida Gators, by the way.

— Washington TE Lawrence Cager, who played at the University of Miami (2015-18) before finishing at Georgia, had a nice reception from QB Marcus Mariota.

— LB Kyle Louis had a nice stop on a run play. That’s significant because Louis’ main contribution early in his rookie season might be as a “big nickel,” or the LB who defends the slot TE. Perhaps Louis is expanding his game already.

— QB Malik Willis, in 11-on-11, had a 15-yard completion to WR Caleb Douglas, who went down low to make the grab, then scrambled for seven yards on the next play before absorbing a sack from OLB Odafe Oweh. In a play later in the series, Willis later evaded pressure by using his feet before hitting FB D.J. Herman on a short pass.

— WR Treylon Burks beat S Zayne Anderson and Michael Taaffe for a 70-yd TD from QB Jayden Daniels. The secondary needs S Dante Trader Jr. and CBs JuJu Brents and Chris Johnson, who are all sidelined.

— QB Malik Willis thew a pick-six when CB Mike Sainristil stepped in front of a pass intended for WR Malik Washington on the near sideline. Sainristil punted the ball in celebration of his accomplishment.

— LB Jordyn Brooks had three tackles in a two-minute drill. Brooks, the All Pro who led the league with 183 tackles last season, is having a good training camp, a positive sign following his three-year, $48 million contract extension.

— S Michael Taaffe had a big PBU in the back of the end zone as time expired in an 11-on-11 drill. It’s been a busy day for Taaffe, who continues to learn on the job with Trader sidelined.

-Hartman stunk
-Henry has some of the best vision as a runner on the entire roster.
-Allen is a short yardage monster
-Hartman stunk
-Letting our twos get abused on the first drive was a weird choice
-we need to see our starter reps ramp over the next two games and into the season
-Styles looked tired and a bit nervous. That should calm.
-Allan K looked solid
-Hartman stunk
-Harris interviews are awful
-Not much to really take away from this one.

I think he recorded a game without the express written consent of the NFL.





The Rook

Im firmly on the Drew Stevens band wagon

Small thing: No delays of game. No false starts. Only one flag for covering up the tight end.

Pretty clean first game for the young coordinator leading his first offense and calling his first game.

Conn said:

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That has to be one of the absolute worst throws I have ever seen in watching football at any level: peewee, HS, College, NFL Europe, NFL, flag, whatever.

1. It's hard to tell if he was throwing to Diyami or McCaffery. ** This by itself is an indicator of how bad a throw this is. If you can't immediately tell where the ball was going, that's bad.
2. If he was throwing to Diyami, he's open. However, you have to drive it in to him between defenders. There's no way Hartman can make that throw. I'm pretty sure Daniels or Mariota could.
3. Also, if he was throwing to Diyami, he missed the throw by 8 yards. That's like missing a barn door from 15 feet away with a sniper rifle in the NFL. That's a BAD miss.
4. But throwing to Diyami is the wrong read, because McCaffery is wide open, lead him in front, and he probably walks in. At the very least, it's a super easy catch. So, if he was throwing to Diyami, bad throw AND bad read.
4. If he was throwing to McCaffery, he missed the throw by 15 yards. Which is kindof like failing to throw a rock into the Atlantic Ocean while standing in the Ocean in Ocean City Maryland. Like, how the hell do you do that?

Also, he had all the time in the world.

My God Man. This throw by itself might just be a "gots to go" situation.

Gonna copy the full text for those without Twitter:

Just left the practice facility after the 4th session in front of the media. Some thoughts.

🏈 1st day with pads. Always ramps up the intensity and makes for a fun day.

🏈 Sonny Styles was a monster today. By far his most noticeable practice. He was awesome against the run. Super physical coming downhill. Blew up Bill at the goal line on the first rep of 11's with pads on.

🏈 Jayden Daniels had his best day in terms of accuracy and ball placement. He threw a perfect fade to McLaurin over Sainristil in the low redzone. He throws that route so well and McLaurin is also one of the best at getting his feet in bounds in the back of the endzone.

🏈 Daniels had a elite play for a TD where he was moving to his right and threw Chig open. Chig was well-covered by Witherspoon and Jayden threw a fastball low and beside both of them. Chig fell to his side and caught the pass. All Daniels. Threw him open. Just a crazy special play.

🏈 Javon Kinlaw had a sack (more of a coverage sack) of Jayden Daniels in 11s. That was good to see just because of how deep in the backfield he had penetrated. Didn't see a lot of that last season.

🏈 Colson Yankoff makes super athletic catches frequently. Played QB in past, played some RB at UCLA. He's a fun TE project. He made an awesome diving grab in the back of the endzone that was ruled out of bounds by the side judge.

🏈 They are using Bill in space a ton. He catches a lot of balls in the flat. He's looked capable as a pass-catcher. Soft hands.

🏈K'Lavon Chaisson was the most physical defender today. He basically was in September form. He knocked Bill to the ground on one play. He also had a hit on Chig Okonkwo that didn't look like an "August 3rd football play."

🏈 Antonio Williams is shifty and light on his feet. I can see why Peters and the staff loved him. I think he's got a chance to be really good.

🏈 Kicking battle continues. Both kickers were 6/6 today with a long of 55.

I'm really worried about WR3.

Too soon?

Stevens > Moody to date! Hope that keeps up!

Bill catching everything in sight is amazing. Hoping he learns the pass pro then he may be able to really move to the next level!

Now reporting he's signed.

Some more camp stuff, mostly from Josh Taylor who has been to all the practices, some of it from others.

A. Daniels is on fire.

B. No WR has stood out aside from Terry and Luke

C. Sainristill has struggled

D. Croskey-Merritt looks to be pulling away in the RB competition -- Rachaad White hasn't stood out (this was if I recall Grant and David Harrison)

E. Blough's offense has a lot of the WRs throwing the ball including Antonio

F. Antonio seems to be stuck playing with the 2's

G. My own thought listening to all these guys, seems to be no buzz about Johnny Newton

H. Chaisson and Oweh and Omenihyo -- the new guys have flashed. Jospeh some, too.

I R. Douglas, best CB in camp

J. Elated that they signed Diggs, feels like he was needed.

Live look at Aiyuk

Conn said:

Gonna copy the full text for those without Twitter:

Just left the practice facility after the 4th session in front of the media. Some thoughts.

🏈 1st day with pads. Always ramps up the intensity and makes for a fun day.

🏈 Sonny Styles was a monster today. By far his most noticeable practice. He was awesome against the run. Super physical coming downhill. Blew up Bill at the goal line on the first rep of 11's with pads on.

🏈 Jayden Daniels had his best day in terms of accuracy and ball placement. He threw a perfect fade to McLaurin over Sainristil in the low redzone. He throws that route so well and McLaurin is also one of the best at getting his feet in bounds in the back of the endzone.

🏈 Daniels had a elite play for a TD where he was moving to his right and threw Chig open. Chig was well-covered by Witherspoon and Jayden threw a fastball low and beside both of them. Chig fell to his side and caught the pass. All Daniels. Threw him open. Just a crazy special play.

🏈 Javon Kinlaw had a sack (more of a coverage sack) of Jayden Daniels in 11s. That was good to see just because of how deep in the backfield he had penetrated. Didn't see a lot of that last season.

🏈 Colson Yankoff makes super athletic catches frequently. Played QB in past, played some RB at UCLA. He's a fun TE project. He made an awesome diving grab in the back of the endzone that was ruled out of bounds by the side judge.

🏈 They are using Bill in space a ton. He catches a lot of balls in the flat. He's looked capable as a pass-catcher. Soft hands.

🏈K'Lavon Chaisson was the most physical defender today. He basically was in September form. He knocked Bill to the ground on one play. He also had a hit on Chig Okonkwo that didn't look like an "August 3rd football play."

🏈 Antonio Williams is shifty and light on his feet. I can see why Peters and the staff loved him. I think he's got a chance to be really good.

🏈 Kicking battle continues. Both kickers were 6/6 today with a long of 55.

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I loved all the reports I saw today and this is nice recap. Wish I had scrolled one line further so I wouldn’t have clicked the link but that’s my own impatience 🤦‍♂️.

Good to hear both sides of the ball having their moments and going back and forth. And all the reports of high energy and intensity. It’s early but sure sounds different than last year.

If Styles is good right away and turns into a legit star, man we need that so badly. I have a lot of faith in the floor being raised in free agency but the defense needs a stud *somewhere*. Please let it be.

The other one that stands out to me is the blurbs I’ve seen about Bill. I was taking the comments from the coaching staff about him needing to work on the passing game more ominously. Maybe it’s making a clear objective, maybe it’s putting him on notice, maybe it’s both…doesn’t matter but if he actually becomes a contributor in that area, the RB room should be just fine. I like him as a runner and think his vision is fine, but he can’t be a weak spot in the pass game if he wants more than a handful of carries a game.

Loving these reports today. Let’s keep it up, we all need a real season this year.

Love seeing this

Aiyuk on IG: Just playin wit y'all, SF! Love ya see you in camp! BANG BANG NINER GANG

Is this too much, mods?

Nice tidbit.

Apparently, the coaches have been blowing the play dead when JD5 starts to scramble. They make him go back and go through his progressions. They are trying to break the habit of him bailing out if he doesn't see a receiver break open immediately.

The committee at work, who needs WR help when you’ve got these behemoths

Chris_Hanbuger_the Hangman said:

So what are the odds Quinn plays vets more in preseason games....

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Rest any of the vets who have at least 3 years in Bloughs offense or 2 years in Jones' D. Everyone else needs to learn.

I would have welcomed Deebo back, he was a class act through last year’s adversity and ended up our leading receiver. I wish him well.

LMAO! Dawg attitude

Not getting Diggs signed would be a major fail. I try not to be too ridiculously critical of Adam Peters but Diggs is the best WR available by far, he’s said he would love to play in DC and we have the $$ to sign him.

It is the biggest no-brainer of the offseason and it needs to get done.

I don't get at ALL the Conerly criticism or questioning of the pick. What, exactly, is the evidence he's not going to be a great OL addition? He was a rookie starter. Rookie OL starters are going to have a learning curve. I'm betting if we went back and looked at Trent Williams rookie season, it was far from perfect.

JaydenOurSavior16 said:

Now i have someone telling me mclaurin isn’t a WR1🤦🏻‍♂️ the stupidity never stops.

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note: I have no power or say-so here, I’m just an asshole

If you want to submit yourself to the psychic damage of reading what idiots have to say all day, that’s up to you. Don’t bring it here to force the same punishment on us. People here have decided to be selective about whose opinions they care about, by nature of being in a message board ecosystem rather than swimming openly amongst the expansive idiocy of social media.

Read another way: the entire point of a smaller community like this one is to keep the socially maladjusted riff-raff out. It’s not private, anyone can join. But they have to seek out community, not just splash their opinions across the timeline for all to see. Stop dragging your trash in here and dumping it on the carpet

I don't think he was really an option here, but it looks like he wasn't really an option anywhere








I wonder if Dan Quinn uses "in this space" or "to go" when he's actually coaching guys....


MORE!!! TUDDY!!!!


Not Commanders related, but I really want to see Dan Quinn doing this:

burgold said:

Yeah, the Connerly pick surprised me big time. I think they outsmarted themselves. So much of the predraft talk about Coleman was how he was better suited to guard and they talked themselves into believing it. Sort of like they thought Sainristil had to be a nickel because of his size.

I really wanted an Edge with that number 1 pick. I was also okay with WR and was hoping that Ohio State player Egbuku (I think) was going to fall to us. He almost did. I think he got picked three or four slots a head of us. Still, Connerly could work out. I've been wrong plenty of times.

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It's fine if folks don't like a pick, but for years we've said they neglected the Oline, and we finally change that habit and folks complain about it 🤷

Once you have a QB, stacking talent at Oline makes a ton of sense. That doesn't mean Conerly was the "right" pick, but I can't quibble with the thought process...

Former military guy here. I actually think they could have gone full-on military theme if they'd used 'Warriors' as the replacement name. You could have had camo uniforms, celebrated a different military unit each week, etc... But I get that some folks are staunchly anti-military (or at best grudgingly tolerant of it as an evil necessity). So I am actually fine that they have moved away from the military worship mindset Rivera seemed obsessed with.

Commanders is a dumb name. When you pick a dumb name for a team, one where no one definitively knows what it means or represents, it makes 'branding' and finding great iconography and images to go with it very difficult. I think the team marketing folks and ownership has come to realize, having made the decision to stick with 'Commanders' that more vague is better and I actually agree. In the modern sense, 'Commanders' is awkward. Commander can generically mean a leader (platoon commander, company commander, squadron commander, fleet commander, etc...) or it can be seen very specifically as an actual rank (such as a 'Commander' in the US Navy). It doesn't work well in any context. For one thing, while I have been a Platoon Commander and a Company Commander and don't want to devalue what those roles do, if you are going to go with a vaguely military theme, most of us would say lets celebrate/honor the folks who are really doing the fighting, not officers. That's why 'Warriors' would've been so much better.

The whole branding situation has been and remains somewhat unfixable. I think they are essentially trying to shift more towards a generic 'Warrior' theme and away from any modern military connotation and that's probably the best way to make it palateable. The incorporation of the spear IS creating a military identity. You don't need dog tags to make it clear the name is about fighting, and battling.

HurQlez - you said it yourself - they aren't going to reverse course on the name. I think the NFL brass long ago laid down a barrier to another name change and that option is off the table. They have their own branding and design folks and they have clearly decided that a vague 'warrior spirit' theme is the best they can do, and they are probably right. I can't speak for most of the fanbase, but I believe many fans (maybe most at this point) are just tired of the debate and want to coalesce and move forward around something generic they can live with, that is somehow tied to our previous brand as much as that is possible. I think that's exactly what the team is doing.

Greetings and Salutations one and all!! Glad to be a part of the site. 71 years old. Been a fan since the Sonny, Charley, Bobby & Jerry Smith days. Time to move into the new age. I'm in for the long haul!!

First 2 months are gonna be a brutal schedule, allright.
A whole bunch of teams that are unfortunate enough to have to play us, are gonna face brutality

Been avoiding the site to avoid conversations about the Yuk… am I safe? Or do I need to hibernate a few more days?

Voice_of_Reason said:

I think the thinking was that Jayden could do it with Terry, Noah Brown and Deebo. And McCaffery was option 4, and probably Lane option 5.

And maybe he could have.

But:
Terry - Gone
Noah Brown - Gone
Deebo - Gone, then came back in a role he wasn't suited for because Terry and Noah were gone.
McCaffery - Gone
Lane - Ended the season gone.
Not a WR, but Ertz - Gone.

Then enter Chris Moore, Robby Chosen, whoever else they had to elevate from the PS squad. Who weren't elevatable.

I didn't like the Noah Brown plan to begin with because he was going to get hurt eventually. They should have let him walk and found a better, more dependable option. Then when he got hurt in mini-camp, they should have panicked and signed whoever was left who could start. He got to us because the Texans knew he couldn't stay healthy and then he got hurt with us too. Trusting Noah Brown was a huge mistake.

I liked the Deebo part of the plan if he could be the gadget/slot kindof guy. Not as a starting outside WR, that's just not who he is.

Click to expand...

You missed Ekeler. Losing Ekeler also had a big effect on the passing game.

Voice_of_Reason said:

Question to the group:

Keim said on one of his last podcasts, if they got Pierce, they might not have gotten some of the defensive guys, and if they got Doubs, they probably wouldn't have gotten Chig.

So, thought experiment: let's assume for a minute we weren't getting Pierce, so he's out. But let's say we get Doubs instead of Chig. There is no option to get both. We might/might not have gotten another TE. What Keim said is when they didn't get Doubs, they pivoted (his word) to Chig. So I'm assuming he was plan C.

Would you feel better, worse or the same if the WRs and TEs were

WR: Terry, Doubs, Williams, McCaffery, Lane + one of Van Jefferson/Burks/DBrown
TE: Sinnot, Bates, Yankof or a second tier TE from FA (I'm not sure who, but not one of Likely, Otton, Chig, Kolar of Bellinger who all were 24M+ and seemingly would be out of the price range after signing Doubs.)

vs.
WR: Terry, Williams, McCaffery, Lane, + 2 of Van Jefferson/Burks/DBrown
TE: Chig, Bates, Sinnott

With the obvious ideal scenario that they get Doubs + Chig off the table, would you feel any differently in either scenario?

I will say, while I think the WR group would be markedly better, the TE group would not, and I think they might cancel each other out. Doubs would have to pick up the production from Ertz, and we'd be counting on Sinnott to "get it" which he hasn't shown at all yet.

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Appreciate the discussion you’re trying to have here, but the very idea of the hypothetical I find repellant. Because it basically confirms my fears about our budget, there would be zero reason not to pursue both in that scenario. Chig isn’t even very highly paid in the grand scheme and wasn’t a super hot commodity, he’s at like 3/$27M. The idea that we only signed a TE upgrade because we missed on WR upgrades is a big part of my whole issue with this operation right now.

Same thing with the idea that Pierce would’ve put a dent in their defensive spending (and implied again, no Chig), because they can either only do one thing at a time or don’t want to actually spend the cap dollars, because the real dollars are intimidating.

I don’t know why I should take this franchise’s chances of winning a Super Bowl more seriously than they in the building do. So I won’t. This isn’t a serious operation until they prove that it is. I take Keim’s word on this as pretty close to gospel (unless the team just thinks this is effective “be careful what you wish for when it comes to WR, if you liked the rest of our offseason” messaging, and is pushing that out to local journos, which would be a misread imo) so I don’t see this as an iteration of the many staffs we’ll have under Harris that has a realistic shot at ever going all-in and going all the way.

I’ll hope they learn their lesson after this year. I hope in the meantime they enjoy the money they’ve been dutifully saving up and rolling forward for Jayden Daniels’ future extension, while they’ve been hindering him in actually earning it as if he already has Patrick Mahomes’ resume.

NickyJ said:

I don't see how that is elevating them. The WRs have to do their own job. Throwing with anticipation, timing, and accuracy is the QB elevating himself by playing at a higher level. In Jayden's case, he wasn't able to throw with anticipation last season because his receivers could not reliably get separation from DBs to give him somewhere to throw. He would be throwing it to a covered receiver.

Which is why I take issue with the belief that Daniels will make his WRs better this season. It's up to the receivers to do their jobs, and Daniels to do his job. It's not something a QB or the WRs can overcome alone.

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I agree that the receivers have to do their jobs (as does Daniels). The better they do their job makes life easier on Daniels just as the better Daniels performs, the easier it is for receivers.

With that said, you seem to be arguing that qbs can’t elevate their receivers… which has been a common idea/refrain for decades (with Brady as the poster child). That doesn’t, of course, mean that Daniels should overcome lesser receivers, even if that’s our best shot at this point. And it doesn’t mean the FO shouldn’t feel pressure to improve the receiving corps or criticism (especially if the season is a failure).


Specific to our situation, some relevant points/thoughts that come to mind:

1. The FO didn’t do a good job improving our receiving corps (at any point, not just this year).

2. Daniels, like other qbs, particularly in a timing based system, requires trust/rapport with his receivers - knowing they’ll make their breaks at the right time, sit or slow in the right spots vs zone, etc.

3. This ^ worked fairly well in 2024 With that said, Daniels scrambled a bunch in ‘24, which suggests that perhaps his receivers weren’t killing it on that front?

4. The scrambling could of course have also stemmed Daniels being a rookie (and all that comes with that), DCs believing pressure was the best way to throw off his game, etc.

5. 2025 was a shit show. Terry and Brown’s injuries were huge of course, and I suspect that DCs changed the way they pressured Daniels to limit scrambling lanes. Of course the big one that was reported was guys not knowing the routes well enough. Luke and Lane weren’t prepared to replace Zaccheus, and they also weren’t prepped to play the Z role. Moore lacked athleticism and neither he nor Chosen are route running savants that can overcome that issue (ala Hopkins or Keenan Allen). Burks of course joined the team late.

6. I think there’s a chance things look far better this year as Luke continues his development, Lane has said he’s much more comfortable in terms of route running, and route running is Williams’ strength (and Jefferson’s). Burks could be the wildcard here. I’ll be curious to see if the system helps Brown. My expectations are pretty low for this whole group though, outside of Terry. I don’t think Chig or White are savior types, but they could/should be at least solid receiving options.

7. There’s also hope the system helps - the heavy PA, the motions, moving Terry around, etc. In theory, the system should make life easier on the oline and fits our TE group. It’s a lot to ask of Blough though.

8. I don’t necessarily buy the idea that an improved defense will help Daniels a bunch, but Logan Paulsen made a pretty compelling case for how much a good D can take pressure off an OC. Remains to be seen how much better our D will be, but there’s reason for optimism in terms of both personnel and scheme.

I’m hoping a lot of little things help with the development of the receivers we have - Terry being in camp, Wes Welker helping with the receivers, the urgency from coming off a terrible season, a more competitive camp - both in terms of claiming spots, but also facing a (hopefully) better D, etc.

Overall, this season is chock full of question marks. Makes it very concerning, but also super intriguing.

Slow down buddy. Let's see Skat last half a season first.

Relying on Dart, Scattebo and Nabors seems like a disaster waiting to happen.

The Giants and Cowboys always get more love than they deserve. For each of the last twenty years, Dallas was always cited as Superbowl favorites even though they hadn't even won a playoff game in decades. New York isn't quite as favored a team, but they do seem to get an undue amount of optimism, too.

Just hold the shredded lettuce for now.

DWinzit said:

I agree that of the prior draftees, Luke as the guy most misused or will have the most opportunity to shine this year.

I expect Sinnott to be more involved but I don't see him as the next Kmet. I however did see him in that light when we drafted him, especially when they reached a round for him. I have read a lot of him struggling with routes and separating, separating being a concern before the draft. He is a nice move guy who has really improved in the blocking arena.

Our front 7 feels pretty stacked to me!! That's exciting because I never thought I'd say again with all the Snyder debacles. I think that spells trouble to Newton to be able to show drastic improvement. He will be sharing time with a lot of other quality players.

Defensively with prior draftees, I am a expecting Mikey to come closer to 2024 form than 2025 form. Also expect big things from Amos

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I don't get the sense Luke McCaffrey was misused. I remember multiple beat reporters saying he looked pretty underwhelming during camp last summer. This year, though, Logan Paulsen has said he looks noticeably different—sharper in his route running, more polished, and simply a better player overall.

I've always gravitated toward players with a bit of a Rocky story—guys who may not have the most natural talent but have elite intangibles and outwork everyone else. Whenever I hear little nuggets about a player's work ethic or drive, I file them away because I think those traits often separate the players who eventually break out from the ones who plateau. Luke fits that.

I know those clues can be subtle, and I'm not claiming I always interpret them correctly, but I've found they're often meaningful. I remember hearing things over the years like Austin Ekeler always having something he's working on—another part of his game he's trying to improve—while Brian Robinson didn't do the same. Whether that's entirely fair or not, I pay attention to those little observations because I'm always trying to figure out which players have that inner drive to become great.

Maybe I'm wrong, but I don't quite get that same vibe from Ben Sinnott. It's not that I think he lacks work ethic or doesn't care—I have no reason to believe that. I just haven't heard the kinds of stories that make me think, "This guy is obsessed with maximizing every ounce of his ability."

I'm kind of a junkie when it comes to this stuff. I listen to just about every podcast, especially during training camp, and I've been to camp plenty of times myself. I pay close attention to which players consistently get talked about as being relentless, always looking to improve, and willing to put in the extra work. Those are the players I tend to bet on in the long run. It's part of the reason why I dug Terry before that draft -- everything I read about him screamed this dude will exceed expectations.

Voice_of_Reason said:

What does “stronger” entrances mean?

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No more Air Supply when Quinn leads the team onto the field.

Boone said:

Whatever is going on, you got this RedWolf

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Thanks for the support my friend

Back on the market. I can deal with a bunch of things, 85% or 90% of the time, but some shit I won't tolerate in life. Ciao Santo Domingo

Headed to see a friend in Medellin next Friday. 😍

So tell me the truth. What does the board think about WR2?

I think this is something that we seriously need to discuss

I’m for adding slot or outside help, doesn’t matter to me. We will have injuries, that’s a fact, so let’s just get more quality WRs in the building.

I have long said the most disappointing player of my life was Lavar. For what he could have been and how his own dumbassness prevented him from getting there

Maybe it should be Griffin. I dunno. I just can’t get over the fact Lavar couldn’t get along with Gibbs which puts it over the edge for me

But damn, what a waste with Griffin.

Ashburn Dave said:

Damn, RIP raptor guy.

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He also had a nice role in one of my favorite movies; The Hunt for Red October. In his honor I will have my wife cook me a rabbit for dinner.

Seriously, dude...you put yourself back in.
I drank every drop of that KoolAid, thought you were the second coming.
You were an Olympic hurdler that Art Briles turned into whatever.

Still love you for that season, tho.

RG3’s rookie campaign is still in the top 3 or 4 seasons we’ve had in the decades since our last Super Bowl, so he was certainly great that year, and the way it ended was a tragedy.

I do think Shanahan gets some blame for playing him injured, and this is especially obvious in hindsight. He was never the same again after that.

I also think RG3 gets a lot of blame for how his career turned out. For example, there is a story about his dad calling Shanahan to complain that Kirk Cousins was running a different offense than his son, when really he should have been thanking him for designing an offense that used pistol formation and option plays to emphasize his strengths. So it is fair to criticize RG3 for his ego and inability to learn and develop, and this latest episode still blaming the coach for his failed career is more evidence of that.

As they say, both things can be true at the same time. Shanny should have sat him when he got hurt, and RG3’s ego contributed to his downfall.