1984Echoes

Oh, yeah, I messed that up... forgot the 0-tech versus 1-tech. Also... I gotta get away from confusing WR ("split-wide" nomenclature with the correct DL "wide-9"). I don't know why I did that... getting old and confused. One more point: a TE is not required for the wide-9, it's an extra player distance from the OT regardless of whether the player (TE) is actually there or not. Gives a speedy edge rusher a couple steps of momentum on the rush... Here's a good (short) article on the 0-5 + wide-9 techniques: https://www.thephinsider.com/2016/4/16/11443574/football-101-understanding-the-wide-nine-technique

I don't give a crap about the Penguins. I could care less if they are in or not in the playoffs. I care about the Wings (Islanders) pick. That's it. So the Penguins need to win. This is easy for me.

This is way, way over the head of a pig smuggler who is very low to the ground, you know, along with all of his pigs, in muck and shit and the like (here is an article on smuggling pig carcasses, for reference: https://www.porkbusiness.com/news/industry/driver-caught-thailand-smuggling-pig-carcasses-cambodia) ... Pigs just love their shit. Such is the life of a pig smuggler... wallowing in all sorts of grotesque shittery. I mean, I assume we all know this. You can Google it.

So we hope if we draft Wemby then, that he is more Lew Alcinder than Kristaps Porzingis...

So we are rooting for: The Wings to lose their last game (at Tampa: guarantees 9th draft spot or better, pre-lottery), The Caps to win their last game (at home vs. Devils: pushes Wings up to the 8th draft spot, pre-lottery, to finish the season), The Pens to win their last game (wait for it...), and The Islanders to lose their last game in regulation (pushes the NYI pick to #16 with the NYI's out of the playoffs... also, Calgary and Nashville wins get this pick to about its optimal, at #14). Sounds like a plan.

I'm thinking Putin's staying power is rapidly disintegrating... I don't want to say by the minute, but... yeah.

Still lots of time to apply Fetter magic... And different pitchers... Different pitchers just might help a wee little bit...

PS: I forgot, also... NT is called a 1-tech, directly over the Center. 3-tech means over either shoulder of the Guard 5-tech means outside shoulder of the OT 2-tech means directly in front of the OG 4-tech means directly over the OT. There's also a "split-wide" DE which means they are far enough away from the OT that he doesn't count as being aligned with the OT, not even on the outside shoulder.

Adding to what MB said... as opposed to a Nose Tackle who typically lines over the Center and invariably ends up taking on two blockers almost every play. 3-techs are usually smaller than NT's... (Suh was still 6' 4" 315 #'s), are pass-rushing type DT's... and in a 4-3, they'll line up either between the C&G or the G&T... hoping to split them or go up a seam to get to the QB. They're also good for stunting with DE's or swapping with DE's because they're more athletic than the average DT so that also opens up additional pass-rushing options... McNeill is not a pass-rushing DT. He's more of a NT-type or run-stopping DT. Siaki Ika and Mazi Smith are these types of DT's this year. Run-stoppers. The smaller Aaron Donald-type (not saying they'll turn into AD...) 3-tech DT's this year are Calijah Kancey at 6' 1" 280 #'s, 31" arms (VERY short...), a 9.60 RAS score (very athletic!) and a 4.67 40... and Abetomiwa Abebewore (I think he ends up as a 3-tech after adding 10 pounds of muscle...) at 6' 2" 295 #'s, 34" arms (better... for leverage), a 9.87 RAS score (even MORE athletic!) and a 4.54 40 (!!! WOW !!!). I love this guy as a prospect. Hope he's not just a workout warrior but.. up to Holmes to decide if he's interested in him or not... One last thing... a few DE's are big/ athletic/ powerful enough to be a starter at DE as well as play 3-tech DT on passing downs by swinging inside for those plays... Scouts for this year's draftees state that Myles Murphy and Tyree Wilson are the two prospects that can do that. Start at DE and swing inside on passing downs. The scouting reports for both say they can "play all along the line".

Sneaky, hidden upside to trading Okudah... to Atlanta: Might cause a CB to slide down the draft a little bit... to... say... the #18th pick?

Well... This aged really well... I guess I would revise based on tiers: If we don't sign Bridgewater then I would put backup QB and 3-tech DT on the top tier of Playoff 2023 needs. With the trade of Okudah, I would put RB (Swift) and CB (can never have too much CB's...) on the 2nd tier. IOL may be up there with Vatai's recent health but for now I'm going to keep it on the 3rd tier. I'm keeping it in a tier all by itself due to the uncertainty of whether we are good here or it's just as critical as a deep RB/ CB room. Feel free to disagree... But as I've said previously... it doesn't matter where on the pecking order this falls... I'm absolutely certain they'll use one of their 2nd rounders on a great candidate to fill the OL room as well. And be a future (or maybe even 2023?) replacement for Vatai at the very least. Next I think falls depth/ develop guys that can add to their respective rooms and maybe surprise on the upside, if not this year then next year: WR, LB'er, TE, Safety. Last: just to add some competition (draft pick or otherwise): Kicker.

I want to look at this season like 2021. I expect that changes will be made, and this team may look different at the end of each month versus the beginning. I expect that some things will catch, some players will heat up, and some will fall to the wayside, etc... So... in light of my expectations... I want to see where we are at after our 33rd game; which in 2021 was May 7th. At that point we were 9-24, with 104 runs scored for, and 174 against. And then we started playing better after some player swaps... May 7th-ish is when I will re-evaluate where we are, what we've done in the way of sifting through players, adjustments, heat-ups or fall-off-a-cliffs... etc.

Wish upon the "one more Islanders regulation loss" star....

Yeah I just saw that... 😁

Ooof!!! Agree.

PS: Guys I'd rather select at #6 than Skoronski: Anderson & Carter, obviously; either CB Gonzalez or Witherspoon, either DE Wilson or Murphy (both have been scouted/ rated as able to swing inside to 3-tech for passing downs or, in scouting terms: "can play all over the DL"); Bijan; one of the QB's only if Holmes deems it so. I'd be as disappointed in Skoronski at #6 as I would be with a 1st round TE. Terribly, badly, not-having-a-very-nice-day, want-to-scream-at-a-wall-at-the-top-of-my-lungs-for-two-hours-straight disappointed...

I like several of the 2nd round type IOL's this year. I like a lot of them actually...

Which means they have it covered in 2023. Again, I can use a 2nd rounder on Avila or Mauch and be happy about it. They don't have to start this year (unless injuries or performance dictates...); so at the very least we are preparing a potential starter for 2024, who can also be a backup this year. Same with CB. Same with WR. So IMO: you're looking at 2024 and trying to supercede our immediate needs (2023) with future needs. I'll stand by my rankings... for this year: We MUST have coverage for RB & QB (IMO) as a potential playoff team; and a 3-tech DT will have the biggest impact on our roster as currently constructed. We can still draft good CB's and IOL's and WR's etc. in rounds outside the first round... just guessing. It's not like I said we CAN'T draft them...

25 years old is too old to be a backup? I didn't know that. Injured? Forever? I'll let Holmes & Co. evaluate those issues as well as any others you've mentioned... thank you very much.

The (3) most critical Lions needs as I see them (not in any order): 3-tech DT. We don't have one. A good inside pass rush "hugely" opens up the ability to pressure the QB. There's only a few I see in this draft and they'll be long gone before the 3rd round so... A good backup QB - Sudfeld is what, an unknown? For a playoff-expectant team, a must have. It could be Bridgewater if we can entice him... otherwise, in this draft...? A solid RB corps. This is a direct knock against Swift's health. There's no guarantee he'll be healthy for the playoffs (the critical reason for needing a rock solid RB corps) so, minus Swift: Montgomery (decent to plus). Craig Reynolds (a bench guy to be used on 3rd downs occasionally, or more... but I don't want to pin my playoff hopes on him...): Which means to me a top-3 rounder (does NOT have to be Bijan, but it could be...) RB needs to be selected. Charbonnet in the 3rd is thre guy I'm eyeing. Let's see what Holmes comes up with. LB'er is a lower need only because that's how this management team values them: as a lower position of need... And based on all the other moves Holmes has made... I think CB, IOL, LB'er, Safety, TE, etc., are all lower need/ backup-type draft positions this year, IMHO.

Maybe. I'm thinking 2nd rounder or trade up in the 2nd round... That's what I would most prefer. However: Backup QB is critically important if a team is thinking playoffs/ Super Bowl. A lesser team not so much. But even if the starter never misses a start... the risk to a successful playoff-type season is too great to have a nothing QB as a backup. So I think: (A) Hooker would be the perfect backup for the next 4 years (5 years if using the #18). (B) I'd rather use the #18 elsewhere, be that Bijan or whatever else Holmes wants to grab... also, (C) if the team decides that it will move on from Goff, for whatever reason... I think Hooker is just as capable and as good as Goff so I think he would extend our window at least a couple more years... and therefore... IF (D) Holmes decides to use the #18 on Hooker and instead use the 2nds on other RB's/ CB's/ DT's/ etc... that he didn't get the position covered with the #6 or #18... I'll live with it. He's the decision maker, and... I Trust in Holmes.

Taking pitcher's risks into account, and the added value of position players > pitchers... For the 1st round only... I don't think I would select a pitcher over a position player if they were tied in Org evaluations. Extending that... I don't think even a 10% better pitcher overcomes injury risk or daily playing value risk... So... IMHO: A 1st round pitcher would have to be significantly better than a position player for me to make the pitcher that selection. I don't think Jobe qualifies as that over Mayer. But I don't know how to quantify that, exactly. If Jobe somehow turns into Clemens and Mayer into Alex Rodriguez or Derek Jeter (just dart-boarding), who has the higher value? In hindsight it's easy to say that Verlander was the worthy #2 selection. At the end of their careers maybe the same will be said of Jobe. I'm glad I don't have to make these decisions. But my point remains, 1st round only (after that just take BPA and don't worry pitcher versus position (can't draft ZERO pitchers... right?)): there are two pitcher's risks that should drop them in evaluations against position players: everyday playing value (pitchers lose) and injury risk. So selecting a pitcher in the 1st has to mean he is CLEARLY head and shoulders (however that gets defined) then the next position player.... IMHO.

I know I sound like a broken record... But this is exactly where I'm at. Maybe a little higher than "maybe"... Hendon Hooker for $500 please.

I'm on board with all of this... But if he hasn't proven himself as a starter then I would prefer he gets a short 2-3 year contract that pays him as a backup/ unproven starter. If he grows into and takes over a starting CB position, not this year but in a year or so... then he can get paid starter's money on his next contract...

This looks familiar, doesn't it?