Ray_T

well, good news if you're a kittle owner I guess. wow.

I think we need to calm down. yes the talent is a bit thinner. the NFL has more teams and the number of college teams has not increased at the same rate as the NFL league size. but thats not the reason we are seeing less 300 yard games. Because the depth of talent on Defense is thinner too. I think part of it is that teams are now looking for QB who run the ball. guys like Joe Flacco have been passed over for guys like Fields. Now fields just lost his job to Russell Wilson so maybe that's an extreme example, but teams dont want the drop back passer anymore. They want the dual threat Lamar Jackson type player. problem is... most of the guys who run like Lamar pass the ball like Tim Teebow. You are not gonna get 300 yard games that way. its more a case of the game has changed. Defenses have also adapted too. There are always years where the offense evolves and learns how to beat the defense, then the defense evolves to counter this. its cyclical. a few years back we saw the defenses start to dominate for a year or two before the most recent evolution of the offensive game plans. Then we saw a lot of 300 yard passing games. Now Defenses have adjusted. I'll be honest when I look at coverage today its far better than what we saw (on average) even 3 or 4 years ago. I'm pretty sure this has at least something to do with it. but lets not have an angry rant. lets talk about what we are seeing and see if this is truly an evolution of the game or if the talent has thinned out. I personally think its an evolution of the game. but that's my opinion. I'm fully willing to discuss and debate the matter.

I've been saying this for a couple years. This is really a personell problem or an O line problem. Though we may actually be at the point where they have ruined him as a prospect by not putting him in a position to be successful. guy can only perform for so long under those conditions and then the confidence gets trashed and the player starts to doubt himself. they probably do need to replace him but they also need to replace half the line (maybe more) or fire the O line coach and bring in someone who can get them performing. inevitably, the QB usually takes the blame even when its not 100% his fault. I'm not saying Daniel Jones is blameless. I'm just saying hes not the only problem. and when the line performs that terribly you need to give the player a Mulligan. but if this is the norm.... Daniel jones and over 3/4 of the starters in the NFL wont be able to play behind that line. So how much do you blame the player? Likely the best thing for Daniel jones carreer would be if they cut him loose so he can go play in another organization.

good post.

Ankle injury. apparently left the dressing room wearing a boot as per NFL.com see link below: https://www.nfl.com/news/cooper-kupp-suffers-ankle-injury-in-rams-loss-to-cardinals-leaves-locker-room-in-walking-boot

well, the guy hasnt played since he got hurt in pre season. Not sure why you would be expecting him to light it up right out of the gate.... but it looked to me like his game got better as he got into the game. 2nd half was a whole lot better than the first half. I'm now sorry I dumped pickens in my one league. I think he and Wilson have established something there and I'm intrigued by that possibility.

true. even if there is no history of injury, you likely want a good developmental player waiting in the wings to step in when injury hits

well, the one thing I'll say is the arrow appears to be pointing up. but that could change as the wind does. we shall see. for now, hes a player of interest and if you have interest in Dobbins already, he might not be a bad handcuff.

just because hes quiet doesnt mean he is happy. but either way it no longer matters. so pointless to speculate on it now. his one comment when his trade ended up not happening his twitter post suggested he didnt care if he was being traded away and thats where I got the feeling he didnt love it there. but maybe I was looking too deep into it.

if Dobbins gets hurt Vidal has a chance to be a full fledged starter. keep in mind a chance does not mean it will happen. it could just as easily just become a committee with Vidal as one of the main contributors.

hey there are always some who will buy him based on history and reputation. I just said I'd cut him some slack myself. but cutting him some slack when hes already on your roster is a bit different than paying full price for an underperforming player (even if the reason for the underperformance is rather apparent) but you are right. some likely will still pay a decent amount for the guy. If targetting him for a buy low, now is likely the time. Myself I'd consider buying, but I'd want a discount.

agreed. if starting him, this is the week.

well, usually when players on the line get old, they start have troubles staying healthy. I suspect this is some of what we are seeing. when guys are playing out of position, thats usually to cover up holes due to injury or just holes in the lineup in general. I agree, they have a couple young guys in there, but I would guess another needs to be taken in the top 2 or 3 rounds next season

now that hes in there, I dont think they will pull him unless hes REALLY bad. and he is a QB who picks up points with his feet so the floor will be decent. I just wouldnt start him against any top Defenses he plays.

I get it. but thats not fixing the core of the problem. They need young blood on the O line. this is the beginning of a longer slide for this line. they have actually been dominated in a couple of games and I havent seen that often in the recent past. so my fear is that they are now only average now. (not sure I'd label them below average quite yet) when the line doesnt work everything else in the offense doesnt work as effectively. Run game isnt what it was either and hasnt been great for a couple years now.

I agree. vidal is a nice bench stash right about now. if and when dobbins gets hurt he will suddenly become far more important. if you have need at RB and you have an open roster spot, hes not a bad lotto ticket and the cost is practically nothing

of course it is. there are plenty of cases where people have off field issues (not just in football) and then their on field game suffers as a result. the problem is his mind isnt only on football. dude has other problems and lots of them. This is a mental game. moreso for QB than any other position. if your head isnt in the game, you just are not gonna perform.

as the owner you dont have to take the blame. you can blame anyone you want in the organization and fire them. fans may know but their opinion likely doesnt matter to him He will eventually blame the GM and fire him even if the idea was his in the first place. Thats the way these things go.

no, but he landed on a team that had the best O line in the league (or one of the best) and that covered up this flaw. Line is getting old now and not what it was. so now the cracks in the armor are starting to show. (so to speak)

complain or not, at this point the players who produce are the ones who are worth keeping. for Mahomes I'm willing to cut him some slack. hes done nothing but win, and now half his WR are injured and out. right now if you sell, you are selling at the low point. no point cutting bait. I dont think his value sinks lower. might as well ride it out.

this is the way it often goes. its like one morning the guy woke up and the game suddenly has slowed down for him. he sees things he didnt see before. granted It is still early and he may struggle against some elite defenses, but he is also practicing against the Bears D so the rest of the league shouldnt be that hard compared to them.

well, now that the season has started, it no longer matters who was drafted where. its now about dealing with what you got. I do think Mahomes is a keep. if the team gets healthy I think he will put up numbers again. Geno I was never fully sold on so hes the guy I'd trade away. Kyler murray may be a bit of a headcase but I think he still has the ability to turn it on. he may also be a hold unless someone makes a nice offer.

I was a cowboys fan at one point in my life. still like them but dont love them like I once did. I felt Dak was overhyped and overrated. he was always a good, but not great QB. put up great stats against weak teams and weak defenses. but against good teams with good Defenses he leaves a lot to be desired. do I think hes overpaid? Hell yeah. do I think the Boys will regret this contract. for sure. but he will still continue to be mediocre and occasionally great against weaker opposition. but the Line is not what it was, so he will have a harder time than hes had in the past to accomplish this goal

of course. and I'd say give full credit to the Bears D. they look like they may be one of the elite Defenses this year. They are the reason for the bears hot start (mostly) but then again, I figured a successful year would be if Caleb wasnt responsible for most of the losses. hes had a rough start, but you at least need to give him credit for not flubbing it up. He rode a great performance by the Defense to some wins as a champion should. at this point he doesnt need to light the world on fire. he only needs to: 1. show he belongs in the nfl 2. not get too cute. if the team is winning just make sure you get the W. dont worry about running up the score or padding your stats. 3) Learn, Learn, Learn. I'll admit I was a bit worried after week 1. the offense looked terrible, but the offense has evolved fairly quickly. Hes starting to flash a bit. He still has a ways to go, but the signs are there. Hes starting to become a pro and show he belongs in the NFL

yeah I'm also sad to lose him. Took him late in the July Mock and he was good. Sadly not meant to be. got a few good games out of him, so still worth the pick, but could have been a far bigger steal if he had played the full year