Bama RB Derrick Henry to visit Hawks this week

[4down20]

Henry will be a big bust, like every alabama running back since alexander. i would be pretty po'd if we took him in the 1st or even the 2nd. i wouldnt even want him in the 4th round.

The other Alabama Heisman winner was Mark Ingram, who is a pro bowler and went from being in a RB by committee to being the feature back. He's about to play his 6th year as a starter, for a position where the league average is only 3 years.



Trent Richardson is the only RB that could be considered a bust.

 

[jerseyhawksfan79]

While that may be true, do you really think this FO goes about their business based on trends that are largely formed by the 31 other teams? That's pretty much their trademark at this point -- doing things that go against the grain or what the "conventional wisdom" might suggest to be the right move.

I think this draft they go with traditional wisdom and draft o-line/d-line. The outside of the box ideas do work, but with glaring need on the o-line and how PC expressed his displeasure with their play tells me this is the route they take.

 

[dude82]

What makes you think Michael can handle the playbook now? That's the reason he was let go in the first place.

I'm a Henry fan. I hope the Pats can get him late 2nd? The Pats need a bruising type back like Henry. Seattle already has Rawls. The verdict is still out on him. This year will tell us a lot. Having said that there are a couple of flashier style RBs likely around in the 3rd or 4th. I'd see Seattle going O line in the first and either D or another O lineman in the 1st and 2nd. Then look at someone like Alex Collins from Arkansas, Kenneth Dixon from Louisiana Tech, Kenyan Drake Alabama. All have decent speed, can pick up the blitz and decent receivers. Another bigger back I really like later 3rd or 4th if he actually falls that far is CJ Prosise ND.
If I were the Hawks GM that's my stratedgy for this draft.

Was that just speculation, though, or was it confirmed?

 

[NWPATSFAN]

Was that just speculation, though, or was it confirmed?

Is anything confirmed? That's what the majority of folks were saying. If I'm not mistaken PC had mentioned something about his inabilities to grasp the playbook during a press conference. That was a year + maybe two years ago.

 

[SonnyCID]

You dont NEED to pick a lineman in the first to improve the line.

 

[jakedog56]

The other Alabama Heisman winner was Mark Ingram, who is a pro bowler and went from being in a RB by committee to being the feature back. He's about to play his 6th year as a starter, for a position where the league average is only 3 years.

You're stupid.

Trent Richardson is the only RB that could be considered a bust.

Ingram isn't bad but he has never even had a 1000 yard season and he has missed an average of 4 games a year over the last 3 years. 5 years in the league and just over 3000 yards.

Where he did pick it up last year was as a receiving threat out of the backfield. He has steadily improved that area of his game.

Bust? No. Great back who meets or exceeds Heisman hype? No. Good back who contributes? Yes.

 

[4down20]

Ingram isn't bad but he has never even had a 1000 yard season and he has missed an average of 4 games a year over the last 3 years. 5 years in the league and just over 3000 yards.

Where he did pick it up last year was as a receiving threat out of the backfield. He has steadily improved that area of his game.

Bust? No. Great back who meets or exceeds Heisman hype? No. Good back who contributes? Yes.

Only 7 RB's had more than 1000 yards rushing last year.

 

[jakedog56]

Only 7 RB's had more than 1000 yards rushing last year.

True. But I still don't consider Ingram to be a great back. I consider him to be a back who underacheived (for whatever reason, it could be attributed to coaching or other factors out of his control but still underachieved) for his first 3 years in the league and then has been a good solid back for the last two but still having injury issues that are somewhat limiting his effectiveness.

He is certainly not the Heisman bust that some are but neither is a ground-breaking force on the field. He is still relatively young (26) so he could have another 4 productive years in the league (but I am a bit skeptical due to his injuries) and walk away with 6,000-7,000 yards and a decent career or he could burn out fast (as backs tend to do in the NFL as the teams find it easy to replace them) and be done soon.

As I noted previously, his improvement as a receiver out of the backfield has been his most impressive feat to me so far. From 27 catches combined in his first 3 years, to 29 in year 4, and 50 catches last year is very nice and could keep him around longer as long as Brees has a good connection with him.

As a Bama fan, how do you view Henry and Ingram in comparision to other backs? For the most part I have only seen highlight stuff so my view is a bit limited.

 

[JMR]

I think this draft they go with traditional wisdom and draft o-line/d-line. The outside of the box ideas do work, but with glaring need on the o-line and how PC expressed his displeasure with their play tells me this is the route they take.

Could be. To be fair, the team did take OL in the first round the first 2 drafts of the PC/JS era. The 4 1st rounds since: Irvin (widely viewed as a reach/surprise), traded pick for Harvin, traded down, traded pick for Graham. Been quite a while since they just held their ground and went with a predictable script, but it certainly could work out that way this year based on where the weak spots are and what's transpired in free agency.

But as someone else said, I don't think we are funneled into taking a lineman in the first round if we aim to improve the line. History is filled with mid-round blockers who ended up being very good, and certainly our team hasn't exactly had the best luck with early round linemen.

 

[Screamin12th]

What makes you think Michael can handle the playbook now? That's the reason he was let go in the first place.

I'm a Henry fan. I hope the Pats can get him late 2nd? The Pats need a bruising type back like Henry. Seattle already has Rawls. The verdict is still out on him. This year will tell us a lot. Having said that there are a couple of flashier style RBs likely around in the 3rd or 4th. I'd see Seattle going O line in the first and either D or another O lineman in the 1st and 2nd. Then look at someone like Alex Collins from Arkansas, Kenneth Dixon from Louisiana Tech, Kenyan Drake Alabama. All have decent speed, can pick up the blitz and decent receivers. Another bigger back I really like later 3rd or 4th if he actually falls that far is CJ Prosise ND.
If I were the Hawks GM that's my stratedgy for this draft.

Lets be clear here. This was not anything Pete said and the report stated it was a inside source that wished to not be named ( i got the winning Lotto numbers from a inside source lol ). People on this Forum were saying he must have issues learning the playbook well before this report came out. Pete was confronted about this and he stated it was not the case so this report was denied as truthful. On almost EVERY football discussion forum people were saying " he most not be able to learn the playbook" It was all OVER the place because people did not understand why a talented RB wasn't doing better. Then a reporter ran with it when people should have been saying "Maybe he is not as good as we all thought/hoped".

The Real issue was like many RB's Michael would go off script way to much to try and make things happen. It was more about trusting the play and how it was designed. Also he had to get humbled a little as the guys head was to big to fit through the door and was a big reason why in college he was demoted. His bouncing around last season was the best thing that could have happened to him. Now lets hope Rawls is not a fragile/brittle RB and we never have to see Michaels for more than a handful of plays per game.

 

[Anointed One]

Yes, you don't need a first to improve your OL but you better not wait for the 3rd - 5th round to do so... Most of our best linemen have come in the 1st round... Okung, Unger, Hutch, Jones...We have too many holes on this OL to wait and hope a lower round draft picks pans out...

IMO, the Hawks will trade down out of their 1st round pick... IMO, they have an eye on a certain OL that's flying under the radar, that fits their scheme... I think it will be a surprise pick that have some of us scratching our heads.... I just think we move down out of the 1st into the 2nd round...

 

[HaroldSeattle]

My impression of Henry is that he's not a power RB, if hit at the line or behind he went down. He excels if he can make it to the second level where his speed and athletic abilities come to the fore front. I don't see the Seahawks drafting him, their just doing their job of checking out players. I do think they are looking for a additional RB, but not in the first two rounds, maybe much later.

 

[HaroldSeattle]

You dont NEED to pick a lineman in the first to improve the line.

No you don't need to pick a OL to improve the line. You can pick up a guard and center after the first. However if you want a quality OT out this draft, then yes you got to go first round IMO, because they are not going to be there for the Seahawks second pick.

 

[MrS]

Mark ingram wasnt worth a 1st round pick, not even close. And he has not had even close to the career that alexander did.

If henry has a career like ingram it would be a waste of a pick. Im expecting not much better than the bum cleveland drafted

 

[Screamin12th]

No you don't need to pick a OL to improve the line. You can pick up a guard and center after the first. However if you want a quality OT out this draft, then yes you got to go first round IMO, because they are not going to be there for the Seahawks second pick.

i totally agree.

There will be a couple Tackles there at #26 that are worthy late first round picks. There should be a Guard/Center waiting for them with their 2nd round pick that can at the worst compete to win a spot and at best win it out right. The talent you can get for a guard in the 2nd round is solid and the Guards we got on this teams talent level is below average at best. I just feel now is the time to act to fix this line with 4 picks in the top 100. The Hawks could us 2 of those on Oline and they still can get solid quality at the DL position because of the depth in this draft and maybe a solid LB.

This upcoming draft is getting exciting to me more so than normal. Maybe i am just giddy with the though of improving this teams offensive line and hope something big happens in that area.

 

[HaroldSeattle]

If the Hawks Oline was even close to respectful ( which they are not ) i would take a look at a RB at #26. I have been beating my chest all offseason about oline help be it in the draft a FA or a new Oline coach that can get these guys playing better.

When i think of this team i just wonder how truly GREAT they would be with a top 15 Oline. The thought is crazy with the success they have had with a oline that ranks in the bottom 5. Top 15 oline and they might have had a few 16-0 seasons.

Wondering what you think of improving the OL from the inside out. By that I mean up grading at guard and center. Some mighty tasty choices at both positions and you could do it with a 2nd and 3rd round draft choice. Move Gilliam to LT then give the RT help with the TE and RB. Some say having a solid interior line is the future and tackles have become less important. Especially for the Seahawks, given RW elusiveness when a DE comes barreling down. He could step up and let the DE fly by or spin and sprint, leaving the DE grasping air.

Not my first choice, but I could see this happening.

 

[dude82]

Wondering what you think of improving the OL from the inside out. By that I mean up grading at guard and center. Some mighty tasty choices at both positions and you could do it with a 2nd and 3rd round draft choice. Move Gilliam to LT then give the RT help with the TE and RB. Some say having a solid interior line is the future and tackles have become less important. Especially for the Seahawks, given RW elusiveness when a DE comes barreling down. He could step up and let the DE fly by or spin and sprint, leaving the DE grasping air.

Not my first choice, but I could see this happening.

I could see that happening. This might not be the case, but it seems like more pressure came from up the middle last year than in previous years. They don't even need a great guard/center combo to be better. They just can't afford to take a player at either spot who has either never played those positions before or hasn't played either position since high school. They need to find guys who played guard and/or center in college, and it would be even more helpful if those players had more than a year's experience playing the position in college. They could probably get away with moving Gilliam to left tackle and either going after a tackle with college experience at the position or taking a tight end and converting him into a tackle. At least if the right tackle gets beat, Wilson will have a chance of avoiding the defender. If the left tackle or one of the guys up the middle gets blown up, it makes Wilson's job a lot harder. Couldn't hurt to give Gilliam someone to compete with at left tackle either.

 

[SonnyCID]

If this line improves to even average this year, it will probably be because the current guys on the roster develop, not because of rookies.

 

[Screamin12th]

Wondering what you think of improving the OL from the inside out. By that I mean up grading at guard and center. Some mighty tasty choices at both positions and you could do it with a 2nd and 3rd round draft choice. Move Gilliam to LT then give the RT help with the TE and RB. Some say having a solid interior line is the future and tackles have become less important. Especially for the Seahawks, given RW elusiveness when a DE comes barreling down. He could step up and let the DE fly by or spin and sprint, leaving the DE grasping air.

Not my first choice, but I could see this happening.

I have thought about this. I think they need a Tackle with their #1 pick but i also believe like i stated before they can get some great talent at Guard and center in the 2nd and 3rd rounds. I always thought that Guard and center was our weakest link on the oline but with out Okung ( even though often injured ) the talent at Tackle is piss poor now also.

PC said something or was it JS that the talent on the oline is more even now from left to right and this made me laugh because that was a nice way for him to say " we do not have a single good olineman on the team"

Building from the inside out would be great but they need that tackle and they can get a pretty good one with the 26th pick. If they wait past that then they will be reaching and failing to field a pair of tackles that are even average in their BEST games.

With a zone blocking scheme giving someone ( a single olineman ) help with both the TE and RB will spell doom for the QB. Teams will just bring pressure from the weak side 99.9% of the time. It would be to easy for them to read this help.

 

[jerseyhawksfan79]

Could be. To be fair, the team did take OL in the first round the first 2 drafts of the PC/JS era. The 4 1st rounds since: Irvin (widely viewed as a reach/surprise), traded pick for Harvin, traded down, traded pick for Graham. Been quite a while since they just held their ground and went with a predictable script, but it certainly could work out that way this year based on where the weak spots are and what's transpired in free agency.

But as someone else said, I don't think we are funneled into taking a lineman in the first round if we aim to improve the line. History is filled with mid-round blockers who ended up being very good, and certainly our team hasn't exactly had the best luck with early round linemen.

I'm keeping my fingers crossed that a good o-line guy falls to 26. If not and the FO goes a different route, then that'll be fine by me as long as the o-line is addressed in the second or third rounds.