Cowher: "Spygate didn't beat Us"

[TKO]

WR To TE Conversion

If the Pats don't use a high pick on one of the higher rated TEs for the pass catching role, I'd keep my eyes on this player:

Brandon Coleman, I've seen 6'5 220 Lbs or 6'6 230 Lbs with high 4.5 speed....the Combine will nail it down

First off he's an early entry player from Rutgers...trumpets blare and cymbals crash....

He looks like he has the athleticism and hands to be a good player. He's long and lean and IMO...could easily carry another 20 Lbs and still be an athletic TE similar to Jared Cook or Ben Coates.

He's supposedly rated as a 3rd-4th rounder as a WR. While I haven't seen any sites saying it, he looks like a good bang for the buck player if he ultimately projects to TE and he appears to have the athleticism to be a big WR option.

 

[MrMoJoRisin63]

If the Pats don't use a high pick on one of the higher rated TEs for the pass catching role, I'd keep my eyes on this player:

Brandon Coleman, I've seen 6'5 220 Lbs or 6'6 230 Lbs with high 4.5 speed....the Combine will nail it down

First off he's an early entry player from Rutgers...trumpets blare and cymbals crash....

He looks like he has the athleticism and hands to be a good player. He's long and lean and IMO...could easily carry another 20 Lbs and still be an athletic TE similar to Jared Cook or Ben Coates.

He's supposedly rated as a 3rd-4th rounder as a WR. While I haven't seen any sites saying it, he looks like a good bang for the buck player if he ultimately projects to TE and he appears to have the athleticism to be a big WR option.

The Supreme Brandon Coleman Highlights - YouTube

I too do some looking into this kid. I wonder though he seems a tad skinny for TE, would 10 to 15 more pounds of muscle slow him down all that much? IMO he appears skinny for TE.

 

[rehone]

I like this kid a lot and he was recruited by Schiano which carries a lot of weight with BB. He could easily fit into the Hernandez mold only he is actually taller and faster and from what I can tell is pretty high character kid and if there is one thing we know it is the Rutgers kids seem to be football smart.

He has quick feet for a kid this bog and his draft stock is down a little but he fought through a knee injury all year. I do love those long striders and he plays faster than he times. He is already moving up some draft boards and CBS has Pats taking him in first which I doubt.

Brandon Coleman, WR, Rutgers, NFL Draft - CBSSports.com - NFLDraftScout.com

Explosive first step and he is supposedly devastating against press coverage. He has good hip sink and flexibility out of cuts and creates separation naturally. I doubt he gets out of second round based on measurable he will post at combine.

This is a good find IMHO and he could add 15-20 pounds of muscle and easily play the Hernandez role except for the penchant to shoot people.

 

[seahawksfan234]

One of the troubles of converting a WR to TE is if they can block NFL caliber defensive linemen. Unless you want your starting TE to be a huge liability in the run game, you're going to want a guy who has at least decent blocking skills.

 

[rehone]

I think he fits the hybrid role Hernandez played but his rep is he can block and that is the rep of all the Wideouts that have come out of Rutgers.

 

[ChicagoIrish]

One of the troubles of converting a WR to TE is if they can block NFL caliber defensive linemen. Unless you want your starting TE to be a huge liability in the run game, you're going to want a guy who has at least decent blocking skills.

Don't forget about OLB's like Matthews

 

[Drawmeomg]

I tend to like conversions in the later rounds of the draft.

When you're drafting in the 5th, 6th, 7th rounder, you're either getting guys who have a decent shot at being a bit player, or you're getting guys who have a somewhat lower shot at being a great player but have a lot of risk of just being a bust. You get players like Deaderick, Edelman, Cannon or Dennard by taking on the huge risk that their attitude problems keep them off the field, that they don't successfully transition to their new position, that their health keeps them off the field, or that their off field troubles derail their career. The upside is that when they do work out, you tend to get players more in line with 1st/2nd/3rd round talent for a 5th/6th/7th round draft choice.

They'd have to be very confident in this guy's ability to contribute to take him in the 3rd or 4th, but if they are, go for it (he has less risk if they think he can play WR if TE doesn't work out).

 

[Bruschi_Warrior]

Coleman is better at the catch point and in contested balls, including over the middle, then Kelvin Benjamin.

Coleman does a good job catching the ball over the middle and has sneaky speed. I will be interested in what his 3-cone is to see if he can make the move over to tight end.

As far as being a blocker, he is pretty mediocre but that is something that could be taught.

I am not very impressed with his motor however and is one of the reasons why his collegiate stats are even lower than Benjamin's.

 

[redseat]

I too do some looking into this kid. I wonder though he seems a tad skinny for TE, would 10 to 15 more pounds of muscle slow him down all that much? IMO he appears skinny for TE.

Yeah but with all the trainers they have on professional teams than he easily could gain those few pounds back.

 

[TKO]

“We didn’t lose the game because of any Spygate, because of them having any additional things,” Cowher said in a radio interview Wednesday, per CBS Pittsburgh. “I think if they’re guilty of anything, they’re guilty of arrogance, because they were told not to do something. But it was something that everybody does. The only thing they got caught [was] doing it with a camera. We had people that always tried to steal signals. Stealing someone’s signals was a part of the game, and everybody attempted to do that.” Cowher also explained that “what happened when we lost [the 2004 AFC title game] is they outplayed us, and it has nothing to do with stealing signals, or cheating, or anything else. They were a better football team on that day.”

http://nesn.com/2014/01/bill-cowher...ers-afc-championship-game-losses-to-patriots/

 

[ohiopatsfan]

Remember, the Pats still have Mark Harrison on the inactive roster. Another Rutgers product. He's 6-3, and goes between 230-240. Harrison has a lot of the same traits attributed to Coleman.

 

[SDGuy73]

Full article.

Cowher dismisses impact of 'Spygate'

PITTSBURGH -- Bill Cowher has a message for Pittsburgh Steelers fans who think their team was cheated out of a trip to the Super Bowl 10 years ago: Get over it.

The Steelers were drummed by New England, 41-27, in the 2004 AFC Championship Game at Heinz field, a loss that came under suspicion a couple of years later when the Patriots were caught trying to steal signals and formations by illegally videotaping opposing teams.

“We didn’t lose the game because of any 'Spygate,' because of them having any additional things,” Cowher told 93.7 The Fan on Wednesday. “[If] they’re guilty of anything they’re guilty of arrogance because they were told not to do something but it was something everybody does. They got caught doing it with a camera.”

Cowher, who coached the Steelers from 1992-2006, said what the Patriots did happened regularly in the NFL before the league allowed coordinators to relay plays to their quarterback and defensive signal-caller via a helmet radio.

“Stealing someone’s signals was a part of the game and everybody attempted to do that. We had people that always tried to steal signals,” said Cowher, whose 2004 team won 16 consecutive games before losing to the Patriots in the AFC title game. “What happened when we lost that game is they outplayed us. It had nothing to do with stealing signals or cheating or anything else.”

Cowher, an NFL studio analyst for CBS, interviewed Patriots coach Bill Belichick last week, and he said the two talked extensively afterward, the first time they had done so since they were both NFL assistant coaches.

Cowher professed his admiration for Belichick and the sustained success he has enjoyed in the salary-cap era.

The Pittsburgh native also made it clear on Wednesday that he won’t be matching wits against Belichick -- or any other NFL head coach -- anytime soon.

Cowher reiterated that he has “no interest” in returning to the sideline even though his name has been linked to head-coaching vacancies every year since he retired from the Steelers in January 2007.

Cowher, who went 149-90-1 and won a Super Bowl in 15 seasons with the Steelers, acknowledged that he has received his share of inquiries about returning to coaching.

“It’s flattering but it never gets very far,” Cowher said. “If I ever want to get back into coaching I should be calling teams they shouldn’t be calling me. That’s when you know you really want to do it.”

 

[RobBase]

Cowher opinion > fans/media opinions.

Case closed.

 

[JDM]

I think most people who know football know this was stupid in the first place.

 

[Drawmeomg]

Cowher opinion > fans/media opinions.

Case closed.

I wish. He said essentially the same thing at the time and it had no effect at all on public opinion.

I put it in the same category as the running up the score stuff. There's no such thing. When Manning did it this year, there was no public outcry (not that there should've been!). It was just another way to take shots at the Patriots, because people had already decided to hated the Patriots.

 

[eric5577x]

Great read....still does not matter to anyone who dislikes the Pats....

 

[cdumler7]

I honestly don't think Spygate was as big of deal as it turned out to be. I think the NFL ended up being under a ton of pressure to do something because it was so front and center in the media but in the end was something almost every team was doing in some way at the time. It is just really misunderstood by the common fan.


Don't worry your not the only fan base that has to deal with crap like this. Bronco fans have been having to deal with people saying Broncos tried to cheat their way when they won their Super Bowls by going around the Salary Cap. Problem is people don't realize that the Broncos weren't trying to get around the Cap but were strapped for cash at the time because of building the new stadium so they put in the contracts that players would be paid at a later date with interest but that their salary would still count against the Cap. Yes I guess they did get a little extra in the interest side of it but then again that still counted against the cap later. So again it wasn't to get around the Cap it was because they just didn't quite have the money to pay all the players. Not great business practice but not really trying to cheat either.

 

[MrMoJoRisin63]

One of the troubles of converting a WR to TE is if they can block NFL caliber defensive linemen. Unless you want your starting TE to be a huge liability in the run game, you're going to want a guy who has at least decent blocking skills.

I think blocking is teachable.

Yeah but with all the trainers they have on professional teams than he easily could gain those few pounds back.

And IMO to play TE he would have to.

 

[MrMoJoRisin63]

I think most people who know football know this was stupid in the first place.

I don't think it was stupid at all. There is little doubt having the other teams signals and knowing what will occur has a distinct advantage. That however does not mean execution is not a factor players still have to make plays and account for audibles.

 

[TBBishop]

How many people have said the exact same thing over the past 7 years and it still hangs out there, over the Pats heads. Someone on TV said the other day that Belichick NEEDS this Superbowl to revive his tanted legacy. It is still perceived by far too many people that they won because of spying. It doesn't matter that they have probably won more games over that span than any other team, probably won more playoff games than any other team, they've made 2 Superbowls, they have been the model franchise, but because they haven't won another Superbowl their success was because of spying? That's just ridiculous. The Pats could win the next 2 Superbowls and the people who are still hanging on to Spygate will find a way to still hang on to it. It's just sad!!