Beginning today, OTAs are sporadically held over the next two and a half weeks, followed by a brief, mid-June veteran mini-camp and then six-week break. Between now and the end of this mini-camp, what will GM Scot McCloughan and the coaching staff hope to have accomplished?
– Tim Foisie, Westport, Conn.
The No. 1 goal for the coaches is to install the offensive, defensive and special teams playbooks, and give the players (especially the rookies and new additions) the foundation they need, so by the time they start training camp, they can just go all out and compete. Coaches will also do some experimentation with players at new positions. For example, we could see Spencer Long get some snaps at center, rookie Matt Ioannidis at both defensive end and nose tackle while coaches give him his baptism in the defense and also figure out what position best suits him. Will Blackmon and Deshazor Everett will work on learning to play safety. Su’a Cravens will learn both inside linebacker and safety.
Meanwhile, McCloughan will be evaluating talent to see if he has the pieces in place that he needs, or if he needs to replace some members of the depth chart with free agents.