Training Camp Battles

[FaCe-LeE-uS]

Broncos looking for backup QB again after roster cuts

Someone get Elway on the phone and see if he wants to send a TE our way!

 

[ATL96Steeler]

Things had to have gotten ugly for Hawkins. Kinda strange how he went from camp darling for 2 years running to being beat out by Banner, of whom none of us had penciled in for the 53 all offseason. Still don’t know if that is a good thing that Banner stuck around, but i’ll hope so.

And definitely a big kudos to Kev for getting something out of nothing.

I think it started to turn south for Hawkins after back to back seasons on the shelf...coupled with Chuks getting drafted with the same thought of him being a swing OT...they soured on him I think. Something for nothing...I'll take it and for him it could work out for the best actually...should get more opportunities in TB.

A bit surprised Rogers didn't generate much interest, but I saw he was meeting with MIA.

 

[FaCe-LeE-uS]

I think it started to turn south for Hawkins after back to back seasons on the shelf...coupled with Chuks getting drafted with the same thought of him being a swing OT...they soured on him I think. Something for nothing...I'll take it and for him it could work out for the best actually...should get more opportunities in TB.

A bit surprised Rogers didn't generate much interest, but I saw he was meeting with MIA.

Well that doesn't bode well for my post #219 thoughts... If he is meeting with other teams then it would appear the team has no plans to resign him. Bummer. Then I'll stick by my thoughts in the following post #220 lol.

 

[ATL96Steeler]

Nothing against Jones or Holton, but not bringing back Diontae Spencer seems like a bad trade-off to me. Especially after cutting Eli Rogers. Spencer would make a great scout team return specialist to improve the cover teams (which have been suspect at best over the years under Danny Smith). And I'd feel confident in calling up Spencer to the 53 in wake of an injury.

The armchair GM in me says to cut Matakevich, resign Eli Rogers. Assuming no trades are made. Then drop Jones & sign Spencer to the PS. IMO that makes the roster considerably more dynamic.

I kinda figured they wanted another big body WR, but Jones and Holton to the PS was a bit surprising...last I heard Spencer was picked up by DEN (quickly I might add)...apparently they felt comfortable enough with Switzer in that role. If Johnson is going to be one of these oft nicked up guys, I would've tried to get Spencer to the PS at least, but in hindsight it wouldn't have matter...some team was going to nab him for their 53.

Armchair GM.

I think I would be looking to move Dobbs for a TE (DEN or TB) and would've put Hodges on the PS.

 

[FaCe-LeE-uS]

Started pouring over the final 53 this morning... Here are some of my thoughts:

QB... 3. Sticking with 3 is smart. I know some wanted to do 2, and that's all fine & dandy if no injuries occur. I think with Ben's history they have learned to never risk that anymore. Really bummed that Hodges didn't get a fair shake at QB3. He looked very promising.

RB... 4 (inc. Nix). Surprised, and not surprised that they kept Snell. I'm still optimistic about him, but he was clearly outperformed by Edmunds for most of the preseason. They will be patient with Snell and hope he provides better returns in the future.

WR... Only 5. Cutting Rogers was the biggest surprise. Scary with how many 5-WR sets they ran last year. Maybe Grimble could step into those sets if injuries occur. Have to think they will have to make a lot of roster transactions this year just to keep this group filled at 5. Not happy they didn't retain Spencer on the PS.

TE... 3. Wanted to see CSW get the spot over Gentry, but his health didn't permit it. Maybe they still make that move down the line if Gentry remains inactive most weeks & Grimble fails to make his mark in the blocking schemes.

O-line... 9. Zach Banner & Fred Johnson are the surprises here. That's 4 backup O-lineman (Finney, Chuks, Banner & FJ). Kind of superfluous, but the starting 5 ain't as young as they used to be. FJ was as surprise talent that they probably didn't want to risk losing. We expected 2 backup OTs, but Banner wasn't on my radar to be honest.

D-line... 6. McCullers & Buggs both make it. Should have been 1 or the other but at least the rotation will keep the 1st line healthier.

LB... 10. 5 OLBs (Dupree, Watt, Chick, Ola & Skipper), and 5 ILBs (V-Will, Bush, Barron, Matakevich, & UG3). That cupboard is fully stocked ladies & gentlemen. Glad they kept Spillane on the PS as well.

CB... 6. So Burns makes it. Hard to stomach that pricetag as a backup. No surprises with the rest of the group.

S... 4. Dangerfield over Allen. Allen to the PS. Big disappointment that Allen wasn't able to take that job. With Davis ailing week 1, we could see Kelly start. Crazy couple of months for him going from the AAF to the NFL and basically taking over the starting duties in TC.

ST... 3. No surprises, even though we were all hoping for Berry to be replaced at the very least. Weak competition doesn't give me much confidence. But all signs point to Boz having a renaissance type year.

 

[FaCe-LeE-uS]

 

[SteelersPride]

i hwas listening to sports radio again yesterday. They had a beat reporter on from KC. They were talking about steve nelson. I cant find the interview online. I actually tweeted poni and mueller to see if they have the clip.

they basically stated that no one else was gonna pay nelson that. that the chiefs and their putrid defense didnt lose any sleep over losing him. That no fans in KC are losing sleep. He is very "handsy", that he isnt as sound as you'd like, and is nothing to write home about. Told the radio hosts they will definitely be having some days where they spend the day talking about steve nelson, and not for good reasons.

Take it FWIW

 

[thedddd]

Nothing against Jones or Holton, but not bringing back Diontae Spencer seems like a bad trade-off to me. Especially after cutting Eli Rogers. Spencer would make a great scout team return specialist to improve the cover teams (which have been suspect at best over the years under Danny Smith). And I'd feel confident in calling up Spencer to the 53 in wake of an injury.

The armchair GM in me says to cut Matakevich, resign Eli Rogers. Assuming no trades are made. Then drop Jones & sign Spencer to the PS. IMO that makes the roster considerably more dynamic.

Oh trust me Spencer would have been the best to pick up. I think for some reason they felt the need to keep Matakevich (maybe it has to do with the fact Snell is awful on ST's? ) but that spot would have been better used for a better WR.

 

[FaCe-LeE-uS]

i hwas listening to sports radio again yesterday. They had a beat reporter on from KC. They were talking about steve nelson. I cant find the interview online. I actually tweeted poni and mueller to see if they have the clip.

they basically stated that no one else was gonna pay nelson that. that the chiefs and their putrid defense didnt lose any sleep over losing him. That no fans in KC are losing sleep. He is very "handsy", that he isnt as sound as you'd like, and is nothing to write home about. Told the radio hosts they will definitely be having some days where they spend the day talking about steve nelson, and not for good reasons.

Take it FWIW

Well this is how I felt about it when they signed him. Didn't really think it was a great signing, but a decent one. Point being, they needed CB help & fast. The FA pool this year wasn't all that stellar. Darby being the best and coming off a major knee injury wasn't all that enticing. Nelson was debatably the next best "get", excluding possible trade scenarios. He played as the KC CB1, and was overmatched most weeks but still played decent. Playing as a CB2 should only benefit him as he won't be depended on as much.

FWIW, I still don't understand why they didn't resign Coty Sensabaugh. He played well enough as CB2 last year to earn another roster spot. Especially over Artie Burns. And they could have saved some money doing so.

 

[FaCe-LeE-uS]

Oh trust me Spencer would have been the best to pick up. I think for some reason they felt the need to keep Matakevich (maybe it has to do with the fact Snell is awful on ST's? ) but that spot would have been better used for a better WR.

Agreed. He's a ST ace (by design), but he isn't irreplaceable. Besides, they are just scraping the surface as to what Skipper, Ola & UG3 can do on ST. I don't see any reason why any of those 3 couldn't make the same impact on ST in Red's role, if not far better.

 

[thedddd]

Well this is how I felt about it when they signed him. Didn't really think it was a great signing, but a decent one. Point being, they needed CB help & fast. The FA pool this year wasn't all that stellar. Darby being the best and coming off a major knee injury wasn't all that enticing. Nelson was debatably the next best "get", excluding possible trade scenarios. He played as the KC CB1, and was overmatched most weeks but still played decent. Playing as a CB2 should only benefit him as he won't be depended on as much.

FWIW, I still don't understand why they didn't resign Coty Sensabaugh. He played well enough as CB2 last year to earn another roster spot. Especially over Artie Burns. And they could have saved some money doing so.

I forgot they didn't resign him. He was serviceable and behind Haden/Nelson would have been much better than Burns who proved once again during games is awful and even referencing other posts useless on ST's.

 

[FaCe-LeE-uS]

I forgot they didn't resign him. He was serviceable and behind Haden/Nelson would have been much better than Burns who proved once again during games is awful and even referencing other posts useless on ST's.

It's almost as if Tomlin prefers to keep the shittier CBs... Dating all the way back to when they opted to keep Cortez Allen over Keenan Lewis. I'm sure there are other examples of their ineptitude with DBs, but that seems like one of the bigger swing & misses in the last decade.

 

[ATL96Steeler]

i hwas listening to sports radio again yesterday. They had a beat reporter on from KC. They were talking about steve nelson. I cant find the interview online. I actually tweeted poni and mueller to see if they have the clip.

they basically stated that no one else was gonna pay nelson that. that the chiefs and their putrid defense didnt lose any sleep over losing him. That no fans in KC are losing sleep. He is very "handsy", that he isnt as sound as you'd like, and is nothing to write home about. Told the radio hosts they will definitely be having some days where they spend the day talking about steve nelson, and not for good reasons.

Take it FWIW

Hard to say what other teams would do really, so I take that part with a grain of salt if you will, but the KC DEF as whole was not very good either outside of a couple of players. This is a cross your fingers move bringing in any KC DEF player not named Chris Jones or Kendall Fuller.

 

[ATL96Steeler]

Oh trust me Spencer would have been the best to pick up. I think for some reason they felt the need to keep Matakevich (maybe it has to do with the fact Snell is awful on ST's? ) but that spot would have been better used for a better WR.

Matakevich is not only a good ST guy, but has embraced that job as his role and helps the younger guys on ST...communicator, etc. and that really seems to carry some weight with Tomlin.

Most teams want a strong vet or two on STs if they can pull it off.

The problem occurs if he has to actually play on the DEF...maybe they have figured out the UG3 is the better option should that need to happen.

 

[SteelersPride]

Back from 93.7 the fan fwiw.

 

[FaCe-LeE-uS]

Sure hope this kid sticks this offseason. If Ben can throw this offseason I think he will quickly develop a good rapport with Cain.

 

[SteelersPride]

Sure hope this kid sticks this offseason. If Ben can throw this offseason I think he will quickly develop a good rapport with Cain.

he wants to work, he had some draft hype and fell, hes not gonna be a wr1-2, but he can help, he should be ST's guy too I would think. Makes you wonder why he couldnt stick in Indy who is STARVED for wr's

 

[FaCe-LeE-uS]

he wants to work, he had some draft hype and fell, hes not gonna be a wr1-2, but he can help, he should be ST's guy too I would think. Makes you wonder why he couldnt stick in Indy who is STARVED for wr's

Had a convo back in December with @thedddd about Cain pertaining to the Indy situation.

If you follow any Colts media you would see some side to the story. Those media circles, both national & fanbased, all crucified the Colts routinely for letting Cain walk with how meager the talent was above him. He was a camp & offseason darling for 2 years running. His rookie year was cut short to torn ACL in the preseason so his name wasn't household for anybody. I think this was a big part of why the Colts kept him buried. He was working his way back to health.

It's actually quite funny to see the twitter reactions after EVERY catch he makes. Colts fans are still very emotional over it. He only has 3 catches for 62yds, and you'd think the Colts let go of the next Julio Jones lol.

For me... He's looking that good. He's going to make the roster next year... mark my words. If he can cement himself in these next 3-4 games (playoffs pending), then we can alleviate ourselves of the WR discussion during draft analysis/mocks/etc.

I think ultimately the emergence of Parris Campbell & Zach Pascal did Cain in. Couple that with FA acquisition Devin Funchess. The Colts just had too many big-bodied vertical guys heading into the season. But what puzzles me the most is Funchess went on IR Sept 10th opening the door for Cain. Steelers didn't snipe him off their PS until Nov. 16th. Colts essentially sat on that golden egg for over 2 months. Granted they went 5-2 in the months of Sept-Oct, so they weren't hard pressed for changes or talent. Cain was an "Ace in the Hole" that the Colts just kept praying would stick around on their PS. They still SHOULD have moved him up the moment Funchess went down. If Cain proves to be as good as he looks, the Colts are going to forever remember that blunder. And being conference rivals, the Steelers will be sure to keep that wound fresh.

 

[ATL96Steeler]

Had a convo back in December with @thedddd about Cain pertaining to the Indy situation.

Unfortunately, no triggerman to put him to good use...I don't really see PIT going for a WR in this draft, especially if Cain is a QB away from blossoming....But there is talk of that.

 

[FaCe-LeE-uS]

Interesting... @ATL96Steeler was right all along.