Well, here we go again. It's the time of year where every baseball fan is optimistic about the season. We're all tied for first right now. The Reds made some moves I liked and didn't make some moves that all us Reds fans expected.
Willy Taveras...what can I say about him......well, he's fast...and he swings a little league bat. I see him as another "project" like Corey Patterson was last year. He cannot hit good enough to deserve starting, much less be the leadoff man. His career .331 OBP says that for him to say in the majors, he needs to contribute in other ways, like HR or RBI...which he does neither. I agree with the pundits who say that we would be better off with bringing up Drew Stubbs, former 1st round pick, and have him bat leadoff. He might have a lower batting average than Taveras, but he more than likely would get on base more often and play Gold Glove caliber CF. If they don't feel comfortable with that, then start Dickerson and Hairston Jr in CF, and Gomes in left.
My problem with the team, besides Willy, is the promise to get that All-Star caliber 3 hole power hitter. We needed to do what we did 10 years ago, sign a guy like Greg Vaughn, a clutch power-hitter who will knock in 100+ runs. Instead, we have to rely on Votto getting better, Bruce getting better, and Dickerson living up to the promise he showed last year. We are better defensively this year, and that will help, and we are loaded in pitching. We have 6 guys that should be in our rotation, but one has got to go, and it is likely Bailey will go down to AAA, while Micah Owings holds down the #5 slot.
NFL draft coming up soon. This is my favorite month, a new baseball season, the Masters, and the NFL draft all rolled up together. It would not surprise me at all to see Chad Ochocinco get traded on or around draft day. Houshmandzadeh left us, Ochocinco doesn't look like he wants to be here anymore, so we'll see. We have Coles in now to take Chad's place, Caldwell to take Housh's place, and then we couldn't rule out picking a WR in the 1st round, between Michael Crabtree and Jeremy Maclin. I'll try to break all this down as we get closer to then. What the Bengals need more than anything is a football person to he hired as GM and be allowed to make decisions for the franchise.
I've been really busy with school, so I haven't taken time at all to write on this blog. This time I've spent has gotten me much closer to graduation, which looks to be this December.
Read Ted Dekker, he is an amazing writer. Patrick Rothfuss, amazing writer and hilarious blogger. C Trent Rosecrans, the best blogger alive.
Maltzy
Showing posts with label Bengals Draft. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Bengals Draft. Show all posts
Saturday, April 4, 2009
Friday, May 2, 2008
Rounding out the Draft
Marvin knows he took a chance with Shirley in the 5th. He went the opposite direction in the 6th.
I know fans in Ohio remember a great day last fall when Michigan fell to a Division 2 team, AT HOME, with a top 5 ranking. It was a fun game to watch happen. If you got to watch the game, you noticed there were a couple of play makers who made that upset possible. One of them was safety Corey Lynch, a local legend at Appalachian State, who not only got a huge shot on the Michigan qb, but blocked a kick to win the game and almost returning it for a TD.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oMtV5oaKznI
This guy picked off 24 passes in college and blocked 6 kicks in his career. At worst, this guy will be our special teams MVP, although I see him contributing on the defense a lot like Kevin Kaesviharn did for a few years here. Maybe he can locker next to Shirley, Thurman, and Joseph, and bring his wife's grandfather, the Billy Graham, to speak with those guys. He will be a great influence for the team, both in the locker room and on the field. I love this pick.
Matt Sherry was a tight end out of Villanova. He's got excellent size at 6'4", 255 lbs, and the distinction of being the first TE drafted by Marvin Lewis. While there is no guarantee he makes the team, he's got talent and I believe he makes the team with Utecht and Kelly. He runs 4.6 in the 40 yard dash and good hands to go along.
Angelo Craig, from here in Cincinnati, has got a pretty good chance to make the team. Behind starters Geathers and Odom, there isn't a lot of DE depth. Frostee Rucker has yet to show why he got drafted, and may not make the team. Craig was a decent DE at UC, but he needs to put on 30 to 40 pounds likely to really make an impact. Of course, the history of DE's out of UC, has shown that he could contribute this year with a couple of sacks. Don't count this guy out.
Mario Urrutia, a 6'5" wr out of Louisville didn't have a good year last year, but showed a lot in previous years to be a presence in the Red zone. With Chris Henry gone, and a bunch of guys already on the team with a lot to prove, there could be a huge turnover at wr. With 10 draft picks, there is a chance that they all make the team.
We got what we needed and got some steals. Simpson has a chance to be a star for us and Rivers looks to be the defensive leader we have lacked for years. If those two do that, we've had a great draft and everything else is gravy.
Maltzy
I know fans in Ohio remember a great day last fall when Michigan fell to a Division 2 team, AT HOME, with a top 5 ranking. It was a fun game to watch happen. If you got to watch the game, you noticed there were a couple of play makers who made that upset possible. One of them was safety Corey Lynch, a local legend at Appalachian State, who not only got a huge shot on the Michigan qb, but blocked a kick to win the game and almost returning it for a TD.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oMtV5oaKznI
This guy picked off 24 passes in college and blocked 6 kicks in his career. At worst, this guy will be our special teams MVP, although I see him contributing on the defense a lot like Kevin Kaesviharn did for a few years here. Maybe he can locker next to Shirley, Thurman, and Joseph, and bring his wife's grandfather, the Billy Graham, to speak with those guys. He will be a great influence for the team, both in the locker room and on the field. I love this pick.
Matt Sherry was a tight end out of Villanova. He's got excellent size at 6'4", 255 lbs, and the distinction of being the first TE drafted by Marvin Lewis. While there is no guarantee he makes the team, he's got talent and I believe he makes the team with Utecht and Kelly. He runs 4.6 in the 40 yard dash and good hands to go along.
Angelo Craig, from here in Cincinnati, has got a pretty good chance to make the team. Behind starters Geathers and Odom, there isn't a lot of DE depth. Frostee Rucker has yet to show why he got drafted, and may not make the team. Craig was a decent DE at UC, but he needs to put on 30 to 40 pounds likely to really make an impact. Of course, the history of DE's out of UC, has shown that he could contribute this year with a couple of sacks. Don't count this guy out.
Mario Urrutia, a 6'5" wr out of Louisville didn't have a good year last year, but showed a lot in previous years to be a presence in the Red zone. With Chris Henry gone, and a bunch of guys already on the team with a lot to prove, there could be a huge turnover at wr. With 10 draft picks, there is a chance that they all make the team.
We got what we needed and got some steals. Simpson has a chance to be a star for us and Rivers looks to be the defensive leader we have lacked for years. If those two do that, we've had a great draft and everything else is gravy.
Maltzy
Bengals Draft Part3
In the 4th round, the Bengals got what is likely the long term replacement for Willie Anderson. Anthony Collins, a Tackle out of the University of Kansas, was projected by many to go at the end of the 1st round, 2nd round at the latest. He has excellent size at 6'6", 310 lbs, but he was always seen as a guy who would be much better suited to be a right tackle than a left tackle. This year, there was a lot of depth at the Tackle position, so it was wise to take advantage of a surplus. I think this pick will be turn out to be a great steal a couple of years down the road. Let him sit a year or two as a backup, and we'll be set when "Highway 71-Big Willie" calls it quits.
The Fifth round was a different story altogether. With all Bengals fans have gone through, the city of Cincinnati has gone through, we just HAD to take a guy with a DUI and crash into an apartment building on his resume.......and he is STILL awaiting trial? Why??? My only guess is that Marvin looked at Pat Sims and thought that he would need at least a year to become a guy who can affect a game, just to get into shape enough to contribute. Marvin has to believe that Jason Shirley, a Defensive Tackle out of Iowa State, can keep his nose clean long enough to at least help this year. Shirley is huge, 6'5" 340 lbs. That is perfect nose tackle material. 3 years ago, nobody bats an eye at a pick like this. Now, everybody in the league is gonna have their eye on this guy, because he looks like the next Bengal troublemaker. We can only hold our breath with him. He's got the talent to be a stud, but only if he stays out of trouble. I personally hope that this guy has exactly ONE shot. Any trouble, he's gone. We can't afford anything less. We actually can't afford anybody doing anything.
Finish out the draft next time.
Maltzy
The Fifth round was a different story altogether. With all Bengals fans have gone through, the city of Cincinnati has gone through, we just HAD to take a guy with a DUI and crash into an apartment building on his resume.......and he is STILL awaiting trial? Why??? My only guess is that Marvin looked at Pat Sims and thought that he would need at least a year to become a guy who can affect a game, just to get into shape enough to contribute. Marvin has to believe that Jason Shirley, a Defensive Tackle out of Iowa State, can keep his nose clean long enough to at least help this year. Shirley is huge, 6'5" 340 lbs. That is perfect nose tackle material. 3 years ago, nobody bats an eye at a pick like this. Now, everybody in the league is gonna have their eye on this guy, because he looks like the next Bengal troublemaker. We can only hold our breath with him. He's got the talent to be a stud, but only if he stays out of trouble. I personally hope that this guy has exactly ONE shot. Any trouble, he's gone. We can't afford anything less. We actually can't afford anybody doing anything.
Finish out the draft next time.
Maltzy
Tuesday, April 29, 2008
Draft Day 2- Third Round
As Bengals fans went to sleep Saturday night, there were plenty of moans and groans. Watching the Saints move up and take who was rightfully ours (at least according to every mock draft this side of the Mississippi) DT Sedrick Ellis. It made a lot of Bengals fans feel like we missed on yet another chance to make the Bengals a great team.
I was still a little perturbed on Sunday morning. A running back was expected in the draft, and now there weren't many decent ones left. Looking at the best available at the beginning of the 3rd round, I thought Kevin Smith had to be the best player left. This was confirmed when Detroit traded up and grabbed him almost before any other team noticed that the draft had restarted bright and early at 10AM eastern. By this time, no Bengals fan knew what to expect to flash up when we finally reached pick #77.
Ahhhh. A sigh of relief. A defensive tackle, and a highly rated one at that. Pat Sims from Auburn, was the highest drafted DT by Cincinnati since "Big Daddy" Wilkinson himself. He was a projected 2nd rounder, so it was good value when he fell into our laps. The first thing to notice about him is his size. He is listed at 6'3" and 310 pounds, an excellent size and more like the type of player Marvin likes to play in the middle. The measureables are there, but he seems to look too much like Sam Adams, even though he's in his early 20's. He's got what coaches call a "pear shaped" body. From the looks of it, he hasn't had much of a strength program to get him in better shape. This makes it even more amazing just how well he played last year. He was credited with 4.5 sacks, 15 Qb hurries, and 13 tackles for loss. If he played that well in the SEC out of shape, what can he do when an NFL strength coach gets a hold of him? He may be nothing more than a rotational player this upcoming year, but look out in 2009. I predict that is when he hits his stride, and starts to make himself a true defensive playmaker.
The second selection in the third round was a WR out of Florida, Andre Caldwell, brother of NFL WR Reche Caldwell. He stands a little over six feet and about 205 pounds. At Florida's pro-day, he apparently ran a 4.35 40 yard dash. He was most often compared to Hines Ward, though I doubt he has the smugness Hines wears all over his face. The comparison was probably due to the fact that Caldwell is such a great blocker for a WR. That is where the comparisons end. Hines runs much closer to a 4.6, so Andre brings a distinct advantage to the table. He and Simpson appear to have the talent and maturity to step in and contribute this fall, Caldwell at the least on special teams returning kicks.
As the third round closes, maybe the fans don't feel so bad after all. Instead of trading the 77th pick to get Ellis, we end up with a great linebacker (Rivers) and a very solid DT in Sims. As one Cincinnati sportswriter put it "I'd rather have an A- and a B+ than just an A+."
We've strongly bolstered our WR core, added a defensive leader at LB, and a young, promising DT to stop the run.
**Interesting note. I read somewhere that the average ypc against teams who draft a DT in the first round, showed that their run defense got worse, by 0.4 yards per carry!! One stud DT can't solve everything against the run, so isn't it better to get 2 guys who can run defend?
Next....Rounds 4 and 5.
Maltzy
I was still a little perturbed on Sunday morning. A running back was expected in the draft, and now there weren't many decent ones left. Looking at the best available at the beginning of the 3rd round, I thought Kevin Smith had to be the best player left. This was confirmed when Detroit traded up and grabbed him almost before any other team noticed that the draft had restarted bright and early at 10AM eastern. By this time, no Bengals fan knew what to expect to flash up when we finally reached pick #77.
Ahhhh. A sigh of relief. A defensive tackle, and a highly rated one at that. Pat Sims from Auburn, was the highest drafted DT by Cincinnati since "Big Daddy" Wilkinson himself. He was a projected 2nd rounder, so it was good value when he fell into our laps. The first thing to notice about him is his size. He is listed at 6'3" and 310 pounds, an excellent size and more like the type of player Marvin likes to play in the middle. The measureables are there, but he seems to look too much like Sam Adams, even though he's in his early 20's. He's got what coaches call a "pear shaped" body. From the looks of it, he hasn't had much of a strength program to get him in better shape. This makes it even more amazing just how well he played last year. He was credited with 4.5 sacks, 15 Qb hurries, and 13 tackles for loss. If he played that well in the SEC out of shape, what can he do when an NFL strength coach gets a hold of him? He may be nothing more than a rotational player this upcoming year, but look out in 2009. I predict that is when he hits his stride, and starts to make himself a true defensive playmaker.
The second selection in the third round was a WR out of Florida, Andre Caldwell, brother of NFL WR Reche Caldwell. He stands a little over six feet and about 205 pounds. At Florida's pro-day, he apparently ran a 4.35 40 yard dash. He was most often compared to Hines Ward, though I doubt he has the smugness Hines wears all over his face. The comparison was probably due to the fact that Caldwell is such a great blocker for a WR. That is where the comparisons end. Hines runs much closer to a 4.6, so Andre brings a distinct advantage to the table. He and Simpson appear to have the talent and maturity to step in and contribute this fall, Caldwell at the least on special teams returning kicks.
As the third round closes, maybe the fans don't feel so bad after all. Instead of trading the 77th pick to get Ellis, we end up with a great linebacker (Rivers) and a very solid DT in Sims. As one Cincinnati sportswriter put it "I'd rather have an A- and a B+ than just an A+."
We've strongly bolstered our WR core, added a defensive leader at LB, and a young, promising DT to stop the run.
**Interesting note. I read somewhere that the average ypc against teams who draft a DT in the first round, showed that their run defense got worse, by 0.4 yards per carry!! One stud DT can't solve everything against the run, so isn't it better to get 2 guys who can run defend?
Next....Rounds 4 and 5.
Maltzy
Sunday, April 27, 2008
Day 1 Draft Analysis
WARNING! FIRST POST EVER!
At the end of a long weekend of draft watching, now is the time to release my thoughts. I named my blog after a former Cincinnati Red, Sean Casey. He will always be one of my favorite ball players to ever don a Reds uniform.
Today I'd like to break down the Bengals draft and how it looks going forward. Bengals fans expected to see a Best Player Available strategy, and were rewarded with exactly that.
In the first round the Bengals selected Keith Rivers, a Linebacker from USC. It was an expected pick as Sedrick Ellis, the player most linked to the bengals in mock drafts, was picked 2 spots earlier by the New Orleans Saints. I was one of the many Bengals fans that wondered why they didn't attempt to trade up instead of the Saints. Anybody who has seen the Bengals play the last several years has noticed a particular weak spot on the defensive line, at Defensive Tackle. Ellis would have been a huge upgrade, but it was not the best situation for the Bengals to be in to use a 3rd round pick to trade up. Rivers was the best defensive player available, so the pick was definitely a solid one. Rivers himself was excited to be on his way to Cincy, apparent in his videos posted on his own blog
http://www.yardbarker.com/nfl/articles/Im_a_Cincinnati_Bengal/259606
Being a longtime fan, it's nice to see a player excited to be a Bengal. His leadership and talent should provide a powerful presence on the Bengals defense for years to come. Picking him allowed fans to make a comparison against trading up to get Ellis and staying put. I'll discuss that on my Day 2 look at the draft.
The second round provided dramatics, for most Bengals fans. If you've followed the team in years past, you probably noticed that Marvin Lewis, the Bengals head coach and GM de facto, always seems to draft a player that you least expect, when you least expect it. Marvin selected Jerome Simpson, a Wide Receiver out of Division 2 Coastal Carolina. He's an underrated receiver with great athleticism who, after some research, seems worthy of a second round pick. I was definitely part of the group of fans that said "Who???", when the pick was announced. At the time, there were numerous receivers available that were consistently rated above Simpson. These included Limas Sweed, Desean Jackson, and Malcolm Kelly. But these ratings were all done by those outside of NFL war rooms and without the personal insight gained by NFL coaches and GMs. Jerome Simpson, apparently, was looked at as a playmaker who consistently amazed those who watched him, on film or in person. He made quite an impression on coaches at the Senior bowl and showed excellent character at the NFL combine.
He's probably most known as the guy who made an amazing one-handed catch that made top plays on ESPN's Sportscenter.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-B85po3KBdY
He has extremely large hands and great leaping ability. His hands were measured at the combine as the biggest for a reciever and he also had one the highest vertical jumps at over 40". The only stat you need to know about him is his production in four years of college.
44 career touchdowns and an average yards per catch at around 16 1/2.
With these two players selected so early, Marvin Lewis expects both of them to contribute from Day 1. Not many doubt that Rivers can, but an interesting thing to watch during the spring will be Simpson's development as he brings himself up to NFL speed.
Check in tomorrow for Day 2 of the draft.
Maltzy
At the end of a long weekend of draft watching, now is the time to release my thoughts. I named my blog after a former Cincinnati Red, Sean Casey. He will always be one of my favorite ball players to ever don a Reds uniform.
Today I'd like to break down the Bengals draft and how it looks going forward. Bengals fans expected to see a Best Player Available strategy, and were rewarded with exactly that.
In the first round the Bengals selected Keith Rivers, a Linebacker from USC. It was an expected pick as Sedrick Ellis, the player most linked to the bengals in mock drafts, was picked 2 spots earlier by the New Orleans Saints. I was one of the many Bengals fans that wondered why they didn't attempt to trade up instead of the Saints. Anybody who has seen the Bengals play the last several years has noticed a particular weak spot on the defensive line, at Defensive Tackle. Ellis would have been a huge upgrade, but it was not the best situation for the Bengals to be in to use a 3rd round pick to trade up. Rivers was the best defensive player available, so the pick was definitely a solid one. Rivers himself was excited to be on his way to Cincy, apparent in his videos posted on his own blog
http://www.yardbarker.com/nfl/articles/Im_a_Cincinnati_Bengal/259606
Being a longtime fan, it's nice to see a player excited to be a Bengal. His leadership and talent should provide a powerful presence on the Bengals defense for years to come. Picking him allowed fans to make a comparison against trading up to get Ellis and staying put. I'll discuss that on my Day 2 look at the draft.
The second round provided dramatics, for most Bengals fans. If you've followed the team in years past, you probably noticed that Marvin Lewis, the Bengals head coach and GM de facto, always seems to draft a player that you least expect, when you least expect it. Marvin selected Jerome Simpson, a Wide Receiver out of Division 2 Coastal Carolina. He's an underrated receiver with great athleticism who, after some research, seems worthy of a second round pick. I was definitely part of the group of fans that said "Who???", when the pick was announced. At the time, there were numerous receivers available that were consistently rated above Simpson. These included Limas Sweed, Desean Jackson, and Malcolm Kelly. But these ratings were all done by those outside of NFL war rooms and without the personal insight gained by NFL coaches and GMs. Jerome Simpson, apparently, was looked at as a playmaker who consistently amazed those who watched him, on film or in person. He made quite an impression on coaches at the Senior bowl and showed excellent character at the NFL combine.
He's probably most known as the guy who made an amazing one-handed catch that made top plays on ESPN's Sportscenter.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-B85po3KBdY
He has extremely large hands and great leaping ability. His hands were measured at the combine as the biggest for a reciever and he also had one the highest vertical jumps at over 40". The only stat you need to know about him is his production in four years of college.
44 career touchdowns and an average yards per catch at around 16 1/2.
With these two players selected so early, Marvin Lewis expects both of them to contribute from Day 1. Not many doubt that Rivers can, but an interesting thing to watch during the spring will be Simpson's development as he brings himself up to NFL speed.
Check in tomorrow for Day 2 of the draft.
Maltzy
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