tombonneau

I don't know about that ... I see it more as warming up a potential prospect by talking about a former college teammate he is familiar with. It might speak to Woods strong work ethic as well, but I think you'd have to be really reading into things to say anything more than that.

Actions speak louder than words. It's not what you say, it's what you do. Etc.

When Woods starts seeing legit reps at LB, then I'll start believing in his potential. Until then, he is a ST guy who occasionally gets on the field on D.

bradmahn

There are a lot of ass-holes -- err, I mean opinions, in this thread that are relying heavily on assumptions, or simply ignorance.

Assumption one: Crable can't contribute (or contribute effectively) unless he thickens his legs.

Why not wait until he's at least wearing pads before proclaiming this? His leg strength could be perfectly suitable for him to have an impact this year.

Assumption two: the praise of Woods in the post-draft presser. This means very little other than that BB feels Woods has/had talent/potential (but he wouldn't be on the team if BB didn't feel that way). One can also speculate that Belichick isn't too fond of the program up in Michigan.

Assumption three: Woods's production (or lack thereof) in the past is predictive of what he will do in the future. It's his third year in the NFL after not playing very much his senior year in college. On top of that (or as a result of that), he was an UDFA. These players are undrafted because they either have red flags, suck, or need development. Woods needed development, undoubtedly. This does not mean that what we have seen from Woods is all we will get. He has the potential to be a solid back up/nickel rusher. Forgive us if we feel he could show that this year. Playing time is earned in training camp and preseason, not by what players did or did not do last year.

And patsgo, Mike Reiss never played in the NFL, does that mean his opinion is worthless?

I'd bank on Zo having been at the minicamps this past spring, that's significantly more exposure than you or I have experienced. His opinion should not be dismissed purely based on cynicism.

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I don't like Dungy and that's because he [was] the head coach of the Colts. Period. End of question. The degree to which I like a player or coach is predicated solely on the color of the laundry they wear on Sunday. When fans admit this and stop bashing players and coaches for any other reason, the world of sports will be infinitely improved.

Deus Irae

Nor should his opinion be heralded purely based upon his career as an NFL player who's pimping a Patriots' prospect. You know as well as I do that if this were, say, Sorgi commenting after watching the minicamps, and his comments were that Crable was going to be a cut, people would on here screaming about "what the hell does he know?".

Zolak is either a good judge of talent transitioning from college to the NFL or he's not. Whether he's played in the NFL or not doesn't change that basic truth.

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signbabybrady

If Sorgi were to have said something like that sure there would be some people saying what the hell does he know but some might have a little concern over anyone (football player or not) saying a guy stinks that they watched.

I know some people who are excited about Redd based soley on what they have read on here from some random psoters opinions who said they watched him play and think he will fit in.

I still am not sure what your problem with people being excited to hear good things about a player from someone who actually watched him.
Seems to me your problem is with Zolak and seems to me you think everyone should have the same opinion of him. Do you have a reason we shouldn't trust his opinion?

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WhiZa

I thought this thread was good, but it turned great

I think Crable will be a solid ST with his speed and ability to work through blocks. He will need a few years to become a finished product.

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Deus Irae

I've got no problem with Zolak at all. Patsgo is the one who made the statement about Zolak. I'm just pointing out that Zolak's experience as an NFL player doesn't mean that he's any better at evaluating the ability of a college player to transition to the NFL than a non-player.

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"The object in life is not to be on the side of the majority, but to escape finding oneself in the ranks of the insane."
- Marcus Aurelius

363839

You should have seen Belichick play.

RayClay

The most knowledgeable experts are not ex players or coaches, they are anonymous messageboard posters.

Take that to the bank.

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RayClay

BB played offensive line. He couldn't know anything about defense.

Do you think Bledsoe and Zolak watched a little film on pass rushers?

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signbabybrady

But what does that have anything to do with it. Zolak is the one that saw him and commented not a non-player. Do have any reason we shouldn't trust Zolaks opinion? other than that he may or may not be any more equipped to evaluate talent than a non-player.

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