Impact of the rookies

[supafly]

In Reiss' recent interview with Ras-I-Dowling, the rookie CB claims that he has not yet seen the team's playbook. "I haven't had a chance. That's the real reason I'm waiting for the lockout to end, to get in the playbook and learn the system, and learn from the other guys also."

Now, before anyone cries 'conspiracy theory' to the effect that he's lying etc, let's consider the fact that most of the teams were able to get their playbooks out to the rookies via the window during the lifting of the lockout itself. The problem is, that was only one day IIRC. So we can assume that the day one rookies (Solder is our case) received the playbook. I can't remember if as of Friday (day two) the lifting was overruled or not? Maybe someone can chime in.

The problem is, if the lockout was still lifted as of Friday (day two), why would Dowling feel the need to then lie about it? I think most of us have assumed that copies have been made, and that whatever players were in possession of a playbook would then share them with the incoming rookies.

Is there a possibility that Dowling, and of course pretty much every rookie after him, truly has not seen the playbook yet? If so, that is a huge detriment to their development, as we have all been assuming that all they 'really missed were some OTA's,' and that their development would not be affected too greatly.

Is it unreasonable to assume that they may indeed be quite hampered by this labor delay, possibly more than we have been crediting, or do most of you feel as though Dowling is simply lying to cover any possible cries of wrongdoing? Again, knowing if the lockout was lifted during the selection of Dowling would be key here, but I believe technically by the time the day two draft had started on Fri. night, the lockout was back in place.

We have talked at length about the possibility of Solder starting at LT right off the bat, and that the RB's would be another group whose hampering may not be as affected, due to the easier learning curve of the position. Knowing that there may be a chance that many of the rookies haven't even seen the playbook could make this theory somewhat altered.

Apologies if you do not this thread as a worthwhile fit to the boards, but it is a relevant subject, and we basically don't have much else to currently discuss. Thanks for the thoughts.

http://espn.go.com/blog/boston/new-england-patriots/post/_/id/4697851/catching-up-with-ras-i-dowling

 

[IllegalContact]

a defender not seeing the playbook is not as much of a concern as an offensive player.

DB's are either assigned to a guy to cover, or play a zone. the biggest playbook in the world is not going to instill instinct as well as reps with the defensive unit

I would be more concerned with the 2 RB's and no playbook

what's more, Dowling is not under contract and has never been under contract, so I am not even sure that he is technically locked out

 

[BlueThunder]

I think that the RB's should be fine...hardest part might be blitz pickups....the speed difference between college and NFL players will take some getting used to, but the Patriot RB's are all young and the rookies look to hit their holes fast...watching some of their tapes, they seem to have good vision and bounce into an open hole fairly quickly...how this translates into the Patriots blocking schemes remains to be seen, but it's nice to think they have that vision and speed to get to the hole fast...

IMHO the hardest position might be the WR's that have to learn defenses and routes, knowing when to cut off routes, as well as get their timing down with TB.........With no new WR's yet, that area should move along smoothly.


I can remember having high expectations for Ryan O'Callaghan due to his size and being disappointed....Solder is a higher pick so I hope that his skills are better and his learning curve is faster.....In Dante We Trust...

 

[IllegalContact]

I think that the RB's should be fine...hardest part might be blitz pickups....the speed difference between college and NFL players will take some getting used to, but the Patriot RB's are all young and the rookies look to hit their holes fast...watching some of their tapes, they seem to have good vision and bounce into an open hole fairly quickly...how this translates into the Patriots blocking schemes remains to be seen, but it's nice to think they have that vision and speed to get to the hole fast...

IMHO the hardest position might be the WR's that have to learn defenses and routes, knowing when to cut off routes, as well as get their timing down with TB.........With no new WR's yet, that area should move along smoothly.


I can remember having high expectations for Ryan O'Callaghan due to his size and being disappointed....Solder is a higher pick so I hope that his skills are better and his learning curve is faster.....In Dante We Trust...

o'callaghan could not stay healthy for very long..........which was why he was a 5th round pick......

 

[ctpatsfan77]

I think that the RB's should be fine...hardest part might be blitz pickups....the speed difference between college and NFL players will take some getting used to, but the Patriot RB's are all young and the rookies look to hit their holes fast...watching some of their tapes, they seem to have good vision and bounce into an open hole fairly quickly...how this translates into the Patriots blocking schemes remains to be seen, but it's nice to think they have that vision and speed to get to the hole fast...

IMHO the hardest position might be the WR's that have to learn defenses and routes, knowing when to cut off routes, as well as get their timing down with TB.........With no new WR's yet, that area should move along smoothly.


I can remember having high expectations for Ryan O'Callaghan due to his size and being disappointed....Solder is a higher pick so I hope that his skills are better and his learning curve is faster.....In Dante We Trust...

Besides which, they have Woodhead and BJGE to carry the load right now, so Vereen and Ridley don't need to be ready for 20+ snaps each in Week 1.

 

[BlueThunder]

Agree ct.....Will be nice to have someone young to spell BJGE and Woody ...

Youth and speed coupled with Ridley's power will be exciting to watch.....having 4 young RB's should make the Pats Offense even more unpredictable.....

 

[Sicilian]

Besides which, they have Woodhead and BJGE to carry the load right now, so Vereen and Ridley don't need to be ready for 20+ snaps each in Week 1.

Ras-I is in the same situation too. The Pats have five other corners on the roster who have experience on this team (and three other safeties, for the crowd who believes he's being groomed there), so he doesn't have to step in and win a huge role right off the bat.

In fact, of our rookies, Solder is the only one who is coming into a position of relative weakness, and he's the pick with the highest perceived ability. The more I think about that, the less I think that's a coincidence.

Disclaimer: Yes, technically Carter is coming into a weaker group at OLB, but 6th and 7th round picks have such low rates of success that I wasn't expecting major contributions from him in year one anyway.

 

[HomerSchooled]

I think Dowling is a player we can afford a slower development with, anyway. If he were anything higher than third or fourth on the depth chart for either CB or S at some point during the season, that would be great, but it's not critical to our success. I'm comfortable with the people ahead of him, and so long as he's worthy of being the nickel back by 2012, I'll be quite happy.

By the way, it's starting to seem pretty clever that all the other positions we drafted high are ones with fairly straight forward transitions from college to the NFL. Considering the lockout, this was an awful good year to stock up on OTs and RBs. It's another fine reminder that the FO is much, much smarter than me.

 

[Rob0729]

I wouldn't expect much from any rookie on any team. Everyone needs to go into the league with low expectations since even the most NFL ready rookie is months behind schedule.

I think several of the Pats' rookies could emerge, but the likelihood of them being breakout players is low.

 

[PatsWickedPissah]

I wouldn't expect much from any rookie on any team. Everyone needs to go into the league with low expectations since even the most NFL ready rookie is months behind schedule.

I think several of the Pats' rookies could emerge, but the likelihood of them being breakout players is low.

Other than occasional acne breakouts I agree.

I do however expect and hope that several 2nd and 3rd year players show signs of future stardom this season.

 

[The Scrizz]

One thing we know is that all of those teams drafting rookie QB's could have a long season if they expect them to come in and produce.

 

[Metaphors]

The first month of the regular season will be key:

Sep 12 NE @ MIA Sun Life Stadium
Sep 18 SD @ NE Gillette Stadium
Sep 25 NE @ BUF Ralph Wilson Stadium
Oct 02 NE @ OAK O.co Coliseum

Three road games looks daunting but the competition should mitigate that. The Fins, Bills and Raiders will have significant roster shakeups to deal with. The Chargers are relatively intact and pose a significant challenge.

For the RBs, the Raiders and Bills should still struggle against the run so weeks 3 and 4 would be a good time to break out.

Passing will be more of a factor in weeks 1 and 2 against teams the Pats traditionally struggle with. The interesting point is that Wake and Phillips traditionally play the defensive left...so that would be against Vollmer if he stays put. If Solder claims a starting spot, might be a good idea to keep him at LT.

Henne, Fitzgerald and Campbell are reasonable QBs but the lack of TEs for those teams will hurt against the Pats (assuming Zack Miller will be a FA). SD is a much bigger challenge with Rivers and Gates so having Dowling up to speed by week 2 would be optimal.

After the first month, most rookies should be able to find their way onto the field for meaningful snaps. Before then, it looks like the top 4 will have opportunities to make their mark. That will be key because coming out of the 1st quarter at 4-0 or 3-1 will be huge. The next 8 games get more difficult but 5 of those are at home and the longest roadie is to Pittsburgh.

 

[supafly]

Other than occasional acne breakouts I agree.

I do however expect and hope that several 2nd and 3rd year players show signs of future stardom this season.

Yes, I am quite excited for the possibility of the 2nd/3rd yr players too. One more yr in the system, more increased live game reps, and for some (Price, for example) the shot at being able to show what they have here.

 

[supafly]

One thing we know is that all of those teams drafting rookie QB's could have a long season if they expect them to come in and produce.

Coincidentally not the best yr to have a rookie QB starting, which usually is never much of a good thing anyway.

 

[ausbacker]

Do people honestly believe there's been no contact between coaching and players? I certainly don't. There's too much at stake for every NFL team to abide by the lockout rules.

 

[sbpatfan]

Do people honestly believe there's been no contact between coaching and players? I certainly don't. There's too much at stake for every NFL team to abide by the lockout rules.

There's defintely some sort of communication going on. And why not? Teams that have been caugh thus far, like the Dolphins, weren't even punished. You'd be stupid not to communicate when apparently there's no punishment for doing so.

 

[ausbacker]

There's defintely some sort of communication going on. And why not? Teams that have been caugh thus far, like the Dolphins, weren't even punished. You'd be stupid not to communicate when apparently there's no punishment for doing so.

This is why I'm not particularly concerned with the impact of the rookies. I'm sure there's been a clandestine operation to get them information through the veterans. They would have been coaching them up for some time under orders I'd imagine.

 

[TheSolderKing]

playbook + photocopier ='s :rocker:



the rookies are being taken care of... I bet they have access to them on a shared basis. The Rookies are in training w/ rest of the team.


The training/interactions have to be outside of the Patriot establishments, but they are still meeting.

 

[supafly]

playbook + photocopier ='s :rocker:



the rookies are being taken care of... I bet they have access to them on a shared basis. The Rookies are in training w/ rest of the team.


The training/interactions have to be outside of the Patriot establishments, but they are still meeting.

This is why I'm not particularly concerned with the impact of the rookies. I'm sure there's been a clandestine operation to get them information through the veterans. They would have been coaching them up for some time under orders I'd imagine.

So you guys believe that Dowling is lying then? That's fine, I'm not questioning your opinion at all, as we will likely never know one way or another anyway. This is basically why I started the thread to see how many feel as though he is lying.

 

[ausbacker]

So you guys believe that Dowling is lying then? That's fine, I'm not questioning your opinion at all, as we will likely never know one way or another anyway. This is basically why I started the thread to see how many feel as though he is lying.

There's a difference between seeing a whole playbook and seeing excerpts from a playbook. I'd think just fundamentals would be passed on to the rookies with the more in depth schematics left for coaching later on.

None of the rookies have said that.