Ras-I Dowling

captain insano said:

when I first heard the news I laughed.

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I did the exact same thing. I was at work on twitter reading it and started to laugh

Brady_to_Moss said:

I did the exact same thing. I was at work on twitter reading it and started to laugh

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THIS is how I reacted...

I love how people are making light of his injuries, as if he isn't really hurt. I bet if they had the same type of injuries he has had, there would be no end to the complaints.

Brady_to_Moss said:

We have said this every single year and it never happens. The guy is a wasted roster space.

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Both would be proper English in place of every.

PATRIOTSFANINPA said:

Maybe the team should start to look into players with previous injury issues in college just like they will look into character issues now.

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Well, you also have to be willing to give up Gronk's 38 TD's and 2700 yds if that's how you want to roll from now on.

Honestly unlike the last 2 years I’m not even bothered by this injury; anything we receive from Dowling this season will be a bonus. In the previous two seasons we wanted him to come in and be the starting RCB, now even if he was healthy throughout camp and played at the top of his game the odds would still be against him to win the RCB job.

We have Talib who is a potential top 5 CB as our starter at LCB. We have Dennard who outside of Casey Hayward (who spent the majority of his time at slot CB) had the best season of any rookie CB last year as our starter at RCB. We have Arrington who showed very well at the star CB position last season and is just two seasons removed from leading the NFL in interceptions. We have Logan Ryan who in my opinion is the most overlooked member of this past draft class; Ryan is very comparable to a player like the before mentioned Hayward, similar measurable, similar college production, and intangibles.

Based on those players, and the improved safety personnel there is no longer a need to let Dowling’s annual trip to IR bother you this season. I agree it is disappointing, but it is what it is.

Raymond said:

Well, you also have to be willing to give up Gronk's 38 TD's and 2700 yds if that's how you want to roll from now on.

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Much like it would be easier for you to give up your mail box then your house, it is a lot easier to give up Dowling’s 7 tackles and 1 pass defend then it would be to give up the stats you mention from Gronkowski.

Sometimes you have no choice; there are 1956 yards and 18 touchdowns that come to mind as something we didn't have a choice but to give up.

BradyFTW! said:

Injuries happen, it's a fact of life in the NFL. Hard to fault the front office for not being able to predict that he'd suffer a major hip injury.

IMO, the criticism should be saved for guys who do play and turn out to be no good, because a player's ability and projection of his future progress is something that the front office should be able to evaluate when drafting him.

In my eyes, guys like Cunningham and Brace are much bigger busts than Dowling. For the brief period where he was healthy, Dowling was a good CB - Cunningham and Brace had plenty of healthy time to prove themselves, but just weren't very good.

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wrong.....zero is zero

the blame is not on the player however......the blame is on the coaches for not paying attention to documented injury concerns

patfanken said:

The ONLY thing wasted here was the band width.human energy, arnd time.

I find it troubling that we have here a significant number of fans whose only purpose seems to be finding a favorite scapegoat and be there to exaggerate EVERY possible flaw, both real and imagined.

Get a grip - A guy who by all accounts is having a very productive camp misses part of a practice to an injury. Lets start a thread that runs double digits and hammer the guy. Call him names, and STILL have no idea of the what the injury is and how long he will be out...if at all.

All I can say, is that it must be a horrible existence when the best part of your day is hating on someone for no apparent reason.

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huh? did you just wake up? it's his 3rd year and how many games has he played?

right now, chad Jackson and bethel Johnson have proven to be better value.........

IllegalContact said:

wrong.....zero is zero

the blame is not on the player however......the blame is on the coaches for not paying attention to documented injury concerns

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Having injuries in the past does not indicate future injuries.

IllegalContact said:

I hated the pick from the first moment for exactly the reason he is not contributing......it was documented and ignored......

time to move on

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I appreciate what you're saying, but I also think it's kind of difficult to predict future injuries too. We've seen plenty of players who've been hurt come back to have successful NFL careers just the same.

In the case of our scouting dept and Belichick, I tend to give them the benefit of the doubt due to an impressive track record; however that doesn't mean that I agree with everything they do either.

With Dowling, let's not write him off yet. It's good to temper expectations, but there's still a possibility he can contribute.

PATRIOTSFANINPA said:

Maybe the team should start to look into players with previous injury issues in college just like they will look into character issues now.

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Thompkins is in the roster. He's been arrested 7 times already:bricks:

supafly said:

I appreciate what you're saying, but I also think it's kind of difficult to predict future injuries too. We've seen plenty of players who've been hurt come back to have successful NFL careers just the same.

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If you had not noticed, seven days into training camp Ras-I Dowling is injured, yet once again.

ATippett56 said:

If you had not noticed, seven days into training camp Ras-I Dowling is injured, yet once again.

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And???

What does that have to do with my statement?

IllegalContact said:

huh? did you just wake up? it's his 3rd year and how many games has he played?

right now, chad Jackson and bethel Johnson have proven to be better value.........

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It sucks, but, you have to roll the dice on players...chalk it up as another likely bust.

Claremonster said:

It sucks, but, you have to roll the dice on players...chalk it up as another likely bust.

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It would be advantageous if one of the rookie undrafted cornerbacks stepped up during training camp, whether it's either Brandon Jones or Justin Green.

neuronet said:

How many games has he played in the last two seasons. If he simply missed "part of a practice" due to injury, we wouldn't have this thread. This isn't a vacuum: most fans here were paying attention at draft time ("Hey, why did we do that, isn't he thought to be injury prone, why did we just spend a first round pick on this guy?"), his first season, and last season.

Sheesh. I am all for calling out chicken littles, but we are way beyond that.

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I would think that a rabid fan like yourself would have come to the obvious conclusion that every year in the NFL is distinctly different from every other. I imagine that brilliant fan like yourself would have thrown Aaron Rodgers out with the trash after HIS first 3 years. There are dozens of other examples of players who had slow starts to their careers and then came on to be very effective players in the league.

What is it with you guys who sit on their asses and feel that can make blaknket judgements about people with little experience and NO knowledge of the situation. WTF- Is your life so shallow that you feel the need to degrade and dismiss these athletes just because you can.

I don't know if Dowling will ever live up to his promise. And I do know that his first 2 years have been very disappointing. However I also know that when he's been on the field he's had a measure of success, and that you cannot equate this year with those of the past. Every year is distinctly different. Hey if you based Rob Ninkovitch's production based on his first few years, he'd be selling insurance now.

patfanken said:

Hey if you based Rob Ninkovich's production based on his first few years, he'd be selling insurance now.

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Unlike Rob Ninkovich, Ras-I Dowling has an extensive injury history dating back to high school.

Analysis of 2nd round pick, CB Ras-I Dowling - Extra Points - Boston.com

Problems in regards to injury history. Played just five games in 2010 because of a left ankle fracture, hamstring pull and right knee injury. In ’08 he dealt with a hamstring and back injury. Started all 12 games in ’09. Pulled a hamstring at the combine but had a great pro day. Had a broken hand and a knee injury in high school.

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ATippett56 said:

Unlike Rob Ninkovich, Ras-I Dowling has an extensive injury history dating back to high school.

Analysis of 2nd round pick, CB Ras-I Dowling - Extra Points - Boston.com

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Compare that to, say, Adrian Peterson's injury history. There were injury concerns about him coming out of college. Would you have passed on him because of that?

MAYOnaisse said:

Compare that to, say, Adrian Peterson's injury history. There were injury concerns about him coming out of college. Would you have passed on him because of that?

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Adrian Peterson did not have an injury history in high school. Adrian Peterson broke his collar bone during his junior year in college. Aside from the aforementioned injury, no other broken bones or muscle tears.