Evan Mathis released

BradyFTW! said:

They cut him because he was demanding a raise, not because of his ability.

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But...he didn't get a raise. He's making almost half of what he would have in Philadelphia.

TommyD4207 said:

But...he didn't get a raise. He's making almost half of what he would have in Philadelphia.

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Yeah, that's his agent being stupid. Doesn't change the fact that he's really good at football.

BradyFTW! said:

He couldn't feel his fingertips in 2013, and that didn't stop him from throwing for 55 TDs and 5500 yards.

His issue last year all went directly back to his torn quad, or whatever it was. If he's healthy, there's no reason to think he won't be the QB that he was for the first half of 2014.

The real issue is whether or not he can stay healthy. Which is all based on whether that injury was bad luck or if it was caused by his post-surgery throwing mechanics. If it was the former, then there's at least a reasonable chance that he'll rebound this year. If it's the latter, then he's an injury waiting to happen, he probably won't make it through the season, and the Broncos are probably screwed.

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i dont buy the quad BS. if that was a real " concern ", then why didnt peyton let brock play against the raiders in the last game of the year?? game was in hand for denver, yet manning decided to stay in. if forehead was really hurting.. he sits.

sucks that mathis chose denver. they have one of the best guard combinations in the league with mathis/vasquez ( another all pro ).

BradyFTW! said:

They cut him because he was demanding a raise, not because of his ability. He's really, really good. The interesting thing about him is that it took him a long time to establish his foothold in the league. He's always been a freak athlete--truly a freak, even by NFL standards--but his play hasn't always reflected that.

I could see some teams maybe thinking that in their system he would be more like the player he was with the Dolphins, and less like the player he was in Philadelphia. Part of the reason why I thought he was a good fit here was because the Pats ask their linemen to get out and block in space a lot on screens and stuff, which would've showcased his athleticism.

Unfortunately, I think he's a great fit for the Broncos, too. For all the things he sucks at, Kubiak is an OL expert, and he's always valued athletic guards, even if they were undersized. Mathis is pretty much the perfect interior lineman for him, I think he'll do great there. Bummer.

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Kubiak learned the crack-back block and the Vaseline trick on the uniform well from Alex Gibbs.

BradyFTW! said:

Yeah, that's his agent being stupid. Doesn't change the fact that he's really good at football.

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Part of me thinks he just wanted to shoot his way out of town b/c he hated Kelly.

BradyFTW! said:

Yeah, that's his agent being stupid. Doesn't change the fact that he's really good at football.

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He's good, likely better than the Patriots have, although I don't think the gap is that much.

It's not completely analogous to Logan Mankins, because Logan Mankins couldn't pass block anymore, but I can't completely ignore the similarities to the two situations.

The good news is, we'll probably never know for sure, because Manning throws the ball in under 2 seconds, and Denver has nothing but crap at RB anyway.

I don't think it's a game-changer by any means. Just another case of Elway collecting talent.

TommyD4207 said:

Give him credit. No one in the NFL is better right now at collecting talent than Elway.

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and no one is better at losing the super bowl than elway

did i miss something here? did we just not win the super bowl without mathis?

TommyD4207 said:

He's good, likely better than the Patriots have, although I don't think the gap is that much.

It's not completely analogous to Logan Mankins, because Logan Mankins couldn't pass block anymore, but I can't completely ignore the similarities to the two situations.

The good news is, we'll probably never know for sure, because Manning throws the ball in under 2 seconds, and Denver has nothing but crap at RB anyway.

I don't think it's a game-changer by any means. Just another case of Elway collecting talent.

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He throws the ball in under 2 seconds if his receivers get open in under 2 seconds. But there will be lots of times when that's not the case. There will be entire games like Brady in SB49 where he and his receivers cover for a bad OL, but pocket passers can'd do that 20 times in a year. Blocking always matters. Before this signing, I thought there was an outside change that Manning, neckbolts and all, was going to be stuck behind a line that rivaled the Pats' weeks 1-4 last year in ****tiness. Which would've put his chances at surviving the season with anything resembling playing health very, very low. This signing improves those odds pretty significantly for Denver.

And IMO he's a whole lot better--or at least more proven--than what the Pats have. There's a reason why up until today this thread was full of people clamoring for him to come here. He's really good, based primarily on the fact that he's an off-the-charts, truly ridiculous athlete. It's hard to reasonably articulate how much more athletic he is than everyone else, but this at least gives some indication:

http://3sigmaathlete.com/



His SPARQ score is nuts.

BradyFTW! said:

His issue last year all went directly back to his torn quad, or whatever it was. If he's healthy, there's no reason to think he won't be the QB that he was for the first half of 2014.

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This is completely untrue. His injury happened Dec 14th (week 15) against the Chargers. His arm strength and accuracy had both nose-dived well before then. Week 14 against the Bills, he threw for 0 Tds, 2 INTs and only had 173 passing yards on 14 completions. 179 yards the week before that. The Broncos were relying almost completely on the running game and their highly skilled receivers to make up for the terrible passing game that was 100% on Manning. That was happening well before the quad injury.

TommyBrady12 said:

did i miss something here? did we just not win the super bowl without mathis?

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Connolly retired and Wendell has not been healthy. We may be starting two OG's who might not be ready.
Mathis might make a huge difference and we shouldn't be cheap with our aging HOF QB's protection.

TommyD4207 said:

When did Evan Mathis turn into John Hannah? Did I miss something?

He's a nice player, but he's not even Brian Waters, let alone Hannah. There's a reason Philadelphia cut him. This reminds me of everyone being all up-in-arms over washed-up Logan Mankins.

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Mankins was nowhere near washed up.

People on this board way overrate Mathis. I think he is a good player, but there is a reason why it took him so long to get a job and it was a desperate Broncos team that paid for him. They have a lot of o-line issues that aren't going to be magically fixed with Mathis.

And I am not worried about the Patriots' o-line. I can't remember the last time they didn't figure out how to give Brady at least a slightly above average o-line. And they had a lot mediocre players who probably had no right starting anywhere on the starting o-line and performing at least ok (Tom Ashworth, Adrian Klemm, Russ Hochstein, etc.).

TommyD4207 said:

He's good, likely better than the Patriots have, although I don't think the gap is that much.

It's not completely analogous to Logan Mankins, because Logan Mankins couldn't pass block anymore, but I can't completely ignore the similarities to the two situations.

The good news is, we'll probably never know for sure, because Manning throws the ball in under 2 seconds, and Denver has nothing but crap at RB anyway.

I don't think it's a game-changer by any means. Just another case of Elway collecting talent.

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Actually, the Broncos o-line has been a nightmare so far in the preseason and even Manning in his quick release (which isn't so quick anymore now that he has to put his whole body into his throws) was getting hit quite a bit.

I think the Broncos' offense is going to be in trouble this year. Kubiak and Manning seem a bad fit. Kubiak is a run first guy. Manning gets out of rhythm when his offense runs too much. Kubiak likes his QB lining up under center. Manning likes to be in shotgun.

Sh*t, oh well. Good fit in Denver with Kubiak. I rather like CJ Anderson and I think their running game will be very good this year, if their O-line can solidify with Mathis, and if Manning can get out of the way.

Deus Irae said:

Mankins was nowhere near washed up.

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Logan Mankins Sacks Allowed:

2013 (NE) - 11
2014 (TB) - 9

Just a point I caught on a comment on the PFT story on Mathis' signing. The poster claimed that Mathis was a terrific zone blocker, but struggled in power systems. He questioned what kind of system Kubiak runs in Denver and if it was as good a signing as everyone thinks. Anyone know if Kubiak employs a zone blocking system?

At any rate it MIGHT explain why he didn't get much interest here in NE, since we all know that BB runs a power blocking system. Also we all hope it means he's satisfied going into the season with Wendell, Kline, Jackson and Mason as out top 4 G's.

Given his price, it certainly wasn't the money

Ross12 said:

Sh*t, oh well. Good fit in Denver with Kubiak. I rather like CJ Anderson and I think their running game will be very good this year, if their O-line can solidify with Mathis, and if Manning can get out of the way.

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IDK, their o-line is in a shambles even with Mathis. They only have one starter from last year on the o-line. They were all turnstiles in their game this past week. The local Denver media have been killing the o-line for a while.

Nice signing for Denver. He improves their line significantly. I'm happy to sink or swim with what the Patriots have.

patfanken said:

Just a point I caught on a comment on the PFT story on Mathis' signing. The poster claimed that Mathis was a terrific zone blocker, but struggled in power systems. He questioned what kind of system Kubiak runs in Denver and if it was as good a signing as everyone thinks. Anyone know if Kubiak employs a zone blocking system?

At any rate it MIGHT explain why he didn't get much interest here in NE, since we all know that BB runs a power blocking system. Also we all hope it means he's satisfied going into the season with Wendell, Kline, Jackson and Mason as out top 4 G's.

Given his price, it certainly wasn't the money

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Kubiak comes from the Denver school of zone blocking. Mathis is a good fit. It doesn't change the fact that they don't have a starting quality tackle or center on the roster though.