Meriweather dealing with injuries this season? (merged)

[Oswlek]

Re: Meriweather dealing with injuries this season?

BTW, I should say that I have no idea whether Brandon is going to be any good, but neither does anyone else. Sometimes it takes time for a player to get up to speed with the pro game.

 

[tombonneau]

Re: Meriweather dealing with injuries this season?

Funny. I'm pretty sure it was Reiss in his mock draft who had NE selecting Tanard Jackson. Or maybe it was Curran, not sure. But I recall someone having that as the Pats pick and being pretty surprised.

I agree that BM has been a mild dissapointment. I was expecting him to be getting time in the dime packages. The fact that Baker is playing over him doesn't make me feel warm & fuzzy.

I'm far, far from calling him a bust though.

 

[PatsWickedPissah]

Re: Meriweather dealing with injuries this season?

and how do u know that Baker is JAG?

maybe he brings a different element to the game that we wanted against specific teams than Meriweather does.

Maybe he covers and tackles

 

[Rob0729]

Re: Meriweather dealing with injuries this season?

Rodney Harrison didn't start his rookie year.Had 20 ST tackles and 1 recovery on a SB team with Chargers

hes playing both S and CB .. give him time. Im sure we can put him out there and be fine but were developing him and maybe coaches like what they see in Baker..he was great in minicamp and all.

Meriweather is fine

all pro or bust after 8 games? were a SB caliber team. our pass D is ranked top 5 in NFL. You tell me. why fix what aint broke?

Harrison was the 145th pick in the 1994 draft. The Chargers didn't know they had an All Pro safety on their roster. Neither did any other team in the league. Meriweather was the 24th pick in the draft.

Again, I am not going to say he can't turn it around, but you can't say he is fine. We don't know if he will ever be a starter at this point. He could be the next Rodney or the next Tebucky.

 

[TheBaronPatriot]

Re: Meriweather dealing with injuries this season?

oh because being an inch away from a guy twice your size with no speed/momentum going at him is very easy right?

btw u guys ever thing maybe Meriweather is a CB for us and NOT a safety?

he played a lot at CB in TC and in preseason.

your job in the nfl is to tackle the ball carrier I don't care if he's 6"8 400 lbs.
period. don't give me excuses.
I don't care what position he plays either.

I'm not knocking the guy, just expressing that he had a bad play in which he looked bad, but don't tell me bc the guy is twice my size I shouldn't tackle him.

Bob Sanders is 5"8 200 lbs. you think he would have been dragged like that?
Tackling is about technique, and wrapping your hands around a guy like Cooley's waist is NOT going to bring him down.
hit him in the ankles and force him to go down

That being said, I don't think BM will ever be carried like that by anybody again
anybody who claims he's a bust is premature at this point in his career, he's got plenty of room to improve

 

[Deus Irae]

Re: Meriweather dealing with injuries this season?

Harrison was the 145th pick in the 1994 draft. The Chargers didn't know they had an All Pro safety on their roster. Neither did any other team in the league. Meriweather was the 24th pick in the draft.

Again, I am not going to say he can't turn it around, but you can't say he is fine. We don't know if he will ever be a starter at this point. He could be the next Rodney or the next Tebucky.

B.M. may be the biggest disappointment of the BB era, or he may be a tremendous and ready player who just hasn't gotten into the games for coaching purposes or, most likely, he's falling somewhere in between. I have no idea, and I don't think either you or Owslek does either. This is the Patriots organization, where the dead are day-to-day, players get picked up and dropped on an almost weekly basis, and expansive answers about personnel are rarer than Yangtze river-dolphins. However, let me simply point out two words from this past weekend which should have you, and the others arguing along the same lines, re-thinking your position at least somewhat:

Adalius Thomas

 

[TomBrady'sGoat]

Re: Meriweather dealing with injuries this season?

The way I view rookies year 1 is a wash, and any contribution is a bonus. Year 1 is all about acclimation.

As long as Merriweather enters next season prepared and knowing what is expected of him then I'm happy.

 

[ayjackson]

Re: Meriweather dealing with injuries this season?

Brandon played a fair bit against the Bengals (I believe) and made some nice plays. He also was a bit ****y and has been strangely absent from the defence since then.

I believe that humility is the first lesson to teach brash brawlers from the U, and that's what he's learning now.

 

[Brady-To-Branch]

Re: Meriweather dealing with injuries this season?

There is no patience in evaluation any more. A guy is either an all pro or a bust by his 8th game. It is completely unacceptable for a first rounder to be a solid contributor. Bust or HOF - no in between.

H

Ty Warren is a 3-4 DE. 3-4 (and 4-3) D-line rookies take more time to develop.

Rookie DBs should be able to step in right away.

Wilson, Hobbs, Samuel, and even Sanders (before his injury) all contributed in their rookie years. Guss Scott and Dexter Reid did not.

I liked Meriweather when the Pats got him. I thought we got a really good player. Then I saw him play in preseason and was horrified. Meriweather demonstrated no coverage skills whatsoever. Yes, he was tried at CB, but when they moved him to safety, he still was late to the ball. He can tackle (downfield after a completion) and shows some aptitude on Teams, but if you can't cover and have no ball skills, you are not first round caliber. Or 2nd round, or 3rd, etc.

As for the depth excuse, when RH was serving his suspension Meriweather was rarely seen with the regular defense. Now that Wilson has gotten nicked up, again. Meriweather is now behind Baker in the depth chart.

All the other 1st round DBs have made significant contributions on their team's regular D. All except Meriweather.

You need good instincts to play Safety and usually they can't be coached up. Meriweather just doesn't have them.

Face it, this team blew their 1st rounder on a journeyman talent.

Thanks, Seattle. I just hope SF doesn't get a late season surge. There are some good DBs in this upcoming class.

 

[scout]

Re: Meriweather dealing with injuries this season?

Ty Warren is a 3-4 DE. 3-4 (and 4-3) D-line rookies take more time to develop.

Rookie DBs should be able to step in right away.

Wilson, Hobbs, Samuel, and even Sanders (before his injury) all contributed in their rookie years. Guss Scott and Dexter Reid did not.

I liked Meriweather when the Pats got him. I thought we got a really good player. Then I saw him play in preseason and was horrified. Meriweather demonstrated no coverage skills whatsoever. Yes, he was tried at CB, but when they moved him to safety, he still was late to the ball. He can tackle (downfield after a completion) and shows some aptitude on Teams, but if you can't cover and have no ball skills, you are not first round caliber. Or 2nd round, or 3rd, etc.

As for the depth excuse, when RH was serving his suspension Meriweather was rarely seen with the regular defense. Now that Wilson has gotten nicked up, again. Meriweather is now behind Baker in the depth chart.

All the other 1st round DBs have made significant contributions on their team's regular D. All except Meriweather.

You need good instincts to play Safety and usually they can't be coached up. Meriweather just doesn't have them.

Face it, this team blew their 1st rounder on a journeyman talent.

Thanks, Seattle. I just hope SF doesn't get a late season surge. There are some good DBs in this upcoming class.

That settles it, Meriweather is a bust.
Last years pick, Chad Jackson is a bust
Yea, and Maroney sucks too.

 

[Oswlek]

Re: Meriweather dealing with injuries this season?

Ty Warren is a 3-4 DE. 3-4 (and 4-3) D-line rookies take more time to develop.

Rookie DBs should be able to step in right away.

Wilson, Hobbs, Samuel, and even Sanders (before his injury) all contributed in their rookie years. Guss Scott and Dexter Reid did not.

I liked Meriweather when the Pats got him. I thought we got a really good player. Then I saw him play in preseason and was horrified. Meriweather demonstrated no coverage skills whatsoever. Yes, he was tried at CB, but when they moved him to safety, he still was late to the ball. He can tackle (downfield after a completion) and shows some aptitude on Teams, but if you can't cover and have no ball skills, you are not first round caliber. Or 2nd round, or 3rd, etc.

As for the depth excuse, when RH was serving his suspension Meriweather was rarely seen with the regular defense. Now that Wilson has gotten nicked up, again. Meriweather is now behind Baker in the depth chart.

All the other 1st round DBs have made significant contributions on their team's regular D. All except Meriweather.

You need good instincts to play Safety and usually they can't be coached up. Meriweather just doesn't have them.

Face it, this team blew their 1st rounder on a journeyman talent.

Thanks, Seattle. I just hope SF doesn't get a late season surge. There are some good DBs in this upcoming class.

This is the epitome of what I am saying. I agree that Meriweather did not stand out like a contributor should in the PS. I agree that it is disappointing that he hasn't made more of a name for himself.

But why do we need to make career proclamations after half of one season? Isn't is possible - nay probable - that the guy will improve? Haven't we all seen examples of guys who made 2nd year leaps? And since when are secondary positions so much easier to grasp than DL? Frankly, every other time I have heard anyone mention DL rookies, they say it is an easier position to grasp than most other positions (other than RB).

Patience.

 

[Oswlek]

Re: Meriweather dealing with injuries this season?

BTW, while it may be true that 6th rounders don't have the expectations that 1st rounders have, and it certainly is more concerning if a 1st rounder can't see the field, the Harrison analogy is apt in one way.

He was a guy who played little in his first year that became a star. And his story is not unique in anyway. So, while we can admit that Meriweather "should" be better than Rodney in their respective rookie seasons, why can't we just understand that sometimes a player - no matter how talented he is - needs time to get up to speed.

The fact that a 6th round nobody can become a star should make it *more* possible that a talented first rounder can, not less.

 

[Water Boy]

Re: Meriweather dealing with injuries this season?

I dont think people expected him to beat out Sanders, Wilson or Harrison

As a first round draft pick, I expected him to challenge Wilson and/or Sanders for free safety.

 

[MDPATSFAN]

Re: Meriweather dealing with injuries this season?

That settles it, Meriweather is a bust.
Last years pick, Chad Jackson is a bust
Yea, and Maroney sucks too.

Hey...At least we got Welker for a 2nd. He currently leads all NFL wide receivers in YAC.

Seriously...The last two drafts have been disappointing. The team won't withstand many more misses.

 

[Remix 6]

Re: Meriweather dealing with injuries this season?

wow u guys are just..PATHETIC

doesnt have instincts? how do u know..? that was his + on his scouting report

all he has to do is tackle and defend pass? you clearly know how easy it is then to play in nFL..why dont u go tryout

He cant tackle because he ****ed up once? He has 15 tackles..1 bad tackle. Bob Sanders wouldnt have been dragged? Im sure him being an inch from Cooley while standing still while Cooley is running his pattern is real easy. Many players wouldnt have made it


stop juding players so early. Wow.

btw has anyone decided to answer "Meriweather might be a CB and not a safety and thats why he doesnt get PT behind Gay-Hobbs-Samuel?"

 

[Oswlek]

Re: Meriweather dealing with injuries this season?

Hey...At least we got Welker for a 2nd. He currently leads all NFL wide receivers in YAC.

Seriously...The last two drafts have been disappointing. The team won't withstand many more misses.

Welker. Another guy who was *clearly* a worldbeater after 9 games, right?

 

[spacecrime]

Re: Meriweather dealing with injuries this season?

It is fair to compare Meriweather to Polumalu. But by comparing their rookie seasons alone so far, the only conclusion you can come from that limited information is that Meriweather will never be a top safety in this league.

How can anyone look at any player's rookie season and decide his entire future career. This is mind-boggling.

The only "conclusion" you can come to is that Meriweather has not been on the field a lot. You can't even conclude why. He might not be practicing well, might not be playing his position well, BB might prefer to go with veterans and bring him along, he could be a late bloomer, he could be less than NFL quality.

He could be any one of these, but to pick one say, "This is the reason" is ludicrous.

 

[tombonneau]

Re: Meriweather dealing with injuries this season?

wow u guys are just..PATHETIC

doesnt have instincts? how do u know..? that was his + on his scouting report

all he has to do is tackle and defend pass? you clearly know how easy it is then to play in nFL..why dont u go tryout

He cant tackle because he ****ed up once? He has 15 tackles..1 bad tackle. Bob Sanders wouldnt have been dragged? Im sure him being an inch from Cooley while standing still while Cooley is running his pattern is real easy. Many players wouldnt have made it


stop juding players so early. Wow.

btw has anyone decided to answer "Meriweather might be a CB and not a safety and thats why he doesnt get PT behind Gay-Hobbs-Samuel?"

Dude, didn't you see? He got run over by Cooley. How could he possibly be anything but a bust after that play? I bet he is cut during the bye.

 

[Remix 6]

Re: Meriweather dealing with injuries this season?

idk if u guys read this or not..but training camp might have put him in a "dog house" type of situation

Brandon Meriweather made a big mistake in the first few weeks of his New England Patriots career.

He opened his mouth.
e
It wasn't as if the first-year safety made a wild prediction or bombastic remark. He didn't disclose a team secret. He simply said how lucky he felt getting to practice against teammate Wes Welker every day, calling him "one of the best slot receivers in the league."

That was enough to nudge Bill Belichick over the edge. At a team meeting, the Patriots coach opened a newspaper and read the quote aloud. Then, according to the Boston Herald, the coach angrily scolded the rookie with: "How the [expletive] would Brandon Meriweather know! You don't know anything, so shut the [expletive] up!"

basically..he made the newspapers complimenting Welker during TC/preseason and BB wasnt happy with a rookie speaking

he did well in practice leading up to Skins game and earned a practie player of week jersey for i guess..playing role of Sean Taylor or Landry..as did Baker.

 

[5 Rings for Brady!!]

Re: Meriweather dealing with injuries this season?

I have an idea.....

Let's let his play on the field speak for itself!

At the end of the day, nothing else really matters.

Those of us that have watched football for a while understand that hype and homer opinions don't really equate into production. Only production translates into production.

I know that a first round pick is a significant pick so the bar is set pretty high by media and fans and organizations alike. At some point, we all like to see some sort of reassuring signs. In Meriweather's case, we may have to wait until next year for that.

My personal opinion is that a first round pick at safety better hit like Troy P. or cover like Ed Reed.