Let's focus on Positives. What next?

[Toofy]

Enough of rants. We all know this season was a trial by fire and its living up to the expectations and no surprises here.

Having said that, how can we salvage this season without creating the Bryce young effect on Maye.

Let me start with positives and wishlists and let others continue to add.

Polk seems a keeper and has solid route running capabilities and hands. Very good wr 2. Douglas is open and just feels like AVP is not scheming enough to take advantage of his strengths.


Gonzalez looks like a bonafide stud and we just need one more tall CB to pair up with him to keep offenses at bay. That should be a priority in FA .

White and barmore could be beastly tandem and that should elevate the defense a whole lot. Get couple of rookie edge rushers next year to build depth.

The oline despite all injuries looked decent in 49ers game. Let's build on the momentum. I would want them to play players at their best position to build continuity and overcome weakness through scheming rather than changing personnel . That means move onwenu back to RG and keep Robinson as a backup guard.

Wish list

LT - Jacobs, Lowe, Thomas should be the depth chart
LG - Sow, Strange
C - Andrews, leverett
RT - Caeden Wallace/ Jordan
RG - onwenu, robinson

I feel Andrews is done for the season. Start experimenting out center with strange.

If Wallace becomes average RT and Jacobs a solid swing tackle and strange heir apparent for Andrews, we might have hit the lottery in oline with Starting LT the only major need. It's no guarantee that rookies outperform as LT. So best bet would be for Jacobs or Thomas or lowe to shine.

I have had enough with Osborne. He should be relegated.

Sign Gibson to long term contract . He is electrifying . He is the James white clone we have been searching for. Sadly van pelt doesn't know how to use him and has abysmal game planninG for screens .

I would want Baker and Boutte to alternate between games and see how they do.

Maye can start after the bye. That way we have a losing season already and maye is under no pressure .

If the health gods are kind to us, who knows we start making a run from this week .

 

[maust]

I'm positive the Pats are facing a Tua-less Dolpins offense this Sunday.
It certainly wasn't pretty for them on MNF, particularly enjoyed seeing tyREEK unravel a bit. Not enough can go wrong for that POS to suit me.

 

[mgteich]

Primarily, we need health.

OL
IMO, the biggest other open questions are the rookies. My gut says that neither can be counted on as 2024 starters. I would be fine if both were inactive; 8 active OL's is plenty.

I also have no confidence that Strange can be a solid starter at another position. Personally, I would start Sow at RG.

I suppose that Onwenu is also a question. But until we can count on Wallace as a starter, Onwenu needs to be our RT.
====
LT (2) Lowe, Jacobs
OG (3) Sow, Jordan/(Strange), Robinson
C (2) Andrews, Leverett (with Hudson being elevated as needed)
RT (2) Onwenu, Wallace
OG/OT (1) Thomas
===================
WR
We are fine with Bourne, Polk, and Douglas. Polk is a fine pick. Osborn was the veteran presence until Borne came back. We'll see whether any of the rest can develop later in the year with Maye. Obviously, we will sign or trade for a top WR in the off-season.
=========
RB
Gibson's contract is for the normal 3 years, so we have Stevenson and Gibson for awhile.
=========
TE
Henry is a top TE in this league. Hooper has been solid and will likely be re-signed.
====

 

[mgteich]

I would think that the next five teams are easier than the last 4.

 

[archstanton543]

Positives? Good draft picks next year. If they got rid of everyone on the team except Gonzo, White, and Maye and replaced them with other players, I wouldn't complain.

 

[sb1]

Special teams were bad the last couple of years but look really good so far. Although we still need a WR1 Polk might be legit. White obviously is a nice surprise.

 

[Triumph]

The Pats aint last in the AFCE
Miami got rolled by the Titans and have a worse offense than NE.
The 2025 draft is looking good.
The 1st pick will sit out 2025 so hes ready for 2026 - btw right call.
If Brady does come back he will be pummeled by todays NFL pass rush.

 

[Ross12]

Umm... let's see

QB
- Sorry but I really have nothing for you right now

RB
- When he isn't fumbling, Stevenson has looked very very good.
- Gibson has been a decent rotational back and pass-catching back too

WR
- Polk is flashing sometimes
- It's hard to really evaluate this group at all because of the QB play

TE
- Henry looks like his old self and Hooper seems closer to his old self

OL
- When setting aside injuries, the group has been better than expected, but it's kind of a limited sample size individually
- Lowe looked solid but hasn't played a lot
- Sow looked solid but hasn't played a lot
- Andrews has been good
- Onwenu has had his struggles at times but is good enough and is a great run blocker
- Jordan has been a real gem of a backup and might be starter material; might need to replace Robinson when healthy
- Wallace has flashed at times on the right side
- Jacobs had a fairly solid game at LT last week before it got out of hand

DL
- White is a highlight so far this year but can't do it all himself
- Godchaux is showing good leadership, it seems like

LB
- Tavai has been his usual self though and has had some nice plays

DB
- Gonzo looks like we hoped - real CB1
- Marcus Jones has quietly been very good so far and made a number of great plays
- Jonathan Jones is getting old but still playing mostly solid football
- Dugger has been pretty good prior to injury
- Peppers is probably having his best year so far? A few big plays
- Hawkins and Pettus have been solid depth

ST
- Coverage unit has been night-and-day better than last year - WOW!!
- Slye is just so much better than the Ryland atrocity from last year. 63 yarder really? Has he missed at all yet?
- Baringer is a real weapon. If they can get any kind of offense going, he will able to win field position battles
- Still have to credit Cardona for that forced fumble that one time

Coaching
- Reserving judgment on Mayo but it did seem like they had their heads on better this week vs last week
- Covington seems to call a good game but players are not always executing well
- Obviously Springer was a fantastic hire considering how much better Special Teams is
- Just not going to comment on AVP right now
- I do actually think Scott Peters/Robert Kugler deserve some credit for dealing with this ridiculous patchwork OL

 

[State]

Offer Joe Milton III to the Dolphins for their first round pick. They say no, but agree to give us their second.

Cuz desperation time may set in.

Milton III could become a superstar in Miami.

 

[Thelonious]

Even the OP's post can't discern many legit "positives." I think we need to focus on the "actuals," as painful as that might be, rather than on mythological positives. With the team fallen as low as it has, this is a time for "Actuals," not for self-soothing happy talk. I understand the impulse, but I reject the approach. I hope the new team leadership - as unproven as most of the players - does as well. We have all the cheerleaders we need.

 

[PATSYLICIOUS]

The defense wasn’t good but it was still an improvement over the jets debacle. Baby steps lol Kept us in the game with a strong series after Rham’s fumble, but the pick 6 is where everything started to unravel on both sides. Not much you can do when the offense hands a great team 10 points. Still improvement is needed defensively and better discipline but Sunday is a ‘get right’ opportunity. And they better convert or we are looking at being the favorites to picking 1 overall (unless jville truly is this bad).

Marcus jones had some good returns and st is finally back on the plus side of big plays this year. Really only screwup has been the blocked fg. But slye and barringer have been outstanding, plus 2 forced fumbles. Marcus is the x factor here though he could steal a game or 2 for us hopefully.

Trey Jacobs showed some hope that he can maybe be a swing tackle for us at a great price. If that works out and we have strange healthy next year, this line could be a LT away from being decent and you have 2 strong prospects next year in banks and Campbell. Leverett suprisingly was okay filling in at center and we may have something with this hudson kid based off what ive read . Jordan is good depth at guard and hopefully part of our plans moving forth. Hopefully cadaen isnt out more than a few weeks, really need to get an idea of him at rt and if moving onwenu to guard is an option.

Gibson continues to look like a very nice pickup. The guy has legitimate big play potential, sorely needed here. And more importantly Rham wont need to carry it 20x a game. And polk looks very promising, i think they made a good pick there.

Next year they’ll probably be forced to spend some money since you can only roll over so much in a 4 year span so im guessing you see some activity in fa finally. At first glance it doesn’t look good at ot and edge so those may have to come via draft. I do see opportunities at cb, Dt, and potentially wr if we can actually get a good look at fringe guys like boutte and Thornton and find a worthwhile upgrade. But i feel like bourne/polk/pop with baker and one of the fringe guys is a reasonable set and you can wait until 26 to splurge at wr if a better opportunity comes along.

Feel like you add the LT in the top 5 and find an impact edge at the top of rd 2 /trade back into rd 1. Sign one of the cb’s and mcneil or another impact DL. Get strange and barmore back next year. Bolster the depth elsewhere with the rest of your assets. That could be a team ready to compete!

 

[signbabybrady]

Special teams were bad the last couple of years but look really good so far. Although we still need a WR1 Polk might be legit. White obviously is a nice surprise.

Who drafted White?

 

[reflexblue]

Enough of rants. We all know this season was a trial by fire and its living up to the expectations and no surprises here.

Having said that, how can we salvage this season without creating the Bryce young effect on Maye.

Let me start with positives and wishlists and let others continue to add.

Polk seems a keeper and has solid route running capabilities and hands. Very good wr 2. Douglas is open and just feels like AVP is not scheming enough to take advantage of his strengths.


Gonzalez looks like a bonafide stud and we just need one more tall CB to pair up with him to keep offenses at bay. That should be a priority in FA .

White and barmore could be beastly tandem and that should elevate the defense a whole lot. Get couple of rookie edge rushers next year to build depth.

The oline despite all injuries looked decent in 49ers game. Let's build on the momentum. I would want them to play players at their best position to build continuity and overcome weakness through scheming rather than changing personnel . That means move onwenu back to RG and keep Robinson as a backup guard.

Wish list

LT - Jacobs, Lowe, Thomas should be the depth chart
LG - Sow, Strange
C - Andrews, leverett
RT - Caeden Wallace/ Jordan
RG - onwenu, robinson

I feel Andrews is done for the season. Start experimenting out center with strange.

If Wallace becomes average RT and Jacobs a solid swing tackle and strange heir apparent for Andrews, we might have hit the lottery in oline with Starting LT the only major need. It's no guarantee that rookies outperform as LT. So best bet would be for Jacobs or Thomas or lowe to shine.

I have had enough with Osborne. He should be relegated.

Sign Gibson to long term contract . He is electrifying . He is the James white clone we have been searching for. Sadly van pelt doesn't know how to use him and has abysmal game planninG for screens .

I would want Baker and Boutte to alternate between games and see how they do.

Maye can start after the bye. That way we have a losing season already and maye is under no pressure .

If the health gods are kind to us, who knows we start making a run from this week .

The draft?

 

[mgteich]

The draft?

The idea is to be an almost complete team BEFORE the draft, with perhaps one key need to fill.

 

[KCSVEN]

Having said that, how can we salvage this season without creating the Bryce young effect on Maye.

I'm not aware of a machine out there that will reduce Maye's size by 25% while simultaneously removing all running ability and arm strength!

 

[Bill Lee]

Even the OP's post can't discern many legit "positives." I think we need to focus on the "actuals," as painful as that might be, rather than on mythological positives. With the team fallen as low as it has, this is a time for "Actuals," not for self-soothing happy talk. I understand the impulse, but I reject the approach. I hope the new team leadership - as unproven as most of the players - does as well. We have all the cheerleaders we need.

Strange that someone who rejects the approach bothers to open this thread.

We have far more poo flingers than cheerleaders, IMO.

The team does have some "legit positives".

Not enough to be a consistent winner never mind playoff team, but still, some legit positives.

It's a totally valid idea for some of us to want to see a discussion about the things that can be built upon.

Plenty of poo flinging threads to choose from, perhaps go there if you enjoy pain.

 

[Bill Lee]

QB
- Sorry but I really have nothing for you right now

I think he's doing as well as one can expect under the circumstances. He's a mid-level veteran on a mid-level one year contract. I don't see a lot of receivers getting open for him, be it via scheme or via raw talent or speed. I do see him not panicing much given how often he's getting hit. He's doing a far better job than Zappe or Jones did under similar circumstances, which is what we'd expect. I don't see how he can be expected to make chicken salad out of chicken ****.

 

[KCSVEN]

This year is salvageable by getting the Oline healthy and playing Maye, the schedule is not too bad the rest of the way. The odds of both things happening in time to salvage the season is slim, however.

Next year on offense it is pretty obvious. If you have a top 10 pick, take one of the top 3 tackles (Campbell, Jones, Banks).
If you have a top 3 pick, trade down a bit and pick up draft assets but stay in top 10 to get one of the 3 tackles.
If outside the top 10 then you have to hope a tackle slips, go BPA to fill another need or trade down, grab Ersery for developmental tackle, and have him ready for 2026.

Throw a ridiculous contract at Tee Higgins to solidify a #1 receiver.

Then in rest of free agency bolster the defense first, easier to get good players on defense than offense, fill in some depth pieces in free agency along the offensive line.

If you do all that you can get 2nd and 3rd round picks for BPA and maybe bolster the defense.

IF you can get Barmore back next year and he is 100% then him and White can give you a pass rush, which they are lacking outside of White this year.

 

[Sicilian]

There's a not a big well to draw from so far, but a few things that have stood out to me:

Gonzalez - Aside from being generally good, I have been happy with his willingness to be physical. It was a bit of a knock on him coming out, and I was worried that he'd be a bit timid coming off of a shoulder injury. He's not Kam Chancellor or anything, but his willingness to throw himself in there has been a good sign, IMO.

White has shown that he can be a piece. He could be one of the freelancing guys that Godchaux mentioned, but I don't get the sense it's out of selfishness so much as inexperience. Without Judon and Barmore, he's their only consistent pass rush threat and he may be trying to do too much at times. But if we're looking for some hope for 2025, if you can get Barmore back and add an edge guy opposite him, White should be a great complement to that.

Special teams has been MOSTLY good. The blocked field goal was a breakdown (but so far a one off) and I'd like to see Marcus Jones get more no the punt returns. But otherwise it's been a marked improvement over 2023. Slye has been a sight for sore eyes after last year.

I don't have anything really positive to say about the offense so far. Anything I could stretch to find would be flashes here and there, but nothing consistent enough for me to point the finger and say, "That. That right there is going to be a staple for this team going forward." Plus it's hard to objectively judge the skill position guys one way or the other with the OL/QB play we're getting. I think that whole group is an incomplete until there's some stabilization there.

Final positive for me: Kendrick Bourne is hopefully coming back soon. He's not a world beater, and isn't enough to turn anything around here, but I've enjoyed watching him play and he seems to have fun out there. Some juice from him would be nice to see.

 

[farn]

Love Gonzales. Can’t say enough. This is the type of game changer NE needs to get as often as possible. Players like this are the ones who make the huge play when you need it and offer the consistency required to play winning ball.

Keeper x 1000