CHFF: WR epic fail

[yukon cornelius]

apologies if this has been linked already, not a bad read


Epic Fail: The Wide Receiver Draft Class Of 2012

 

[DaBruinz]

The problem I have with this article is that Kerry Byrne is insisting on passing judgment on these players after just one season. Futhermore, doesn't bother to acknowledge certain things. Such as the fact that Arizona had a QB carousel last year. That they also had issues at running back. That the Jaguars had issues at quarterback. That the Titans really didn't have many weapons after Washington, Wright and Johnson. Not to mention the issues on defense.

To make judgments on players after their rookie campaigns is proof that Byrne doesn't truly understand what it takes to learn the differences going from a college offense to a pro-offense. He also doesn't take into consideration the depth of WR in front of some of these players..

 

[Reckedtrek]

Interesting. My two critiques of the argument put forth are that calling a draft pick an "epic fail" after only one year is a little premature. Secondly, a WR may only touch the ball a small percentage of the time, however they are like any other object you don't use everyday, but you're glad you have it when you need it. Those 4-8 catches (or drops) a game can be game changers.

Having said that, I think that football fans do over value (the dreaded "V" word!!) the big name WR. I'll take a great QB with average WR's to an average QB with a couple of big name WR's. Look what Brady has done for the Pats! The flip side is look what Anquan Boldin did for the Raven's. Probably too may variables to just pinpoint one position.

 

[Rob0729]

Blackmon and Floyd could be epic failures because of the QBs throwing to them.

 

[Sicilian]

The problem I have with this article is that Kerry Byrne is insisting on passing judgment on these players after just one season. Futhermore, doesn't bother to acknowledge certain things. Such as the fact that Arizona had a QB carousel last year. That they also had issues at running back. That the Jaguars had issues at quarterback. That the Titans really didn't have many weapons after Washington, Wright and Johnson. Not to mention the issues on defense.

To make judgments on players after their rookie campaigns is proof that Byrne doesn't truly understand what it takes to learn the differences going from a college offense to a pro-offense. He also doesn't take into consideration the depth of WR in front of some of these players..

I agree that judging rookie WR's after one year is silly. More than most positions, it is HARD to make an impact in your first year as a WR, if for no other reason than the pro offense is drastically different from the college game.

But I think the questions at QB, RB, and OL were part of his point. Teams will draft WR's high and devote huge resources to them, while having critical flaws in more impactful positions. I'm in agreement with him there, that flashy WR's are the luxury you add AFTER you find your franchise QB and give him a solid OL to make the offensive engine run. You build from the trenches outward. Trying to improve a futile offense with a stud WR is buying new siding for a house that has no foundation.

 

[stinebot]

The problem I have with this article is that Kerry Byrne is insisting on passing judgment on these players after just one season. Futhermore, doesn't bother to acknowledge certain things. Such as the fact that Arizona had a QB carousel last year. That they also had issues at running back. That the Jaguars had issues at quarterback. That the Titans really didn't have many weapons after Washington, Wright and Johnson. Not to mention the issues on defense.

I think that's exactly the point of the article actually. Why take a WR so high in the draft, pay them millions of dollars, and not improve the team? If a team has so many holes the smarter option is almost universally to draft QB, OL, DL, or to trade down and get additional picks that can be used to improve in multiple areas. When you have a bad overall team and you draft a WR at #5, even if they pan out it's at best akin to putting $5000 rims on your rusted out '83 Escort.

 

[Reckedtrek]

I think that's exactly the point of the article actually. ... it's at best akin to putting $5000 rims on your rusted out '83 Escort.

I see you've been to South Framingham recently?

 

[Kontradiction]

Blackmon and Floyd could be epic failures because of the QBs throwing to them.

Blackmon is an idiot (trust me, I've drank with the guy a couple of times at a bar here in Jax Beach right after he was drafted), but it's a relative miracle that he was able to put a season like that together as a rookie considering he had either Chad Henne or Blaine Gabbert throwing him the ball.

 

[letekro]

This article was an epic fail. My goodness, the logic of a 13 year old girl. Actually that is an insult to 13 year old girls.

 

[BradyFTW!]

Blackmon and Floyd had absolutely terrible QBs for most of the year. Once the Jaguars put someone with a pulse back there (Henne, not like he's even good), Blackmon was fine.

 

[BradyFTW!]

I think that's exactly the point of the article actually. Why take a WR so high in the draft, pay them millions of dollars, and not improve the team? If a team has so many holes the smarter option is almost universally to draft QB, OL, DL, or to trade down and get additional picks that can be used to improve in multiple areas. When you have a bad overall team and you draft a WR at #5, even if they pan out it's at best akin to putting $5000 rims on your rusted out '83 Escort.

I get it on some level, which is that, if you want to be a good team, eventually you're going to have to have talented receiving targets. If the best talent on the board is clearly a WR in your book, then I don't see any problem with taking him and filling in your other needs later.

That said, most teams should realize by now that WRs are simply less important than a lot of other positions when it comes to building a winning team.

 

[PatsDeb]

LOL, when I read the thread title I assumed it was an article about the present state of the Pats WR core. You can tell what I'm thinking these days....

 

[makoute]

Blackmon and Floyd could be epic failures because of the QBs throwing to them.

I think that is part of his point though.

 

[PatsWickedPissah]

Blackmon is an idiot (trust me, I've drank with the guy a couple of times at a bar here in Jax Beach right after he was drafted), but it's a relative miracle that he was able to put a season like that together as a rookie considering he had either Chad Henne or Blaine Gabbert throwing him the ball.

Yes, we trust your expertise in idiots!

 

[stinebot]

If the best talent on the board is clearly a WR in your book, then I don't see any problem with taking him and filling in your other needs later.

If your team is truly bad enough to have earned a top 10 pick rather than having traded for it, and the best talent on your board is a WR by a good margin...that's when you trade your 1 for a later 1 plus something else, or for a 2 this year and a 1 next year, or whatever. Taking the best player available sounds good for a bad team, but if that player is a WR many times the return on investment just is not there. What good is a wonderful WR if the QB cannot get him the ball because either 1. the QB sucks, or 2. the OL sucks and the QB doesn't have time to do his job? If you do not have at least a serviceable OL and QB the rest does not really matter on offense.

 

[VJCPatriot]

That article is an epic fail in that it vastly oversimplifies the WR position.
The 49ers drafted Jerry Rice in the 1st round for a reason, because it made their team better.
The Pats did exactly what the writer would have advocated - they traded down and took another postion, a guy named Trevor Matich, a center.

So they passed up the best value at the position, just because he was a WR, and ended up passing on one of the greatest NFL talents of all time. A dumb move then, and it would be a dumb move now.

And how is 600+ yards receiving even close to an epic fail for a rookie WR? Receivers generally take 3 years to develop before hitting their prime. They are not going to all be Julio Jones and AJ Green. Those guys are exceptions to the rule.

Check out Demaryius Thomas and Eric Decker's rookie numbers. They would both be considered 'epic fail' by CHFF's 'writer'. And yet they produced over 1,000 yards of offense each in 2012. The 1st year for a WR is just the beginning. It would be 'epic fail' to apply that writer's logic to evaluating the position.

So are WRs overvalued. I would say they are slightly overvalued, yes. But the NFL has become a passing league, and you still need to score more points than the other guy to win. If anything RBs are becoming slightly less valuable, and athletic TEs are starting to become increasingly more valuable as NFL teams are catching up to/copying the Pats success with their double TE offense.

 

[DocHoliday]

They're incredibly overvalued until you don't have any good ones.

All positions are important. It's difficult to win without at least some semblance of talent everywhere.

 

[stinebot]

That article is an epic fail in that it vastly oversimplifies the WR position.
The 49ers drafted Jerry Rice in the 1st round for a reason, because it made their team better.
The Pats did exactly what the writer would have advocated - they traded down and took another postion, a guy named Trevor Matich, a center.

So they passed up the best value at the position, just because he was a WR, and ended up passing on one of the greatest NFL talents of all time. A dumb move then, and it would be a dumb move now.

And how is 600+ yards receiving even close to an epic fail for a rookie WR? Receivers generally take 3 years to develop before hitting their prime. They are not going to all be Julio Jones and AJ Green. Those guys are exceptions to the rule.

Check out Demaryius Thomas and Eric Decker's rookie numbers. They would both be considered 'epic fail' by CHFF's 'writer'. And yet they produced over 1,000 yards of offense each in 2012. The 1st year for a WR is just the beginning. It would be 'epic fail' to apply that writer's logic to evaluating the position.

Eric Decker was drafted in the 3rd round by a Broncos team that was 8-8 the year before. Thomas by the same Broncos team, but as the 22nd pick in the first round. Both of these are a bit different than a 2-14 team picking a WR with the second overall pick and expecting him to lead them to the playoffs.

And as far as Jerry Rice goes, the 49ers were reigning Super Bowl Champs when they drafted him (with the last pick in the 1st round). They were a team that could certainly benefit from adding a new option to an already great team. In hindsight, of course I wish the Pats had taken him. But for every Jerry Rice there's a Charles Rogers "He's the next great WR!!!!!!" who is drafted 2nd overall, and he is out of the league in 3 years. Anyone can pick and choose specific players that do better or worse than everyone projects (Brady?). But those are the exceptions. As a rule, bad teams do better building along both lines and at QB, then adding in the complementary pieces after the core is established.

 

[Snake Eyes]

What good is having the best QB ever if he has crappy receivers who can't get open?

 

[Coach42]

I'd like to see how the author would explain the change in the patriots offense from 2006 to 2007. That probably had nothing to do with the WR position.