Q & A w/ Turner

[nfoligno]

Saw on the Bears site some Q & A w/ Turner. As would be expected, not a whole lot of earth shattering news, but hey, its slow as hell, and I think others are getting tired of Lucky and my's back and forth Check out the bears site for full Q & A, but some of the basics.

 

Hester - Felt the light turned on for Hester in the final 6 weeks, and said it was then Hester simply began to play, rather than think. Very high on his future.

 

Bennett - Asked by Bennett couldn't get playing time, Turner essentially said the game was just too fast for him. Over and over again, continued to say Bennett wasn't playing as fast, or at NFL speed. Did say it often takes player several years to adjust from college to NFL speed. Frankly, seemed like a fairly generic answer, but you have to wonder just how bad it was. I mean, the kid was supposed to be really smart, quick learner and all, and yet the game was just too fast for him? Anyway, Turner said Bennett did start to get up to NFL speed at the end of the year, and they tried to get him on the field more (some). Generic, "offseason will be very important for him".

 

Brett Basanez - Very high on him. Said he heavily recruited him out of HS, but didn't do a good enough job to land him. Mentioned playing against him each season (Illinois). Said, "He’s an athlete. He can run. He’s got great accuracy and good touch, and he’s very intelligent.". Sounds like he may be considered a tad more than camp fodder, but I still doubt he there to push anyone but maybe Hanie.

 

Chris Williams - Not much there. Said he will be great. After injury, took time to get into game shape, but made strides and will be the starting LT next year.

 

FB Dive - Actually asked why he used it so much, and questioner said it was predictable. Loved that one:) Began by talking about how they try to mix things up so as to not be predictable. Went on to say they only used it twice in short yardage and 4 times out of 30 in goal line situations. What I did take away from this was his defense of the play, saying, "It’s a quick-hitter play that we think can work because everyone’s keyed in on Matt Forte" which leads me to believe we will see this play again next year. If we do, I can only hope it will (a) be a different FB and ( behind a different interior OL.

 

Olsen to WR? - Talked about how much Olsen was moved around, as he played TE, WR and even FB. Mentioned Olsen played WR as much as 15-20% of the time. Said Olsen will not move full time to WR, as he likes the matchup issues Olsen creates at TE, but expect to see him continue to play all around.

 

Orton development - Maybe I am just naive (sp?), but I honestly believe Turner when he speaks highly of Orton. Doesn't mean everything he says is true, but I really do get the feeling Turner is in fact high on Orton. Turner said he believes Orton is a long term solution to our QB problems. Talked about how well his development was going prior to the injury, how the injury seemed to kill his timing, but how his timing seemed to get back to him again at the end.

 

Orton lack of deep ball - Turner seems to truly believe in the need for the big play, but also believes Orton is capable of such. He said Orton did miss on some deep balls, but went on to say it wasn't all his fault. He implies the biggest issue was a lack of timing between Orton and the WRs, also mentioning a lack of practice reps between he and the WRs. Mentions injuries, and I get the impression he means WRs, but not sure who he is talking about. "The more he’s around them and the more experience he gets, he’ll hit those. A lot of it has to do with practice. We had some guys who couldn’t practice as much as they wanted because of injuries. If you’re not throwing those things full speed in practice, it’s hard to hit them in the games."

 

Is Wolf Sproles - While he speaks well of Wolfe, and also believes Wolf has a role in the future, he doesn't sound like he see's the two RBs are being that similar. Says that while they are similar in height, Sproles has more power in his lower body and is more compact. He does mention Wolfe's ability in the screen pass and explosion. He talks about AP getting reps Wolfe may have due to confidence in AP, particularly in regard to blitz pickup. I get the impression that if Wolfe get more impress the coaches in terms of blocking and protection, we may see Wolfe more and more phased in and AP phased out.

 

AP at FB - This was one of the more interesting ones, IMHO. Someone mentioned the idea of AP at FB, similar to Larry Centers. Turner called the question great, said it was a great observation, and even said it was something they have talked about. Said it is something AP can do, and mentioned the idea of a backfield w/ both AP (as the FB) and Forte as the halfback. Interesting idea IMHO. I am not sold on AP as a lead blocker, but would not mind taking a look at this. IMHO, AP would offer FAR MORE potential from the FB position when it comes to passing or handing off to the FB. Interesting question, and even more so w/ Turner saying it is something they have talked about. I think this may rely on Wolfe, and his ability to improve or impress in blocking. If Wolfe can improve his blitz pickup, and thus phase AP out of the RB rotation (and knowing how the staff loves AP) we could see AP move more to the FB position.

 

As expected, there was not a ton of new info, but some tid bits worth talking about, and again, its a slow time.

[madlithuanian]

Thanks for the low-down!

 

Saw on the Bears site some Q & A w/ Turner. As would be expected, not a whole lot of earth shattering news, but hey, its slow as hell, and I think others are getting tired of Lucky and my's back and forth Check out the bears site for full Q & A, but some of the basics.

 

Hester - Felt the light turned on for Hester in the final 6 weeks, and said it was then Hester simply began to play, rather than think. Very high on his future.

 

Bennett - Asked by Bennett couldn't get playing time, Turner essentially said the game was just too fast for him. Over and over again, continued to say Bennett wasn't playing as fast, or at NFL speed. Did say it often takes player several years to adjust from college to NFL speed. Frankly, seemed like a fairly generic answer, but you have to wonder just how bad it was. I mean, the kid was supposed to be really smart, quick learner and all, and yet the game was just too fast for him? Anyway, Turner said Bennett did start to get up to NFL speed at the end of the year, and they tried to get him on the field more (some). Generic, "offseason will be very important for him".

 

Brett Basanez - Very high on him. Said he heavily recruited him out of HS, but didn't do a good enough job to land him. Mentioned playing against him each season (Illinois). Said, "He’s an athlete. He can run. He’s got great accuracy and good touch, and he’s very intelligent.". Sounds like he may be considered a tad more than camp fodder, but I still doubt he there to push anyone but maybe Hanie.

 

Chris Williams - Not much there. Said he will be great. After injury, took time to get into game shape, but made strides and will be the starting LT next year.

 

FB Dive - Actually asked why he used it so much, and questioner said it was predictable. Loved that one:) Began by talking about how they try to mix things up so as to not be predictable. Went on to say they only used it twice in short yardage and 4 times out of 30 in goal line situations. What I did take away from this was his defense of the play, saying, "It’s a quick-hitter play that we think can work because everyone’s keyed in on Matt Forte" which leads me to believe we will see this play again next year. If we do, I can only hope it will (a) be a different FB and ( behind a different interior OL.

 

Olsen to WR? - Talked about how much Olsen was moved around, as he played TE, WR and even FB. Mentioned Olsen played WR as much as 15-20% of the time. Said Olsen will not move full time to WR, as he likes the matchup issues Olsen creates at TE, but expect to see him continue to play all around.

 

Orton development - Maybe I am just naive (sp?), but I honestly believe Turner when he speaks highly of Orton. Doesn't mean everything he says is true, but I really do get the feeling Turner is in fact high on Orton. Turner said he believes Orton is a long term solution to our QB problems. Talked about how well his development was going prior to the injury, how the injury seemed to kill his timing, but how his timing seemed to get back to him again at the end.

 

Orton lack of deep ball - Turner seems to truly believe in the need for the big play, but also believes Orton is capable of such. He said Orton did miss on some deep balls, but went on to say it wasn't all his fault. He implies the biggest issue was a lack of timing between Orton and the WRs, also mentioning a lack of practice reps between he and the WRs. Mentions injuries, and I get the impression he means WRs, but not sure who he is talking about. "The more he’s around them and the more experience he gets, he’ll hit those. A lot of it has to do with practice. We had some guys who couldn’t practice as much as they wanted because of injuries. If you’re not throwing those things full speed in practice, it’s hard to hit them in the games."

 

Is Wolf Sproles - While he speaks well of Wolfe, and also believes Wolf has a role in the future, he doesn't sound like he see's the two RBs are being that similar. Says that while they are similar in height, Sproles has more power in his lower body and is more compact. He does mention Wolfe's ability in the screen pass and explosion. He talks about AP getting reps Wolfe may have due to confidence in AP, particularly in regard to blitz pickup. I get the impression that if Wolfe get more impress the coaches in terms of blocking and protection, we may see Wolfe more and more phased in and AP phased out.

 

AP at FB - This was one of the more interesting ones, IMHO. Someone mentioned the idea of AP at FB, similar to Larry Centers. Turner called the question great, said it was a great observation, and even said it was something they have talked about. Said it is something AP can do, and mentioned the idea of a backfield w/ both AP (as the FB) and Forte as the halfback. Interesting idea IMHO. I am not sold on AP as a lead blocker, but would not mind taking a look at this. IMHO, AP would offer FAR MORE potential from the FB position when it comes to passing or handing off to the FB. Interesting question, and even more so w/ Turner saying it is something they have talked about. I think this may rely on Wolfe, and his ability to improve or impress in blocking. If Wolfe can improve his blitz pickup, and thus phase AP out of the RB rotation (and knowing how the staff loves AP) we could see AP move more to the FB position.

 

As expected, there was not a ton of new info, but some tid bits worth talking about, and again, its a slow time.

[AZ54]

Interesting that there wasn't much feedback on the Oline other than Williams. Maybe it's just me trying to read the between the lines too much because I think it was a big problem for us. This is the time for information and disinformation.

[BearSox]

As far the FB thing with Peterson, I could see it, especially if we plan on bringing in a different more reliable RB to compliment Forte. Forte, Wolfe, Other guy as the RB, hopefully someone like Weaver at FB, and Peterson being the tweener.

[bradjock]

Thanks for posting that in this boring ass time. Three things that jumped out at me:

#1. Greg Olsen is the #1 reason we're not desperate for a WR. Sure our WR's are still not good, but Hester & Olsen were 1 & 2 in receiving yards for the Bears this season. It makes a helluva a lot more sense to draft another WR in rounds 2 or 3 and let those two continue to develop, rather then going all out for Boldin or Housh.

#2. I suspect the AP to FB is nothing. We've heard about the 2 RB formations since we drafted Benson and it's NEVER happened. AP is a good blocking RB, but he's no lead blocker. If we're serious about him playing FB, we'll hear stories in July how AP bulked up 20 lbs in the off-season. If that don't happen, there's no way it happens. I take that back, if we acquire another RB we really like we might convert him, but didn't we like Jones?

#3. Turner explained why Wolfe doesn't touch the ball on offense. Based on Turner's comments, does anyone think this will change?

 

Saw on the Bears site some Q & A w/ Turner. As would be expected, not a whole lot of earth shattering news, but hey, its slow as hell, and I think others are getting tired of Lucky and my's back and forth Check out the bears site for full Q & A, but some of the basics.

 

Hester - Felt the light turned on for Hester in the final 6 weeks, and said it was then Hester simply began to play, rather than think. Very high on his future.

 

Bennett - Asked by Bennett couldn't get playing time, Turner essentially said the game was just too fast for him. Over and over again, continued to say Bennett wasn't playing as fast, or at NFL speed. Did say it often takes player several years to adjust from college to NFL speed. Frankly, seemed like a fairly generic answer, but you have to wonder just how bad it was. I mean, the kid was supposed to be really smart, quick learner and all, and yet the game was just too fast for him? Anyway, Turner said Bennett did start to get up to NFL speed at the end of the year, and they tried to get him on the field more (some). Generic, "offseason will be very important for him".

 

Brett Basanez - Very high on him. Said he heavily recruited him out of HS, but didn't do a good enough job to land him. Mentioned playing against him each season (Illinois). Said, "He’s an athlete. He can run. He’s got great accuracy and good touch, and he’s very intelligent.". Sounds like he may be considered a tad more than camp fodder, but I still doubt he there to push anyone but maybe Hanie.

 

Chris Williams - Not much there. Said he will be great. After injury, took time to get into game shape, but made strides and will be the starting LT next year.

 

FB Dive - Actually asked why he used it so much, and questioner said it was predictable. Loved that one:) Began by talking about how they try to mix things up so as to not be predictable. Went on to say they only used it twice in short yardage and 4 times out of 30 in goal line situations. What I did take away from this was his defense of the play, saying, "It’s a quick-hitter play that we think can work because everyone’s keyed in on Matt Forte" which leads me to believe we will see this play again next year. If we do, I can only hope it will (a) be a different FB and ( behind a different interior OL.

 

Olsen to WR? - Talked about how much Olsen was moved around, as he played TE, WR and even FB. Mentioned Olsen played WR as much as 15-20% of the time. Said Olsen will not move full time to WR, as he likes the matchup issues Olsen creates at TE, but expect to see him continue to play all around.

 

Orton development - Maybe I am just naive (sp?), but I honestly believe Turner when he speaks highly of Orton. Doesn't mean everything he says is true, but I really do get the feeling Turner is in fact high on Orton. Turner said he believes Orton is a long term solution to our QB problems. Talked about how well his development was going prior to the injury, how the injury seemed to kill his timing, but how his timing seemed to get back to him again at the end.

 

Orton lack of deep ball - Turner seems to truly believe in the need for the big play, but also believes Orton is capable of such. He said Orton did miss on some deep balls, but went on to say it wasn't all his fault. He implies the biggest issue was a lack of timing between Orton and the WRs, also mentioning a lack of practice reps between he and the WRs. Mentions injuries, and I get the impression he means WRs, but not sure who he is talking about. "The more he’s around them and the more experience he gets, he’ll hit those. A lot of it has to do with practice. We had some guys who couldn’t practice as much as they wanted because of injuries. If you’re not throwing those things full speed in practice, it’s hard to hit them in the games."

 

Is Wolf Sproles - While he speaks well of Wolfe, and also believes Wolf has a role in the future, he doesn't sound like he see's the two RBs are being that similar. Says that while they are similar in height, Sproles has more power in his lower body and is more compact. He does mention Wolfe's ability in the screen pass and explosion. He talks about AP getting reps Wolfe may have due to confidence in AP, particularly in regard to blitz pickup. I get the impression that if Wolfe get more impress the coaches in terms of blocking and protection, we may see Wolfe more and more phased in and AP phased out.

 

AP at FB - This was one of the more interesting ones, IMHO. Someone mentioned the idea of AP at FB, similar to Larry Centers. Turner called the question great, said it was a great observation, and even said it was something they have talked about. Said it is something AP can do, and mentioned the idea of a backfield w/ both AP (as the FB) and Forte as the halfback. Interesting idea IMHO. I am not sold on AP as a lead blocker, but would not mind taking a look at this. IMHO, AP would offer FAR MORE potential from the FB position when it comes to passing or handing off to the FB. Interesting question, and even more so w/ Turner saying it is something they have talked about. I think this may rely on Wolfe, and his ability to improve or impress in blocking. If Wolfe can improve his blitz pickup, and thus phase AP out of the RB rotation (and knowing how the staff loves AP) we could see AP move more to the FB position.

 

As expected, there was not a ton of new info, but some tid bits worth talking about, and again, its a slow time.

[nfoligno]

Well, it is the Bear's own web site, and I would guess they pick and choose questions, just as most do. I don't know. He took a couple tough questions (FB dive, Orton lack of deep play, Bennett) but I would suspect there were many more questions sent in, and some administrator choose the questions. Something like that.

 

Then again, maybe it is all smoke.

 

Interesting that there wasn't much feedback on the Oline other than Williams. Maybe it's just me trying to read the between the lines too much because I think it was a big problem for us. This is the time for information and disinformation.

[nfoligno]

Thanks for posting that in this boring ass time. Three things that jumped out at me:

 

I thought everyone could use a break from Lucky and my debates

 

#1. Greg Olsen is the #1 reason we're not desperate for a WR. Sure our WR's are still not good, but Hester & Olsen were 1 & 2 in receiving yards for the Bears this season. It makes a helluva a lot more sense to draft another WR in rounds 2 or 3 and let those two continue to develop, rather then going all out for Boldin or Housh.

 

Honestly not sure if I would read so much into that. The question was specific about using Olsen at WR, and Turner's point was we will not move him full time, but that we will continue to use him often all over. Not necessarily saying you are wrong, but just that I think you are reading too much into this specific answer.

 

#2. I suspect the AP to FB is nothing. We've heard about the 2 RB formations since we drafted Benson and it's NEVER happened. AP is a good blocking RB, but he's no lead blocker. If we're serious about him playing FB, we'll hear stories in July how AP bulked up 20 lbs in the off-season. If that don't happen, there's no way it happens. I take that back, if we acquire another RB we really like we might convert him, but didn't we like Jones?

 

For the record, the questioner referred to Larry Centers. Centers was 6' 225lbs. I don't think Centers was ever a true lead blocking FB, and I am not sure that is the idea for AP, if there is even an "idea" here. But frankly, I am not sure he would be any less of a blocker than McKie.

 

#3. Turner explained why Wolfe doesn't touch the ball on offense. Based on Turner's comments, does anyone think this will change?

 

I think so. To me, it sure sounds like he is looking at Wolfe w/ future plans. To me, it sounds like it is on Wolfe. Our staff has always felt a RB needs to prove capable of being able to block before getting much of a chance. Was that not always the knock on Benson, and he was a top 5 pick. If we are going to make a top 5 pick prove himself as a blocker before he gets key action, do you think there would be a lesser expectation for a 3rd round pick? I think Wolfe must prove capable of blitz pickup and blocking, and if he can do that, he will see more action.

[Mongo3451]

Orton development - Maybe I am just naive (sp?), but I honestly believe Turner when he speaks highly of Orton. Doesn't mean everything he says is true, but I really do get the feeling Turner is in fact high on Orton. Turner said he believes Orton is a long term solution to our QB problems. Talked about how well his development was going prior to the injury, how the injury seemed to kill his timing, but how his timing seemed to get back to him again at the end.

The reason I agree with this is, I see the same things Turner is talking about. IMO – Orton came back from his injury, playing not to re-injure. Once that creeps into your mind, things like going through your reads and instinctive timing with the receiver go out the window. It basically keeps you getting “in the zone” so to speak. If you look at Orton with the game on the line, he always seemed to up his game. (as in forgetting about staying healthy and just playing)

 

Orton lack of deep ball - Turner seems to truly believe in the need for the big play, but also believes Orton is capable of such. He said Orton did miss on some deep balls, but went on to say it wasn't all his fault. He implies the biggest issue was a lack of timing between Orton and the WRs, also mentioning a lack of practice reps between he and the WRs. Mentions injuries, and I get the impression he means WRs, but not sure who he is talking about. "The more he’s around them and the more experience he gets, he’ll hit those. A lot of it has to do with practice. We had some guys who couldn’t practice as much as they wanted because of injuries. If you’re not throwing those things full speed in practice, it’s hard to hit them in the games."

Again, I agree with Turner on this. Orton was showing good accuracy downfield prior to the injury. It wasn’t great, but good enough to keep the opponent honest.

 

Is Wolf Sproles - While he speaks well of Wolfe, and also believes Wolf has a role in the future, he doesn't sound like he see's the two RBs are being that similar. Says that while they are similar in height, Sproles has more power in his lower body and is more compact. He does mention Wolfe's ability in the screen pass and explosion. He talks about AP getting reps Wolfe may have due to confidence in AP, particularly in regard to blitz pickup. I get the impression that if Wolfe get more impress the coaches in terms of blocking and protection, we may see Wolfe more and more phased in and AP phased out.

Turner has to convince me on this one. I do agree that they are not the same player. But Turner has to show me he is able to get Forte off the field. There was another question in that interview regarding Forte’s touches being high and Turner agreed they don’t want to run his dick in the dirt. But the unwillingness to play players like Bennett, or even Williams (at guard) late in the season when the people ahead of them were atrocious lets me Turner gets locked into personnel.

 

AP at FB - This was one of the more interesting ones, IMHO. Someone mentioned the idea of AP at FB, similar to Larry Centers. Turner called the question great, said it was a great observation, and even said it was something they have talked about. Said it is something AP can do, and mentioned the idea of a backfield w/ both AP (as the FB) and Forte as the halfback. Interesting idea IMHO. I am not sold on AP as a lead blocker, but would not mind taking a look at this. IMHO, AP would offer FAR MORE potential from the FB position when it comes to passing or handing off to the FB. Interesting question, and even more so w/ Turner saying it is something they have talked about. I think this may rely on Wolfe, and his ability to improve or impress in blocking. If Wolfe can improve his blitz pickup, and thus phase AP out of the RB rotation (and knowing how the staff loves AP) we could see AP move more to the FB position.

Blah blah blah. I don’t want to find any more reason to use AP as a skill position player. He strikes fear into no-one. I won’t settle for anything less than a real fullback this year!

 

Interesting that there wasn't much feedback on the Oline other than Williams. Maybe it's just me trying to read the between the lines too much because I think it was a big problem for us. This is the time for information and disinformation.

 

The O-line was the weakest link last year. That being said, they played better than I thought they would. My hope is that was all left out because they feel our O is going to be prominent with the new OL additions they are planning and don't want to tip off the enemy.(Like they don't know) We can only hope.

[flea]

AP @ FB didn't we do that with Salaam & harris can't recall how it worked out

[bowlingtwig]

Saw on the Bears site some Q & A w/ Turner. As would be expected, not a whole lot of earth shattering news, but hey, its slow as hell, and I think others are getting tired of Lucky and my's back and forth Check out the bears site for full Q & A, but some of the basics.

 

Hester - Felt the light turned on for Hester in the final 6 weeks, and said it was then Hester simply began to play, rather than think. Very high on his future.

 

Bennett - Asked by Bennett couldn't get playing time, Turner essentially said the game was just too fast for him. Over and over again, continued to say Bennett wasn't playing as fast, or at NFL speed. Did say it often takes player several years to adjust from college to NFL speed. Frankly, seemed like a fairly generic answer, but you have to wonder just how bad it was. I mean, the kid was supposed to be really smart, quick learner and all, and yet the game was just too fast for him? Anyway, Turner said Bennett did start to get up to NFL speed at the end of the year, and they tried to get him on the field more (some). Generic, "offseason will be very important for him".

 

Brett Basanez - Very high on him. Said he heavily recruited him out of HS, but didn't do a good enough job to land him. Mentioned playing against him each season (Illinois). Said, "He’s an athlete. He can run. He’s got great accuracy and good touch, and he’s very intelligent.". Sounds like he may be considered a tad more than camp fodder, but I still doubt he there to push anyone but maybe Hanie.

 

Chris Williams - Not much there. Said he will be great. After injury, took time to get into game shape, but made strides and will be the starting LT next year.

 

FB Dive - Actually asked why he used it so much, and questioner said it was predictable. Loved that one:) Began by talking about how they try to mix things up so as to not be predictable. Went on to say they only used it twice in short yardage and 4 times out of 30 in goal line situations. What I did take away from this was his defense of the play, saying, "It’s a quick-hitter play that we think can work because everyone’s keyed in on Matt Forte" which leads me to believe we will see this play again next year. If we do, I can only hope it will (a) be a different FB and ( behind a different interior OL.

 

Olsen to WR? - Talked about how much Olsen was moved around, as he played TE, WR and even FB. Mentioned Olsen played WR as much as 15-20% of the time. Said Olsen will not move full time to WR, as he likes the matchup issues Olsen creates at TE, but expect to see him continue to play all around.

 

Orton development - Maybe I am just naive (sp?), but I honestly believe Turner when he speaks highly of Orton. Doesn't mean everything he says is true, but I really do get the feeling Turner is in fact high on Orton. Turner said he believes Orton is a long term solution to our QB problems. Talked about how well his development was going prior to the injury, how the injury seemed to kill his timing, but how his timing seemed to get back to him again at the end.

 

Orton lack of deep ball - Turner seems to truly believe in the need for the big play, but also believes Orton is capable of such. He said Orton did miss on some deep balls, but went on to say it wasn't all his fault. He implies the biggest issue was a lack of timing between Orton and the WRs, also mentioning a lack of practice reps between he and the WRs. Mentions injuries, and I get the impression he means WRs, but not sure who he is talking about. "The more he’s around them and the more experience he gets, he’ll hit those. A lot of it has to do with practice. We had some guys who couldn’t practice as much as they wanted because of injuries. If you’re not throwing those things full speed in practice, it’s hard to hit them in the games."

 

Is Wolf Sproles - While he speaks well of Wolfe, and also believes Wolf has a role in the future, he doesn't sound like he see's the two RBs are being that similar. Says that while they are similar in height, Sproles has more power in his lower body and is more compact. He does mention Wolfe's ability in the screen pass and explosion. He talks about AP getting reps Wolfe may have due to confidence in AP, particularly in regard to blitz pickup. I get the impression that if Wolfe get more impress the coaches in terms of blocking and protection, we may see Wolfe more and more phased in and AP phased out.

 

AP at FB - This was one of the more interesting ones, IMHO. Someone mentioned the idea of AP at FB, similar to Larry Centers. Turner called the question great, said it was a great observation, and even said it was something they have talked about. Said it is something AP can do, and mentioned the idea of a backfield w/ both AP (as the FB) and Forte as the halfback. Interesting idea IMHO. I am not sold on AP as a lead blocker, but would not mind taking a look at this. IMHO, AP would offer FAR MORE potential from the FB position when it comes to passing or handing off to the FB. Interesting question, and even more so w/ Turner saying it is something they have talked about. I think this may rely on Wolfe, and his ability to improve or impress in blocking. If Wolfe can improve his blitz pickup, and thus phase AP out of the RB rotation (and knowing how the staff loves AP) we could see AP move more to the FB position.

 

As expected, there was not a ton of new info, but some tid bits worth talking about, and again, its a slow time.

I like the idea of moving AP to FB. He is proven in running, catching and pass blocking. I like the idea of him being the FB when we use the goal line short situtation. I believe he would be much better at it. Not sold has him being a run blocker for Forte but I guess we could try and work that in especially during camp and pre season.

[BearSox]

AP has proven to be a terrible blocker though.

[Connorbear]

Great post Nfoligno - thanks for the update.

 

Peace

[nfoligno]

I absolutely ripped AP last year for his blocking, but would also point out that prior to last year, he was considered a very good blocker and this is an area that can be further worked on.

 

I truly do not know why his blocking seemed to tank last year. But he is a hard worker and I have more faith in his ability to work toward improvement.

 

 

 

AP has proven to be a terrible blocker though.

[flea]

Think I'd prefer us to draft a real FB rather than try make AP one

[madlithuanian]

I generally agree.

 

Somthing tells me the best of AP is in the past...

 

Think I'd prefer us to draft a real FB rather than try make AP one

[nfoligno]

The reason I agree with this is, I see the same things Turner is talking about. IMO – Orton came back from his injury, playing not to re-injure. Once that creeps into your mind, things like going through your reads and instinctive timing with the receiver go out the window. It basically keeps you getting “in the zone” so to speak. If you look at Orton with the game on the line, he always seemed to up his game. (as in forgetting about staying healthy and just playing)

 

Another factor I recall reading about, and was also discussed on this board. There was a ton of talk about all the work Orton did in the offseason to improve his footwork. I don't recall the specifics now, but something about changes in his footwork improving many areas of his game. Anyway, when he came back (too soon) from injury, he wasn't 100% able to plant on his foot, and thus all the footwork improvements basically went out the window. So (a) footwork improvements made were gone ( inability to plant affects your passing, timing and accuracy.

 

As his health regained, and his ability to plant w/ his foot and put full pressure on it, so did his timing and accuracy, not to mention confidence. Now, some may blame Orton for coming back too soon. That is understandable IMHO. At the same time, we were looking at a possible post season, Orton before the injury seemed fully in charge of the offense, and we were going into a game w/ our rival. I can understand why he felt rushed to get back out there, even if in hindsight it appears to have been a mistake.

 

Again, I agree with Turner on this. Orton was showing good accuracy downfield prior to the injury. It wasn’t great, but good enough to keep the opponent honest.

 

Yea. Orton may not have the greatest arm strength, but frankly, I do not recall it being considered a weakness coming out of college either. He seemed to gain a bad reputation in this regard through his rookie season because we had him on such a leash, but he was a rookie, and I do not think he was asked to take a ton of risks, especially not w/ the defense we had at the time. But because of that year, I think many were led to believe he simply lacked arm strength, and I have always questioned that.

 

I have said all along that I think he does have the arm strength to go downfield, but what he really lacked was timing, and despite what so many want to believe, timing isn't automatic. It takes time working w/ a receiver to get it down. This is an area I expect to see improvement, especially w/ Hester who he has now had time and reps working with.

 

Not mentioned, but the one area I really questioned Orton was his decision making toward the end of the year. Some picks were due to timing, which I would relate back to the injury, but some others were flat out bad decisions/reads. At times, it simply seemed like he was not "seeing the field" as he was before, and throwing the ball right to defenders. He also began to stare down receivers more, whereas earlier in the season he seemed to do a much better job of looking off the DB before making the pass. I do not know if this was due to footwork, confidence or what, but it was an area he went backward on and needs to be addressed in the offseason. Field awareness was the biggest positive I felt Orton had over Rex, and w/o that......

 

Turner has to convince me on this one. I do agree that they are not the same player. But Turner has to show me he is able to get Forte off the field. There was another question in that interview regarding Forte’s touches being high and Turner agreed they don’t want to run his dick in the dirt. But the unwillingness to play players like Bennett, or even Williams (at guard) late in the season when the people ahead of them were atrocious lets me Turner gets locked into personnel.

 

That may be the case, but I think the RB situation was different. In the WR and OL examples you throw out, I see a key difference. While you do not want to "run Forte's dick into the dirt" at the same time, you are taking a known asset off the field for an unknown asset. You are not talking about replacing a weakness w/ an unknown (OL/WR) but replacing a strength w/ an unknown, and that is very different IMHO. I think it is more a matter of having such a level of confidence in Forte that you struggle to take him out of the game, especially when so few others had stepped up.

 

W/ Wolfe, I truly do believe it comes down to pass protection. In Forte, we finally found a RB that was solid in this regard. Forte was a big reason Orton was not killed as often as Rex in the past. In Wolfe, I think the staff questioned his ability to pickup blitzes, and for a team that already struggled to do such, I can understand holding back on him until he better proved himself in practice in this regard.

 

Blah blah blah. I don’t want to find any more reason to use AP as a skill position player. He strikes fear into no-one. I won’t settle for anything less than a real fullback this year!

 

Understand, I have screamed for a FB for years. BUT (a) I simply do not believe our staff places as much value on a true FB that can open holes for the RB as I would like and ( I think the staff (particularly Lovie) simply loves AP, and will continue to find ways to use him. If that is the case, and we are not going to truly upgrade at FB, I would just as soon give AP a try over McKie, who I think is basically worthless. I don't think McKie is a very good blocker. He can catch a short pass, but immediately goes down and rarely seems to gain more than a couple yards on passes. And those FB dives tells the story of his ability to run w/ the ball. So, while I agree w/ the idea of adding a legit FB, if we are not going to do that, I would rather give AP a look at FB than continue w/ McKie.

 

The O-line was the weakest link last year. That being said, they played better than I thought they would. My hope is that was all left out because they feel our O is going to be prominent with the new OL additions they are planning and don't want to tip off the enemy.(Like they don't know) We can only hope.

 

My biggest fear is that, w/ our OL playing above VERY LOW expectations, our staff falls into the mis-belief that they are better than they are, and that adding Williams to LT will be the answer to all our questions. That is my top fear this offseason, as I agree our OL sucks. IMHO, the OL stunk, but looked better than expected due to Forte/Orton, rather than due to their own play. Orton was light years better than Rex, IMHO, in terms of field awareness and getting rid of the ball/ not taking sacks/ quickly getting rid of the ball, and thus the pass protection "seemed" better. And Forte was simply able to (a) slip through the smallest holes ( quickly burst through a hole before it closed, which wasn't long and © able to better change direction and make something out of nothing. If you think about Forte's best runs, they were often him bouncing outside when the expected holes was in fact a wall of defenders. So I simply feel Forte and Orton made the OL look better than it was, which wasn't much anyway. My fear is Angelo and Co buy into that misconception and further believe Williams addition is all the OL needs. If that is the case, I see our offense more likely to take a step back this year.

[nfoligno]

As I said to Mongo, I would absolutely prefer to add a legit FB, and have beaten that drum for years. BUT, I fear our staff doesn't value the FB position as much as you or I, and if we are not going to add a legit FB, I would much prefer to give AP a shot, rather than simply continue w/ the worthless McKie at FB.

 

Think I'd prefer us to draft a real FB rather than try make AP one

[Connorbear]

As I said to Mongo, I would absolutely prefer to add a legit FB, and have beaten that drum for years. BUT, I fear our staff doesn't value the FB position as much as you or I, and if we are not going to add a legit FB, I would much prefer to give AP a shot, rather than simply continue w/ the worthless McKie at FB.

I agree 100%. I am tired of McKie and IMHO AP would excel in that role.

 

Peace

[madlithuanian]

Count me in too... If we don't draft of pick up a FA, then I'm all for giving AP a shot and tossing McKie to the side.

 

I agree 100%. I am tired of McKie and IMHO AP would excel in that role.

 

Peace

[Mongo3451]

My biggest fear is that, w/ our OL playing above VERY LOW expectations, our staff falls into the mis-belief that they are better than they are, and that adding Williams to LT will be the answer to all our questions. That is my top fear this offseason, as I agree our OL sucks. IMHO, the OL stunk, but looked better than expected due to Forte/Orton, rather than due to their own play. Orton was light years better than Rex, IMHO, in terms of field awareness and getting rid of the ball/ not taking sacks/ quickly getting rid of the ball, and thus the pass protection "seemed" better. And Forte was simply able to (a) slip through the smallest holes ( quickly burst through a hole before it closed, which wasn't long and © able to better change direction and make something out of nothing. If you think about Forte's best runs, they were often him bouncing outside when the expected holes was in fact a wall of defenders. So I simply feel Forte and Orton made the OL look better than it was, which wasn't much anyway. My fear is Angelo and Co buy into that misconception and further believe Williams addition is all the OL needs. If that is the case, I see our offense more likely to take a step back this year.

You just sent me into a full blown panic attack!

[AZ54]

I hope AP to fullback = smokescreen Now if it's a question of him being a backup FB that might be possible if for no other reason to save a roster spot and keep him as a special teams player. That helps a lot for the active roster on game day and keeps Olsen out of the backfield if McKie goes down. There's no way I see AP being good enough to replace McKie and that's not much of a challenge. So late in this draft I hope we'll be picking up a FB, let AP work at FB to see if he's worth keeping and somewhere we need to find a true #2 RB. Maybe another year of rehab brings Kevin Jones back to form and I'd be ok with that.

 

On Wolfe not being good at pass protection...doesn't he have to get on the field to show whether or not he can do it? And if he isn't that good at it how will he get better if he never gets game experience? I keep hearing the same crap from these coaches but at some point it is their responsibility to gives young players some playing time so they can actually learn how to play the game. I'll sign off now because I feel another Bennett rant coming on...

[BearSox]

the only possible thing Wolfe can do in pass pro is cut. He doesn't have the size or strength to do much otherwise. I think we should install a package with him at RB, except that he rarely ever stays into block. When he's in, we either have FB in to provide pass pro, or we keep a TE in pass pro. The most blocking I want to see Wolfe do is pretend to stay in and block on screens, or chip the DE before going out for a check down route.

 

I do like Wolfe however for 1-2 series a game to really change the pace with screens, swings, check downs, outside zone (stretch runs), and draws. If we could get a bruiser to compliment the balance of Forte and the quickness of Wolfe, that'd be a pretty good RB trio. Right now, I'm not very high on Peterson as anything more than a Special teamer and a backup RB/FB.

 

My hope for FB next year: Quinn Johnson in round 4 or 5 of the draft, or Leonard Weaver via free agency.

[Mongo3451]

On Wolfe not being good at pass protection...doesn't he have to get on the field to show whether or not he can do it? And if he isn't that good at it how will he get better if he never gets game experience? I keep hearing the same crap from these coaches but at some point it is their responsibility to gives young players some playing time so they can actually learn how to play the game. I'll sign off now because I feel another Bennett rant coming on...

 

 

the only possible thing Wolfe can do in pass pro is cut. He doesn't have the size or strength to do much otherwise. I think we should install a package with him at RB, except that he rarely ever stays into block. When he's in, we either have FB in to provide pass pro, or we keep a TE in pass pro. The most blocking I want to see Wolfe do is pretend to stay in and block on screens, or chip the DE before going out for a check down route.

 

I do like Wolfe however for 1-2 series a game to really change the pace with screens, swings, check downs, outside zone (stretch runs), and draws. If we could get a bruiser to compliment the balance of Forte and the quickness of Wolfe, that'd be a pretty good RB trio. Right now, I'm not very high on Peterson as anything more than a Special teamer and a backup RB/FB.

 

My hope for FB next year: Quinn Johnson in round 4 or 5 of the draft, or Leonard Weaver via free agency.

 

I agree with both of your assessments here. I want throw out a thought on this. Is it really relevant that Wolfe can pass block? If he is used to chip and go to his route, wouldn't that suffice? I would think Wolfe as a threat on passing situations would negate a defender rushing. If the defender keeps coming instead of tending to Wolfe, Turner needs to find a way to make them pay. Wolfe can slow the pass rush without touching anyone. If he can't win these one on one battles on a consistent basis, he's not worth having. As AZ54 says, he has to be given reps in the game.

[nfoligno]

On Wolfe not being good at pass protection...doesn't he have to get on the field to show whether or not he can do it? And if he isn't that good at it how will he get better if he never gets game experience? I keep hearing the same crap from these coaches but at some point it is their responsibility to gives young players some playing time so they can actually learn how to play the game. I'll sign off now because I feel another Bennett rant coming on...

 

Agree and disagree. There are positions where I think a player can get on the field, develop and gain experience, while having a slightly lesser affect on others. For example, your Bennett. As one of 3 likely WRs, not to mention likely 2 or 3 other options (TE/RB/FB), if he struggles, it just means the QB looks in another direction. So a player like Bennett should be able to get onto the field and develolp, and his struggles through such development has a more limited affect on the team as a whole.

 

There are other positions however which, if you throw a guy unready to play onto the field, he may not only hurt the team, but could get players injured. For example, when fans said we should put Chris Williams out there, no matter what, I disagreed. If Williams didn't show enough in practice, just putting him out there could get the QB killed.

 

By that same rationale, a RB that can not show he is capable of blitz pickup or pass protection can not only hurt the team, but get the QB hurt as well.

 

I understand the idea that a player's development is limited w/o game experience, but I still would argue you have to show a basic competence in practice before you deserve to get on the field during games. If Wolfe looks totally inept during practices in pass protection, than I have no problem w/ his not getting on the field during games.

 

Now, w/ that said, whether I believe our staff how on inept he may or may not be in practice is another story.

[nfoligno]

The problem is, if you simply write Wolfe off as a potential blocker out of the backfield, why even have him there? Why not just split him out and go w/ an empty backfield. For that matter, why have a RB at all? Why not use an extra WR (that would assume we actually had a WR better at catching the ball than our RB).

 

If you simply write off a RB as being able to block, you make him too predictable.

 

And I have to disagree w/ the idea Wolfe can't block due to his size. Yea, he is small, but also compact. It's not like he is the first small RB to play in the NFL. Would I expect him to stand up a DE? Of coarse not. But I don't think that is the idea. If expected to block, we are talking blitz pickup, which is usually a LB or DB. And even then, you are not talking about standing up the guy, but usually just impeeding his free pass to the QB. If he gets in front of the blitzer and is bowled over, he has still slowed down the rusher, and thus buys the QB an extra second or two, which is key.

 

I think the issue is not nearly as much ability to block a man in front of him, but in blitz recognition. That was Benson's big issue too. Benson was actually a very good blocker against the rusher in front of him. Where Benson failed was in blitz recognition. There would be times he would be on the opposite side of the backfield as the blitz, and far out of position to help the QB. I have no idea, but I would suspect this is the issue more than simply the ability to slow up a blitzer.

 

IMHO, this is another area our staff should really be questioned. For years it seems both our OL and RBs have been weak in blitz recognition. TJ may have been an exception, but he was also developed in two previous locations.

 

I agree with both of your assessments here. I want throw out a thought on this. Is it really relevant that Wolfe can pass block? If he is used to chip and go to his route, wouldn't that suffice? I would think Wolfe as a threat on passing situations would negate a defender rushing. If the defender keeps coming instead of tending to Wolfe, Turner needs to find a way to make them pay. Wolfe can slow the pass rush without touching anyone. If he can't win these one on one battles on a consistent basis, he's not worth having. As AZ54 says, he has to be given reps in the game.