The young corners (1 Viewer)

nolafan33

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I know a lot of people are really excited about these young corners we have on the roster. PJ Williams, De'Vante Harris, Ken Crawley, Damian Swann, etc. They seem to be some talented youngers.

But when I watch these guys, hear about these guys, I can't help but feel like this is sort of the issue with this team. They can be as talented as can be, I would be saying this whether they were first rounders or undrafted free agents, but with this team that clearly has aspirations of reaching the playoffs once again, why are we going into the season relying on these guys, who aside from Swann, have no NFL experience?

To me, that is playing with fire. Players this young, at pretty much every position, are going to experience ups and downs. They're going to make mistakes that young players make. Yet the Saints, a team that wants to reach the playoffs, seem to expect them to be instant contributors for this club.

They, to me, are a perfect image of this entire team. Lots of guys that are probably one (or maybe two, in some cases) spot to high on the depth chart. Not only do I think this team lacks contributors, but they seem to really be short depth wise in some positions. I take Brandon Coleman for example, on how many teams does he have the role he has on this team?
 
I know a lot of people are really excited about these young corners we have on the roster. PJ Williams, De'Vante Harris, Ken Crawley, Damian Swann, etc. They seem to be some talented youngers.

But when I watch these guys, hear about these guys, I can't help but feel like this is sort of the issue with this team. They can be as talented as can be, I would be saying this whether they were first rounders or undrafted free agents, but with this team that clearly has aspirations of reaching the playoffs once again, why are we going into the season relying on these guys, who aside from Swann, have no NFL experience?

To me, that is playing with fire. Players this young, at pretty much every position, are going to experience ups and downs. They're going to make mistakes that young players make. Yet the Saints, a team that wants to reach the playoffs, seem to expect them to be instant contributors for this club.

They, to me, are a perfect image of this entire team. Lots of guys that are probably one (or maybe two, in some cases) spot to high on the depth chart. Not only do I think this team lacks contributors, but they seem to really be short depth wise in some positions. I take Brandon Coleman for example, on how many teams does he have the role he has on this team?
Well....because we have no choice.

That is how bare the cupboard is after years of poor drafting, poor FA signings, unlucky injuries and now the cap hell of most dead money in the league. We had to rely on UDFAs in the secondary to fill roles and we tried the same with OL. Jury is out on how turns out.

If Marcus Murphy plays his way off the roster and you look at Peat's struggles, Kikaha's injury and Stephone Anthony washing out at MLB it's even looking like last year's draft wasn't much of a success. So, with poor drafting and no money to spend, and players like Keenan Lewis injured, who else would you have in these roles??
 
I'm not sure Anthony was a wash at MLB just a young kids learning a job I think with JL hear Anthony will get better
 
Tell me you are not trying to spin one of the biggest positive on d into a negative?
 
On the flip side.....think about how great this defense will be in a year or two.....or even now.

Sent from my SM-G900P using Tapatalk
 
That is how bare the cupboard is after years of poor drafting, poor FA signings, unlucky injuries and now the cap hell of most dead money in the league. We had to rely on UDFAs in the secondary to fill roles and we tried the same with OL. Jury is out on how turns out.

Bingo.

And honestly, its not like this is a new way of doing business for this team. Since Payton has come here, we have been relying on UDFAs, trade fodder and other marginal players to fill key roles on the team. 6 to 8 years ago we had a young core that could complement each other and paper over those witnesses. Add in some big time value hits in the draft (Evans, Colston, Nicks, Bushrod, etc.) and we were a damn good team.

This is my personal opinion, but I don't think that's a long term winning strategy. You have to hit on your Day 1 (old-style, Rounds 1-3) picks more often than not to build a consistent winner. We just haven't done that almost without exception for the past 15 years. Kudos to Payton and the rest of the coaching staff for turning cast-offs into contributors but there's a ceiling on that strategy.

Drew hasn't shown clear signs of decline yet, but realistically, how much longer can he play at such a high level? The Broncos are a textbook example of how to build a team around an aging QB to give him a shot at one more title; yes, it is a difficult act to follow, but we are not following that strategy.
 
I have been saying this year is one to develop and improve to make a serious run next season. We have a lot of positions stacked with great starters and quality depth while a few positions are young and in need of an upgrade. This season we get to see where those last few holes are to go and solidify in FA along with another draft. We have tons of $ coming off the books and can finally be serious players in FA. For once we also have a lot of young talent allows us to go grab those last few needs instead of having depth issues all over the roster.

On offense we are stacked having young talent at every skill position. We don't have any immediate needs at RB, WR, or TE. We have a couple of holes on the Oline that can very easily be filled through FA and the draft. If we just add 1 stud OG then our Oline can be one of the best units in the NFL. On defense we finally have what's looking to be a great interior Dline. We are set for years to come with Cam at DE along with other edge players that can provide quality depth. IMO we need another stud DE that I'm confident we will find for next season having tons of $ to be aggressive in FA. As of now we are pretty set at LB but could use an addition of 1 more young talented player next season. Our secondary is looking better than ever with young CBs and great depth at safety. If PJ continues to develop then we have 2 stud CBs for many years along with a lot of young promising guys to provide great depth. IMO we need to add 1-2 OGs, 1 DE, 1 LB, and 1 CB as of now. We have tons of young guys who will only get better with very few old guys who are going to regress. I think we are in the best position we have ever been to really complete this team and make it dominant on both sides of the ball. If we can just add a stud DE and OG through FA then instantly those units completely change to being 2 of the best units in the league. The LB and CB positions dont have a need for immediate starters but more depth and talent who can develop while getting some PT.

I expect us to have a good season as playoff contenders but not SB contenders. If we can hit in FA at our 2 biggest needs and add a few quality players through the draft then I fully expect this team to take a serious jump and be at the top of the NFC as serious SB contenders. We need to be patient and let guys develop to make a serious run for next season. It's not fun but the future is as bright as ever.
 
Tell me you are not trying to spin one of the biggest positive on d into a negative?

This is exactly what I'm saying. You don't really think these guys will be a positive do you? Sure, they'll see some success, but there will be a learning curve for them. Their rookies, undrafted rookies in two of their cases, people are expecting way to much from them, overhyping them. Once we get into the regular season, when real game planning takes place, teams are going to attack them, and the most likely outcome will be a lot of success throwing at them.
 
I love the young guys we have at corner. Yes, they will gain experience and learn from the mistakes that young players tend to make. That's just the way it has to be if you want to bring in young talent and develop them.

I think DomePatroller hit the nail on the head. Hopefully next season we make the right moves and have a chance to be a SB contender. The best case scenario this season is that we make it to the divisional round.
 
Because you have 2 options in the NFL: roll with young talent and the ups and downs that cone with it, or sign veterans who may not give you the highs, but won't give you as many lows. This isn't strictly a Saint problem. The Panthers are starting 2 rookie corners on the boundary. I like our corners more than theirs at this point.
 
PJ Williams looks like the real deal, I think he's gonna ball out. Crawley looked like he wasn't quite NFL ready.
 
I think you're going to see what you saw last night...

1. PJ Williams got burned for a touchdown.
2. PJ Williams learned from his mistake and intercepted it the next time they tried that.

They're going to make mistakes, but these guys can play and they're going to develop. I'm just hoping that they learn from their mistakes quickly.
 
I know a lot of people are really excited about these young corners we have on the roster. PJ Williams, De'Vante Harris, Ken Crawley, Damian Swann, etc. They seem to be some talented youngers.

But when I watch these guys, hear about these guys, I can't help but feel like this is sort of the issue with this team. They can be as talented as can be, I would be saying this whether they were first rounders or undrafted free agents, but with this team that clearly has aspirations of reaching the playoffs once again, why are we going into the season relying on these guys, who aside from Swann, have no NFL experience?

To me, that is playing with fire. Players this young, at pretty much every position, are going to experience ups and downs. They're going to make mistakes that young players make. Yet the Saints, a team that wants to reach the playoffs, seem to expect them to be instant contributors for this club.

They, to me, are a perfect image of this entire team. Lots of guys that are probably one (or maybe two, in some cases) spot to high on the depth chart. Not only do I think this team lacks contributors, but they seem to really be short depth wise in some positions. I take Brandon Coleman for example, on how many teams does he have the role he has on this team?

What you are saying sounds like a team in major rebuilding mode
 
I love the young guys we have at corner. Yes, they will gain experience and learn from the mistakes that young players tend to make. That's just the way it has to be if you want to bring in young talent and develop them.

I think DomePatroller hit the nail on the head. Hopefully next season we make the right moves and have a chance to be a SB contender. The best case scenario this season is that we make it to the divisional round.

To have any hope for a SB run next year, with Unger a FA, we need at least 3 high quality OL
 

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