“From Ground Zero All The Way Up”
March 21st, 2020
A longtime Bucco Bruce Arians quarterback not named Carson Palmer has weighed in on Tom Brady coming to save the Buccaneers’ franchise.
He spent 12 years in the NFL and eight with Arians in Pittsburgh. His name is Charlie Batch and Joe caught an interview with him on Boston sports radio WEEI this week.
Connected to the game as a Steelers pregame analyst, Batch loves the marriage of Arians and Brady. Batch recalled how Arians completely reworked the Steelers playbook in 2007, when he took over as playcaller for QB Ben Roethlisberger.
It was an intense process between the coach and QB to make the playbook suit the fourth-year quarterback. “They worked from ground zero all the way up.” Batch said.
The results were immediate. In their first season together, Roethlisberger made his first Pro Bowl (32 touchdowns, 11 interceptions).
“He’s going to deal with whatever strength you have,” Batch said of Arians, noting he will hone in on what Brady does best.
“[Brady] couldn’t ask for a better situation,” said Batch, adding that he’s still an elite quarterback
Batch said he wants to see how Brady takes the hot throw rather than waiting too long for things to develop down field. That was a problem with Roethlisberger in Pittsburgh, Batch said, leading to too many sacks.
Batch seemed to be a big Chris Godwin fan and added there is just no room or need for Antonio Brown on the Bucs roster.
Interestingly, Batch noted how much time Roethlisberger and Byron Leftwich spent golfing with Arians and enjoying adult beverages. That’s where a lot of football intricacies were discussed, Batch said, and it probably will help Brady and his progression if he’s willing to golf with his new head coach.
It’s a special combination, Batch said. all those great Bucs weapons combined with Brady being nearly impossible for defensive coordinators to prepare for because he’s seen every look and knows how to respond.
March 21st, 2020 at 12:23 pm
“It’s a special combination, Batch said. all those great Bucs weapons combined with Brady being nearly impossible for defensive coordinators to prepare for because he’s seen every look and knows how to respond.”
Oh yes!
March 21st, 2020 at 12:24 pm
A 3rd or our two 4ths for Edelman!!! Go get him Mr. Licht!
March 21st, 2020 at 12:27 pm
He’ll be ballin, check your sheets!
March 21st, 2020 at 12:29 pm
Madmax
No need to use draft capital on wrs. Two of the best already. Not fantasy football here. Time to build the lines. Again. And yes Brady will be golfing with them
March 21st, 2020 at 12:34 pm
We still desperately need an upgrade at RB! I’m still hoping Dion Lewis and picking one in the Draft!!
March 21st, 2020 at 12:37 pm
@Marine….CLYDE EDWARDS….I still want that guy…does it all but mainly has great hands for catching.
We add him, and Edelman to Evans, Godwin, Howard, Brate….jeeze, no way a D can figure out who to cover.
March 21st, 2020 at 12:44 pm
Edelman, why? Brady depended on Edelman because he didn’t have anybody else, that will not be a problem, with our current weapons he will learn to trust, JW threw a lot of int’s because he trusted the current weapons, before Godwin arrived, it was Brate & Hump when he needed a go to, when the offense changed, it was Godwin, Tom will learn, doesn’t need Edelman, just needs an RB he can trust
March 21st, 2020 at 12:47 pm
Joe you over your man crush yet?
March 21st, 2020 at 12:51 pm
“He’s going to deal with whatever strength you have,” Batch said of Arians, noting he will hone in on what Brady does best.
******************************
Most will say Winston’s strength is rolling outside the pocket especially to his right. I barely saw any of these plays called for him. So I will take what Charlie Batch says with a grain of salt.
March 21st, 2020 at 12:52 pm
The reason why Brady can dink & dunk all the way down the field and can rely on intermediate passes to Godwin, Evans & the TEs is that Brady will not throw the pick.
Jameis had to throw deep to get the job done because the odds were, the more passes he threw, the better chance for a pick.
You will see the backs, TEs & WRs all deployed and Brady will find the open receiver quickly.
March 21st, 2020 at 12:53 pm
Great insights, Joe.
March 21st, 2020 at 12:58 pm
Throwing to the open receiver and checkdowns will help the defense a lot more than 6 play scoring drives or one throw and a pick drives. A fresh defense will get after the QB even better.
March 21st, 2020 at 1:04 pm
I remember Charlie Batch coming in as a Lion rookie backup and beating the Bucs…grrrrr
March 21st, 2020 at 1:08 pm
man i hope we have a season to watch, this virus thing, i hate to say it but my thinking is it’s going to get worse before it get’s better, my neighbor told me he took his wife to the doctor, and it was reported that there was 300 confirmed cases where i live, the nurse stated to his wife, that that’s a lie they are not telling the whole story, and said there are 3000 new cases, i only go out when absolutely necessary, i live in orlando
March 21st, 2020 at 1:08 pm
why do ppl keep asking for more wr. we don’t need wr we got that covered even if Perriman leaves we are developing two of them waiting to come and take over. so no edelman, no AB, no wr. Take care of those lines that’s what we need
March 21st, 2020 at 1:08 pm
90 short miles from tampa
March 21st, 2020 at 1:10 pm
Marine
Agree but I feel confident we’ll do the right thing. Agree that Lewis would be a big addition. Again both Montana and Manning took some guys with them to teach their new team their offensive preferences…Lewis fills that bill as well.
Then we draft AJ Dillon a Mike Alstott clone…not as tough a runner but who is…Derrick Henry?…Dillon is not far behind and he has super soft hands.
Watch his highlight video on youtube and check out the swing pass that Dillon catches effortlessly and takes it to the house. Go to 1:28 to see a composite of Dillon’s talent in one play…he literally takes a tackler and throws him to the ground and then races to the house with a freaking DB chasing him but not catching up…decent speed…4.5. And he runs with an attitude.
He’s the perfect power back complement to ROJO and Lewis..and a goal line smasher which we haven’t had in quite awhile. And like Mike he could easily average 25 catches a season…if there are enough footballs LOL
March 21st, 2020 at 1:13 pm
Bring on Brrrady!
March 21st, 2020 at 1:13 pm
Im not ignoring the lines @toby….i said a 3rd or 4th….if youve seen me i still want RT with our 1st pick, hopefully trade down and land Ezra Cleveland so we can afford to land a RB and Safety pretty high. Unless we lose Suh, we can sign D line depth since they will be lining up to play for us now.
March 21st, 2020 at 1:22 pm
FIRE THOSE CANNONS!
March 21st, 2020 at 1:34 pm
Less hard to figure who to cover if OC can’t figure how to use tight ends!
March 21st, 2020 at 1:43 pm
Anyone who thinks ab not a good fit doesn’t understand football..1 injuries happen!! We lost Mike and Chris last year… A great gm fills out the roster out the best comp you can find…the bucs have dealt with a lot troubled or diva players before and it worked out. Its the soft timid scared to speak up players that I worry about. Taking shots at guy going threw things or kicking a man cause he was down shows more about your character then it does his. I say we give Brown a chance to redeem him self and compete to make this team. It’ll be a cheap 1 to 2 yr option and a great negotiating tool if chris trys to over price him self.
March 21st, 2020 at 2:19 pm
Great article Joe!
Thanks
March 21st, 2020 at 2:22 pm
bruce knew in his heart of guts he couldn’t fix jaboo
March 21st, 2020 at 2:26 pm
Our change has finally been made at QB – and we are a better team for it.
Congratulations to all Buccaneer Fans – and also to Bill Currie Ford ; )
March 21st, 2020 at 2:40 pm
Tampabaybucfan Says:
Go look at coach’s film from last season.
You’d be shocked how often Winston would force a throw downfield in a tight spot, many times for an int, defended ball, or incompletion when an easy, open dump-off or short route was wide open.
Brady will take what the D gives, and if that’s a deep ball, he will go deep. If it’s a short chain mover, he will move the chains. This has been how he has played since he entered the league.
Arians knows Jameis cannot be fixed. And I trust his judgment far more than Winston sycophants and nuthugger casual fans.
March 21st, 2020 at 2:41 pm
I’d rather have Edelman that Brown, but the Bucs won’t get either.
AB has become a Looney Toon.
March 21st, 2020 at 2:46 pm
Let’s make sure we have our defense ready to go before shelling out cap space on receivers. The draft is full of them.
March 21st, 2020 at 2:58 pm
Cobraboy. That’s a great point. And ya gotta think we will see a lot more quick short passes because Tom will read the defense presnap and see what to look for.
Starting to think it could work without major changes to the offense because of this. Tom will take his shot like Bruce wants but will more often be willing to take a positive gain.
I think the biggest difference will be using RBs in the pass attack & thinking back on Bruce’s comments he wants that too. We just didn’t have the horses to do so last year(and arguably the QB who who see the play and rely on them).
So I think the offense might stay essentially the same but will look a lot different because of the QB running it.
March 21st, 2020 at 3:03 pm
will the true “americas quarterback” please stand up…
#BradyIsReallyAmericasQuarterback
#TellMeImWrongJoe
March 21st, 2020 at 3:37 pm
No Brown or Edelman. Re-sign Suh. Then go draft the pieces you need. Get some young, inexpensive pieces at WR/RB. This is a deep draft for both.
You want to make a big change to help Brady the most? Work a trade of D Smith and a late round pick for Trent Williams. Then you draft a RT. You pay Williams for 5 years while your drafted T is on his rookie contract. By the end of that time Williams retires and you draft his replacement. So yiu have a T on a rookie contract again. This helps Brady short term and the Bucs long term. Win win.
March 21st, 2020 at 3:40 pm
Sign Suh, and offer Clowney a prove it deal. We have to build our D now. Look at what the saints & falcons are doing.
We have roughly 23 million left according to overthecap & sporttrac.
Suh-8 mil/yr
Clowney-14 mil/yr
Trade Brate, release pinion (rookie class is estimated to cost 7.5 million)
March 21st, 2020 at 3:44 pm
scotty miller time!!
March 21st, 2020 at 3:48 pm
A little off topic but kind of curious… Was Charlie Batch the FSU QB who played in the NBA??? Or was that Charlie Ward???
March 21st, 2020 at 3:49 pm
John Says:
March 21st, 2020 at 3:44 pm
scotty miller time!!
.
Hope to see him return with about 10lbs upper body weight gain
March 21st, 2020 at 4:00 pm
That was Ward…I believe Batch was Michigan State ( too lazy to Google myself ) and come to the NFL around the same time Brady did. Amazing Brady’s longevity…
March 21st, 2020 at 4:02 pm
Time test
March 21st, 2020 at 4:04 pm
Ward
March 21st, 2020 at 4:13 pm
Just an alert to fellow Florida Bucs fans…here in Bradenton the doctors at Manatee Memorial Hospital were informed this morning that the National Guard is being sent in as part of the efforts to lockdown the state due to the Coronavirus. We just found out a couple hours ago.
So go do your shopping while you can. They are talking Lockdown, not just Quarantine.
We hear second hand through the doctor’s Mother-in-law, who is a local attorney.
March 21st, 2020 at 4:17 pm
A 4th for Edelman or Brate or Howard.
March 21st, 2020 at 4:32 pm
Bucsgotachance….
No chance. Brown isn’t having anything done to him… he’s done it to himself.
March 21st, 2020 at 5:06 pm
I’ve been a Pat’s fan my whole life. I’m 40yrs old. I feel extremely good about brady joining the BUCS I’ve already bet two people so far that Tom Brady and the bucs will be the first team in history to win the Super bowl in there home town!! Goodluck guys hope Tom can continue to be the best ever because it is awesome to watch!!
March 21st, 2020 at 5:12 pm
If Jameis had BA as his coach the first year in the NFL things might have turned out different. Bruce might have had the luxury of time and the patience to “fix” him.
Who knows?
If John Elway and Archie Manning had had the right situation when they came into the league, either one of them might have become the greatest QB of all time.
March 21st, 2020 at 5:22 pm
Hate to throw a wet blanket on the euphoria engulfing the Florida west coast, but the odds of seeing NFL football in 2020 look pretty remote at this point. We may have the virus suppressed by fall but a vaccine surely won’t be ready. You think they’re going to let 10s of thousands of fans congregate in stadiums around the country until people most have been vaccinated. They won’t want another epidemic to erupt. I hope I’m wrong, but just trying to be realistic.
March 21st, 2020 at 5:25 pm
Good points Cobraboy and JimmyJack.
Reading defenses is an essential skill. Good game management is learned as well. Superior athleticism is God given. Great coaches know how to blend all attributes.
March 21st, 2020 at 5:26 pm
Too bad we wont have a season
March 21st, 2020 at 5:32 pm
Look….we’re in win mode right now….what better tool to give Tom more than one he’s familiar with in Edelman? (plus he’s familiar with Tom) Its win now mode! Who wants a ring? BA, JL, Glazers!!!…and US with HOME FIELD ADVANTAGE!! LETS DO THIS!!!!!!
Go get Edelman, use the Perriman money for D line plus the draft….then focus on O line Tackle Ezra, RB Clyde Edwards, then free safety Dugger or Davis.
Brady and our O will score…JPP, Shaq, Big V and Suh plus the rest keeps the others from scoring… Win WIN all around!
March 21st, 2020 at 5:33 pm
Wheres LUVMYBUCS? Need you to chime in Brother!!
March 21st, 2020 at 5:34 pm
I say we work him out..if hes in football shape..throw him a jersey n fall in line..bruce knows him personally n they always got along..they can sit down n come to a understanding i believe..he would not want to fail brady..he would not want to fail for his career n brand…you will get a focused ab i promise that..and brady evan n gowdin will push him n welcome him…
March 21st, 2020 at 5:36 pm
I was hoping we would get a reasonably priced running back who can catch and block in free agency. Surely, that kind of RB will be a target in the draft.
March 21st, 2020 at 5:45 pm
People who insist on drafting a RB, here’s a fun fact… we spent a high 2nd rounder on a RB in the draft pretty recently.
Also, I don’t want a rookie RB doing pass protection – and based on how Arians was with Rojo early in the last season, I don’t see him playing a rookie RB early in the year with Brady as the QB. I could be wrong, some rookies can come in day one and do it all – but are you betting the entire franchise on that? Or do you get a vet from a deep pool of RBs?
Sign Dion Lewis, he shouldn’t cost much – and have Rojo as your lead. Rojo looked very good down the stretch. If they want to get another vet as well, I’m cool with that, but I think you’ll be able to find someone later this offseason for very cheap. Maybe Doug Martin would like to come back, he still had great burst last time I saw him in Oakland.
In any case the Bucs need a 3rd and 4th WR much more than they need to draft another RB.
March 21st, 2020 at 5:55 pm
Thanks for the heads up Bonzai….im sure FL wont be the only state.
Im pretty stocked on everything, always have a stash anyways…but have added to it the past week. Not hoarding TP, im not one of those, just making sure im good for a month or two. (btw, theres always leaves on a tree somewhere lol)
March 21st, 2020 at 5:59 pm
Rod … So you’d prefer to pay the $$$ to Dion Lewis (he made $4.8 mil last season with TN) so he can do pass protection with all of his 5’8″ & 195 lbs? I’d personally rather draft someone like AJ Dillon from Boston College (6′ & 245 lbs) who’s projected to be a fullback anyways in the NFL (they’re supposed to know how to block?). At least he’d have a chance size-wise against some of the larger MLBs, TEs & OLBs. 50 lbs can make a big difference, plus Dillon’s supposed to be strong as an ox.
March 21st, 2020 at 6:03 pm
Here’s what bothers me about BA…..
He is almost certainly going to cater his offense around Tom Brady
Why didn’t he do the same w JW? Even after he knew that JW has a turnover problem. All JW ever heard was “keep slinging, keep slinging”
Make the adjustments to fit your own players strengths and Weaknesses and don’t sabatage JWs career.
March 21st, 2020 at 6:17 pm
D.R.
After reading your praise recently and that of others I went to look up Dillon.
He is the missing piece. His youtube videos show his value…as you point out a beast who at least has the size for pass pro…and he’s very efficient pounding it near the goal line something this team has missed.
And for his size he’s pretty fast 4.5 speed. I’ve seen video on him literally throwing a poor schmoe who tried to stop him high to the ground and then continue running taking it to the house and the DB could not catch him.
I’m becoming super jacked about Dillon. I agree that Lewis is only a good addition if he’s affordable not at last year’s price. If he was cheap enough he’d be a good pickup.
March 21st, 2020 at 6:21 pm
It’s Brady’s ability to decipher defenses on the fly that makes him so much more formidable than Winston.
March 21st, 2020 at 6:21 pm
Defense – Lewis got cut because he was making too much money, he’s not getting $5m from anyone. He’s probably more like a $2.5-3m guy. Also he was good enough to play a ton in NE as the pass catching back, and I don’t see BB playing a guy who can’t block.
If they drafted someone like Dillon, I’m not going to be mad about it as he’d be a good 1-2 combo with Rojo, but I think the team could use another high draft pick WR than another high pick RB.
Year in, year out, you can find FA runningbacks on the cheap. Meanwhile someone like Perriman might get $6m or more this offseason. I mean Funchess got $10m last offseason. WR’s are expensive, RB’s are not. The Bucs currently have zero depth at WR behind the starters and Godwin is coming up on a contract year, they need to have some options in case of injury or if somehow things don’t workout with Godwin or they can’t afford him. So spend a 1st (yes, a 1st) or a 2nd on a WR – as Licht has proven he can find offensive lineman in the 2nd and 3rd.
Obviously my suggestions depend on the board, if there’s a run on WRs then you get a good OT in the 1st. But if there’s a bigger than expected run on OTs, and you have an elite WR sitting there, grab him.
March 21st, 2020 at 6:22 pm
JimbobBucsFan Says:
I’m not convinced it was all Winston’s inability to read defenses. He prolly could read defenses.
I don’t think he wanted to throw short, the check-down, the move-the-chains paper cut.
Wasn’t ballin’ enough.
Winston wanted to ball. The big play. Home run swing. I suspect he didn’t care about anything else. That’s what he wanted to see, so that’s what he saw.
After all: check the sheets, he be ballin’…
Here would be an interesting stat to check: how many starting QB’s who threw for over 4500yds did not start for any team in the NFL the next year?
Occam’s Razor: The reason Winston does not have a job right now is that nobody wants him. Yeah, he will likely be employed somewhere in the NFL, but it is not like teams are begging for his 5100-yard services.
March 21st, 2020 at 6:29 pm
Oh, and also Devonta Freeman. Was he cut purely over salary, or is there more to it? He did look sluggish at times, but I believe he was injured off and on most of last year (not that I paid super close attention to him). But if he’s healthy and not rundown, he’d be another guy who I assume is in the $3m and under club, and he also can catch the ball. He only averaged 3.6ypc last year, but it was Dirk’s offense and by that standard he wasn’t bad. But he can catch the ball, is a proven NFL blocker. He’s 28 already (I thought he was younger actually), so it’s just a short term deal, but he’d be a safe option.
March 21st, 2020 at 6:31 pm
Charlie Batch played college ball at Eastern Michigan.
March 21st, 2020 at 6:37 pm
At StPeteBucsfan,
Completely agree. And I just watched AJ Dillon highlights u are correct on that man. He would be the perfect compliment to RoJo and Dion Lewis!!! I rooting for a AJ Dillon 2/3rd rd pick.
March 21st, 2020 at 6:44 pm
Thank you, was too lazy to look up the answer myself lol
March 21st, 2020 at 6:57 pm
Agree that Cobraboy and JimmyJack both had excellent points.
I know several will disagree, but I often felt Jameis was LATE or HIGH throwing slant passes and quick outs, resulting in tipped passes being intercepted, or returned for a pick6. As a consequence, these were called with some trepidation.
tickrdr
March 21st, 2020 at 6:59 pm
Catering offense to help Winston with turn overs would mean benching his sorry ass… y’all blasted Dirk for doing just that… the rest of the NFL has spoken NO ONE thinks he is a starter !
March 21st, 2020 at 7:00 pm
Hahaha, I try to help when I can. The weird part about Batch was he seemed to always have his best games against our Buccaneers…Kinda like Case Keenum.
March 21st, 2020 at 7:01 pm
AJ Dillon is a good receiver, too? Wow!!
March 21st, 2020 at 7:09 pm
Tom Brady in the hizzy. Woohoo. Pre-ordered 2 jerseys baby!
March 21st, 2020 at 7:40 pm
cmurda – I can’t do it, it’s like getting a tattoo of your new hot girlfriends name like 2 weeks after dumping your wife…
Which I don’t have an issue with, but that tattoo is done by some piece of garbage anti-American SJW, and I wouldn’t want a dollar of my money going to Nike. I mean the tattoo artist.
March 21st, 2020 at 8:08 pm
StPete … Dillon just reminds me so much of the A-Train for some reason; blue-collar guy who carries the football like a lunch pail and proceeds to beat you over the head with it. Mike will always be my favorite Buc. I think it’ll now take a 3rd Rnd pick to get Dillon though. Derrick Henry kinda showed teams what a big back can contribute to the team.
Rod … Guess I’m just not a fan of little backs; I like the beasts who can run over people then double back and run over them again, just for fun. Also not a fan of picking up RBs on their 2nd tour (if they were that good, why did their first team release them? I know, usually money). This draft I’d like to see us go OLine, DLine, RB in the Top-3 Rnds then pick up a WR with one of our 4th Rnd picks (it’s supposedly a deep draft ). If per chance we end up taking a QB high (say Rnd 1), that’d complicate things. In that case, I guess it’d be QB, Tackle, RB in the Top-3, then DLine & WR in the 4th.
Nothing’s ever easy when you’re a Bucs fan is it.
March 21st, 2020 at 8:39 pm
@DR, I like Dillon too but Clyde’s small size and cut ability and quickness and motor just seems to escalate his play ability regardless of his size….i want a big back too but man, this kid plays with a chip on his shoulder and it shows. He can fit between those guys in the holes too….another reason i like him.
March 21st, 2020 at 9:11 pm
MadMax … Thunder & Lightning were such a great combination. Used to love seeing BOTH of them on the field at the same time. Alstott & Dunn were ranked #9 in one of the analyses I read of the best tandems in NFL history.
They were also the newest (most recent). All the rest were quite a bit more ‘dated’. Tops on the list? Cleveland’s Jim Brown & Bobby Mitchell, followed by Pittsburg’s Franco Harris & Rocky Bleier, and then Miami’s Larry Csonka, Jimmy Kiick & Mercury Morris (I know, I guess they didn’t get what ‘duo’ means).
BTW, RoJo’s no small back himself, but he’s quick and can be explosive. Pair him with a big back (like Dillon) and that’d be a pretty potent 1-2 punch.
March 21st, 2020 at 10:23 pm
Ain’t that a Buc life. Finally land a franchise QB who will probably have 1 yr in him (2 max) to turn the ship around and there isn’t going to be a friggin proper season. Damn shame. We need another miracle. Can Brady deflate COVID-19!?
March 21st, 2020 at 10:28 pm
Just to make sure I was on the same page with everyone I too watched the highlights of Dillion too. I have no idea what you guys are seeing, but he’s nothing like Alstott. He’s got a few nice broken tackles and his power is somewhere between OK and good. I didn’t see any agility – nothing special in terms of balance, no moves to make anyone miss, and I didn’t see any exceptional plays where he’s dragging a LB or moving a big pile. Alstott, as a FB, was a high 2nd round pick, because he had everything – amazing balance, great change of direction, amazing agility for someone his size, and could run you over. I don’t know, I don’t see anything special there, or really anything that would make me think he’s an NFL player.
With that said he had a very good combine. But to me he looks like a 5th rounder, most of that based on the combine. I just don’t see anything special here except his measurables, which are very very good. But college players, with those measurables, should look insane.
Also the guy didn’t catch the ball. Don’t know if it was scheme or not, but if you’re drafting for the Bucs, you first and foremost need a guy to catch the ball.
So after writing the above, just to make sure I wasn’t completely off base, I went and read some scouting combines that basically confirmed what I thought I saw. They say he’s a workhouse back, with very little agility, who has pretty good power, but might be limited to 3rd and short situations. The pre-combine reports just say he’s a day 3 pick. They also noted he’s not a great pass blocker, which, at his size, he should be. I don’t know how much his stock has risen because of his combine, but the highest the Bucs should consider him, in my opinion, is maybe the comp 4th pick (which is really a 5th rounder).
That’s just my opinion, let me know why I’m wrong – like give me a game to checkout.
OR if you were thinking all along he’s like the late 4th/5th rounder, then let me know. From the way you all are talking I assume you mean take him in the 2nd. NO way, no way.
March 21st, 2020 at 11:38 pm
@Rod, how about your take on Clyde if you have the time….
March 22nd, 2020 at 3:05 am
MadMax – Clyde is an NFL rusher, he looks fantastic, like a pro already. Reminds me a ton of young Doug Martin, who was one of the best backs in the NFL for years, but he has a little better top end speed. Also he has some of the vision of Le’Veon Bell the way he sort of waits a second to see what the blocking is. Now that stutter at the NFL level might get him in trouble – but if he has decent blocking it looks like it would be a benefit.
So his size is small, but he does have very big hands for someone of his size, so that should be a big benifit in pass catching game – also he appears to be a natural at pass catching.
Super impressive as a runner, I guess the only question is if he can pass block at his size in the NFL. He might need to add weight, but will that slow him down? Doug Martin coming out of college was 20lb heavier than this – so Clyde is pretty small. Then again Warrick Dunn was a pretty good pass blocker and he was tiny.
Anywho, Clyde Edwards-Helaire looks like a star. I still don’t know about getting him in the 2nd where you’d have to draft him – but if you get a great tackle in the first, and they grab someone like Michael Pittman as a WR in the 3rd, then I’d be really happy with Clyde.
But we’d still have to sign someone like Dion Lewis to be the pass catching back, at least early on because I’m still not trusting a rookie to pass block. But a rotation of Clyde and Rojo might be really tough for other teams to deal with when you got everyone else on offense.
The more I talk, the more I actually like this.
March 22nd, 2020 at 12:18 pm
Just woke up 30 mins ago….thank you Rod, that was well thought out. Patrick Taylor Jr. if we need that big RB in the 5th or 6th is where im at.
Clyde, Rojo, Taylor…(im sorry Barber and Ogunbawale)
March 22nd, 2020 at 2:37 pm
Rod … Just came across your analysis of AJ Dillon. Didn’t see a reference source, but here’s how Walter Football rates him (as #10 among the RB/FBs BTW):
A.J. Dillon, RB/FB, Boston College
Height: 6-0. Weight: 247. Arm: 31.63. Hand: 9.63.
40 Time: 4.53.
Projected Round (2020): 3-5.
3/7/20: Dillon really helped himself at the combine with an excellent 40-yard dash time for a back as large as him. Team sources said Dillon really helped himself in Indianapolis. Dillon averaged 5.3 yards per carry in 2019 for 1,685 yards with 14 touchdowns. He also made 13 catches for 195 yards and a touchdown. Dillon is a potential rotational power back for the NFL.
8/17/19: The power back Dillon has been a tough runner in the ACC over the past two seasons. In 2018, Dillon averaged 4.9 yards per carry for 1,108 yards with 10 touchdowns. He also had eight receptions for 41 yards and a score. Dillon put together a big 2017 season, averaging 5.3 yards per carry for 1,589 yards with 14 touchdowns. He made zero receptions. Dillon could be a candidate to move to fullback in the NFL.
And NFLMocks did an interesting film evaluation on him. Here’s what they said:
“A.J. Dillon showed plus vision as a ball carrier. He finds a hole and doesn’t hesitate to charge through it. He does, however, lack patience when breaking outside of the tackles. This could limit him going forward at the next level.
Dillon does a great job navigating through traffic. He’s at his best between the tackles using all of his 250-pound frame to shrug off tackles. He’s a big bruising back that will make defenders second guess how they’ll tackle him. There were times when defenders wanted no part of tackling him.”
So it looks like Walter Football sees him more as a FB than a RB. His rushing stats in 2019 were pretty impressive I think, and he did catch the ball some (on a predominately rushing team?) for a pretty good average … 15 YPC on 13 catches for 195 yds I think is pretty impressive. And NFLMocks evaluated him as someone who isn’t afraid to put his head down & charge. (In that regard, Dillon does remind me of the ATrain). I don’t know what analyses you were looking at, but I have yet to see any that were that negative.
After what we saw last year (a resurgence in rushing among the playoff teams?), I think big backs will be the ‘in thing’ for at least a year or two. Walter Football projects him as a Rnd 3-5 pick & I think that’s about right. If some team really wants him, 3rd Rnd would probably be the earliest that they’d go. Personally think that spending one of our 4th Rnd picks is a worthwhile risk.
March 22nd, 2020 at 7:37 pm
Defense – That’s not really all that off of what I said, I said before reading anything he looks to me, watching a bunch of highlights, then watching some regular runs, like a guy you take around the 5th round – but his combine might push him higher. But again, with the combine numbers, he should jump off the screen playing against college guys, and he just didn’t.
But as far as sounding negative, it had more to do with the comparisons to Alstott, the guy isn’t even in the same universe as Alstott – and that’s not just me being a homer, his tape doesn’t show any type of agility, and that was a huge part of Alstott’s game. Also the negative part is probably about the price, I assumed from the way people were talking that they were saying to take this guy in the 2nd. Watching the film, no way, no no way. As a 5th rounder (or the comp 4th rounder) then I think it’s an OK pick. But to me, he just looks sluggish around the line, but does have good straight speed once he’s in the open – but he’s also not fast enough to run away from anyone in the NFL, not that running away from people is all that important of a skill in a RB (it’s nice to have, but not a must have).
But yeah, just watching him, to me, I think he’s at best practice squad material based off what I saw — but with a good amount of upside based on his numbers. To me, you don’t expect most 5th rounders to make the team, so saying he’s a practice squad guy doesn’t mean he should be an UDFA.
As for receiving, as you pointed out his YPC number is very good, but the number of receptions is very low. But that could be scheme.
He seems like a guy, if he had a good pro-day, could rise pretty dramatically – if he shows better agility than expected and can catch the ball. But without pro-days you’re going off the tape.
I don’t see an NFL runner watching highlights, for a guy that big and with good speed, he should stand out more. But we shall see, this isn’t a “no draft” guy to me, he’s just a 5th round guy to me, depending on what else is out there at the time.