Hey
@Vice ...
Haven't watched much of our blackbirds since this is such a lost season (watch Red Zone or Schaub/Mallett/Renner/Kermit the Frog, hmmm...) but do you know if any of these other players are stepping up? We've been playing great all things considered, but... Guys like Kamar Aiken, could he be a quality part of our WR crew? Is a tight end or defensive end stepping up? Does Lardarius Webb still randomly suck balls?
Also, you should be a Dolphins fan so you can be Miami Vice.
Okay, let me give you the breakdown:
On Offense
-Aiken has been impressive. In the last few games, he's shown potential to be a possible WR 2 in this league. Especially after strong showings against Seattle and KC. Still shaky on him, but the stats don't lie.
-When Buck Allen first came in to replace Forsett, he put up a ton of yards and impressed the fanbase in his first game out. After that game however, he's crashed back down to earth and been pretty average. A large part of our fans have already penciled him in as the future of our RB position, but I'm going to need a little more convincing.
-As for our TEs, Boyle's been suspended for the year after some PED shit, and Crockett Rocket is on IR. Maxx Williams has been what you would expect from a rookie TE. 2 or 3 receptions a game for about 30 yards or so. Not impressive, but that's to be expected. The new TEs that we picked up are basically nonexistent.
-On offensive line, Eugene Monroe's injury issues have caused a bit of controversy at LT. The absolutely HORRID play by James Hurst has earned him a benching, and Kelechi Osemele has moved over to tackle. Ryan Jensen is now at Guard, and John Urshel has taken over the Center duties for the injured Jeremy Zuttah. This is an important development because Osemele has done very well at tackle. It was expected that after Baltimore extended Yanda, they would not spend top-dollar to retain both he and Osemele. However, if Osemele can permanently kick out to LT, then it is changes the situation, because he fills a need and we can trust Urschel at guard. The problem is, he will potentially be a more expensive commodity if he resigns as a tackle instead of guard.
On Defense
-Webb has been moved to a nickel corner role and even plays some FS. The Kendrick Lewis experiment has been an absolute failure. The coaches are beginning to give Terrance Brooks snaps to see what the kid has. He's been decent. Better than Lewis by a mile.
-Ignoring Shareece Wright's first performance against San Fran, he's improved his play to the point where he's starting opposite Jimmy Smith. Now, he isn't a good corner by any means, but he's one of our only guys that aren't a liability on the outside.
-Brent Urban and Z. Smith are both getting looks on defense, and recorded sacks (Urban got one, Z got two) against KC. Good for these young guys to get reps. I haven't seen much of Carl Davis however.
-An interesting take on our defensive woes and complete lack of talent in the Secondary: "If you look at Baltimore's struggling defense, you'll notice quickly that their largest issue lies on the back end of their defense, their corners and safeties. Curiously enough, the secondary is the least injured unit on the team."
On Special Teams
-Sam Koch is the fucking GOAT
-Justin Tucker is the fucking GOAT (In honesty he's having a bit of a down year by his standards. He's really struggling on kicks longer than 50 yards)
-We picked up this kid, Kaelin Clay a few weeks back I believe. He's been the most explosive returner we've had since Jacoby, constantly giving us good field position, sure with the ball, and a good decision maker. I would be surprised if we didn't extend his contract before March.
Coaching
-Mark Trestman has been iffy. He's conservative and predictable, but every so often it works. Basically, he's better than Cam Cameron and Caldwell(2013), but can't touch Kubiak.
-Dean Pees is just bad. Our defense has never been elite under him, and I honestly don't think we ever will be with this guy at the helm.