Landry is almost identical in height, weight, and speed as Hines Ward, and Ward had a great career. Ward ran a 4.58 40 on his pro day. He also lined up everywhere, not just the slot. Notables: Anquan Boldin 4.71 Larry Fitzgerald 4.63 Hines Ward (Pro Day) 4.58 Jerry Rice 4.71 Brandon Marshall 4.52 As for Landry's drafting, our offense dropped almost 4 PPG after we lost Gibson. Drafting a receiver was a priority. Matthews had 1 very good game, then largely disappeared or failed to make plays when he had the opportunity to do so. Sherman didn't like Matthews and Armando has reported several times that Philbin (and Lazor by association) doesn't think he is a quick study or shows a high aptitude for this sort of offense.
All of those players with the exception of Hines Ward were significantly bigger than Landry. Some to the point the comparison is laughable.
Yes, no one is comparing him to those players. The point was that you can't write a player off just based on his 40 time or workouts. The comparison I do see is most closely to Ward. Let's just hope he can have a career somewhat as successful if not moreso.
More successful than Hines wards, holy crab balls that would be great, but that is some high expectations.
Where I can see the comparison is how hard the man attacks opponents, Ward used to declete defenders with his blocks, Landry showed that sort of physicality in college. Also think Matthews is another case of "Cautious Coach Joe", that and Sherman was an absolute moron who did not adjust his calls to what his guys could do, watching Clabo or McKinnie lumber out to try and pick off a Cb was incredulous..did Sherman think a lack of physical talent would be made up for by "fooling them" on that sort of play Also think with Landry, ppl are missing out on the fact Wr's can make plays in the NFL simply by taking a pounding from the defense..Landry appears to be the sort who will take the hit to make the play on one of THill's inaccurately accurate passes
It's the off season. Hope springs eternal. The kid has some talent and the best hands in the draft. No point in only hoping he just makes the roster.
It's on Lazor at this point. If the past 2 seasons are any indication, Philbin is going to let his OC run the offense. Agree on Sherman though. He drove me nuts out foxing himself or ignoring the obvious. I also think Tannehill's supposed "inaccuracy" is mythical in proportion. His numbers are largely average, but he has improved from the start of each of the past 2 seasons to the finale, so we'll see where are this time next year. ;-)
Yep, THill is "inaccurately accurate" meaning the ball is in the catchable area, just not placed in the best spot..suspect he nails those deep throws to Wallace as well. Anyone who cannot see Thill's jump from yr 1 to yr 2 does not know much about football Also think pinning hope on a 3rd yr Qb..not to sure about that one
The reporter is being a little harsh on Landry huh? I think we got two really decent receivers out of this draft with him and Matt Hazel. Both will contribute and compete.
Hazel will be lucky to make the team. A mediocre talent with mediocre college production. A typical Dolphins skill player draft pick. Just forget about him. Landry should have an impact. He won't be the missing piece, but will be an upgrade to what we have. He should be a fan favorite. But looking at everyone else.... After Wallace, I think we have the most overrated mediocre WR corp in the league. Most of these guys wouldn't crack a lineup on a good team. Gibson is mediocre. Hartline is blah. Matthews has more upside than both of those guys but not sure how high is ceiling is. We are still a team without a true#1 WR and a short area quickness underneath guy. If we drafted Cooks and Robinson in the first 2 rounds and OL after, we'd be ready to put a hurt on some teams with an attacking offense with RAC players and a deep threat like Wallace that can blow the top off of a defense. Imagine Wallace, Robinson, Cooks, and Clay lining up. Sounds like a great combination of players that would be hard to defend. Frickin' right tackles. Smashing my hopes and dreams.
Anecdotal evidence makes for enjoyment but it has zero impact statistically. Anyone can find players throughout NFL history who were great against the odds. Rice was also insanely dominant in college (even for a small college). And, he clearly was seen to play much faster on the field - when he got the ball in his hands he often broke free for big gains. Who knows what his speed issues were that day but from 20-40 yards he was as fast as anyone. Landry is a nice talent with great hands who flashes and appears really tough, but you don't see him breaking free and blowing by people in college. He was also 6'2 and ran the best routes with an offensive genius for a coach. He was the Albert Einstein of offensive ingenuity. It may be Landry will be another Hines Ward. But, one could also list many more draft picks who were bigger and faster than Landry who never made it - what would that prove about Landry? Nothing. It would not demonstrate he'll be a bust. Unless it's a Calvin Johnson or Deion Sanders, you just can't know what a player will do at the next level.
I will take a Hines Ward clone if Landry turns out to be that type of player. Seriously. I am disappointed reading the negativity towards a player that we drafted and is talented. Show some respect and at least some positivity. Its unreal how many doom and gloom merchants are on this site.
You missed my follow up post http://www.thephins.com/forums/show...be-a-Project&p=2341950&viewfull=1#post2341950 The point was not to write the kid off before we know one why or the other. I mentioned the other "slow" times as examples of how meaningless 40 times can be, not to say that Landry is already in that class of playmaker.
Looks like OJ McDuffie thinks more of Landry than many of the Fans... http://www.thefinsiders.com/blog/2014/mcduffie-hands-over-juice-to-landry
Agree with this. I haven't written him off. And, I haven't noticed anyone writing him off. I am excited about the pick. I liked the pick. I am cautiously optimistic but there's a reason he was taken at the end of round 2 and that some teams had him as a lower 3rd round grade - there are question-marks. I like the McDuffie comments - and that's why I like Landry - though I don't know where they got the 6'1, 195 number. The Combine had him at 5'11, 205. Here's hoping the coaches use him effectively.
The 6' 1", 195 lbs is from his LSU bio - http://www.lsusports.net/ViewArticle.dbml?ATCLID=205087909 Apparently LSU measures guys in their cleats.
Was mostly a joke as guys always seem to vary in height from college to the combine. Cleats vary in height due to shoe manufacturer and length of the cleat on the shoe itself. This is why the combine measures guys barefooted and stripped down.
I'm confused by your point then. You're essentially saying people should not have an opinion. Actually let me revise that. You're saying it's only OK to have an opinion about the player if it's positive. I spent quite a bit of time evaluating these draft prospects prior to the draft. A big part of that is estimating the player's likelihood of pro success. That's pretty much what evaluation means. Do I just toss all of that out the window now that the draft has happened? Why? Because he happened to go to the Miami Dolphins? The player will do what he does in the NFL regardless of whether I thought there was a high chance of it happening or a low chance of it happening.
My thoughts were that too much was being made out of his 40 times and I was attempting to say to 40 times were not a sole indicator of success for a WR. As for the "positive" only opinion of Landry, or any player for that matter, I didn't mean to infer that at all and that isn't realistic in any event. There are knocks on every player. Landry was the 12th receiver taken in the draft for a reason and I wasn't attacking your evaluations. Whether Landry ends up being successful and a "steal", or fails at this level is still an unknown. Agree with your last statement.
Gotcha. I do actually think height in cleats on field is an interesting concept though. I mean...do slightly higher cleats help a shorter WR if they don't hinder his movement? Possibly.
Maybe, but guys tend to opt for speed which seems to come from a shorter cleat. As for the cleats themselves, players can wear metal tipped cleats, plastic tipped cleats, or rubber cleats. The rubber cleats are usually used on artificial turf. Regular cleats are usually detachable and can be replaced with a different type or length depending on the playing conditions and player preference. The longer the cleat, the more they sink into the field and slow guys down. Regardless, they definitely give players more traction better footing - except for Hartline, who always looks like a baby giraffe in an ice rink when making catches. lol...
I don't think there is any real basis for the notion of two QBs with the same basic completion percentage on the same types of throws, one consistently put the ball in the "best spot" and the other is in the catchable area but not the "best spot." Generally speaking, if one can can consistently put the ball in the best spot and the other can't, the guy who puts it in the best spot more often should also put it in the catchable zone more often. If he's not, then he's just extremely erratic in the sense that he is either perfectly on target or completely off-target. I don't think there are really any QBs like that. And I don't recall Dolphin receivers making an inordinate number of amazing catches to inflate Tannehill's completion percentage.
No one was overplaying the 40 time, not negatively downing Landry. They were simply noting that he is not a sure fire NFL starter but has variables, including ability to separate on film and YAC - that concurs with his 40 time - that make him am uncertainty. No offense intended here at all but you seem to be jumping back and forth between arguments that are straw men: first it's a reaction to someone, not sure who, going negative on Landry before he plays, then it's arguing against some allegedly evaluating just on the basis of 40 times. No one is doing either of those that I have seen. It's just being realistic about expectations at this point based on full evaluations - including film and testing. Which means some hope for positive results but also question marks. I don't think that is unfair or unrealistic. All the best.
I actually disagree with this. The combine is fun to speculate about but I don't find it "important". No more important than a pro day at the very least.
If he turns out to be anywhere near an Anquan Bolden type receiver, then every Dolfan should be pleased.
So you disagree that getting accurate and equal measurements on players is important? You would stand alone. The point I'm making is that they don't go by team programs but actual measurements - height, weight, vertical, arm length, etc. Sorry, but while play on the field is most important, the measurables do matter. A classic example is Justin Blackmon. At OSU he was regularly listed at 6'3 and thought to be a TO clone. Turns out he was only 6'1 and not near as big. It's not the only factor but given a player's style those are factors. But most of all is getting relative accurate measurements - whether Combine or Pro Day, the importance is accurate and comparable when you are drafting.
could of had the real deal 4 years ago, he wanted to be a Miami dolphin very badly, his agent met with Parcells and company and obviously they didn't offer him the right deal.. Dumasses.
Tend to agree, how many workout wonders, with great college resumes, cannot play football in the NFL? High draft picks etc, just insta busts, great 40 time etc. Mainly b/c unless the Wr is Megatron, the game is as much mental as physical.
They could belong to our 1st round pick if I felt like shortchanging JaWuan a bit. But that may be unfair as James ran a 4.56 short shuttle and a 7.42 cone drill. I guess it's only fitting that our 1st round pick proved more agile than our 2nd round pick in drills. Never mind that one's a 6'6" & 311 lbs offensive tackle and the other is a 5'11" & 205 lbs wide receiver...
