I think we'll be regretting them not drafting Bailey. IMO I don't see Gibson playing out his contract and being a dissapointment ala Wilford and Naanee.
"As for the Dolphins’ other wide receivers, according to ProFootballFocus.com, Brian Hartline ranked 34th (49 receptions on 188 targets; 41.53 percent) in first down and touchdown conversion percentage last season. Davone Bess ranked 46th (38 receptions on 96 targets; 39.58 percent)
Obviously thats why I was debating the point, I think there are players that we could of gotten in the third round that have higher upside than Gibson..but there are some encouraging statistics following this cat around.
"Why is Gibson significant? According to a person with knowledge of the situation, Gibson had a two-day visit with the Jets this week and was a high priority during free agency. With interest from each team in the division, Gibson essentially had his pick." We weren't the only team wanting him..
I've heard him in multiple interviews say he can play the slot, but he's always adamant to let the reporter know he can run all the routes.
Smart man. He doesn't want to be pigeon holed into a specific role. He has to learn the slot b/c that's primarily where he'll play when Hartline and Wallace are on the field. But he'll also play flanker and split end when Hartline and/or Wallace need a rest and he may even take one of their spots in the red zone b/c he's a better tight area receiver than either of them. I envision him in the Donald Driver role. Chain mover, security blanket type WR, can earn the tough yards over the middle and in the red zone, can block and play special teams also. Bess was also a chain mover and a fan favorite, but he sucked donkey balls as a blocker, was not a red zone threat, couldn't go vertical to catch make a contested catch, couldn't turn a short catch into a big gain, couldn't make the tough "I'm about to get blown up by a DB/LB" catches over the middle, and had a small catch radius due to his size.
Barring an injury riddled career, I think he can get the 10k. Not so sure he makes 1500 this season though.
I'm deducing Dallas Thomas was a preemptive pick to allow the jettison of Incognito's hefty contract next year considering Ireland & Aponte seem to pride themselves on maintaining a healthy flexible cap. Personally I like this approach so we can free up future cash for better purchases than on a $4M/year, slightly above average guard who can be replaced in the draft for 700k/year. I'm guessing Davis was drafted to do the same to either Patterson or Marshall. It seems we might have a pattern of drafting guys a year in advance to replace a future departee.
Generally speaking, as far as Gibson goes I think he would've been signed regardless of Bess or what we did or didn't have planned for the slot. At his attractive cost he was a great signing period, even it proves to be just for depth, and it's possible we signed Gibson to free up a draft pick to be used elsewhere. With Gibson, for a mere $3.25 million/year you know you're getting a guy who can step in as a starter from day 1. If we're looking at either Brandon Gibson or an unknown list of receivers available at our 3rd & 4th round picks, I'd probably roll with the NFL's top TD catcher+chain-mover on a per catch basis and leave the draft pick to use on a different need. After all, with the cap space we had available to spend on Gibson, we weren't gonna throw it at another guard or tackle, nor another corner, linebacker, DT, TE, or safety for that matter either based on already having starters addressing those positions and cash invested in it. So to me, the likely choice was to round out the receiving corps with Gibson so that we'd have a draft pick to help reduce the future cost at one of those other positions.
I don't get that pick either. Your sitting there with Dallas Thomas, Brian Scwenke, Earl Watford, Hugh Thornton, David Bakhtiari, Barret Jones all still on the board. They could have waited until the 4th. Unless they see Thomas as a future tackle, then they got scared once Armstead was picked. I hate when they draft scared like that, just like with the trade up for Davis pick or the trade up for Thomas pick a few drafts ago.
The Dallas Thomas pick was the main one I didn't get. I don't have a problem with him. I think he's a technically sound guard, but IMO there some other high upside picks that I would have preferred there. I personally didn't mind the Will Davis pick. I think it makes sense to target low impact positions like Gs and CB in the 4th round and later. And I thought Davis' skill set matched what they're looking for.
Right. Gibson is a cog in the machine. We need to convert and get new 1st downs at a high % to run a high-paced offense. A guy like Gibson helps make the passing offense more reliable, like a rushing attack would be. I just read an article on Chip Kelly's Eagle's offense and they were saying the same thing. To run a fast paced offense, you better be able to get 1st downs and keep your offense on the field, otherwise you will be putting your Defense back out there WAY too quickly every time and your D will be exhausted. The idea is, high paced offensive machine that cannot be stopped... only outscored. Except, if we have guys like Gibson moving the chains, and guys like Wallace giving him the room to do so, then we control the high tempo of the game. It also forces their D to press to score more points, which, coupled with us playing an aggressive pressure D, will lead to more turnovers. That's a best case scenario, when the offense is staying on the field, getting first downs. The worst case scenario is if your offense is doing three and outs (see Patriots game) and your D gets gassed, then starts getting run all over.
Don't be surprised if you see Hartline in the slot a lot, actually. He has better change-of-direction than Gibson, and busts the seam better, going back to his Ohio State days. Gibson played 8% of his snaps in the slot under Fisher and the Rams. Doesn;t mean anything, really, because the coaches may have under-utlizied him as a slot option, but watching his game, he seems versatile, but not necessarily 'tailor-made' to be a slot guy.
Except you have the risk of missing on the draft pick. We've taken a few guards since Ireland got here. None stellar, though Jerry's soul may yet be saved.
