My Fear of Drafting Calvin Johnson (Pick Your Source)

[simmsj22]

The fact that reports say he can RAC are a good sign.

None of it changes the fundamental problem that he's a WR and that's not a guy I really want to get. I know people love the WR pick because it is very easy to see them make plays and maybe we think he'll make our crappy QB's look good. Thing is WR's are the last thing you want to pull out of the bag - they're the cherry on a sundae. AZ has a great WR's but it doesn't help because their QB's stink and their line blows. Fix those two things and a good QB will make the WR's look better. Great WR's will only marginally help bad QB's (JP Losman with Lee Evans, Any AZ QB with LFitz and Bolden, Smith and Walker with Plummer) whereas good QB's 9Brady) make the marginal WR's look functional.

when your best receiver is going to retire pretty soon, the other one cant seperate himself from dbs to save his life and thats pretty much it... hilliard is a decent 3rd wr... stovall is a strictly possession wr, so after galloway is gone who is going to stretch the field exactly... a combo of mike clayton, stovall and hilliard would give us the slowest wr tandem in the league BY FAR. CJ is considered to be the best wr prospect since fitzgerald... u dont pass on him unless u r stacked at wr.. which we arent.

Seriously, the two best WR's in terms of attitude and ability are Torry Holt (1999) and Marvin Harrison (1996)

add Hines Ward to that list of attitude and ability.

LB: You appear to be wasting your time here. Some minds are made up, regardless of the supporting material or lack thereof.

Some people dont see the "BG PICTURE" they just see Calvin Johnson as just another WR. They never watched him in the Gator Bowl...never saw him tear up the Notre Dame/Virginia Tech/Miami defenses...they just see him as another Charles Rodgers or Mike Williams.

Those people will be pleasently surprised when they see just what he will bring to the table if he is drafted by us....I cant wait till April!!!

OK, so say he's all that. He's God to some of you.

Nobody has given Ball any credit when CJ had big games, yet it's all the QB's fault when CJ has a 0 catch game vs Clemson, a 2 catch effort vs Georgia and a 3 catch, 13 yard game vs North Carolina...

Tunnel vision.

Its ironic that Calvin Johnson had one of his most productive games when Reggie Ball was excluded from the game (2007 Gator Bowl)

[dalbuc]

hen your best receiver is going to retire pretty soon, the other one cant seperate himself from dbs to save his life and thats pretty much it... hilliard is a decent 3rd wr... stovall is a strictly possession wr, so after galloway is gone who is going to stretch the field exactly... a combo of mike clayton, stovall and hilliard would give us the slowest wr tandem in the league BY FAR. CJ is considered to be the best wr prospect since fitzgerald... u dont pass on him unless u r stacked at wr.. which we arent.

We aren't stacked at QB and DE and both of those spots are much higher value than WR. The only argument for Calvin is that he' is gonna be transcendent and that is a high bar to pass over. 

Again, Manning, Freeny, Harrison. Who do you want on your team?

[dalbuc]

Some people dont see the "BG PICTURE" they just see Calvin Johnson as just another WR. They never watched him in the Gator Bowl...never saw him tear up the Notre Dame/Virginia Tech/Miami defenses...they just see him as another Charles Rodgers or Mike Williams.

On the contrary the Calvin lovers are the small picture guys. You think a WR is cool becuase he catches the ball and it is easy to see him on highlight films. 

Would you pass on Holt to get Brady? Sure you would. You always would. We need QB and we need WR yet people are so infatuated with Calvin they ignore that WR isn't the answer as much as QB is. Simple big picture analogy.

Teams that are basically money for playoffs (NE, SD, IND, PHL) all have great QB's but a lot of them are questionable at WR.
Teams with stud WR's (AZ, DET, BUF) and no QB's are picking somewhere near us in the drat.

Now there are other issues on those teams but the correllation is clear that a WR alone can't save an offense whereas a QB can go a long way to doing so.

That's big picture.

[simmsj22]

hen your best receiver is going to retire pretty soon, the other one cant seperate himself from dbs to save his life and thats pretty much it... hilliard is a decent 3rd wr... stovall is a strictly possession wr, so after galloway is gone who is going to stretch the field exactly... a combo of mike clayton, stovall and hilliard would give us the slowest wr tandem in the league BY FAR. CJ is considered to be the best wr prospect since fitzgerald... u dont pass on him unless u r stacked at wr.. which we arent.

wow theres a manning in this draft? um no... many people think brady quinn will be a bust but at this point he certainly is no peyton manning... DE is a need yes, but these draft has good dlineman that can come in and contribute right away in the 2nd and 3rd rounds... Calvin Johnson is a potential superstar, think marvin harrison at 6'5 240, think T.O with out the attitude, think Moss with a better work ethic, and your gonna pass on him? Do we have other needs? yeah of course we do, we all know that. At # 4 you are looking for a player who could change your franchise upside down, and Calvin Johnson is that player. Why dont we give me dewayne white an extension instead of spending a #4 pick on a DE??? We need playmakers and speed, and this team doesnt have many of them left on either side of the ball.

We aren't stacked at QB and DE and both of those spots are much higher value than WR. The only argument for Calvin is that he' is gonna be transcendent and that is a high bar to pass over.

Again, Manning, Freeny, Harrison. Who do you want on your team?

[simmsj22]

Some people dont see the "BG PICTURE" they just see Calvin Johnson as just another WR. They never watched him in the Gator Bowl...never saw him tear up the Notre Dame/Virginia Tech/Miami defenses...they just see him as another Charles Rodgers or Mike Williams.

On the contrary the Calvin lovers are the small picture guys. You think a WR is cool becuase he catches the ball and it is easy to see him on highlight films.

Would you pass on Holt to get Brady? Sure you would. You always would. We need QB and we need WR yet people are so infatuated with Calvin they ignore that WR isn't the answer as much as QB is. Simple big picture analogy.

Teams that are basically money for playoffs (NE, SD, IND, PHL) all have great QB's but a lot of them are questionable at WR.
Teams with stud WR's (AZ, DET, BUF) and no QB's are picking somewhere near us in the drat.

Now there are other issues on those teams but the correllation is clear that a WR alone can't save an offense whereas a QB can go a long way to doing so.

That's big picture.

Indys questionable at WR??? LOL yeah two pro bowlers and ones gonna be a hall of famer.. yeah they are hurting at wr.  Phillys best run was with T.O., and San Diego has the best tight end in the league in gates and the best pass catcher out of the backfield in tomlinson. Do we need to address qb yes we do... but i really do not believe quinn or jemarcus russell is the answer unless cj and thomas are off the board.  Who do we have besides galloway ( who will be gone in 2 years) that is a playmaker, will you tell me? Cadillac is not a weapon out of the backfield, clayton has fallen off of the map, and hilliard is what he is, a solid 3rd wr. Your talking about passing up on a guy that has everything you could ask for in a wr, and has the potential to become one of the games most dominant players, im sorry but i dont see the logic.

[psymun]

The point is WRs can't always function without a QB but a QB can often function without wide receivers...

[simmsj22]

The point is WRs can't always function without a QB but a QB can often function without wide receivers...

While this is true, its not like we cant get a guy in the 2nd or 3rd or FA. Calvin Johnson single handedly helped Reggie Ball keep his job. A vertical threat with his size like Calvin will help with the running game with caddy and will make a qbs life easier. Do i wish that we could get both CJ and Quinn? yeah definitely, but you cant pass up on a possible future star when u have a need at  that position, as opposed to quinn and russell, who while top quarterbacks in this class, certain arent seen as the next peyton manning or tom brady.

[Boid Fink]

The point is WRs can't always function without a QB but a QB can often function without wide receivers...

A good QB can function with serviceable WRs is the idea.  The BUcs run max protect, and then have one legit WR on the field running routes.  Clayton AGAIN gets no seperation, Becht is a non-factor, and Smith is often seen hovering around the line as well.  Even Manning would have trouble in this offense.

It is more like the trenches help the QB out.  EVERYTHING starts up front.  The O-line is crap right now.  The D-line is crap.  

Remember that fourth quarter versus the Hawks?  That made me ill watching it.  If I have to watch teams run all over the interior again, I will be upset, and so will many of you.

[dalbuc]

Indys questionable at WR??? LOL yeah two pro bowlers and ones gonna be a hall of famer.. yeah they are hurting at wr.

You might have missed that "most" comment and really we all know the most important part of that equation is Manning - you think Jim Sorgi wins the SB?

[CrAsH_oVeRdRiVe]

http://play.rbn.com/?url=nfl/nfl/open/nflfilms/demand/s2006/nfln/off/top_five_wrs_preview_300k.rm&rpcontexturl=http://www.nfl.com/fieldpass/includes/promo&rpcontextwidth=400

Mike Mayock breaks down top 5 WRs.

All you need to know about CJ's speed, route running, acceleration, catching, and his blocking.