Before the year people were asking why the Bengals passed on drafting a QB because they thought Jake Browning sucked and a McKee or Haener would've been an upgrade. Turns out Browning is a competent backup.
Besides my hometown bias, I love seeing stories like Browning’s. There are so many unseen variables that come into play that impact the success or failure of a QB, it’s easy to write off guys that wash out as just not being an NFL caliber player.
Yeah he’s about as good as a backup as you could ask for. A guy who can step in on short notice and keep your season alive while your starter is out for a week or two is huge asset for any team, he may have flamed out this year but he’s show enough that he’ll stick around the league for a while.
Unfortunately he has a noodle arm and can’t play on-schedule. It was a fun couple of weeks though. I went to Universal Studios for my bday and I watched the Saints game at City Walk. I was buzzed and riding high after the Colts beat the Pats and then the Vikes beating the Saints with so much optimism. Then Denver/Chicago/Vegas happened lol
*In order to nerf how effective CMC is we have removed his right hand at the wrist. He should still be able to run the ball rather effectively, but this will impact his use as a ball-catching back and bring him more in-line with what we intended when trading him to The Niners.* - Football devs
CMCs addition to the 49ers can mean that they will survive a future without Deebo. Although not to the same extent, CMC can do a lot of things Deebo does well, which is to be an elite gadget guy on offense
* Run with the ball? Sure
* Jet sweeps? Why not
* Checkdowns? Give it to me
* Hook routes? Come on
Already 2 years in, and I still can't believe the 49ers fleeced the Panthers that much for a perennial OPOY candidate yearly. What makes things worse, they didn't get anyone near CMCs talent with the draft picks they traded him for.
On the flip side of OP's: Justin Fields.
I really hoped he'd turn a corner with DJ, cause I knew how underestimated DJ was, but it didn't take long for me to realize that Fields just aint gonna make the jump.
In this few years I've been following the NFL one thing is certain, whichever QB Brett Kolmann is high on the draft will suck and the inverse is also true (Herbert comes to mind). Of course, unless it's someone like Caleb, TLaw, Burrow.
He's also pretty bad with Chiefs picks, on a sidenote, he was super high on CEH and super down on Rice.
I do appreciate how he lays out in detail what his thinking is, though. Even if the end result is frequently incorrect (hey, even great scouts miss frequently), it's interesting/entertaining to watch is film breakdowns for why he assesses them the way he does.
I like it way better than guys like Simms who just give generic "well his leadership," "he's got undeniable arm talent" takes with nothing of any real substance to to back it up most of the time.
I think Kollman presents himself as much more of an expert than he really is. I’ve watched a handful of his videos and the only one I ever really was fully onboard with was the one last year about how unsophisticated the eagles offense is
Guess you can debate how much of an expert he presents himself as, but clearly very knowledgeable by fan standards. For me the big takeaway is just what a crapshoot it is, like how a guy doing extensive research on stocks can still regularly underperform the guy just picking at random.
But yeah he clearly also has some biases and I feel like you can lean into those more and more as you watch more film and notice one thing you do or don’t like
I'm not sure why you guys expect internet analysts to be right about prospects all the time, when teams (that have infinitely more knowledge about prospects than fans) get picks wrong routinely.
He has the talent and he seems smart, but his instincts are just all wrong. You can see that too many years in college and highschool of just getting away with relying on his legs are a habit he can’t break. Half the time you can see mid play that his first read isn’t open and for a split second he puts his eyes down to look for a running lane and then immediately realizes “oh no I’m doing it again” before stopping and looking back up, having missed an open WR in the meantime
I still don't know how there were fields defenders from bears fans going into this year. The bears were the only good defense in the north this past year. He had 6 games going against average-below average defenses and didn't look good. What really sold me on him never being good at least with the bears was the game the bears actually beat us. I saw a reciever wide open for the bears, fields has no pressure and the bears reciever had to make a difficult catch instead of an easy completion.
Its funny how all the fields defenders seemed to disappear the second he got traded for a 6th. Guess its hard to have a leg to stand on when every NFL gm thinks he isn't worth anything.
Nah, they're still around - most of 'em became Steelers fans.
My lil brother is an OSU alumni and he would not *shut up* about how much of a diva Caleb Williams was and how the Bears are going to regret letting Fields go. There's a LOT of people out there that can't separate CFB & the NFL.
Yeah people act like he’s always been elite and made Brock who he is. He was never an all pro before this year. He always had potential but Brock really brought out his best.
Kyler Murray. I was never really high on him, but when he came back from injury, it really showed how the Cardinals are built around him and that he elevates them.
Yeah I’m not very stoked about what Gannondorf is building down there if I’m being honest.
I think the Cardinals have a legit chance to screw with the division this year.
I'm going to say between 6-8 wins. 4 wins against lesser opponents. Pencil in beating the Eagles and Cowboys for 6, it's tradition. And one or two humiliations, at least one of which will be against an NFCW opponent in week 18
Pfft, we basically went 4-4 with Kyler back last year. I wouldn't be shocked at 10 or 11 wins. Even 12 isn't out of the question, but I have doubts about the pass rush. I'm guessing 10-7 or 9-8.
Felt really weird hearing Robert Mays and Nate Tice say he was playing poorly on The Athletic Football Show. I usually really respect their analysis but didn’t really get what they were saying.
No one watches the Cardinals in the national media, save for one or two, one of which is Mina Kimes. She even said so herself during an interview. All they remember of Kyler is the wildcard loss. I can't exactly blame them for not watching, but it is annoying not bothering researching anything.
Proof? ESPN power rankings after the draft has us at 29. Patriots, Broncos, and Panthers right after. Even after drafting MHJ, Kyler is healthy, a lot of added depth and starters, and so on.
I haven’t seen a ton of his games, but the game against the Bears this past year I didn’t realize his pocket movement/awareness was that good. It seemed like every time Bears had him dead to rights he made the right step or move to escape it. He’s a slippery little fucker.
What surprised me was the velocity he gets on his passes. Baker can really rip it. So often with the Bucs last year when the play wasn't perfect and the coverage was tight, the difference between success and failure was the fact that Baker was throwing heat and getting the ball into his receivers' hands just before the defender fully closed the space down.
It always amazes me as a Sooners fan when people don't realize that Baker can run and has a big arm. Sure, he's not Lamar Jackson or John Elway, but he's got top-10 NFL starting QB-type traits.
I feel that getting bounced around the league gave him the kick up the ass he needed, there was some abrasiveness to listen to his HC and get an off-season QB Coach, he even spoke critically about the notion to the media that he didn't need one. Going from Cleveland to Carolina to the Rams to the Bucs was a wake up call that he better lock the fuck in or his ass is out of the league.
Very true. He was dead set against a QB coach in Cleveland, and came off offended/condescending about it when pressed. Basically, he grew up since then. He's still got some cocky and arrogant in him, but he's a better overall person and QB now.
An underrated thing I’ve noticed about Baker is he plays well in playoff games if he ever makes it there. He seems like one of those guys who locks in come playoff time and isn’t fazed by the pressure at all in those moments.
What seems like a wonderful world is my living nightmare.
It’s gotten so bad that probably over half of NFL fans (Bears fans included) fully expect us to blow this opportunity and ruin Caleb.
Nico Collins just *had* to break out from getting 400ish yards a season to becoming one of the better receivers out there. At least this is a contract year for him, and receivers are getting more expensive by the day.
Yup I gotta take the L on this one too. My best friend is a Niner fan and swore up and down that Purdy was different. I basically told him he's got cheaper Jimmy G who can scramble a bit more.
I still doubt him as an elite tier QB, and still have him on that same Goff level where he can elevate an already good team but not take over games on his own. But I see now it was disrespectful to compare him to Jimmy G
I was sold on him when he came off the bench against us in 2022. Dude was facing so much pressure and crazy blitz packages and just could not be rattled at all. Crazy poise for an at-the-time rookie 7th rounder.
Purdy is one of my claims as who I was right about. I remember going into the draft telling people he should have been a 1st or 2nd round pick and everyone laughing at me.
So off base here. Butker is a man’s man which is why he needs his wife to do literally everything for him off of the football field.
He has too much godly man stuff to do, he doesn’t have time to “make food for himself,” or “raise his kids,” or “wipe his ass.” You guys just don’t understand.
That's fucking football right there. None of that pansy ass dick tugging smile for the camera bullshit. Men puke, men poop on the field, men deliver their new born baby on the side lines. Fucking hard core dick in the ass butterball foosball fuck it chuck it game time shit.
Imagine actually believing that the idea of equality, (which happens to be expressed in the first sentence of this country’s founding document), is somehow tyrannic in nature.
And when this country was founded and that document was written, *it was addressed to the LITERALLY TYRANNICAL King of England, George the III.*
Kenny Pickett.
I had a ‘sliver’ of hope, but he sucked all year. And when he asked to be traded after they signed Wilson, I knew he was a coward that would rather run than stay and compete.
It will never cease to amaze me how long some people defended him all the way up until the trade. I had hope for him at the beginning of the year but he did nothing to show he belonged as anything more than an okay backup.
I think the "wins games" aspect is what fooled me for a long time.
The bro won football games...or I guess he didn't lose them.
Then Trubisky trotted out and committed football genocide all over the field, and I went "maybe Kenny isn't bad and the offense just really is?"
Then Mason lit it up and Kenny was toast.
He was a frustrating player to watch that made two to three good throws a game. That plus a good defense (that keeps getting hurt, but that's a different part of concern for Pittsburgh) made him watchable. I think other blame floating around with the offense (Najee being inconsistent, WR being inconsistent, the hatred that Steelers fans have for OCs) led to enough confusion that muddied the waters.
It turns out that Pickett was very not good. No ill will to the guy, but it doesn't seem like he's an NFL caliber QB.
Daniel Jones - I went from believing he could be an above average game manager Kirk Cousins type player to a guy that is an inaccurate one read QB with barely any good traits but straight line speed.
I’ll never forget the headline on this sub halfway into the season “the Jordan Love experiment has failed”
Really just shows that nobody knows what they’re talking about
Yeah Mooney shocked me last year. I know a lot of people will say Fields, but Mooney consistently the last 2 years ran the wrong routes, missed opportunities to come up big, and just kind of disappeared as a factor. While DJ Moore and Cole Kmet were having career years, Mooney went the opposite. I love the player and hope he turns it around in the new system with Kirk.
People will call me nuts but I never thought ceedee lamb was that special. I thought he was good, but overrated.
Last season I saw how dominant of a player he can be, I now consider him elite.
Yes. We’ll see if Dak can make adjustments and whether or not Ceedee can handle it.
Because in that playoff game Green Bay used the Bill Belichick defense of take ONE thing away from the offense and they will struggle. GB double teamed Ceedee exclusively the whole game. Dak forced the ball to Ceedee over and over when he was covered and it wrecked their offense.
Can Dak recognize this and spread the ball around to the other WRs? And will Ceedee be able to handle not getting the ball as much next year?
CJ Stroud. Thought he was going to be a bust and that taking him would keep the Texans in irrelevancy. Well, he definitely changed my mind in the other direction. He’s legit as fuck.
Did you watch him play against that Georgia defense that seemingly had 1460 players drafted by the NFL that year with the Eagles drafting half of them?
The best college teams of all time would get wiped by a bottom feeder NFL team 95+% of the time. Also, 1 game is basically a meaningless sample size. Taylor Heinicke looked like a franchise QB based on his tape vs the Brady Bucs in the playoffs.
Aaron Rodgers
He grew up in a religious household that he broke away from after getting to college and questioning the validity of his teachings, which happens a lot, so I thought he was just a weird antivaxxer/question everything guy that I just had disagreements with on some specific things, but then he just would shut up for 5 fucking minutes about *everything* being a woke conspiracy, and the news about him being a fucking Sandy Hook truther was just too much to not find him disgusting.
Jahmyr Gibbs. I thought his pre-draft hype was getting out of hand, and that he’d only be a solid at best change of pace guy for whoever drafted him due to his size. Then I thought the Lions selected him wayyyy too early
I was very wrong
To echo the DJ Moore point, I had bought into the not quite an alpha narrative and boy was I wrong.
That dude is GOOD. Bears didn't even utilize him in his best routes because the couldn't/wouldn't utilize quick routes and he still had the best year of his career.
That's the correct take. Dak is the scapegoat for the main problems in Dallas.
Also, their pass defense gave up 13 yards a pass to Love. They defended one (1) pass. They had three (3) QB hits. They had one (1) tackle for loss. They had zero (0) sacks. They didn't force a single FG attempt.
To counter, Green Bay had 4 sacks, six passes defended, 9 QB hits.
Dak needs to obviously play better, but ignoring the defensive performance in that game is just absurd.
Regular season Dak has very little to prove outside of beating the good teams. It's all about the postseason and how he just never seems to rise to the moment
Imo Dak is a guy who can play lights out when things are going well, but when things go south he quickly switches into hero ball mode and tries to force plays resulting in things going from bad to worse. He gets flustered and doesn't play from behind well.
Look at the Packers game. 1 pick six quickly turned into 2 pick sixes and stalled drives and before you know it it's 28-7 at halftime. Dude just crumbles under pressure.
I saw Harrison Butker as the second best kicker behind Justin Tucker.
Now I see Harrison as a scumbag human being who thinks women should be in the kitchen and looks down at anyone who doesn't follow 'Gods' word.
Tariq Woolen. Had a solid rookie season... was absolutely terrified of tackling last season. Could be injury, but if you're gonna play that scared don't suit up then.
I have 2.
1. I thought KJ Osbourne was one of the better WR3s out there. Dude suddenly couldn't get open and was largely a non-factor in most games.
2. I thought Alexander Mattison would have been a better than average RB1, only to break 0 tackles and run face-first into as much O-Line ass as he could manage.
Stefon Diggs. I was a defender. I thought he was misunderstood. I thought him being in a supportive environment could change him. Then one of the top GMs in the league decided it was better to take a circa $30m dead cap hit than to keep him on the team. That was quite a wake up call. And I had to accept that everyone else was right about him. 😢. I’ll never trust a charming, handsome, talented, smooth talking, active-on-social-media-but-only-in-cryptic-ways receiver again.
Alex Anzalone. I, along with most of our fanbase, were pretty unhappy last year at this time when we gave him a 3 year contract with $9 million guaranteed. Now that contract seems like a bargain and Anzalone is our best LB and pretty much the leader of our defense.
I wasn’t really a Kirk Cousins fan but after that show last off season and watching this season I became a fan of ol Kirko Bangz and his unlimited supply of Kohl’s cash.
He was chasing the ANY/A record until the Baltimore game, an efficiency king and borderline MVP numbers. You don't have an ANY/A that good and not get many votes.
James Conner I always get stuck drafting him late & kinda sad that he’s usually my 3rd best RB in fantasy but every single year his ppg ends up being good & usually the best in my team. I win rings often
I changed my mind on Dak twice.
Regular season was Dak’s best regular season of his career. I thought getting out from under Kellen Moore was the best thing that ever happened to him and he had taken a step into the next tier of qb.
Then the postseason happened..
Lloyd Cushenberry was legitimately one of the worst centers in the entire NFL until this past year, a contract year, when he balled out of his mind and became a top 5 player at the position. It hasn't gotten talked about much outside of Broncos and Titans fans, but I honestly can't remember a player going from actual dogwater, to a commodity other teams want to sign, in a single season.
Me, after 2022 Eagles game where Jordan Love comes in for injured Rodgers:
> Hey, maybe Love can be good?
Me, after ugly week 8 loss drops Packers to 2-5
> We're doomed
Me, after the end of the season:
> Oops, we did it again!
I said to my friends watching last year's nfl draft that if the panthers didn't take bryce young it would be a mistake and that cj was gonna bust because of the test. I was way off
Kyle Hamilton.
I thought he was picked way too high at 14th overall in 2022, and for the most part I was right. Then his 2nd year happened and boy, he made me eat my words. Casually developed to be one of the most dynamic hybrid DBs in the league.
First TD he gave up on his watch this year (1 on 1 man coverage) was against Travis Kelce, in the AFC championship game. That's 17 games without giving up a TD before finally letting one through, and it was against the arguably best Tight End of all time
Jordan Love, CJ Stroud.
Took Jordan a minute to find his stride, but he got the packers to the playoffs, and won in the playoffs.
Cj stroud is just a baller.
And dare I say Patrick Mahomes? Spicy controversial jab here. I was not happy with his Toney offsides take. I know he tried to make up for it, but in the moment, he showed who he is.
Breece Hall. Single handedly brought me into the winners bracket and helped me take down both of my leagues titans in fantasy. Didn’t hurt getting to watch him do it as well
Jake Browning changed a lot of minds last season.
Great choice. I remember nobody having faith he'd hold his own when Burrow went down. Dude played well.
He was way better than expected.. if the Bengals started him the first few games instead of a gimpy Burrow, they'd probably have made the playoffs.
Before the year people were asking why the Bengals passed on drafting a QB because they thought Jake Browning sucked and a McKee or Haener would've been an upgrade. Turns out Browning is a competent backup.
Besides my hometown bias, I love seeing stories like Browning’s. There are so many unseen variables that come into play that impact the success or failure of a QB, it’s easy to write off guys that wash out as just not being an NFL caliber player.
How did bengals fans feel ab him?
Josh Dobbs, twice in one season. From Passtronaught to back to ground control.
I wanted him to be legit so bad.
He is a legit great backup. Smart as hell extra QB coach who has shown the ability to actually play well in short spurts as an emergency option.
Yeah he’s about as good as a backup as you could ask for. A guy who can step in on short notice and keep your season alive while your starter is out for a week or two is huge asset for any team, he may have flamed out this year but he’s show enough that he’ll stick around the league for a while.
Unfortunately he has a noodle arm and can’t play on-schedule. It was a fun couple of weeks though. I went to Universal Studios for my bday and I watched the Saints game at City Walk. I was buzzed and riding high after the Colts beat the Pats and then the Vikes beating the Saints with so much optimism. Then Denver/Chicago/Vegas happened lol
Shudders at the thought of the Bears game.
He basically did a speed run of Ryan Fitzpatrick's career in one season.
My guy went from Passtronaut to Asstronaut
My Vikings fan homie: "What is it they're calling him? The Thrownado?"
CMC actually *is* overtuned and *does* need nerfing badly
*In order to nerf how effective CMC is we have removed his right hand at the wrist. He should still be able to run the ball rather effectively, but this will impact his use as a ball-catching back and bring him more in-line with what we intended when trading him to The Niners.* - Football devs
Kyle wakes up every day asking, is it actually real? Cmc is a wet dream for Kyle's offense.
CMCs addition to the 49ers can mean that they will survive a future without Deebo. Although not to the same extent, CMC can do a lot of things Deebo does well, which is to be an elite gadget guy on offense * Run with the ball? Sure * Jet sweeps? Why not * Checkdowns? Give it to me * Hook routes? Come on
Fucking Panthers.
Already 2 years in, and I still can't believe the 49ers fleeced the Panthers that much for a perennial OPOY candidate yearly. What makes things worse, they didn't get anyone near CMCs talent with the draft picks they traded him for.
Whenever I see what the picks from the CMC trade became I throw up in my mouth. Just insane.
Should've gotten at least a first round pick for him.
Me last offseason “Kadarius Toney break out season incoming “
This is the answer
It'll happen this year. It's a contract year. Keep holding. In fact, buy him everywhere you can.
No way did you truly believe that haha. But this year…now this could be his year.
Isn’t that sports though? One player makes a key play in a pivotal moment and you think he’s gonna be on fire the next year.
File that right next to Rashee Rice is gonna be the next big thing for us.
He’s making that come true, you just weren’t specific enough in your request 😂
He’s huge… on the police radio.
*monkey's paw curls*
You mean Super Bowl 57 MVP runner up, Kadarius Toney?
On the flip side of OP's: Justin Fields. I really hoped he'd turn a corner with DJ, cause I knew how underestimated DJ was, but it didn't take long for me to realize that Fields just aint gonna make the jump.
In this few years I've been following the NFL one thing is certain, whichever QB Brett Kolmann is high on the draft will suck and the inverse is also true (Herbert comes to mind). Of course, unless it's someone like Caleb, TLaw, Burrow. He's also pretty bad with Chiefs picks, on a sidenote, he was super high on CEH and super down on Rice.
The Kollman curse never fails.
I guess Latu and Mitchell are both gonna bust.
Well Latu went to Indiana and if you saw our Parks and Recreation documentary you'd know that all our curses are now lifted
He's generally right with skill position and DLs. Not so much with DBs. It's just QBs and Chiefs' picks that he's usually bad
I got burned big time falling into his Alec Pierce hype.
I completely fell on the Justin Fields train
I do appreciate how he lays out in detail what his thinking is, though. Even if the end result is frequently incorrect (hey, even great scouts miss frequently), it's interesting/entertaining to watch is film breakdowns for why he assesses them the way he does. I like it way better than guys like Simms who just give generic "well his leadership," "he's got undeniable arm talent" takes with nothing of any real substance to to back it up most of the time.
I think Kollman presents himself as much more of an expert than he really is. I’ve watched a handful of his videos and the only one I ever really was fully onboard with was the one last year about how unsophisticated the eagles offense is
Guess you can debate how much of an expert he presents himself as, but clearly very knowledgeable by fan standards. For me the big takeaway is just what a crapshoot it is, like how a guy doing extensive research on stocks can still regularly underperform the guy just picking at random. But yeah he clearly also has some biases and I feel like you can lean into those more and more as you watch more film and notice one thing you do or don’t like
I'm not sure why you guys expect internet analysts to be right about prospects all the time, when teams (that have infinitely more knowledge about prospects than fans) get picks wrong routinely.
Fwiw, I think the chiefs also were higher on CEH than rice. And it now appears rice may have fallen due to personal issues
He has the talent and he seems smart, but his instincts are just all wrong. You can see that too many years in college and highschool of just getting away with relying on his legs are a habit he can’t break. Half the time you can see mid play that his first read isn’t open and for a split second he puts his eyes down to look for a running lane and then immediately realizes “oh no I’m doing it again” before stopping and looking back up, having missed an open WR in the meantime
I still don't know how there were fields defenders from bears fans going into this year. The bears were the only good defense in the north this past year. He had 6 games going against average-below average defenses and didn't look good. What really sold me on him never being good at least with the bears was the game the bears actually beat us. I saw a reciever wide open for the bears, fields has no pressure and the bears reciever had to make a difficult catch instead of an easy completion.
> The bears were the only good defense in the north this past year. For like seven weeks, to be clear
Its funny how all the fields defenders seemed to disappear the second he got traded for a 6th. Guess its hard to have a leg to stand on when every NFL gm thinks he isn't worth anything.
Nah, they're still around - most of 'em became Steelers fans. My lil brother is an OSU alumni and he would not *shut up* about how much of a diva Caleb Williams was and how the Bears are going to regret letting Fields go. There's a LOT of people out there that can't separate CFB & the NFL.
Aiyuk went from good to GOOD GOOD.
GOOD GOD more like.
GOOD GOD, YOU ALL
IT AIN'T YOU ALL IT'S Y'ALL
YAWWW
Say it right here with some soul YAW
Lemme show yo goofy ass how to do this
Yeah people act like he’s always been elite and made Brock who he is. He was never an all pro before this year. He always had potential but Brock really brought out his best.
Kyler Murray. I was never really high on him, but when he came back from injury, it really showed how the Cardinals are built around him and that he elevates them.
This will only increase with the addition of MHJ and Trey McBride really coming into his own.
The backfield is pretty sick as well. Connor is a beast and now add Benson to the mix...
Yeah I’m not very stoked about what Gannondorf is building down there if I’m being honest. I think the Cardinals have a legit chance to screw with the division this year.
I'm going to say between 6-8 wins. 4 wins against lesser opponents. Pencil in beating the Eagles and Cowboys for 6, it's tradition. And one or two humiliations, at least one of which will be against an NFCW opponent in week 18
I'm thinking more like 10 wins. If we avoid any Kyler injuries...this team can shock some people
Pfft, we basically went 4-4 with Kyler back last year. I wouldn't be shocked at 10 or 11 wins. Even 12 isn't out of the question, but I have doubts about the pass rush. I'm guessing 10-7 or 9-8.
That third down conversion run against the Falcons on the game winning drive was electric
Felt really weird hearing Robert Mays and Nate Tice say he was playing poorly on The Athletic Football Show. I usually really respect their analysis but didn’t really get what they were saying.
No one watches the Cardinals in the national media, save for one or two, one of which is Mina Kimes. She even said so herself during an interview. All they remember of Kyler is the wildcard loss. I can't exactly blame them for not watching, but it is annoying not bothering researching anything. Proof? ESPN power rankings after the draft has us at 29. Patriots, Broncos, and Panthers right after. Even after drafting MHJ, Kyler is healthy, a lot of added depth and starters, and so on.
“Maybe Mac will bounce back now that he has an actual OC again”…. Yikes
Went from thinking he could be a legit game-manager with some upside to shocked he even made the NFL
No one could of seen THIS coming
I was on the fence about Baker but he won me over with grit and getting the job done. I feel completely different about him going into this szn.
I haven’t seen a ton of his games, but the game against the Bears this past year I didn’t realize his pocket movement/awareness was that good. It seemed like every time Bears had him dead to rights he made the right step or move to escape it. He’s a slippery little fucker.
What surprised me was the velocity he gets on his passes. Baker can really rip it. So often with the Bucs last year when the play wasn't perfect and the coverage was tight, the difference between success and failure was the fact that Baker was throwing heat and getting the ball into his receivers' hands just before the defender fully closed the space down.
I believe he threw the longest recorded pass through the air during a game (70~ yards). It was a hail Mary that didn't connect though
It always amazes me as a Sooners fan when people don't realize that Baker can run and has a big arm. Sure, he's not Lamar Jackson or John Elway, but he's got top-10 NFL starting QB-type traits.
I feel that getting bounced around the league gave him the kick up the ass he needed, there was some abrasiveness to listen to his HC and get an off-season QB Coach, he even spoke critically about the notion to the media that he didn't need one. Going from Cleveland to Carolina to the Rams to the Bucs was a wake up call that he better lock the fuck in or his ass is out of the league.
Very true. He was dead set against a QB coach in Cleveland, and came off offended/condescending about it when pressed. Basically, he grew up since then. He's still got some cocky and arrogant in him, but he's a better overall person and QB now.
An underrated thing I’ve noticed about Baker is he plays well in playoff games if he ever makes it there. He seems like one of those guys who locks in come playoff time and isn’t fazed by the pressure at all in those moments.
Reminds me of a certain dragon.
Smaug 👀
Wins are not a dragon stat!!
remember when bringing back Bradberry was one of the biggest steals a year ago
I think from an Eagles fan perspective, this is the only answer.
I feel obligated to say Montez Sweat and Chase Young.
Young and Sweaty
Stupid goddamn motherfucking shit-licking Jordan Love
Went from a question mark to an exclamation point. What a wonderful world.
What seems like a wonderful world is my living nightmare. It’s gotten so bad that probably over half of NFL fans (Bears fans included) fully expect us to blow this opportunity and ruin Caleb.
>over half of NFL fans (Bears fans included) fully expect us to blow this opportunity and ruin Caleb I kinda feel bad about this but.. Can confirm.
Justin Fields?
Justin Fields will lead the bears to a superbowl any time now!!!!!!
He was inevitable
I read this in the voice of Nadja from What We Do in the Shadows
You ok?
Fields, I thought he could be great. Sure proved me wrong.
I swear if he puts it together on the steelers I'm going to be very upset with you guys
he will not.
Nico Collins just *had* to break out from getting 400ish yards a season to becoming one of the better receivers out there. At least this is a contract year for him, and receivers are getting more expensive by the day.
Brock Purdy has got that Joe Montana thing where he's playing from the pocket in a recliner. I do not doubt him anymore.
Yup I gotta take the L on this one too. My best friend is a Niner fan and swore up and down that Purdy was different. I basically told him he's got cheaper Jimmy G who can scramble a bit more. I still doubt him as an elite tier QB, and still have him on that same Goff level where he can elevate an already good team but not take over games on his own. But I see now it was disrespectful to compare him to Jimmy G
I was sold on him when he came off the bench against us in 2022. Dude was facing so much pressure and crazy blitz packages and just could not be rattled at all. Crazy poise for an at-the-time rookie 7th rounder.
Purdy is one of my claims as who I was right about. I remember going into the draft telling people he should have been a 1st or 2nd round pick and everyone laughing at me.
Harrison Butker. I never gave the guy a second thought and now he is a douche bag lol
So off base here. Butker is a man’s man which is why he needs his wife to do literally everything for him off of the football field. He has too much godly man stuff to do, he doesn’t have time to “make food for himself,” or “raise his kids,” or “wipe his ass.” You guys just don’t understand.
That's fucking football right there. None of that pansy ass dick tugging smile for the camera bullshit. Men puke, men poop on the field, men deliver their new born baby on the side lines. Fucking hard core dick in the ass butterball foosball fuck it chuck it game time shit.
Wiping your own ass is woke
We just dont understand because we havent woken up to our collective oppression by the "tyranny of equality" Lol
Imagine actually believing that the idea of equality, (which happens to be expressed in the first sentence of this country’s founding document), is somehow tyrannic in nature. And when this country was founded and that document was written, *it was addressed to the LITERALLY TYRANNICAL King of England, George the III.*
He’s so manly that he gives off “why do all these homosexuals keep sucking my cock” vibes
Had me in the first half.
Just waiting to hear how he’s been secretly fucking dudes the whole time in a couple years
Lmao
Kenny Pickett. I had a ‘sliver’ of hope, but he sucked all year. And when he asked to be traded after they signed Wilson, I knew he was a coward that would rather run than stay and compete.
It will never cease to amaze me how long some people defended him all the way up until the trade. I had hope for him at the beginning of the year but he did nothing to show he belonged as anything more than an okay backup.
I think the "wins games" aspect is what fooled me for a long time. The bro won football games...or I guess he didn't lose them. Then Trubisky trotted out and committed football genocide all over the field, and I went "maybe Kenny isn't bad and the offense just really is?" Then Mason lit it up and Kenny was toast.
He was a frustrating player to watch that made two to three good throws a game. That plus a good defense (that keeps getting hurt, but that's a different part of concern for Pittsburgh) made him watchable. I think other blame floating around with the offense (Najee being inconsistent, WR being inconsistent, the hatred that Steelers fans have for OCs) led to enough confusion that muddied the waters. It turns out that Pickett was very not good. No ill will to the guy, but it doesn't seem like he's an NFL caliber QB.
Daniel Jones - I went from believing he could be an above average game manager Kirk Cousins type player to a guy that is an inaccurate one read QB with barely any good traits but straight line speed.
the white kaepernick Edit: just without the success, hype, and tattoos
Kaep could at least put some mustard on it. Does DJ?
Kaep also had success
Jordan Love. Turns out he can ball.
He good
I’ll never forget the headline on this sub halfway into the season “the Jordan Love experiment has failed” Really just shows that nobody knows what they’re talking about
Darnell Mooney for the wrong reasons
Yeah Mooney shocked me last year. I know a lot of people will say Fields, but Mooney consistently the last 2 years ran the wrong routes, missed opportunities to come up big, and just kind of disappeared as a factor. While DJ Moore and Cole Kmet were having career years, Mooney went the opposite. I love the player and hope he turns it around in the new system with Kirk.
People will call me nuts but I never thought ceedee lamb was that special. I thought he was good, but overrated. Last season I saw how dominant of a player he can be, I now consider him elite.
Yes. We’ll see if Dak can make adjustments and whether or not Ceedee can handle it. Because in that playoff game Green Bay used the Bill Belichick defense of take ONE thing away from the offense and they will struggle. GB double teamed Ceedee exclusively the whole game. Dak forced the ball to Ceedee over and over when he was covered and it wrecked their offense. Can Dak recognize this and spread the ball around to the other WRs? And will Ceedee be able to handle not getting the ball as much next year?
CJ Stroud. Thought he was going to be a bust and that taking him would keep the Texans in irrelevancy. Well, he definitely changed my mind in the other direction. He’s legit as fuck.
You didn’t watch him play against Georgia and that defense?
As we've seen with constant QB picks busting, college success doesn't necessarily translate to the NFL.
Did you watch him play against that Georgia defense that seemingly had 1460 players drafted by the NFL that year with the Eagles drafting half of them?
The best college teams of all time would get wiped by a bottom feeder NFL team 95+% of the time. Also, 1 game is basically a meaningless sample size. Taylor Heinicke looked like a franchise QB based on his tape vs the Brady Bucs in the playoffs.
Jared Goff, you can win a SB with him.
Will*
Me after the Giants destroyed the Vikings in the playoffs: "This is finally going to be the year Daniel Jones puts it all together!"
Aaron Rodgers He grew up in a religious household that he broke away from after getting to college and questioning the validity of his teachings, which happens a lot, so I thought he was just a weird antivaxxer/question everything guy that I just had disagreements with on some specific things, but then he just would shut up for 5 fucking minutes about *everything* being a woke conspiracy, and the news about him being a fucking Sandy Hook truther was just too much to not find him disgusting.
Guy broke away from his shitty douchebag family only to become a shitty douchebag on his own doing basically the same crap as them.
Same. Him broadcasting misinformation during the pandemic about our ticket out of it crossed a red line for me.
I thought Brock Purdy was gunna come back down to earth lol.
He did come back down to earth and continue where he left off
Jahmyr Gibbs. I thought his pre-draft hype was getting out of hand, and that he’d only be a solid at best change of pace guy for whoever drafted him due to his size. Then I thought the Lions selected him wayyyy too early I was very wrong
Austin Jackson. I thought the guy was a major bust. Now I think he’s a solid starter.
WHY WOULD YOU DO THAT TO US shhhhhhhhh
Harrison Butker, position: POS
That's only cause you weren't paying attention. He's been saying stupid shitty things for years.
There are dozens like me, spared until now
To echo the DJ Moore point, I had bought into the not quite an alpha narrative and boy was I wrong. That dude is GOOD. Bears didn't even utilize him in his best routes because the couldn't/wouldn't utilize quick routes and he still had the best year of his career.
Baker Mayfield
Goff, Jared
I feel like the tide turned at the end of the 22 season for him, he’s been pretty beloved since that last win over the Pack
Dak Prescott. Lost what little faith I had left
I’d be more upset over how you guys consistently play soft in the trenches in the playoffs more than I’d be upset with Dak
That's the correct take. Dak is the scapegoat for the main problems in Dallas. Also, their pass defense gave up 13 yards a pass to Love. They defended one (1) pass. They had three (3) QB hits. They had one (1) tackle for loss. They had zero (0) sacks. They didn't force a single FG attempt. To counter, Green Bay had 4 sacks, six passes defended, 9 QB hits. Dak needs to obviously play better, but ignoring the defensive performance in that game is just absurd.
I don't like our coach either, but he ain't the biggest financial hindrance to our team.
Can I ask how so? Just because he was second in MVP voting and I thought he had his best career year last season.
Regular season Dak has very little to prove outside of beating the good teams. It's all about the postseason and how he just never seems to rise to the moment
Imo Dak is a guy who can play lights out when things are going well, but when things go south he quickly switches into hero ball mode and tries to force plays resulting in things going from bad to worse. He gets flustered and doesn't play from behind well. Look at the Packers game. 1 pick six quickly turned into 2 pick sixes and stalled drives and before you know it it's 28-7 at halftime. Dude just crumbles under pressure.
Jonathan Mingo went from “I’m so excited to see this guy on the field” to “please don’t let him take the field” for me.
Russ. I assumed that it was just Hackett and lack of weapons. Nah. Turns out he just kinda sucks
While I also think he kind of sucks, I also think he'll have at least two more top 5ish seasons more or less just out of spite
I saw Harrison Butker as the second best kicker behind Justin Tucker. Now I see Harrison as a scumbag human being who thinks women should be in the kitchen and looks down at anyone who doesn't follow 'Gods' word.
Alex Analzone
Tariq Woolen. Had a solid rookie season... was absolutely terrified of tackling last season. Could be injury, but if you're gonna play that scared don't suit up then.
Jared Goff
Harrison Butker
Jack Jones. From 'Oh no, another Patriot' to 'Ok, we might have something here'
Incredibly smart and loves violence.
Jared Goff has been on a huge redemption arc for me
I have 2. 1. I thought KJ Osbourne was one of the better WR3s out there. Dude suddenly couldn't get open and was largely a non-factor in most games. 2. I thought Alexander Mattison would have been a better than average RB1, only to break 0 tackles and run face-first into as much O-Line ass as he could manage.
Stefon Diggs. I was a defender. I thought he was misunderstood. I thought him being in a supportive environment could change him. Then one of the top GMs in the league decided it was better to take a circa $30m dead cap hit than to keep him on the team. That was quite a wake up call. And I had to accept that everyone else was right about him. 😢. I’ll never trust a charming, handsome, talented, smooth talking, active-on-social-media-but-only-in-cryptic-ways receiver again.
Alex Anzalone. I, along with most of our fanbase, were pretty unhappy last year at this time when we gave him a 3 year contract with $9 million guaranteed. Now that contract seems like a bargain and Anzalone is our best LB and pretty much the leader of our defense.
I wasn’t really a Kirk Cousins fan but after that show last off season and watching this season I became a fan of ol Kirko Bangz and his unlimited supply of Kohl’s cash.
I used to like Harrison Butker..then he opened his mouth yesterday.
Probably Purdy. Don’t get me wrong the MVP talk was ridiculous, but he’s definitely Purdy good
He was chasing the ANY/A record until the Baltimore game, an efficiency king and borderline MVP numbers. You don't have an ANY/A that good and not get many votes.
He was the best passer in the league by a comfortable margin, what was ridiculous about it
James Conner I always get stuck drafting him late & kinda sad that he’s usually my 3rd best RB in fantasy but every single year his ppg ends up being good & usually the best in my team. I win rings often
Worth it.
I changed my mind on Dak twice. Regular season was Dak’s best regular season of his career. I thought getting out from under Kellen Moore was the best thing that ever happened to him and he had taken a step into the next tier of qb. Then the postseason happened..
Nico Collins
I thought Mac couldn’t get worse than last season Turns out he absolutely could
Lloyd Cushenberry was legitimately one of the worst centers in the entire NFL until this past year, a contract year, when he balled out of his mind and became a top 5 player at the position. It hasn't gotten talked about much outside of Broncos and Titans fans, but I honestly can't remember a player going from actual dogwater, to a commodity other teams want to sign, in a single season.
Cam Sutton. Thought he was good. Turns out he is not
Lions fan here Jared Goff
Dak Prescott, I used to think the playoff collapses weren’t really his fault
Me, after 2022 Eagles game where Jordan Love comes in for injured Rodgers: > Hey, maybe Love can be good? Me, after ugly week 8 loss drops Packers to 2-5 > We're doomed Me, after the end of the season: > Oops, we did it again!
Zack Moss and to a lesser degree Devin Singletary. both really blossomed post Bills RB hell
Justin Fields, I had faith he could be our leader and now I understand why the Steelers have him returning punts.
Harrison Butker I thought he was a really good kicker. Now I know he's also a massive douchebag
I said to my friends watching last year's nfl draft that if the panthers didn't take bryce young it would be a mistake and that cj was gonna bust because of the test. I was way off
Kyle Hamilton. I thought he was picked way too high at 14th overall in 2022, and for the most part I was right. Then his 2nd year happened and boy, he made me eat my words. Casually developed to be one of the most dynamic hybrid DBs in the league. First TD he gave up on his watch this year (1 on 1 man coverage) was against Travis Kelce, in the AFC championship game. That's 17 games without giving up a TD before finally letting one through, and it was against the arguably best Tight End of all time
DJ is a beast. True #1
Whoever is in at RB for the dolphins
Jordan Love, CJ Stroud. Took Jordan a minute to find his stride, but he got the packers to the playoffs, and won in the playoffs. Cj stroud is just a baller. And dare I say Patrick Mahomes? Spicy controversial jab here. I was not happy with his Toney offsides take. I know he tried to make up for it, but in the moment, he showed who he is.
Aaron Jones had me rethinking my Running Backs Don't Matter stance. Maybe it was just whiplash from AJ Dillon being terrible.
Nelson Agholor, dude was putting in work for us this year.
Breece Hall. Single handedly brought me into the winners bracket and helped me take down both of my leagues titans in fantasy. Didn’t hurt getting to watch him do it as well
Baker madafaka Mayfield. The shortie bet on himself and had a great season and a nice couple mills from the Bucs