2022 - The Hammonds Plan

[John Hammonds]

Every one of us on these boards is an armchair GM, whether we want to admit it or not.  So, I'm gonna embrace it, and give my best shot in answer to the question, So what would you do?

 

Chapter 1 - Paying the Price

The end of season collapse was awful.  And we can't just say that we're all coming back, and we're all gonna "just try harder".  Somebody's got to pay the price.  I think that somebody is Matt Eberflus.  And it's not just about the Jacksonville game.  I'm tired of doggedly only rushing four, because that's what the scheme dictates.  I'm tired of playing soft on 3rd and long.  I'm tired of not designing to take away their best player.  I don't hate the scheme.  I love the scheme.  I just don't like the way we're playing it.

New DC = Lovie Smith.  Now, before everybody crucifies me...  Lovie was Dungy's LB coach in Tampa.  He was the HC in Chicago running this scheme.  And he took it to the super bowl.  He knows how to make this defense run well.  So.  Let's let him.

 

Chapter 2 - Who We Don't Retain

OT Eric Fisher - I think the experiment bombed.  Glad it was only for one year.

WR TY Hilton - If he wanted to come back, I would give him a small offer, just to get his 300-odd yards.  Probably won't happen, though.

TE Jack Doyle - He's done.  And he knows it.  Happy trails, Jack.

CB Xavier Rhodes - He's no longer the best CB on the field.  It's finally the end of the road.

RB Marlon Mack - I feel terrible for him.  I think he still has a lot left.  But there's no room in this backfield, when JT takes all the snaps.

DE Ben Banogu - No, he's not a free agent.  But we've seen enough.

CB Travis Carrie - Age has caught up with him.

S Andrew Sendejo - And him too.  He's an enforcer.  That's pretty much all.

LB Matthew Adams - You had a good run for a 7th round pick.

T Sam Tevi - A mistake.  Walk away from it.

T Julie'n Davenport - Ditto.

 

Chapter 3 - Who We Keep

OT Matt Pryor - Zero sacks given up.  No, he's not a pro bowler.  He's a blue collar, lunch bucket guy.  Starter until we find someone better.

OG Mark Glowinski - I thought we would let him walk, but he played really well.  Reward him for it.

OG Chris Reed - And give that man a raise.

TE Moe Alie-Cox - He's not the greatest, but without Doyle, we need some consistency.

S George Odum - Quality depth and excellent special teams player.

WR Ashton Dulin - Make some good plays on special teams, and in the end zone.

LB Zaire Franklin - And give him a raise.

DL Tyquan Lewis - It was a shame how he went out.  Give him a chance to make good.

WR Zach Pascal - True, he regressed this year.  But he always shows up.  He always does what he's asked.  Tries hard.  Works hard.

DE Al-Quadin Muhammad - He's not starter material.  But he is talented depth.

DE Kemoko Turay - He produced sacks, even though his PFF scores were pretty bad.

DE Isaac Rochell - Can always use some depth.

 

Chapter 4 - Who We Go Get

DE Emmanuel Ogbah, Dolphins - Rumor is the Browns may franchise Clowney.  I'll offer Ogbah good money, and take his 9 sacks.

WR JuJu Smith-Schuster, Steelers - Instant starter opposite Pittman.

TE Zach Ertz, Cardinals - Getting a little old, but may still have chemistry with Wentz.  Needed, with Doyle retiring.

CB Kevin King, Packers - With Rhodes out, we need a veteran starter opposite Ya-Sin.  Has size and length to play this scheme.

QB Marcus Mariotta, Raiders - No, he will not start.  But he'll provide a veteran option in case Wentz doesn't improve.

 

Chapter 5 - Who We Draft

Round 2, Pick 47 -- Either Jaxson Kirkland, OT, Washington or Kaair Elam, CB, Florida

Round 3, Pick 79 -- Either Coby Bryant, CB, Cincinnati or Wan'Dale Robinson, WR, Kentucky or Jake Ferguson, TE, Wisconsin

Round 4, Pick 111 -- Either Jake Ferguson, TE, Wisconsin (he's ranked around 101) or Smoke Monday, S, Auburn

 

Chapter 6 - The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly

The good - With Ogbah, we add a productive starter to Ballard's beloved 8-man rotation.  Hopefully, this solves our problems not getting to the quarterback.

The bad - We did not provide an upgrade at LT.  Pryor can hold his own, and we hopefully have a guy for the future in Kirkland.  But we may be crossing our fingers on this one.

The ugly - Yes, I'm bringing Wentz back.  Eventually, we have to stop bringing in a new veteran QB every year, and try to improve the guy we got.  He's got one more year that counts against our cap, whether we have him or not.  I think he has it in him to play better than he did.  His worst stat was not the 62% completions or his 32 sacks or his 6.9 yards per attempt.  He had zero 4th quarter comebacks.  Zero game winning drives.  That's right, fans.  Zero.  Let's try and change that.  This is the bed we made when we traded for him.  We've got to try to find a way to sleep in it.

 

Don't know what you think about my plan.  It has its good bits.  And it has its bad bits.  And places where we're just crossing our fingers.

There's probably a good reason why I'm not GM of the Colts.

[MikeCurtis]

What I like

 

1) WanDale is exactly what the DR ordered for this offense......  I dont see him lasting til the 3rd round but he probably will be there in the 2nd round. He is electric. A young TY clone.

 

2) Ogbah would be an excellent tier 2 DE to pick up for the Colts, The more I think about it, we NEED to spend big at this lone FA pickup. There may be some nice choices here but many will be resigned.  We CANT blow this one

 

3) Mariota pick is a good one for this team. 

 

4) I like Zach Ertz for this team, but he seems to want big $$$

 

Overall

 

I am starting to agree on Fisher, there are many players that NEVER recover 100% with the injuries that he had.

He was a turnstile at LT

 

Also, Pryor had the highest grade on the line at LT for the Raiders game, we need more depth, but he played well

 

I am also thinking that we cant keep Glow AND Reed....  I think Reed played as well as Glow, and in some cases better

He would seem to be a cheaper solution as well.  With Pinter as a quality backup at the 3 spots, we would have quality depth

But thin

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[BigO]

Things I agree with

1. Getting Mariota and Ertz

2. Most of the releases and keeps

 

Things I disagree with

1. Please no Lovie Smith or Kevin King.

2. I would resign Fisher to a one year smaller contract hoping that another year out from the injury we would see improvement. Pryor was better than expected but a little scared to give him the starting job at LT. I like him as a backup and fill in for injuries

3. I would like to see an upgrade for Pascal

[NorthernColt]

Not much about this I'd argue. I'd be relatively pleased with this. Particularly the draft.

[DaColts85]

Lovie Smith…. No!!! 
 

Eric Fisher was not great but not nearly as bad as some would try and make it sound. Bring him back on a good deal and allow him to be healthy and he will be just fine. Still need a draft pick though to help with a long term fix. 
 

the guys you have us keeping seem legit. Obviously I would just add Fisher and the other guys you have leaving I would agree with. 
 

I do not understand the love with Ertz. Expensive and old plus not elite. We can go other routes for sure. JuJu is the same to me. Wants a pay day and is not worth it. Better options as well. I think Ballard might go for a mid tier WR but he wants to allow the young guys a chance. I believe he sees this with a lot of positions. 

[compuls1v3]

I think if Flus would just blitz more on 3rd and long, it might help our d get off the field.  I also think Ertz and Juju will want too much money, but I like everything else you said!

[Two_pound]

All in all this is pretty good. No to Smith-schuster though. We just need to attack more on defense. To be successful in the nfl you have to change up your defenses. For the past 40 years every team in the league knows where to throw the ball on 3rd and long against the Colts. Nothing has changed, other than the coaches, players, and gm's, scouts, etc.

[John Hammonds]

Updates to the Hammonds Plan, 2 months after I originally posted

 

#1 - Per plan, Eberflus is out, and Gus is in.  We changed base defensive schemes without creating a requirement to make massive personnel changes.  Let's see if Kwity can play the LEO.  And if Darius' stats suffer with his new OLB duties.

 

#2 - Jack Doyle has retired, but no one else has announced yet.

 

#3 - Dolphins are not going to franchise Ogbah.  He's my Primary Target for free agency acquisition.  I want his 9 sacks added to our young DE group.  He's going to be expensive.  I don't care.

 

#4 - Secondary free agent target is a veteran WR to play opposite Pittman.  Amari Cooper, Christian Kirk, or Smith-Schuster (if necessary).

 

#5 - My draft projections have already been seriously shaken up.  Kirkland is returning to school, and I was disappointed in Ferguson in the combine.  If Jahan Dotson falls to 47 (he won't), we grab him.  Otherwise, it still looks like Elam.  I prefer Dulcich at TE, if we can get him in the 3rd round.

 

#6 - I always felt we would be obliged to ride the Wentz wave another year, whether we wanted to or not.  Looking like that's what is gonna happen.

 

#7 - The Plan never had a satisfactory solution for Left Tackle.  We either spend a lot of money bringing back Fisher even though he didn't play well, or we save our money and play the lunch pail guy, Reed, for a year, and cross our fingers it works out well enough for the year.

[DaColts85]

44 minutes ago, John Hammonds said:

or we save our money and play the lunch pail guy, Reed, for a year, and cross our fingers it works out well enough for the year.

I think you mean Pryor for LT. 

[John Hammonds]

21 minutes ago, DaColts85 said:

I think you mean Pryor for LT. 

Yes, Pryor.  My bad.