The takes about Frey, Jedd, and Warriner sure seem reasonable... if true, this is scary- could JH have an Achilles heel? A bit too loyal to NFL offensive schemes and his friends?
I agree that those skills weren't exceptional. I still think he plays extensively his first year and gets paid well to do so after going in round 1. Given those likely outcomes, I'm not sure what purpose there would be in developing as an amateur instead of on the job.
Plenty of NFL 1st round safeties had less refinement (Calvin Pryor) or worse measurables (Kenny Vaccaro 4.63 40yd, Ha Ha Clinton-Dix 4.58 40yd). He's got comparable measureables to guys like Eric Berry and Earl Thomas. The physical tools are there and we've seen his ability to read plays. I think even if he apprentices for a year (which he won't have to) he'll do just fine. There's nothing to develop in college that he can't do on-the-job in the pros.
So much of our analysis depends on expectations. Fancystats and analysts all told us that the 2016 team was a CFP contender before the first kick of the season. The play on the field ended up showing that, while highly skilled and dangerous, this team was not quite able to hang with their most talented peers.
I'm disappointed that things didn't go our way, but watching that offense struggle was enough to keep me from feeling that we "wasted" any opportunity any more than any game is a potential win opportunity until it isn't. I think an A grade in coaching would require that we not lose 3 games at the end of the season regardless of expectations.
Think about next year's schedule and expectations. There seems to be a widely held belief that we will take a step back next year as our experience graduates and heads to the NFL and the youth movement begins. This has lots of folks worrying about 4 or more losses (again comparing to this year). When I look at the scheule, though, I still see only four games that look tough (Florida, Penn St., Wisc, and OSU) and even those seem like coin flips.
I guess what I'm saying is, if we go 10-3 next year, with lower expectations, is that an A grade or will people be getting frustrated that the Harbaugh machine isn't progressing?
Recent Comments
The takes about Frey, Jedd, and Warriner sure seem reasonable... if true, this is scary- could JH have an Achilles heel? A bit too loyal to NFL offensive schemes and his friends?
I agree that those skills weren't exceptional. I still think he plays extensively his first year and gets paid well to do so after going in round 1. Given those likely outcomes, I'm not sure what purpose there would be in developing as an amateur instead of on the job.
Plenty of NFL 1st round safeties had less refinement (Calvin Pryor) or worse measurables (Kenny Vaccaro 4.63 40yd, Ha Ha Clinton-Dix 4.58 40yd). He's got comparable measureables to guys like Eric Berry and Earl Thomas. The physical tools are there and we've seen his ability to read plays. I think even if he apprentices for a year (which he won't have to) he'll do just fine. There's nothing to develop in college that he can't do on-the-job in the pros.
So much of our analysis depends on expectations. Fancystats and analysts all told us that the 2016 team was a CFP contender before the first kick of the season. The play on the field ended up showing that, while highly skilled and dangerous, this team was not quite able to hang with their most talented peers.
I'm disappointed that things didn't go our way, but watching that offense struggle was enough to keep me from feeling that we "wasted" any opportunity any more than any game is a potential win opportunity until it isn't. I think an A grade in coaching would require that we not lose 3 games at the end of the season regardless of expectations.
Think about next year's schedule and expectations. There seems to be a widely held belief that we will take a step back next year as our experience graduates and heads to the NFL and the youth movement begins. This has lots of folks worrying about 4 or more losses (again comparing to this year). When I look at the scheule, though, I still see only four games that look tough (Florida, Penn St., Wisc, and OSU) and even those seem like coin flips.
I guess what I'm saying is, if we go 10-3 next year, with lower expectations, is that an A grade or will people be getting frustrated that the Harbaugh machine isn't progressing?