ia4goblue

December 14th, 2012 at 8:37 PM ^

I dont get this at all. Can we at least get him a few more looks on offense before we banish him to the CB depth chart? Enough with the mgokissup line of..."well I trust the coaches." They're human, they make mistakes, and not above criticism...see Al Borges. 

Bluemaizeaukee

December 14th, 2012 at 8:42 PM ^

The shortest cornerbacks to make the Pro Bowl were the quartet of Aaron Glenn, Antoine Winfield, Cortland Finnegan, and Dre Bly, all of whom measured in at 5'9".  Who knows, maybe Norfleet's got major hops.  But even if so, I think he would be more dynamic at the RB position, heck, even the slot -- why not.

jdub55

December 14th, 2012 at 8:49 PM ^

Man I don't get this. With Gallon and Dileo gone after next year we got nothing as far as slot recievers go. That along with being pretty loaded at cb assuming countess comes back strong and this looks like a head scratcher. I was really expecting big things from Norfleet as a kind of slot/change of pace rb/gadget player like you see a lot of nowdays.

Leonhall

December 14th, 2012 at 8:52 PM ^

Not like he was going to start at RB. People are acting like he rushed for 500 yards last year...and all this elusive talk I just didn't see either. The guy has good speed, it's not like he still can't do what he did this year, return kicks.

Leonhall

December 14th, 2012 at 9:03 PM ^

I think Hayes can fulfill the role people envisioned norfleet doing. Evidently the coaches don't plan on running many plays for a 5'6 slot type receiver. I think they want a back who doesn't leave the field much and a speedster or two at WR...

Magnus

December 15th, 2012 at 7:02 AM ^

What makes you say that?  Avery is going to be a senior in 2013, and nobody is established at slot corner behind him.  Hollowell hasn't lit the world on fire, and Michigan's best slot corner in my memory was Brandon Harrison, another guy who was about 5'8" and pretty darn fast.  Maybe Norfleet can play field corner, maybe he can play slot corner.  But I don't think he's guaranteed to be buried on the bench any more than the other corners who aren't currently starting.

snarling wolverine

December 14th, 2012 at 8:58 PM ^

I see people are having their usual freakout.  Keep in mind that 1) position changes aren't necessarily permanent (see our current starting QB) and 2) that the 2013 season is a long way away.

85Lee

December 15th, 2012 at 9:10 AM ^

Let's remember people like to talk about how the sec puts it's best athletes on defense. Maybe mattison seen something he liked and told Brady he thinks his 3rd string running back could be a playmaker on defense. I would be more concerned if they were moving him out of necessity, but right now they seem to have decent depth at both positions. That being said I think this is being done more because they see potential than to fill a hole.

Leonhall

December 14th, 2012 at 9:21 PM ^

Thinking the coaches are smart enough to know if Dennis is going to be the next deanthony Thomas or harvin, obviously he isn't that type of player, so lets just watch this unfold.

Shoopy

December 14th, 2012 at 9:37 PM ^

According to my grandma's son's son, my gut feeling is that he's no Vincent Smith when it comes to pass pro and he's all Vincent Smith in terms of bulk.

jmblue

December 14th, 2012 at 9:59 PM ^

OK, I just scanned the thread and saw Dennis Norfleet's name mentioned in the same breath as Charles Woodson, Percy Harvin, and De'Anthony Thomas.  

Really?  We are talking about a kid who couldn't crack the paper-thin depth chart at tailback this season and ranked 49th in the country in kickoff return average.   I'm not even convinced he's the long-term answer at kickoff returner, let alone anywhere else.  Some people here need to stop channeling their inner Fred Jackson and breathe into a paper bag for a couple minutes.  

 

MGoCJ

December 15th, 2012 at 8:22 AM ^

I was just thinking to myself that he didn't really impress me all that much with his kick returns. I'm sure he will get better at finding lanes, but he may not be a lock to keep the KR job. Also, wasn't Hayes the top all-purpose back coming out of high school? My guess is that Hayes is out shining him in practice.

Magnus

December 15th, 2012 at 8:27 AM ^

Norfleet did, however, have a better kick return average than Steve Breaston did as a redshirt freshman.  And Breaston was pretty good.  Also, Norfleet had to deal with the fact that kickers are kicking off from 5 yards closer than they did to Breaston.

I'm not saying people should be freaking out, just taking issue a little bit with you not being impressed by his kick returns.

graybeaver

December 14th, 2012 at 10:01 PM ^

This move isn't that surprising. He wasn't going to be a very good running back in my opinion. He's way to small for manball. Short corners can be very good in college. He has the speed and athletic ability to hawk a receiver. The question is does he have the intangibles and instincts? Most college QB's aren't accurate enough to exploit height like they do in the NFL. I wouldn't be surprised if he turns out to be a reliable DB.

Magnus

December 14th, 2012 at 11:47 PM ^

Whaddaya know, a guy who we were told on National Signing Day probably wouldn't play much running back in college...

...isn't going to play much running back in college.

This is totally out of left field, guys.

Magnus

December 15th, 2012 at 6:45 AM ^

"It doesn't utilize his skill set at all."

His skill set involves being really fast and agile.  I didn't realize that cornerbacks aren't supposed to be fast and agile.  I have just learned something brand new about this game you people call football.

Leonhall

December 15th, 2012 at 8:34 AM ^

Skill set is returning kicks and possibly punts, and honestly, while he had a nice return average, it's not like he lit the world on fire on kick offs either. It's funny how so many on here thought Dennis was going to be the next Darren sproles or harvin when he was primarily brought here to play special teams, this was discussed many times. People are so panicked because we possibly moved our 4th or 5th string running back. As far as those wanting him to play slot receiver, we aren't running rich Rodriguez type offense anymore.

michfan6060

December 15th, 2012 at 3:10 AM ^

The more I think about this the more I realize that Norfleet probably had a 6 inch growth spurt. Everybody calm down!