Danwillhor

December 17th, 2014 at 11:15 AM ^

The NFL is crazy come draft time. Hype, verticals, 40s, etc override what they know. What they knew was that he is 5-11 190 soaking wet and wearing boots, played in an hyper-spread offense and almost never made plays from a conventional standpoint. When he did it was the system giving him wide open WRs. Yet, Johnny Football the Money Man wooed the heads of guys paid to scout talent, lol! It's insane and why the draft is rarely logical until you hit the late 2nd round.

Danwillhor

December 17th, 2014 at 11:27 AM ^

but that's what is wrong with the NFL draft/scouting in the early picks. They often replace hype with logic. It's why the Steelers, Pats, etc always get a stud in the mid-late 20s. You can always count on 10 teams making blatantly stupid decisions in the 1st round.

HipsterCat

December 17th, 2014 at 11:45 AM ^

Somebody always falls in love with a guy, trades up and takes him really high (or higher than expected). Some times its worth it(Julio Jones), most of the time it isnt (RG3). I think its more of the "win now" mentality that most owners seem to have, coaches in the NFL don't often get much time to fix rosters and elevate the talent level.

Those teams that dont seem to make mistakes are just able to cover for their draft misses with their all pro qbs, like the Pats or Steelers. They have also been running basically the same systems for years now and so even if a guys isnt the best player, they are usually assignment sound at least.

Dubs

December 17th, 2014 at 12:14 PM ^

I think most are obsessed with finding "the next guy" when they're ignoring the main components that make a great QB:  accuracy, arm strength, cerebral/intelligence, mobility (either in pocket or just pure speed).  If you can do two of those things very well, you can be successful in the NFL.  I look at Manziel, and I don't think he does any of those things exceptionally well.  His greatest attribute is easily his ability to improvise, but that is probably the least important trait for a QB to have in the NFL.  Hell, you could make the argument that the mental aspect of being an NFL QB is the most important trait you can have (and is also the hardest to scout), and I think that was always Manziel's most troublesome issue.

I'm friends with several Browns fans who make excuses for him constantly, my favorite of which is:  "the kid likes to have fun.  Don't tell me you didn't or wouldn't do stuff like that when you were 22 years old."  And I'm like "yeah, but I wasn't drafted in the 1st round of the NFL draft, either."

Most teams are just obsessed with getting ANY quarterback because they need one, regardless of how good the prospect is.  Some get Eli, Big Ben, or Rivers...some get JP Losman.

mGrowOld

December 17th, 2014 at 11:40 AM ^

Don't forget us Browns fans.  I was as caught up in the hype as anybody and thought our QB savior had finally arrived.  What was amazing was the amount of expectations around the city last week and the stadium on game day and how fast and how far they fell after watching whatever the hell THAT was last Sunday.  

What made we want to hit things though were the idiot fans (usually women) who were on the jumbo tron in the second half with their Manzeil gear on (everybody had Johnny Football gear on it seemed) making that stupid money sign as we were getting killed and he was playing like absolute dogshit.  It was like they hadnt yet clued in on the fact he was stinking up the joint.

Can he get better?  Sure but like you pointed out- gonna be hard to get him to grow and put on weight between now and Sunday that's for sure.

mGrowOld

December 17th, 2014 at 12:14 PM ^

Necessary?  No.  Accurate? Yes.

I was there dude and time and time again, right after something horrible happened on offense, the in-stadium camera crew would focus on some semi-attractive women who would seemingly ALWAYS smile and make that stupid money sign to the camera once she noticed she was on the Jumbotron.

It's kinda cute when he/they do it after a touchdown.  It's fucking embarrassing as hell when it's done right after Johnny gets sacked.

Danwillhor

December 17th, 2014 at 12:15 PM ^

as a Lions fan I'll admit I wanted a Curry over Matthew Stafford one year and he's out of the NFL now. I just really didn't like Stafford's time at Georgia. Another year I thought a CB named Bryant Westbrook was our best pick since Barry haha. I'm not saying I'm any better, I'm saying I'm not being paid to scout these guys and be wrong. Now older I can see these guys come up from HS so it's a bit easier to know who is what based on what you see & know about CFB. As for JM's first game, it was bad bad bad but I won't write him off yet. I would be embarrassed by those fans, though. Much like when I see a UM fan point the #1 on TV when losing to Nebraska by 30 ha. I just lower my head.

Danwillhor

December 17th, 2014 at 11:35 AM ^

but even before the season, if I were a betting man and had a gun to my head I'd have bet that he's a certified "bust" by year 4. I feel even stronger about it now and I'm truly not looking too much into one game. It's a glaring case of scouts allowing hype (sometimes a crazy owner) to overcome what they know. They have film and measurements on the kid. Repeated behaviour, etc. Yet, "he's still there at 20, guys!!" kicks in. You have the media wanting a big news splash pick, etc. So, they take a guy they wouldn't take in the 5th on a normal day in the 1st. Cleveland wasn't the only that would have done it, too. That's the funny/crazy part.

aplatypus

December 17th, 2014 at 11:50 AM ^

Oh dear, the sky is falling. 

I'm not going to bother trying to list great QBs that were really bad in their first few games or even a whole season in the NFL because it would take too long. 

I don't like Manziel at all, don't think he's very good, and have very little expectations if any - but acting like he (or any rookie) is a bust becuase of one game is really dumb. 

Danwillhor

December 17th, 2014 at 11:09 AM ^

but there is plenty of time and the draft is crazy. When they hear one sorry about him doing "this" or not doing "that" it's up in the air for anyone not a top 5 lock. He could go 15th or 115th due to game tape. When football is over on all levels and the only thing to do is scrutinize every word & play, he has some landmines out there I'd be concerned about.

Tater

December 17th, 2014 at 11:35 AM ^

Uh, gee: must be correct, becauseTodd McShay is THE AUTHORITATIVE SOURCE for all things NFL draft.  

Sorry, but Funchess' performance this year doesn't rate first round consideration.  I truly doubt that any NFL GM is going to risk his first round pick, especially one as high as 15, on "potential."  I'm more amused that a guy who does this for a living rates Funchess 15th in what is supposedly a good year for the draft.

Magnus

December 17th, 2014 at 12:01 PM ^

I don't think he would fall to the 5th round, but I think #15 is too high for him. To me he seems like a guy who should be picked no higher than the late 20's. I think he's a move guy for a team that already has an established in-line tight end, kind of like the Aaron Hernandez to the Patriots' Rob Gronkowski (although hopefully not EXACTLY like Aaron Hernandez).

Moe

December 17th, 2014 at 11:16 AM ^

Click on the three dots (. . .)  on that tweet.  click "embed tweet" and then copy the text on the tweet.  Swich to plain text editor, paste in the text, switch back to rich text editor, and send away.

Edit: For some reason it doesn't work on this tweet.  I wonder why?  But that way above is the way to do it.

Farnn

December 17th, 2014 at 11:17 AM ^

So a team that has an issue with WRs not getting seperation is going to spend a first round pick on a large WR who doesn't get great seperation?

WorldwideTJRob

December 17th, 2014 at 11:50 AM ^

Never said you could just looking at it from a GM's perspective. I think we're jaded a little bit by the fact that the team had a bad year. There must be something that scouts and front office personnel see in Funchess to constantly place him in the 1st rd. Despite his subpar season




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