Orakpo is only a pass rusher. In most 3-4 schemes (think Pit, Bal, SD) the OLB is almost purely a pass rushing position. However, in Bellichick's 3-4, the OLB has a lot more "traditional" LB responsibilities (i.e. zone coverage). Romeo was like that, and I have a feeling Mangini will be like that, too. He wants an OLB that can do it all (blitz, tackle and cover), and that's not Orakpo.
Yep, yep..
A key point to look at is that with Wimbley manning the weakside, the Browns are going to be looking at a SOLB which means he's going to have to play the run well... And I'm not too confident about Orakpo facing the run...
Crabtree fits a West Coast Offense pretty good, and I am assuming that Mangini/Daboll will go the WCO route, as most Bellichick assistants do. Braylon is better in a more down-the-field offense. It wouldn't surprise to see Braylon traded and have Crabtree as the #1 of the future.
I'm pretty sure the Browns will be running the ole' Ernhardt-Perkins system that Weis ran in New England, which is why Quinn may have a leg up on the QB competition...
But you can pretty much tell the type of offense their going to run here by the offense side of the ball changes:
Trading Kellen Winslow and bringing in Robert Royal..
Releasing Kevin Shaffer and bringing in John St. Clair...
Bringing in Floyd Womack...
The Browns are shifting away from the more athletic, pass-blocking lineman to the stronger, run-blocking lineman..
They traded away one of their best receiving threats for picks and brought in another TE who can be a good in-line blocker...
The Browns are going to be a team that is going to play smash mouth football and use the run to set up the pass...
PIP said:
Yeah, exactly what a team full of garbage needs... The more and more I think about it, the dumber the idea becomes...
There's no rational reason to select a WR at #5 with a defense that is so damn poor as the Browns..
They don't have a stable QB situation... Don't have a stable running game either... Have only one decent defensive player that is worth his money.. So of course, the route that makes the most sense is drafting a WR ?
Their first 3 selections should be defensive players...
The Steelers don't have great receivers... Both Holmes and Ward (even when Ward was in his prime) were not elite receivers... The Patriots won 3 of these things with Troy Brown/Deion Branch holding down the spot... The Bucs won with Keenan McCardell and an old KeyShawn Johnson playing wideout... The Ravens didn't have great receivers either...
Sure, some teams have won it with offense.. Rams and perhaps the Colts (although Harrison was a non factor and the Colts defense picked up that year during the playoffs)-- But, if u look at teams this decade, most of them won due to defense... Patriots 3 times--Steelers 2 times--Bucs and Giants.. All those teams had top defenses...
We have to catch up on that side of the ball first... We have to have someone that can get pressure off the edge for this team...
All good and true points PIP... But something to think about...
This team, as you said, is not really that good of a team right now... If that's the case then why not go BPA? I mean with the state that the Browns are in it's not that bad of an idea to go BPA... I'm not saying be completely blind to needs but the WR spot is a need... The DE/OLB is a deep enough class, as is the safety spot, where we can can take advantage of it and still get a real good player in Round 2 (Larry English? :chuckles
...
This team definitely needs help defensively but if Curry is off the board at #5, I'm really not comfortable with any of the defensive players at #5... That's part of the reason I wouldn't mind Crabtree at #5..
The other part is that Braylon's future here is uncertain... He's due to be a free agent next year and depending on how contract extension talks go, WR could be an even bigger of a need... Getting a guy who can play opposite of Braylon and not only replace him, wouldn't be that bad of an idea... Not to mention, getting a possession guy like Crabtree and losing two of your best possession guys like JJ and K2 might not be a bad idea either...
I also agree with you that WR isn't a core position but I don't think you're giving Super Bowl teams enough credit for having good WR's that helped them get to that point... Heck, 3 out of the past 5 Super Bowl MVP's have been WR's... Now the difference is where the teams got those players but my point: WR's are becoming increasingly more important...
As long as we get a WR and DE/OLB with 2 out of our first 3 picks, then I'll be fine... I'm just worried about getting the best values at all of our picks as possible...
PIP said:
I want Curry, but I do believe Orakpo is a much better rusher than Curry... And just cause we signed average FA's to fill voids it doesn't mean we should neglect the defense when #5 comes around... There's one playmaker on defense on this team...
Even if a guy takes a year to develop like Mario Williams, I still want a major force coming at the QB from the defensive side of the ball...
WR's are a dime a dozen... We drafted a "can't miss" WR 4 years ago in the top 3... The Lions drafted what was supposed to be the best receiver to perhaps enter an NFL draft since Moss, and he's not made a damn bit of difference for his team...
You can get a quality WR down the road... Hell, this team can probably nab one in one of these FA years when the team is good enough to compete... But somebody has to get him that ball, and that situation hasn't even worked itself out yet... That's more important right now than anything else on offense...
I just don't see how this team can pass up a chance to get a potential difference maker on the defensive side of the ball... It just seems like that would be another Browns error in judgement...
All good points...
The only problem I have is that I don't see Orakpo as the sure shot you seem to think he will be... I know I'm on an island on this one with many people but I'm really concerned about Orakpo...
