Back to the NFL...Part Two

[WI wide body]

Okay, let's take that difference in size between CB's and receivers in another direction.

Since the Cb's appear (per some of the guys here) to be required to be 5' 11" speed burners with all those special skills why then does the NFL offensive minds not take advantage of it?

I would go looking at all the college basketball power forwards who can't make it in the NBA. Or maybe even some who could!

These 6' 5" to 6' 8" kids often already weigh 220 to 260 and they have to run up and down the court more than any football player ever travels. To play round ball they must have good hands and reaction time. And the way basketball is played today many of them are tougher than hell.

I would love to see those midget CB's trying to defend any one of a whole bunch of the power forwards in the NBA. Yes, the football guys could try to hit them and it might work with some of them. But for the most part, a guy like Paul Gadzurak (6' 9'' and tough as nails) would absolutely eat up any "one on one...bump and run" CB in the NFL.

I would use those giant wideouts until the defense was forced to go to a different scheme.

And if anyone doubts this should work, consider that the guy who set the all-time record for TD's by a TE and made the 2005 Pro-Bowl and who then caught about 90 passes the next season did not even play college football. Antonio Gates liked basketball better than football so he went to Kent State where he led them to the Elite Eight and he averaged over 20 points and 9 rebounds a game! NEVER played football.

But when he was told by the NBA guys that he was a "tweener" and might have trouble he simply switched to the NFL and became an all-pro.

How many more like him are out there but the NFL coaching brains get an original thought about as often as Mule!

[Sonic dB]

former DB here....it requires quite a bit of flexibility and athletic ability to be in a full backpedal, plant and turn and run with the receiver... The offensive receiver always has the advantage because he knows where he is going.. the defender needs to be quick out of the break and be able to move his hips and have his head on the swivel to cover the WR... most guys 6-5 and 6-6 while may be built for speed (ala Moss) do not possess the necessary cat like quickness to be able to make those changes full stride out of the backpedal. For that matter once a guy gets over 6-1 or so, it becomes increasingly difficult to be able to make those adjustments full stride....not saying it is impossible but is one of the main reasons why most good DBs are 6 foot or under...

one other thing: playing good DB is an art form...and requires a sensibility to read the WR as well as have you head on a swivel and be able to read the QB and the play itself... it is a challenging positions to which the WRs have all the advantages and you dont... most guys who commit to the position are quick minded and quick footed-bodied....maybe that is why the lanky WR types dont make it over as DB

to get to your point on this post...some TEs such as Gonzales or Gates were former bball players...also Moss was good prep bball player as were a few others... the key to a good WR is being diciplined to run the routes with precision and timing, not sure if most bballers can make that transition easy although some of them do possess the athletic ability to do it.

[Mule]

Yeah but you only played the position, WIWB has this all figured out.

[Red Baron]

Originally Posted by Sonic dB

former DB here....it requires quite a bit of flexibility and athletic ability to be in a full backpedal, plant and turn and run with the receiver... The offensive receiver always has the advantage because he knows where he is going.. the defender needs to be quick out of the break and be able to move his hips and have his head on the swivel to cover the WR... most guys 6-5 and 6-6 while may be built for speed (ala Moss) do not possess the necessary cat like quickness to be able to make those changes full stride out of the backpedal. For that matter once a guy gets over 6-1 or so, it becomes increasingly difficult to be able to make those adjustments full stride....not saying it is impossible but is one of the main reasons why most good DBs are 6 foot or under...

one other thing: playing good DB is an art form...and requires a sensibility to read the WR as well as have you head on a swivel and be able to read the QB and the play itself... it is a challenging positions to which the WRs have all the advantages and you dont... most guys who commit to the position are quick minded and quick footed-bodied....maybe that is why the lanky WR types dont make it over as DB

to get to your point on this post...some TEs such as Gonzales or Gates were former bball players...also Moss was good prep bball player as were a few others... the key to a good WR is being diciplined to run the routes with precision and timing, not sure if most bballers can make that transition easy although some of them do possess the athletic ability to do it.

I read a post similar to this somewhere before, I just can't remember where

[MikeSid]

I think maybe the player's desires have a little to do with this. You think Shaq could have had a NFL career based on his size and atheleticism? Sure. But I'd venture to guess he picked a sport that he wanted to pursue and I'd bet that decision was made by him more in early childhood than in...say... highschool or college.

So sure the NFL could exploit the height difference between receivers and cornerbacks and start recruiting basketball players out of college. But I think the NFL would only get those college players who weren't otherwise going to make the NBA. And sure there are a lot of those, but do they have the size, speed, and ability to take a hit without suffering a career ending injury? And do they want to play with a ball that isn't round?

In short there are lots of dynamics here that the "market" is more efficiently able to sort out than you or I.

[WI wide body]

Anyone notice the USA Today list of the High School All Americans who were chosen by the major colleges so far?

Of the top 6 wide receivers, one was 6' 3" one was 6' 4" and the rest were all even taller. And these are only high school kids.

Appears as tho the college coaches might have come to the same conclusion that I have.

[WI wide body]

Originally Posted by Mule

Yeah but you only played the position, WIWB has this all figured out.

Actually I played (long ago) wide receiver and LB. Us tough guys played both offense and defense way back then.

I did that just prior to watching Bart Starr win the first two Super Bowls. Gee Mule, too bad that you didn't have that experience huh?