[Ray Ray19]

Originally Posted by Beerfish

Ray Ray, be please be honest here. Do you not watch Sanchez actually play the game? Most of the horrble plays he makes are totally his fault. It doesn't matter who you have surrounding him when he is an innacurate passer, and very turnover prone.

I have been completely honest.

Don't ask me stupid questions about whether or not I watch the games. I've said it before, but for whatever reason it doesn't register with some of you Sanchez haters. By no means, have I suggested Sanchez isn't without fault, hasn't had his struggles, has not progressed the way we all hoped and thought he would, I most definitely agree, this part of his development to this point has been frustrating, but what I've always maintained, is that there are many reasons for this, and that is what I touch on time and time again, and they are all 100% valid. There are so many factors, one cannot make blanket assessments, blanket accusations, and make end all comments that a player sucks and that's it. Sanchez has shown in the past that he CAN be a very good QB, but he's been inconsistent. Winning 4 playoff games on the road is no easy task, not by a long shot, and those first two years, he displayed a confidence and a swagger that we should see in a #5 overall pick. But the last two years, a lot of things have gone wrong for the team and for him as a player, and having to deal with roster turnover at the skill positions as he has, now a new offense, injuries, etc, that is extremely difficult for any QB in the NFL. Timing is also a factor, timing of the season, of an opponent.

Look at a player like Flacco, look at his play the last several weeks, he too is a player that is struggling, yet because the team started fast, he gets a pass. Look at the last 3-4 weeks though, with the injuries the team has sustained, how very different it has been when compared to the Jets, the Ravens team has won, but they've played garbage competition, and they've NOT played well. The Jets have had to deal with injuries all year, and to this point, have played against very good teams. Things looked promising in the 2nd half of the Texans game, then the Colts game, and then most of the first Patriot game. Seattle is a brutal match-up for any team, the Jets were without their 2nd and 3rd RB's in that game, injuries continued to be a factor, they were not able to implement the game plan they've designed this year's team for.

People forget how young Sanchez is, his mistakes are still happening, but he's STILL a YOUNG player. The bottomline, I'm not ready to give up on the player, this shouldn't be construed as me ignoring that Sanchez has struggled, but I've seen the talent, we all have, he's put it on display, he's shown in flashes he can be a franchise QB's, but the mistakes continue to happen. I realize there should come a point where the team has to move on, but not after a season like this season, not with all the injuries, a new offense, all coupled with a youth movement and young players, i.e. Stephen Hill, Kerley etc. There was a reason why so many wanted the team to bring Braylon back, because he provided that #1 WR effect to the team, that ability to stretch the field and threaten defenses, Bray is no longer tha player, but the team hopes Hill can be and will be, he's just not there yet.

Are you happy with our Wr group when Holmes gets healthy?

I like the potential of Hill, a lot, but we need to be patient. Kerley has proven to be a nice #3 WR, who is now forced to playing a #2 role. I like Gates' upside, but again, another young player, still developing, but a lot of raw talent. The group needs to mature, and we could probably use a veteran boost at the position next year. Schilens plays hard, but he just doesn't give us what we had in Braylon, maybe Hill grows up this off-season and becomes a bigger factor. Holmes returns next year, and if he can mature, and get past his own issues as a selfish player, a Hill/Holmes tandem has a lot of potential.

Are you happy with out OLBs?

Absolutely not, I said in another post, that LB is probably the position needs the most attention this off-season, especially at OLB. We need a major upgrade from Pace and Thomas.

Are you happy with our ILBs?

Again, see above, LB as a whole needs an overhaul. I like Harris, like what I see in Davis, and even Dowtin has some ability. I think Mauga is valuable depth player. ILB is in a lot better shape than OLB.

Are you happy with our RB's?

I can buy the argument that Greene hasn't lived up to expectations, even that he's probably better served as a depth player or a #3 RB in the role he played behind Thomas Jones and LT the last three years before this season. He's serviceable, he doesn't suck, but I think he can still be an effective player. If McKnight and Powell don't get injured, we probably see a much better performance in the running game this year. In today's NFL, the one stud RB system is a rarity, teams these days need a rotation at RB, I actually think the talent we have now at RB is good, but they've been hurt, so we haven't seen this current group reach their potential. After not being a factor at all last season, Powell has at least shown flashes of potential this year. McKnight is a player with a ton of talent, but he needs to be on the field, he needs to be able to perform in blitz protection, that has been his problem and not being on the field in the role that the team likes with Powell. Finally, we saw a play last week in the Rams game where McKnight was a weapon coming out of the backfield in the passing game, I think Sparano wants to do more of this but McKnight has been dealing with a high ankle sprain.