Early evening bullshit: My 53-man roster prediction

[RealSNR]

UPDATED 08/25 after Preseason Week 3. Old prediction is here:

Spoiler!

DISCLAIMER: I'm only doing this as a mid-point review of the preseason. I know shit changes all the time. Also, I'm not a goddamn wizard. This is just my best guess. Cool your tits.

QB (3)-
Smith, Daniel, Bray

RB (4)-
Charles, Davis, Draughn, Gray

FB (1)-
Sherman

WR (6)-
Bowe, Avery, McCluster, Hemingway, Copper, Wylie

TE (3)-
Fasano, Moeaki, Kelce

OT (4)-
Albert, Fisher, Stephenson, Schwartz

OG/C (4)-
Allen, Asamoah, Reynolds, Hudson

DL (7)-
Poe, Powe, DeVito, Jackson, Bailey, Toribio, Lane

OLB (4)-
Hali, Houston, Jones, Zombo

ILB (4)-
Johnson, Jordan, Johnson, Diles

CB (4)-
Flowers, Smith, Robinson, Brown

S (6)-
Berry, Lewis, Demps, Abdullah, Hartman, McDougald

ST (3)-
Colquitt, Succop, Gafford

Practice Squad
Steven Baker, OT
Miguel Chavis, DL
Mike Catapano, LB
Rico Richardson, WR
Demetrius Harris, TE
Sanders Commings, S
Eric Kush, C
Braden Wilson, FB

Comments:

• Bray really hasn’t shown all that much in the preseason games, but just judging from Week 2 of the preseason, they don’t seem too worried about getting snaps for Stanzi to show what he can do. Even if he’s outplaying Bray in the preseason games, there’s simply no room on this roster for him. He’s also ineligible for the practice squad, and I doubt Reid and Dorsey want to take the risk of having Bray plucked off. Barring a sudden change in snap allotment in Week 3, it doesn’t seem to be an issue weighing on the mind of Reid. Good luck, Ricky.

• Yes, Baldwin is not on this roster. Where he goes I don’t give a shit. I still can't shake this awful feeling that Reid will keep him on the roster in spite of the recent report of him getting really impatient with Baldwin. I really hope that's not what happens, so I’m just going to go with what I’d like to see. Sorry I'm following my heart on this one. Again, I'm not a goddamn wizard.

• Bowe, Avery, McCluster, Copper, Wylie are likely set in stone. Hemingway is the question mark here at WR. Rico Richardson, Jamar Newsome, or even Tyler Shoemaker could just as easily make the roster. Personally, I just love how streaky Hemingway is when combined with his size; he looks and plays like a tall RB. When I saw him grab his one catch during the San Francisco game I thought it was Cyrus Gray who ran that slant for a second. I think he's the ideal guy to play in this offense.

• I guess Reid imagines Schwartz as the primary back up at RT, which I’m okay with. I’m just not sure if Schwartz is okay with it. We’re covered pretty well here in any case. Schwartz is incredibly useful depth with the ability to play either side at guard or tackle. Reynolds looks pretty good at guard, so I’m assuming Reid will want him around as well to provide some stability. Kush has a loooong way to go, so it’s the practice squad for him.

• I don’t see any challenges at the LBs except for possibly the last inside spot. Orie Lemon and Zac Diles looked like the same player last night, so I’m just going off of the depth chart. Diles gets it.

• Making room for Austen Lane on this roster is REALLY tough. I had to sacrifice immediate CB depth and a few rookies to the practice squad to fit him on the roster. It makes me uneasy to just plug him in there like that since he’s a bit undersized even as a passrusher on 3rd down. Also, he hasn’t done much in the preseason games. Training camp may not be enough, especially if he’s going to serve as another Wallace Gilberry for us—we need some real results to turn him into a specialist. In the end, I think he’s going to stick because SOMEBODY needs to serve as that passrusher on the defensive line. Jackson, Bailey, and Toribio sure as hell ain’t it, but I can’t see us cutting any of those three. Toribio played a LOT of snaps in the preseason games—way too many to make me think the team doesn’t view him as valuable to the depth chart.

• Our CB depth sucks. Our safety depth kicks ass. Thus, I have more safeties than CBs. Before you get on my ass, consider the 5th CB that would stay on this roster over somebody who could actually make a valuable contribution to the team. Agnew over Hemingway? Give me a break. Besides, we really only need four since the 5th CB rarely ever dresses on game day. If we get too many injuries, some roster moves can be made during the week to help out.

• It would be really nice if the team would just put Commings back at CB where he played in college, but they’re pretty adamant about him playing safety. But you know what Vermeil said. Can’t make the club in the tub. The practice squad for Commings is about the only way I can envision a solution to this logjam. This is just how I would deal with the situation since he was injured for the most crucial part of the offseason, and McDougald and Hartman both have proven that they deserve to stick around over a guy that would stay on the team simply because he was a draft pick. But then again, I don’t know what Reid is thinking, and nor have I seen these guys do what Reid has seen them do.

I changed stuff at WR, OG/C, DL, CB, and S. See the comments:

QB (3)-
Smith, Daniel, Bray

RB (4)-
Charles, Davis, Draughn, Gray

FB (1)-
Sherman

WR (6)-
Bowe, Avery, McCluster, Hemingway, Jenkins, Copper

TE (3)-
Fasano, Moeaki, Kelce

OT (4)-
Albert, Fisher, Stephenson, Schwartz

OG/C (5)-
Allen, Asamoah, Reynolds, Hudson, Kush

DL (6)-
Poe, Powe, DeVito, Jackson, Bailey, Toribio

OLB (4)-
Hali, Houston, Jones, Zombo

ILB (4)-
Johnson, Jordan, Johnson, Diles

CB (5)-
Flowers, Smith, Robinson, Brown, Cox

S (5)-
Berry, Lewis, Abdullah, Hartman, Demps

ST (3)-
Colquitt, Succop, Gafford

Practice Squad
Steven Baker, OT
Miguel Chavis, DL
Mike Catapano, DL
Rico Richardson, WR
Tyler Shoemaker/Josh Bellamy/Jamar Newsome (pick one)
Brad McDougald, S
Ridge Wilson, LB
Braden Wilson, FB

PUP:
Sanders Commings

Comments:

• I know this is all about keeping the best 53 guys possible, but position numbers DO have to dictate who you can and can not keep around. I've got four RBs here because A) Shit happens to running backs and B) I don't see another position that may be lacking in numbers (DL, for example) where there is a must-have valuable prospect. If you have an argument about that, keep reading, and I'll probably address your guy at some point.

• WRs. Okay, I have no ****ing clue what Reid's gonna do here, and neither do you. This is my best guess. I think the large amount of playing time that Hemingway got in Game 3 shows that the Chiefs are quite interested in him. His spot is a lock. Jenkins looked pretty good, and it's not his fault Daniel couldn't see him get open. The Chiefs have been blowing a lot of smoke up his ass, too. He sticks. It comes down to do you want 7 WRs? Is Wylie really that important to this team? He's the backup kick returner at both spots, and while he's got some wheels and seems to be a good fit for the offense, I'm not sure one can justify the small amount he'll be able to contribute. He'd be a weekly inactive for the most part. And hell, I could see Shoemaker/Bellamy/Newsome take his spot on the roster. I really could.

• And Copper will stick on this roster because **** you. You think he hasn't been in this position before, where everybody thinks Ashley Lelie/Verran Tucker/Jerheme Urban/Jeremy Horne/Shitdick McUndrafted is SOOOO much better? Copper does two things. He survives, and he cracks skulls on special teams. I can't wait to be right again about this one.

• Kush wasn't too bad last game, though he still needs a ton of work. Reid loves his offensive linemen, so we'll add Kush here. He can be a weekly inactive or something.

• I'm pretty confused about the back end of the defensive line as well. I'm pretty sure the 6 we have here are locks, but it would be nice to have a 7th guy. The problem is there just isn't anybody worth it. I took Austen Lane off because I realized he got on last time because of one day of beating the crap out of Eric Fisher in training camp. He's done nothing in the games, and didn't even take the field last night. At the beginning of the 3rd quarter, we forced a 3-and-out with the following 4-down linemen each play: Edgar Jones, Allen Bailey, Mike Catapano, Frank Zombo. That's right. Allen Bailey was the "big" of that group. The next biggest guy was Catapano, who we are apparently serious about playing DE instead of OLB. No Lane in that series, and no Lane in the rest of the game. So if anything, Catapano is the 7th DL here (weird to me, but whatever). I'm anticipating that he will be practiced squaded, though

• Diles made a play last night. Our LBs are set in stone 100%. I'll shave my own grandmother if this isn't the group we have against Jacksonville (barring injuries, of course)

• Holy shit we are BAD and really hurting at CB depth. I made the prediction yesterday that we'd get a guy like Jarrett Bush from the roster cuts of other teams, and I still hope we do. In the meantime, though, I'm going against what the current unofficial depth chart says and instead I'm listing Kennard Cox as a CB. That's what he played his entire NFL career, and it makes little sense for us to sign him just a week or two ago and then make him change positions to something we're LOADED at. So **** the unofficial depth chart. That's a mistake. Cox is by far the most suitable player for the 5th CB spot. Neiko Thorpe is terrible. Agnew... oh Agnew. Do I need to say anything more?

• Another game, another week of Sanders Commings still being injured. We can't realistically think this guy is worth a 53-man roster spot when he hasn't participated in a practice since May, right? I'm gonna go ahead and wager that he'll stay on PUP to begin the season, and after 6 weeks we'll have plenty of time to evaluate the roster as it stands at that point to see if we want to add him onto the 53 or the practice squad.

[OrtonsPiercedTaint]

Great, I don't know who Reynolds even is

[RealSNR]

Originally Posted by OrtonsPiercedTaint

Great, I don't know who Reynolds even is

Matt Reynolds.

Talk to Saccopoo if you want more information.

[OrtonsPiercedTaint]

Well, we'd all still like to see a super model blow you.

With the black out dot of course.

[O.city]

I actually like our safety depth

[LoneWolf]

Agree with everything but Copper making the team.

[RealSNR]

Originally Posted by LoneWolf

Agree with everything but Copper making the team.

That's okay. Terrance forgives you.

[O.city]

Sorry snr, but with the new special teams coach I dunno about copper

[O.city]

I would rather see Newsome than Baldwin at this piunt

[RealSNR]

Originally Posted by O.city

Sorry snr, but with the new special teams coach I dunno about copper

Is there a guy not on the roster who would be a more valuable contributor on special teams? Or is there a guy I'm missing who would help the team in other ways that Copper can't?

At the back end of the roster you either provide excellent roster depth and find yourself on the field quite a bit, or you're a special teams grunt. Preferably you do both. I'm looking at the practice squad and the list of remaining players and I just don't see the guy that provides that perfect balance.

We don't have a backup center, but Kush is prettay prettay bad right now. He's not ready to fill in during a real NFL game. I could see Neiko Thorpe as a 5th CB I suppose. There aren't really any other WRs that I think we need to keep for their potential down the line.

I'm pretty confident that Copper will still be on the roster.

EDIT: I suppose I could always be wrong about Baldwin. That's a distinct possibility.

[notorious]

Originally Posted by SNR

WR (6)-
Bowe, Avery, McCluster, Hemingway, Copper, Wylie

No Baldfail?

I love you.

[-King-]

I don't think our safeties suck. We have 4 guys who have started in the league at some time. Most teams have career backups or 1st year guys as depth. I'll happily take Demps and Abdullah as our backups.

[Hammock Parties]

Most WRs are useless with Alex, so Copper actually having some use on special teams is good for us.

[O.city]

I'm not sure draughn and gray both make it.

[RealSNR]

Originally Posted by -King-

I don't think our safeties suck. We have 4 guys who have started in the league at some time. Most teams have career backups or 1st year guys as depth. I'll happily take Demps and Abdullah as our backups.

Definitely. I love what we did with the position.

I'd be a-okay if Kendrick Lewis got his ass booted out the door, but it's pretty apparent right now that he's staying and probably starting. We'll just have to wait for his annual injury to see one of the better players step in.