Disappointed in McCluster

[Hammock Parties]

Bla bla bla, he's a playmaker, he has two touchdowns already, whatever.

He has seven catches for 93 yards. 1/3 of that yardage came on one play. At least two of those are screen passes I believe.

That ****ing sucks.

This guy needs to be a threat as a WIDE RECEIVER. He hasnt made a single play down the field. I'm not even talking 20 yards. How about 10? How about coming off the line, putting your foot in the ground, getting open and giving Cassel a target?

I'm not willing to accept the idea that Cassel is so god awful he makes all our wide receivers look terrible.

McCluster hasn't done shit yet. And he was utter garbage in Indy.

Don't buy any of his ****ing t-shirts.

[Hammock Parties]

He has tremendous acceleration and ability to change direction on a dime

Which does him actual jack shit on the field of play, because he doesn't make people miss.

[Hammock Parties]

he has to continue to learn how to run the entire route tree

Why do people say dumbshit stuff like this?

He's a RB.

Not a WR.

His career as a WR, including learning route trees, is ****ing dead.

But in the last few games, I think we all saw a spring in his step that we hadn't seen before.

A spring in his ****ing step?

Does that include his 7 touch, 25-yard performance against the Packers?

FYI, the holes he was running through against Denver were gigantic. He never made anyone miss.

[chiefzilla1501]

Originally Posted by Han Solo

Which does him actual jack shit on the field of play, because he doesn't make people miss.

That's a complete load of shit. He can absolutely make people miss because he has a tremendous ability to quickly cut and change direction. Those clips above show several instances where he makes those rapid, subtle shifts and slides into creases many RBs can't. His 3-cone in the combine were stellar.

The problem is that he needs space. That's different from a guy like Charles, who can work regardless of whether you give him space or not. Because he's not going to break many tackles. Yes, he has his limitations. He's not going to be an elite player. But there's most definitely the upside that if you have a coach and a QB who know how to get him the ball in space, he could be lightning in a bottle sporadically throughout the game.

[milkman]

Originally Posted by chiefzilla1501

He's not just a guy. He has tremendous acceleration and ability to change direction on a dime (evidenced by his terrific 3-cone time in the combine). Is he an elite player? No. I don't care who he compares to. I just want him to be a player that positively contributes to this team. Frankly, I don't know that anybody really knows what that role should be... yet.

The problem isn't that he doesn't have ability. It's that we've only seen it in flashes, and he has a ways to go before he shows he can do it more consistently. He has to protect the ball better, he has to continue to learn how to run the entire route tree, he has to get better awareness as a receiver, and he has to be smarter about what moves he uses to set up the next move. And I don't feel like he had quite the spring in his step after his injury until later in the year. I don't know if that was hesitation or just recovery. But in the last few games, I think we all saw a spring in his step that we hadn't seen before.

http://www.nfl.com/videos/nfl-fantas...ster-16-yd-run
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B76nh3VOChc
http://www.nfl.com/videos/nfl-fantas...ter-49-yd-pass

Again, he's got a long way to go, but it's ridiculous to say the upside isn't there. The problem is, in KC, there's not really a place for him. If the Chiefs didn't have Breaston and had more of an Adrian Peterson type runner, I might see his place. But they don't. So frankly... I don't see his place on KC in 2012.

What we saw, the only damn thing we've ever seen, is the spin move.

I don't give a rat's ass what he did at the combines in the cone drill, or other drill, I see what he's done on teh field in 2 years as a Chief, and all I see is "just a guy"

**** the combines.

[chiefzilla1501]

Originally Posted by BossChief

Truth is, he isn't as good as some think nor is he as bad as others say.

I firmly believe that once he isn't a priority for defenses to prepare for and we have a quarterback that can stretch defenses, he will excel in a similar role to what Dante Hall played for us, though maybe more versatile...but less elusive.

This is exactly the way I see it too. Line him up as primarily a slot receiver, motion him around like you would with Harvin, and find a way to get him the ball in space.

The problem is, if I have to choose between Breaston and McCluster, I'm picking Breaston 9 times out of 10. Unless McCluster shows serious improvement. That's more a credit to Breaston than that is a knock on McCluster.

[milkman]

Originally Posted by chiefzilla1501

That's a complete load of shit. He can absolutely make people miss because he has a tremendous ability to quickly cut and change direction. Those clips above show several instances where he makes those rapid, subtle shifts and slides into creases many RBs can't. His 3-cone in the combine were stellar.

The problem is that he needs space. That's different from a guy like Charles, who can work regardless of whether you give him space or not. Because he's not going to break many tackles. Yes, he has his limitations. He's not going to be an elite player. But there's most definitely the upside that if you have a coach and a QB who know how to get him the ball in space, he could be lightning in a bottle sporadically throughout the game.

You are a mental midget.

Whe he has ever made anyone miss?

He had space in the last three games, and he didn't make a ****ing soul miss.

[Rasputin]

Originally Posted by BossChief

Truth is, he isn't as good as some think nor is he as bad as others say.

I firmly believe that once he isn't a priority for defenses to prepare for and we have a quarterback that can stretch defenses, he will excel in a similar role to what Dante Hall played for us, though maybe more versatile...but less elusive.

A big reason I like him is because I want to see him get a chance to prove most wrong. I don't think he is as good as I'd like him to be yet I know he aint that bad and has value to help our team win games and also make defenses be accountable for him on the field opening up others on the field.

[Hammock Parties]

Originally Posted by milkman

You are a mental midget.

Whe he has ever made anyone miss?

He had space in the last three games, and he didn't make a ****ing soul miss.

I saw him do it once, on like a 7-yard run against Denver.

[Hammock Parties]

Originally Posted by KC Tattoo

make defenses be accountable for him on the field opening up others on the field.

He isn't opening anyone up.

You can find a scab on the street to do what he does.

There is an army of unemployed, 5-7, 170 pound failed college RBs who could do what DMC does.

[RealSNR]

Remember after the 2001 season when Vermeil brought in all these college sprint and track stars to compete at WR in the hopes that those physical measurables and agility would translate onto the football field?

I see McCluster as one of those guys only he played a lot of football in college, so he has a sizable knowledge of the game.

But that's about it. That knowledge hasn't given him more than the one dimension we need on this football team.

[Rasputin]

Originally Posted by milkman

You are a mental midget.

Whe he has ever made anyone miss?

He had space in the last three games, and he didn't make a ****ing soul miss.

He is the last Chief to score a touchdown. That doesn't mean anything, but one touchdown won the last game of the season and it happened to be a McCluster run. Kind of funny isn't it?

[chiefzilla1501]

Originally Posted by milkman

What we saw, the only damn thing we've ever seen, is the spin move.

I don't give a rat's ass what he did at the combines in the cone drill, or other drill, I see what he's done on teh field in 2 years as a Chief, and all I see is "just a guy"

**** the combines.

That's ridiculous. I don't take too much stock in bench and 40 times, because quickness and power can be defined in many ways. But agility is agility. You don't get that kind of a 3-cone time unless you have a tremendous ability to change direction.

Those videos show clearly that McCluster has an extremely rapid change of direction, and the ability to very quickly accelerate out of those shifts. His ability to do those things isn't normal. They're definitely very good. In many ways, we've gotten a little spoiled by Charles. Because he's so good, we forget that he was doing some magical things behind a subpar offensive line that few RBs would be able to do. McCluster isn't Charles and never will be, but that doesn't mean he can't one day be an effective football player.

[milkman]

Originally Posted by chiefzilla1501

That's ridiculous. I don't take too much stock in bench and 40 times, because quickness and power can be defined in many ways. But agility is agility. You don't get that kind of a 3-cone time unless you have a tremendous ability to change direction.

Those videos show clearly that McCluster has an extremely rapid change of direction, and the ability to very quickly accelerate out of those shifts. His ability to do those things isn't normal. They're definitely very good. In many ways, we've gotten a little spoiled by Charles. Because he's so good, we forget that he was doing some magical things behind a subpar offensive line that few RBs would be able to do. McCluster isn't Charles and never will be, but that doesn't mean he can't one day be an effective football player.

Big ****ing deal, he's agile when competing against ****ing cones.

If it doesn't translate to the football field against athletic and fast defenders, and it doesn't for McCluster, what he does against ****ing cones doesn't mean a goddamn thing.

He's a one trick pony, and the defense knows that one trick.

[Hammock Parties]

Originally Posted by KC Tattoo

He is the last Chief to score a touchdown. That doesn't mean anything.

Thanks. We know. Shut the **** up now.

[chiefzilla1501]

Originally Posted by milkman

You are a mental midget.

Whe he has ever made anyone miss?

He had space in the last three games, and he didn't make a ****ing soul miss.

In the last 3 games, he set up touchdowns many backs won't make in space because of his ability to accelerate quickly through creases. In the youtube video, you see plenty of instances where he uses a very sudden change of direction to send the defenders off balance. The kick return against San Diego is one of the classic underrated examples. If you actually pay attention to the move that sprung him free, it was a sharp change in direction where he plants sideways then immediately springs out of his plant.

"Making people miss' isn't just about going one-on-one with a guy and juking him out of his pants. McCluster's value so far has mostly been in the moves that set up openings, and his ability to accelerate in between creases in ways many backs cannot. Again, these are all flashes. And yes, he falls down at the slightest bit of contact. But in space, he has the ability to weave through creases that many RBs do not have. We just get spoiled because we're used to seeing Jamaal Charles does those same things on an elite level.