[MIJB#19]

General Manager Notes: Training Camp 2090, decisions, decisions
So many fine players and 10 won't even be here for our first pre-season game.

First things first, right before training camp, two players got a last minute call to join our team. Rookie cornerback Adam Harmon somehow slipped through earlier, this 23-year old looks to have fine potential in zone defending (excellent even), interception skills, man to man defense and also has special teams potential. The other signing was tight end Sherman Bridges, 10th season veteran, mediocre blocker, questionable receiver (144 career catches for a guy with no route running skills), but he can play special teams and mentor Clay Gaynor, which the kid desperately needs.

Then we went to camp and afterwards asked the scouting staff to report on how much progress the youngsters on the roster showed. Well, we got some surprises on all ends of things. Let's break it down by position group.

Quarterbacks
40/40 no ch. Moe Sheldon (9th, 3rd with us)
20/40 +3/nc Brandon Bell (2nd)
30/35 +3/nc Francisco Farley (4th)
15/25 +2/-1 Carlton Mathews (R)
Our new offensive coordinator likes Bell's potential better than Farley's, but still has Sheldon about 3/100th ahead of Bell. Mathews was a bit of a lottery ticket, it's safe to say, he's projected outside our 53 men roster.

Running backs
55/55 no ch. Francisco Patter (4th)
35/35 no ch. Reggie Thongchanh (6th)
30/30 +1/-1 Braxton Szporluk (5th, 3rd with us)
25/25 no ch. Asher Ford (4th, 3rd with us)
Patter and Thong' once again, but the decision to be made is Szporluk or Ford as the third down back, with the loser a serious candidate to miss out on our 53 men roster. Ford has the advantage of also being a quality special teamer.

Fullback
40/40 no ch. Clay Brosseau (5th)
Best run blocking fullback in the league. We're moving to a smashmouth offense, you do the math.

Tight ends
35/65 +4/-1 Clay Gaynor (R)
40/40 unkn. Sherman Bridges (10th, 1st with us)
30/40 +3/nc Jeffery Blake (3rd)
30/30 no ch. Renaldo Crawford (4th, 3rd with us)
30/30 no ch. Randy Holliday (4th)
15/15 no ch. Tyler Kotz (6th)
We have to believe in Gaynor and Bridges will help him. Blake and Crawford are the better run blockers of the returning players, Holliday and Kotz won't make the 53 men team. In fact, both are on the chopping block for pre-season already.

Wide receivers
75/75 no ch. Theodore Bondy (9th)
40/40 no ch. Brandin Sandlin (4th)
30/50 +4/-2 Trey Samuels (R)
25/50 +4/nc George Stuckey (R)
35/40 +3/nc Harris Wilkerson (2nd)
35/35 +1/+1 Santiago Messenger (3rd)
25/45 +2/-1 Griffin Iafigliola (R)
30/30 no ch. Tracy Arntt (3rd)
Messenger and Arntt are our kickoff return guys, Samuels right now looks like the third best option as punt returner. I'd love to see what the rookies can do on the field, but it's a numbers game already and think I'll have to release Wilkerson or Iafigliola before pre-season. Wilkerson was one of our special teamers, but Arntt is good competition and Samuels os on par with him. Stuckey an odd one, made the best progress, but is he (or Samuels) good enough to become the WR3 behind Bondy and Sandlin?

Offensive Linemen
70/70 no ch. Michael Szott (7th)
70/70 no ch. Butch Pearson (11th)
65/65 no ch. Howard Humphrey (6th)
65/65 no ch. Nathan Hadinger (8th)
50/50 no ch. Darren Theisen (5th, 2nd with us)
45/45 no ch. Andre Watson (5th)
35/35 +1/nc Tyler Hamilton (4th)
20/40 +2/-3 Dwayne Gullett (R)
30/30 +3/+2 Jared Labbe (5th)
25/45 +6/-2 Marvin Silvan (R)
Same story as last season: 4 of 5 starters look locked in, Watson once again has to look behind him for veteran Theisen, but rookie Silvan made such a strong jump in training camp, we have to consider him as a legitimate option for the future. Gullett was underwhelming, Labbe slightly recovered, but is far from the kind of football player we thought he was going to be. One of those last two will not make the pre-season roster. After or midway through pre-season we'll make a decission on the guards.

Punter
55/55 no ch. Doug Guynes (6th)
Please don't fall apart, please don't fall apart.

Kickers (yup, plural)
65/75 +7/+1 Mark Giles (R)
55/55 no ch. Emmitt Wells (3rd)
Wells is good, but Giles is great? That's what this looks like now. It's tough to already go our separate ways from a third round pick, but such can be the life in the IHOF.

Defensive Ends
60/60 no ch. Gene Kondovski (9th)
45/45 no ch. Archie Exner (4th)
40/40 no ch. Andy Russell (5th)
30/30 no ch. Tony Whiting (5th)
This is what it is, bar disaster.

Defensive tackles
65/65 no ch. Darien Fletcher (2nd)
60/60 no ch. Jumbo Mojica (4th, 3rd with us)
45/45 no ch. Francisco Burgess (11th, 2nd with us)
35/35 no ch. A.J. Ritt (7th)
30/30 +3/-3 Kurt Ackerman (3rd)
20/40 +3/-3 Tyrone Hanson (R)
Burgess is a run stuffer, mentor, but I doubt we will keep him. Hanson might turn out to be too green after all. Ritt is good for cohesion. Ackerman finally looking like the kind of player we thought he could be. But Fletcher and Mojica are complete defensive tackles, with Fletcher slightly on the tricky end in endurance. Depth isn't required, 4 guys on the 53 men list should be sufficient.

Linebackers
50/75 +6/nc Brandon Brady (R)
55/55 no ch. Daquan Espino (5th)
45/45 no ch. Clayton Jackson (4th)
40/40 no ch. Moe Iveans (5th, 2nd with us)
35/40 +3/nc Trenton Mendelssohn (3rd)
35/40 +3/nc Malcolm Wentz (2nd)
30/35 +3/+1 Brant Rayburn (R)
25/35 +3/-2 Ruben Caminiti (R)
25/25 no ch. Alec Palmer (3rd)
Brady, just hold and you're the new name in a long list of spectacular linebackers wearing the orange-white-and-blue. As was the plan with Espino, until pre-season 2089 happened. Caminiti looks so sweet, but we just can't make a roster spot for him. Kid might should end up on a 3-4 defense as their pass rushing WLB. This could be the off-season where Mendelssohn finally gets axed. Jackson has grown into being a very good passing downs linebacker. Iveans might already get cut after one season, we had good hopes, until pre-season 2089 happened to him (as well). Palmer is the best special teamer, but we'll be good to go with Brady, Rayburn and Iveans, if those last two stay.

Cornerbacks
70/70 no ch. Jackie Richardson (7th, 1st with us)
70/70 no ch. Kirk Hitchcock (10th)
45/45 +5/+1 Ted Frias (3rd)
40/40 no ch. Jessie McNeil (4th)
20/40 unkn. Adam Harmon (R)
30/30 no ch. Courtney Blackwell (7th)
If they don't fall apart, Richardson and Hitchcock will be the best duo in the league. Frias made great progress, but might actually be the casualty of the Richardson acquisition. McNeil solid, Harmon greener, with slightly more potential. Blackwell used to be our punt returner, in raw talent is still the ebst by far, but has shown a tendency to fumble too often, that's risky.

Safeties
45/45 no ch. Alexander Marty (8th)
35/35 no ch. Bart Sword (5th, 3rd with us)
35/35 +1/+1 Salvador Harper (4th)
30/40 +5/+2 Chuck Murray (R)
30/30 no ch. Riddick Newsome (8th, 6th with us)
20/35 +3/nc Jon Brotzman (R)
20/25 +2/nc Levi Blanchard (3rd)
So many decent options, but none that wow us. Murray may be too much of a Marty look-a-like, which is both a compliment and a problem, because he has to become better to surpass him. Brotzman may already be our best special teamer, maybe aside from Harper, that's a thing to consider here as well, with Sword close behind. I'd like to keep them all, but we really can't, not even for our first pre-season game.

Long Snappers
20/20 no ch. Bryce Karney (10th, 1st with us)
20/20 no ch. Timothy Biegen (5th)
To go with cohesion or with ability, that's the question. Karney is the better snapper, no question about it, but Biegen has been good enough. We won't keep both, not even into pre-season, simple as that.


So yeah, decision to be made. 10 guys have to leave now, not after the (wacky) pre-season re-evaluation of players, now. Or to be more exact, tomorrow. We'll have about a day to mull over this. The lineup for the games can be made already, the players that are available for trade have been listed on the trade block: Kotz, Holliday, Gullett, Wells, Iveans, Palmer, Mendelssohn, Wentz, Blanchard, Harper, Sword and Biegen. Yes, an old fashioned bargain bin trade block, anything goes for a 7th round pick. Got to try, no? We have a name to live up to.