Dion Dawkins on playing LT: “Is it ever really our choice? No.”

[thebandit27]

3 minutes ago, Bangarang said:

 

They paid him like a low end starter or high end backup which is really what he is.

 

He's 42nd in terms of AAV.  That puts him squarely in the starter-salary category next to Bobby Hart and Demar Dotson, both of whom started 16 games in 2018.

[colin]

with Spain i think we have our best LG on the roster right there.  Clearly Morse is our C.

 

So that leaves Dawkins at LT, where is at the least decent and has been good/solid.

 

So RT and RG are left, and they were a total disaster last season, just disgusting.  If Ford can be a sturdy RG, nsgalalalala (SP) who we got from the skins could for sure be our RT.  That's an upgrade at 4 of our 5 positions, and we have long and teller to fight for each G position (almost said G spot but nope), and if either tackle goes down we can move Ford, Dawkins, or Ngkchicicicic.  and then we have all the other guys who can fight for depth spots.

 

also, adding that converted LT as a TE, as well as dude who we drafted counts big time too.  just having lots of solid blockers in front of the QB will inspire confidence and buy JA time to make some magic happen.

 

I'm excited!

[Fred Slacks]

Neske (sp)

Dawkins

Morse

Long

Ford

 

The only way Spain starts is if Dawkins wins the LT job. Spain got a small contract. Long got paid some good money. Contract is structured for back up/starter depending on where he plays. 

 

People worrying about who plays swing positions are putting too much emphasis on that. We have so many guys who play multiple positions we could easily start the best 5 and dress another 2 OL guys on game day. If someone goes down then you can move someone to another spot to get through the game if needed. Ex: Neske goes down they kick Dawkins out to LT and Spain comes in to play LG. Or Morse gets hurt they slide Long to Center and Spain in at RG. Or whoever is the second dressed backup OL for that game. 

 

People are are sleeping on Long for some reason. Don’t let last year dictate your opinion of him. His snapping hand was jacked up. Look at him at Guard where he excelled. Even for the Jets with a messed up hand. 

[blacklabel]

Last season was a rough go for the whole OL, not just Dawkins. 

 

I understand how they want competition at every position but last season I really felt like they let the OL battles play out a bit too long. They still didn't have their main five settled after the final pre-season game. Then they rolled out Dawkins, Ducasse, Groy, Miller, and Mills. Groy was swapped out for Bodine, Ducasse eventually cleared the way for Teller, Miller swaped reps with Sirles, Mills was replaced with McDermott a few times. Just a lot of shuffling around. OL is one of those groups that needs to have chemistry and be a tight unit. As others have pointed out, they clearly missed the leadership provided by Wood and Incognito. This makes the Morse signing that much more important. I also like a couple of the veteran guards they picked up. 

 

I think their preferred scenario would see the OL made up of mostly homegrown talent, guys that they've drafted. So, Dawkins, Teller, Morse, Long/Spain, Ford. Something like that. All these OL they signed on such short-term deals, it makes sense that they'd wanna have guys that they've mostly drafted be their starters so they can have sustained success and not have to shuffle things around every season. Of course if one of the guards they signed wins the gig they could always extend them.

[wppete]

Love it! Dawkins is going to come in this year bigger faster stronger and angrier. This is a great thing, Dion Dawkins at his best is an amazing LT.

[YoloinOhio]

1 minute ago, wppete said:

Love it! Dawkins is going to come in this year bigger faster stronger and angrier. This is a great thing, Dion Dawkins at his best is an amazing LT.

Well he’s .... bigger ?

[BringBackOrton]

3 hours ago, thebandit27 said:

 

I don't think that moving Dawkins is as much about his play at tackle (though he admittedly regressed in year 2) as it is how great a fit he could be at guard. It also has been spurred on a bit by the fact that they signed a player that has had success at LT to starting-tackle money.

 

Personally, I want the best combination of 5, and I don't care who plays where.  If I had to guess, the best combo of 5 will look like one of the following 2 line-ups:

 

LT: Nsekhe

LG: Dawkins

? Morse

RG: Spain

RT: Ford

 

OR

 

LT: Dawkins

LG: Spain

? Morse

RG: Ford

RT: Nsekhe

Whats so funny about Morse??

[BuffaloBill]

3 hours ago, YoloinOhio said:

Nice piece from Carrucci 

 

 

 

 

I love the attitude.  I hope it translates into improved play.  

[Shaw66]

1 hour ago, HomeTeam said:

It's great to hear that from Dawkins. It's absolutely the right attitude and I wish him the very best in training camp. 

 

One thing though I must state, is that I don't think McCoy has that selfless attitude. I don't mean to give him too much slack, especially now since he's been getting a bunch around here lately but I don't think he's a good leader. 

 

He's too concerned about his numbers, he's too unpredictable off the field, and he's too petty about things the little things (i.e. using social media to criticize his OL).

 

That being said, I like McCoy and I believe that he will have a bounce back year but I don't think he should be voted a default captain. I think he's better suited focusing on his own game. 

 

It will be interesting to see who steps up as a leader this year. I'm not concerned, because I believe that leadership arises naturally given the circumstance. 

I think people seriously misperceive who Shady is as a human being.  

 

First, I don't know of any evidence that he is too concerned about his numbers.  None.  He played all the way through last season and never complaimed. Never.  He played his heart out, every game.  No whining, no sulking.  No refusing to go back on the field.  No dissing the linemen n or the n play calling. Not once. 

 

Off the field?  Yes, he has some of the hood in him.  Since he's been in Buffalo he's had a few things go on that were embarrassing.  So, fine, he grew up in a different culture, and he has trouble leaving that behind.  T that doesnt mean around the team he has a bad attitude.  Yes, thats true with some guys from the hood.  Not Shady.   He's a leader.  

 

Remember when Sammy was hurt in training camp and not practicing?  Shady could have said "he should get out here with the rest of us."  Instead, he said something like "keep the Ferrari in the garage."   That was a team oriented guy speaking.  Shady was the star and could have thought of himself as the Ferrari, but no.  Sammy was the the guy who was projected to make a difference, and Shady didn't hide from it.

 

Finally, you gotta listen to McBeane.  Both during and after the season they were asked whether it was time to move on from Shady, bench him, cut him, whatever. Every time they're asked that question they are completely clear that Shady is going nowhere.  And they seem surprised that anyone would think that Shady shouldn't be on the team.

 

After the draft, someone asked about having too many running backs and how someone would have to go, maybe Shady.  Beane said, without any qualification, "LeSean is the starter."

 

Don't kid yourself.  Shady is a leader, and he has exactly the attitude McB want.  Watkins didn't. Gone. Dareus didn't.  Gone.  If Shady didnt, he'd be gone too.  

[thebandit27]

49 minutes ago, Fred Slacks said:

Neske (sp)

Dawkins

Morse

Long

Ford

 

The only way Spain starts is if Dawkins wins the LT job. Spain got a small contract. Long got paid some good money. Contract is structured for back up/starter depending on where he plays. 

 

People worrying about who plays swing positions are putting too much emphasis on that. We have so many guys who play multiple positions we could easily start the best 5 and dress another 2 OL guys on game day. If someone goes down then you can move someone to another spot to get through the game if needed. Ex: Neske goes down they kick Dawkins out to LT and Spain comes in to play LG. Or Morse gets hurt they slide Long to Center and Spain in at RG. Or whoever is the second dressed backup OL for that game. 

 

People are are sleeping on Long for some reason. Don’t let last year dictate your opinion of him. His snapping hand was jacked up. Look at him at Guard where he excelled. Even for the Jets with a messed up hand. 

 

Long was signed at a time when the team couldn't guarantee that they'd get a starting C in free agency.  He got very little guaranteed money, so I wouldn't be assured that he's going to start.

 

I also wouldn't say that he excelled at guard. He was good, but not the player that Spain was in 2016 or 2017.  Don't get me wrong, I'll be fine if Long beats out all of Spain, Teller, Feliciano, and Boettger for the RG job.  Hopefully it means that he earned it and wasn't simply the lesser of all evils.

[Nuncha]

4 hours ago, MrEpsYtown said:

I believe in Dion. He has the measurables and I think he can succeed at tackle. He sounds like he struggles a bit with staying motivated and he needs to get that straightened out. We will see how he responds with his job and career on the line. I believe he will respond strongly and I feel that Dion will show great improvement with Coach Johnson as his coach. The misconception is that he sucks, because of a bunch of PFF grades. The misconception is that he is a guard because Mike Mayock said he was. I think he struggled a bit last year, but he did flash some upside and he was not terrible. He's a young developing player facing the opposing team's best rusher with a terrible coach working with him. We just went through the same thing with Cordy Glenn for the last few years.

 

Give Coach Johnson a chance to work with Dion and give him an opportunity to prove himself before moving his position.  

The revamped O-line is going to make him a better player.

[njbuff]

Just put the best five out there that will make the franchise QB’s life a whole lot easier than it was in 2018.

[HomeTeam]

2 hours ago, Shaw66 said:

I think people seriously misperceive who Shady is as a human being.  

 

First, I don't know of any evidence that he is too concerned about his numbers.  None.  He played all the way through last season and never complaimed. Never.  He played his heart out, every game.  No whining, no sulking.  No refusing to go back on the field.  No dissing the linemen n or the n play calling. Not once. 

 

Off the field?  Yes, he has some of the hood in him.  Since he's been in Buffalo he's had a few things go on that were embarrassing.  So, fine, he grew up in a different culture, and he has trouble leaving that behind.  T that doesnt mean around the team he has a bad attitude.  Yes, thats true with some guys from the hood.  Not Shady.   He's a leader.  

 

Remember when Sammy was hurt in training camp and not practicing?  Shady could have said "he should get out here with the rest of us."  Instead, he said something like "keep the Ferrari in the garage."   That was a team oriented guy speaking.  Shady was the star and could have thought of himself as the Ferrari, but no.  Sammy was the the guy who was projected to make a difference, and Shady didn't hide from it.

 

Finally, you gotta listen to McBeane.  Both during and after the season they were asked whether it was time to move on from Shady, bench him, cut him, whatever. Every time they're asked that question they are completely clear that Shady is going nowhere.  And they seem surprised that anyone would think that Shady shouldn't be on the team.

 

After the draft, someone asked about having too many running backs and how someone would have to go, maybe Shady.  Beane said, without any qualification, "LeSean is the starter."

 

Don't kid yourself.  Shady is a leader, and he has exactly the attitude McB want.  Watkins didn't. Gone. Dareus didn't.  Gone.  If Shady didnt, he'd be gone too.  

I hope you're right. I hope Shady can have big numbers for years to come. 

 

I'll be rooting for him.?

[NewEraBills]

I like Dion and think he's part of the future.  Where I have no idea.  I think he's better in short areas than in wider ones.  But we'll have to see how this plays out.

[GimmeSomeProcess]

Excellent the first step in Dawkins for being a dominant guard is for Dawkins wanting to be a guard. 

57 minutes ago, NewEraBills said:

I like Dion and think he's part of the future.  Where I have no idea.  I think he's better in short areas than in wider ones.  But we'll have to see how this plays out.

I just want this dude inside. He’s a tank and it will hide some of weaknesses. Him pulling will be a thing of beauty. I think he can be a better version of incognito 

[Fred Slacks]

4 hours ago, thebandit27 said:

 

Long was signed at a time when the team couldn't guarantee that they'd get a starting C in free agency.  He got very little guaranteed money, so I wouldn't be assured that he's going to start.

 

I also wouldn't say that he excelled at guard. He was good, but not the player that Spain was in 2016 or 2017.  Don't get me wrong, I'll be fine if Long beats out all of Spain, Teller, Feliciano, and Boettger for the RG job.  Hopefully it means that he earned it and wasn't simply the lesser of all evils.

Long on Redskins was a pretty darn good football player. I’d argue he was better there than Spain at the Titans during that 2 year period. 

 

You our are correct on when he was signed and guaranteed. But look at spain’s guarantees. It was a very small contract. Shockingly small

[formerlyofCtown]

9 hours ago, thebandit27 said:

 

I don't think that moving Dawkins is as much about his play at tackle (though he admittedly regressed in year 2) as it is how great a fit he could be at guard. It also has been spurred on a bit by the fact that they signed a player that has had success at LT to starting-tackle money.

 

Personally, I want the best combination of 5, and I don't care who plays where.  If I had to guess, the best combo of 5 will look like one of the following 2 line-ups:

 

LT: Nsekhe

LG: Dawkins

? Morse

RG: Spain

RT: Ford

 

OR

 

LT: Dawkins

LG: Spain

? Morse

RG: Ford

RT: Nsekhe

The 24 highest paid starting LT in the NFL averages 6 Mil.  Starter money?

 

The guys below that are probably on Rookie contracts huh.

Edited May 1, 2019 by formerlyofCtown

[thebandit27]

Just now, formerlyofCtown said:

The 24 highest paid starting LT in the NFL averages 6 Mil.  Starter money?

 

Nsekhe is the 42nd tackle in terms of AAV. If there are 64 starters, then yes, that's starter money.

[formerlyofCtown]

3 minutes ago, thebandit27 said:

 

Nsekhe is the 42nd tackle in terms of AAV. If there are 64 starters, then yes, that's starter money.

Lol.  Exactly.  Wish people would do a little research before they post.

 

The guys below that 24 are likely on Rookie deals.

 

Its like they are stuck in 2010 when these posters talk about contracts.

Edited May 1, 2019 by formerlyofCtown

[LSHMEAB]

Whatever you think of Dawkins, he's certainly talking the talk. Maybe this is the extra motivation he needs to get in better playing shape. I think that's an issue for him at LT. Drop some of that baby fat and I believe he's a better athlete more suited for the position.