Coach55 Posted August 18, 2009 Posted August 18, 2009 As this training camp rolls on, I am beginning to question which tight ends the team will keep. Travis McCall's injury has officially made it a 4 man race for 3 positions. Shouman, through camp, has positioned himself to be the opening day starter or at least make the team. I've been under the belief that Fine should be good too, however based on Stupar's performance against the Bears (who was on my cut list), he looked really good. Nelson is cut from a different cloth compared to the other 3 as he brings a different skill set to the table. My first thought would be that Fine is the odd man out here. But then again, Nelson has been playing a lot of WR in camp. I could see them keeping all 4 (cutting McIntyre for the roster spot), then ultimately converting Nelson to a WR permanently. Thoughts? Side Note - In two years, our starting 3 WR core could be Nelson, Hardy and Johnson (6'5'', 6'6" and 6'2") who combined are 20 inches taller as compared to last year's smurf set of Evans, Reed and Parrish (5'10", 5'10", and 5'9")
ans4e64 Posted August 18, 2009 Posted August 18, 2009 Fine was a 4th round pick from just a year ago. He's not going anywhere. It's between Schouman and Stupar, IMO. And McCall could be healthy as an ox, he's not factoring in.
JinWPB Posted August 18, 2009 Posted August 18, 2009 If things continue as they have Stupar will be the leading receiver on the team and seems to be a pretty good blocker as well. Any way you look at it the cuts this year will be tough, this is the most talented team we've had in a decade.
ThereIsNoDog Posted August 18, 2009 Posted August 18, 2009 Schouman should be cut. He's a former 7th rounder (in 2007) and has shown little both as a blocker AND receiver, and he makes the minimum.
richNjoisy Posted August 18, 2009 Posted August 18, 2009 If things continue as they have Stupar will be the leading receiver on the team and seems to be a pretty good blocker as well. Any way you look at it the cuts this year will be tough, this is the most talented team we've had in a decade. I definitely noted Stupar's play last Saturday. Interesting life story too. I plan to watch him specifically and see how this plays out. he might be something special. rewatching the game, man does Wood look good. another player I am watching closely.
Kelly the Dog Posted August 18, 2009 Posted August 18, 2009 There are surely going to be some tough cuts. I have lobbied for awhile that either Shouman or Fine should be cut, since they are essentially the same player and neither of them do anything stellar. They are not big, they don't block great, they are not fast, they don't split the seams, you cannot rely on them in short yardage, etc. Why have two guys that are mediocre? I think they should keep Fine, Stupar and Nelson, and cut Shouman. Nelson will line up split but there is no way they are making him a WR. They just want to get him in the game and he is a little raw as a blocker against NFL competition. He's a TE for sure, but like a lot of teams he will be split out wide a bit, especially at first. Stupar deserves a spot on this team. With Florence going down for a few weeks, we will now very likely keep Lankster and Youboty and Corner, along with McKelvin and McGee, so we may have one less roster spot as is, depending on how many CBs they were going to keep. Because of Lynch's suspension we are very likely to keep four RBs instead of three, at least for those three games. I don't think we can afford to keep four TEs although it's possible we cut the FB and keep Shouman for that role, too, although I personally see no need for it. Put Posluszny back there on short yardage, I bet he can block as good as anyone for 2-3 plays a game.
SouthGeorgiaBillsFan Posted August 18, 2009 Posted August 18, 2009 I don't foresee the Bills converting Nelson to WR. We need a good pass catching TE and are loaded at receiver so I feel like they drafted him to play TE.
JÂy RÛßeÒ Posted August 18, 2009 Posted August 18, 2009 I think they should keep Fine, Stupar and Nelson, and cut Shouman. That's my gut feel too.
ThereIsNoDog Posted August 18, 2009 Posted August 18, 2009 Fine is 6'3" 247# while Schouman is 6'2" and 223#. Fine at least has decent size.
Stl Bills Posted August 18, 2009 Posted August 18, 2009 Fine was a 4th round pick from just a year ago. He's not going anywhere.It's between Schouman and Stupar, IMO. And McCall could be healthy as an ox, he's not factoring in. Yeah, Dwayne Wright is going to tear it up this year.
Guest dog14787 Posted August 18, 2009 Posted August 18, 2009 As this training camp rolls on, I am beginning to question which tight ends the team will keep. Travis McCall's injury has officially made it a 4 man race for 3 positions. Shouman, through camp, has positioned himself to be the opening day starter or at least make the team. I've been under the belief that Fine should be good too, however based on Stupar's performance against the Bears (who was on my cut list), he looked really good. Nelson is cut from a different cloth compared to the other 3 as he brings a different skill set to the table. My first thought would be that Fine is the odd man out here. But then again, Nelson has been playing a lot of WR in camp. I could see them keeping all 4 (cutting McIntyre for the roster spot), then ultimately converting Nelson to a WR permanently. Thoughts? Side Note - In two years, our starting 3 WR core could be Nelson, Hardy and Johnson (6'5'', 6'6" and 6'2") who combined are 20 inches taller as compared to last year's smurf set of Evans, Reed and Parrish (5'10", 5'10", and 5'9") I think keeping all 4 is possible and Shawn Nelson could get converted to WR because of his speed and excellent receiving capabilities. Jonathan Stupar is catching almost everything thrown at him, he's the biggest, toughest, best blocking TE we have in my opinion. It would not surprise me a bit if Stupar eventually becomes our typical starting TE with Shawn Nelson flip flopping from TE to WR. Running the No huddle it would be wise to have good quality depth at all skilled positions and TE should be no exception.
ans4e64 Posted August 18, 2009 Posted August 18, 2009 Yeah, Dwayne Wright is going to tear it up this year. Do you know why Wright was cut?
Stl Bills Posted August 18, 2009 Posted August 18, 2009 Do you know why Wright was cut? Cuz he sucked and fumbled the shiit out of the ball, I'm just saying being a year old 4th round pick doesn't mean a damn thing unless you produce. I like Fine better than I like DS, but that's not saying much.
ans4e64 Posted August 18, 2009 Posted August 18, 2009 Cuz he sucked and fumbled the shiit out of the ball, I'm just saying being a year old 4th round pick doesn't mean a damn thing unless you produce. I like Fine better than I like DS, but that's not saying much. Correct. Wright was not cut because he didn't produce, he was cut because he was hurting the team through fumbling and just being horrible overall. Fine has done neither. Fine has not hurt this team at all, and when given the chance to be in there with the starters, had a very good game (Jets). Those are two completely different situations, and they don't even compare slightly.
Stl Bills Posted August 18, 2009 Posted August 18, 2009 Correct. Wright was not cut because he didn't produce, he was cut because he was hurting the team through fumbling and just being horrible overall. Fine has done neither. Fine has not hurt this team at all, and when given the chance to be in there with the starters, had a very good game (Jets). Those are two completely different situations, and they don't even compare slightly. First off Wright did suck but he had 1 fumble in a regular season game it wasn't like he killed the team with his fumbling. Derek Fine did look good last year against the Jets but he has 10 career total catches, its not like he's untouchable at this point. That was my point.
Coach55 Posted August 18, 2009 Author Posted August 18, 2009 Fine was a 4th round pick from just a year ago. He's not going anywhere. It's between Schouman and Stupar, IMO. And McCall could be healthy as an ox, he's not factoring in. 4th Round means good? We already discussed Wright 06 - Ko Simpson 05 - Duke Preston 04 - Tim Euhus 03 - Terrence McGee 03 - Sam Aiken 01 - Brandon Spoon 00 - Avion Black 99 - Keith Newman 99 - Bobby Collins I could keep going. Other than McGee, no one was better than a stop-gap and most shouldn't have been on the team.
Lt. Dan's Revenge Posted August 18, 2009 Posted August 18, 2009 4th Round means good? We already discussed Wright 06 - Ko Simpson 05 - Duke Preston 04 - Tim Euhus 03 - Terrence McGee 03 - Sam Aiken 01 - Brandon Spoon 00 - Avion Black 99 - Keith Newman 99 - Bobby Collins I could keep going. Other than McGee, no one was better than a stop-gap and most shouldn't have been on the team. What a brutal, brutal draft pick this guy was. He didn't seem anywhere near talented enough to contribute in this league from day one.
ans4e64 Posted August 18, 2009 Posted August 18, 2009 4th Round means good? We already discussed Wright 06 - Ko Simpson 05 - Duke Preston 04 - Tim Euhus 03 - Terrence McGee 03 - Sam Aiken 01 - Brandon Spoon 00 - Avion Black 99 - Keith Newman 99 - Bobby Collins I could keep going. Other than McGee, no one was better than a stop-gap and most shouldn't have been on the team. Jesus Christ. You people amaze me. Did I not already say that it's because he hasn't had the opportunity to play much yet, and that when he did, he played well? He was picked in the 4th round just 1 year ago, and in the limited time he's had, he's played well. That is the reason I don't believe he should be cut. Somehow your brain cells mangled that into "he's a 4th round pick so he must be good."
Cash Posted August 18, 2009 Posted August 18, 2009 I don't foresee the Bills converting Nelson to WR. We need a good pass catching TE and are loaded at receiver so I feel like they drafted him to play TE. In today's NFL, tight ends (especially pass-catching ones like Nelson) are lined up as slot WRs all the time. Most 4-wide and 5-wide spread formations include a tight end as one of the wideouts. Next time you watch a Colts game, see how many times Dallas Clark gets lined up next to a tackle. I'm guessing it'll be no more than 5 plays for the whole game. Clark is probably the most extreme example (he even lines up at split end sometimes), but most pass-catching threats at TE spend at least as much time in the slot as they do on the line. Considering Nelson never played on the line in college, it makes a lot of sense to start him out mostly out wide. Doesn't mean that he's a candidate to convert to WR, though.
Coach55 Posted August 18, 2009 Author Posted August 18, 2009 Jesus Christ. You people amaze me. Did I not already say that it's because he hasn't had the opportunity to play much yet, and that when he did, he played well? He was picked in the 4th round just 1 year ago, and in the limited time he's had, he's played well. That is the reason I don't believe he should be cut. Somehow your brain cells mangled that into "he's a 4th round pick so he must be good." I'm not for or against whether or not he should be cut at this point. My point is posters who state just because he was drafted in the 4th round a year ago, he deserves to stay around. Where you were drafted should not dictate whether or not you should be on the team, performance should.
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