2025 Offseason Thread

[rossihunter2]

I know there's been a lot of discourse about RG, but LG is deservedly quiet. Vorhees looks like he's picking up from where he left off late last season. He looks like a totally different player than what we got at the beginning of 2024. Good on him. Hope it continues.

level of competition definitely matters too
struggled in the stadium practice for sure compared to what we've seen against higher competition (i.e. our starters)

but stacked two really good preseason games in a row and while there may be questions about him, there's absolutely no question of a competition (when you take into account who he's up against in camp)

i hope that both he and faalele do well, because i don't want two battles at guard again next offseason, hopefully just the RG battle (which hopefully Emery Jones might be ready to win)

 

[rossihunter2]

I really don't know how to feel about Jay Higgins. The IQ, hand usage, and angles all stand out on the tape... but unfortunately so does the lack of functional athleticism. He looks good against a TE named Tyler Neville but I'm not convinced it's going to look near as pretty against a TE like Brock Bowers. I can see the appeal for sure because he is pretty damn clean on the mental side of the game, but the movement skills are just not where I think they need to be to last in the NFL.

Seems like they may have a choice between Brade and Higgins for one of the final spots. I'd guess they'll lean Brade for ST reasons but who knows at this point.

maybe you're hearing things from your guy

but i dont see anything on tape, on usage or anything that suggests to me this guy is even close to making the team

he'd be LB5 at best and he doesnt play special teams

he's got pretty decent IQ etc. for a rookie LB but the measurables are awful and the lack of transition quickness and dynamism is really obvious when you watch him

i really think kwenkeu's got a better chance of making this 53 than higgins

 

[rossihunter2]

It seems they’re looking at Lowery at a deep end S instead of a slot piece. He played 3 snap slots late when Brade was in the medical tent but that was it. Otherwise, he followed Starks and played largely the same role.

oh i get that for sure, just more pointing out that he's not really a movable piece, just a pure depth safety

 

[JO_75]

So Flacco will return to Baltimore in Week 2 as the starter for the Browns.

 

[Simba]

maybe you're hearing things from your guy

but i dont see anything on tape, on usage or anything that suggests to me this guy is even close to making the team

he'd be LB5 at best and he doesnt play special teams

he's got pretty decent IQ etc. for a rookie LB but the measurables are awful and the lack of transition quickness and dynamism is really obvious when you watch him

i really think kwenkeu's got a better chance of making this 53 than higgins

It sounds like he's in the hunt, and largely because they feel he's one they might actually lose. I'm with you though. I don't see a valid reason for him to the make the 53 right now.

 

[Simba]

oh i get that for sure, just more pointing out that he's not really a movable piece, just a pure depth safety

Absolutely. It seems like he'd be an emergency slot option in game but if they had to make a move for the following week, they'd probably go elsewhere. From a roster consideration point, all of his usage and what I'm hearing suggests they're eyeing him as a pure S right now.

 

[rossihunter2]

It sounds like he's in the hunt, and largely because they feel he's one they might actually lose. I'm with you though. I don't see a valid reason for him to the make the 53 right now.

of all the LBs we've had, i can't imagine him being the one they think could get claimed...

but they know more than us

 

[Simba]

of all the LBs we've had, i can't imagine him being the one they think could get claimed...

but they know more than us

I'm guessing because he was "the big name" of our UDFA group this year. I know they were pretty happy to sign him and it sounds like they beat out quite a few teams to secure him. So I get the impression that it's because he's made plays and had a market previously, that the market still may exist.

Like you said though, he's not a guy I'd personally be overly worried about losing. Give me Martin and/or Kwenkeu on the PS and I'd be just fine.

 

[rossihunter2]

I'm guessing because he was "the big name" of our UDFA group this year. I know they were pretty happy to sign him and it sounds like they beat out quite a few teams to secure him. So I get the impression that it's because he's made plays and had a market previously, that the market still may exist.

Like you said though, he's not a guy I'd personally be overly worried about losing. Give me Martin and/or Kwenkeu on the PS and I'd be just fine.

it's also kind of the same as the OL10 question too in a way

if he's LB5 and doesn't play special teams, they've basically got to decide to carry him on the IA list for 18 weeks which seems wild when that could be OL10 or a special teamer who might actually contribute (Kirkwood, Kwenkeu, Brade, Martin or even Urban lol)

 

[Simba]

it's also kind of the same as the OL10 question too in a way

if he's LB5 and doesn't play special teams, they've basically got to decide to carry him on the IA list for 18 weeks which seems wild when that could be OL10 or a special teamer who might actually contribute (Kirkwood, Kwenkeu, Brade, Martin or even Urban lol)

Yeah I mean, you have to sit a minimum of 5 no matter what. And of those 5, the only one extremely unlikely to play any snaps for the long haul is going to be your OL9 (and OL10 if you keep that many). All of the others are going to be active at some point. I'd rather have a STer that provides depth at a position vs. depth at a position that takes a few injuries to see any meaningful time.

I say that knowing Higgins did take 11 ST snaps on Saturday, so it's not like he's not playing ST. He's just playing late with all of the other guys that are going to be cut soon and not with any of the top teams.

 

[rossihunter2]

 

[rossihunter2]

Yeah I mean, you have to sit a minimum of 5 no matter what. And of those 5, the only one extremely unlikely to play any snaps for the long haul is going to be your OL9 (and OL10 if you keep that many). All of the others are going to be active at some point. I'd rather have a STer that provides depth at a position vs. depth at a position that takes a few injuries to see any meaningful time.

I say that knowing Higgins did take 11 ST snaps on Saturday, so it's not like he's not playing ST. He's just playing late with all of the other guys that are going to be cut soon and not with any of the top teams.

and i read from Zrebiec maybe last week that he's not been doing much special teams in training camp so i read those special teams snaps more as a "someone's got to play" type of deal

 

[QtR Nevermore]

It seems they’re looking at Lowery at a deep end S instead of a slot piece. He played 3 snap slots late when Brade was in the medical tent but that was it. Otherwise, he followed Starks and played largely the same role.

I think he'd be a good option for that role. Geno Stone filled that role well based on his brain much more than athletic skills, and it'd make sense, in 3 safety sets, if the 1st rounders were closer to the line.

 

[rossihunter2]

A few guys i want to watch this week on the coach's film

Tez Walker
Reuben Lowery
Keyon Martin
Aeneas Peebles

Already watched through Faalele, he had a really good game - rock solid in pass pro - good hands, good fluidity, good processing, a couple of poor run game reps and even on the good ones he's not really displacing people but he played well generally

 

[rossihunter2]

I think he'd be a good option for that role. Geno Stone filled that role well based on his brain much more than athletic skills, and it'd make sense, in 3 safety sets, if the 1st rounders were closer to the line.

difference is that lowery's actually athletic for the position
similar builds but lowery's much more athletic - perhaps could have the range to actually play a deep centre field role in dime (we'll see)

obviously Kane is CB3 but he's not a single high type of guy from what i can see

 

[All_black_everything]

Ojabo’s spot secured?

 

[Simba]

I'm a roster nerd so y'all probably tired of me but I don't care lol

Here's my final list of guys that I think have a shot at the roster heading into the last week...

QB (2): Jackson, Rush
RB (4): Henry, Hill, Mitchell, Ali
FB (1): Ricard
WR (7): Flowers, Bateman, Hopkins, Walker, Wallace, Wester, Kirkwood
TE (3): Andrews, Kolar, Likely*
OL (10): Stanley, Vorhees, Linderbaum, Faalele, Rosengarten, Noteboom, Cleveland, Bullock, Vinson, Dellinger
DL (7): Madubuike, Jones, Washington, Peebles, Jenkins, Urban, Okoye
OLB (5): Van Noy, Oweh, Robinson, Green, Ojabo
ILB (5): Smith, Simpson, Buchanan, Hummel, Higgins
CB (7): Humphrey, Wiggins, Alexander, Awuzie, Armour-Davis, Tampa, Martin
S (5): Hamilton, Starks, Kane, Lowery, Brade
ST (3): Loop, Stout, Moore

That's 59 guys total, so 6 have to go.

I think Kirkwood is a long shot for the 53, but may be the first man up on the PS for ST needs, so down to 58.

Dellinger, Okoye, Martin, and Higgins are easy cuts for me, so that gets me down to 54 already.

Likely to IR would get down to 53 rather easily if they wanted to go that route.

Then, that leaves Urban still on the 53 and that may not be necessary, so you could theoretically add 1 of those 4 back. And if you told me I get one of those names and not Brade, that's cool too.

There's not a hard cut in the pile for me this year. Honestly feels like a rare one where we may be active on the waiver wire because I don't know that there are truly 53 guys that need to be on this team.

Essentially, 2 or 3 spots open and 7 guys to fill those spots if you ask me.

 

[rossihunter2]

I'm a roster nerd so y'all probably tired of me but I don't care lol

Here's my final list of guys that I think have a shot at the roster heading into the last week...

QB (2): Jackson, Rush
RB (4): Henry, Hill, Mitchell, Ali
FB (1): Ricard
WR (7): Flowers, Bateman, Hopkins, Walker, Wallace, Wester, Kirkwood
TE (3): Andrews, Kolar, Likely*
OL (10): Stanley, Vorhees, Linderbaum, Faalele, Rosengarten, Noteboom, Cleveland, Bullock, Vinson, Dellinger
DL (7): Madubuike, Jones, Washington, Peebles, Jenkins, Urban, Okoye
OLB (5): Van Noy, Oweh, Robinson, Green, Ojabo
ILB (5): Smith, Simpson, Buchanan, Hummel, Higgins
CB (7): Humphrey, Wiggins, Alexander, Awuzie, Armour-Davis, Tampa, Martin
S (5): Hamilton, Starks, Kane, Lowery, Brade
ST (3): Loop, Stout, Moore

That's 59 guys total, so 6 have to go.

I think Kirkwood is a long shot for the 53, but may be the first man up on the PS for ST needs, so down to 58.

Dellinger, Okoye, Martin, and Higgins are easy cuts for me, so that gets me down to 54 already.

Likely to IR would get down to 53 rather easily if they wanted to go that route.

Then, that leaves Urban still on the 53 and that may not be necessary, so you could theoretically add 1 of those 4 back. And if you told me I get one of those names and not Brade, that's cool too.

There's not a hard cut in the pile for me this year. Honestly feels like a rare one where we may be active on the waiver wire because I don't know that there are truly 53 guys that need to be on this team.

Essentially, 2 or 3 spots open and 7 guys to fill those spots if you ask me.

i actually think part of the ease of the cuts is because the quality of the rest of the depth on the roster is high, and because injuries have made decisions for you

imagine washington, kone and longerbeam are all still healthy and in the DB battle

likewise, if emery jones isnt injured, you've got 10 OL that you have to keep on the 53 and you can't go "light" and keep only 9

Adisa Isaac's injury means you don't have to worry about the luxury of keeping 6 EDGEs on the initial 53 vs depth at other positions or on special teams

Brent urban also makes the whole 53 question easier because he basically unofficially expands your roster to 54

and outside of LB, there's no obvious positions where we're lacking depth and it's notable that the biggest debates are happening at positions that we're not as deep at LB, DB (after 3 injuries), maybe DL

and speaking of DB, we're debating DB10 vs DB11 vs DB12 and whether we keep 10-12 DBs - but we're also fortunate that we'd probably be ok with any of our top 5 (maybe even 6) CBs being on the field and any of our top 3 S (excluding washington obviously)

 

[rossihunter2]

I'm a roster nerd so y'all probably tired of me but I don't care lol

Here's my final list of guys that I think have a shot at the roster heading into the last week...

QB (2): Jackson, Rush
RB (4): Henry, Hill, Mitchell, Ali
FB (1): Ricard
WR (7): Flowers, Bateman, Hopkins, Walker, Wallace, Wester, Kirkwood
TE (3): Andrews, Kolar, Likely*
OL (10): Stanley, Vorhees, Linderbaum, Faalele, Rosengarten, Noteboom, Cleveland, Bullock, Vinson, Dellinger
DL (7): Madubuike, Jones, Washington, Peebles, Jenkins, Urban, Okoye
OLB (5): Van Noy, Oweh, Robinson, Green, Ojabo
ILB (5): Smith, Simpson, Buchanan, Hummel, Higgins
CB (7): Humphrey, Wiggins, Alexander, Awuzie, Armour-Davis, Tampa, Martin
S (5): Hamilton, Starks, Kane, Lowery, Brade
ST (3): Loop, Stout, Moore

That's 59 guys total, so 6 have to go.

I think Kirkwood is a long shot for the 53, but may be the first man up on the PS for ST needs, so down to 58.

Dellinger, Okoye, Martin, and Higgins are easy cuts for me, so that gets me down to 54 already.

Likely to IR would get down to 53 rather easily if they wanted to go that route.

Then, that leaves Urban still on the 53 and that may not be necessary, so you could theoretically add 1 of those 4 back. And if you told me I get one of those names and not Brade, that's cool too.

There's not a hard cut in the pile for me this year. Honestly feels like a rare one where we may be active on the waiver wire because I don't know that there are truly 53 guys that need to be on this team.

Essentially, 2 or 3 spots open and 7 guys to fill those spots if you ask me.

for me I've got 60 guys total
I haven't got Okoye on my long-list anymore
But I do have Kwenkeu and Samac (who you don't have)

probably only 1 spot open with 8 candidates:
Kirkwood, Dellinger, Samac, Urban, Kwenkeu, Higgins, Brade, Martin

 

[Davesta]

for me I've got 60 guys total
I haven't got Okoye on my long-list anymore
But I do have Kwenkeu and Samac (who you don't have)

probably only 1 spot open with 8 candidates:
Kirkwood, Dellinger, Samac, Urban, Kwenkeu, Higgins, Brade, Martin

Isn’t Urban won’t have those vested veterans that won’t need to go on waivers. The secret handshake deal.

I would probably keep Higgins out of those other 7. Everyone else seems like we can sneak onto the PS.