I am persuadable because I don't know a lot - except that I am often wrong.
But let me give my somewhat tentative objections to your points in general and maybe flowers specifically.
1. I know you have to be able to run in a northern open stadium. Well not really, anymore than you have to leave the milk box clean for the milk man. The opening of the pass game changed that and NE has relentlessly confirmed it. Running the ball is important, just not as critical as it used to be.
2. The run blocking last year was not as bad as Williams made it look and they did a superb job of keeping Eli clean. Williams is never going to be a featured back, he has no instincts, no vision and no hands. That doesn’t mean he can't be a useful role player or a back who pounds a defense that’s tired or good in short yardage, but he is not a feature back.
3. You’ve already improved the line for next year. Richenberg to center can’t be overstated. He was playing next to Walton at a position he was not suited for in his rookie year. The kid upgrades the line appreciably. Schwartz upgrades the line significantly. Pugh’s anticipated return to health upgrades the line. I believe that Jerry never had good coaching and he missed pre season. I think he’ll be better. If Jones dominated division three the way he dominated the professionals in Canada he’d be looked at for salvation material. Moseby was hurt and might surprise. Vereen as opposed to no hands Williams makes run blocking easier and stops 8 in the box.
4. Now comes the controversial part I’m not sure of: it seems to me that the difference between an ordinary guard and a really fine one is not as great as it is at say an ordinary qb and a great one or even an ordinary wr and a great one. I think a brush block or a “get in your way” block works almost as well as a pancake block. You’ve won with suey, David and Ohara; three fifth of your line was not very talented. And then you won with Booth, a weaker Ohara, a weaker david and a weaker MacKenzie and Snee on his last legs and no longer able to pull. And I remember that line continuing to be adequate when a journeyman released, for god’s sake, by Washington replaced Mac at right tackle. Surely that flies in the face of your commitment to put a top ten player on a line that already has more talent draftwise than anyone of the one’s you’ve won with. You have a no.1, two no. 2’s, and a high priced free agent for four of the five positions. With Jones, Moseby and Jerry to battle for the fifth spot before any contributions from the draft or cuts like Lambert - BEFORE ADDING ANOTHER SECOND ROUNDER. That would make it a first, three seconds and Schwartz OR, if you had your way, Two firsts, two seconds and the high priced Schwartz. The argument, surprisingly, is against putting too many resources to the WR position, in fact, you propose putting an extremely high and disproportionate amount of those finite resources into the Oline.
6. I’ve all ready put forth the proposition that wr’s outperform their position, and OLineman don’t. Please consider that when you form your draft equation.
7. I don t watch film. I trust competent people who do the due diligemce for me. The wide consenus among these worthies is that Flowers is the fourth among a not very good crop of offensive tackles. I can’t discount that.
8. This is a political decision too. Step out against such a large body of evidence, defy convention and if Flower’s fails, JR is, appropriately enough, out of a job. When we picked Eli over Rivers and Ben it wasn’t about upsides. They might have been even, the thing was the basement side. River’s throwing motion might not have morphed into the pro game. Ben had other potential for bust. You can’t gamble with a top ten pick and come away empty. JPP was not a top ten pick, or, his incredible measurables notwithstanding, JR doesn’t go there. There is nothing like those measurables here, there’s strength, youth, but nothing like JPP’s athleticism. I do not risk this team or my future if I’m the GM on Flowers…not unless it jumped out at me. You are gambling that the kid can make it and you’re gambling that Pugh can go inside.
9. If you’re going to go O line Scherff is safer and it’s not close even if you believe Flowers potential is greater in the long run. Pugh is a tackle, he mirrors well, he’s fast in space, I don’t see him doing the heavy lifting inside. Put Shereff at right guard and Pugh at tackle and I can guarantee you’ve upgraded the line significantly. The thought of Pugh inside and Flowers at tackle is not nearly as compelling.
10. I think WR is every bit as much as need of upgrade as OL. I think Cruz was already in decline and dropping too many easy catches. He was living on rep. and I’m not sure he even gets back to that. I like Randall, but in the context of a third receiver, not a second. If Beckham is your star you have to protect him insomuch as any defense can take a player away if they want to. Parker stops that cold. And he improves Randall when the guy becomes a three.
11. And finally. I think Parker (if he’s really in a class with White and Cooper) upgrades the line and improves the run game indirectly as much as anyone of this year’s crop of lineman does directly. Parker, Beckham, Vereen, Cruz, Randall not only guarantee no 8 in the box, they are probably gonna mean teams faster and smaller linebackers spread out further and playing further off the LOS.
12. And finally (really this time), taking Parker (or someone else) still means going OL in the second where I think you get someone not significantly below Flowers. So my equation becomes Flowers and a second rounder or Parker and a second rounder and it seems like an easy call…even if you like Flowers as much as Parker.
CONCLUSION…
Parker is likely BPA at a critically important position. He has little downside at a position where recent players exceed their drafting position. He opens the game for Beckham and our runners in a time that emphasis is being put on the passing game and fits our West coast perfectly. Flowers is arguably the fourth to best player among a group that’s not highly regarded at a position where we’ve won with low draft picks and lowly regarded players. Flowers means moving Pugh from his natural position. Flowers has some potential for bust.
Thank you and I’m going into therapy immediately. God help me if I say one more word about who we should pick. I will wash my hair tonight and hope that keeping an open mind doesn’t mean your brains fall out.
A space or two makes it a much better read, BTW.
Torn menisucs on Flowers is a nonstarter for me. I like Parker, but not at 9.
That is a keeper.
Bingo. Beah, heah!
we may very well get him in 2
we may very well get him in 2
I don't know about that. It's hard to find a mock draft that doesn't have him in the second half of the first round.
Pass protection needs plenty of work. Footwork gets sloppy and undisciplined, causing base to narrow. Ducks head into contact and is a leaner in pass pro, creating balance problems. Rarely flat-footed upon initial hand contact. Throws hands rather than firing authoritative punch. Hands ride too high and too wide. Content to become grabby around framework of defender. Flagged for six holding penalties over last two seasons. Slow to secure and climb on combo blocks and is often lacking balance on the way to target. Doesn't bring feet under him to sustain second-level blocks. Knocked off balance by smaller pass rushers due to poor balance. Hips looked tight and struggled to gain ground when asked to pass set in combine drills.
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Pass protection needs plenty of work. Footwork gets sloppy and undisciplined, causing base to narrow. Ducks head into contact and is a leaner in pass pro, creating balance problems. Rarely flat-footed upon initial hand contact. Throws hands rather than firing authoritative punch. Hands ride too high and too wide. Content to become grabby around framework of defender. Flagged for six holding penalties over last two seasons. Slow to secure and climb on combo blocks and is often lacking balance on the way to target. Doesn't bring feet under him to sustain second-level blocks. Knocked off balance by smaller pass rushers due to poor balance. Hips looked tight and struggled to gain ground when asked to pass set in combine drills.
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Interesting. Can't comment on most of that... but the balance thing is pretty obvious in the highlight vids. He always seems to teeter on the verge of being knocked over.
That said, the athleticism measurables are awfully good, and he is still so young (20??). You have to figure his ceiling is pretty high.
Again, I'd be a bit shocked if he is the pick, but I trust the Giants in Rd 1, so I'm OK with it if that's how it goes down.