Will the WR's be better in 2014?

[Eric]

See the poll question.

 

[OldJacketFan]

My thought is they, as a group, will be better. Smelter has a full year plus back in a football routine, Summers has a solid year behind him, perhaps the light goes on fully for Waller, is Autry 100%? and time to see Jeune begin to come along.

 

[GTJason]

Smelter is the next GT receiver in the league. He'll pad his résumé this year.

 

[Techster]

I think Smelter will benefit from focusing 100% on football, and he was our best WR already last year after a 3 year break from the game. He'll take a couple of steps up after getting by on shear athleticism last year...he's going to be a major weapon for us.

Waller was actually our best receiving threat towards the end of last year. He was finally looking the part we all thought he would be. If he takes that next step in development (after his 2 game suspension....ugh), GT could have a pretty good 1-2 combo...maybe our best 1-2 combo since CPJ has been here. I hope the 2 game ban doesn't stilt his development to where he's playing catch-up all year like last season.

Corey Dennis didn't make a catch last season, but he was a pretty effective blocker. He's going to get better because of experience.

Summers I really didn't pay attention to during the spring, but to me he's going to be just a solid guy at WR. Still waiting on him to show us his speed that's become message board legend.

Autry won't be as effective as his T-FR year. I think the two knee injuries, time off, and suspension will affect him a lot this season. I hope not, but that's a lot to overcome.

I'm really interested in seeing what the new guys, Jeune and Messick, bring to the table. Their time will probably be next year, but given Waller's and Autry's suspension, they should have an opportunity to see some time the first few games. IF they take advantage of it (like Autry in 2012) they could be regulars in the rotation.

Passing-wise, I think it's all going to depend on what kind of development JT (or Byerly) makes as passers. When Vad left, he also took with him the experience of knowing where to go with the ball against different coverages within our passing concepts. That part is HUGE to our passing game. That's the one thing Tevin improved on every year and made him the first CPJ QB to complete over 50% since the '90's. I think what we MAY gain on the ground we're going to give up in the passing game. JT and Byerly have a ways to go with that just because they haven't seen it during games like Tevin and Vad did.

Also, if our OL is a leaky dam like last season, it's not only our QBs that will suffer, but our WRs will too...at least statistically.

 

[UgaBlows]

If Autry can get his head on straight and leave The Chronic alone then i vote yes!

 

[presjacket]

We have the same guys back with more experience, plus we add a few new ones, so how can we not be better?

 

[vamosjackets]

GT could have a pretty good 1-2 combo...maybe our best 1-2 combo since CPJ has been here.

Bay Bay Thomas and Stephen Hill will be a tough 1-2 combo to beat ... in any GT era.

 

[Techster]

Bay Bay Thomas and Stephen Hill will be a tough 1-2 combo to beat ... in any GT era.

That's a good combo...but Hill was very raw and wasn't as productive as Waller as the #2 last season. Obviously DT was an elite talent at GT so just himself cancels out a lot. Hill was super productive (for this offense) his last year, but DT was already gone.

I was speaking in terms of overall impact as a Combo. We were pretty "top heavy" at WR with the DT/Hill combo.

 

[SidewalkJacket]

Years after he committed to us, I still can't get over how physically freakish Darren Waller is. I mean, 6'6"??? He could, and should, be playing like Mike Evans did the past couple years. I know he probably doesn't have that speed, but dang... he should catch every ball that's thrown high. And his stalk blocking should be ridiculous. I would be flat terrified if I was a S or OLB in pursuit. That said, I think Smelter and Summers will hold on to those starting roles most of the season. But we FINALLY have good depth here.

 

[dressedcheeseside]

Years after he committed to us, I still can't get over how physically freakish Darren Waller is. I mean, 6'6"??? He could, and should, be playing like Mike Evans did the past couple years. I know he probably doesn't have that speed, but dang... he should catch every ball that's thrown high. And his stalk blocking should be ridiculous. I would be flat terrified if I was a S or OLB in pursuit. That said, I think Smelter and Summers will hold on to those starting roles most of the season. But we FINALLY have good depth here.

Ever hear "looks like Tarzan, plays like Jane"? Dieke was the same way. Every athlete is not a football player. Heck, you might as well throw Snoddy into the mix and maybe even Kallon.

 

[SidewalkJacket]

Ever hear "looks like Tarzan, plays like Jane"? Dieke was the same way. Every athlete is not a football player. Heck, you might as well throw Snoddy into the mix and maybe even Kallon.

To be fair, Waller has made plenty of plays over the past few years. And I'm hopeful and confident that he will again this year. I would just love for him to make them consistently. Imagine a fully motivated, angry Waller on one side the the beast that Smelter is on the other side.

 

[ATL1]

Same
Until CPJ makes a commitment to developing a passing attack I don't see it being any better.

 

[Techster]

WR is probably the most dependent on others doing their job. They have to depend on the OL to protect the QB, and the QB to make the right read, then the QB to make the throw. If one of the three breaks down, then a WR may not have the chance to show their worth. This is strictly speaking from a passing standpoint as our WRs will be blocking the majority of the time.

In those terms, our OL is still a question mark, and our inexperience at QB might actually hurt the WRs this year in terms of improving on stats. They could be an overall better group, especially in blocking, but fans might not see the results on paper. Given CPJ's statement that he's going back to what he does best, passing attempts will probably go down as well.

 

[SidewalkJacket]

When I think of improvement at WR, I think of blocking as much as catching. WR blocking is the great unsung hero of our offense. And I think this will be much improved. Smelter did it well last year in his first year. He seems to like it. Summers did ok, and I know he values it and wants to do it well. Waller, in theory, should be a monster at this.

 

[dressedcheeseside]

WR is probably the most dependent on others doing their job. They have to depend on the OL to protect the QB, and the QB to make the right read, then the QB to make the throw. If one of the three breaks down, then a WR may not have the chance to show their worth. This is strictly speaking from a passing standpoint as our WRs will be blocking the majority of the time.

In those terms, our OL is still a question mark, and our inexperience at QB might actually hurt the WRs this year in terms of improving on stats. They could be an overall better group, especially in blocking, but fans might not see the results on paper. Given CPJ's statement that he's going back to what he does best, passing attempts will probably go down as well.

Again, I agree with almost all of what you just said. The only tiny bit of disagreement is on the very last point. A big reason our passing game was poor last year was because most of our throws were in 3rd and long situations. Our passing game is designed to be most effective in play action on earlier downs. The only way that can happen is if you are 'ahead of the sticks" not behind them. If, and it's a big if, JT and company (or TB and company) execute our base run game better, we may see more play action and thus, better passing numbers, especially passing efficiency.

 

[Techster]

When I think of improvement at WR, I think of blocking as much as catching. WR blocking is the great unsung hero of our offense. And I think this will be much improved. Smelter did it well last year in his first year. He seems to like it. Summers did ok, and I know he values it and wants to do it well. Waller, in theory, should be a monster at this.

Smelter's blocking reminds me of Demarius Thomas. They both had bad intentions when they went to block...and it carried over to the NFL for DT. That block Smelter laid on the poor Ole Miss DB...man...

 

[thwgjacket]

"That's the one thing Tevin improved on every year and made him the first CPJ QB to complete over 50% since the '90's." -TECHSTER

2004-http://espn.go.com/college-football/team/stats/_/id/2426/year/2004/navy-midshipmen
2005-http://espn.go.com/college-football/team/stats/_/id/2426/year/2005/navy-midshipmen
2007-http://espn.go.com/college-football/team/stats/_/id/2426/year/2007/navy-midshipmen

But whatever....

 

[Techster]

"That's the one thing Tevin improved on every year and made him the first CPJ QB to complete over 50% since the '90's." -TECHSTER

2004-http://espn.go.com/college-football/team/stats/_/id/2426/year/2004/navy-midshipmen
2005-http://espn.go.com/college-football/team/stats/_/id/2426/year/2005/navy-midshipmen
2007-http://espn.go.com/college-football/team/stats/_/id/2426/year/2007/navy-midshipmen

But whatever....

I stand corrected.

2004 - 114 attempts
2005 - 122 attempts (by our own Lamar Owens)
2007 - 98 attempts

So 4 (including TW in 2012) times in the 14 years a CPJ QB passed for over 50%. What a QB whisperer.

 

[ATL1]

I stand corrected.

2004 - 114 attempts
2005 - 122 attempts (by our own Lamar Owens)
2007 - 98 attempts

So 4 (including TW in 2012) times in the 14 years a CPJ QB passed for over 50%. What a QB whisperer.

He's never coached a 3,000 yard passer either.

 

[SidewalkJacket]

So 4 (including TW in 2012) times in the 14 years a CPJ QB passed for over 50%. What a QB whisperer.

Not trying to be argumentative (b/c there's getting to be too much of that here), but in what no one would argue was our most successful season under PJ, we had a team completion percentage of 46%. Its been stated ad nauseum, but that particular stat is irrelevant when judging our offensive success. You guys know that.