State of the roster

[Jesse]

Just wanted to take a look at the position groups so far and see if we think we can see some improvements in some position groups, even though we've seen some big names leave.

Quarterback: Same

Zach's #1. We can all hope for a bounce back season, but hopefully last year is as bad as it gets. Streveler may or may not be back, but we didn't use him to great effect last year anyway, so this position hopefully only has upside from last year.

Runningback: Same

Brady will hopefully not miss TC and start the year off strong. There was also some bad TD luck that hopefully corrects itself. Logan would be a nice complement if we actually choose to make that a part of the gameplan (certainly wasn't a part of Buck's plan).

Receivers: Same?

I know Lawler seems like a loss, but his actual production wont be hard to replace (even if he puts it together and finally manages to play a full season for Hammy - we're comparing the roster to last year). Schoen hopefully gives us everything we wanted and we have Mitchell and White Jr to compete for the #2 while Demski is the vet in the room with Clercius bring a physical presence.

OL: Same/Downgrade?

We lose Dobson, but still have more consistency than we did going into last year with Lofton returning. Instead of depending on multiple rookies, we have guys entering their 2nd year who both have starts under their belt.

DL: Improved?

Willie is Willie. Vaughters should/might give us some extra push from the other side, or at least be more consistent. Lawson coming back hopefully gives us more than we had from the interior. And I'm really excited about year 2 of Adams and Woods.

LB: Same/Improved?

Full year of Tony Jones in the middle. Ayers coming into year 2. Jon Jones one of those guys ready to take a starter role. I think we have an intriguing array of pieces.

Secondary: Downgrade?

On paper, we lost Ford, so it feels like a downgrade. But we've also been here before, DB leaves for NFL or pay day with another team, we replace them with another DB and still lead the league in defensive categories.

I'm pretty comfortable trusting the brain trust on this one.

[Blueforlife]

Receivers slightly downgraded
OL too early to tell but could be a downgrade
Rest agree

[TecnoGenius]

Good summary.

I would also break out FS onto its own.  Still a big question mark there.

If Kenny is gone, then it would be nice if Pokey could mosey back mid-season like so many NFL hopefuls do.  Pokey is a similar build/style to Kenny.

Mitchell is too, though he doesn't quite have the magic hands.

Last season I think our problem (with Schoen hurt) was too many Kenny-type RECs: Kenny, Pokey, Wheatie.  You really only need 1 or 2 of those guys on a team.  We should be more balanced this year, which will help on 2nd down.