People are giving Palmer a little too much credit. Cyrus Jones returned as many punts for TDs his only year as a returner as Palmer did his entire career.
I respectfully disagree. Did you watch Palmer?People are giving Palmer a little too much credit. Cyrus Jones returned as many punts for TDs his only year as a returner as Palmer did his entire career.
I think a lot of the time those kids have stars in their eyes and want to score TDs so they are told they will be given a chance on offense. If it works out, that is great. If not, they are moved to DB and told they have a better chance of making it to the NFL. It happens all the time.Something that has occurred to me reading t his thread and a few recruiting threads: why are most people that are recruited as athletes end up being DBs? If so then why not just recruit them as Dbs ? I know that usually DBs have alot of speed and fast hips so they are awesome athletes but if we already know then why not make them DBs.
Yep, when you have a tag of "athlete" attached, you can multiple positions in which you can be considered. It leaves the option out there for the recruit as far as offense or defense without having to stamp a position on them. Of course a lot of times a coach may already know what they need from said recruit but the athlete tag leaves the door cracked for flexibility. Usually these guys play dual roles in high school so athlete pretty much fitsI think a lot of the time those kids have stars in their eyes and want to score TDs so they are told they will be given a chance on offense. If it works out, that is great. If not, they are moved to DB and told they have a better chance of making it to the NFL. It happens all the time.
Back in the days of video tape, I replayed a Palmer punt return move where he split two LSU guys. On slo-mo, I couldn’t see the move. At games, you could actually hear the crowd sigh when Palmer raised his hand to fair catch. He was (is) an athlete whose football exploits were greater than the stories that are told about him. There are very few in that category.Palmer had one TD in his final 2 years. He was fantastic as a freshman but I’d take Cyrus over him. Eddie Jackson too. Arenas as well.
Productivity matters.
I can remember the Friday night highlights from his high school years too. He was very good.Back in the days of video tape, I replayed a Palmer punt return move where he split two LSU guys. On slo-mo, I couldn’t see the move. At games, you could actually hear the crowd sigh when Palmer raised his hand to fair catch. He was (is) an athlete whose football exploits were greater than the stories that are told about him. There are very few in that category.
Good one :smile:.[/B]
Welcome to expectations at Alabama, Patrick.
yep - sometimes they stick on O and sometimes they don't. Where they end up depends on that specific player and what they want to do, and also where the school really sees them being an impact player. Christion Jones, Adarius Stewart, mark Ingram and Derrick Henry all were rated at athletesI think a lot of the time those kids have stars in their eyes and want to score TDs so they are told they will be given a chance on offense. If it works out, that is great. If not, they are moved to DB and told they have a better chance of making it to the NFL. It happens all the time.
He'll be in the mix for sure, and will probably find a role, the scope of the role will depend more on him figuring out Sabans scheme than his physical ability. Minkah's ability to absorb the playbook is what got him into a position to play early.Eddie Jackson played receiver and DB in high school but started out at corner here at Alabama. By time he left, he was an All American safety. Diggs is pretty much the same type of player. Let's hope he continues to improve because I think he plays safety this year. Surtain could be one of the best defensive backs Alabama has ever signed. He's right there with Minkah and Dre Kirkpatrick. I think he starts instantly.
Re: Payne - Dwight had some decent efforts this year - took some steps forward. After that from a pure positional standpoint, Mathis. that said i would not be surprised to see us slide R. Davis inside some, and then have Buggs and williams/Ray at the DE spots every once and a while. We've done that in the past with some of our bigger DEs like Reed, Robinson and Tomlinson.So, the biggest question marks seem to be...
1. Payne replacement? We don't really have a clear cut impact successor but our DEs should be improved with experience.
2. Who starts in the defensive backfield? I think we will probably have at least 2 high level CBs by years end so that's not a huge worry. Safety worries me a little bit more but Thompson looked good when he played at the end of the year. Biggest concern here IMO is who fills in as the 5th and 6th DBs.
3. How many points will our offense score? Because we are so insanely stacked on offense I'm pretty sure we could pick our score most games. (kinda blue font but also kinda not)
Yea, I had a similar thought about Davis. I think I read somewhere that a coach or player mentioned him as a possibility as well.Re: Payne - Dwight had some decent efforts this year - took some steps forward. After that from a pure positional standpoint, Mathis. that said i would not be surprised to see us slide R. Davis inside some, and then have Buggs and williams/Ray at the DE spots every once and a while. We've done that in the past with some of our bigger DEs like Reed, Robinson and Tomlinson.
Real tall for down inside. Certainly not saying he can`t do it ( how the hell would I know ? ), but he`ll have to watch his pad level, I do know that!Yea, I had a similar thought about Davis. I think I read somewhere that a coach or player mentioned him as a possibility as well.
If the defense can adequately reload and build quality depth, this team should win 11 or 12 games. The offense is insanely talented. Kicking is the biggest concern to me. Yes, the defense will be replacing a lot of starters but when does Alabama under Nick Saban play bad defense ? Last year the injuries killed us at the end of the regular season. 2013 and 2014 were not great but I think we were adjusting our personnel to the spread teams and it showed. Place kicking is always an adventure and I can't understand why. The best program in the nation should have a reliable place kicker every year. No excuses. Hopefully that changes in 2018.So, the biggest question marks seem to be...
1. Payne replacement? We don't really have a clear cut impact successor but our DEs should be improved with experience.
2. Who starts in the defensive backfield? I think we will probably have at least 2 high level CBs by years end so that's not a huge worry. Safety worries me a little bit more but Thompson looked good when he played at the end of the year. Biggest concern here IMO is who fills in as the 5th and 6th DBs.
3. How many points will our offense score? Because we are so insanely stacked on offense I'm pretty sure we could pick our score most games. (kinda blue font but also kinda not)
True about the challenge on pad level. Davis also uses he hands extremely well and has a lot of leverage to keep blockers off so that helps balance out the challenge of getting low for him.Real tall for down inside. Certainly not saying he can`t do it ( how the hell would I know ? ), but he`ll have to watch his pad level, I do know that!