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This is going on in NFL cities across the fruited plain.
An absolute obsession from some fans and reporters about the receiver position. Obsession.
In Chicago, new Bears GM Ryan Poles has been bombarded with questions about the position, and he made it clear on Tuesday he will not reach for one in the draft.
“It has to be there and it has to be there at the right level,” Poles said. “You can talk yourself into anything at this point. That’s why I’m not overcooking this board. The key is making sure it’s in the right value on the board.”
Maybe it’s the influence of Fantasy Football, but the obsession with receivers outside of NFL training complexes has never been more heightened.
“You need to get (fill in the QB name) more weapons,” is the battle cry from many fans and reporters in various NFL cities.
The Jets scene is no different. Many fans and reporters are pushing the team to trade for Deebo Samuel and/or pick a receiver in the first round.
But Chicago Sun-Times sports columnist Rick Morrissey nailed it with his column with the headline: “Bears GM Ryan Poles would be smart to wait before going all-in on Justin Fields.”
Because in football, quarterbacks make receivers, receivers don’t make quarterbacks. If you struggle reading defenses, going through your progression scans and with things like footwork and mechanics, those things have nothing to do with weapons, Nothing.
And it’s fool’s gold to think that by bringing in more weapons you are going to fix your QB.
Zach Wilson has a lot to work on, including the aforementioned things, just like Fields does. They are both working hard on all those things as we speak, each preparing for their second season in the NFL.
Any GM worth his salt knows that weapons aren’t a magic pill that fixes field vision and mechanics.
So I’m not going to go on Twitter and push a Samuel trade because Wilson supposedly needs more weapons. I know those tweets get a lot of likes, and those stories get a lot of views, but I’m not going there.
Look, of course you need weapons for your QB, but as Morrissey pointed out, you should see what you have at QB before you go all in, otherwise, you are putting the cart before the horse.
Remember when Douglas said in April of 2020 that he made a promise to Sam Darnold’s parents.
“I promised I was going to do everything in my power to take care of Sam with protection and playmakers,” Douglas said.
It didn’t make much of a difference because Darnold struggles reading defenses.
And you should never make moves to sell tickets and grab the back page of the tabloids. That is no way to build a team properly and it can set teams back when they do that. We’ve seen that first hand.
The best way to build a team is to draft well, develop those draft picks and then re-sign those players.
No quick fixes.
“We have a plan in place and the fundamentals of our plan don’t change,” said Joe Douglas.
Part of that plan should be sticking to the draft board and picking the highest-rated player regardless of position, and ignoring the weapons lobby.
The Jets need help all over, and obsessing about adding players to help a young QB, who isn’t even settled science yet, is somewhat misguided.
But for the record, I have no issue with the Jets picking USC WR Drake London at 10 since they could use a 6-5 receiver who is good on 50-50 balls.
But trading a truckload of draft picks to San Francisco for Samuel, and then paying him $30 million-a-year, might be putting the cart before the horse.
You don’t even know if you have a QB yet.
Once again, no issues adding weapons in free agency and the draft, but don’t be foolish enough to think that is a magic wand for your young QB.
Don’t let Fantasy Football players dictate your personnel strategy.
April 27, 2022
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