Posts tagged Matt Hasselbeck

Sunday Mailbag 10/23

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Sunday's mailbag always has some good variety. Photo by KLMircea.

Rob McClean: Now that San Diego and Indianapolis have released running backs Jordan Todman and Darren Evans, do either get a shot with the Detroit Lions after the voided Ronnie Brown trade?

Waldman: On the surface it would make sense that the Lions would take a look at this pair of rookies, but after a little more thought I don’t think it’s going to happen. The Lions are a young team, but they are a young team on the rise. I don’t believe they want to work with backs that are unproven in pass protection. This is the reason they sought Ronnie Brown and valued him over Jerome Harrison. Brown has veteran skills as a pass protector that Harrison lacked. The former Washington State runner is actually a player I would have preferred as a ball carrier to Brown, but pass protection is one of the reasons he’s bounced around the league and never earned a full-time gig as a starter.

Harrison would have been a situational reserve for the Eagles who knew the offense, but they didn’t need to rely on him due to the play of LeSean McCoy and rookie Dion Lewis. I believe that Philadelphia’s use of the shotgun passing game was a big reason the Lions targeted Brown and subsequently former Eagle Eldra Buckley. Matt Stafford is the franchise and they can’t take too many chances with backfield protection.

Todman, a rookie from the University of Connecticut, has some promise. Continue reading →

Quarterback Techniques Part II (Not Safe for Work)

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Aaron Rodgers is the total package and a standard setter when it comes to the arm quality of a quarterback. Photo by Elvis Kennedy. Not to be confused with Malcolm Gaye

Warning: This blog post isn’t for the corporate mindset. It’s safe to read at work except for the first link you come across. However, if you’re the kind of idiot (and I use the term affectionately – we all act like idiots from time to time. It’s part of the human condition) that feels the need to share everything with co-workers because you think you know their sense of humor better than you actually do, then it’s not safe for work. In fact, if you’re that kind of idiot don’t read this post until you get home.

If you get canned it’s because your listening skills suck. Continue reading →

NFL Draft Scout’s Chad Reuter-Part III

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Despite the low success rate of first-round quarterbacks, Chad Reuter explains why drafting a QB in subsequent rounds who turns out even as productive as Matt Hasselbeck is a rarity. Photo by Matt McGee

If you thought ESPN analyst Matt Williamson’s path to becoming a paid evaluator of talent was unusual, consider NFL Draft Scout.com senior analyst Chad Reuter. The Wisconsin native lacks a football background, but he managed to transform a hobby into a job because of his tremendous analytical skills, sincere passion for the game, and a veteran scout’s work ethic. In this multi-part conversation, Reuter and I spent a couple of hours discussing a variety of topics related to player evaluation.

In Part I of this conversation, Chad and I discuss why he enjoys studying offensive line play, evaluating technique versus results, and balancing these two behaviors with the craft of projecting a player’s future in the NFL. In Part II  we covered Reuter’s path to  studying football as a full-time job, a defensive position that is difficult to evaluate, and why “instincts” and “intangibles” may not be innate after all. In this segment, Chad and I discuss sabermetrics and football, the mathematical logic of drafting a quarterback in the first round, and the importance of tiers when building a draftboard.

Waldman: There’s a growing camp of  sabermetricians in football as well as the football media. While many understand why Bill Belicheck might use data to learn the odds strategic decisions, there are others who believe football can never completely embrace the Moneyball route.   It’s obvious that you are both fluent in statistics and the craft of film evaluation. What’s your take on these two camps?

Reuter:  I think data analysis is little more than a study of history. And I think you have to be cognizant of history when you are evaluating players — not just on the statistical side, but grouping characteristics with guys such as similarities in styles, size, etc.

But you can’t be a slave to it. Continue reading →