| ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||
If you're not committing to [Russell Westbrook] long term, Brad may have something to say about that," Green said Wednesday night. "Because who are you bringing in to replace Russ? Because Russ isn't an easy guy to replace."
When co-analyst Kenny Smith suggested the Wizards surround Beal with young draft picks, Green offered a critique of that form of roster building.
"If that is the case and you are bringing back draft picks, that doesn't help Bradley Beal who is going into Year 10 of his career," Green said. "I think, number one, they have to decide whether they are committed to Russ long-term. And if they are, as y'all said, then it is time to go get other veterans. But getting draft picks and placing them next to two All-Stars, that don't work."
| KNBR |
| @KNBR |
–DeMeco Ryans shares what his defensive philosophy will be in his first year as 49ers DC pic.twitter.com/
As of May 31, there were 244 players on the injured list across the sport, an average of more than eight per team. There wasn’t a single day all last season when that many players were on the IL at once.
• Those 244 players on the IL represent a scary 29-percent spike if you just compare that with the 61-day mark of the last full season, in 2019.
• But measured another way, if you total up all IL placements, 103 more players wound up on the IL (non-COVID division) at some point in the first 61 days this season (385) than in 2019 (282). That’s up more than 30 percent.
• And if you want to include the COVID-related IL, it’s a jump of more than 50 percent compared with the first 61 days of 2019 (without even including vaccination-related stints).
So what’s up with that? In part, it’s because teams use the 10-day injured list so much more aggressively than the old 15-day IL. In part, it’s also because, coming off the uncharted territory of a 60-game season, teams are clearly being more proactive to protect players’ long-term health. So injured list activity isn’t a 100 percent barometer of injuries, per se. Nevertheless, the more you dig into this data, the more shocking it gets:
• The number of pitchers who made IL visits in the first two months was up 47 percent compared with 2019.
• Just elbow injuries alone were up 28 percent.
• And dreaded soft-tissue injuries, always an early season problem area, exploded into record territory. Hamstring issues almost tripled. Oblique injuries nearly doubled. And groin-strain IL placements were up an incredible 700 percent (from two to 16).
In truth, we don’t have quite enough clear-cut data to connect every dot between the weirdness of that 60-game season last year and the IL population boom this year. But at this point, how is it even possible to conclude this is just some fluky coincidence?
“Sometimes,” said one AL exec, “the most obvious thing is what’s actually causing that thing you’re seeing. … When you think, ‘What’s the one huge difference between this year and last year?’ it’s just obvious. You’ve got multiple teams with double-digit IL placements — and that’s just in the big leagues. The minor-league injured lists are even worse.”
But this is more than merely a bar graph come to life. This is being reflected in what you watch on the field every day in the major leagues.
“The upshot is that who ends up playing in the big leagues, because of this, is so different from what we’re used to,” the same exec said. “We’re not just talking anymore about the second-line layer of talent. In some cases, we’re down to four- and fifth-layer talent.”
| Matt Maiocco |
| @MaioccoNBCS |
nbcsports.com/ba
REASONS TO BE BULLISH: The 49ers were in the Super Bowl two seasons ago and still have one of the league's best rosters, not to mention one of the game's top play-callers and play designers in coach Kyle Shanahan. Injuries decimated them in 2020, but Nick Bosa, one of the game's top pass rushers, is expected to return healthy from a torn ACL, and the young players who got experience last season should be that much better. Lastly, quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo knows he is on borrowed time after the team made the blockbuster trade to move up and draft Trey Lance third overall. For all of his faults, Garoppolo did lead the team to Super Bowl LIV, and he figures to be extremely motivated, because he knows he is playing not only for a shot at a title, but a new contract with his next employer.
REASONS TO BE SKITTISH: There's no real reason to be concerned beyond injury, so let's manufacture a couple, just for the sake of discussion:
- The team is breaking in a new defensive coordinator, with DeMeco Ryans taking over for Robert Saleh, who left to become the Jets' new coach. (This really isn't an issue for me because Ryans is smart, detailed and able to connect with players, having been one himself.)
- The 49ers play in one of the league's toughest divisions, if not the toughest. The Seahawks and Rams both made the playoffs last season, and the Cardinals were in a position to do so before losing their final two games.
- If Garoppolo gets hurt, the team might have to turn to the unproven Lance. And as talented as Lance appears to be, you never know until a guy is actually in the heat of the battle. (This, to me, also is not an issue, because Shanahan understands how to protect a quarterback; also, the defense figures to be one of the game's best, with a stout front and experience on the back end.)
7. SAN FRANCISCO 49ERS
The 49ers have built a dangerous group of playmakers; it’s just a matter of keeping everyone on the field this season. Deebo Samuel has been used everywhere in this offense. He excels on “space” plays, as he’s averaged 9.6 yards after the catch per reception in his two years in the league, and he is also adept at working the intermediate route tree when lined up on the outside. Former first-rounder Brandon Aiyuk has similar YAC ability, but he was used in a more traditional role last season on his way to an 80.8 receiving grade, second-best among rookies.
After Samuel and Ayiuk, the wide receiver snaps are up for grabs to a plethora of options. Travis Benjamin has played just 189 snaps since 2019, but at his best, he has take-the-top-off-the-defense speed that has led to 14.9 yards per reception in his career. Richie James Jr.has created plenty of big plays himself, averaging 18.1 yards per reception in his 38 career catches, but he also has five drops. Former third-rounder Jalen Hurd is a wild card after he showed early promise during the preseason as a rookie, but he’s yet to take a regular-season snap.
George Kittle is the league’s best all-around option at tight end; he’s one of the few options who can run block effectively in-line while keeping defenses off balance with his route-running and after-the-catch ability. Kittle has graded at 84.0 or better in each of the last three seasons, including an incredible 94.4 grade in 2019. Ross Dwelley will battle 2020 sixth-rounder Charlie Woerner for the backup job.
The 49ers have an excellent trio of pass-catchers in Samuel, Ayiuk and Kittle, but it’s all about health and one more target emerging to move them into the upper echelon of the league.
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||
If you're not committing to [Russell Westbrook] long term, Brad may have something to say about that," Green said Wednesday night. "Because who are you bringing in to replace Russ? Because Russ isn't an easy guy to replace."
When co-analyst Kenny Smith suggested the Wizards surround Beal with young draft picks, Green offered a critique of that form of roster building.
"If that is the case and you are bringing back draft picks, that doesn't help Bradley Beal who is going into Year 10 of his career," Green said. "I think, number one, they have to decide whether they are committed to Russ long-term. And if they are, as y'all said, then it is time to go get other veterans. But getting draft picks and placing them next to two All-Stars, that don't work."
ALL DUE RESPECT TO ATHLETES WHO HAVE MENTAL HEALTH ISSUES—- WE ALL DO......
-IT’S NOT THE MEDIA IT’S THE 24-7 SOCIAL MEDIA NEWS CYCLE THAT BEATS THEM DOWN —AND GUYS LIKE DURANT CANT HELP BUT LOOK AND RESPOND...
| |||||||||||||||
-HAVING SAID THAT:
-THE MEDIA HAS NEVER BEEN EASIER
-HOME TEAM BIASED IS UNREAL ON LOCAL BROADCASTS - IT’S ANNOYING ACTUALLY
-TOUGH QUESTIONS ARE RARELT ASKED ANYMORE
-PLAYERS ARE TOUGHER ON THEMSELVES THAN MEDIA COULD EVER BE
-THE ANSWER FOR ANYONE WHO IS THIN SKINNED — GET OFF SOCIAL MEDIA — WHICH IS EASIER SAID THAN DONE.....
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||
No comments:
Post a Comment