Dear Mike Wallace - PLEASE READ!

http://pit.scout.com/2/1198132.html

Is anyone else as excited about seeing what Clemons can do as I am? I hope that whatever "clicked" those final few games of his collegiate career continues to "click" throughout his rookie season. This guy has a rare combination of size and speed and I'm encouraged by the early camp reports.

Mike Wallace, time to suit up!

 

I'd love to see this guy turn out to be great, but it would make me feel a little greedy! We already have 4 stud WRs.

 

I'm not sure why stud receivers keep falling in our lap recently, but I like it.

 

and RB and Linemen and TE's ................. This is the best Christmas ever!!!!!!!!!

 

I think the wrs come from tomlin being a dbs coach. He knows what he is looking at when he is watching tape on these kids

 

I know. I now find it difficult to remember what it felt like to be excited that we had drafted Fred Gibson.

 

Wow...Coach T is in the process of showing everyone that he can build a winning team of his own.The team is looking great in all aspects right now....players and coaches alike.

 

I think you're right and it's a good point.

 

True. Though I think it's a certain type of receiver that works well with Ben. Cotchery is a great example - he just seems to be on the same wavelength, and can improvise well when a play breaks down or is extended. The combination in recent seasons of Ben's style and Ward's approach has undoubtedly helped the younger guys develop in ways that, had they ended up somewhere else, they might not have.

 

I could be completely wrong (and unfortunately probably am) but one has to think Wallace is getting a little nervous right about now. Unless they are extremely close to pulling off a long term deal I would assume Wallace is antsy to get back to work and secure his spot on the roster. Of course Clemons still has a long way to go to secure his spot on the roster, but the more we read about guys like him impressing the coaching staff the more it has to be a troubling thought for someone trying to work out a deal with what appears to be very little success so far.

 

Thought the same. WR is not exactly a position of extreme need right now so you figure that has to diminish wallace's leverage at least a little. I still think (and want) the long term deal to get done but the fact we're in pretty good shape at WR must be some factor in the negotiations, and not exactly in wallace's favor.

 

Tomlin was a WR himself, in college.

 

Thanks for that reminder, HugeSnack. Makes me feel even better. And here people've said he knew nothing at all about offense and just had that experience as defensive coach to work with.

 

very good point, but don't forget about Lebeau

 

good scouting?

 

Dont get me wrong losing wallace would hurt some but with rainey and clemons we will be fine. Plus sanders when healthy and he says he is 100% can stretch the field as well.

 

i'd sure like us at full stregnth this year. i'd like to see how good they can be. we will be watching alot of this teams future this year.

 

yeah my only worry for this year is growing pains but i think we have a team full of professionals that will do what it takes to prevent that

 

After reading this string, I went back and watched the highlights of Clemons from last year. If you're bored with the off season, go check out his highlights. Here are three things that have me feeling pretty optimistic about Clemon's chances here, regardless of what happens with Wallace....which I think is a bunch of hype over nothing more than a business process. Anyway, Clemons has these three strengths (remember I only watched the highlights, not games where weaknesses would be more evident, and I don't really watch Colorado during the season.

1. Notice in most, and when I say most, I'm thinking 85% of his catches are clearly made with his hands. He's often reaching through and around defenders hands and arms. This is something I feel like we rarely see when guys are this young. I didn't see this level of skill with Wallace, Sanders or Brown when they came in as rookies. This skill alone is a clear differentiator at the NFL level.

2. He has very good body control. If he puts on some more muscle, this is what he'll need to use since he doesn't seem to be real quick. This means he'll have to be able to win contested battles for the ball, and his ability to maintain balance and control while running and while jumping are essential to his success at this level.

3. He doesn't look afraid of contact...most times he seems willing to initiate it. Now this isn't a measurable that comes out of the combine, but it's also another aspect of his game that he'll need to make a difference at the pro level.

So, while he obviously has a lot to prove, and preseason will help us see if he can play like his highlights at the Pro level, I do think he's got some strong potential to do so. He looks better to me than Sweed did. If, and that's a big IF, he can show these three things consistently through camp and preseason, we could have more than a very talented receiver group....we could have talented depth at receiver, and that will be important at some point this season, especially with Sander's injury history.

 

Uh, excuse me, has Sanders ever been healthy since he arrived in the 'Burgh? He says he's 100% but I thought he sustained yet another injury in OTAs or Mini-camp. This is starting to become a trend for him and something to be very concerned about. Some players are just prone to injury and thus far in his career, Sanders' injury issues give me no reason to believe that he isn't one of those players.

 

He wasn't injured on OTA's, he tweaked his knee but was back out there the very next day and wasn't limited in any way.

A lot of young players get injured coming into the NFL as they are going up against bigger, stronger and faster players than ever before. He maybe gets injured more than most, but so have many other studs. Calvin and Stafford both were considered injury prone just a couple years ago. While Sanders is no Calvin, it shows that even injury prone players can put it behind them. There's also players who never seem to be able to stay healthy, but at this point there's no reason to think Sanders can't. He's only been in the league for 2 years, that's not long enough to write him off.

 

Yeah, there were some reports that he missed some time during OTAs, but those reports were wrong. Sanders has been 100% healthy, just not 100% of the time. When he is healthy, he looks just as dangerous as Brown at WR. It's only lack of playing time due to missed games and spot on the depth chart that have held him back.

 

I think we are reaching a point that Wallace needs to swallow some pride.....Either sign your Tender or take the offer the Team has put on the table....I can see no reason for the Team to up any offer they have made....

IMO about 6 mil a year is all the Team is willing to go at this point.....I know some will say he deserves more ,but I think if most of that is for sure Money then thats a fair deal .....

The Team has to consider their overall Cap problems..
The Team has to consider the WR position as a whole and just how much money they can put into it..
The Team has to conider the new Offense and speculate how much Wallace will mean to it...

IMO when they do so he simply can't get the type of money he is looking for IMO.....I also don't believe any other Team is ready to pay him that 10 Mil plus a year figure at this point and time...