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Gilbert Excited About Potential Move To Left

Discussion in 'Steelers Talk' started by TerribleTowelFlying, May 25, 2012.

  1. HugeSnack

    HugeSnack Well-Known Member

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    He's a wasted pick if he doesn't start week one?? Good lord! I know the Steelers sometimes bring their rookies along too slowly, and I don't always like it, but I wouldn't call any rookie who doesn't start right away a failure.

    I've been pretty clear that I want Mike Adams to start if he is ready, and I think he has more potential at LT than any of our other linemen, but that doesn't mean he'll be ready right away. Part of his whole deal is that he has tons of potential but is still raw and unpolished. He might be a Pro Bowler off the bat, or he might need some time to develop. It's very possible that he simply won't be good enough to see the field right away. I'm not predicting that, I'm just saying it's possible. And if that's what happens, then we need to keep him off the field until he is ready instead of putting in a guy who can't block yet to protect Ben's blind side.

    Going with that train of thought, Gilbert is the next in line for LT (the day before the draft, he was our starting LT), so I don't think he should "stop talking that LT stuff." I think he should be ready in case he's called upon. With him on the left side, we have no one at RT, and Colon knows that position as well as anyone. I don't buy the "stop flip-flopping positions" argument with Colon because he already has RT down 100%, so he can go back to that without issue. Whenever he does make the move to LG, he'll have the same issues regardless of when it happens. He can still be getting reps at LG in preseason and practice. Who else would we put at RT if Adams isn't ready and Gilbert and Colon are on the left side? J. Scott?? Foster could maybe fill in there in a pinch, but is actually a pretty reliable guard and has all his NFL experience there. Gilbert / Foster / Pouncey / DeCastro / Colon... I don't see what's wrong with this plan. It's probably exactly what would have happened if we didn't draft Adams. I don't see what's wrong with going back to it in case Adams needs time to develop. It keeps 4 out of 5 spots in the hands of capable players who are experienced at that position, with the 5th being Gilbert, who is merely the best we have and for whom we don't have a replacement (Essex? Scott? Please).

    Then, whenever Adams is ready, be it week 1 or week 6 or 2013, you put him in and go Adams / Colon / Pouncey / DeCastro / Gilbert... :dusts hands:
     
  2. mac daddyo

    mac daddyo Well-Known Member

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    you keep saying colon has RT down 100%. i don't buy it. he hasen't played in two years and this is a new offense. :cool:
     
  3. HugeSnack

    HugeSnack Well-Known Member

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    He's an experienced veteran. He knows what he's doing. The question is would he struggle with the mental aspect of playing RT if he had to this year? I say no way. Certainly not more than any of the other players.
     
  4. mac daddyo

    mac daddyo Well-Known Member

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    i have no problem with jon scott at RT. he's so much better on that side if it came down to it,but i still think adams will be playing and all this is a moot point. consider what we put on the field over the last few years, adams would still be an upgrade. :cool:
     
  5. edog55

    edog55 Well-Known Member

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    Again I'm going to disagree with you. Foster, Colon. First of all Foster can go back to guard if Colon doesn't get it done. Who saids that Gilbert is the best LT option even though he played it in college. Its a differt game in the pros. No LT in college had to block a James Harrison or a Terrell Suggs! So how come Gilbert who did a fine job at RT last year can come over to the left side a do a great job? He has learned the RT spot in the pros in his rookie season, so why not keep him their so that he can master it this year. It would be the best option. I read somewhere today that Essex has lost weight and has position himself as a prime challenger to Adams at the left tackle spot. Now, I would rather see Gilbert at RT, DeCastro at RG, Pouncey at Center, Colon at LG, and Essex at LT. Colon needs to stay at guard now and learn the position. Don't switch him back to RT where he has not played in two years because of injuries. It will give us a very strong middle with Colon at LG. Beside, I don't think Colon could beat out Gilbert at RT anyway, so leave his butt at LG! Also he has been very injury prone for the last two years so it would be better to have a solid player manning the RT spot for years to come, maybe a pro-bowler in Gilbert. So yes I say stop all that Gilbert to LT talk and Foster to LG unless Colon can't get it done. My sincere hope is that Adams gets it done and locks down the LT spot! He played it his whole career at The Ohio State Univ., so why not give him every opportunity to win the spot. I will admit it looks like a long shot but, Pouncey did it as a rookie, and Gilbert did it as a rookie who was also drafted in the second round. Seems like to me, everybody has annointed Decastro the starting RG with no problem but doesn't give Adams the same amount of respect even after seeing Pouncey and Gilbert start as rookies.

    Whats the problem? Can Adams get some respect too like DeCastro? I don't here anybody saying that Lugersky should start over DeCastero because he has played the position and has the experience. I have not heard that one time since DeCastro was drafted.
     
  6. HugeSnack

    HugeSnack Well-Known Member

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    You got me there. Adams and DeCastro are nearly identical prospects and should be treated as such, and even though Gilbert played well at RT and Essex played some of the worst football the NFL saw all season at LT last year, Essex should be ahead of Gilbert on the depth chart because Gilbert hasn't proven he can get it done on the left side yet -- you know, like Essex has... Oh wait! He lost weight. That's a good reason to assume he'll go from sub-adequate as a backup to adequate as a starter. Anyone remember what happened the last time we entered a season with a known POS at LT? It was only 9 months ago.

    I hope this is all moot because Adams is good to go, but I hope almost as much that Essex isn't seriously plan B.
     
  7. mac daddyo

    mac daddyo Well-Known Member

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    essex started at LT for us before 2011. just because he didn't play it well last year while overweight, doesn't mean he has never played it well. prior to last year he had some good starts at LT for us. i don't want him starting over adams either but with the weight loss, he should be back to a form where he did play the position well for us. scott played pretty well for us in 2010 at LT. i still say alot had to do with him being injured to start last year. he was injured in camp before the season started. again, i don't want him starting over adams, nor do i think anyone will. i think it's adams all the way. he is very motivated to show these coaches and owners they did the right thing by drafting him and i think he's better then max,essex,scott or gilbert at LT right off the bat. :cool:
     
  8. HugeSnack

    HugeSnack Well-Known Member

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    2011 may have been his worst year, but it was also the most recent, and he was never good enough to start at any point. And he didn't just look slow, either. He also looked weak and showed no technique. He had way more problems than just his weight/quickness. I'm sure that in shape he'd be a half-decent interior backup, but we just have too many guys ahead of him to keep him around for that. His only value is as someone who can play all 5 spots, but if he totally sucks at the two most important ones, that value vanishes...

    The bottom line is that we're talking about our starting LT. It was going to be a guy that has a lot more talent but no experience on that side (Gilbert), and we were all marginally happy with that. After all, it was sure to be better than what we had to start last season. Then it was going to be a guy with a ton more talent but no experience in the NFL (Adams). It still could be Adams, but if it can't be, I don't see why we should freefall into arguably the worst tackles of 2011, just because one of them went on a diet and you have a feeling the other one might have been hurt. We shouldn't be debating about how much a weight loss will improve one of the league's worst players. Not when we have better players available. That player should be out of the conversation.
     
  9. mac daddyo

    mac daddyo Well-Known Member

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    the coaches told essex to concentrate on LT. they must know something. when you can't move well, being overweight hampers technique. he's not their long term solution at LT either. he's the backup. he didn't just forget how to play the position.

    they were also ready to hand the LT spot over to gilbert, so they must think he was better than starks. if it was only because of injury, they would have said something before adams was drafted. they didn't. it was only done after the fact. they also then, after all these years handed the RT spot to gilbert , so they must have thought he was also better then colon. if it wasen't for colons contract, he may very well not even be here. they do however think he's got some value at guard over legursky or foster or essex. :cool:
     
  10. HugeSnack

    HugeSnack Well-Known Member

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    That's some spin on things you got there. Lotsa inside info!
     
  11. mac daddyo

    mac daddyo Well-Known Member

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  12. HugeSnack

    HugeSnack Well-Known Member

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    What are you showing me? I don't see the relevance.

    I was talking about this stuff:

     
  13. mac daddyo

    mac daddyo Well-Known Member

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  14. mac daddyo

    mac daddyo Well-Known Member

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    they did tell essex to concentrate on learning LT. why on earth would they say that if like you say he is the most God aweful player at that position? paraphrased of course.
    why did they name gilbert the starter at LT before adams was drafted and then change him back to RT and move the outstanding RT we already had entrenched there?
    it's as plain as the nose on your face.
    why didn't they just move gilbert to guard instead? he's played that position.
    i don't think anything i said was a stretch what so ever.
    :cool:
     
  15. HugeSnack

    HugeSnack Well-Known Member

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    First of all, I'll thank you not to make fun of my nose-explosion accident :(

    Second of all, I didn't doubt they told Essex that. I doubt it means (it better not mean) that he's plan B if Adams can't go. He can be plan C/D along with Scott. If Starks is healthy enough to play, I'd rather those two be plan D/E.

    As for everything else, isn't it possible that those are just the best positions for the players? Either Gilbert or Colon has to go to guard. I've been advocating for Colon to switch along with all the other fans. I incorrectly predicted that Gilbert would be the one to move, because I knew he was willing to do it and I was under the impression Colon was not. But considering neither has NFL experience there, and everyone knows Colon is a natural fit, and Gilbert just started a whole year at RT, this is the smart way to go. It doesn't mean that Gilbert beat out Colon and they would have cut him if not for his contract and so they stuck him at left guard. You're just speculating that.

    "why did they name gilbert the starter at LT before adams was drafted and then change him back to RT and move the outstanding RT we already had entrenched there?" To you this means what, that moving Gilbert back to RT means Essex is the one competing with Adams? It's simple. They are hoping/believing Adams will be the starter, and it would be stupid to sit either he or Gilbert on the bench if Adams can go. Put Gilbert on the right side and they can both play. Kick Colon inside to LG and all three can play. They are putting the best talent on the field! It's what we've been begging for for years! I really hope they don't throw that away now. They clearly hold Gilbert in higher regard than Essex at the LT position, because before Adams was here Gilbert was named the starter flat out. You said so yourself. Essex has somehow leapfrogged him?
     
  16. mac daddyo

    mac daddyo Well-Known Member

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    i have never said essex has leapfrogged gilbert. if you look at any other post i have put on this board, i've always said if adams got hurt , gilbert would be next in line at LT. i have always said essex and scott would be the 3rd and 4th option at LT. essex being the 3rd. if gilbert had to go to LT because of injury, then scott,foster or essex should be the RT. i also said colon should stay put at guard until he learns the position and not leapfrog back to RT. we finally have him playing where he should have been playing or at least tried at playing.

    if you read what i wrote about colon i said he very well ( " MAY") not even be here. not that he wouldn't. of course it's all speculation. we won't know until the first series in denver who will be starting. :shrug: :cool:
     
  17. HugeSnack

    HugeSnack Well-Known Member

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    Now that we've had some OTAs, it appears Gilbert is getting somewhat equal reps between LT and RT.

    "With Adams not participating since the rookie mini-camp that was held right after the draft, the Steelers have worked Scott, Essex, and Marcus Gilbert all on the left side. It seems pretty obvious Kugler really wants Gilbert to stay on the right side... Gilbert is getting reps on the left just in case Adams can't win the job it would seem and Kugler said as much Wednesday."
    http://www.steelersdepot.com/2012/0...ready-wearing-the-no-78-jersey-of-max-starks/

    He does pretty much say (around 2:21) that Gilbert is his backup plan in case Adams isn't ready. So one of those two guys will definitely be our LT week 1. I suppose the real question is who will be at RT? I guess it's Scott, Essex, and Foster in the race. Adams could be in that race too, if they feel he's good enough to play but not good enough for the blind side, but I suspect they'll keep pushing him hard on the left side and insert him as soon as he's ready so they only have to flip flop Gilbert instead of both of them. I think he'll leave Colon at guard, which I'm all for -- except I don't like the thought of leaving Foster on the bench with Scott/Essex on the field -- but assuming it's short-term, like a couple of games, I'm okay with it. If it's gonna be all season I might re-think it. Unless of course Scott/Essex plays really really well at :hehehe: :lolol: :roflmao: :roflmao: :roflmao: sorry, I couldn't get through it...
    http://www.steelers.com/video-and-audio/videos/Sean-Kugler---66/762db59e-c583-4cc9-bff6-594c69ec813c
     
  18. mac daddyo

    mac daddyo Well-Known Member

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    i just think it's adams the whole way. he will be in here for mini camp and they have had rookie camp and the playbook. i'm sure he's at least using the facilities at osu. then camp and preseason. i think they want to run with this line as soon as possible. gilbert is learning it in case of injury to adams and has to be moved over there mid game or for a game or two. gilberts been hurt too , so you have to have that 3rd option. :cool:
     
  19. HugeSnack

    HugeSnack Well-Known Member

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    I don't doubt that Adams has the inside track at LT. It only makes sense to give it to him if he can take it. And he will have sufficient time to learn the position. But to say Gilbert is learning it just in case of injury is a little naive, I think.
     
  20. mac daddyo

    mac daddyo Well-Known Member

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    there's always that possibility that they make the switch, but even to be the backup LT you have to have some reps there. i don't think gilbert will be as good as adams over there ever, but he has to learn it. starter or not. all you guys told me i was crazy about essex starting there in camp. we just may see that though. gilberts only been here a year and under a different OC,so he's not overly far ahead. i hope they stick them in there and roll with it. the more they play together now and make mistakes will help them all gel at this point alot faster. :cool:
     

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