theguru

Fourscore and six Super Bowl titles ago.

I thought the same thing, even down to his hands, but that was just a first impression on tv.

Lance McAlister had a long take on Facebook. My random thoughts on Amarius Mims and the Cincinnati Bengals: I get the pick. I get the frustration and concern with the pick. Fans screamed: Protect the investment. They made a pick designed to do just that. Fans complain the Bengals are never bold in their actions. Taking a swing at a guy with off the chart measurables, but limited college snaps is bold. It’s a pick of projection and with great development required. All draft picks are picks of projection and development. This happens to be a pick from an organization lacking a solid resume of OL development. The snaps that Mims put on tape had evaluators pegging him as a clear 1st rounder, in most cases a Top 20 or better pick. It’s not like the Bengals pulled him from left field. If he’d made 24 starts, instead of 8, he might have been a Top 5 pick. But he didn’t. And he wasn’t. The Bengals are keeping Tee around one more year in a SB window….for the here and now, yet they drafted an OL that needs to be developed for the future. If the Bengals are going to be as good as everyone thinks, No. 18 is going to be the highest they pick in a while. And the pick came in a year with a strong OL class. Just because he’s only made 8 starts doesn’t mean he can’t do it. But it does mean he hasn’t done much. Pointing to your draft pick 44 years ago that lacked experience but went on to be the greatest OL all-time seems like a silly talking point to prop up the pick of Mims. There is only one Anthony Munoz. Only 21, his slate is relatively clean of learned bad habits. Frank Pollack can now mold/shape. Who has Frank Pollack molded and shaped? Is he Cedric Ogbuehi, Jake Fisher, Billy Price, Jackson Carman, Jonah Williams? I have no idea. But each question I have to ask about him makes me less comfortable. He’s an inexperienced player that basically gets a redshirt season of watching/learning/development. He's likely to only plays as a rookie if free agent right tackle Trent Brown gets hurt/doesn’t play well or Mims outplays him….Only one of those three scenarios is a positive. He’s a 340 pound guy that needed ankle surgery last season…..Big frames need a strong foundation. He’s a guy that suffered a hamstring injury 20 yards through the 40 yard dash at NFL Combine. He played in the best conference country…made starts in the Peach Bowl against Ohio State and the National Championship against TCU. But he was a reserve offensive lineman in 14 of 15 games two years ago. Does Mims have 'it' in him? His measurables sure are exciting. But those measurables were measured in small doses. Will Troy Fautanu be better for the Steelers? Perhaps. I’m curious if he’s actually a guard. Can the Bengals get the best out of him? Sure hope so. Hope isn’t the ideal strategy when you have Joe Burrow. If the Steelers had selected Mims, I’m guessing some would have criticized the Bengals for not taking him. Doesn't it always seem like we have picks to compare between the Bengals and Steelers? I'd guess most people, including myself, base thoughts on draft picks on what we've read and heard. What the heck do I know about OL play? My default position is almost always positive/optimistic. I'm there with this pick. I won't criticize fans for criticism. The Bengals simply have not offered enough evidence of the ability to identify/develop OL talent to earn the benefit of the doubt. When that impacts QB1 I get it.

Thanks for all of that @Hearsay and I am really looking forward to the rematch with Cooper.

Are there any QBs you would add to this list?

So I went and looked at the TP94 Power Ratings from last year and found this: KY Country Day 39.57 Eastern 29.39

I think the Steelers will struggle to make the playoffs. The division is so, so tough.

Fautanu looks explosive and versatile but no matter who the Steelers draft, it is going to come down to the QB play.

Right, it had me scratching my head too. Anyone?

Meaning Sully withdrew unlike Conner where Conner didn't want him?

From Coach E's mom, Lynne, on Facebook: I believe his first words were " ball and net". He was a very unsettled child (I'm being kind) and simply Did Not Stop. He was still in diapers when I turned on a basketball game and he stopped dead in his tracks and sat down on his little red plastic chair and actually watched the game. His love for the game was set in motion. Before he even started school, he was carrying a clip board with pages and pages of x's and o's. He did not leave the house without his notebooks and eventually binders stuck under his scrawny arms. One never knew when he might need to scribble an emergency route to run. Somewhere along the line, he acquired a whistle (that was wonderful). Long before any math lessons, he taught himself to add and subtract by determining how many points a team was up or down. His grandparents would cut pictures of "balls and nets" out of newspapers and magazines and these were his prized positions. He would carefully paste or tape these in a notebook for future reference. He broke out with chicken pox at the ninth region tournament one year and tried to hide it because he knew that meant he would not be able to go the following night. When he went for a tour of the school where he attended kindergarten, his only comment referenced the gymnasium. All else would be lost on him. That is pretty much how he started and ended his school days. Not much on education, but it was a small price for him to pay to play ball. Going into the 7th grade, he was transferred from his small parochial school to the public school because no matter how hard everyone tried, he was a square peg and simply did not fit the round hole environment the school provided. As parents, it was a difficult decision to make. It was simply Blind Faith (actually more like what the hell could we possibly lose). It turned out to be so much more than the right decision. That was the school that built him. He thrived there. He was blessed with an abundance of friends, coaches, teachers and mentors who helped mold him into the man he is today. Trust me when I say, this was no easy feat. However, there were people there he respected and trusted and they did right by him and continue to do so. Besides Debbie D. Bowman and a handful of others, they were the first people to accept him for what he was (and is) instead of trying to mold him into what he definitely was not. They saw potential and worked on his strengths. They were the game changers. There will never be enough words to express my gratitude for these men and women. The ship was sinking and you were our lifeboat. It is still lost on me that this boy who tolerated school at best has circled around the world and ended up being a teacher. Of course, this means he is still a part of "the game". He has been a little here and a little there preparing for this day. He has done the work, taken his knocks, persevered and his efforts and passion for the game have found him right back where it started, where he undoubtedly belongs. He is still a square peg and the world is still a round whole. But, guess what? That's ok. He has found his way. Not always easy, but always worth it. He will come upon more of these "square pegs" and I am certain that he will be able to do for them what has been done for him. Congratulations, Coach Elsbernd. You certainly have your work cut out for you. But, that has always been and probably will always be the case for you. You have NEVER taken the easy route and I see no good reason to start now. You have years of experience beating the [redacted] and overcoming countless obstacles. You have proven repeatedly there are times when only a Square Peg can get the damn job done! Signed, Momma. Forever your biggest fan and worst critic. 😉

@NKYBballFan32 or anyone, would you please point us to the official announcement?