NFL: Bills Offseason Preview

So as the Superbowl nears, all teams will be looking to the offseason to add talent and cut deadwood on their lists. The Bills, with a change of coaching personnel, may look to change this up or just make a few tweaks. It will be interesting to see if they can hold onto the true talent on their list and if they're brave enough to shuffle things around.

Bills Free Agents

Care of the Something Awful Football Funhouse -

QB Tarvaris Jackson - The Bills acquired Tavaris from the QB inundated Seahawks for a 7th-round pick late in the 2012 off-season. The Bills essentially decided to pay him to sit on his couch for a season. I'm confused as to why we forfeited a draft pick for that privilege. With lots of talk of a young QB coming, he's likely to leave for greener pastures. Or perhaps the desert, where he would instantly be throwing passes to Larry Fitzgerald.

RB Tashard Choice - About all he can do is pass-block well. Otherwise, he sucks. Not very fast, not very shifty, not very strong. He's basically here because he played for Gailey at Georgia Tech, but with Gailey gone, Choice will probably hit the curb quickly. He's best left there.

FB Corey McIntyre - He plays special teams more than fullback. He's a pretty good ST guy and blocks fairly well, but, ultimately, fullbacks are not premium players in this league.

WR Ruvell Martin - A good special teams guy. He had been replaced by Ron Brooks until Brooks broke his foot. Has hands of stone, and will likely be allowed to walk. A good pick-up for your special teams unit, just pray you don't have to see him attempt to play wide receiver.

G Andy Levitre - A top-shelf guard, without a doubt. Can even play LT at a replacement-level in a pinch. Excels in run and pass-blocking. Really, if he walks, I'll be pissed, and anyone who gets him will be in for a treat. I desperately hope he stays and we keep our very good line together.

G Chad Rinehart - Excellent depth guy. Good enough to start on many teams. Can play either guard position. Would probably be hard to retain if a team like the Bears or Cardinals is willing to pay him starter money.

DE Jarron Gilbert - Not much more than a warm body.

DE Kyle Moore - He's taken over at RE in the absence of Mark Anderson. He's a pretty good pass-rusher, but tends to get pushed around in the run game. Nonetheless, a pretty good player. Will probably be a good pass-rush specialist, either for the Bills or somewhere else.

DT Spencer Johnson - A good depth player. Unremarkable, but competent.

LB Bryan Scott - A glorified safety. Honestly, he's not very good in coverage and, being safety-sized, he gets pushed around easily in the run game.

CB/KR Leodis McKelvin - One of the best returnmen in football. He can return kicks and punts equally well. The fact that he's become an alright cornerback only enhances his value, but he's really a kick returner first.

FS Jairus Byrd - One of the best safeties in the league today. He's a rangy guy, able to cover a lot of ground quickly, but, most importantly, is extremely skilled in reading quarterbacks and receivers. Always seems to be in the right place at the right time, and has a good nose for the ball. If that weren't enough to get you excited, he's also a pretty good tackler. He basically does everything, and does it well. I'd be heart-broken to see him go.

The Draft

At the moment I would place the team needs in the following order;
Quarterback, Inside Linebacker, Wide Receiver, Safety (especially if Byrd walks), Guard and Punter (grab Brad Wing!)

Non-retarded Mock Drafts currently having the Bills selecting the following players first off the rank.


Manti Te'o
COLLEGE: Notre Dame
POS: LB
Was in the running for the Heisman (best College player) but had a poor Bowl game.

Mike Glennon
COLLEGE: N.C. State
POS: QB
A reach, but a serviceable quarterback who might be worth taking the risk on.

Cordarrelle Patterson
COLLEGE: Tennessee
POS: WR
A raw, but naturally gifted receiver that, with good development, could become a real threat.

Alec Ogletree
COLLEGE: Georgia
POS: LB
A very athletic top tier talent, good at stopping the run and covering.

So after the Superbowl will be the Combine and Pro-days leading up to the draft in April.

AFL: Giants Off-season Review 2012

Right hand man: Choco to Leon

The first bit of news to come out of GWS in the postseason wind-down was that Sheedy was re-signed for a further year and that Mark 'Choco' Williams was off to Richmond in a developmental role. This probably came about because of a broken agreement where Choco Williams was given assurances. As a result, the Giants had to look elsewhere to allow for their succession plan to go ahead.

There was scant experience on offer in the coaching market and ultimately the Giants settled with Leon Cameron to be the main deputy coach and confirmed that he will take over the team in 2014. Cameron has been looking for a senior coaching position for several years after being an assistant at the Bulldogs and Hawthorn.

I think that losing Choco isn't the worst thing in the world for GWS and gaining someone as young, but well thought of, and qualified, as Cameron was the best case scenario once it became clear Sheedy was staying on for a year, which in itself was a great move.

Overview of Player Transactions

via Football Nation

Player Losses:

Retired: Luke Power, James McDonald, Israel Folau

Delisted: Stephen Clifton, Tim Segrave, Rhys Cooyou, Dean Brogan

Traded: Jack Hombsch (Port Adelaide)

Free Agency: None

The Outs

Out of all the players who were moved on by the Giants, Stephen Clifton's delisting was probably the most unexpected. He had been at the club from it's beginning, playing in the NEAFL, and was, at the time, their main clearance player. I guess compared to the young talent being developed he was seen as too slow and erratic in disposal quality to be kept on given that there was another glut of young talent on hand. I still think it is a real shame that he didn't quite make it.

The retirement of Power and McDonald was not unexpected and they'll go onto coaching roles at the club. I think it was an inspired idea to give a couple of class players on their way out a year to bond with their charges on the field before moving onto true coaching roles, will help develop the coach/player relationship nicely.

The less said about Israel Folau the better. 

Hombsch was a potential key defender who was traded on to Port Adelaide for a 2nd round pick. It was an intriguing trade, the Giants biggest weakness in their inaugural season was their lack of true defenders. I can only suggest there was some disconnect between club and player and he was moved on. 

Player Additions:

Traded: Stephen Gilham (Hawthorn)

Free Agency: Nil

National Draft: Lachie Whitfield (1), Jonathan O’Rourke (2), Lachie Plowman (3), Kristian Jaksch (12), Aidan Corr (14), James Stewart (27), Sam Frost (83, promoted rookie), Andrew Phillips (97, promoted rookie)

Rookie Draft: Zack Williams (54, Academy Selection)

Pre-season Draft: Bret Thornton (1, Carlton), Dean Brogan (12, GWS Giants)

The Ins

The Giants took advantage of the concessions given to them as the youngest club in the AFL to hoard the best youth available. Even though there will be short term pain with this method, most of their picks will stick and they will be scary good in a few years. They acted to shore up their backline a bit more but it will still be a while before they can prevent giving away huge scores to opponents.

The Drafts

The Giants took the best talent available with the first three picks in this years draft. 

Lachie Whitfield (pick 1) is another sublime midfielder to add to a stack that will be feared in a few years. He won the Larke Medal, awarded to the best player in division one at the Under 18 National Championships last year. He has also been a member of the AIS-AFL Academy for the past two years. Should slot right in and make an impact for the young side.

Jono O'Rourke (pick 2) seems similar if slightly lesser to Whitfield, also attended the AIS-AFL Academy over the past two years and featuring in Vic Metro's successful U18 National Championship campaign.

With the rest of their picks, the Giants tried to address the shortage of talent on hand in key positions (excusing of course Patton and Cameron down forward).

Lachie Plowman (pick 3), Kristian Jaksch (12), Aiden Corr (14) and James Stewart (27) all look like promising types but it may take several seasons of development before their worth is truly seen. Plowman going early is a sign that the Giants were serious about taking players at needed positions over the best player available. This is simply because of the depth available in the Giants midfield, raw as it is. If the fabled Giants exodus occurs, which it wont, they will still have a solid corps of on-ballers. All in all a smart group of selections by SoS.

Free Agency and Trades

The Gilham trade was another move that affirmed the Giants knew they needed to address their anaemic backline with at least some short-term option. The Hawks and Giants swapped picks and the Giants threw in Jed Anderson, a NT zone pick half-back flanker, for the favour. I'm not too concerned that Gilham hasn't been fantastic since doing his ACL in 2011, his experience is as essential as his ability with such a young team.

Re-signing Brogan was a no-brainer. He'll be able to coach and only need to fill in as injuries dictate.

The Thornton signing is a thorny one for me (I'm so sorry). The major issue I had with the ex-Carlton utility was attitude based. I saw him as a blame-shifter, a ground-slapper and a mouthy-do-nothing who was something of a bully. However, his utility will be useful, either shoring up the defence, or giving a breather to a young forward duo. He should be another useful short-term addition to the team.

Summary

The Giants have tried to stay as active as possible within their communities of interest, being the ACT and NSW. It's an admirable effort, but the ACT members day had a scant turnout and I can't see the NSW ones being much bigger. However, the establishment of a club is a marathon, not a sprint, and the efforts from players, coaches and other staff is to be respected.

The club's player development off the field have been similar in pace and tone. This is very much a culture building and community engagement phase from the team and so far the club has done everything very well in that regard. 

Sheedy will have another year of developing some of the best youth in the country and instilling 'proper' footballing attitudes within them before Leon Cameron takes over next year. Let's hope they're both up to the task.

AFL: Carlton Off-season Review 2012

So the major player transactions of the AFL off-season have been completed, being the numerous drafts and free agency periods.  Now begins the long wait to the season proper.

As the title suggests, this will mainly be a waffle on the actions of the Carlton Football Club in readjusting after a disappointing season where real improvement was not just expected, but demanded, and unfortunately, not delivered. Even disregarding ladder position, claims could be made of a regression in game style and an inability to put away games that should have been won. 

The Coach Swap

The Brett Ratten sacking brought up mixed emotions from me. On the one hand he had brought the club up from the bottom of the ladder to playing in finals. On the other, he had some of the best draft picks to rebuild the team with and probably under-delivered given the talent on hand. None-the-less, I felt it promising from a club attitude and culture perspective, that club president, Stephen Kernahan, acted on falling short on stated goals. Ratten himself acted fantastically in his farewell press conference and I was truly sad to see him go.

The only thing that I can really complain about in this situation is the cost to the club financially. For some reason Ratten was signed on for a long term contract and handed most of it when he was moved on early. Kernahan has come under scrutiny because of this move, and rightly so, because this was simply not a case of Carlton being a victim of circumstances out of their control. 

It was almost a fait accompli that Malthouse would end up in the coaches chair and his availability certainly added to the pressure brought onto Ratten during the season. Malthouse's separation from Collingwood didn't seem to be totally at ease with the man himself and I'm glad he comes in still hungry for success and seemingly refreshed. Him bringing in his own coaching staff is totally understandable and I'm keen to see if the change of personnel at the club brings any players to the fore that might have not had their chance to flourish under the Ratten regime.

Player comments have been that Malthouse spends less time explaining the academia of football to the players in the classroom and more out on the ground 'going through the motions'. It has been said that the training sessions are shorter and sharper and more demanding. What this translates to on game-day is something I'm very keen to find out.

Overview of Player Transactions

via Football Nation

Player Losses:

Retired: None

Delisted: Blake Bray, Paul Bower, Matthew Lodge, Rohan Kerr, Nick Heyne, Mitch Carter, Andrew Collins, Bret Thornton

Traded:  Jordan Russell (to Collingwood)

Free Agency: None

Player Additions:

Traded:  None

National Draft: Troy Menzel (11), Tom Temay (35), Nicholas Graham (54) Levi Casboult (89, promoted rookie), Zach Touhy (102, promoted rookie)

Rookie Draft: Jaryd Cachia (9, Norwood),  Andrew Collins (24, Carlton)

Pre-season Draft: None

Free Agency: None

Free Agency and Trades

If there was one word I could use to describe Carlton's foray into the first ever Free Agency period of the AFL, it would be 'unadventurous'. This isn't necessarily a bad thing. Firstly, there was no real glaring need the Blues needed to fill that could be addressed through Free Agency. Secondly, it allows a risk free evaluation of what 'worth' is applied to various players. Goddard was the biggest name to change clubs but it was also interesting to see how players like Brian Lake were evaluated. 

Jordan Russell was traded to Collingwood for pick infinity in the trade period. Russell might not find the opportunities he was denied in the near future but he might be more important to Collingwood's depth than he currently is for Carlton's, good luck to him. A lot of noise is usually made about players who are traded, but I didn't see any trades this period that really do anything but strengthen depth.

The Drafts

I'm sure the fact Menzel dropped to pick 11 is solely due to clubs staying away from such a young player who has already had a knee reconstruction. I doubt that it has anything to do with his character or ability, let alone club need.

Temay seems a likely winger type, definitely needs to pack some muscle on but might help become a good outside midfielder, Graham seems like a good rebounding back, reminds me of Gibbs. These evaluations are all based on about 30 seconds of footage and I look forward to seeing them in the preseason.

Judd and Captaincy

Most recently, Chris Judd has given up the Carlton captaincy. I don't particularly disagree with the decision but it does add to my suspicion that Judd has always been a somewhat reluctant leader ever since it was thrust upon him coming from West Coast. Even though Judd leads from the front and by giving strong examples, he has always been somewhat of a grudging media performer and preferred to hold his cards to his chest.

These aren't negative attributes, but added to my picture of him as not being particularly charismatic. His manner around the club and during training are not aspects I have a  strong knowledge of, so it is hard to say how he acted in these scenarios and others such as team selection meetings, or in reviewing footage post-game. Everything his team-mates say of him is positive, but external impressions of the club Captain cannot be discarded without thought, especially given that now the club list has matured, it should be expected they take up some of the responsibilities he has shouldered over the past half-decade.

I think being able to simply lead by example without any extra burden will allow Chris to be a better footballer and not have to worry about carrying the team on his back and help his, and the club's image in terms of leadership.

In response, a new leadership group was announced with a club Captain to be selected right before the season proper. The members of the leadership group were announced as Andrew Carrazzo, Kade Simpson, Jarrad Waite, Marc Murphy and Nick Duigan. 

Carrazzo, Simpson and Waite are all club veterans who all have earned the mantle of leadership. Murphy, while young, has been one of the best players in the competition and is a real 'poster boy' of the club. All these selections are not especially provocative or surprising. What was a surprise was the selection of Nick Duigan. I think it is of great credit to himself, though while not especially young, that to only be in his third year at the club Nick has been selected for the leadership group.

I think that one of the traits of Nick's that stands out to me is the work he does outside of the club. He displays a fantastic character that should be happily promoted and endorsed by the club, from giving his free day to counselling at-risk youth as a mental health professional to leading clinics for immigrant communities Nick has shown a fantastic balance between life and football.

I personally hope that Andrew Carrazzo be given the nod to be the Captain as he goes about his football in a modest but courageous way. He is a fierce competitor who demands the best from his team and himself.

Membership Options

As an aside, I have to complain about the Carlton membership options available this year.

Not so much the seating or pricing, both have been fair and right, $545 for the best reserved seating available and priority access to finals tickets are fantastic value when compared to many other clubs and indeed sports on offer. The main grievance I have is that a part of the digital portion of the membership, emails, videos and so on, have a pricing gateway of $50. This is under the banner of "Carlton Access". 

Trying to monetize various aspects of operations is an understandable thing. I will be very interested to see the numbers of people who will pay $50 to get exclusive videos (which will end up on youtube minutes after being released).

It is to me, putting a price on communicating with your club, which is a no-go. The club should be putting as much effort as possible on engaging with fans and members. Putting a gateway on that engagement is a sure fire way to make them not even want to look to begin with.