http://www.philly.com/mld/inquirer/sports/14108715.htm Birds make deal with GaffneyThe Eagles added a starting wide receiver last night when they agreed to a one-year deal with unrestricted free agent Jabar Gaffney, who started 50 of 64 games during his four seasons with the Houston Texans. Details of the deal were not immediately available. It remains to be seen if he will move into the starting lineup with the Eagles, who also have receivers Reggie Brown, Todd Pinkston, Greg Lewis, Billy McMullen and Darnerien McCants on the roster. McCants also signed a one-year deal yesterday. Gaffney, 25, is the cousin of Eagles cornerback Lito Sheppard, and the two played together at the University of Florida. Gaffney and Sheppard were drafted in 2002, with Sheppard going in the first round to the Eagles and Gaffney going with the first pick of the second round to the Texans. Gaffney's father, Derrick, also played in the NFL, spending eight seasons with the New York Jets. The move to acquire Gaffney came just one day after the Eagles released Terrell Owens. Owens' agent Drew Rosenhaus also represents Gaffney. Though Gaffney never lived up to the potential of being such a high pick with the Texans, it should be noted that his first year was also Houston's first in the NFL. The Texans have had one of the worst offenses in the league and had trouble throwing the ball because they were unable to protect quarterback David Carr. Gaffney, who was the Texans' No. 2 receiver, had his best year in terms of receiving yards in 2004 when he caught 41 passes for 632 yards and two touchdowns. Last season, he had a career-high 55 catches for 492 yards and two touchdowns.
i realize he's not sensational...but he needs to be replaced. this team has so many needs, it's silly.
It's obvious that Kubiak didn't think that Gaffney would fit his systems because I doubt Casserly would have let go one of his draft day bust for nothing. There still seems to be some #3 WR FA left to pick up. According to ESPN these are the guys that are left and where they rank. Nate Burelson RFA Vikings Kevin Curtis RFA Rams Reche Caldwell UFA Chargers Shaun McDonald RFA Rams Troy Brown UFA Pats Quincy Morgan UFA Steelers Tim Carter UFA Giants Az-Zahir Hakim UFA Saints Peerless Price UFA Falcons Josh Reed UFA Bills It would be nice to see the Texans make an offer to Burelson, but I'm sure the Vikes will match. They certainly need to bring in one of these guys, and also look to pick up another WR in the draft.
the problem is, Gaffney seemed to function more as our #2. i don't see a #2 in your list. and i'm not real thrilled with this team having to use a high draft pick on a receiver with all the other needs. man, i think i'm for trading down at this point. this team needs sooo much.
no, i don't. but it's all we had. and it doesn't look likely we'll have a legit #2 WR this season, either.
Doesn't look like it, but this may force the Texans to go WR in the 2nd. Which would suck because we need another OL and a MLB. Hopefully, they can pick up the OLineman from the Packers so it won't force them to go OL in the 2nd. If Sinorice Moss falls to the Texans in the 2nd I would love to pick him up. He's small, but he is a Steve Smith clone. Just imagine how explosive the offense will be with Bush, AJ, Moss, and Mathis. That's some serious speed. Check out Moss's senior bowl scouting report. ------------------------ Sinorice Moss is the younger brother of former Miami standout and Jets first-round pick (2001) Santana Moss, who has since been traded to the Redskins. Sinorice Moss gradually saw his playing time increase during his four-year career at Miami. His senior season was easily his best for the Canes. Moss lacks ideal size and may never be a full-time perimeter starter in the NFL. However, he is one of the fastest prospects in the 2006 draft class and shows a lot of upside as a No. 2 or No. 3 slot-type receiver. He can get vertical as a route runner and make plays after the catch. He also has great experience as a gunner on special teams and, despite little experience, shows upside as a punt returner. If Moss can show the ability to separate against bigger, stronger cornerbacks at the Senior Bowl this week and also prove capable of at least competing for playing time as a return man, he could elevate his draft stock and become late first-round pick. PLAYER - Sinorice Moss AGE - 22 SCHOOL - Miami NO. - 83 POSITION - WR Height: 5-7 7/8 -- Lacks ideal height for a high-round WR prospect. Weight: 183 -- Possesses marginal bulk for the position. Speed: 4.30 -- Is one of the fastest prospects in the draft class. Intelligence: Picks things up quickly. Shows ability to learn NFL schemes. Toughness: Very tough. Goes over the middle. Will take the big hit. Strength/Flex: Lacks strength because of his marginal size. Is flexible athlete. Durability: Minor concerns due to marginal size and 2004 hamstring injury. Character: Great intangibles. Emerged as a leader at Miami. Plays hard. Production: Led Miami with 37 catches in 2005. Averaged 16.6 yards per catch with six receiving touchdowns. WR SPECIFICS Hands: A : Frames the ball away from his body which makes him a bigger target than size would indicate. Adjust To Ball: B :Very fluid with exceptional change of direction and quickly adjusts to poorly thrown balls. Instincts: B :Has a solid feel for the passing game and plays the game fast. Patterns: B :Could improve presentation but his outs are sharp and his deep routes are dangerous. Receive Long: A :Has rare speed to run right past defensive backs even at the NFL level. Receive Short: B :Makes space for himself very well and gives his QB a big target for a small receiver. Running Ability: A :He is a quick twitch athlete with fantastic speed and good vision after the catch. Blocker: C :Gives effort and is strong, but his pure size will always hold him back as a blocker. React In Crowd: C :Moss will not be able to go up and outmuscle NFL defenders, but his effort is impressive. Release: C :Should struggle early when NFL corners get their hands on him at the line of scrimmage. PRACTICE NOTES Monday (1/23/06): Moss is even smaller than advertised. His lack of height is a major concern. Practice was light with very little contact, so Moss' weaknesses were not exposed today. His quickness, change-of-direction skills and speed really stand out in one-on-one and seven-on-seven drills. He shows very good concentration catching the ball. He plucks the ball quickly on the run. He is able to tuck it away and get upfield with great initial burst. He showed the ability to adjust to poorly thrown balls on a couple of occasions today. Tuesday (1/24/06): Although this was not a physical practice, Moss shined on Tuesday. Clearly he is much smaller than what is ideal by NFL standards and he will be ranked very low on several team's boards that are trying to improve upon the size of their receivers, but Moss eats up a cornerback's cushion very rapidly, shows outstanding quickness and catches the ball consistently with his hands and away from his body. Moss stood out on Tuesday and made quite a few plays as a receiver and was also sure-handed as both a punt and kickoff returner. Wednesday (1/25/06): Like yesterday's report, it must be prefaced that this was not a contact situation, but Moss has been very impressive during the Senior Bowl practices. Wednesday was no different as he caught everything in site and showed pluck hands with balls thrown away from him or over his head. For this reason along with his ability to get up in the air, Moss' catching radius is bigger than most players his size. There isn't a cornerback on the South roster that can cover Moss one-on-one in these drills and his routes are improving and his ability to push a cushion remains outstanding. SUMMARY Moss was simply one of the most impressive players during Senior Bowl practices on either team. He played the game at a different speed than everyone else on the field and stood out to everyone in attendance. The South did not have a corner that could keep up with Moss, as his speed, quickness and explosiveness were more than they could handle. As strong of a week as Moss had in Mobile, it must be stated that although he is well built and strong, he is extremely short and none of these drills were physical, which greatly played to his strengths. Moss may have been impressive enough to have his name called in round one and is sure to be a top-40 selection. FINAL GRADE A http://insider.espn.go.com/nfl/draft06/insider/news/story?id=2302243
Amazing how our crap receivers are getting money in FA. I chalked up Bradford's horrenoud contract to another Matt Millen f-up. Now Gaffney has signed? I'm starting to wonder if other teams are seeing stuff we're not seeing. It certainly would be consistent with the Texans' track record of evaluating talent. Hopefully, it's something else. Hopefully, it's an indication of the weakness of the FA market at WR. I dont think we'll be signing a legit #2 WR. Instead, the FA acquisitions of Cook and Putzier (probably) show that Kubiak will emphazise FB and TE as pass catching options. The role of the #2 WR will diminish. Hopefully, they'll use Mathis to attack vertically. I suspect that we'll take Bush #1, OL or TE #2, and OL or TE #3. That will give the offense the much needed extreme makeover. With the addition of Kubiak's offensive scheme, they better produce. Johnson, Davis, Bush, TE and FB better be enough weapons.
this is really my point. it's why i think, at this point, they need to explore trading down in earnest. i had hoped they'd be a big enough player in free agency to make it unnecessary to spend 2nd round picks on something like a receiver. that we'd be able to at least address it. instead, we've lost 2 WR's. neither of whom i think are special...but these are still needs that have to be addressed at this point. on a team that just finished 2-14.
Man, what a difference a year makes. Last year at this time you were the single most optimistic person on the face of the planet when it came to anything at all dealing with the Texans. Now, well... you aren't. I don't mean to be amused by your misery but I'm amused by your misery.
Don't forget Reggie Bush, at times with DD in the backfield Reggie may be a threat from the wideout quite frequently.
Does ANY player fit his system??? Sometimes you have to TEACH players how to fit in your system. They need bodies and are losing players left and right. This is getting a little frustrating. Damn Casserly!!!!
why would that surprise you? we weren't following up a 2-14 season, last year. we had improved every season. we were one stinker vs. the Browns removed from a .500 record in our 3rd season. why would it surprise you that my take might be different after this past season? i was far more optimistic about the Rockets going into this season then I likely will be about them going into next season. more information can do that!
Then you don't know those guys much at all. Most of those guys could do better than Bradford did in his tenure as a #2 in Houston, and the scrubs on the list could do just as well as him. The texans do need a legit number 2, but Bradford was definitely not the answer, and gaffney probably wasn't the answer either. Armstrong would do just fine as a wr3, so either bring in a stopgap from that fa list, or draft the most polished guy available with the 2nd rounder to be the #2 wr. Somebody already mentioned Sinorce Moss. He would be a very good option and is likely to fall into the 2nd round. Yes he's a shrimp, but with the new PI rules, speed kills moreso than size.
i'm not suggesting that Gaffney and/or Bradford are better than those guys. i'm suggesting none of those guys are real strong #2 receiver options. i'm suggesting that the receivers available on the market aren't real intriguing. and i'm suggesting that i won't be real thrilled if we're forced to spend a 2nd round pick on a receiver given all the needs this team has.
We are not using a 2nd round pick on a WR. We will find a 2nd option in FA and use Bush as the 4th option. We only need 1 WR. I don't think Gaffney was very impressive, but then I also don't think he was given a fair chance.
Damn, Gaffney had some good games for us last year and we really needed him back on the squad this year. Horrible.
