NGT: Browns waive Kadarius Toney after disastrous game

[Painter]

That's why I think it's nonsense when some say professional football management can always pick better players than fans can. 

Whether it's so, or not, so what? Although I was the first here, if not the only one, to voice displeasure at the choice of John Mara's crony Dave Gettleman as Giants GM, I did likewise the very instant I saw Toney standing in his hoodie in the middle of his living room when his name was called on Draft day. Does that in any way support the notion that I have a superior insight to that of so called, experts or anyone else? Of course not.

What I do know with a high level of certainty is that the average odds of success and failure- however measured- place by place, position by position, pick by pick over a long period of time, are as much a matter of chance and circumstance as it is insight. And while it may vary somewhat one year to the next, the pattern reveals an ever-increasing decline starting with the back end of Round One. That's not to say that all Drafters have the same insight and/or luck yearly. I shouldn't have to say that nor to remind ourselves just how big an impact chance has in the Draft, and on what then is our after-the-fact, second-guessing whether or not we are guided more by exception than by rule. C'mon, let's not kid ourselves, folks. It's a waste of time.

Cheers!

[madbadger]

Where does Rocky Thompson rank? Believe or not but Toney had more total Yards as a rookie than Thompson's entire career.

1000%. With technology GM's and scouts can watch every play a player participated in during his time in college. They have the ability to interview the player at the combine, the ability to review his medical history. Back in the day Thompson was drafted scouts would be lucky to see him in person once. They would have had no clue how fast he was compared to his peers. The draft was a total crap shoot back then. Now not so much.

[kartanoman]

1000%. With technology GM's and scouts can watch every play a player participated in during his time in college. They have the ability to interview the player at the combine, the ability to review his medical history. Back in the day Thompson was drafted scouts would be lucky to see him in person once. They would have had no clue how fast he was compared to his peers. The draft was a total crap shoot back then. Now not so much.

The irony of it all was that the Dallas Cowboys, one of the teams who advanced the concept of using technology for scouting and drafting players, was said to have wanted Rocky Thompson had the Giants not taken him.

There's no telling if Tom Landry would have fared better with Rocky than Alex Webster, but his speed was what caught their interest and the Giants grabbed him.

Apart from a couple of kickoff return TDs, Rocky never made an impact on the Giants' offense and was gone after the 1973 season.

He more or less disappeared after that and that was that. The Giants gave his fabled #22 to Honor Jackson and life went on.

Peace!

[TDToomer]

I feel like not too long ago fans were condemning the Giants for not taking more chances on character issue guys.

 

Yes but it depends on what some are considering character issues. I never considered Mayfield a bad apple and was never bothered by Josh Rosen's hot tub and Christmas decoration pranks. Rosen's lack of college starting experience was a bigger red flag. Some fans like me looked away at the video of Tunsil's gas mask bong (something legal in half the US states now) while he has become a 4x pro bowler without any incidents as a pro.

In the case of Toney he wasn't really on anyones radar when Gettleman picked him and along with Baker it seemed that Gettleman dropped the character litmus tests to gamble on these disasters. At least Schoen got a draft pick for Toney.

[uconnjack8]

Yes but it depends on what some are considering character issues. I never considered Mayfield a bad apple and was never bothered by Josh Rosen's hot tub and Christmas decoration pranks. Rosen's lack of college starting experience was a bigger red flag. Some fans like me looked away at the video of Tunsil's gas mask bong (something legal in half the US states now) while he has become a 4x pro bowler without any incidents as a pro.

In the case of Toney he wasn't really on anyones radar when Gettleman picked him and along with Baker it seemed that Gettleman dropped the character litmus tests to gamble on these disasters. At least Schoen got a draft pick for Toney.

Toney had a few reasons he shouldn't have been drafted that high.  If I remember correctly he was considered very raw in terms of route running and football knowledge.  That's where I see the fault.  He was drafted to fill a "need" rather than taking the best available player. 

[TDToomer]

Toney had a few reasons he shouldn't have been drafted that high.  If I remember correctly he was considered very raw in terms of route running and football knowledge.  That's where I see the fault.  He was drafted to fill a "need" rather than taking the best available player. 

It was a need because Gettleman created a dearth of receivers by trading away OBJ and trying to replace him with Golden Tate and Kenny Golladay.

[uconnjack8]

It was a need because Gettleman created a dearth of receivers by trading away OBJ and trying to replace him with Golden Tate and Kenny Golladay.

Yup, they signed Golloday in March and drafted Toney a few months later.  Quite a productive duo for the Giants.