DaBoys Posted April 7, 2019 Share Posted April 7, 2019 Not just a year off, but a year of lost strength and numbness. A year off at full strength is hard enough on unsigned vets. What are the chances that he comes back to all-pro form after a year off and just now working himself at 100%?(hopefully) Looney was no 2016 Fredbeard, but certainly not a reason for our demise. What are the odds he is better than Frederick still? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WizardHawk Posted April 7, 2019 Share Posted April 7, 2019 Couple months ago I read Frederick was feeling close to normal... 90-95% (his words) .... and planned on being a full participant in off seasons workouts and OTAs. If that's is the case, he's a huge upgrade over Looney. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ace5 Posted April 7, 2019 Share Posted April 7, 2019 While we cannot know for sure, I'd day it's a safe bet fredbeard is better. His work ethic and IQ have always been his biggest strengths. While Looney had a good year past year, I didn't think it was better than Frederick's "worst" (none have been bad) year so far. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
romo2bryant Posted April 7, 2019 Share Posted April 7, 2019 I’d say fredbeard is better just solely based on IQ. There was times last years when blitz’s weren’t picked up and fred would’ve helped noticed that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
canadaluvsdallas Posted April 7, 2019 Share Posted April 7, 2019 40 minutes ago, romo2bryant said: I’d say fredbeard is better just solely based on IQ. There was times last years when blitz’s weren’t picked up and fred would’ve helped noticed that. Pretty much what I felt. I think fredbeard’s strength is his IQ & technique. His strength definitely doesn’t hold him back but it’s far from his best trait like it is for Looney Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
D82 Posted April 7, 2019 Share Posted April 7, 2019 I'm interested to see what he reports to camp at, weight-wise and how he handles getting back into football shape. As others have mentioned his best attributes are his IQ and technique, two things which the disease wouldn't have affected. I think he'll definitely be an upgrade over Looney based on those two things alone, assuming his body can get back to where it was pre-illness. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
matt79511 Posted April 7, 2019 Share Posted April 7, 2019 I know Looney felt like a godsend of a a fill-in simply for not being Phil Costa, but he didn’t really set the bar that high. As others have said there was a noticeable drop this year in our OL’s capacity to handle stunts and blitzes. Fredbeard should help immensely in that respect. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
resilient part 2 Posted April 7, 2019 Share Posted April 7, 2019 7 hours ago, DaBoys said: Not just a year off, but a year of lost strength and numbness. A year off at full strength is hard enough on unsigned vets. What are the chances that he comes back to all-pro form after a year off and just now working himself at 100%?(hopefully) Looney was no 2016 Fredbeard, but certainly not a reason for our demise. What are the odds he is better than Frederick still? Good question and good points the truth is in my opinion I feel that it may take some time but in the long run sometime during the season he will definitely be back to his old self. Or at least I hope Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matts4313 Posted April 7, 2019 Share Posted April 7, 2019 37 minutes ago, matt79511 said: I know Looney felt like a godsend of a a fill-in simply for not being Phil Costa, but he didn’t really set the bar that high. As others have said there was a noticeable drop this year in our OL’s capacity to handle stunts and blitzes. Fredbeard should help immensely in that respect. 1000x's this. I feel like one of the reasons our team sucked in picking up pressure is poor OL calls. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Calvert28 Posted April 7, 2019 Share Posted April 7, 2019 There may be some rust. But Fredbeard looks like one of those boys who knows how to handle that stuff. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tony7188 Posted April 7, 2019 Share Posted April 7, 2019 I think 90% Frederick is better than a 100% Looney. As have others have stated, his IQ is what separates him from Looney. His ability to make line calls, along with his technique should really help our run game. In regards to strength, if Frederick is a full participant in offseason workouts, OTAs and TC he should have most of that back. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaBoys Posted April 7, 2019 Author Share Posted April 7, 2019 Travis isn't/wasn't just a smart, technically sound center, that relied on IQ. At 6'4" 320 he was one of the biggest centers in the NFL and certainly his toughness, strength, and ability to bully defenders was a huge part of his game. Go back and read his scouting reports. They go on and on about his thick frame and strength, his ability to help OGs with one hand, and how defenders bounce off of him. Certainly he is a high IQ center that has great technique, but there was definitely a hog molly mauler part to his game. Also, the drop off from making line calls and adjustments probably isn't as big a gap as you'd think. In fact I think 90% of the reason Joe Looney had the success that he did was because him and Frederick worked hard to ensure they would make the same calls and see the same things. I think Looneys IQ(with Travis helping him), and speed/agility(as seen on that long screen play to Zeke) are what allowed him to make a mostly seamless transition from Frederick. I do agree that a 90% Frederick is better than a full strength Looney. But I have my doubts that an 80% Frederick or less will be that much of an improvement. At the beginning of training camp last year, he had just began losing strength and was getting tossed around on the field: "In retrospect, there was a telling moment early in camp in California when Frederick was uncharacteristically pushed back several feet right after the snap by defensive tackle Antwaun Woods in one-on-one drills. A frustrated Frederick shoved Woods, causing a brief scuffle. “It’s amazing to me that he’s been out here going through two-a-days and creating half the fights because he probably wasn’t satisfied within himself how he was responding (as) I look back on it,” Jones said. “But that’s Frederick.” Finally, if Frederick is back and 100%, has Looney earned the right to compete for the starting LG job? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matts4313 Posted April 7, 2019 Share Posted April 7, 2019 6 minutes ago, DaBoys said: are what allowed him to make a mostly seamless transition from Frederick I didnt personally think that Looney was that good. He just didnt suck. He was right at average. It was a pretty sizable downgrade from peak Fredrick. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaBoys Posted April 7, 2019 Author Share Posted April 7, 2019 38 minutes ago, Matts4313 said: I didnt personally think that Looney was that good. He just didnt suck. He was right at average. It was a pretty sizable downgrade from peak Fredrick. He didn't dominate by any means, no. Yes, peak Frederick is the best center in football. But what we saw in training camp last year wasn't it. Obviously with his status and contract, you have to give him the job. I just don't know that we will get peak Frederick right off the bat. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nextyearfordaboyz Posted April 8, 2019 Share Posted April 8, 2019 1 hour ago, DaBoys said: Finally, if Frederick is back and 100%, has Looney earned the right to compete for the starting LG job? If Williams doesn’t look good, sure. But I am guessing the guy we invested a high pick in will come back stronger and put any notion of a competition to rest very quickly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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