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Packers sign Devin Funchess


HighCalebR

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9 hours ago, cannondale said:

Sick of all the "Rodgers doesn't throw 50/50 balls."  Last time I checked, this offense was supposed to scheme guys open. Now all the sudden our playbook apparently reads 50/50 ball to the left, 50/50 ball to the right, 50/50 ball short and 50/50 ball deep. Such overblown crap. If a QB has to throw any more than one or two 50/50 balls per game, that's the max. Fans act as if it's a high percentage play. It's a last resort in certain game situations, not an every down occurrence. And if it is every down, blame coaching staff for not getting guys open, not the QB for avoiding a last resort throw.  Other teams didn't seem to have to rely on 50/50 balls against our defense. 

If you bring in a receiver who struggles to get separation but excels at 50/50 balls, and then you have a QB who doesn't throw 50/50 balls, you get lousy production (see Graham, Jimmy).

Part of being a QB isn't just throwing to the open guy. It's throwing with anticipation. It's understanding the percentages of, "There's a six man blitz coming and I have six blockers, My first guy is covered, and my second guy is only kinda covered. If I throw a good ball where only he can get it (50/50), we're fine." Instead we have a QB who really loves to linger on that first read, glances at the second read, and is scrambling and sacked by the time he gets to the third read because he has absurd expectations of his protection against the blitz. 

 

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11 hours ago, packfanfb said:

While 40 times are often overrated anyways.

I keep seeing reference to Funchess running a 4.7 at the combine. That's true. It's also true that he ran a 4.47 and 4.53 at his pro day. 

More times than not 40 times are also very apt, especially at WR. For example, check the 40 times for the Packer WRs compared to the Chiefs' WRs. Those 40 times are apt... The one Packer WR who plays faster than his 40 is Adams. Lazard might be in that boat, too. We'll see about Funchess.

When Funchess was at Carolina, he played like a 4.6 guy and struggled with conditioning. He also had a QB who overthrew him all the time, yet still had some productive years... Hopefully he's still in top shape like he was last year to start the season with the Colts.

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Funches showed typical progress for a young WR.  He really stepped up his third year.

He isn't going to light it up, but it is a seasoned veteran signing.  He fits the profile for the Pack right now.  He's a very good blocker.

Could he find some snaps at 'move TE'?  Writing him off before you see him on the field is pretty knee-jerk.

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10 hours ago, cannondale said:

Sick of all the "Rodgers doesn't throw 50/50 balls." 

Yep, then there's the fact it's not true. He just needs to trust the receiver. He'll throw Adams 50/50 balls all day long. He also threw some to Graham and Lazard.

The best example was probably 2015 James Jones. Heck, a 50/50 ball was probably a high end throw, and it worked...In 2015 Jones probably didn't belong in the NFL. He was running like a FB out there. But, he had one huge thing going for him. Mr. Aaron Rodger trusted him with his soul! 

Edited by Donzo
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1 minute ago, Dubz41 said:

Funches showed typical progress for a young WR.  He really stepped up his third year... Writing him off before you see him on the field is pretty knee-jerk.

Yeah, the thing is he's only 25. I thought he was like 28.

As long as he's competing with guys like Kumerow and Allison for the same roster spot, that fine...Can't throw 4 set of Adams, Lazard, Kumerow and Funches out there. 

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I think people are mixing up Funchess with Kelvin Benjamin.

Funchess is not out of shape nor a bad athlete for a 230 pounder. His long speed is mediocre, but he is explosive and has some fluidity for a big guy.

Also I don't see a ton of 50/50 balls on Funchess tape. The guy gets some separation, sits down in zones pretty well and is definitely someone who utilizes his frame to make himself some room.

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1 minute ago, Packerraymond said:

I think people are mixing up Funchess with Kelvin Benjamin.

Funchess is not out of shape nor a bad athlete for a 230 pounder. His long speed is mediocre, but he is explosive and has some fluidity for a big guy.

Also I don't see a ton of 50/50 balls on Funchess tape. The guy gets some separation, sits down in zones pretty well and is definitely someone who utilizes his frame to make himself some room.

I think people are also confusing him for Allison/Kumerow. This guy isn't some street FA we brought in to "compete for the 5-6 spot." If we get 2017 Funchess, he's far and away our No. 2 guy this year depending on what we do in the draft. 

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3 minutes ago, packfanfb said:

I think people are also confusing him for Allison/Kumerow. This guy isn't some street FA we brought in to "compete for the 5-6 spot." If we get 2017 Funchess, he's far and away our No. 2 guy this year depending on what we do in the draft. 

I'm not sure I'd say far and away. Lazard's 2020 number projected over a full season would be on par with 2017 Funchess. Right?

Edited by Arthur Penske
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1 minute ago, Arthur Penske said:

I'm not sure I'd say far and away. Lazard's 2020 number projected over a full season would be on par with 2017 Funchess. Right?

I'm not making any judgment on Lazard until I see him play another full year. Too many times these guys come around, look decent for part of a year and then disappear. Lazard has the opportunity to make something of himself and hopefully he's busting his *** right now to get better on the nuances of being a WR in the NFL. If he does, he could be the next UDFA gem. He also could be another Boykin. We don't know yet. 

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2 hours ago, AlexGreen#20 said:

If you bring in a receiver who struggles to get separation but excels at 50/50 balls, and then you have a QB who doesn't throw 50/50 balls, you get lousy production (see Graham, Jimmy).

Does Jimmy Graham really excel at 50/50 balls at this point in his career?  I remember one or two end zone plays where Rodgers threw him the ball and the little jumps he made to box out defenders were nothing compared to what he used to be able to do.

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18 minutes ago, JBURGE said:

I don't hate it, but with EQ, Lazard and MVS I would have liked someone other than Funchess' body type

With MLFs insistence that he wants his WR room with ‘all different types’, half of me thinks to bump the Raegors and Duvernays of the draft up on my packers board. 

 

The other half assumes we’re going Higgins in the first 

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21 minutes ago, JBURGE said:

I don't hate it, but with EQ, Lazard and MVS I would have liked someone other than Funchess' body type

But Gute has talked to length about wanting a basketball team at WR. His type is clearly get large targets with large catch radiuses.

I think unless if he is getting a small shifty/ speedster guy cheap or that guy is special... that might not be a body type we see for awhile in GB.

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11 minutes ago, VicPez said:

Does Jimmy Graham really excel at 50/50 balls at this point in his career?  I remember one or two end zone plays where Rodgers threw him the ball and the little jumps he made to box out defenders were nothing compared to what he used to be able to do.

I would argue the 50/50 balls the last 2 years that Graham saw he sucked at

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