formido":c6ap2yx5 said:
Seemed like a dumb gamble, if that's what it was. From what I'd read about Bradford and seen in the preseason, I found it incredible he wouldn't be picked up. I thought Brooks would make it past waivers. I didn't think Bradford would. Bradford has elite athleticism, the pedigree of coming out of high school highly touted, and the plays were showing up on the field. Given his limited experience, his upside is huge. Feels like another Bennett.
Most years I wouldn't be surprised by Brooks clearing waivers, but with all the scouts in attendance for every Seahawks game, I was confident he'd be noticed. If an average Joe like me and Brock Huard can notice him, I'm not sure why they couldn't. I am not shocked he cleared waivers, but I am a little surprised.
I agree with everything you said about Bradford, but I thought he had a chance to clear waivers if only because he has so little experience at LB. Good for the Giants for not overthinking the obvious and snatching a very good, starter caliber LB.
It's funny, I completely trust Pete in his ability to coach up LBs, but I completely distrust his ability to actually evaluate them. Bobby Wagner had the most boring tape I've ever seen at Utah State, KJ Wright looked stiff and clumsy, and yet in almost no time flat Pete transformed both those guys into vastly superior players. In all seriousness, I wonder if maybe Bradford was too polished for Pete? Pete likes fixer upper projects. Sometimes he reminds me of a woman who strongly prefers "bad boys," the moment she "fixes" them, the infatuation fades. It is counter to conventional wisdom, but the irony is that despite the experience gap, John Lotulelei is a good renovation project, and Allen Bradford is close to a finished model. Still, I think it's a pretty stupid decision when the current Allen Bradford is probably a better LB than I ever expect John Lotulelei to be. Lotulelei is Aaron Curry minus the attitude problems. A stinger missile without the guidance system. Bradford is the Kam-Chancellor-at-LB experiment we never got to see.