Labriola on if Claypool wasn't Steelers' pick
https://www.steelers.com/news/labrio...-steelers-pick
The most important ability is availability.
I’m getting an Uncle Rico vibe from that tweet...
Martavis......he's going to be a much better football player than you ever were.....and it's not going to be close.
You do have that speed thing going for you and your weed addiction though.
He's also going to accomplish things that the team expected you to do when they drafted you but you never got it done.
"big facts"
“Who cares about TDs!?! It’s all about speed... and throwing footballs over them mountains!!!”
The first in 60 years.....
As the games go by, and his production grows, I say to myself how the hell did this kid stay on the board into the second round.
10 TDs and a part of 10 wins in his first 10 games, nice start
Tangent:
I read an article in SI, where Quentin Jammer talked about Randy Moss. He said the most difficult thing about Randy was that Randy was so nonchalant about catching the ball. Most receivers would give you a “key” to go on: their eyes would get big, their arms would flex, they’d open their fingers... something to let the cornerback know to turn around. Randy would just suddenly snatch a ball out of thin air.
That was all I could think of yesterday. Like not trying to be negative at all. But if Claypool starts muscling through contact and catching the ball - it will be flag AND a TD. Guy is only a rookie a few months removed from the NCAA where they don't mug you like that.
But if he can keep his feet against NFL DPI...look out.
I don't know if Chase Claypool has a key that gives defenders an idea of when the ball is coming or not. All I know is, every time this dude starts shredding through these defenders with another powerful move or blazing acceleration....they have no choice but to grab him. That happens on a field when the guy you are up against is simply physically dominant. They scare that crap out of you, because you know you can't stay with that dude if you play him straight up.
Watching that play out nearly every week tells you what kind of a physical talent this kid is. Maybe they can't read him as well, I don't know. All I know is, the panic starts when they "feel" the power and speed of this kid on the field.
I'm just happy he plays for us!
He is literally getting mauled out there. He needs to make that adjustment and get more acclimated to that contact to finish plays....and I think he will.
Now that we've seen him play, it's easy to forget that he didn't get a full camp and preseason to acclimate to the contact. He's maturing and learning right in front of our eyes. The fact that he's doing this well already is illustrative of how beastly he is out there. To do what he's done in 10 games is flat out amazing. The fact that he stands out on a team with some other studs speaks to this.
I can't wait to see how much better he can get.
I don't know how to describe the other thing I would love to see him get better/more proficient at. He kinda twists around like a pretzel tracking the ball over his shoulder sometimes. Then he kinda runs left, drifts back right, then back left, etc. Whatever that is called, he needs to get better at it.
And, again, this isn't to knock him at all. He looks like a WR who had almost no offseason program. He also looks like a WR who has never had a QB be able to overthrow him. Like is used to stopping and waiting for the ball, not running underneath it.
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He doesn't even get close. It was Burrow's to lose. Now it is Herbert's.
What you're describing is tracking the ball in the air. I think he's actually pretty good in that regard. Some of what you're seeing is on Ben. There was a play in this game where Claypool was streaking at an angle toward the left end zone, and he turned to try to track the ball. That was a bad throw by Ben. That ball needs to be thrown outside so the receiver can easily track it and run under it. Ben threw it inside to the middle of the field.
I think Claypool is doing very well. Sure, he still has things to work on and improve, but he is doing things that we normally don't see in WR's until their third year. Antonio Brown wasn't AB until he was in his fourth or fifth season. Claypool still has a few years before he reaches his potential, and his ceiling may be longer than that.
I think Herbert is the clear rookie of the year at this point. I thought that even before Burrow got hurt yesterday.
I do think Claypool has to be on the all-rookie team as a first-team WR though, probably along with Justin Jefferson of Minnesota. That would be quite an accomlisment considering all the receivers drafted before him this year.