Are most of us overlooking the obvious????

[bridgecoach]

We had two major problems at the Safety position last season - and they were not Allen, Coleman or Jarrett.

Our major problem was our inept LB corps. The midfield was in a constant state of disarray and chaos ready to be exploited by every offensive coordinator and QB regardless of their talent. Our safeties were not only trying to adapt to their new role within the wide-9 scheme, but also had to help cover the roles our LBs needed to lock down. By overhauling our LB corps with smart players with top tier talent (Demeco/Luke anyone?), our entire secondary will take a huge leap forward. Plus Jarrett was coming into a situation without any training camp - so to evaluate him even by rookie standards is unfair. Its not like we had a seasoned vet familiar with the wide-9 to show him the ropes;; everyone was scrambling.

And need I remind you about how Jarred Page single handedly gave away game after game? Page is my best argument that a FA vet isn't necessarily going to be a good fit in a scheme like the wide-9. He not only couldn't adjust. His instincts were honed to another system and was constantly making the wrong reads and whiffing on tackles as he was out of position.

I have no problem moving forward with Allen, Coleman and Jarrett - provided we course correct our LBs. The modern game is all about QBs exploiting the midfield. Spags just signed two top shelf LBs in Lofton and Hawthorne while he already had Vilma - don't tell me LB isn't going to be a key position moving forward. Spags sees where the game is going and is making adjustments to be ahead of the curve. Ryans is no solution. We need more LB pieces if we have any chance to compete.

[eaglesnut]

You can't fix everything all at once and it just isn't the right time to "fix the safeties". No great player in the draft and weak journeymen FA pool. Coleman is an adequate player back there. Allen has shown signs that he can start in the league if he continues to develop. Jarrett hasn't shown anything but only a fool had high expectations. He was a rookie without OTAs. You have to see what he's got if you liked him enough to draft him. The cornerbacks (besides Asante) didn't know what they were doing in coverage. The LBs were awful most of the year. The safeties weren't going to play that well with all that mess around them. These guys all know the system a year better now and they know what worked better at the end of the year. I think you emphasize improving nearly all other positions before you go out of your way to force a new safety onto the team. Just upgrade the overall talent level and the safeties will show you what has to be done there in the future to make it a strength.

[Rey]

You can't fix everything all at once and it just isn't the right time to "fix the safeties". No great player in the draft and weak journeymen FA pool. Coleman is an adequate player back there. Allen has shown signs that he can start in the league if he continues to develop. Jarrett hasn't shown anything but only a fool had high expectations. He was a rookie without OTAs. You have to see what he's got if you liked him enough to draft him. The cornerbacks (besides Asante) didn't know what they were doing in coverage. The LBs were awful most of the year. The safeties weren't going to play that well with all that mess around them. These guys all know the system a year better now and they know what worked better at the end of the year. I think you emphasize improving nearly all other positions before you go out of your way to force a new safety onto the team. Just upgrade the overall talent level and the safeties will show you what has to be done there in the future to make it a strength.

Agree ... glad we have QB to disagree on as we seem to agree on just about everything else :)

[Deano]

All this talk about the LBs still doesn't explain how Jarrett could never get on the field. You said it, Page sucked. So it's not as if Jarrett had to beat out a quality veteran.

Coleman shouldn't start on this or any other NFL team.

[Birds4life81]

It rough enough as it is coming in as a rookie but especially last year when you add in the fact of the lockout, no OTA's, no playbook, not being able to work with your coaches, work in a pro style strength and conditioning program, etc. That's not an easy task especially for the Safety position which is one of the harder positions to grasp. Look, I wasn't a big fan on Jarrett in the 2nd round but it's foolish to replace him after one year with another rookie. There is still time in FA, bring in a vet like Chris Hope or Yeremiah Bell, let's see what we have next year with a healthy Nate Allen and a 2nd year Jarrett. Coleman is a serviceable backup and having a vet there would help out a lot.