Loaded at TE

If Nick Vannett works out which I think it will, seems like a decision to trade or release Willson or Graham would run across Schneider and Pete's mind. If Graham is fully recovered, could we see him play receiver more like he did in NO? Taking Nick makes me think they weren't 100% on Graham's blocking. I love the pick.

Can't release Graham without injury settlement.

Or they want an upgrade from Willson and Helfet.

Keep it simple.

I think for next year it's a hedge for that, but that's way less important than this year.

In the mean time he can play H-back, be good movement blocker, can help out the tackles, and maybe do some receiving.

Red Zone, Graham wide this new kid as a true TE, do we run, do we pass does Russell roll out and run on a clearing route?

Graham is going nowhere in 2016. Would say he's probably not likely to return in 2017.

I would venture to say that Cooper Helfet is the guy thats probably gone as a result of this.

Funny thing about Bucky Brooks is that he often uses Seahawk type wording like Y TE and Move TE.

This guy is a Y TE.

Hasselbeck":1oqbufky said:

Graham is going nowhere in 2016. Would say he's probably not likely to return in 2017.

I would venture to say that Cooper Helfet is the guy thats probably gone as a result of this.

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Agree, we'll keep 3 TE's and Helfet is likely gone as we had a strong need for a better blocking TE.

FlyingGreg":3f8f2iz0 said:

Or they want an upgrade from Willson and Helfet.

Keep it simple.

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This. Let's get a dude like Gronkowski or Zach Miller that actually is proficient in both aspects of the position or at least can catch the ball unlike Willson or stay on the field unless Helfer or whatever his name is.

Most importantly, can he do the fall down block and get up for a wide open TD as good as Miller used to.

EverydayImRusselin":37tf2wat said:

Most importantly, can he do the fall down block and get up for a wide open TD as good as Miller used to.

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John Carlson, I believe; did Miller do it too?

Ad Hawk":36zx77ii said:

EverydayImRusselin":36zx77ii said:

Most importantly, can he do the fall down block and get up for a wide open TD as good as Miller used to.

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John Carlson, I believe; did Miller do it too?

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That's my recollection as well. The Beastquake playoff game (and maybe another game as well?).

Ad Hawk":3ccq3xyd said:

EverydayImRusselin":3ccq3xyd said:

Most importantly, can he do the fall down block and get up for a wide open TD as good as Miller used to.

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John Carlson, I believe; did Miller do it too?

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I remember Carlson doing it, but yes Miller did it too during our Super Bowl run in 2013.

Seattle will let Willson test the free agent waters when his rookie contract expires.

Sure a blocking tight end is coveted, but this new guy from Stanford is almost Gronk size and his college coach, Urban Meyer, basically described Vanette as a receiving tight end that didn't have the bench press punch to block at the point of attack (Rewind the NFL Network draft DVR and listen to his comments). After having to prepare for Gronk in the Super Bowl, I think there is more to this than just a blocking tight end. I think they want a huge red zone target.


Don't get me wrong about Willson either. He is a solid player and a much better blocker than the pundits here at .net give him credit for. I have seen him make more than a few crunching blocks. Willson has great in line speed for a tight end. My only knock against him is that his catch radius doesn't match his length. He doesn't drop balls, but I don't recall any circus catches either. Russell's accuracy minimizes the issue. Regardless, Willson will find more money elsewhere than what Seattle can afford to pay. Seattle has to keep a certain percentage of their players under rookie contract. It isn't like the staff wants him to leave. They just have to make hard monetary choices.

His coach at Ohio State says he's more of a pass catching TE.

Helfet is gone. After listening to 710 the offseason trainer in So Cal, Luke had really put on the offseason work. Kid was a beast to begin with dont want to see us lose another sneak pick even of he drops some easy balls.

vin.couve12":1iguu2q8 said:

His coach at Ohio State says he's more of a pass catching TE.

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That is so inconsistent with the film I've seen on this guy. He blocks like a friggin beast, and not just at the LOS. He is VERY effective at 2nd-level blocks as well.

The exciting thing about Vannett is that he needs close to zero work on the run-blocking aspect of his game. He's elite and instinctive and it, and well-suited for our scheme. It gives him more space to work on the route-running aspect of his game, something he was never asked to do at Ohio State.

Keep in mind draft picks are not always finished products. The dude could become a Gronk clone.

It's not like Cable won't improve him at run blocking almost immediately.

A few years back, Pete had mentioned that he really wanted to run more 2 TE sets. I can see this happening now. Running 2 TE sets, either I back or single back. Do we run ? Do we pass ? Russ can audible at the line. Then you have Lockett and Baldwin or Richardson split out wide, all of which can easily win 1 on 1's.

Throw in a very deep backfield after the draft, and our offense is freaking loaded if we can get more stout up the middle (which I think we did).

Mick063":2wsbmcyc said:

Seattle will let Willson test the free agent waters when his rookie contract expires.

Sure a blocking tight end is coveted, but this new guy from Stanford is almost Gronk size and his college coach, Urban Meyer, basically described Vanette as a receiving tight end that didn't have the bench press punch to block at the point of attack (Rewind the NFL Network draft DVR and listen to his comments). After having to prepare for Gronk in the Super Bowl, I think there is more to this than just a blocking tight end. I think they want a huge red zone target.


Don't get me wrong about Willson either. He is a solid player and a much better blocker than the pundits here at .net give him credit for. I have seen him make more than a few crunching blocks. Willson has great in line speed for a tight end. My only knock against him is that his catch radius doesn't match his length. He doesn't drop balls, but I don't recall any circus catches either. Russell's accuracy minimizes the issue. Regardless, Willson will find more money elsewhere than what Seattle can afford to pay. Seattle has to keep a certain percentage of their players under rookie contract. It isn't like the staff wants him to leave. They just have to make hard monetary choices.

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My issue with Willson is that he often gets his hands on the ball well enough to grip it, but is horrible at keeping it in his hands when contact is initiated soon after he grabs it. Don't get me wrong, I know it can be difficult holding onto a ball when you're being hit from behind, but we need our TE's (safety nets IMO) to keep the ball in their hands. Willson's speed is outstanding and at times I wish we would utilize him more, but when they seem like they are, he ends up dropping passes like I mentioned, and then the passes don't come his way as often (to be expected). This is coming from a big Willson supporter that thought he would have gotten to the next level in terms of production by the end of last year, but let's hope he's just a little bit of a late bloomer. Wasn't Greg Olsen a bit of a late bloomer? He's always been who I thought of as a comparison for Willson.

Is it the contact alone? Is he trying to move the ball already to secure it better and that is what is making it so easy to jar loose? I have no idea, but it's something that has bugged me and I don't know if I am the only one who feels this way. It's not like McCoy where he was having passes hit his hands uncontested and dropping them. I want to believe it's just horrible luck/timing, but there's some other underlying cause IMO.