Saturday Notes: Rookie Minicamp Has Begun

Sean Yuille — Sat, 02 May 2009 05:40:32 -0000

More photos » by Carlos Osorio - AP

7 months ago: Detroit Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford, the No. 1 pick in the NFL draft, talks with offensive coordinator Scott Linehan during drills at the team's football practice facility in Allen Park, Mich., Friday, May 1, 2009. (AP Photo/Carlos Osorio)

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The Lions opened their three-day rookie minicamp yesterday, and it went pretty much as expected. Rookies played like rookies, and we basically didn't learn anything. I say that because this was the first time most of these guys practiced in months and because they are not in pads. There's only so much you can learn from any practice without pads, but add in the fact that the players are a bunch of rookies and it's not surprising that there were lots of mixed reviews of many players. (For more pictures of the rookies' first practice, click the photo of Stafford and Linehan.)
One of those players is Matthew Stafford. The general consensus is that he seemed a bit "anxious" and nervous at the start of the practice, and his play reflected that. Stafford was just too excited to get back on the playing field and let some passes get away from him. As time went by, though, he apparently settled down. Like I said, there's not much you can learn from a practice like this.
By all accounts, one player that stood out was safety Louis Delmas. He was anticipating passes, jumping on routes, and served as a vocal leader on defense. That is good to hear, and it backs up what was posted in his scouting report.
The perfect example of how hard it is to get a solid impression from a practice like this comes from some observations of how DeAndre Levy performed. Dave Birkett, while stating that he isn't going to read too much into Levy's performance, mentioned that he "struggled covering a running back out of the backfield twice today." On the other hand, Tom Kowalski said that Levy "did a decent job" covering a RB out of the backfield. So there you go.
Kowalski also mentioned that Levy and Zack Follett look a lot like Jordon Dizon based on "size and appearance."
One of Stafford's former teammates at Georgia, wide receiver Sean Bailey, participated in the rookie minicamp as a tryout. He took one of Stafford's passes right off his facemask since it came in so quickly.
William Clay Ford made a rare appearance at the practice to most likely get a look at Stafford.
Paris Lenon's locker has now been cleaned out.
Larry Foote didn't show up to the Steelers' mandatory minicamp on Friday. That is no surprise, though, as Foote and head coach Mike Tomlin agreed that he shouldn't attend the camp. I imagine this is partly because the Steelers don't want him to get injured in case a trade is close to happening and because he is simply going to be released if no trade happens. Why waste his time and why have him waste the Steelers' time?

Bringing the Mountain to Mohamed Massaquoi: A Tribute to No. 1 in Your Program and No. 1 in Your Heart

T Kyle King — Mon, 22 Dec 2008 02:45:19 -0000

Right now, the attention of Bulldog Nation is scattered among several people. We all are wondering whether Stacy Searels is going to Auburn and whether Matthew Stafford and Knowshon Rockwell Moreno are headed for the N.F.L. We’re all glad Jeff Owens is returning and we’re all looking forward to at least another couple of years of A.J. Green. We all have our opinions of Mike Bobo and Willie Martinez, and whether their continued employment in their present positions is what’s best for the Red and Black.

Lost in all of this, though, is the fact that, while New Year’s Day 2009 may be---likely is---the last time Stafford and Moreno will take the field for Georgia, January 1 will be the last time another prominent Bulldog on the offensive side of the ball dons the silver britches.

I am speaking, of course, of Mohamed Massaquoi.

Perhaps because the ‘Dawgs ran the ball so much and so well for so long, we as a fan base have tended to be a tad tough on our receivers. Georgia receivers are a lot like presidents of the United States . . . since the late ‘80s, almost none of either have left their posts as popular as when they arrived.

Oh, we’ve been fond of any number of tight ends along the way; who among us didn’t love Troy Sadowski, Randy McMichael, or Leonard Pope? We have, however, been harsh towards the guys split wide ever since the Classic City Canines got serious about this whole "forward pass" business.

Andre Hastings was overshadowed by Eric Zeier and Garrison Hearst. Michael Greer caught everything thrown his way until his career went up in smoke. Hason Graham, Brice Hunter, Juan Daniels, Fred Gibson, Reggie Brown, Bryan McClendon, Sean Bailey, and A.J. Bryant all tend to be remembered more for that portion of their potential which went unfulfilled than for the percentage that they realized.

While we revere Lindsay Scott for a third down catch against Florida, all we recall about all-time leading receiver Terrence Edwards is a third down drop against the Gators. Unless a fellow was a Hines Ward who did double duty under center when desperate times called for desperate measures or a Michael Johnson who made 70 X Takeoff this generation’s chair-breaking, property-destroying moment, we tend to think of him less fondly than we should, if we think of him at all.

It is likely, therefore, that Bulldog Nation is eleven days away from consigning Massaquoi forevermore to the scrap heap of Georgia receivers we deem disappointing either because our expectations for them were so high or our faith in the passing game was so low.

We will remember Massaquoi’s sophomore slump, but we will forget that he still led the team in receptions that year. We will conclude that the 2005 offensive newcomer of the year and Sporting News freshman all-America honorable mentionee failed to live up in his last three seasons to the hype he generated in his rookie campaign. We will remember the afternoon he seemed like he couldn’t catch a cold and will pretend that a bad game made the fans justified in cheering when he was taken out of the lineup.

What we won’t remember, because we seldom do---but what we should remember, because he earned it---is that Mohamed Massaquoi caught a pair of passes in his collegiate debut against Boise State, and that he went 23 yards on his first career rush in a win over Tennessee, and that he hauled in half a dozen balls for 108 yards and a touchdown against Auburn, all as a freshman.

We will find a way to overlook six catches and a touchdown in a 15-12 win over Georgia Tech in the year in which he supposedly played so terribly. We will manage to ignore a tackle for a 20-yard loss on a botched punt to set up a touchdown against Oklahoma State. We will, if we try, succeed in forgetting his 84-yard touchdown reception in last year’s win over the Gators, or how he earned the True Grit Award at the end of spring practice and proved he deserved it by playing with all the guts and heart in the world in his last home game against the Yellow Jackets.

While we generally are good fans, we tend to be a little rough on our wide receivers here in Bulldog Nation. Given how much criticism Mohamed Massaquoi has drawn during his collegiate career, I have no doubt that he is but one game away from joining that long line of distinguished split ends and flankers, slot receivers and wideouts, who have passed through Athens and departed underappreciated and sold short.

Let us, however, take a break from speculating about the futures of Coaches Martinez and Searels and of Messrs. Moreno and Stafford. Let us, for now, for once, heap praises upon and be grateful to that tall, lanky kid out of Charlotte, N.C., who, try as he might, can’t resist smiling even at the end of a career that was a great deal more fun to watch than it had to have been to have lived.

For four years, we have had the privilege of seeing this young man usually play well and always play hard for his---our---team. While he had his bad games along the way, he hustled, showed toughness, and persevered. Mohamed Massaquoi was, is, and always will be a damn good ‘Dawg, and he deserves to be told that in terms much more uncertain than we have ever used when communicating that sentiment to him.

Don’t fail to appreciate Mohamed Massaquoi before he’s gone. He has 60 minutes to play and we have a lifetime to remember. We clearly got the better end of that bargain. Thanks for four great years, MoMass.

Go ‘Dawgs!

SB Nation - Sean Bailey

Saturday Notes: Rookie Minicamp Has Begun

Bringing the Mountain to Mohamed Massaquoi: A Tribute to No. 1 in Your Program and No. 1 in Your Heart