Will There Be A Battle At FB?
Posted: May 30th, 2011 | Author: Tommy Lawlor | Filed under: Philadelphia Eagles | 11 Comments »My newest SB Nation Philly column takes a look at Owen Schmitt and Stanley Havili and what might happen at Fullback. I wasn’t a huge fan of the Havili pick because I’m not sure if he’ll be a good enough blocker to make it in the NFL, but the dude is a gifted receiver. I would have preferred a better blocker to challenge Schmitt, but at least they got a pass catching FB who is exceptionally good at what he does.
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Someone asked the other day if Greg Lloyd might be a player that gets put on IR for a “redshirt” year. Possible. I’m not sure it will happen though. Dave Spadaro made mention of Lloyd the other day in a way that makes you wonder about the plans for him:
“Why do I look at Greg Lloyd
‘s bio and talk to people and think he really has a chance? I don’t discount late-round draft picks, not one bit. He has the mentality and the body and the athletic ability to play at this level. Think Jeremiah Trotter, 2.0. Let’s see how Lloyd looks when he finally gets here.”
That doesn’t come across like your typical throwaway mention. It might be. Let’s be honest, Spuds is reaching for content just like the rest of us. There’s just something about the blurb that makes me wonder if Lloyd is a guy the team is hoping will come in and push for a spot this year. That would give them the freedom to move Casey Matthew to OLB or possibly to move on from Stewart Bradley. Lloyd is purely a backup for now, but he can impact the roster and depth chart if he plays well and the Eagles want him to.
Lloyd’s injury happened late in 2009, the same time as Jamaal Jackson’s initial injury. Lloyd wasn’t right in 2010, but got better by January and had a good showing in the Shrine Game. I don’t know that he’s 100% right now, but he should be getting close.
Ricky Sapp had a similar situation last year, but did get put on IR. He split time at DE and LB and never developed at either spot. He got put on IR on 8/31/10 and then had a procedure on his knee a week later to clean some stuff up (how’s that for fancy doctor talk?).
Lloyd played MLB at UConn and projects there in the NFL. That gives him a smoother transition. Now we have to find out if his knee is truly all the way back or not.
I know you qualified it slightly, but please let’s not go by what Spuds says about any player on the Eagles roster. He regularly makes guys at the bottom of our roster seem like they are just one step away from being a 10 time all pro. I could’ve sworn Jason Short and Torrance Daniels were just an injury away from being HOFs according to Spuds for a few years in a row.
With that being said, as the consummate fan, I’m going to dream that Greg Lloyd will be the 2nd coming of his father.
Havili does intrigue me, but as Spads is prone to hyperbole at the best of times so I’m going to take a big pinch of salt with everything he says while in lock-out column filler mode. Sapp is an interesting topic though, and another player that might be really hurt by the work stoppage. Any insight as to how he projects as a wide nine?
er… appear to have got Lloyd and Havili rather mixed up. Whoops.
Damn you beer, why must I love you so?!?
“Think Jeremiah Trotter, 2.0.”
Hahahaha. Oh Spuds. I’ll believe that when I see it.
First, I remember Jeremiah Trotter 2.0 – the return of the guy with bad wheels that wasn’t his former self – I hope that is not what Spuds meant.
Second, to play devil’s advocate, saying how excited you are about a guy and how much potential he shows would also be the perfect set-up for if only he were healthy enough to prove it.
To be fair, Spuds might have meant the Trot of 2009. I have no doubt that Greg Lloyd is at that level right now.
(set sarcasm alert to high)
ATG beat me to the punch. Jerk.
Poor Leanard Weaver. He was such a beastly player its a shame to have lost him.
“Odd side note…being a fullback for the Eagles isn’t necessarily a good thing. The three best fullbacks of the last 15 years were Kevin Turner, Jon Ritchie, and Leonard Weaver. All three had careers shortened by injuries.”
Not quite as bad as the fate of a certain position of a certain band; RIP John “Stumpy” Pepys , Eric “Stumpy Joe” Childs and Peter “James” Bond. 😉
Overlooking the hyperbole of Spud’s comments, do you think he was referring to playstyle comparable to Trott or just the kind of impact we would expect. I know we are all kinda guessing what Castillo wants, but would Trott’s playstyle really be what we are looking for at MLB? Seems like a downhill thumper type in a scheme where you need the LB’s to be more read and react would potentially leave a void right in the middle of the field.
@ netherman…
All joking aside, I do think Dave meant the comparison in terms of body type and physicality. Trot was an early pick when he was taken. He dominated I-AA football. His success in the NFL was no accident. He was a really talented player.
Greg Lloyd was a good MLB for UConn, but was never the same kind of talent as Trot. I don’t think Spuds would literally compare the two of them. Of course, I’ve been wrong before.