Broncos were interested in Harrell

[longtimefan]

http://www.jsonline.com/blog/?id=373


Had the Packers not taken Tennessee defensive tackle Justin Harrell with the 16th pick, there's a good chance the Denver Broncos would have taken him at No. 21.

Broncos coach Mike Shanahan said that he had three players targeted for his spot in the first round, and most people figure it was Arkansas defensive end Jamaal Anderson, Florida end Jarvis Moss and Harrell. Anderson went eighth to the Atlanta Falcons, leaving Harrell and Moss.

As soon as the Packers took Harrell with the 16th, Shanahan traded up to the 17th position and took Moss.

“We had three guys that we felt very comfortable taking with the 21st pick, and two of those guys were gone when we decided to trade up," Shanahan said Saturday.

The Denver coach's statement lends credence to GM Ted Thompson's claim that he couldn't drop back too far without the risk of losing out on Harrell. It's unclear whether Shanahan liked Harrell or Moss better.

"We had a game plan that included three guys and we were hoping that two of those guys were going to be there and we would be able to get both of them," Shanahan said. "You never know what is going to happen on draft day. When Justin Harrell went to Green Bay, that is when we stepped up and decided to make a move to get the guy that we wanted and the guy that was worthy of our first pick.”

 

[robkeg]

Thanks for the information Longtime, I hope all of the folks who enter this forum read this. We as fans have a tendency to want the big names but, hopefully TT knows what he is doing.

 

[Tiger]

KC wanted him too!

 

[net]

OK....

So Harrell would have been the difference between making this a good draft and a bad draft?

I'm sure Denver also had other players targeted. Harrell might be a good player, I don't know yet. But there were many other players still on the board.

It's about first round talent(maybe), position(I think too high) and need(not).

I'm not convinced this guy is worth it, but we will see.

See my thread, "Straight from the horses"....

 

[Packnic]

could it be that Ted Thompson knows what he is doing.

the problem is people automatically assume that thompson is an idiot who cant run a football team. nevermind that he built a winner in seatlle, and nevermind he was a Wolf protege. nevermind all that. he didnt pick an overrated WR that may or may not have fit into our system. harumph harumph. he must be stupid if ESPN says it was a wrong pick.

keep in mind, ESPN knows not one damn thing about the green bay packers, systems, coaches, inner workings or anything. they have no idea what player would best be suited here.

now Shanahan says that he wanted harrell, and losing harrell prompted him to trade up so it wouldnt happen again. but instead of Thompson knowing what he was doing and making a proactive choice in signing an unpopular pick. hes just out there blindyl pick random guys at will with no plan at all and hes an idiot for picking a DT. even though we may very well have an awesome player.

dont assume TT doesnt know what hes doing because ESPN says he reached for a player. they dont know anything. they thought Colston was a bad pick last year for New Orleans, so yeah they know what there talking about.

 

[Packnic]

if Harrell was the guy TT wanted, then where he picked him wasnt too high.

we didnt pick again until the middle of the second round. its not like he was gonna make it that low. so he went and got him.

it seems to me that TT knows what hes doing and gets the players he went out and researched whenever he thinks he can get him

sure a player might be expected to be picked 15 spots lower. but wont be there by our next pick... so who cares where we got em, as long as TT gets the guy he wants

 

[OregonPackFan]

I expect Justin Harrell to be a solid impact player on our defensive line like Haloti Ngata was supposed to be for the Ravens, not necessarily comparing the two players' playing style.

 

[longtimefan]

OK....

So Harrell would have been the difference between making this a good draft and a bad draft?

I'm sure Denver also had other players targeted. Harrell might be a good player, I don't know yet. But there were many other players still on the board.

It's about first round talent(maybe), position(I think too high) and need(not).

I'm not convinced this guy is worth it, but we will see.

See my thread, "Straight from the horses"....

From the article

“We had three guys that we felt very comfortable taking with the 21st pick, and two of those guys were gone when we decided to trade up," Shanahan said Saturday.

One of them was Harrell, so he wouldnt have been availble in a later pick for the Packer as the "experts" are saying..

 

[all about da packers]

So wait, we DON'T have a need at DT?

Funny, giving up about 230 yards rushing to the Seahawks in week 12 would have convinced me otherwise...

 

[OregonPackFan]

We don't have a need anymore

 

[Heatherthepackgirl]

Of course TT has to know what hes doing, and hes been doing this type of work for a very long time. I wasnt to bothered by our first draft pick, but we could have done more in free agency IMO, get some impact players on our team to help Brett Favre out. But then again we dont know what exactly happened maybe TT did make a play for some of the free agency guys but they didnt want to go to Green Bay, but then again I dont believe that, money speaks to most players these days.

 

[TOPackerFan]

So wait, we DON'T have a need at DT?

Funny, giving up about 230 yards rushing to the Seahawks in week 12 would have convinced me otherwise...

Uhh, in case you guys have forgotten, that was mostly on KGB. Alexander had a field day cutting back into the gaping hole left by KGB getting way too far up field or getting absolutely owned, as he usually does, by Walter Jones.

Harrell has talent and was probably the best player available at the time he was selected. My concern was that he couldn't stay healthy in college so I see no reason to think he'll do so in the pros. Trading back could have enabled us to pick up a guy like Meachem and to get some extra picks and maybe keep our higher second round pick. It's all water under the bridge though and kvetching about it makes no real sense anymore. I just hope Harrell proves that he can stay healthy. I'm kind of salivating at the thought of AJ Hawk and Nick Barnett playing behind a DT rotation of Picket, Harell and Williams.

 

[all about da packers]

Harrell has talent and was probably the best player available at the time he was selected. My concern was that he couldn't stay healthy in college so I see no reason to think he'll do so in the pros. Trading back could have enabled us to pick up a guy like Meachem and to get some extra picks and maybe keep our higher second round pick. It's all water under the bridge though and kvetching about it makes no real sense anymore. I just hope Harrell proves that he can stay healthy. I'm kind of salivating at the thought of AJ Hawk and Nick Barnett playing behind a DT rotation of Picket, Harell and Williams.

TO, I understand that concern, and perhaps I am downplaying the possibility that Harrell's injury history will carry over.

The thing that I've been saying to downplay that is the medical staff. I'm positive they must have worked through Harrell, and given the go-ahead on him not being an injury liability.

I also remember an article saying Ted passed up Chad Jackson last year because he thought he was injury prone. If TT was able to spot that (according to the article, but we can't be too sure if the article was dead on), then I have faith that Ted will have gone through the tapes on Harrell and concluded that his injuries were more of a fluke rather than something to do with Harrell's predisposition to getting injured.

 

[TOPackerFan]

One time is a fluke. Getting injured every year looks injury prone to me. The medical staff can determine whether he's healed properly, but I don't think they can say he won't be habitually injured at the next level. I just thought this guy's history was too much of a risk not to trade back, get some extra selections and take Meachem, who's pretty talented and fills a need as well.

 

[CalifPacker]

could it be that Ted Thompson knows what he is doing.

the problem is people automatically assume that thompson is an idiot who cant run a football team. nevermind that he built a winner in seatlle, and nevermind he was a Wolf protege. nevermind all that. he didnt pick an overrated WR that may or may not have fit into our system. harumph harumph. he must be stupid if ESPN says it was a wrong pick.

keep in mind, ESPN knows not one damn thing about the green bay packers, systems, coaches, inner workings or anything. they have no idea what player would best be suited here.

now Shanahan says that he wanted harrell, and losing harrell prompted him to trade up so it wouldnt happen again. but instead of Thompson knowing what he was doing and making a proactive choice in signing an unpopular pick. hes just out there blindyl pick random guys at will with no plan at all and hes an idiot for picking a DT. even though we may very well have an awesome player.

dont assume TT doesnt know what hes doing because ESPN says he reached for a player. they dont know anything. they thought Colston was a bad pick last year for New Orleans, so yeah they know what there talking about.

Well said!

 

[OregonPackFan]

One time is a fluke. Getting injured every year looks injury prone to me. The medical staff can determine whether he's healed properly, but I don't think they can say he won't be habitually injured at the next level. I just thought this guy's history was too much of a risk not to trade back, get some extra selections and take Meachem, who's pretty talented and fills a need as well.

He has had some problems with his right ankle, two times. He started playing before it had healed properly and injured it again.

Since 2004 he has had no ankle problems.

In 2006 he suffered from a torn biceps.

What makes me certain he's not injury prone is that he hasn't had a lot of different bones in his body break. That is usually the case with injury prone players, they have under average bone structure.

The torn biceps is something that can happen when you play football and the ankle problem seems to be something that happened one time.

All this leads me to believe he isn't particularly injury prone.

 

[all about da packers]

One time is a fluke. Getting injured every year looks injury prone to me. The medical staff can determine whether he's healed properly, but I don't think they can say he won't be habitually injured at the next level. I just thought this guy's history was too much of a risk not to trade back, get some extra selections and take Meachem, who's pretty talented and fills a need as well.

I can understand that point, but perhaps the injury resulted from fluke circumstances? I realize I'm grasping on straws with that point, but I don't know... perhaps looking forward to the draft like I did, I am downplaying any potential red flags.

Just to add, our strength and conditioning program, in my opinion, might also strengthen the core of Harrell, perhaps reducing his risk on injury.

To be honest, I feel this is the key draft of TT's tenure, with him having only 2 more years to go on his contract. I just don't think he'd leave things to chance given his future may very well come back to this class contributing a lot in 2 years time.

 

[OregonPackFan]

In my view, the injuries did happen from fluke circumstances and the Packers medical team has confirmed that both his ankle and his biceps are fully healed and good to go.

 

[all about da packers]

He has had some problems with his right ankle, two times. He started playing before it had healed properly and injured it again.

Since 2004 he has had no ankle problems.

In 2006 he suffered from a torn biceps.

What makes me certain he's not injury prone is that he hasn't had a lot of different bones in his body break. That is usually the case with injury prone players, they have under average bone structure.

The torn biceps is something that can happen when you play football and the ankle problem seems to be something that happened one time.

All this leads me to believe he isn't particularly injury prone.

I'm terrible at biology (as in I hate it with a passion), but does 'bone structure' really leave someone more susceptible to injuries?

I was thinking it might, but I have absolutely no idea on the issue.

 

[OregonPackFan]

Everyone has a bone structure of course, however the quality in bone structure can vary greatly from individual to individual.

Some individuals have weaker bone structure than others and this leave them more vulnerable to injuries to the bone structure than others.

As a professional football player, the slightest weakness in bone structure will affect you, especially if you play at a position with a lot of contact. Players will damage their bones more often and are vulnerable to so-called fatigue fractures.

As ordinary working people these players would probably never be affected.

 

[bozz_2006]

joints must also be factored in. linemen with ACL braces on both knees... bad joints and weak ligaments. That's a big problem with football players and becomes more pronounced in heavy linemen. harrell has no such problems, and that's a big positive.

 

[TOPackerFan]

joints must also be factored in. linemen with ACL braces on both knees... bad joints and weak ligaments. That's a big problem with football players and becomes more pronounced in heavy linemen. harrell has no such problems, and that's a big positive.

You don't think he might have a weak ligament (or tendon - I never remember which is which) on the biceps he tore last year? Surgery can only do so much.

 

[bozz_2006]

you're reaching.

 

[MassPackersFan]

I don't knwo the circumstances of his torn bicep injury. Saying that, I've heard of torn biceps happening because of the strength of the player and it's just a freak occurrence. They create so much power that the muscle tears. I Forgot who it was that completely severed his bicep in a game but he was a monster. I also don't think there is a risk of recurring injury, but maybe someone can correct me if I'm wrong. I was always under the impression that a well repaired torn muscle has less chance of tearing at that spot than anywhere else.

 

[TOPackerFan]

you're reaching.

I can. I didn't tear my biceps.