which player has more to prove
 

Which of the following players has the most to prove this upcoming season.

Mark Brunell:He still has it
Clinton Portis:He is not a product of the Broncos' OL
Chris Samuels:He is worth the 3rd overall pick
Taylor Jacobs:He can play as a 1st-2nd rounder
Rod Gardner:He can be are number 2 receiver
LaVar Arrington:He can be the best OLB and maybe the D MVP
Fred Smoot:He can be a number 1 cornerback
Shawn Springs:He can stay healthy and be a premier back
Sean Taylor:He can live up to all the hype

Nice question Jason, it's a tough one too.

I'd probably say that the team as a whole has to prove that they care about being Redskins as much as we care about the Redskins as a team.

[FONT=Georgia]I think for someone to have something to prove, they must be coming from something less than good. Accordingly, I would say that Samuels would be at the top of my list, with Springs/Jacobs coming behind him to see if they can stay healthy.

I certainly don't see Portis/Smoot/Arrington/Gardner as having much to prove. They all had decent seasons.

I don't see Taylor having much to prove.[/FONT]

I think that the player with the most to prove is Norman Heur.

Can he be the unmovable force he was in College?

Can he strike fear into the heart of opposing quarterbacks the way he did in College?

I don't know.

We'll have to wait and see.

That's the best damn question I've been asked all offseason..That is a tough one I will have to think about...Good post!

Is this Rod Gardner's contract year? I don't remember.

If so, Gardner has the most to prove because if he puts up another mediocre season, he will not cash in during the free agent sweepstakes next March/April. No team will sign him to be their #1 reciever and most teams don't pay big bucks for #2/#3 receivers.

I think the first person that definitely has something to prove is Patrick Ramsey. He'll have to prove that he can win the QB spot over Brunnell, which in my opinion, Mark will have without a shadow of a doubt.

J-Skin, my man! After weeks of posting new thread after new thread with a few bricks and airballs along the way your perserverance pays off and you bury the half-court buzzer-beater, nothing but net! Nice post buddy!

As for your question. I'm still thinking about it. I was leaning toward Sean Taylor. First pick of the second Gibbs era, chosen over Kellen "The Chosen One" Winslow II, etc. but now I'm actually starting to lean toward Brandon Noble.

I hate to dodge the question here a bit but I think the whole organization has something to prove. Since Snyder took over the team has gone to the playoffs once, and that was a team that he inherited and didn't have a chance to mess with. Each offseason it's been the same story, splashy acquisitions, coaching changes, etc., and every season it's the same story, no playoffs.

Tough one!!! But...I'd have to say Gardner definitely needs to prove he can be a fricken No. 2 Reciever(Jacobs, not sure), even have to throw Springs in the mix, cuz he has to prove he can stay effective AND HEALTHY.

I would say Jacobs especially with McCants showing how good he is last season and Springs because alot of people are saying he is old and injury prone. Also I think this is a good time for Griffin to show he can be dominant. When he was in New York he had a better line and here well we all know what our line is like so hopefully he can shine.

It has to be Brunell, he can really make a name for himself again in Washington.

Probably Rod Gardner. He is an afterthought since being drafted #15 overall, and with rising competition and a new coaching staff, he needs to show he is more than a number two, but that he's on par with Coles.

To answer SportsCurmudgeon, he is signed through 2005, but his base salary jumped from under $400k to over $1 million this year. That jumps to $1.447 million next year, so the future is now for him as a Skin.

Samuels

I think Brunell. Everyone already has him coming in as the starter, and the next big thing here in Washington. I think he has to prove he still belongs out on the feild as a #1 starter. I dont think Jacobs or Taylor really have anything to prove, they are essecially both rookies ( Jacobs out all of last year ) , and have to get up to NFL standards. Good Post, and Good question Jasonskin.

I think its brunnel. He's gonna have to prove that he can hold a clipboard well and make sure Ramsey's towel is dry.
PATRICK RAMSEY STAR IN THE MAKING!

Good question. I think Samuels. If he flubs it this year, he's gone. Plus, failing when Gibbs and Buges are your coaches leaves you no place to hide...

I would add Ladell Betts to that list. He was a pretty high draft pick. If he doesn't own the #2 job, you gotta wonder.

Let's hope this lights a fire under all those guys!!!

Sure seems like there a lot of players with something to prove:

Derrick Dockery: Was he worth taking in lieu of defensive line help?
Jon Jansen: Can he protect the blindside?
Philip Daniels: Can he be the pass rusher we need?
Ade Jimoh: Does he deserve his own fan club?

I think SS hit it, the key to '04 is unraveling the mystery behind the Ade Jimoh fan club. LOL

[QUOTE=smootsmack]
Ade Jimoh: Does he deserve his own fan club?
[/QUOTE]

Now if that's not a rhetorical question, I don't know what is!

Brunell doesnt have a lot to prove, because he could play great and still get beat out for his job, he'll just prove he also took advantage of the Snyder payout.

I think Samuels has the most to prove because if you are goin got be the top paid guy on the team you better damn well play atleast in the top 10 people on the team.

Our whole team has a whole has a lot to prove.

I think an easier question would be to name the people that dont have to improve, that would be a much shorter list.

top of list: #1 is lavar... he has to prove he is the highest paid lb in football. he has the athletic ability yet i think he needs to use his head more in games. and gibbs will make sure its there. he isnt worth the highest paid lb yet, and this year will tell us being that he is under a proven defensive mindmaster and a HOF coach

#2 would be springs... he has to much to prove being that he dropped form #1 cb in SEA to #3 in one seasons time. and the other prob to overcome would be injuries.

the springs transaction made me a little nervous knowing antoine winfield was on the table and he is very very very agressive and played for williams last year. doesnt take the spotlight with ints but really knows how to keep the ball out of opposing players hands which i would prefer cuz the percentage is much higher of a deep ball caught by just going for the bat down

Im surprised they jumped at springs so fast as well. I hope he doesnt turn out to be one of those guys Snyder liked from years ago and dosent realize they arent up to par anymore.

Springs was third string last year?!? Behind who? They drafted Trufant but who played a head of springs when he was healthy.

thats kinda discouraging, I didnt think he was third string last year

Because of his injuries Springs played some nickelback last year, essentially meaning he was third cornerback. Jrocx, are you equating that with being third string?

Canes, as per your question I don't think John Hall has much to prove

I think without question it has to be Lavar Arrington....... I like Lavar but he has yet to live up to his potential its not his fault i mean 5 differnt cordinators is definetly rough and not his fault. but with the big contract and greg williams at def cord. he has to step up big time and be a team leader. It s a must i think he is an outstanding linebacker and with that talent around him i think his potential will finally shine.

[QUOTE=smootsmack]
Canes, as per your question I don't think John Hall has much to prove[/QUOTE]

Whatd I ask about Hall. I tried scrolling up to see if someone else mentioned Hall but I didnt see anything

[QUOTE=SKINSnCANES]I think an easier question would be to name the people that dont have to improve, that would be a much shorter list.[/QUOTE]

Canes, I was just saying that Hall doesn't have to improve or prove anything. I thought he was great last year

ahh. So I did ask a question.

Yea I would have said Hall, Thomas (I sense a pattern starting...), Coles (heh) and Jansen. Mabye McCants, he needs to prove he can continue to produce but he by no means underproduced his expectations for last year.

And by lookign at my list it seems we did a decent job of getting free agents last year. I hope we have the same luck this year

I'll tell you who has a lot to prove. THE COACHING STAFF!!! All eyes in the NFL will be on Joe to see if he can duplicate the magic. He doesn't really have to prove he can do it for us; the true burgundy and gold legion. But everyone else will need proof he and Bugel can still win.

Excellent question, Jason - and a bit tricky. I think the only answer that comes close to right is "all of the above!!". Every one of those guys (for the obvious reason in each case) has a great deal to prove. One or two sub-par seasons, rookie, overcome negative press, age... You can't take anyone OFF your list, and none stands out clearly above the others.

Now, if you asked which is more important for the REDSKINS that he prove himself - totally different question with many possible answers.

[QUOTE=jrocx69]top of list: #1 is lavar... he has to prove he is the highest paid lb in football. he has the athletic ability yet i think he needs to use his head more in games. and gibbs will make sure its there. he isnt worth the highest paid lb yet, and this year will tell us being that he is under a proven defensive mindmaster and a HOF coach

#2 would be springs... he has to much to prove being that he dropped form #1 cb in SEA to #3 in one seasons time. and the other prob to overcome would be injuries.

the springs transaction made me a little nervous knowing antoine winfield was on the table and he is very very very agressive and played for williams last year. doesnt take the spotlight with ints but really knows how to keep the ball out of opposing players hands which i would prefer cuz the percentage is much higher of a deep ball caught by just going for the bat down[/QUOTE]
The fact that Williams didn't push to acquire Winfield speaks volumes though. I would think that if Williams wanted him, Snyder would have gotten him. The coaches reviewed film on all available CB's and they graded Springs out to be the best available option.

[QUOTE=huntz]I'll tell you who has a lot to prove. THE COACHING STAFF!!! All eyes in the NFL will be on Joe to see if he can duplicate the magic. He doesn't really have to prove he can do it for us; the true burgundy and gold legion. But everyone else will need proof he and Bugel can still win.[/QUOTE]

good poing. We've got one of the biggest, and definitly highest paid staff. We all know what Gibbs did, hes got a lot to prove and I know he wouldnt want to tarnish his image. Another ring should take care of all the doubts though

Well the rest of the league will be looking at Brunell and Portis. Me, I will be expecting alot from Samuels and Gardner.

[QUOTE=smootsmack]Because of his injuries Springs played some nickelback last year, essentially meaning he was third cornerback. Jrocx, are you equating that with being third string?

Canes, as per your question I don't think John Hall has much to prove[/QUOTE]

after springs was healthy enough to play again ... they still liked trufant much better then what springs brought to the table the past two seasons when he was healthy and therefor holmgren kept marcus in. i also have a few friends in seattle that live by the seahawks and they would tell you the same. as well they would tell you they are happy he's gone.

i would love to see what he's got here though, dont get me wrong, but like i said, im just nervous about the aquirement

it wouldnt be the first time we took a risk on a injury prone player and got burnt for it. The thing that got me was his contract, we paid a lot of money for him, it didnt seem to me that there would be a lot of interest in Springs because of all the other corners that dont have injury problems. Yet we jumped out and paid a lot to make sure we got him. Snyder always get who he wants and pays to have the privledge, its backfried quite a few times though. I do think springs has the most talent of any of the corners that was available, if he stays healthy he could have great year.

In my opinion these three players or positions have the most to prove and are the keys for the Skins to have a winning season.

1) Cornelius Griffen and the rest of the D-line: DT C. Griffen needs to become a leader for the D-line, which is seriously lacking a leader. A leader that leads by his level of play. Obviously all of them need to play better than last year. This position is
top priority for improvement.

2) QB position: I don't care if it is Ramsey or Brunell.... but one of them needs to play consistently well, get rid of the ball and not take sacks or make turnovers. Consistency is will be the measure for improvement over last year. Learn fast as well because of the new offensive system takes a while to dominate.

3) Shawn Springs and the rest of the D-backs: S. Springs needs to be injury free; Sean Taylor needs to play big right off the bat; Bowens/Ohalete need to play well.

Note:
I did not include the offensive line because I have confidence that Joe Bugel's coaching and scheme will whip then into shape. Plus with the huge talent they have on that line, they better respond or players will lose their jobs.
The rest of the offense RB and WR will also respond favorably to the improved coaching and scheme/system.