Merged: TE/H-back depth chart

[joecrisp]

Originally Posted by Hogskin

OK, so then, take the total number of slots available (what is it these days, Joe?). Then figure the 4 RB's (minimum) we are sure to keep, 3 QB's, probably 5 WR's, etc. Go through all positions, and you will see that it is virtually impossible to keep 6 or 7 TE's. I do not believe any team in the NFL has ever kept even 5 TE's on their active roster.

The regular-season roster limit these days is 53. I'm not sure what the roster limit was during Gibbs' first run (I know roster limits have changed a few times, but not sure when and by how much), but there were several seasons where Gibbs kept 6 TEs on his roster. It was actually rare that he had as few as four TEs.

That being said, the Skins have a ton of depth at RB, WR and TE, and like you said, they can only keep so many. Gibbs will probably base his decision on which players have practice squad eligibility, and which players are most likely to contribute to the team on special teams and as reserves. When you consider the fact that guys like Sultan McCullough, Robert Royal, Kevin Ware and Leonard Stephens all should have one year of practice squad eligibility remaining, and combine that with the fact that the practice squad has been expanded to 8 players, it wouldn't surprise me to see up to 3 of those guys on the practice squad.

I think you're right about Gibbs keeping 4 RBs (Portis, Betts, Cartwright and Morton) and 5 WRs (Coles, Gardner, McCants, Thrash, Jacobs), but I think he'll keep at least 5 TEs-- Rasby, Cooley, Baxter, Sellers and Kozlowski-- with Ware or Royal as either a 6th TE, or on the practice squad... most likely the practice squad. The reason I say that, is Gibbs needs at least 3 TEs that he can put on the field at any one time. There are bound to be injuries, and he will also want to be able to rotate guys in and out frequently to keep them fresh. In that scenario, he'd need a minimum of 5 TEs, which he would probably keep on the active roster. The 6th guy he could keep on the practice squad, and activate him if injuries crop up.