RUMOR: Trade talks between Browns (Brady Quinn) and Broncos (Brandon Marshall)

[DIE-NASTY]

Originally Posted by GTripp0012

Marshall is a fringe No. 1 who clearly has the talent to be so much more. So many of his catches in any given game are of the useless variety.

He was a lot improved this year with Orton at QB I thought because instead of being a limiting factor on his quarterback when Cutler was there, he became a positive factor for Orton who doesn't have the type of downfield accuracy that Cutler does.

But ultimately, Marshall's catch rate numbers and other value metrics are the same every year, which means that, even though his improvements have been evident, we really do know what he is at this point. And he's not a "true" No. 1, like an Owens, Moss, Wayne, Holt, or Vincent Jackson all in their primes. Like Braylon, he's an above average player who is expendable at a good price.

Marshall has had 100 catches each of the last three years (he's only been in the league four years). I'd say that qualifies him as a bonafide No. 1 WR. Braylon Edwards is a flash in the pan. Good for the Browns for dumping him (and Winslow) when they could.

[GTripp0012]

Originally Posted by DIE-NASTY

Marshall has had 100 catches each of the last three years (he's only been in the league four years). I'd say that qualifies him as a bonafide No. 1 WR. Braylon Edwards is a flash in the pan. Good for the Browns for dumping him (and Winslow) when they could.

Interesting point here, but my response would be, do you consider Jamal Lewis to be a hall of famer?

In his first four years he rushed for 1,000 yards in each and had a 2,000 yard season and a pro bowl/all pro season. At the time, he was averaging 4.6 yards per carry, which is certainly a hall of fame figure.

It's not a perfect comparison by any means, they don't play the same position, and no one is calling Brandon Marshall a future hall of famer, but I'm making the comparison because Lewis' per play metrics were never that impressive even in his early days (including his 2,000 yd season) and he had a jail stint and predictably declined.

But he's one of six players in NFL history to rush for 2,000 yards (and I'd imagine Marshall is one of roughly the same number to have three consecutive 100 reception seasons), so shouldn't Lewis be in the hall of fame someday?

[HugeMonkFan]

Originally Posted by GTripp0012

Interesting point here, but my response would be, do you consider Jamal Lewis to be a hall of famer?

In his first four years he rushed for 1,000 yards in each and had a 2,000 yard season and a pro bowl/all pro season. At the time, he was averaging 4.6 yards per carry, which is certainly a hall of fame figure.

It's not a perfect comparison by any means, they don't play the same position, and no one is calling Brandon Marshall a future hall of famer, but I'm making the comparison because Lewis' per play metrics were never that impressive even in his early days (including his 2,000 yd season) and he had a jail stint and predictably declined.

But he's one of six players in NFL history to rush for 2,000 yards (and I'd imagine Marshall is one of roughly the same number to have three consecutive 100 reception seasons), so shouldn't Lewis be in the hall of fame someday?

im kinda confused why you went on a hall of fame rant there. but i think marshall is hitting his strike and is gonna be in his prime for another few years....why wouldnt any team like to have this guy outside of his off the field shit? i do agree with whoever said he will prob end up on a team like the dolphins or ravens. The dolphins seem like a young team and need that big number one receiver (and yes i believe BM is a legit number 1). the ravens have to start thinking about the future due to a large number of their best players are getting up there in age. i mean i wouldnt be entirely surprised if shanny and danny try to get him but i think we have bigger fish to catch at this point. we have a couple of young guys still improving in Thomas and Kelly that could, maybe, one day turn into a decent number one. i would rather us go after o line help and peppers then BM.

o and lol to Buster for the Brian Michell comment...we could use him at this point lol

[GTripp0012]

Originally Posted by HugeMonkFan

im kinda confused why you went on a hall of fame rant there. but i think marshall is hitting his strike and is gonna be in his prime for another few years....why wouldnt any team like to have this guy outside of his off the field shit? i do agree with whoever said he will prob end up on a team like the dolphins or ravens. The dolphins seem like a young team and need that big number one receiver (and yes i believe BM is a legit number 1). the ravens have to start thinking about the future due to a large number of their best players are getting up there in age. i mean i wouldnt be entirely surprised if shanny and danny try to get him but i think we have bigger fish to catch at this point. we have a couple of young guys still improving in Thomas and Kelly that could, maybe, one day turn into a decent number one. i would rather us go after o line help and peppers then BM.

o and lol to Buster for the Brian Michell comment...we could use him at this point lol

I went on a hall of fame rant...because it made sense to me at the time.

But the true point, which I stand by, is about productivity measures. Marshall has never been a very productive player. But he certainly accounts for a large portion of his teams offense every season, as evidenced by a low catch rate and a high number of receptions every year. He's roughly 1/3 of his teams entire offense, which is basically unheard of for a single receiver.

Marshall's strengths include being an excellent bad ball saver (which leads to spectacular catches), and being a very valuable receiver and route runner in the deep field. But despite his strong frame and hands, he's one of the worst underneath targets in pro football. He'll go over the middle, but a lot of his quarterbacks interceptions occur on those deep dig routes to Marshall. He's not very good at that bubble screen, even though they run it to him all the time, and though he's very good after the catch, he can't (doesn't?) really run away from linebackers on drags.

You, generally speaking, don't want to run 1/3 of your offense through a player like that. It's not a winning strategy. You DO want to use his big play ability multiple times a game. But when Brandon Marshall catches 20 passes, it tells me that he's not really commanding the respect of the defense as the argument for him being a true no. 1 would suggest he does. The Colts--who might know something about defense--didn't feel like they needed to take Brandon Marshall away to win. They were right.

It's not like Denver has a gaping hole at No. 1 WR like, say, St. Louis. Marshall is adequate for the role. He's just not a "go-to" type of character. That's not really his game. He'd be more effective if a team lived off the running game, tight end, and slot receiver, and then like DeSean Jackson, you send him deep every half or so and try to let him break the game wide open (Jackson is actually good at the WR screen though). Given where Denver is as an offense, they can certainly afford to part ways with him.