Ryan Denny.. some thoughts..

[Tatonka]

it seems that everyone (including myself at times) has assumed that ryan denny is a bust..

last year, we really didnt get to see much of him in game situations.. i am sure that was the coaches decision based on practice results.. but i wouldnt be so quick to assume that he will never amount to anything..

eric moulds didnt show much at all for 2 years after he was drafted.. my point is, sometimes players take a bit of time to adjust to the quality of the players in the nfl..

hopefully, he will bust his butt this offseason and show why we moved up to the second to grab him before pittsburg did. we shall see.

thoughts?:gossip:

[BuffaloRanger]

I don't think Denney is a bust at all. Some players develop slower than others. Of course, he has to show something this season.

[Tatonka]

that is what i am saying.. moulds didnt do squat till his 3rd year.. while denny doesnt have to prove he is an allstar this year.. he does have to get some playing time to see what he is made of.

[McD]

True, but Denney is how old?? We don't have a bunch of time for him to develop before he's starting to decline.

McD

[don137]

Denney was two years older than the average rookie last year so he has less time to get acclimated to the NFL than the typical player.

Comparing a DE to a WR is like comparing apple and oranges. It is VERY rare for a WR to develop into a NFL type receiver in his first season but it's fairly common to see a DE make an impact his rookie season. That is why Atlanta was so high on Price because they realized it's tough to get an impact WR immediately.
I think it's more fair to compare him to Phil Hansen who also was a late second round pick. Hansen didn't show a lot his rookie year but he did show a little. Part of the reason was he came in very light (around 255) and was controlled at the line of scrimmage. Hansen came in his second year around 270 and was much stronger. Denney, who is listed at 276 lbs on the Bills website, really didn't show much at all. Now I won't label him as a bust yet but I think he needs to show a lot more than he did last year.

[WG]

Agreed 137.

You can't really cut a 2nd year player that was drafted in round 4 or lower unless he absolutely sucked. Denney wasn't good, but he didn't suck. I'd say he'll stick around this year and if he shows enough to warrant keeping him, he'll be around next too. If not, I'm sure they won't be too slow to cut him if we need the spot.

[The Spaz]

Denny did get more playing time in like the last 3-4 games. He played some DT and DE. I really don't like him playiong DT though. Go Bills!

[Aero II]

Give him a full offseason to develop, then evaluate him.

[mchurchfie]

I thought that he was starting to come on a little in the last few games that he got a chance to play in. Give him a little more of a chance, especially with a better supporting cast now;)

[Seano]

Most of the young defensive players started to play a little better towards the end of the season. I think we need to give a longer look at all our second and third year defensive players.

[JefftheBillsfan]

Keep him if Lebeau's 3-4 defense ever takes over. Hed be a good DE in that defense, theorettically at least.

[kgun12]

qoute by Don137 "Comparing a DE to a WR is like comparing apple and oranges. It is VERY rare for a WR to develop into a NFL type receiver in his first season but it's fairly common to see a DE make an impact his rookie season."

Name all the DE that have come in as rookies and have made an impact?

[Doc]

I don't have any hopes for Denney, so anything he does will be gravy.

[Tatonka]

Originally posted by kgun12
qoute by Don137 "Comparing a DE to a WR is like comparing apple and oranges. It is VERY rare for a WR to develop into a NFL type receiver in his first season but it's fairly common to see a DE make an impact his rookie season."

Name all the DE that have come in as rookies and have made an impact?

i get what your saying.. your right.. the list is rather small.. KGB wasnt on the map as a rookie and he is a stud now..

but i don is right.. kearse, peppers, freeny, flowers ;)... all those guys showed right away what they were made of.

i still have hope for denny though.

[kgun12]

Josh Reed, R. Moss, D. Stallworth K. Johnson, my point is no matter what poistion you talk about there are going to be palyer that develop fast than others and slower than others, and some not at all.

[Seano]

Don't compare Denney to a stud like Flowers--- its just unfair!!

[Tatonka]

that was my bad sense of humor

[kgun12]

Originally posted by Tatonka
that was my bad sense of humor

I was hoping you were kidding so I left that one alone. :biggrin:

[Cntrygal]

Welcome to the Zone BuffaloRanger!!!! :)

[TigerJ]

"We will see" is about the best that can be said for him. He's got a little time to prove he's not a bust, but the competition for positions on the D-line is going to be MUCH stiffer in training camp than than last year. He's got to do something quick to stick.

[Tatonka]

i agree completely tiger

[don137]

I also agree Tiger. I am in no way writing him off but most fans were disappointed in his production last year. Many players come back on their second year.
Like tatonka said, not everyone can be a Erik Flowers their rookie year.

[Tatonka]

boy.. those were the good old days.. back when flowers was tearing it up for us..

[Throne Logic]

Your all overlooking a somewhat better comparison - Marcellus Wiley. Do you guys remember the off-season when Bruce was cut and the comments that were made about Wiley taking his place? I don't think that more than 25% of us believed that Wiley would amount to anything at all, nevermind a pro-bowler. I have faith in our scouting department. They've picked a high percentage of solid players.

Also, Denney had no other DE's to mentor him. You'll find that the majority of successfull rookies had a solid veteran to learn from.

[Tatonka]

imho, wiley showed flashes of serious potential as a fill in guy the season before. now, you are right, there was alot of concern that he would be not be an adequate starter.

[Typ0]

I really think we should forget about last season's defense and the one before that as well. There was too much youth and too many glaring weaknesses to not have everyone looking pretty bad. From the way Shoebel looked last season in that pathetic defense I would expect he will be right up there in the race to lead the league in sacks next season. Spikes is going to run sideline to sideline tackling everything in site and grabbing turnovers. I think Denny will have matured a bit and may find a way to be a growing contributor in this defense over the course of the next few seasons provided he worked hard in the offseason and instills some confidence in the coaching staff he can get the job done.

[Tatonka]

typo, that is a nice thought.. but our entire defense hinges on the signing of a dominant DT..and from what i can see, sam adams is the only one left. if we dont get him, it could be a long season of spikes and fletcher tackling rbs 5 yards down field with an offensive lineman attached to their @ss!

[Typ0]

LOL...yeah that's true but it's still a step in the right direction last year it was Winfield and Wire doing the tackling ;).

[Tatonka]

not a big enough step to get us to the superbowl though.. and that is point.. that is where we need to be, and where we have the money to be next year.. we have a legit shot at being in the superbowl for the next two to three years depending on how this season shakes out and what TD can do about resigning our guys over that time.

[TigerJ]

The difference between Wiley and Denney is athleticism. When Wiley came in everyone said he had great quickness to go with excellent size. What kept him from producing earlier was the fact that he played his college ball in the Ivy league. He was really raw. Denney has technique problems (doesn't get under the tackle) but also doesn't have much natural quickness. Coaches may be able to correct his technique, but the odds are he'll never be quick. The big question that hasn't been answered is can he do anything to compensate for his lack of quickness. Maybe Ingtar could shed some light on this if he would weigh in on it.