Which was a lot of what the media saw during the 45 minutes it was allowed to watch this afternoon’s minicamp practice, though we did see some drills. Observations? Not much but...
- Vernon Gholston looks like he can cover a lot of ground, quickly. In a couple of different drills, lining up on the outside, he showed good speed, though as he pointed out in between practices, “In college I didn’t make too many mistakes and now you’re making mistakes.” This as he's learning a new system. More on that from some of the other draft class' initial impressions in tomorrow's paper.
- In the offensive drills we were able to see, Erik Ainge did not throw a pass, instead handing off primarily to a pair of undrafted free agent signings – RB Jehuu Caulcrick (Michigan State) and FB Justin Valentine (Minnesota).
- Underdog story Danny Woodhead, whom I wrote about in today’s paper, looked really small in uniform - picture diminutive SNY reporter Steve Overmyer in pads - only significantly quicker and much more athletic. Woodhead's motor never seems to stop.
- When we did see Ainge throw passes, he was playing catch with another quarterback, Brett Ratliff, already a roster player. When the two stepped beyond 10 yards, some of Ainge’s passes began to wobble. Is this significant? Mmm, no. Just look at his SEC stats from last year.
-When offensive and defensive drills went on simultaneously, coach Eric Mangini – based on the time we were allowed on the practice fields - spent more time watching the defense, not a big surprise, obviously. And with that, Mangini is expected in the press room shortly.
Comments (7)
Erik - Thanks for the update... it's very much appreciated.
Gotta question: I've read that Baker's contract was actually signed in Nov 2007. Most of the beat, keeps reporting that Baker's in the midst of a 4-year contract.
Can you clarify when Baker actually signed the contract?
Thanks, and enjoy your new beat ;)
Thanks...Baker is in the middle of the four-year deal. In November he was fronted a portion of the contract, but the contract was never redone.
Does he really have a case for a new contract then? If you add in the $800,000 he received as an advance last season, I believe he's actually being paid what he's worth.
Woodhead and Overmyer are 5-7? That's HUGE!!!
i watched Ainge play at Tenn. a few times last year and was nerver impressed, he seems like a Pennington type. ie tall but lacks the big arm. I was yelling at the TV to Take Chad Henne in the 2nd round and to my disnmat the FISH got him. If he turns out to be the Jet killer like Marino it will tomment me for the rest of my days!
i saw ainge on you tube and non of is pass was a tight spyro
Thanks for the info, on Baker, Erik