Opening Day 53 Man Roster Predictions

53 man roster today will likely change by midnight tonight...but let's do the 'math'...

Locks in My Opinion
Offense
QB - Mariota
RB - Murray, Henry
FB - Folwer
TE - Walker, Smith, Supernaw
OT - Lewan, Conklin
OG - Spain, Kline
OC - BJones
WR - Matthews, Davis, McBride, Decker
16 so far

Defense
DE - DQ, AJ, Casey, Klug
NT - Williams, Woods
OLB - Orakpo, Morgan, Dodd, Walden
ILB - Woodyard, Williamson, Bates, Palmer
CB - Ryan, Sims, AJax
S - Byard, Cyprien, Searcy, Trawick
21 so far

ST
K Succop
P Kern
LS Brinkley
3 so far

40 players so far...13 spots left
Positions to fill...

Backup QB
Cassel or Tanney...since I don't watch training camp...to me this comes down to pre-season games. Expect Cassel. 1 spot!

OT
Need at least 1 swing tackle...let's say Kelly. 1 spot!

OC/OG
Need at least 2...let's say Matias and Levin with Lelito going PS (or vice versa). 2 spots!

RB - need at least 1. Right now...Fluellen. 1 spot!

WR - Need at least 2...say Taylor and Weems. 2 spots!

CB - Need at least 2...say Reed and Hurst (though Mularkey probably likes Reed and McCain). 2 spots!

That leaves 4 spots for these players (based on my current list).
WR Harry Douglas
WR Johnathan Krause
TE Jace Amaro
LT Tyler Marz
QB Tanney
RB Muhammad*
DE Angelo Blackson*
DE Mehdi Abdesmad
OLB Aaron Wallace*
ILB Jayon Brown*
OLB Josh Carraway
FS Curtis Riley
CB McCain

My 4 would be...DE Blackson (plays both DE and NT), ILB Jayon Brown (unless someone can beat him out as a nickel cover ILB), SS Curtis Riley, and Muhammad IF he wins KR duties. If Muhammad doesn't earn starting KR job, flip a coin with strong preference to pass rushers, lbs, young wr, etc.

The big questions are...how special teams plays into this (as this seems to be a MAJOR area of concern/improvement) and what are need areas due to health concerns or important backup positions versus overall talent and age.

If Muhammad can win the starting KR role, he could potentially knock Fuellen out of 3rd and get Weems deemed expendable (if AJax wins the pr spot as expected). But Weems was signed for the multitude of roles he plays...wr, pr, kr, gunner and GM's really like those guys...which is why I expect he lasts...potentially even if he has no return role (he'd be the primary backup then, right?).

Or does Mularkey and our OC really want to keep Douglas around in more of a tutoring role...even though he's not a top 4 wr on the team anymore?

Will we keep 8 OL and send one of the rookies to the PS, or will we protect the OL by keeping 4 tackles and 5 interior?

We have more quality depth on the DL than we can play...so do we keep an extra guy here because they might be better talent -wise than other backups?

Hurst gets my nod over McCain for two reasons...he can play CB AND FS and I think he's as good as McCain is (if not better).

My final guess for 24 hours (lol)...

Offense
QB - Mariota, Cassel
RB - Murray, Henry, Fluellen
FB - Folwer
TE - Walker, Smith, Supernaw
OT - Lewan, Conklin, Kelly, Marz
OG - Spain, Kline, Mattias
OC - BJones, Levin
WR - Matthews, Davis, McBride, Decker, Taylor, Weems
24

Defense
DE - DQ, AJ, Casey, Klug
NT - Williams, Woods, Blackson
OLB - Orakpo, Morgan, Dodd, Walden
ILB - Woodyard, Williamson, Bates, Palmer, JBrown
CB - Ryan, Sims, AJax, Reed, Hurst
S - Byard, Cyprien, Searcy, Trawick, Riley
26

ST
K Succop
P Kern
LS Brinkley
3

53 Total

After the Jets game, I'll probably change half of it!!! lol

 

I'll give it a shot and start out by looking at how the 53-man roster was constructed on Opening Day of last year. We have the same GM, head coach and coordinators so there shouldn't be any drastic changes this year.

Last year:
QB - 3
RB - 3
FB - 1
WR - 6
TE - 4
OL - 9
DL - 6
LB - 9
DB - 9
ST - 3

This year:
QB (2) Mariota, Cassel
RB (3) Murray, Henry, Fluellen
FB (1) Fowler
WR (6) Davis, Decker, Matthews, Taylor, Sharpe, Weems
TE (3) Walker, Supernaw, Smith
OL (9) Lewan, Spain, Jones, Kline, Conklin, Kelly, Lelito, Levin, Marz
s/t offense - 24
DL (6) Casey, Klug, Williams, Woods, Jones, Johnson
OLB (5) Orakpo, Morgan, Dodd, Walden, Wallace
ILB (5) Williamson, Woodyard, Bates, Palmer, Brown
CB (6) Ryan, Sims, Jackson, McCain, Hurst, Reed
S (4) Byard, Cyprien, Searcy, Trawick
s/t defense - 26
ST (3) Succop, Kern, Brinkley

Projected changes from last year:
QB from 3 to 2
TE from 4 to 3
LB from 9 to 10
DB from 9 to 10

I heard Robinson on the radio the other day and he said that the primary KR and PR would not be the same person, which is good news for Weems and maybe for Muhammad.

 

Most hate pre-season, but i am pretty pumped to see these guys tonight vs Jets. 1st team you just hope no one gets hurt, but 2-3rd teams, thats where you hope to find a hidden gem and thats what makes it fun. I will wait until after pre-season game #4 to make my 53 list, just too hard at this point.

 

Awesome post. I think you pretty much cleared up the key battles for the last few spots. Also, keep in mind, at some point here in the near future, if they think a guy can play but not at the moment on 53 (project kind of guy) they will cut playing time and hide them for practice squad. Muhammad comes to mind

 

I'm sorry bro but how do you have Tre McBride as a lock to make the team lol. Taywan Taylor is a lock yet you don't list him.

 

I hear ya. Definitely gonna keep an eye on all special teams...not just returners - but them too!

Taywan Taylor and McBride.

Dodd and Walden at OLB.

Everyone playing CB.

S's.

Williams and Woods at NT.

Cassel and Tanney.

Decker and Matthews.

Smith and Supernaw.

Trawick, Bates, Weems, Muhammed on ST.

Anyone else who stands out. I really want to see if Radcliff can flash!

 

QB: Mariota, Cassel (2)
RB: Murray, Henry, Fluellen (5)
FB: Fowler (6)
WR: Davis, Matthews, Decker, Taylor, Weems, Douglas (12)
TE: Walker, Smith, Supernaw (15)

OT: Lewan, Conklin, Kelly, Marz (19)
OG: Spain, Kline, Lelito, Levin (23)
C: Jones (24)

DE: Casey, Jones, Johnson, Klug, Abdesmad (29)
NT: Williams, Woods (31)
OLB: Orakpo, Morgan, Walden, Dodd, Wallace (36)
ILB: Woodyard, Williamson, Brown, Bates, Staples (41)

CB: Ryan, Adoree, Sims, McCain, Reed (46)
S: Byard, Cyprien, Searcy, Trawick (50)
K/P/LS: Succop, Kern, Brinkley (53)

Some really tough decisions.
I started Sharpe on PUP
I think Carraway, Muhammad & Seaton end up on PS.

Not sure if Krause is or Mackay are eligible for PS but 1 of them end up on there too.

CB Boykins ends up on PS. I almost kept 6 CBs. My 6th would have been Hurst.

I have Staples making the 53 but it could be Palmer. I wanted to keep both but can't keep 6 ILB

I wanted to keep Blackson but couldn't find room. I kept 9 OL. Wasn't sure who to give that 9th OL spot to so I choose Marz. He played a ton of snaps the other night. If they only keep 8, that opens up a spot for Blackson/Hurst/Palmer.

 

All in on Weems, so that 6th WR is either Douglas, Sharpe, or McBride.

 

I'd prefer to keep McBride over Weems.

 

One has upside, the other can deliver day-1 in some capacity

Whats McBrides use here, hes still a year away it seems.