Another roster projection

Are going to be the two Johnsons with Ed Johnson serving as UT and Antonio Johnson as the NT. With the Colts new attention to “size” at the DT position Foster is going to be at an big disadvantage.

May have been picked in the mid/late second but he’s a first round talent overshadowed being in a 3-4 and being a pretty significant reason why all 4 USC LBs were taken pretty early, and some earlier than they should have been. When you go from being the potential #1 drafted player (which he was going into 2008) when he was in a 4-3, and nobody even knew who Matthews was, to being considered a late 1st to a late second DT after switching to a 3-4, and now Matthews is considered a god and a first round pick, you kind of have to think why the LBs at USC did so well. Just so happens our outside LBs happen to play on the line and are named Freeney and Mathis.

And the Ed Johnson thing is great and all, but an UDFA who wasn’t picked up by any team last season is hard to imagine being in better shape than people who were playing football 5 months ago.

Shake is right though, I find it hard to believe Foster won’t make the roster. It was glaringly obvious when Foster was out of the lineup. Moreso than any other player at DT last season. It happened to be during the Detroit game that was way closer than it should’ve been and during the Jacksonville game where it looked like we were handing out flowers to their O-line and MJD most of the game. I also don’t consider Foster as undersized as he’s listed. I don’t believe the 265 lb label. Almost every college player that comes out weighs quite a bit less until they hit a pro level weight room like it’s their job. I’d say he’s at least 275-280 right now, which is fine for a T2 UT.

Although, I don’t think we traded up for Moala for him to sit, or at least for much longer than a couple games. Just from what Polian and Caldwell have said leads me to believe that Moala will be starting, and the likely starters weren’t on our roster last season. You don’t pick up 5 players at arguably the weakest position on the team to be backups. I actually don’t think the roster casualties will be as heavy DT so much as DE. I don’t think the “get bigger” was only directed at DT, and will more than likely cause position “changes” and losses at DE. This would just be a hunch on my part :

RDE : Freeney, Dawson, *Howard
LDE : Brock, Mathis, *Howard
NT : Taylor, E. Johnson, A. Johnson
UT : Moala, Foster
WILL: Okwo, Keiaho, *Hagler, *Senn
SAM : Session, Wheeler *Hagler, *Senn
MIKE: Brackett, Seward
CB : Hayden, Jackson, Jennings, Powers, Rushing (PR/ST)
S : Sanders, Bethea, Bullit, Giordano

Total active defense – 27

QB : Manning, Sorgi
RB : Addai, Brown, Hart (PUP), Ball
WR : Wayne, Gonzalez, Garcon, Hall, Collie (KR/ST)
TE1 : Clark, Tamme
H-B : Santi, Robinson
T : Diem, Ugoh
G : Lilja (PUP), Richard, Ch. Johnson
C : Saturday, Justice
T/G : Federkail, Pollack, Toudouze

Total offense – 23 (Lilja and Hart won’t count until week 10 being on the PUP)

ST :
K – Vinatieri
P/H – McAfee
LS – Snow

Total ST – 3

PS:
DT : Grady
LB : Humber
QB : Painter
WR: Giguere
CB : Hughes, Silva
DE : Cu. Johnson
OG : Thomas
OT : Hilliard

Of course my entire practice squad may be cut tomorrow, so who knows?