CPND 53 Man Survivor: 8-26-07

The first round of off-season roster cuts come on Tuesday afternoon, August 28. After three games the better bubble players are starting to seperate themselves from the pack and give themselves every chance to make the final 53 man roster. Eight others will make the practice squad. It’s a zero-sum game; every job one player wins means that another one has lost his.

Here, WarpathInsiders.com fearlessly predicts who will survive the dreaded Turk and emerge as one of the final 53 men standing.

This is the third in a series of predictions that will be updated regularly. The final instalment – the final prediction – will come after Thursday’s preseason finale at Jacksonville.

FINAL 53 MAN ROSTER PREDICTION

OFFENSE

QB’s (3) – Jason Campbell, Mark Brunell, Todd Collins

RB’s (4) – Clinton Portis, Ladell Betts, Rock Cartwright

FB’s (1) – Mike Sellers, Fred Beasley

WR’s (5) – Santana Moss, Brandon Lloyd, Antwaan Randle El, James Thrash, Jason McAdderly

TE’s (3) – Chris Cooley, Todd Yoder, Eric Edwards

OL (9) – Chris Samuels, Pete Kendall, Todd Wade, Casey Rabach, Randy Thomas, Jon Jansen, Mike Pucillo, Stephon Heyer, Tyrone Whitley

DEFENSE

DL (9) – Renaldo Wynn, Andre Carter, Cornelius Griffin, Phillip Daniels, Joe Savale’a, Demetric Evans, Kedrick Golston, Anthony Montgomery, Lorenzo Alexander

LB’s (7) – Marcus Washington, London Fletcher-Baker, Randall Godfrey, Rocky McIntosh, Khary Campbell, Dallas Sartz, H.B. Blades

CB’s (5) – Shawn Springs, Carlos Rogers, Fred Smoot, David Macklin, Ade Jimoh

S’s (4) – Sean Taylor, LaRon Landry, Pierson Prioleau, Vernon Fox

SPECIAL TEAMS

LS (1) – Ethan Albright

K (1) – Shaun Suisham

P (1) – Derrick Frost

Last 5 On	Last 5 Off
Tyrone Whitley OL	Ross Tucker/Jason Fabini/Kili Lefotu OL
The addition of Pete Kendall and the improving play of Stephon Heyer mean’s that the last spot is now easier to pick.  Whitley can play both T and G spots and had a pretty solid outing against Pittsburgh.  This will win the day over Tucker, Fabini and Lefotu for the final OL spot.  Kili Lefotu will get a practice squad berth.
Jason McAdderly WR	Todd Pinkston/Carl Berman WR
Espy has gone to IR, Bradford is injured and Pinkston has hardly been used since his signing last week.   McAdderly has played well on ST’s and has learned the system being here since early in the offseason.  I give him the 5th receiver spot at the minute.  Carl Berman – the impressive un-drafted free agent – should win a place on the practice squad.
Rock Cartwright RB	Derrick Blaylock RB
The addition of another FB – and a decent player at that in Fred Beasley – has now put the spotlight on the third HB  position.  We expect Beasley to stick given that Mike Sellers has been having injury concerns and there’s no other proven backup, which means only Cartwright or Blaylock will make the roster.  Both are good ST’s players but Rock has the advantage of being a very good kickoff returner as he showed last year.  But make no mistake this is close as Blaylock is the superior running back particularly in this system.
Mark Brunell QB	Jordan Palmer QB
Some may find this a rather controversial selection to have here given Head Coach Joe Gibbs’ “man love” with Mark Brunell.  But the facts are that Brunell has struggled to do anything positive with the offesne when he’s been behind Center and has been comprehensively beaten out for the #2 job by Saunders disciple Todd Collins.  So why have him on the team, at his salary, to be an emergency QB?   Brunell will get the majority of the action in the preseason finale at Jacksonville and that will tell the tale for him.  If Palmer doesn’t unseat Brunell, he’ll make the practice squad.
Lorenzo Alexander DL	Alex Buzbee/Chris Wilson/Justin Hickman DL
The last roster spot on the defensive line is as ambiguous as it is interesting to watch.  The young defensive ends – Buzbee, Hickman and more recently Wilson – have all flashed some pass rush ability but have struggled to be consistent or have troubled when given the chance against first stringers/key backups.  Alexander has been the more consistent player over the preseason games and has impressed coach Williams with his work rate and motor (as well as helmet-less tackles!!!!).   Wilson will get a practice squad berth based on recent form.

SKINS STOCK MARKET

Rising :

Lorenzo Alexander DT
Jason McAdderly WR
Chris Wlson DE

Falling:

Jason Fabini OL
Derrick Blaylock RB
Mark Brunell QB

Early Practice Squad Prediction

1. Tyler Ecker TE
2. Byron Westbrook CB
3. Carl Berman WR
4. Marcus Mason RB
5. Jordan Palmer QB
6. Anthony Trucks LB
7. Chris Wilson DE
8. Kili Lefotu OL