I barely heard anything about Shields all summer. Is anyone worried about him holding up this year? I guess we could always throw House out there if Shields regresses. I'd like to see Shields take a huge step this year. Dude has unlimited potential.
Originally Posted by: nerdmann
Um, so let me get this straight: since you have not heard much about Shields, you suggest possibly replacing him with a guy you could not hear much about because he was injured? Not exactly the best strategy, considering an already shortened off-season which cost rookies a lot became even harder for a rookie like House because his snaps were even more reduced due to injuries.
Frankly, the thing Shields has going for him is his athletic ability and speed. He doesn't have to be playing mistake free or completely fundamentally sound all the time because his tremendous physical assets allow him some leeway to recover from mistakes or getting beat.
For what it is worth: I believe McCarthy has stated that players make the biggest jump from year 1 to year 2. Unfortunately, Shields lost the opportunity to improve in the off-season under the coaches' supervision. So it is understandable if he has not stood out too much in terms of taking his play to another level.
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