building for a superbowl?

I will say no way.
But it is insane to say untill we see how the team performs in the preseason...most say preseason doesn't predict the future....but it sure does if you take a look at how the first team performed....last year I had high hopes too...until I saw the preseason, they looked worse...I predicted 6-10 when everyone else was the typical 9-7 area.
Lets wait until we see live bullets....but to suggest one player and a new coaching staff can take a team from 4-12 in a year is crazy....if it happened, it would be one of the most incredible feats in NFL history.

Without seeing the team play...I am hoping for a .500 team. Playoffs will have to wait until next year...but I will hold out any guess until after game 3 of preseason.

You guys have got to stop drinking the kool aid!

Len Pasquarelli basically said (http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/columns/story?columnist=pasquarelli_len&id=5058639) the same thing just after the trade for Donovan McNabb:





All I want to say about developing young talent in the way that Pasquarelli wants teams to do is this, look at Minnesota. Minnesota has tons of young talent but it was worth a huge pile of sh*t with Tavarus Jackson under center. Thats what you get when you try to develop young talent that should not have been drafted anyhow...

Oh, ask Oakland how there young talent at QB is developing...

Of course, injuries can happen at any turn but TE is the one position we have legitimate depth, by which I mean if one player goes out there is NO dropoff in production from that position and you want to eliminate that depth? Hell, if we were 3 deep and saw great potential out of our 3rd TE then sure, let's look at it but do you remember what happened last season when we were starting our 4th RG of the season, our 3rd LT of the season and our 4th RB? We don't have the luxury of trading one of the best young players on our team for a hope of a couple of college kids. That's just foolish if you ask me.

Honestly, on the open market, what would Cooley get us? Maybe a mid 2nd round pick? He's not elite enough to garner a bounty of picks, certainly not the value to build a team around.

Which 'young inexpensive players with anticipated potential' have we 'cast aside' for proven veterans? Quinton Ganther?

No, no I'm not saying we have cast aside young players with lots of potential; I'm saying that is often the choice which has to be made -- letting go of draft picks, (which would be the young, inexpensive players) in favor of free agent veterans. George Allen Sr. was famous for this.

In a way, tight end is one of those positions that you can get later in the draft, perhaps through undrafted free agency and incorporate in your offense without seeing much of a dropoff. Especially if the offense you run isn't so heavily reliant on TEs. Ideally, you want your wide receivers getting most of the catches and the yardage. I can't really say for sure how heavily involved the TE is in Shanahan's offense. But if Cooley makes up a significant facet of his scheme, then Cooley's not going anywhere and this conversation is moot.

Maybe someone with more time than I have can go back and look at Shanny's offense and see about what percentage his tight ends actually caught the ball. For instance, if wideouts made up anywhere from 60 to 70% of the passes caught, leaving 30 to 40% split between tight ends and running backs, then you might say that TEs aren't as vital to his offensive attack.

The other big thing you have to consider is whether incredible depth at tight end is more important that quality offensive linemen. If you had to choose between two really good TEs or some starting O-linemen, I'd choose the O-linemen.

There is no need to slam the reset button with the current roster and "blow it up". Unless you can tell me that there will certainly be an Alexander Ovechkin at any position in the future drafts, the current strategy works better than the "BLOW IT UP!!!!" method. Fill up the roster with still-effective yet expendable and CHEAP veteran stopgaps while infusing talent via the draft in the future. McNabb makes sense because one, he's a scheme-fit, two, he's got experience in the WCO, and three, he's not done just yet.

The OP seems to neglects some facts while stating that Shanahan is a terrible talent evaluator AND INHERITED great teams.

Elway never won a Superbowl until Shanny came there, and Shanny did not win a Superbowl his first year. It was TWO years later, so he had to build the pieces like offensive line and running back.

He also was the one who drafted Cutler. So he knows talent when he sees it.

He also jumped at the chance to grab McNabb, a Pro Bowl QB. Not a bad move for someone who cannot evaluate talent.

I totally disagree with you on your thoughts about Shanahan.

No, no I'm not saying we have cast aside young players with lots of potential; I'm saying that is often the choice which has to be made -- letting go of draft picks, (which would be the young, inexpensive players) in favor of free agent veterans. George Allen Sr. was famous for this.

In a way, tight end is one of those positions that you can get later in the draft, perhaps through undrafted free agency and incorporate in your offense without seeing much of a dropoff. Especially if the offense you run isn't so heavily reliant on TEs. Ideally, you want your wide receivers getting most of the catches and the yardage. I can't really say for sure how heavily involved the TE is in Shanahan's offense. But if Cooley makes up a significant facet of his scheme, then Cooley's not going anywhere and this conversation is moot.

Maybe someone with more time than I have can go back and look at Shanny's offense and see about what percentage his tight ends actually caught the ball. For instance, if wideouts made up anywhere from 60 to 70% of the passes caught, leaving 30 to 40% split between tight ends and running backs, then you might say that TEs aren't as vital to his offensive attack.

The other big thing you have to consider is whether incredible depth at tight end is more important that quality offensive linemen. If you had to choose between two really good TEs or some starting O-linemen, I'd choose the O-linemen.

Shannon Sharpe is going to the Pro Bowl one day as a result of Shanny's offense so yeah, I'd say it's TE friendly..

Why does everything that has to do with OL have to be an either or scenario? Is there a rule we can't have 2 really good TE AND quality starting and backup offensive linemen?

Shannon Sharpe is going to the Pro Bowl one day as a result of Shanny's offense so yeah, I'd say it's TE friendly..

Why does everything that has to do with OL have to be an either or scenario? Is there a rule we can't have 2 really good TE AND quality starting and backup offensive linemen?

I think you ment Hall of Fame. Yes we are building for a SB.

HTTR.

I absolutely believe we are on the right track. I think it is very possible to make the playoffs this year, and win a Super Bowl in 3 years. Now admittedly, I am counting on McNabb and Portis/Johnson/Parker to elevate everyone around them. But our receiving corps could be one of the league's best with Shanahan and McNabb. Our defense is still solid, and we have enough vets who should be hungry for success to buy-in to the program and exceed expectations. I feel confident they will address the remaining holes, and have a strong team in 2010 and beyond.

Of course we're building for a Super Bowl, maybe not this year, but in the near future.