I like the spirit of this thread, so will get back to that vs. debating T Smith.
To me, this season is all about looking for signs of growth, and areas to build on. As far as that's concerned, here are the main things I'm watching for:
- Right side of the offensive line – Both Brown and Garnett have a lot of potential, but have some warts. Brown hasn't proved much as a run blocker, and Garnett is weak in pass protection. But with some further growth, I could see them developing into a formidable duo on the right side.
- Twin towers – Armstead and Buckner have the potential to anchor our D for years to come, but while they flash often, they haven't held up consistently against the run. If they can continue to improve their run defense without NFL caliber players at the NT and LB position, then that bodes well for our future.
- The young corners – We still have an extremely young secondary, but Ward and Robinson have showed a lot of promise. With Redmond slated to return at some point this year, we've got something to work with in the secondary.
- Emergence of an edge rusher – Both Eli and Carradine have been disappointing this year, and Lynch is still rounding into shape, but will anyone step up here? Still a lot of youth at this position, so not fully ready to write these guys off, but would like to see a big step forward made.
There are certain positions like NT, LB, WR, QB where we know what we're going to get, and I don't see much room for growth. We're soft in the middle defensively, and we lack playmakers as well as anyone to get them the ball offensively. I'm less worried about the former, as the return of Bowman, Armstrong, and Williams will help quite a bit, and we can add depth with mid-round draft picks. If we can nab a #1 receiver like Jeffrey in FA and grab a QB in round 1 then I think we could be ready to start cooking offensively.