Is Ahmad Brooks in our future?
 

We can't seriously be going into the season with Colby at MLB can we? I read an article on Brooks that makes me believe this dude has his head screwed on right. We can outbid any team but Houston and they actually DRAFTED a LB in the last draft, unlike us. Maybe we have our eyes set on Brooks?

I wouldnt bet on Payton giving up a pick in next year's draft for anyone with off field issues. I would not be against it, but i doubt it would ever happen just based on how the personnel has been added this offseason. I do think they have their eyes on Dexter Coakley who may be released June 1st.

Coakley doesn't play MLB either. I don't see what he adds. Not saying we won't add him, but it would be like adding another safety, something we don't need. They may feel Ahmad has gotten over his off the field issues, and even Parcelss has taken on problem players if they have talent. Brooks hasn't been worse than TO or LT as far as I know. It was just a thought though.

I think he would add a lot. Him being on the roster means we aren't relying on Simmons to be healthy for 16 games. he has never been able to do that. Adding him would be adding another LB who knows how to follow through with his assignments. Meaning we wouldnt have to keep Watson on the roster, or Terrance Melton. And like i said, i wouldnt mind having Brooks, i have followed him a little the past two years and i think he could be a ballplayer. I just dont think it is likely.

Ahmad Brooks apparently lost all desire to play. He's a head case, has off the field issues, and apparently now is a fat a$$ and is extremely out of shape. I could be wrong, but don't we have to draft him in the supplemental draft or what not? I don't want to give up one of our real draft picks in 2007 for a guy who got kicked off his college squad. Not only is this guy a trouble maker, he's also not anywhere near physical form.

With the way Payton has been molding this roster with high character type guys, I think Brooks is out of the question. I don't see anything wrong with us going into the season with Colby starting in the middle. Even if we did have that option of Brooks or Colby, I'd choose Colby because I wouldn't want us starting a rookie in the middle. If Colby can maintain that spot throughout mini-camp and preseason, leave him be... he's earning it. It's not set in stone he's going to be that guy... but he has been our best linebacker the past couple of seasons. I'm all for it. I'll telling you guys... he's the second coming of Zach Thomas (or so I hope.)! 8)

He would have been a mid first round pick if he had declared a year ago. Obvious talent. Obvious "issues" too. I have also read of him being way out of shape too. With the need here I certainly wouldn't mind them trying a 3rd or 4th round pick on him. It would be a surprise with the emphasis of character we are seeing is this regime though. I'm sure they will do due diligence. It is a matter if you believe they can fit in no matter what issues are involved. Josh Lay had some attitude questions and they did not hesitate to grab him.

The difference is that you can afford to take those type of gambles with low round draft choices... a low round 6th. 3rd or 4th, that's okay... I'll pass. If all of these rumors are true with him being out of shape, you would have to question his dedication. Obviously it shows that he doesn't care. You would think with him knowing that he would have to be in great shape for people to throw a decent round pick at him, he would be a little motivated to prove everyone he wants to be in the league. We wanted to get rid of Watson because he wasn't in great shape when Payton got here... so a Brooks gamble seems highly unlikely.

My bad guys. I was with you guys about Brooks until I read a recent article on him, and I have been looking for it and can't find it right now. In it he owned up to his mistakes at UVA, and they discussed his weight and attitude as it stands right now. I am looking for it, cause it took me from being on the fence about him to thinking we should give him a shot. If I can find it, i'll post it. If not, oh well. Just know I was with you guys til about a week or so ago.

There's a recent ESPN Insider article -

http://search.espn.go.com/keyword/se...news&page=espn

I caught up with Ahmad Brooks the other day. The former UVa. All-American linebacker has kept a pretty low profile since rumors began swirling last winter about him being thrown out of Virginia. Brooks says he had been talking with coach Al Groh and athletic director Craig Littlepage about being allowed back into the program, and he believed he had a good shot. Then in late March, Brooks logged on to ESPN.com and learned the school had dismissed him.
The reason, he was later told, was due to the cumulative effect of his irresponsibility. He had missed too many classes and workout sessions. Liberty and Hampton, a pair of local I-AA schools, had called, but Brooks wasn't interested in transferring. He was convinced that whatever issues NFL scouts had, he would have to face at some point.

It seemed to be quite the fall for a guy many had once projected as a top-10 draft pick. After all, Brooks, the son of former Redskins D-lineman Perry Brooks, was a guy scouts had been marveling at for a few years. Back in 2004, despite weighing 260 pounds, he actually doubled as a returnman. As a linebacker, he notched eight sacks and made 90 tackles. He could've turned pro then, but didn't. Brooks didn't feel 100 percent healthy. He had a cyst behind his right knee, which was removed last March and forced him to miss the first three games of the 2005 season. When Brooks returned, he was sluggish and way out of shape. He sat out the Cavaliers' bowl game because of a sore back. Rumors began to swirl that Brooks was about to get booted from the program. The rumors ranged from a supposed positive marijuana test (in 2003, Brooks pleaded no contest to a misdemeanor marijuana charge and spent six months on probation) to him blowing off workouts.

Brooks and Ohio State's Mike D'Andrea were the most hyped linebackers in their high school class. And that was something Brooks couldn't get out of his mind as he sat in an Atlanta-area apartment alone watching the NFL draft. He says one thought kept coming back to him: That should've been me.

Brooks is part of a package we ran in the next issue of ESPN The Magazine. The article focuses on how a guy with baggage can try to build back his credibility. Regardless of his potential, it won't be easy.

About a month ago, Brooks' agent Greg Williams sent him down to Duluth, Ga., to train with Competitive Edge Sports' Chip Smith, the guy who got former NCAA exile Mike Williams ready for his pro day last spring. "I knew Ahmad needed to show people rather than me trying to sell somebody something," Williams said.

Brooks arrived in Georgia in April, he says, weighing more than 285 pounds. "The first day, he puked seven times," Smith said, but added that Brooks kept going.

CES's nutritionist changed Brooks' diet, cutting out all salt and sugar and late-night binging. Brooks started eating breakfast -- something he seldom did before. Smith's rule: Workouts begin at 9. If you're late, you're gone. "He's usually here 45 minutes early," Smith says. One month into the training, Brooks is down 10 pounds and hopeful that he can get to 260 for his pro day. (That'll take place at UVa., about two weeks before the supplemental draft. On June 16, the NFL will tell him the date.) He's also picking the brains of NFL vets Nate Wayne, E.J. Johnson and Hannibal Navies, who are training at CES as well.

Brooks realizes everyone doubts him. He knows after Maurice Clarett flopped, it's not a good time to be seen as a gamble. He stopped counting how many times he heard the word character on the draft show. To his credit, Brooks doesn't blame anyone else for his downfall at UVa. "I put myself in this boat," he said. "I know I've let a lot of people down -- I was the one who did the damage to my reputation and my family's reputation, but the first way I can prove that I'm not who they think I am is by showing them. By action."

Given the outcomes of other players who seemingly have less baggage, I didn't like Brooks' chances in the supplemental draft, even if he showed up in terrific shape. But after speaking to him the other day, he sounded very contrite -- especially when we talked about his feelings for Groh. Brooks explained how he had apologized to him before he left. "I really felt like I had let him down," he said. "I mean, I came to the school to change that program around and get them to a national championship, and that obviously didn't happen."

Of course, saying the right things now is the easy part. Hopefully for Brooks' sake and those linked to him, he has finally grown up.

This is for you non-insiders

That's the one. Thanks fellas.

Bockwalt isnt a good LB so we need someone something Bockwalt just isnt cutting it...........

thanks buck, appreciate ya posting such relevant info.