(Written by kencraw)

It’s not officially released, but we seem to have the majority of it from many different quotes from Tedford.

QB – Maynard with Bridgeford as backup: I think Bridgeford looked great when I saw him play in the spring and Maynard had potential. I have confidence that Maynard has come a long way or Tedford wouldn’t have put him above Bridgeford. So overall I feel really good here, even if Maynard doesn’t deliver or gets injured, I feel like we’ve got a good crew.

RB – Sofele with Deboskie-Johnson as backup: Sofele is the one that worries me. I think I’m more positive about him than many people are, but there’s no doubt he doesn’t have the punch of any of our recent starting RB’s. Seriously, like Seseme Street, which one of these is not like the others: Arrington, Lynch, Forsett, Best, Vereen, Sofele. Now, in a lot of respects, we’ve been VERY spoiled for the last 7 years, and I think this is why I’m not as low on Sofele as others. I think if the offensive line gets its act together, he’ll do just fine, but I don’t see him as an above and beyond back who can be successful even when the other pieces aren’t working, like our previous backs. In better news, I feel like the depth behind Sofele is good and I have higher hopes for Debo than most and there’s lots of talent waiting behind him. It could be by season end, Sofele is a starter in name only.

FB – Will Kapp with John Tyndall as backup: When Eric Stevens was in the mix (he’s out of the season with a torn ACL) I thought this was a pretty strong unit, but without him, it’s in shambles. Kapp has great heart, but he just doesn’t have the size or the speed needed to be a strong fullback. Our best hope is that Tyndall, who has the physical gifts needed, will improve enough to take over the spot by mid-season. That he hasn’t done it already, says something about his development. I hate saying it, because I really like Kapp (he makes everyone else better with his commitment, energy and focus on technique), if we can’t find someone who’s better than him, we’re in pretty bad shape.

WR – Allen and Jones with Calvin as the 3rd and Clay and Edmond as backups This is a strong group, the starters being contenders for being the best pair in the conference. If Calvin stays as improved as he was in spring and Clay can keep away from his recent injury problems and show the moments of greatness from the spring, this could not only be the best offensive unit but also the deepest.

TE – Anthony Miller with Hagan as backup: Anthony Miller is the real deal and seeing Hagan move forward over Ladner says to me we have two quality backups. The one thing I don’t think we have is the talent for a lot of two tight end formations, although Ladner when healthy may give us that and perhaps Hagan will show us more than I’m thinking for his converted WR frame.

OL – Schwartz, Schwenke, Galas, Cheadle and MSG with the backups being unclear: The starting group looks pretty strong, but the depth behind them is REALLY thin. Rigsbee has been injured. Tyndall has potential but never seems to actually get there. Brazinski is still very young. Heralded recruit Matt Williams didn’t get much press at all, so assumably is still learning the ropes. Maybe there’s some gems there that under Michalszik will come a long way (and FAST, before anyone gets hurt), but if there’s one position that’ll have me cringing if someone goes down, it’ll be the offensive line. But not to overlook the positives, the starters look like a pretty good unit that has a lot of experience with each other. Strap on those knee braces tight boys!

Overall, that’s not a bad situation to be in. I think this years offense is going to be a lot better than what finished up the season last year. (It better be, because that was as sorry an offense I’ve seen on the field since “Way to go Hol-moe” was a popular cheer.) I suspect we’ll see fewer plays with a fullback in the formation to compensate for that weakness, leaving only the O-Line depth as the truly concerning thing. All in all, it feels like a move in the right direction.