Cards sign RB Jonathan Dwyer, G/C Ted Larsen.

[Arizona_Steve]

Also re-signed LB Marcus Benard.

https://twitter.com/Cardschatter

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jonathan_Dwyer

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ted_Larsen

 

[b8rtm8nn]

Mitch will be happy about Benard

 

[Buckybird]

I think Dwyer is very underrated! Good feet, good speed & thick! Nice signing

 

[Vermont Maverick]

The annual Steeler signing.

 

[Buckybird]

The annual Steeler signing.

Wouldn't be a season without at least 1

 

[Solar7]

I love it. Dwyer won't be our starting back, but like Bucky says, he has good feet, and surprising speed. Perfect for a #3 guy, and if there's a good spot in the draft, we can replace him with another guy.

Interesting choice in Larsen. I like it for depth/competition against Fanaika and Watford, but I am hoping there's moves to be made with RT.

The numbers on Larsen will be interesting too.

 

[Vermont Maverick]

Larsen has some starts under his belt, 27 of them. He is also a swing G/C, having started at both. That would allow us to possibly keep 7 lineman on game day instead of 8, as we had to do with Gibson as the backup center.

 

[juza76]

They say is a good pass protector.
Still very young 24

 

[Stout]

I'm very 'meh' on the Dwyer signing. The big knock on him in Pittsburgh is a lack of passion and hard work. He'd routinely call to be pulled from games when the coaches wanted him in, and showed up to camps out of shape. He supposedly changed that before last season, but still kept getting cut. He's nothing but a depth signing, trust me.

 

[LoyaltyisaCurse]

Dwyer= Meh-denhall.

 

[PJ1]

Mitch will be happy about Benard

I am too.

 

[az jam]

Backups. Nothing to get excited about for sure.

 

[ajcardfan]

Backups. Nothing to get excited about for sure.

Yeah, but we've actually had a pretty good history of these types of guys panning out better than expected down the line.

I like I've read so far on Larsen. He is supposed to be a pretty mean guy on field. Watch out for this guy... he might wind up as either starting C or RG, before this season is over.

 

[Brian]

Backups. Nothing to get excited about for sure.

Dwyer is a career 4.2 ypc so not too bad.

BA knows him. I like it.

 

[az jam]

NBC Sports Rotoworld:

LATEST NEWS
RECENT NEWS
Cardinals signed RB Jonathan Dwyer to a one-year contract.
Dwyer, 24, finished 2013 in Pittsburgh with 197 yards on 49 carries (4.0 YPC) and eight receptions. He's a devastating pass protector and excels in short yardage. Although Dwyer lacks a high ceiling, he's a sensible signing in Arizona due to his familiarity with Bruce Arians' offense. He's a better talent than Stepfan Taylor.

 

[Solar7]

NBC Sports Rotoworld:

He's a better talent than Stepfan Taylor.

Nice of them to judge Stepfan after 36 carries like that.

 

[Cbus cardsfan]

I'll be surprised if Dwyer makes the team. He's perpetually out of shape and hopefully doesn't eat himself out of the league.

He's nowhere near as talented as Mendy as. He ought to be a devastating pass blocker because half the time he's the size of an OG.

I hope this isn't the Cards sole move at RB.

 

[Garthshort]

How big is Dwyer? I noticed on the official Cards' site that Urban has him competing with Taylor to back up Ellington. And he didn't mention Ryan Williams (no health jokes please). My question is Dwyer big enough to be a goal line type?

 

[Cbus cardsfan]

How big is Dwyer? I noticed on the official Cards' site that Urban has him competing with Taylor to back up Ellington. And he didn't mention Ryan Williams (no health jokes please). My question is Dwyer big enough to be a goal line type?

He's plenty big. Weight, too much of it, has been his issue since entering the league. Here's some excerpts about it:

"Jonathan Dwyer was projected as a top 30 prospect before the NFL Combine in 2010. After the combine, his stock plummeted as questions about his weight and conditioning arose.

It cost him six rounds in the draft.

A year later, Dwyer arrived at training camp 20 pounds overweight and found himself in coach Mike Tomlin's doghouse. He was inactive for the first four games".
Read more: http://triblive.com/sports/steelers...son-shape-weight-isaac-jonathan#ixzz2vqFUTWgu

"In two seasons in Pittsburgh, weight issues have landed him in Mike Tomlin's doghouse. Official playing-time documents have Dwyer, who's been active in only eight games, logging just 43 snaps in his career. On those 43 snaps, Dwyer has 25 carries for 151 yards, including 76 yards on one run last October. Dwyer also has one reception for six yards".



"Jonathan Dwyer met with media today at St. Vincent and revealed that he lost 25 or 30 pounds during the offseason, and wants to lose 5 more before the opening preseason game versus the Giants. Dywer says he’s about 230 presently (they have him listed at 229 on the depth chart for what it’s worth), and that he finds he has more energy, is quicker, and more explosive now.

A combination of dieting and working out 2 or 3 times a day helped him to get in the shape he’s in now. His weight loss was so dramatic in fact, that some of his teammates did a double take when they saw him at camp"
.

Read more~ http://thesteelersfans.com/179/jonathan-dwyer-i-lost-25-to-30-pounds/#ixzz2vqG799l7

 

[RugbyMuffin]

Nice of them to judge Stepfan after 36 carries like that.

+1

 

[cardpa]

If the Cardinal coaching staff can get Dwyer to find some discipline with his weight and work ethic, Dwyer could end up being a real find. When he carried the rock he certainly excelled at it. If they could get his mind right he could be a diamond in the rough.

As for Larsen he is still relatively new to playing on the Oline. He was a defensive lineman until his last two years in college. Could have a lot of upside as he leans the finer points of playing C/G.

 

[b8rtm8nn]

The kid is only 24, so maturity can be gained and hopefully he has gained it. I like it better when we get the turnarounds versus watching these kids find the 'on' switch after we release them.

 

[PJ1]

Dwyer sounds like a project to me. We still need to replace Mendenhall whether through free agency or the draft.

 

[Chopper0080]

I'll be surprised if Dwyer makes the team. He's perpetually out of shape and hopefully doesn't eat himself out of the league.

He's nowhere near as talented as Mendy as. He ought to be a devastating pass blocker because half the time he's the size of an OG.

I hope this isn't the Cards sole move at RB.

I would imagine they will probably draft a RB as it is a deep class, but having Dwyer allows them flexiblity on draft day to not have to.

None of these players should be big contributors in 2014, but they all fit a role. I particularly like the versatility of Larsen. We don't have that currently on our roster. Potter, Massie, Blake should probably start getting nervous.

OL
Veldheer
Cooper
Sendlein
Sowell
*are all probably locks for the roster

Fanaika
Watford
Blake
Massie
Potter
*are all question marks and we will probably add another OT in FA or the draft.

 

[jlove]

I'm ok with Dwyer signing, HOWEVER, I am very curious as to why grab him now and not wait to see if we could've gotten one of the other big name/better RB's? Would've loved to have gotten Blount or Tate here to be that BIG change of pace back to complement Ellington

MJD
Blount
Choice
McGahee
Moreno
Starks
Tate