Not to hijack the thread - but talk me thru this a bit if you don't mind.
I know Joyner is playing in the slot with the 1s - as was the plan when he was drafted. He isn't getting any looks outside is he?
Who else is getting looks in the slot ? Is McGee? I know McCleod covers the slot as a safety, but they aren't bringing in a 3rd safety and moving him to the nickel back on those occasions, are they?
The reason I ask is this .....
We have seen on the O line an emphasis on versatility and getting the best 5 players on the field. Is the secondary somewhat similar or even more specialized?
Reasonably safe to say that at this point, our best 5 DBs are Tru, JJ, Joyner, McD, and McC.
Who is the next man up at corner? Does it depend on who goes down? Is it McGee if an outside corner goes down and Gaines if it's in the slot?
You were talking in another thread about McDonald and Alexander playing the same position - that they never see the field together. I wonder if that is just a developmental choice - not to give Alexander too much to learn at once.
Addressing your last comment first. OR maybe its because Alexander just isn't good enough to warrant any more than that. Not sure why it seems a lot of people want to fit a square peg into a round hole with this guy. He is just too raw to even be considered much more than what he is at this point. His skill set is NOT that of a FS, and neither is McDonald's. They are virtually clones of one another, with TJ being way more polished in his game.
Now on to the Joyner, McGee and Gaines topic:
I think way too much is made of who is playing where on any particular day, especially when you have multiple CBs not practicing. McGee has missed the majority of practices the past week, didn't play in the game Friday, and is just now returning to the practice field. So to really try to gauge a true depth chart is virtually impossible.
That being said, Joyner is getting the majority of his reps at the Nickel spot. As I mentioned in a earlier post, there are instances where he stays on the field with McDonald coming off, if the offensive personnel dictates it. For example an extra TE is lined up in the slot. Again, I am not reading a whole lot into this, except to work on Joyner's cover skills against bigger receivers.
Now that McGee is practicing, he took the 1st team reps opposite Johnson, at CB. With Joyner coming in at Nickel.
Gaines is lined up outside in the "regular" sets with the 2nd unit, and slides inside to Nickel when needed. These are the ONLY TWO guys at this point working at the Nickel position, and I don't see that changing. That includes McLeod NOT taking a single rep at Nickel.
If I were to put a true Depth Chart together, assuming EVERYONE is back and healthy, it would be
Jenkins and Johnson, at CB, with Joyner as the Nickel.
2nd Unit would be
McGee and Gaines at the CB, with Gaines sliding to the Nickel and at this point, Woodard coming in as the next CB.
That leaves Roberson, Reid and Jarrod Bryant. (in that order)