Justin Harrell - What can we reasonably expect?

[The Leaper]

DT's have to play hurt & Harrell had a little "China doll" in him his first year.

True...but I'm not sure how much of this I attribute to being soft because he hadn't been on a football much for the past 2 seasons or that he is truly will have continual problems with injuries. Not being on the field slapping helmets probably affects the guys in the trenches in terms of stamina and little scrapes and nicks more than any other position.

[run pMc]

I expect him to improve, contribute and see more playing time.

The depth on the DL is good compared to other teams, but injuries started to wear them out the last few weeks. I didn't expect Harrell to start his rookie year, but I did expect him to push harder for a spot than he did. I think his injury set his progress back and prevented him for competing for a spot. That excuse aside, from what I've read it sounds like he's the type of player who will be motivated to improve. I doubt Kampman and Pickett will let this guy slack off anyway.
The guy played against FLA with a torn bicep for crying out loud. He'll play hurt, but I don't know how effective he is hurt.

I don't think you can expect a R1 guy to start from day 1 unless you're drafting top 5 or maybe top 10. Starting a rookie right away indicates you have some talent or depth problems. Nothing wrong with developing R1's...look at all the QB's who sit for a year. Rodgers would be probably starting if he were on another team.

IIRC, the draftniks were saying that if Cromartie was healthy (or had gone back to school) he would have been a top 5 pick. Same thing for McGahee. I don't blame those guys for coming out -- better teams pick lower, and they have pretty good medical staffs. Plus they get paid lots to rehab and learn.