mayoclinic

Right now I see 4 potential areas meriting a day 1 pick, with 4 day 1 picks:

1. DE/LB. Our biggest area of need, OLB > ILB, but I could see potentially 2 picks in this area. One could be a current college DE who would play DE in the 4-3 and OLB in the 3-4. This includes players like senior Greg Hardy and juniors Jason Pierre-Paul, Derrick Morgan and Everson Griffen. The other would be more a college "hybrid" who could play 4-3 SAM and either 3-4 OLB or SILB (or both). This includes players like seniors Sergio Kindle, Jerry Hughes and Ricky Sapp and juniors Jeremy Beals and Jason Worilds at OLB/SAM, and seniors Brandon Spikes and Eric Norwood and junior Rolando McClain at SILB/OLB/SAM.

Again, I could see potentially 2 first day picks used in this area, as it seems by far our biggest area of need.

2. OL. OG seems more like a need than OT, though OT is generally more valued. I consider junior OT Bruce Campbell, senior OG Mike Iupati and junior OG/C Maurkice Pouncey to be my favorite guys warranting a day 1 pick at this point.

3. RB. We could definitely use a young RB to pair with Maroney and BJGE, as Faulk's contract is up after this year, Faulk/Morris/Taylor are all 32+, and Taylor/Morris have been injured. I tend to favor a north-south physical back in the Corey Dillon mode to an all-purpose elusive guy such as Jahvid Best or CJ Spiller. The two guys who stand out to me are juniors Jonathan Dwyer (6'1" 230#, in the Jonathan Stewart mode) from Georgia Tech and Ryan Mathews (5'11" 220#, in the Rashard Mendenhall mode) from Fresno St.

4. 3-4 DE. With Seymour gone there is definite need for a 5-technique guy. Ndamukong Suh will go top 5. Gerald McCoy will go top 10 and I see him more as a 4-3 DT than a 3-4 DE. Arthur Jones from Syracuse (6'4" 295#) and Jared Odrick from Penn St. (6'5" 300#) could go in the mid-late 1st round. Juniors Lawrence Marsh from Florida (6'5" 305#) and Adrian Campbell from Iowa (6'3", 282+#) are interesting 2nd round prospects right now. I'm not sure about Vince Oghobasse from Duke (6'6" 310#) - not sure he has the athleticism to play the 5 technique for us.

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mayoclinic

I could definitely see us spending a 2nd round pick on a RB to complement Maroney and BJGE. I favor a pounding back as opposed to an all-purpose guy (CJ Spiller, Jahvid Best). The two that I like are juniors Jonathan Dwyer from Georgia Tech and Ryan Mathews from Fresno St.

Dwyer reminds me a bit of Jonathan Stewart, or possibly a young Corey Dillon - big, physical, punishing but can break the big play. Here's some nice footage of Dwyer running over people:

YouTube - 2009 GT-UVA Jonathan Dwyer Blows Up A Virginia Cavalier
YouTube - Dwyer Runs Over a Hurricane (UM v GT 08)
YouTube - Jonathan Dwyer great run

Mathews is a 5'11" 220#, a bit faster and less physical than Dwyer but still punishing, and with great home run ability. Hits the hole very aggressively - no dancing from this guy. Reminds me a lot of Rashard Mendenhall and Donald Brown, or even a young Fred Taylor. He just looks like a pure thoroughbread RB to me. Here's some video:

YouTube - Best Runningback in NCAA
YouTube - Ryan Mathews 3TD's (2009)
YouTube - Ryan Mathews 2007 Highlights

I like Dwyer a lot, but I really love the way Mathews runs, and think he's also a terrific weapon out of the backfield (see around the 3:35 mark of the first video clip of Mathews). He has better acceleration (Dwyer's a load once he gets going, but he doesn't accelerate as quickly), runs lower to the ground, causes more people to miss or not make good contact, and has more home run capability than Dwyer. Coming from Fresno St. may cause him to slip a bit, and I'm guessing he will go sometime in the 2nd round if he comes out.

Couldn't go wrong with either one, but I'm leading towards Mathews as my favorite guy right now. Hope he flies a bit under the radar.

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mayoclinic

ESPN reports today that Ryan Mathews is considering submitting his name to the draft advisory board.

Fresno State's Mathews weighs his future - College Football Nation - ESPN

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mayoclinic

Nice article on Maryland OT Bruce Campbell:

The Diamondback - Campbell soldiers onward

Sounds like a tough kid. He's a stud, both on the field and by the numbers, and will likely be a top 15 and possible top 10 pick if he declares. I think he's the best pure draft eligible LT prospect. If he should somehow slip to us because of nagging injuries I think the value would be too good to pass up, even though other needs are greater.

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glm

The prospects I like for this team for now are:
DE:
1. Ndamukong Suh
2. Gerald McCoy
3. Carlos Dunlap
4. Brian Price
5. Jared Odrick
RB:
1. Ryan Mathews
2. Jonathan Dwyer
3. Toby Gerhart
4. Anthony Dixon
5. John Clay
OLB:
1. Jerry Hughes
2. Von Miller
3. O'Brien Schofield
4. Jeremy Beal
5. Ryan Kerrigan
ILB:
1. Eric Norwood
2. Rolando McClain
3. Brandon Spikes
4. Pat Angerer
5. Sean Weatherspoon
OG:
1. Russell Okung
2. Mike Johnson
3. Maurkice Pouncey
4. Bryan Bulaga
5. Zane Beadles

__________________
16 game average:
Points: 28.778
Yards/G: 416.778

Brady: Yards-4869 TD-34 INT-10
Moss: Catches-103 Yards-1584 TD-12
Welker: Catches-113 Yards-1177 TD-7

Pats D:
Points: 16.667
Yards/G: 304.556

ForThoseAboutToRock

Article on Rolando McClain.

Makes him sound like a BB dream player:
This makes me think he could fulfill the role of 3-4 OLB in the Adalius Thomas mold-setting edges, shedding blocks with the smarts to know where to be for coverage:

mayoclinic

I'll bite. The players I like for this team right now are:

OT:

1. Bruce Campbell, Maryland (junior). 6'6" 310#. Best LT prospect since Ryan Clady. With Greg Hardy and Rolando McClain, my top pick for the Pats.
2. Brian Bulaga, Iowa (junior). 6'6" 312#.
3. Gabe Carimi, Wisconsin (junior). 6'7" 325#. Tremendous RT prospect.
4. Kyle Calloway, Iowa. 6'7" 315#. Pure RT.
5t. Jason Fox, Miami. 6'7" 315#.
5t. Jeff Linkenbach, Cincinnati. 6'6" 311#.

OG/C:

1. Mike Iupati, Iowa. 6'6" 330#. Moves like a much smaller man.
2. Maurkice Pouncey, Florida (junior). 6'5" 318#.
3. Mike Johnson, Alabama. 6'5" 305#. A beast with a nasty attitude.
4. Jon Asamoah, Illinois. 6'5" 315#.
5. Zane Beadles, Utah. 6'4" 305#.

RB:

1. Ryan Mathews, Fresno St. (junior). 5'11" 220#.
2. Jonathan Dwyer, Georgia Tech (junior). 6' 230#.
3. LaGarrette Blount, Oregon. 6'1" 230#.
4. Ben Tate, Auburn. 5'11" 220#. Poor man's Ryan Mathews.
5. Toby Gerhart, Stanford. 6'1" 235#. Poor man's Jonathan Dwyer.

Note: I'm not personally in favor of a speed back like Jahvid Best or CJ Spiller.

3-4 DE:

1. Ndamukong Suh, Nebraska. 6'4" 305#. We won't get within 20 picks of him.
2. Lawrence Marsh, Florida (junior). 6'5" 305#. Could be a young Suh.
3. Jared Odrick, Penn St. 6'5" 305#.
4. Arthur Jones, Syracuse. 6'4" 295#.
5. Adrian Clayborn, Iowa (junior). 6'3" 285#. Very strong and a playmaker.

Note: I don't think Gerald McCoy or Carlos Dunlap are 3-4 DE's for the Pats. Brian Price is on the short side (6'2").

4-3 DE/3-4 Elephant:

1. Greg Hardy, Mississippi. 6'5" 267#. Terrific elephant prospect. Finally healthy again. My co-#1 pick with Bruce Campbell and Rolando McClain.
2. Derrick Morgan, Georgia Tech. 6'4" 268#. Incredible motor. Unstoppable.
3. Everson Griffen, USC (junior). 6'3" 275#+. Amazing athleticism.
4. Jason Pierre-Paul, USF (junior). 6'6" 265#. Incredible upside, but very raw.
5. Carlos Dunlap, Florida (junior). 6'6" 280#. Inconsistent, but amazing upside.

3-4 OLB:

1. Jeremy Beal, Oklahoma (junior). 6'3" 257#. Combination of Kindle and Hughes.
2. Sergio Kindle, Texas. 6'4" 255#. Very fast and athletic. More athlete than football player.
3. Jerry Hughes, TCU. 6'3" 257#. Terrific motor.
4. Jason Worilds, Virginia Tech (junior). 6'2" 252#.
5. O'Brien Schofield, Wisconsin. 6'2" 248#.

3-4 ILB/4-3 LB:

1. Rolando McClain, Alabama (junior). 6'4" 255#. My co-#1 along with Greg Hardy and Bruce Campbell. In the Aaron Curry mold.
2. Sean Weatherspoon, Missouri. 6'2" 247#. Makes plays all over the field.
3. Eric Norwood, South Carolina. 6'1", 252#. Very strong. A playmaker.
4. Brandon Spikes, Florida. 6'3" 253#.
5. Chris Galippo, USC. 6'2" 255#.

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mayoclinic

Some stylistic comparisons which come to mind regarding some of the prospects listed above:

- Ryan Matthews RB: Rashard Mendenhall with a bit of Donald Brown. Also reminds me of Fred Taylor, but smaller.
- Jonathan Dwyer, RB: Corey Dillon.
- Bruce Campbell, OT: Walter Jones.
- Ndamukong Suh, DE/DT: Richard Seymour.
- Lawrence Marsh, DE/DT: a young Ndamukong Suh.
- Greg Hardy, DE/OLB: Jared Allen. A beast.
- Derrick Morgan, DE/OLB: Shawne Merriman. Relentless and unstoppable.
- Everson Griffen, DE/OLB: Willie McGinest.
- Jason Pierre-Paul, DE/OLB: Javon Kearse. Great wingspan and speed.
- Carlos Dunlap, DE/OLB: Julius Peppers.
- Jeremy Beal, DE/OLB: Terrell Suggs.
- Sergio Kindle, DE/OLB: DeMarcus Ware.
- Jerry Hughes, DE/OLB: John Abraham.
- Rolando McClain, ILB/SAM: Aaron Curry.
- Eric Norwood, ILB/SAM: Adalius Thomas.
- Sean Weatherspoon, ILB/SAM: Patrick Willis. Makes tackles all over the field.

These comparisons are more playing style than predictions of success.

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T-cat

idk i have this wierd feeling we get brandon lang and he turns into a D Ware kinda mold...oddly enough they are from the same school

Marqui

I've been whatching a lot of Derrick Morgan latley. Guy is a beast. I hope the Pats take him.