College Football: Running Commentary - Page 3 - New England Patriots Forums

***mayoclinic*** · 10-25-2009, 12:03 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by reamer

Several comments, since I'm way behind on my updates.

First, though, I ran across this bit of excessive praise for a player I've been intrigued by for a while: AUSTEN LANE IS ON THE RIGHT ROAD TO NFL STARDOM | Bleacher Report

What really stood out to me was that after he bulked up to over 250, he became far more effective. Consider these stats for his 200 season: he thrives in pass coverage (gives up an average of roughly 1.2 yards per attempt, and only allowed one first down), and has performed exceptionally well against the run (opponents running directly at him gained -90 yards). Oh, and for my fellow number freaks, take a look at his 6.7 three cone time. That is ridiculous for a 6'6, 270# defensive lineman. As I said, this article is alarmingly obsequious, but I do like this guy as a mid-late round sleeper.

Another guy I've wanted to watch for a while, Lindsey Witten, is also an athletic pass-rusher with good size (6'4, 258#) and great quickness. I believe he already has 10 sacks this year, which is slightly less impressive than it sounds, given that 7 of them came in the first 2 games of the year. I prefer consistency from pass-rushers, not feast or famine. That said, I couldn't believe how fast and explosive he looks off the snap. He has excellent flexibility, changes direction fluidly, and generally looks very quick and confident. I think he could play well in space. I wasn't a fan, however, of his continual tendency to get engaged in drawn-out battles with blockers. He needs to shed the blocker and make the play, not dance around. To be honest, he looked like an exact replica of Aaron Maybin, and I'm not sure whether that's a good thing.

I didn't get to see much, but I watched a few of Von Miller's plays, and he is another guy with lightening-quick movements. I think he's too small for our scheme (6'3, 240#), but I could have sworn I was watching Clay Matthews back in the college game. Scrappy player, and I wish him well in a one-gap, attacking scheme.

I also watched Romeus again, because I like how hard he plays, but once more I came away with the feeling that he's a true 43 end, not a OLB conversion project. I do think he'll be a great player, but I just don't think he has the foot speed necessary to play in space.

Starting to notice a trend? I like pass-rushers, and I think we need one next year, with Thomas and Burgess most likely gone. I like Hardy a good bit, but his inconsistency baffles me. He's so ferocious sometimes, much like Larry English but with far greater size and athleticism. (I keep comparing this class to last year, because even though I've followed the draft for a while, last year was the first time I spent several months systematically scouting out prospects.) I honestly believe that BB could turn him into one of the greatest pass-rushers of all time, but I fear that either 1) he's gone before we pick, or 2) his attitude causes teams to shy away from him, and we pass him up over concern for his effort. What do you think, is likely to fall like Michael Johnson, or do you think Dunlap will take that dubious award?

I've made a point of watching Rolando McClain whenever possible, and I'm convinced he's the best LB prospect I've seen in the few year I've followed the draft. I'd love to see him alternate between playing inside and outside in the 43, 34, and nickel subpackages. I can't say anything about him that people haven't already heard. He's just terrific.

Several running backs have also piqued my interest this year, but none of them are draft-eligible, so I'll just file them away for future consideration, especially since Maroney and Law-Firm could be a great tandem for us going forward.

I'm still trying to find a defensive tackle prospect to get excited about. Other than Suh, who is obviously way out of our range (and possibly would play better in a penetrating 43, anyway), I am not terribly impressed with anyone in this class. Maybe I'm just too picky, but I really want a Seymour replacement. I don't think Green is resigned next year, for some reason, and I have a strange feeling Wilfork may be tagged and traded. Can Brace play the nose? He's barely seen the field all year, sadly.

Keep up the great discussions, everyone. I love hearing your thoughts. Next up, I'm going to attempt to profile a few cornerbacks who look like they have the skills necessary to hold up in our system. Several have already caught my eye . . .

Nice comments as usual, Andrew. A couple of thoughts.

First, as far as college LBs go, I agree that McClain is far and away the best of the bunch - perfectly suited to play 3-4 SILB or 4-3 SAM. He's the only actual linebacker (as opposed to DE who would project to OLB for us) that I'm really excited about at this point. I think he would get serious consideration if he were available to us. Sean Weatherspoon, Brandon Spikes and Eric Norwood are all on my list, but McClain has separated himself from the pack for me at this point.

Second, I also want pass rushers. I don't think we can have enough of them, regardless of whether we keep AD and Burgess. I personally favor the bigger guys with the size and strength to set the edge over the quicker speed rushers like Von Miller and Ricky Sapp. I'm not sure about Jerry Hughes or Sergio Kindle, but the guys I prefer right now are Jason Pierre-Paul, Derrick Morgan, Everson Griffen and Greg Hardy, in that order. I'm a but put off by Hardy's inconsistency and injury history, but when on he is terrific. Pierre-Paul and Robert Quinn from North Carolina probably have the most upside (Quinn is a true sophomore and not draft eligible). Griffen has a lot of upside too, but is slightly shorter than the others. Morgan has a terrific motor. I'd consider any of these guys in the late 1st or early 2nd round.

As far as 3-4 DE's go, I don't see the next Richard Seymour out there other than Ndamukong Suh. The two guys who most intrigue me are junior Leonard Marsh from Florida (6'5" 305# with nice athleticism, though he's been injury prone this year) and Adrian Clayborn from Iowa. Clayborn is a bit small for us right now (6'3" 282#) but has incredible functional strength and is a playmaker. I'd look at either of them in the 2nd round.

Besides those 3 positions, the other 1st days positions I would consider would be OL and RB. Jonathan Dwyer continues to impress me. Junior Ryan Matthews from Fresno State is a load at 5'11" and 220#. He really hits the hole hard. I'd personally prefer a power back to one of the all-purpose speed backs like CJ Spiller and Jahvid Best. Regarding linemen, I particularly like Mike Iupati from Idaho and junior Maurkice Pouncey from Florida as interior line prospects if either is available in the 2nd round. Finally, Bruce Campbell from Maryland could be a top LT, and should get a serious look if he lasts till our 1st round pick, though I expect him to go earlier.

Those are the guys I've been most impressed with so far. I'll be curious to get your thoughts on them.

***ctpatsfan77*** · 10-25-2009, 12:30 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mayoclinic

Finally, Bruce Campbell from Maryland could be a top LT, and should get a serious look if he lasts till our 1st round pick, though I expect him to go earlier.

I just can't see the Pats taking a tackle high next year. . . .

reamer · 10-25-2009, 12:32 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ctpatsfan77

Can we at least give Thomas one more game before we project him being cut next year?

I'm a big fan of Thomas. I'm just looking at his age and cap hit next year; do you really think he stays?

reamer · 10-25-2009, 12:34 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ctpatsfan77

I just can't see the Pats taking a tackle high next year. . . .

I don't either, but I agree with Mayo that Campbell may be too good to pass up if we're in the position to draft him next year. Left tackles that project as well as he does are simply too valuable, which is precisely why I think he'll be gone in the top 15.

***mayoclinic*** · 10-25-2009, 01:24 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by reamer

I don't either, but I agree with Mayo that Campbell may be too good to pass up if we're in the position to draft him next year. Left tackles that project as well as he does are simply too valuable, which is precisely why I think he'll be gone in the top 15.

Exactly. I think he'll go top 15 too. I think he's a better pure left tackle prospect than either Russell Okung or Brian Buluga. I want an interior lineman more than a tackle right now, but Campbell is good enough to merit serious consideration if he fell to our vicinity.

***mayoclinic*** · 10-25-2009, 01:32 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by reamer

I'm a big fan of Thomas. I'm just looking at his age and cap hit next year; do you really think he stays?

I think Thomas either gets cut or restructured and extended. Which one is totally up in the air as things stand right now, but will hopefully become clearer over the course of the season. He has tremendous versatility and value in our scheme, both as a pass rusher and at SILB, and would be worth keeping if the issues which have arisen this season can be resolved and his cap hit can be made manageable. Otherwise, I don't think it's likely that he stays, much as I like him (I've always been a big fan, too).

BritPat · 10-25-2009, 11:29 AM

RE: the next Seymour.

Thoughts on Vince Oghobaase?

Marqui · 10-25-2009, 06:24 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BritPat

RE: the next Seymour.

Thoughts on Vince Oghobaase?

Ogh is good, but I think I like Jared Odrick more.

patsfaninpa · 10-25-2009, 07:25 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Marqui

Ogh is good, but I think I like Jared Odrick more.

I think Odrick will be a good fit for our system. He uses his hands well and can play 2-gap. Gets upfield well. Disrupted Michigan's offense all-day on Sat. A lot of Dt's will probably be taken early. Suh, McCoy, Cody, A.Jones and Odrick could go in the 1st round. Odrick could fall to our slot. I thought Graham from Michigan looked good too. PSU down to their 3rd team RT and he really took advantage of it.

reamer · 10-30-2009, 11:56 PM

Just finished the USF vs. WVU game. WVU didn't impress me. Even Devine looked lackluster tonight.

I wanted a chance to watch Jason Pierre-Paul, who's been generating considerable hype lately. After watching the game, I sincerely hope he stays in school for another year. He has good strength, speed, length, and burst, but too often I saw him absolutely abuse the tackle, and then lose contain, allowing for running room (see Brown's rushing touchdown at the end of the game). Several times he took very poor angles when he was already in position to make a play. He just seems a split-second slow to respond to the action.

My biggest concern, though, was his change of direction. He's touted as an elite athlete, but he appeared a little off-balance at times, like he had to gather himself before redirecting. Another year of growing into his frame would likely help, as will further study of opposing players' tendencies. Still, a guy to keep an eye on if he comes out, just not in the first two rounds, in my opinion. Essentially another Crable, but with more strength to set the edge.

Carlton Mitchell, whom I've been fairly excited about since before the season started, was sensational tonight, and his stats should be even better. He had a would-be touchdown taken away when the official ruled that he was out of bounds (he wasn't), and then was injured on a play where the quarter back threw the ball way above his head about four yards behind the LOS. He managed to jump up and snag the ball, but a tackler hit him low before he could get his feet under him and managed to eventually wrestle him down, after a struggle, thus reducing his total yards, and his yards per catch with the additional reception. Regardless, what impressed me the most about him was his ability to consistently challenge the corner deep. He runs very strong, decisive routes, and I loved his body control on his 49-yard touchdown, where he twisted completely backward across his body to make a catch in the endzone. If he comes out early, I'd give him serious consideration in the late second or early third, assuming we wheel and deal and acquire a third. Would love to see him and Tate as our 3rd and 4th receivers.

Jerome Murphy plays too loose and high. He's occasionally a bit stiff, and I just don't see him developing into a starting corner in the NFL unless he really refines his technique. I know many services rate him highly, and he is very physical when tackling, but I'm simply not a fan of his overall ability. His highlight reels are fantastic, but the quality of his full game leaves a bit to be desired.

Runningback Moise Placher reminded me a little of Slaton. Ironic, given that USF was playing Slaton's old team. Good patience, excellent agility, tries to play angles to make defenders miss instead of just juking back and forth half a dozen times, and runs with some aggression inside. He's short and doesn't have breakaway speed, so I doubt he's very high on most people's big boards, but I liked his style and tenacity. Will keep an eye on him.

Really nothing impressive from WVU. Devine is usually awesome, but he was boring tonight. Sanders is good, but they hardly gave him the ball. Sorry to make this so one-sided . . . I just don't have much to say except that Brown will have to make a position change at the next level. He makes some poor decisions and has terrible accuracy. Great physical tools, but an elite quarterback he's not.

Wish I had time to watch more games.