CNNSI Draft Prospect Profile

[mayoclinic]

Here's an interesting draft profile from CNNSI:

Position: OLB
Class: Sr
Ht., Wt.: 6-4, 251
40 Time: 4.65

POSITIVES: Athletic, play making defender with great potential for the next level. Keeps his pads low to the ground, fluid changing direction and pursues from the backside with speed. Quick changing direction or altering his angle of attack and possesses the ability to make plays in any direction. Fast off the edge, can flatten and very tough to stop. Doubled by opponents yet stays on his feet and holds his ground. Looked outstanding at the Combine when used at linebacker and was a force during Senior Bowl week.

NEGATIVES: Lacks the quick first step out of a three point stance. Engulfed by larger opponents. Limited experience playing in space.

ANALYSIS: A productive collegiate defensive end. Has the athleticism and abilities to be used at a variety of positions in the NFL. Perfectly suited to stand up over tackle in a 34 defense and could eventually develop into a solid strong side linebacker. Possesses the physical skills as well as mental abilities to see significant action as a rookie. Rising up draft boards off his performances in the postseason.

PROJECTION: Early Second Round

The player: DeMarcus Ware.

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/football/2005/draft/players/66970.html

Sound reminiscent of anyone we know? Too bad the Cowboys "reached" for this "workout warrior".

 

[bucky]

Yeah, and here's what they said about Manny Lawson:

BIO: Two-year starter awarded All-Conference honors after his senior and junior campaigns. Numbers last season were 53/18.5/9.5 and 50/12/7 the prior year.

POSITIVES: Tremendous athlete watching his draft stock soar. Plays with good pad level, is rarely off his feet and makes plays in every direction of the field. Fast off the edge, terrific in pursuit and runs ball carriers down from the backside. Effectively used in space on zone blitzes. Reads the action and stays with assignments. Hard-hitting and plays with an aggressive style.

NEGATIVES: Undersized out of a three-point stance and can be engulfed by large blockers. Occasionally takes wide angles to avoid linemen altogether.

ANALYSIS: After a terrific campaign in '05, Lawson performed well at the Senior Bowl and combine. Has the skills to stand up over tackle in a 34 defense.

 

[Box_O_Rocks]

Yeah, and here's what they said about Manny Lawson:

BIO: Two-year starter awarded All-Conference honors after his senior and junior campaigns. Numbers last season were 53/18.5/9.5 and 50/12/7 the prior year.

POSITIVES: Tremendous athlete watching his draft stock soar. Plays with good pad level, is rarely off his feet and makes plays in every direction of the field. Fast off the edge, terrific in pursuit and runs ball carriers down from the backside. Effectively used in space on zone blitzes. Reads the action and stays with assignments. Hard-hitting and plays with an aggressive style.

NEGATIVES: Undersized out of a three-point stance and can be engulfed by large blockers. Occasionally takes wide angles to avoid linemen altogether.

ANALYSIS: After a terrific campaign in '05, Lawson performed well at the Senior Bowl and combine. Has the skills to stand up over tackle in a 34 defense.

Well, he is a starter in the NFL.

 

[signbabybrady]

Well, he is a starter in the NFL.

Not to mention I believe he had pretty significant injury.

 

[Box_O_Rocks]

Not to mention I believe he had pretty significant injury.

Mike Singletary? TBC suffered a similar injury.

 

[mayoclinic]

Yeah, and here's what they said about Manny Lawson:

BIO: Two-year starter awarded All-Conference honors after his senior and junior campaigns. Numbers last season were 53/18.5/9.5 and 50/12/7 the prior year.

POSITIVES: Tremendous athlete watching his draft stock soar. Plays with good pad level, is rarely off his feet and makes plays in every direction of the field. Fast off the edge, terrific in pursuit and runs ball carriers down from the backside. Effectively used in space on zone blitzes. Reads the action and stays with assignments. Hard-hitting and plays with an aggressive style.

NEGATIVES: Undersized out of a three-point stance and can be engulfed by large blockers. Occasionally takes wide angles to avoid linemen altogether.

ANALYSIS: After a terrific campaign in '05, Lawson performed well at the Senior Bowl and combine. Has the skills to stand up over tackle in a 34 defense.

Good counterargument. It's clearly not a precise science. As you say, Lawson got a lot of interest on the boards 3 years ago, and while injuries may have played a role, he certainly hasn't done anything to set the world on fire.

There are some subtle differences betwen Lawson and Barwin which may be significant. Lawson played as part of a tremendous college DL next to 2 other 1st round picks in Mario Williams and John McCargo. Barwin hasn't had that advantage. Lawson was definitely on the light side with kind of a tall, skinny frame, and he has had trouble maintaining the necessary bulk to be effective against the run. The "undersized" and "can be engulfed by large blockers" concerns have been a serious issue for him.

Could Barwin end up being another Manny Lawson? Absolutely. That would be about the equivalent of how Lawrence Maroney has worked out for us - not a bust, but not the world-beater that we thought he would be. Can I live with taking that chance? Personally, the answer is yes, but everyone is going to have to do their own calculus on this.

 

[bucky]

Good counterargument. It's clearly not a precise science. As you say, Lawson got a lot of interest on the boards 3 years ago, and while injuries may have played a role, he certainly hasn't done anything to set the world on fire.

There are some subtle differences betwen Lawson and Barwin which may be significant. Lawson played as part of a tremendous college DL next to 2 other 1st round picks in Mario Williams and John McCargo. Barwin hasn't had that advantage. Lawson was definitely on the light side with kind of a tall, skinny frame, and he has had trouble maintaining the necessary bulk to be effective against the run. The "undersized" and "can be engulfed by large blockers" concerns have been a serious issue for him.

Could Barwin end up being another Manny Lawson? Absolutely. That would be about the equivalent of how Lawrence Maroney has worked out for us - not a bust, but not the world-beater that we thought he would be. Can I live with taking that chance? Personally, the answer is yes, but everyone is going to have to do their own calculus on this.

That's exactly right. We all have our own threshold on risk. As I've said before, I have absolutely nothing against Barwin as a prospect. I'm just concerned about projecting him based on his athleticism. His ability to play TE and ST is surely a plus, but to me it's not what you draft a guy for in the first round.

 

[juxtapoz15]

Do they have profiles up for '09 players? I poked around and haven't seen anything.

 

[Box_O_Rocks]

Do they have profiles up for '09 players? I poked around and haven't seen anything.

NFL Draft - 2009 Draft Prospects - CBSSports.com Football

 

[Bring Back Antowain!]

Do they have profiles up for '09 players? I poked around and haven't seen anything.

No, at least not yet. I always liked their highlight videos... their analysis is usually decent and always concise.

 

[MetalBleachers]

That's exactly right. We all have our own threshold on risk. As I've said before, I have absolutely nothing against Barwin as a prospect. I'm just concerned about projecting him based on his athleticism. His ability to play TE and ST is surely a plus, but to me it's not what you draft a guy for in the first round.

I guess my problem here, Sr. Buck, is that I'm not sure who else is a must-get at 23. We'll have to wait to see how it shakes out, of course, but it seems like any player who really opens my eyes figures to be gone by 23.

Hence, the actual draft event taking place and not the millions of well-named mocks.

 

[mayoclinic]

I guess my problem here, Sr. Buck, is that I'm not sure who else is a must-get at 23. We'll have to wait to see how it shakes out, of course, but it seems like any player who really opens my eyes figures to be gone by 23.

Hence, the actual draft event taking place and not the millions of well-named mocks.

Exactly. I posted in a previous thread that I could only see 5 of the "top 20" players whom I clearly would want: Aaron Curry, BJ Raji, Jason Smith, Eugene Monroe, and Michael Crabtree. If I were convinced that Maualuga would be the solution at SILB I would include him, but I'm just not convinced. I don't want Michael Oher or Andre Smith for the Pats at OT, Darius Heyward-Bey at WR, Malcolm Jenkins or Vontae Davis at CB, or James Laurinaitis. I don't want a QB, WR or TE in the 1st round, which rules out Matt Stafford, Mark Sanchez, Beanie Wells, Knowshon Moreno, and Brandon Pettigrew. I don't see Brian Orapko as a 3-4 OLB candidate. I might consider Everett Brown, but personally I think Barwin has much better upside and is better suited to us for OLB. There's no top-20 safety prospect.

The leaves me with a group of prospects that we keep talking about: Barwin/Ayers/English/Maybin/Johnson/Sintim at OLB, Delmas/Moore/Chung at S, Beatty/Britton at OT, Mack at OG/C, Hakeem Nicks and Percy Harvin at WR. Of those, Barwin, Ayers and Beatty look like the best options to me at 23. Given Barwin's high ceiling, he's as good a bet there as anyone right now.

 

[bucky]

Exactly. I posted in a previous thread that I could only see 5 of the "top 20" players whom I clearly would want: Aaron Curry, BJ Raji, Jason Smith, Eugene Monroe, and Michael Crabtree. If I were convinced that Maualuga would be the solution at SILB I would include him, but I'm just not convinced. I don't want Michael Oher or Andre Smith for the Pats at OT, Darius Heyward-Bey at WR, Malcolm Jenkins or Vontae Davis at CB, or James Laurinaitis. I don't want a QB, WR or TE in the 1st round, which rules out Matt Stafford, Mark Sanchez, Beanie Wells, Knowshon Moreno, and Brandon Pettigrew. I don't see Brian Orapko as a 3-4 OLB candidate. I might consider Everett Brown, but personally I think Barwin has much better upside and is better suited to us for OLB. There's no top-20 safety prospect.

The leaves me with a group of prospects that we keep talking about: Barwin/Ayers/English/Maybin/Johnson/Sintim at OLB, Delmas/Moore/Chung at S, Beatty/Britton at OT, Mack at OG/C, Hakeem Nicks and Percy Harvin at WR. Of those, Barwin, Ayers and Beatty look like the best options to me at 23. Given Barwin's high ceiling, he's as good a bet there as anyone right now.

Interesting list. I'd disagree a little in that Jenkins would make a fine safety, but he'll be long gone. Harvey would be a great pick and my personal favorite at the moment. I would be happy with any DB BB choses from the field - S or CB. Laurinaitis might not be as exciting a pick as Barwin, but he's a much safer pick and should be a starter for many years. I would love to see him still on the board at 34! Beatty is probably in a similar situation, though my personal preference would be to stay away from OL at 23 and 34.

 

[rookBoston]

Sound reminiscent of anyone we know? Too bad the Cowboys "reached" for this "workout warrior".

Yeah, well that's a great reason to draft a guy... his scouting report sounds like some other guy. Find Bobby Carpenter who the Cowboys reached for a couple of years later.


Edit: oh, nevermind... I see that you did

 

[mayoclinic]

Yeah, well that's a great reason to draft a guy... his scouting report sounds like some other guy. Find Bobby Carpenter who the Cowboys reached for a couple of years later.


Edit: oh, nevermind... I see that you did

My point wasn't that we should draft Barwin based on his similarity, but to point out that DeMarcus Ware wasn't universally regarded as a "sure thing" going into the 2005 draft. It's easy to overlook that given how successful he's been, but some of the same issues that have been raised with Barwin were raised with Ware, and there are some strong parallels in terms of their strengths as well. It was more of a response to those who label every prospect who has a great combine and pro day the "next Mike Mamula".

 

[MetalBleachers]

My point wasn't that we should draft Barwin based on his similarity, but to point out that DeMarcus Ware wasn't universally regarded as a "sure thing" going into the 2005 draft. It's easy to overlook that given how successful he's been, but some of the same issues that have been raised with Barwin were raised with Ware, and there are some strong parallels in terms of their strengths as well. It was more of a response to those who label every prospect who has a great combine and pro day the "next Mike Mamula".

You know, Mamula wasn't terrible. He was just overrated and NOT Warren Sapp. He still had a few productive years (maybe not "first round" productive, but still.) Give the guy credit (or blame) for demonstrating what specific training for combine events can do for a player's stock.

Mike Mamula

P.S. Bucky, if none of the top-rated guys slide, I'm sticking with Barwin at 23.

 

[bucky]

P.S. Bucky, if none of the top-rated guys slide, I'm sticking with Barwin at 23.

Which top rated guys are you talking about?

 

[CanadianPat'sFan]

Interesting list. I'd disagree a little in that Jenkins would make a fine safety, but he'll be long gone. Harvey would be a great pick and my personal favorite at the moment. I would be happy with any DB BB choses from the field - S or CB. Laurinaitis might not be as exciting a pick as Barwin, but he's a much safer pick and should be a starter for many years. I would love to see him still on the board at 34! Beatty is probably in a similar situation, though my personal preference would be to stay away from OL at 23 and 34.

Why would you stay away from OL at #23 and #34? If a great OL fell like Beatty fell to us or Oher I would pull the trigger in a minute. Light is going to look for a large contract and Kaczur (while Canadian) I think could be pushed by Beatty right away. With Brady coming back from injury I just want to surround Brady with as much protections as possible.

I do realize the quality of OL that would be still around at #47, 58 or even 89 but I think that we should invest one or not two picks in OL in the first 6 picks.

LB either inside or outside is another priority but we do have young guys that only BB knows how well they are developing. DT and DE have to be looked at as to retain both Seymour and Wilfork would be hard. Maybe be able to extend one and franchise the other might be a way but BB will have to address the D-Line at some point in the first three rounds.

Either going with Tyson Jackson if he slips down to 23 or Chris Baker if he has to address this in a latter round. Now these two are just one example of how things could play out but trading picks for one of the top prospects for 2010 BB might be looking at. Adding another franchise tag in the uncapped year is another thing to look at with these two top D-Line.

Bottom line whether it is a LB or OL or even DB BB will have everything under control with the extra time he has had with out making the playoffs

Remember the last time the Pat's did not make the playoffs