WR Demaryius Thomas as a 1st round pick?

[PATRIOTSFANINPA]

Watched a little highlights of this kid on the NFLN and from what I saw...and heard from the NFLN draft analysts,this guy could be the big deep playmaker opposite Moss that the team sorely lacked last season.

Missed the combine and workouts with an ankle/lower leg injury and may be overlooked by some teams in need of a WR in the upper half of the 1st.

This WR looks like a top talent

Worth a #1 pick here?

 

[BritPat]

He's been playing in a funky offense his entire career and doesn't really run a lot of routes.

He's a mid-late second rounder at best for me.

He needs to get that broken foot healed too before he can work out.

 

[BelichickFan]

He's been playing in a funky offense his entire career and doesn't really run a lot of routes.

He caught 35 passes in '07 in Chan Gailey's pro style offense. He has a lot to learn but had a very strong wunderlich score. There's a lot of WR with higher floors than Thomas but Thomas is second to Bryant in terms of ceiling IMO.

 

[VJCPatriot]

He caught 35 passes in '07 in Chan Gailey's pro style offense. He has a lot to learn but had a very strong wunderlich score. There's a lot of WR with higher floors than Thomas but Thomas is second to Bryant in terms of ceiling IMO.

And why do you find 35 catches SO impressive??
What matters is if this guy could fit in the PATRIOTS offense, not Chan Gailey's offense.

 

[BelichickFan]

And why do you find 35 catches SO impressive??
What matters is if this guy could fit in the PATRIOTS offense, not Chan Gailey's offense.

I'm just saying the the continual "he only played in the triple option" is not true. Dislike him all you want, he has played in a "real" offense before.

 

[PatsCanDoIt]

The guy was a lot more productive than Rejus Benn and he had a MUCH worse quarterback throwing to him. He caught 1154 yards from a QB that threw for only 1700; eigth TDs from Nesbitt's 10 TD passes; 46 of Nesbitt's 75 complations! He was there pass offense. I think he opened up their run game by being on the field.

I think he will learn to run routes just fine. It's not like Brandon Tate or Jewlz can run routes well. He's a smart, strong, big, tall, long strider who is probably faster than anyone will know because his foot is broken. I would rather take him at 44 but if necessary 22 is fine. I think he can come in here and catch at least 20 passes. That is just fine for a rookie in this offense. He will be a difference maker in the future.

 

[SHOWTIME15]

He's been playing in a funky offense his entire career and doesn't really run a lot of routes.

He's a mid-late second rounder at best for me.

He needs to get that broken foot healed too before he can work out.

lol mike mayock just said that the pats will take him if he's around at 22.

 

[Sciz]

I've seen sites that project his 40 to around a 4.6, and it doesn't seem like he'll be able to prove that wrong before the draft. I'd much rather wait and grab a guy like Damien Williams at 44.

 

[VJCPatriot]

I think he will learn to run routes just fine. It's not like Brandon Tate or Jewlz can run routes well. He's a smart, strong, big, tall, long strider who is probably faster than anyone will know because his foot is broken. I would rather take him at 44 but if necessary 22 is fine. I think he can come in here and catch at least 20 passes. That is just fine for a rookie in this offense. He will be a difference maker in the future.

Umm, if the Pats are spending a 1st round pick, this guy better produce a LOT more than just 20 catches!

Why are people so enamored of a kid who could be the next Mike Williams? (And Williams had 2 inches on this guy, and Williams was not coming off a broken foot.)
Mike Williams NFL & AFL Football Statistics | Pro-Football-Reference.com

On the upside, he looks like a possible Plaxico Burress type. But I really wouldn't gamble a 1st on a kid coming off an injury like that. He didn't look all that fast before the injury!

 

[patsfan1251]

the thing that is so difficult to judge with demaryius thomas, AKA Bey bey is as Paul Johnson said...you as a D cord have to make a choice. SO basically all Thomas saw all year and last year is 1 on 1 coverage with no saftey over top as they drop the saftey into the box to support the run...a team cant run a cover 2 vs Tech so it's usually some form of Man 1 or just zone Cover 1. That being said he abuses 1 on 1 matchups...Live in atlanta and some compare him to Calvin

 

[VJCPatriot]

the thing that is so difficult to judge with demaryius thomas, AKA Bey bey is as Paul Johnson said...you as a D cord have to make a choice. SO basically all Thomas saw all year and last year is 1 on 1 coverage with no saftey over top as they drop the saftey into the box to support the run...

Any athletic WR should abuse 1 on 1 coverage at the college level. It says more to me that defensive coordinators didn't respect him enough to give double team coverage.

a team cant run a cover 2 vs Tech so it's usually some form of Man 1 or just zone Cover 1. That being said he abuses 1 on 1 matchups...Live in atlanta and some compare him to Calvin

I've seen Calvin Johnson and I've seen D. Thomas, and D. Thomas is NO Calvin Johnson. Calvin Johnson is actually fast. Ran a 4.35 at the combine and plays just as fast in games. I doubt that D. Thomas could crack 4.5. Just watch the video. Even Dexter "4.58 40" McCluster looks faster than Thomas.

And nobody will be able to get a read on his real speed because he didn't run at the combine and he skipped his pro day. Why? Oh yeah, because his FOOT IS BROKE!

 

[BelichickFan]

I've seen sites that project his 40 to around a 4.6, and it doesn't seem like he'll be able to prove that wrong before the draft. I'd much rather wait and grab a guy like Damien Williams at 44.

He was said to be running 4.4s before he hurt his foot. All I know is I saw a decent number of Georgia Tech games and the gap between him and the DBs after the catch usually got bigger not smaller. I don't know how his quickness would have been at the combine but his straight line speed is just fine.

 

[WesWelker83]

I am def not on this guys bandwagon. He seems like a one trick pony who can only run 9 routes. Guys like this are usually busts in the NFL like Ted Ginn, Bethel Johnson, and Troy Williamson. Thomas struggles to seperate, runs poor routes, loses focus and has bad hands. Hes seems like the prototypical NFL WR Bust.

 

[patsfan1251]

Its just the choice of the cord why double team 1 person and take away an extra defender against the option. It's not a matter of lack of respect its moreso taking away what Tech does best run the option....And he was legit hurt

 

[jefmblrd]

This guys got real talent and I saw Mike Mayock is high on him and thinks the Pats will take him at 22. But I'm not sold on him- we need to really score on that pick and he just might be too risky.

 

[alvinnf]

It's tough to evaluate Thomas. The system and the QB he had. 2 things I notice when I watch him is, he eats up off coverage quickly. He has to come back for the ball. 22 is too high and 44 might be too low, but I don't question him based on his system or his physical tools. He is probably not a step right in player. Reminds me of Plaxico Burress, without the hand gun.

 

[FoxboroFlyer]

I just happened to catch the McShea, Kiper segment on ESPN during lunch today, and just about choked on my sandwich when McShea stated that Thomas was flying up draft boards. So much so that he is now expected to be the 1st WR taken, and he will not last past the Bengals in the 1st

I know the guy has all the measurables, but talk about a shot in the dark. The guy can't work out before the draft due to injury, and he comes from a very shady offensive system in Ga. Tech. On the plus side he is said to be extremely inteligent.

 

[TriplecHamp]

Any athletic WR should abuse 1 on 1 coverage at the college level. It says more to me that defensive coordinators didn't respect him enough to give double team coverage.



I've seen Calvin Johnson and I've seen D. Thomas, and D. Thomas is NO Calvin Johnson. Calvin Johnson is actually fast. Ran a 4.35 at the combine and plays just as fast in games. I doubt that D. Thomas could crack 4.5. Just watch the video. Even Dexter "4.58 40" McCluster looks faster than Thomas.

And nobody will be able to get a read on his real speed because he didn't run at the combine and he skipped his pro day. Why? Oh yeah, because his FOOT IS BROKE!

C'mon Man! What defensive co-ordinator doubles a WR not named Calvin Johnson in the tripple option, Thomas is the second best wideout in this draft. If you dont want to draft him in the first round because of the injury fine but if were basing WR sucess only on speed then tell me who the best WR of all time is and tell me what he ran. Look at Crabtree last year what did he run? He had a foot injury as well but when his greedy a** decided to play he showed great potential.