Paul Posluszny

[Seneschal2]

I realize he's not a board favorite. Perhaps it's his lack of size (6-2 238), speed (4.70), his round one ranking, or some feel he's overrated. But here's a question for the board:

If BB were to finally draft a LB in round one, abandon the perfect sized LB mold, and assuming Willis is out of reach, does Poz fit the Pats prospect profile enough to be considered? And I'm only talking consideration here -- not asking if you think we'll draft him.

I know there are other ILB options such Siler/Harris/Bradley/DeOssie. But IMO, none of them are solid candidates for round one -- but reportedly Poz is.

My personal opinion is, we won't draft a LB in round one, but Poz does fit the profile. I think his instincts are top 2 among all LB prospects; his intangibles are top 5 among all prospects. Therefore, even though he lacks the perfect size, I find it very difficult to remove him from my Pats prospects list based on those intangibles. The same qualities that I think BB covets -- especially in his round one draftees.

We've been programmed to believe BB won't draft a LB in round one (hard to argue). Also, there's documented proof that almost all of the Pats LBs have been/are in the 250's range. But when you look at Willis/Siler/Harris, they weigh 242/241/243 respectively. Do we eliminate them also, or are they passable?

Let the weeding out process begin -- all feedback appreciated.

Here's the latest Poz article: Paul Posluszny

Excerpts...

With book smarts that allowed him to graduate early with a degree in finance and a 3.57 grade-point average, Posluszny has common sense, too.

This doesn't mean he doesn't have his favorites. His eyes light up when New England Patriots linebackers Tedy Bruschi and Mike Vrabel are mentioned. When he studies pros, he pops in videotapes of middle linebackers Zach Thomas, Brian Urlacher, and Ray Lewis.

Fitting, considering Posluszny made the switch to middle linebacker for his senior year and duplicated the All-America honors he earned while playing outside.

"Something I really appreciate is how they work in tandem with others," he says. "You can't talk about Urlacher unless you recognize how well he plays with Lance Briggs. Ray Lewis has Bart Scott next to him. That's a key, meshing with other players."

"Switching inside last season didn't hurt him," says Matt Millen, the Detroit Lions president and a 12-year NFL linebacker who was also schooled at Penn State. "It takes a knack for knowing how to move in there."
In Millen's eyes, that's the real beauty of Posluszny's game — instincts all great linebackers need.

"The best thing he does is find the football," Millen says. "He's got great instincts. You are going to find guys who are faster, guys who are stronger and guys who will make flashier plays. But he's very consistent at a high level. He knows how to play the game."

 

[PATRIOT64]

I realize he's not a board favorite. Perhaps it's his lack of size (6-2 238), speed (4.70), his round one ranking, or some feel he's overrated. But here's a question for the board:

If BB were to finally draft a LB in round one, abandon the perfect sized LB mold, and assuming Willis is out of reach, does Poz fit the Pats prospect profile enough to be considered? And I'm only talking consideration here -- not asking if you think we'll draft him.

I know there are other ILB options such Siler/Harris/Bradley/DeOssie. But IMO, none of them are solid candidates for round one -- but reportedly Poz is.

My personal opinion is, we won't draft a LB in round one, but Poz does fit the profile. I think his instincts are top 2 among all LB prospects; his intangibles are top 5 among all prospects. Therefore, even though he lacks the perfect size, I find it very difficult to remove him from my Pats prospects list based on those intangibles. The same qualities that I think BB covets -- especially in his round one draftees.

We've been programmed to believe BB won't draft a LB in round one (hard to argue). Also, there's documented proof that almost all of the Pats LBs have been/are in the 250's range. But when you look at Willis/Siler/Harris, they weigh 242/241/243 respectively. Do we eliminate them also, or are they passable?

Let the weeding out process begin -- all feedback appreciated.

Here's the latest Poz article: Paul Posluszny

Excerpts...

Eveybody knows Penn State is a NFL Linebacker factory - Any 1st round draft possibility at LB that comes from Penn State should be held in high regard IMO

 

[notex]

no poz plz....too many other guys i like better...wont be dissapointed though..cant put my finger on it but the prospect of him being a pat doesnt excite me at all...

 

[ironwasp]

I feel the "lack of size" argument is a red herring.

6'2" is plenty tall enough, and surely being put in a professional conditioning and strength programme he could bulk up from 238 to 245 pounds, which would put him comfortably on a par with Tedy.

What I like about this guy is his leadership credentials. EVerybody has good things to say about him, he's clearly very bright, high character, and sounds like the sort of guy who with a couple of years under his belt could begin to take on Tedy's mantle as a leader on the field and in the locker room.

He may not be as physically gifted as some of the others, but there seem to be intangibles that make him a worthy candidate for us.

 

[PATSNUTme]

He has the attibutes that the Patriots want. He is a good, tough player.

I'm a little shy about him because he reminds me of Bobby Carpenter, who I was pushing for last year. Carpenter may or may not be a bust but he didn't "get it" last year.

 

[AzPatsFan]

I think Poz is certainly a valid first round pick, and not a reach. But then I think Harris is my best "patriots-type" LB, tied or just ahead of Willis.

The only "reach" would be to go for DeOssie but even there I could see Zak as an eventual Vrabel, able to play well inside or outside, so is "reaching" for a Mike Vrabel really a "reach"? It was, for all the other teams but for the Patriots scheme? Bill & Scott's draft list is significantly different than the average draftniks who evaluates for the 4-3and seldom "wrong".

How long has it been since there was a trio of Patriots-sized, patriot-scheme LBs been available early to the Pats, a pair of which should actually be there? Willis may be gone, but either or BOTH, or Poz and Harris would satisfy me.

I know that everyone want secondary help, but the guys that are really good will be gone, (Landry), and the others or carbon copies of them, are there every single year.

How often are the Patriots LB types there? Once in a blue moon!

 

[Box_O_Rocks]

Sure I consider Posluszney for round one, he's a good LB. However, now that we've abandoned size issues I draft 6'4" 344 lb. Paul Soliai and convert him to ILB, he'll plug some holes and has an excellent 10 yd split and vertical jump or, for folks who want a quicker player with better coverage skills, Reggie Nelson or Michael Griffin now apply, they have good run instincts and would be better in coverage.

If Posluszney at 6' 1.5" 238 is your top LB, put him on your board, it's cool. It may indeed be possible for Posluzsney to put on another 10 lbs of mass and match up with Bruschi's listed weight of 247, but for fun, see if you can grab a picture of Posluszney and a picture of Bruschi and put them side-by-side - I can't help but believe you'll look at Bru and ponder how an extra 10 lbs can look so big.

 

[Remix 6]

hes not what we need though..he can play weakside but im not sold on him playing strongside as a run stopper which we need. Bruschi struggled there last season. I've seen Poz get run over a lot or knocked out of play. we need a bigger guy who plays the run well like Bishop, Harris or someone.