DRAFT Welcome Pierre Strong, Jr - Pick # 127.

[DaBruinz]

You can see the speed that he has on this huge run.....

Good stiff arm as well..

 

[The Gr8est]

We will see how it turns out. They really needed a big infusion of young fast athletic players, and they had to go with numbers if they are going to achieve that. They need to build a nucleus of young leaders for the different units to become a serious contender over the long run.

Just to be clear, I was talking about this whole draft class in general, not just about the players who the Pats selected.

 

[Ivan]

Just to be clear, I was talking about this whole draft class in general, not just about the players who the Pats selected.

I know, but even in the bad overall drafts there are plenty of good players who come out of them, whether you got them or not is the question. I think this was a change in draft philosophy for the Patriots, they needed speed and athleticism all over, and you can’t fix that with a couple of good high picks for each year. They were limited on both sides of the ball last season, mostly because of a lack of speed and playmaking ability, so they had to go for volume with those traits. They went and got the fastest RB and WR ( 40 times) from this combine, and the two CB’s the drafted are really fast playmakers. And while the QB doesn’t have the measureables Belichick always wants he has great production and football smarts.

I get why people get pissed at Patriot drafts, you sit there for hours waiting for the pick, and then it’s either traded or someone you have never heard of. But looking at their overall draft this year I think they did a good job, especially given what they needed to take out of this draft. They have created a ton of competition for every unit, and they will be able to move some guys who aren’t in their future for future picks, or player deals. They have to be a faster more athletic team to be able to compete, and they will have changed most of their roster from the dynasty years after this years cut downs, now we see how it all pans out.

 

[One-If-By-Sea]

I know, but even in the bad overall drafts there are plenty of good players who come out of them, whether you got them or not is the question. I think this was a change in draft philosophy for the Patriots, they needed speed and athleticism all over, and you can’t fix that with a couple of good high picks for each year. They were limited on both sides of the ball last season, mostly because of a lack of speed and playmaking ability, so they had to go for volume with those traits. They went and got the fastest RB and WR ( 40 times) from this combine, and the two CB’s the drafted are really fast playmakers. And while the QB doesn’t have the measureables Belichick always wants he has great production and football smarts.

I get why people get pissed at Patriot drafts, you sit there for hours waiting for the pick, and then it’s either traded or someone you have never heard of. But looking at their overall draft this year I think they did a good job, especially given what they needed to take out of this draft. They have created a ton of competition for every unit, and they will be able to move some guys who aren’t in their future for future picks, or player deals. They have to be a faster more athletic team to be able to compete, and they will have changed most of their roster from the dynasty years after this years cut downs, now we see how it all pans out.

Agreed. But there are a lot of question marks as there always is with a retooling. I think the question marks frustrate people. But it is also exciting to see who will work out.

 

[scott99]

Was going to make a joke about Strong being the next Walter Payton, but seriously, his lean and his fluid change of direction and burst actually does resemble sweetness.

Walter Payton is one of my all time favorite players, so if Strong can be 1/3 the player, I’d be thrilled. I always said Barry Sanders was the greatest RB I’ve ever seen, mainly because he never had great players surrounding him, yet he still did what he did. I always imagined what he would’ve done behind that great Cowboys Oline of the 1990s.

That being said, Walter Payton was the 2nd greatest I’ve ever seen. He was 5’10” 205, yet ran like he was 6’1” 245. He ran through and around people with great ferocity, vision, and shiftiness. Had some of the greatest runs in NFL history. I would bet he’s top 5 all time in broken tackles. Very rarely went down from one tackler.

 

[1960Pats]

only the Strong will survive

He needs a new first name. Nick would be good. Pierre just doesn't do it for me.

 

[1960Pats]

Walter Payton is one of my all time favorite players, so if Strong can be 1/3 the player, I’d be thrilled. I always said Barry Sanders was the greatest RB I’ve ever seen, mainly because he never had great players surrounding him, yet he still did what he did. I always imagined what he would’ve done behind that great Cowboys Oline of the 1990s.

That being said, Walter Payton was the 2nd greatest I’ve ever seen. He was 5’10” 205, yet ran like he was 6’1” 245. He ran through and around people with great ferocity, vision, and shiftiness. Had some of the greatest runs in NFL history. I would bet he’s top 5 all time in broken tackles. Very rarely went down from one tackler.

I saw every RB from the 50s to now and to me #1 is Jim Brown. We were force fed NYG games on the boob tube and the first time I saw him I was hooked.

As for shiftiness, I'd go with Gale Sayers. Barry Sanders was close though. They both had a remarkable ability to go from sideways to full speed ahead in a fraction of a second. It's too bad that Sayers got injured. He's like the Bobby Orr of football.

 

[scott99]

I saw every RB from the 50s to now and to me #1 is Jim Brown. We were force fed NYG games on the boob tube and the first time I saw him I was hooked.

As for shiftiness, I'd go with Gale Sayers. Barry Sanders was close though. They both had a remarkable ability to go from sideways to full speed ahead in a fraction of a second. It's too bad that Sayers got injured. He's like the Bobby Orr of football.

I started watching football in 1970. I give Jim Brown his props. But he was the same size as some of the defensive linemen back when he played. Definitely as big as, or bigger than most linebackers. Doesn’t take away from his greatness. He was unbelievable. Great strength and speed.

I can watch Gale Sayers highlights all day long. Just the most creative RB of all time. He seemed to have eyes behind his head. Great shiftiness, it’s really close between Sayers & Sanders as to who of them was the shiftiest RB ever.

Perfect analogy, Sayers truly was the Bobby Orr of football. Knee injuries/surgeries back in the day were death sentences to careers back then. Now you are seeing guys blow out their knees and being ready to play in 9 months.

 

[Zuma]

Man this guy can run. I just don't see how he doesn't get snaps every game. This will be an amazing 3-headed monster in 2022...

Rhamondre Stevenson
Damien Harris
Pierre Strong Jr

 

[Patsgofor4]

3 sleepers to keep an eye on in the 2022 NFL Draft

Players slip through the cracks every year and end up where you'd least expect. Here is a final look at the top three 2022 NFL Draft sleepers for this year.

withthefirstpick.com

Strong is one of three listed.

 

[Jim Beankie]

Had to come back here for this one little tidbit, because I can't resist a track reference. I saw the recent article about how there are similarities between Woodhead's and Strong's testing numbers, and considering the latter's similarities to JTaylor's numbers as I mentioned earlier in the thread, I looked up Woodhead's HS 100m time, and it was 10.50 (same as Tyquan's when he stopped as a junior) while JTaylor's was 10.49. I can only guess that Strong would've had that capability given the little we've seen. Imho, unless injuries/motivation derail the progression (and if hands are fine), then I predict Woodhead's career (Mr. Div2) as the floor for Strong. Given JWhite led the team in receptions during the last SB winning season, I don't think it's that far fetched.

May be of interest: a .2 second difference in 40 time (like DHarris and PStrong) is ~2yds (randomly choosing 23mph / 405" per sec), so Harris would've finished 2 yds back of Strong in a 40 race.

 

[BTTA]

Love this guy, but he doesn't run like Curtis Martin or any of the other shifty backs mentioned here. We can't tell a lot about his elusiveness because the competition he's playing against doesn't require it of him. NFL defensive speed and quickness is going to be a completely different animal.

But I'm hopeful, as always.

 

[Dragda]

I have a feeling we’re going to a zone blocking scheme and are loading up on RBs that can make a good first cut. I am guessing because they decided against carrying a fullback. I’m actually excited to see something different. Zone blocking is the easiest scheme to teach the OL. They just have have the feet to get downfield.

 

[Captain Cliche]

The first thing I noticed when I watched film of Sony Michel after they drafted him is how often he was caught from behind when he broke into the second level. I figured he was a quick burst type of runner that didn't have a second gear.

I'm no expert, but what I noticed in Strong's film, was great vision and quick side-step to openings...oh yeah, and he didn't get caught from behind.
He had some gaping holes to run through and I don't think he's going to outrun NFL DB's.
Can't wait to see what he can do at the next level...especially catching out of the backfield when Mac hits him in stride. I think he'll excel at that.

 

[Sicilian]

I have a feeling we’re going to a zone blocking scheme and are loading up on RBs that can make a good first cut. I am guessing because they decided against carrying a fullback. I’m actually excited to see something different. Zone blocking is the easiest scheme to teach the OL. They just have have the feet to get downfield.

I don't know enough about OL technique to confirm, but if it actually is easier to teach that makes a lot of sense, because they no longer have Scar, Bricillo, or Popovich. Maybe Patricia/Yates will be good, but they're an unknown at that coaching spot. Keeping it simple (especially now with a rookie G) might not be a bad idea.

 

[scott99]

The first thing I noticed when I watched film of Sony Michel after they drafted him is how often he was caught from behind when he broke into the second level. I figured he was a quick burst type of runner that didn't have a second gear.

I'm no expert, but what I noticed in Strong's film, was great vision and quick side-step to openings...oh yeah, and he didn't get caught from behind.
He had some gaping holes to run through and I don't think he's going to outrun NFL DB's.
Can't wait to see what he can do at the next level...especially catching out of the backfield when Mac hits him in stride. I think he'll excel at that.

That’s some revisionists ******** about Michel due to the fact he didn’t run a 4.4 at the combine. He was Georgia’s Lightning to Chubb’s Thunder. Sure, are we unhappy he didn’t wind up being the back he was in college ? Sure. But the guy had several 70+ yard runs in college, where he wasn’t caught from behind (until he got in the end zone).

 

[WhatJustHappened]

Sony was fine, folks pissin and moaning about him are fkn ******s.

 

[VJCPatriot]

Sony was fine, folks pissin and moaning about him are fkn ******s.

Sony was a JAG. Chubb is the real deal. The reason folks still hate the pick is we passed on an all-pro RB to take his lesser teammate ahead of Chubb.

4 years in Chubb with 4800+ rushing yards and 36 TDs:

Nick Chubb Stats, Height, Weight, Position, Draft, College | Pro-Football-Reference.com

Checkout the latest stats for Nick Chubb. Get info about his position, age, height, weight, college, draft, and more on Pro-football-reference.com.

www.pro-football-reference.com

4 years in Michel with 3100 rushing yards and 18 TDs:

Sony Michel Stats, Height, Weight, Position, Draft, College | Pro-Football-Reference.com

Checkout the latest stats for Sony Michel. Get info about his position, age, height, weight, college, draft, and more on Pro-football-reference.com.

www.pro-football-reference.com

So Chubbs has 150% the rushing yards and 200% the rushing TDs of Sony Michel. That's a huge difference in quality.

We took Michel in the first round of 2018, then dumped him later for Rams 2022 6th rounder [G Chasen Hines] and 2023 3rd rounder [undetermined]. So depending on who we get out of Michel's picks, we kicked the talent down the line a bit and hopefully do something good with that future 3rd rounder.

 

[VJCPatriot]

This article covers Pierre Strong's strengths as an HB pretty well with video clip examples:

FILM ROOM: What speedy RB Pierre Strong Jr. can bring to an NFL roster

Touchdown Wire’s Laurie Fitzpatrick examines the game film of speedy South Dakota State running back Pierre Strong Jr.

touchdownwire.usatoday.com

Spoiler - Strong's 65 yard run in the East-West Shrine bowl is what the Patriots hope to get out of him, explosive plays in the run game.

https://touchdownwire.usatoday.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/59/2022/04/doesnt-go-down-easy.mp4?_=7

 

[WhatJustHappened]

Sony was a JAG. Chubb is the real deal. The reason folks still hate the pick is we passed on an all-pro RB to take his lesser teammate ahead of Chubb.

4 years in Chubb with 4800+ rushing yards and 36 TDs:

Nick Chubb Stats, Height, Weight, Position, Draft, College | Pro-Football-Reference.com

Checkout the latest stats for Nick Chubb. Get info about his position, age, height, weight, college, draft, and more on Pro-football-reference.com.

www.pro-football-reference.com

4 years in Michel with 3100 rushing yards and 18 TDs:

Sony Michel Stats, Height, Weight, Position, Draft, College | Pro-Football-Reference.com

Checkout the latest stats for Sony Michel. Get info about his position, age, height, weight, college, draft, and more on Pro-football-reference.com.

www.pro-football-reference.com

So Chubbs has 150% the rushing yards and 200% the rushing TDs of Sony Michel. That's a huge difference in quality.

We took Michel in the first round of 2018, then dumped him later for Rams 2022 6th rounder [G Chasen Hines] and 2023 3rd rounder [undetermined]. So depending on who we get out of Michel's picks, we kicked the talent down the line a bit and hopefully do something good with that future 3rd rounder.

So what?
How much whining were you doing when he was crushing it on the way to a SB Title?
It was said that he was the more polished Pass Blocker, which is kind've important when you have a slow pocket passer.
Chubb is a better runner, he'd still be somewhere else right now, because BB isn't going to tie up a bunch of $ on a RB.

I tire of Geniuses.....