You're damn right we do. I'm not getting such a late start this year. We can damn well do better than #40 overall and #32 overall out of 1452 funds. It's top 10 or else we can't hold our heads up with any kind of pride.
RB Thomas Rawls, Central Michigan. 5'10, 217. Got in trouble doing some dumb s*** but this kid runs angry and has my attention. I wanna say he's Roy Helu with a little more physicality. No videos of him unfortunately unless you use ESPN's game highlights by going to his game log and clicking on each game, then clicking on the video links.
Another one from Central Michigan? Must be doing alright over there. Zurlon Tipton turned out to be NFL-worthy though for whatever reason he went undrafted.
Rawis started out at Michigan where he had 70 carries for 321 yards as a freshman & sophomore but then transferred. I'm just getting started on backs but I already like him more than USC's Javorius Allen. I'm gonna put him in my top 10 for now where he could conceivably move up.... or drop out. Rawls looks like a solid back for a zone scheme [both inside and out] because he seems to have a good feel for where the lane is or where it's about to open, as well as displays great peripheral vision. He runs with some patience but will decisively plant and take off the moment he sees the crease. I think he'd be a great outside zone runner because he has exhibits a nice display of balance and power when running laterally, so he should run through a lot of those indirect blows, arm tackle attempts, and so forth that we often see on these plays. Haven't seen much in the passing game and have no idea how he is in pass pro [which I put a lot of emphasis on], so I really need to catch a few live games.
You wouldn't. That's like taking I'm Too Sexy from Right Said Fred!.. A Christmas Story from Peter Billingsly!.. Pearl Harbor from China! BTW, did you see Branden's 4 straight runs to close out the Oakland game? In-sane. Mini-Csonk. Poor poor Charles Woodson. Might be the most embarrassing film session of his career. You gotta watch this clip of Oliver's touches and key on Woodson #24 the whole time. Epic stuff. Oh, and on one of Woodson's tackles where he ended up underneath, he asked Branden, "Man you gonna let me up?"... and Brandon retorted, "Man you know you're old enough to be my daddy?" http://www.chargers.com/multimedia/videos/Branden-Oliver-Highlights-Chargers-vs-Raiders/
It sounds dumb because people seem to think we have so many WR....but I'm learning we don't. IMO Hartline and Gibson will be gone. Amare Cooper is a guy I'm looking at, I'm really unsure how high in the draft he will go, but I'm thinking Wallace-Cooper-Landry might be a good core for a while.
What do you guys think of Bercovici @ ASU? He's put on two pretty entertaining shows his last two games after taking over for an injured Taylor Kelly (that USC game was fantastical fun to watch). For a guy to put up those kind of #s in his first two starts (69-114, 998, 8TD-2INT) and in the fashion he did at least bears notice. It will be interesting to see how long ASU stays with him and how he does. They're playing Stanford tonight and that should be a better test to see what he is capable of against a decent defense. He is a Junior, so I think he would stay for his Senior year since he would become the de-facto starter. He has decent size and his arm looks adequate (but not a cannon) along with a nice, compact delivery. I'll have to watch closely tonight at his feet & decision making, but so far looks like he may be worth keeping any eye on for 2016.
Really I think you just learn to appreciate that there are a lot of wide receivers that "can play". But there aren't a ton that are true standouts. I mean I can think of probably two dozen eligible for this draft that are compelling in some way or another. But which ones are going to go beyond that?
Exactly. Quarterbacks aren't just gonna quit passing. Somebody has to be on the other end to catch some of those 500+ passes [or attempt to catch them]. That's why all the hoopla about Hartline catching 1000 yards was so annoying. Our depth was so bad that Bess was a starting perimeter receiver in 2012 [vomit], so bad that we brought in guys off the street to compete for the #3 receiver spot the past 2 years [vomit again]. What were we gonna do, throw 200 passes to Davone Bess or 70 to Lecantdo Naanee [more vomit]?.... or 70 to Marlon Moore last year [dry-heaving]? F that. Hartline wasn't a 1000 yard receiver b/c he's a 1000 yard receiver; he was a 1000 yard receiver because he was targeted 262 time by default. Now Miami has a 2nd round receiver in the mix, and with that receiver emerging last week, Hartline didn't receive a single target, and very shortly Hartline will fall to #3 in the WR pecking order [if it hasn't already happened], which also means a drop to #4 in the overall pecking order behind Clay, or possibly 5th behind Miller who already has just 1 less reception than Hartline.
BTW, have I ever mentioned how I utterly despise Hartline being given $30 million? We used to jokingly break it down by a per TD basis.... but pretty soon we'll be breaking it down by yards. LOL. What this has to do with the draft is, why couldn't we have just drafted a cheap but better WR instead and saved the $30 million?
What a 1-handed TD snare by White today. Kid's on his way to a top 20 selection... hopefully with Miami... but hopefully it's a trade up. lol
Jameis Winston's last TD pass...WOWZA! I think he checked into that play too when he saw the blitz look. Nice all around.
He's a very, very good quarterback. Not a great crab thief, got caught and all, but he's a great quarterback.
yes but there's a lotta crab in Miami... and the claws on stone crabs... well... they're bigger... and yummier... like going from coke to crack
On the other hand, he will have so much money he won't need to steal them. He probably won't even buy them himself, lol.
Can we say the "Hartline as a starter" experiment is finally over? He's on pace for 43 catches for 429 yards. He's the Ben Stein's voice of receivers. Still the same guy he was in 2011 when he caught 35 for 549. We've got a playmaker on the right in Wallace, three guys who can do stuff between the hashes in Clay, Landry, and Miller, and now we need a playmaker on the left with some size and physicality. Better be a priority for Hickey.
The experiment was over for me years ago. If he was getting paid what he should get paid - 2 million per, then I probably would not mind him because that doesn't make him a starter. He's overpaid, he's slow off the snap, he can't create separation, he is very average. I don't like any of our receivers though Mike Wallace has been better. I prefer a big strong target as our #1, like Andre/Calvin/Dez type - which is probably the mold Sammy Watkins will turn out to be in the future, unfortunately.
I thought he should've gotten a contract in line with what Jordy Nelson was getting prior to this latest contract. I thought Jordy was worth far more than what he had been getting but that Hartline was worth right about that. The problem is they needed WR help, they hadn't grown any off the vine (via the draft), and so you have a choice of taking a gamble with a free agent (which my rough estimation means rolling the dice and getting something like 40 cents on the dollar, on average), or they could keep Brian Hartline and be guaranteed to be worth only about 60 percent of his contract. If there were some high conviction guys available (for me the first guy that comes to mind that way is Golden Tate) then I think you go that route...knowing that it's fraught with risk. But if not then I think you overpay Hartline, negotiate the guaranteed down as far as you can, keep drafting his replacements, and then chop him when it's time.
Y'all need to see this. http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=dGQoF4R4wHM#t=235 Just watch that two-play sequence. I've spent a lot of time talking about Rakeem Cato and for good reason. But from the very start Devon Johnson has been standing out as a fresh running back convert. He was a linebacker then I think he was a tight end and now he's a tailback. Just look at that run play. Watch the replay and see the way he cuts then gets up to speed, then of course look at the manimal way he finishes the play. I know you're tempted to think this is FIU, not a great school. But this is a school based in Miami that recruits Miami kids with Miami speed. So one thing FIU generally has I think is speed...yet Devon Johnson with as HUGE and powerful as he is, was giving them big time problems with speed on that play. And then of course, one play later, just look at the way Rakeem Cato broke Russell Wilson's record. What a thing of beauty.
These are guys the Dolphins could be interested in as they visit Marshall apparently for the third time (once in camp, attented the Miami-OH game, now in town to watch film): QB Rakeem Cato (Class: 2015) RB Devon Johnson (Class: 2015) TE Eric Frohnapfel (Class: 2015) WR Tommy Shuler (Class: 2015) C Chris Jasperse (Class: 2015) CB Darryl Roberts (Class: 2015) LB Neville Hewitt (Class: 2015) DL James Rouse (Class: 2015) All of these guys have pro potential. I've talked about Rakeem Cato, Devon Johnson, Tommy Shuler and even Chris Jasperse. I don't mention TE Eric Frohnapfel much but he stood out to me a year ago behind Gator Hoskins. The dude is 6'7" & 235 lbs and he actually runs well, has flexibility and body control, and really nice hands. Another guy that has my interest on tape is CB Darryl Roberts. He's 6'0" tall and it seems like he makes a lot of plays on film. He's broken up 10 passes thus far. He's the team's 2nd leading tackler and plays corner. He's got TFLs and and an interception. James Rouse has an NFL body at 6'5" & 273 lbs. And watching him on tape that dude moves.
Shaq Thompson, whom I gushed about as the best linebacker I'd seen heading into the 2014 season, now has FIVE touchdowns on the year. Four are on defense, and one is on offense as a running back. Special talent. http://www.thephins.com/forums/show...cts-for-2015&p=2381377&viewfull=1#post2381377
He's one of the leaders on the team. I wonder if Pounce isn't signed, if he would be a target for the 'Phins? Heck, while we're at it, why not draft the combo of Cato and Jasperse and not worry about the QB and center getting their timing down.
Kevin White is a stud: [video=youtube;K65dZqHEuuA]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K65dZqHEuuA[/video] I believe CB Xavien Howard (Jersey #4) is supposed to be supposed to be pretty good. Didn't look so good here.
I know you're pretty fond him, but where would you stack Nelson Agholor as things stand right now vis-a-vis Cooper and White?
The thing about Amari Cooper versus Kevin White is all about projection at the next level. Both guys have gone against high quality corners and made them look silly. Amari Cooper gave Vernon Hargreaves what could end up being Vernon's roughest showing in his entire college football career. Kevin White made Oklahoma's Zack Sanchez look like Mark Sanchez and most recently he made Baylor's Xavien Howard look like a complete screwup. But when Amari Cooper is making guys look stupid it's most often technical. I've heard a Reggie Wayne comparison and I think that's fair. When Kevin White makes guys look silly it's the full combination. He made Zack Sanchez look silly because Sanchez couldn't compete with him in physicality. He made the 6'2" & 200 lbs Xavien Howard look silly because whenever White got into any situation where they could straight up run, there was no stopping White from pulling away from him unless Howard interfered illegally (which he did, and got flagged like 8 times or something ridiculous like that). So you have one guy that makes people look silly based on size and technical perfection and another guy that makes people look silly based on his total package of physical abilities (size, strength, speed, run after catch), while also being a pretty technically sound player that is very consistent that way. That makes me wonder if Kevin White shouldn't be drafted ahead of Amari Cooper. Of course Sammie Coates probably blows both guys away in terms of just pure physical potential, but there's a sticky screwup factor to him that you wonder about.
WR J.J. Worton, UCF (Class: 2015) Sometimes you learn things in unlikely places. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hFZAXYrzPpc This is a video of someone's TV screen as they're watching the Sports Science special on J.J. Worton's amazing one-handed diving catch to tie the game against Temple last year. The Sports Science people say they clocked him going 20.6 mph in order to run under the football for that catch. Because I've done a lot of work with this sort of thing, I happen to know that a 20.6 mph sustained top speed is consistent with players who run about a 4.55 to 4.65 (e.g. Kelvin Benjamin). But that was with pads on during a game and not in a track setting. It makes me wonder if Worton will run solidly into the 4.5's as opposed to the 4.6's when it comes time for the Combine. And at 6'2" & 209 lbs, with his punt return agility and run after catch, combined with a constant stream of highlight reel catches, that's a lot of boxes to be checking off. Penn State http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=umm5YESLH68&feature=player_detailpage#t=530 (Incomplete) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=umm5YESLH68&feature=player_detailpage#t=536 (Catch) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=umm5YESLH68&feature=player_detailpage#t=823 (Catch) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=umm5YESLH68&feature=player_detailpage#t=1219 (Catch) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=umm5YESLH68&feature=player_detailpage#t=1497 (Catch) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=umm5YESLH68&feature=player_detailpage#t=2144 (Catch) Missouri http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m47vst55PWg&feature=player_detailpage#t=576 (Catch...wow) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m47vst55PWg&feature=player_detailpage#t=1038 (Catch) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m47vst55PWg&feature=player_detailpage#t=1235 (Punt Return) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m47vst55PWg&feature=player_detailpage#t=1894 (Incomplete) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m47vst55PWg&feature=player_detailpage#t=1964 (Incomplete) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m47vst55PWg&feature=player_detailpage#t=2233 (Catch) Miscellaneous http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=z-Bk7D4ObqY#t=23 (Punt Return vs BYU 2014) http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=z-Bk7D4ObqY#t=205 (Punt Return vs BYU 2014) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QI96-Xk-ktg (Three Highlight Reel Catches)
This is interesting. I'm going to have to start focusing pretty hard on under the radar players from Florida (state-wide) and Ohio State. I have a friend who just got his certification as an NFL agent and he seems like he's in a pretty legit situation as he works for the biggest law firm in Florida and has a mentor there. The thing he needs though is to figure out which players he needs to focus on trying to sign. I doubt he's going to be able to try and go after star players at FSU, UF or Miami as a new agent. But he can start to work on some USF and UCF players I would think. He could perhaps branch to FAU and FIU as well. He played for Ohio State back in the day so he plans on trying to recruit from there. So that's the other place to look for some underrated players.
DE/OLB Lynden Trail, Norfolk State (Class: 2015) Holy crap. Lynden Trail is a MAN. Yowsa. He has Alvin Dupree type ability. Unbelievable. Originally went to Florida and transferred out. I know nothing yet about the circumstances of the transfer. But if you can watch this without getting an erection, you need Cialis. [video=youtube;9iKq5cUdIro]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9iKq5cUdIro[/video]
Tony Pauline has listed some guys likely to come out according to his sources: QB Jameis Winston, Florida State RB Melvin Gordon, Wisconsin RB Todd Gurley, Georgia RB Tevin Coleman, Indiana RB Duke Johnson, Miami-FL RB Jay Ajayi, Boise State RB Mike Davis, South Carolina WR Jaelen Strong, Arizona State WR/TE Devin Funchess, Michigan OT Andrus Peat, Stanford DL Leonard Williams, USC DL Xavier Cooper, Washington State DL Jonathan Bullard, Florida DE Randy Gregory, Nebraska OLB Dante Fowler, Florida OLB Leonard Floyd, Georgia OLB Jordan Jenkins, Georgia LB Bernardrick McKinney, Mississippi State LB Shaq Thompson, Washington CB Marcus Peters, Washington CB Alex Carter, Stanford S Landon Collins, Alabama
Watching 2013 tape of Marshall and you know who stands out? That TE #47 guy is running down the field at full speed stride for stride with 5'10" & 168 lbs RB Kevin Grooms on a long touchdown. That TE #47 would go on to be a 150 yard & 2 TD per game RB in 2014.
