I have been intrigued by this guy for a while. I had noticed he was hovering in the bottom of the 2nd round on many mocks. All of a sudden, he's down to the lower 3rd or upper 4th at several places. I know it's early, but does anyone know what's up? This is a guy who Nick Saban has praised for his defensive intelligence. He has been a menace in the SEC. I know a couple Auburn fans who cannot wait to see him leave for the NFL.
One thing I can think of is that the arrest is coming to haunt him. He was arrested for disorderly conduct, pushing down a security officer.
That works for me, I would be stunned if he falls below round 2. Would be over the moon of we could get him in the 3rd. The kid is very smart, plays great center field, makes picks and is a very good special teams player.
Yeah, I like him as well. He doesn't have a big frame though so it'll be interesting to see what he checks in at the combine and he gets high in his hips from what I've seen of him. The arrest will be something to question as well. I think those couple things may be the reason he's knocked some but if he performs well at the combine and practices, I think he could go up draft boards. This is the first I've heard of him being a 4th rounder.
Buyer beware. Nick Saban is good at getting kids just like him to outplay their talent level and when you REALLY get down to brass tacks, Rashad Johnson could just be a skinny, slow DB that plays smart and tough...like Renaldo Hill (also a Saban favorite from back in college days).
I think that his frame is the reason that some teams will look at him as a Cornerback instead of a Safety. I don't know about him being slow as I haven't gotten to all of the games I have of him.
What makes me question this is the fact that, as pointed out already, the guy makes picks. He has 11 interceptions the past two years. Also, how has Laron Landry done? I haven't been following him closely, but I've seen him make some plays for the Redskins. He had the same kind of safety-QB-of-the-defense hype coming out of LSU, though he was obviously more of a physical presence on the field and less of a ballhawk.
He's VERY high cut and very skinny in the lower body. This kid is a good player, great ST player, smart but he's maxed out at 185lbs. That would be a worry, although it wouldn't surprise me if a ballhawk like Johnson was very much on our radar. He's certainly not afraid of contact, but how will that pan out when he's taking on a Brandon Jacobs or a LenDale White or a Maurice Jones Drew, etc?
Probably not very well. Hopefully, Roth and Yeremiah would get to them first. And thankfully, none of those guys play in our division!
Yeah but you know what I mean......and you can't draft a FS with the cavat that either your SOLB or your SS get to the bigger players first unfortunately!
Of course. Would you say that most versions of the 3-4 place a higher emphasis on physicality with safeties? I've wondered about that because I often think of the 3-4 as having a more "bend but don't break" mentality to defense.
So even after showing up bigger than expected, having what most people considered a very impressive week of practices at the Senior Bowl, and William Moore disappointing, Rashad Johnson is still not getting any love from mocks and scout sites. He's still considered a 3rd or even 4th round pick. I just don't get it. One person suggested people are worried he is a product of Saban's system, but when I see him making athletic interception after interception I don't see a system guy. It's not like pressured quarterbacks are just throwing the ball straight at him.
I would not be disappointed at all to see us take him or Delmas at #25, in fact I would be excited. Granted I would be more excited to have them last and be taken at #44 though.
I think #44 would be a great spot for him, but if these grades keep up I could see him being there at #56. I think that would be a steal.
Delmas or Johnson would suit me just fine. Delmas looked pretty impressive from the bits of the Senior Bowl I watched.
a few kids have been struggling with this... their stocks will def go down with injuries always around them... i hate that. dont want to gamble on fragility.
