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Ongoing thread on 2010 NFL Draft prospects

abpanther

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Wow! I just watched Stanford destroy USC, scoring more points than a USC team has ever given up in the history of its football program, even going back to its days as the USC Methodists. What a great win for John Harbaugh and the Stanford program! I think that Pete Carroll has just become yesterday's news. He's on the verge of finding out just how fast and how far you can fall in L.A.

I have some comments on a few players.

Watch out for Stanford's freshman quarterback Andrew Luck as he furthers his career. His numbers today weren't eye-popping, but he looks like a superstar in the making. After a slow start, he showed great poise under pressure, answering USC's scores with scoring drives of his own while the game was still close, and some of his throws today were amazing!

Toby Gerhart had another tremendous day. He runs a little upright, but he also knows when to lower his shoulder and pound for that extra yardage. There were several times when it looked like he was stopped, but he was able to pop forward for another four or five yards. He's got more moves than people usually give him credit for having, and although he's not a burner, he has a second gear when he gets past the line of scrimmage. USC knew he was coming, but they couldn't do anything about it. My guess is that most teams are going to evaluate Gerhart as a second-round pick, and then someone like New England will draft him at the end of the first round, and he'll become a superstar.

I've lost all my remaining respect for Taylor Mays. He's pretty good at hitting receivers late after they've caught touchdown passes, but he'd be a lot better prospect if he could manage to get there BEFORE the ball arrived. What disappointed me most, though, was the realization that Mays is a bully who doesn't like to take on the big boys. I mean, if you are a defensive player with a reputation as a big hitter, don't you want to prove it by taking on a big back in the open field? Not if you are Taylor Mays. I started watching this game with memories of the way Ronnie Lott effectively ended Icky Woods's career with his big hit in the third quarter of the Super Bowl a couple of decades ago. I wanted to see if Mays could do something similar to Gerhart today, but, alas, Mays had no hits on Gerhart at all, big or small. He pushed Gerhart out of bounds once, and that was it. In fact, it was pretty clear that Mays had no interest in taking the big back on if he could help it. In the series that culminated with Gerhart's third touchdown run of the day, Mays appeared to by shying away from the running back rather than trying to tackle him. On the touchdown run itself, Mays stuck out an arm and Gerhart ran through it. It was pretty obvious that if it isn't a helpless receiver laying out to catch a pass, Mays isn't interested.

I closely watched USC offensive tackle Charles Brown, and I think he's got the potential to develop into an NFL left tackle. But he's a project. He was pretty good most of the day, but he can be bull- rushed. I think he's strong enough, but it's clear that he is still learning the position and possibly thinking a little too much about his technique. There's something there, but he's not NFL ready at this point. I don't think I'd use a first-round pick on him.
 

Big Tim

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Good news for the Cardinal. Those Harbaugh's can coach.

I wouldnt mind if Gerhart ended in NE. There offense would suit his running style.
 

abpanther

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I watched most of the first half of the Oklahoma/Texas A&M game. Mostly I wanted to see the duel between Oklahoma tackle Trent Williams and A&M sack specialist Von Miller. It hasn't been much of a duel so far.

Miller has been lining up all over the field (including defensive tackle!) It hasn't mattered--he's been completely shut down! I guess I'm going to have to get off the Von Miller bandwagon.

I've never been much of a fan of Trent Williams, but this is the best I've ever seen him play. He's been fantastic! It doesn't matter who they line up against him, Williams has stoned him. Miller tried him often early in the game with zero success, and then they gave up and lined him up elsewhere. Looks like I'm going to have to reconsider my opinion of Williams, too.
 

abpanther

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I watched Clemson/Virginia today. I wanted to look especially at RB C.J. Spiller and DE Ricky Sapp. Unfortunately, I can't say that I was all that impressed with either.

Spiller is fast and small. They showed a recorded interview with him, and he is a great admirer of Warrick Dunn. He seems like a nice guy. He didn't show much on the field today, though, besides speed. Based on what I saw today (and this is the only time I've seen him play) it's hard to imagine him being more than a backup and a return specialist in the NFL. I certainly wouldn't draft him in the first round.

Ricky Sapp is also fast and small. He recovered a fumble on the very first play from scrimmage. He had a tackle for a loss when he ran down a running play, and he had a quarterback hurry when he ran around the right tackle. He might have been credited with a sack when he tracked down the quarterback, who was scrambling, very near the line of scrimmage. But otherwise he was pretty near invisible. He will certainly not be a defensive end in the NFL, and I'm not sure he's a 3-4 outside linebacker, either. He will probably do best at outside linebacker in a 4-3. He's not really quick enough to be a pass-rushing threat. In fact, he's a counter-puncher who waits for the blocker to make a move before making one of his own, rather than trying to beat his man to the punch. I can see him in a read-and-react type defense.

I was pretty impressed by Clemson wide receiver Jacoby Ford, who is
also fast and small. He seemed to play with more suddenness and determination than Spiller, however. He hasn't put up big numbers this year, either as a receiver or a return man, but he did well today. He could be a late-round steal, except that NFL Draft Scout seems to think that he's a second-rounder. I guess they are impressed by his speed, but the production, at least before today's game, simply hasn't been there.

Virginia didn't have any prospects worth talking about. Cornerback Ras-I Dowling is supposed to have first-round potential, but he got burned on several plays today, though he did have a nice pass breakup in the endzone. He's a big corner who might be better at free safety.

I watched Cal beat Stanford. I think that Stanford would have won if they had trusted Gerhart to carry the load with 1:50 to go and the ball on the Cal 13. Instead, Harbaugh seemed stuck on trying to win the game through the air, and Luck threw the ball to a Cal defender, effectively ending the game.

Cal did a pretty good job containing Gerhart for most of the game, and he still gained 136 yards on 20 carries and scored 4 TDs. He also caught a swing pass on the final drive and powered through half the Cal team for 29 yards. Gerhart was becoming increasingly hard to tackle as the game entered its final minutes, and with the season in the balance and plenty of time on the clock, it would have made a whole lot more sense to entrust Gerhart with the ball than Luck, but there you go. It was all the same to me, though, since I had no rooting interest in the game.

I watched the final quarter, plus overtime, of the Oregon/Arizona game. Arizona has a big sophomore receiver named Juron Criner who looked very Jerry Rice-like tonight, catching 3 highlight-reel touchdown passes (well, two were highlight reel; the third was just a very nice read and adjustment on his part). He's 6'4 210, and although he isn't supposed to be fast, he outran the entire Ducks defense on a 71-yard catch-and-run. He looks like a guy worth watching out for.
 

abpanther

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Just finished watching Texas beat Texas A&M in an entertaining shootout. The Aggies gave it all they had, but in the end they couldn't overcome their own key mistakes (a fumble, an endzone interception, and a missed chip-shot field goal). Plus, although their defenders played with a lot of heart and swarmed to the ball, they weren't very good tacklers in the open field. Finally, they gave up a key touchdown on a kickoff return late in the game, a play in which no Aggie came anywhere near the return-man.

Lots of good NFL prospects in this game, and several of them had great games.

First of all, Colt McCoy had a terrific game. He's really been coming on the last few weeks. He actually looked better running the ball than throwing it (he ran for 175 yards and a touchdown on 18 carries), but he threw the ball well, too (24 of 40 for 304 yards, 4 TDs, and no interceptions, though two of his throws probably should have been picked off). He gets rid of the ball quickly and accurately, and even though he doesn't have the big arm, he threw the deep out tonight better than I've seen him throw it in the past. I'm still not convinced that he has star potential at the next level, but if he can
put up big numbers against Nebraska next week, I may have to reevaluate my opinion of him.

The Texas A&M quarterback, Jerrod Johnson, may wind up being a better pro quarterback than McCoy. He was mostly terrific tonight, completing 26 of 33 for 342 yards, 4 TDs, and a costly interception in the endzone. He also ran for 97 yards on 14 carries. Johnson shredded a Texas defense that has mostly been dominant this season. Johnson is a redshirt junior, and he doesn't have a lot of starting experience. He alternated with Stephen McGee last year, getting most of the starts, but had to compete for the job at the beginning of the current season. I saw him against Oklahoma State, and he was wildly inconsistent, looking lost on one play, and like a superstar on the next. He seemed to put it together tonight against a very good defense. If he's smart, he'll stay in school and play himself into the first round of the 2011 draft.

It was interesting watching and comparing Von Miller and Sergio Kindle. Miller is a great pass rusher, and he put a lot of pressure on McCoy, especially late in the game. He finished with two sacks and gave McCoy trouble on numerous other plays, hitting him just as he threw or chasing him out of the pocket. Miller mostly rushed from a two-point stance, although he lined up on the line in a three-point stance on occasion. He was effective either way, but I like him best as an edge-rushing linebacker. He has the knack for starting with an outside rush and then suddenly planting his foot and streaking past the offensive tackle's inside shoulder. He was even able to bullrush highly regarded Texas tackle Adam Ulatoski a couple of times, and Ulatoski is 6'8 320! Miller is definitely a pass-rushing specialist, however, and although he was able to hold the edge and turn a few running plays inside, it is clear that he has little interest in stopping the run.

Kindle is a better all-round player than Miller, but not as good at rushing the passer. I think that Kindle would be at his best as a strongside linebacker in a 4-3 defense, but he could handle the OLB role in a 3-4, too. He put some pressure on Johnson late in the game, but he wasn't asked to rush the passer all that often. He is a tackling machine on running plays (although he had two big gaffes that I'll mention in a moment), and he is comfortable dropping back in coverage. Late in the game, he was bowled over on a touchdown run, although to be fair he was in the process of shedding a block at the time. The timing was unfortunate. A little later, Johnson juked him
out of his jockstrap and left him grasping for air. Other than those two plays, though, Kindle looked good. He's got great range and can hit.

Who do I like between Miller and Kindle? I'd take Miller, even though Kindle is more dimensions to his game. For my money, Miller's ability to get to the passer trumps his weaknesses in the running game. I swear that there were times when he looked like Fred Dean out there tonight!

I've trumpeted my praises for Texas free safety Earl Thomas, and it was Thomas who intercepted Johnson in the endzone, making a nice read and anticipating the play beautifully. But Thomas didn't have a great game tonight. He was late getting to the receiver on several plays, and in general just didn't show up often enough. Based on what I've seen in other games, I still like Thomas as a prospect, but he didn't shine this time out.

I really like Texas DT/DE Lamarr Houston. It seems like he's in the backfield on nearly every play. He's had 6 sacks this season, mostly from the DT position, and he had some pressures on Johnson tonight. He's also had a bunch of tackles behind the line of scrimmage (the announcers said 19 going into tonight's game, but NFL Draft Scout says 16), and he got at least one more tonight. But it seems like every time I've watched Texas play, Houston gets knocked out of the game, and he limped off again tonight. After several years of Jonas Jennings, I find myself turned off by guys who spend too much time laying on the field waiting for the trainers.

WR Jordan Shipley had an excellent game, catching 8 for 88 yards and 2 TDs, but he seemed to disappear late in the game for some reason. Maybe he was getting double-covered and leaving other receivers open. McCoy never seemed to have a shortage of open receivers. The receiver who really caught my eye, though, was the Aggies' Jeff Fuller, Jr., son of the former 49ers star. He's a sophomore, and he's been recovering from a fractured fibula that he suffered early this season, but he was outstanding tonight, 6 passes for 132 yards and 3 TDs, including a 70-yard catch and run early in the game. He's 6'4 220 with good speed and great hands. Watch out for him--I think he's going to be a huge star!
 

abpanther

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I watched a little of the Rutgers/Louisville game and the Cincinnati/Illinois game. I was very impressed with both Anthony Davis (OT Rutgers) and Jon Asamoah (OG Illinois).

I'd be happy if the 49ers took Davis in the first round (assuming Okung was off the board). He is a very aggressive player who is always looking for someone to hit. He is especially good on pulls and traps, and he explodes into his man on running plays. If he has a weakness, it is that he is just a hair slow getting out of his stance on passing plays. I think he could be coached up, though. When he sets, he's very well balanced and hard to get around.

I like Asamoah very much, too. He is especially good at pass blocking, and has the knack of passing one man off to a teammate so that he can take on another. Guards tend to stay on the board longer than they should, and he'd be a terrific pick in the second round.
 

abpanther

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I watched enough of the Nebraska game to confirm that Ndamukong Suh is going to be the best prospect in the upcoming draft. I feel the same way about him today as I did about Kevin Williams oh those many years ago. Williams was a little quicker off the snap, but Suh is more athletic.
 

Tom155

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watched auburn-alabama game very impressed by javier arenas on returns he made tons of yards every time even when it looked like auburn had him he managed to escape
 

abpanther

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I just watched the West Virginia/Pittsburgh game, the one they call the "Backyard Brawl." Great defensive struggle! Each team scored only one touchdown, and each came on a big play. Otherwise, both defenses effectively stifled an opposing offense that came in to the game with a history of scoring a lot of points.

I was curious about Pittsburgh quarterback Bill Stull, a senior who has come out of nowhere to generate some very positive reviews. He came into the game with the 4th highest quarterback efficiency rating in the nation. Well, he sucked tonight until his last series of the game, in which he completed three passes, the third a beautiful long bomb for his team's only touchdown of the night. Until that series, though, he couldn't hit the broad side of a barn. I was totally unimpressed.

I love every member of the Pittsburgh defensive line. They are a relatively small group, and somewhat vulnerable to runs up the middle, but every one of them is quick, rangy, scrappy, and can rush the passer. The best of the bunch is highly regarded junior defensive end Greg Romeus, 6'6 270. He's been mentioned frequently, and reviews have been mixed, but I like him a lot. He's a complete player who not only pressures the passer but plays the run effectively, too. I remember reading on the TFY site that in his game against Rutgers, Romeus and Anthony Davis made each other look bad. I take that to mean that they played each other to a standstill, and if you like one, you probably have to like the other, too. Well, I like Davis, and Romeus looked terrific tonight. He's VERY quick off the snap and has a variety of pass-rush moves, including the all-important inside move. I don't know if he'll come out this year, but if he does, I think he merits first-round consideration.

This game gave me the opportunity to take another look at two offensive linemen, Pitt left tackle Jason Pinkston and West Virginia right tackle Selvish Capers. Both had an up and down game. I kind of like Pinkston as a mid-round pick, but only as a potential guard. He seems a little too clumsy to pass-block in space, but he's a road-grader on running plays. Capers is more athletic than Pinkston and excels when pulling and trapping, but he's simply not a very good pass blocker. I've seen him play three times now, and tonight was his worst performance of the three. NFL Draft Scout rates him as a second-round pick, and I've seen him listed in some one-round mock drafts, but it's hard to see why.
 

abpanther

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I just finished watching the Georgia Tech/Georgia game. Great game! Georgia Tech probably should have won the game, but their head coach panicked and their best receiver dropped an easy fourth-down pass that would have put his team in striking distance of a victory.

The guy I most wanted to see was DE Derrick Morgan. This is the first time I've watched him for an entire game, having only seen him play for about a quarter-and-a-half previously. I came away with mixed feelings. He's quick enough and strong enough, and he both rushes the passer and plays the run. He has good speed and range, and he's tough- -no one pushes him around! He did a pretty good job at times of stringing running plays to the sidelines. That said, he had no sacks and few hurries, and Georgia ran all over his defense. Morgan lined up in a three-point stance at left defensive end on every play, but he looks like he has the speed to rush the passer from a 3-4 OLB position. Georgia ran the ball at will, but they mostly ran away from Morgan, and the rest of the Yellow Jacket defense was overmatched. Morgan's biggest weakness appears to be a tendency to overcommit and give away the edge on misdirection plays, and he was fooled WAY too many times, virtually nearly every time they tried it. The talent is definitely there, but in the final assessment, Morgan wasn't much of a factor in tonight's game. I think I'm going to have to drop him out of my top ten.

Another guy who has now fallen out of my top ten is RB Jonathan Dwyer. Although he had one rushing touchdown, Georgia bottled him up all night long. In his defense, I don't think that the Georgia Tech offense makes the best use of his talents. He seems like a between- the-tackles power runner to me. In fact, he reminds me a great deal of a bigger Frank Gore. But Georgia Tech runs a triple-option offense, using very light linemen, and Georgia's oversized defensive tackles had the middle completely clogged all game long.

One Georgia Tech player who impressed me right up to his final play was redshirt junior wide receiver Demaryius Thomas. He's a big guy who has caught about 75 percent of all the passes his team has thrown all year, and he has been averaging about 24 yards per carry. He was having a terrific night (5 catches for 127 yards including a fabulous 76-yard catch and run that put his team back into the game), when he inexplicably dropped a fourth-down pass and killed his team's final chance for a dramatic come-from-behind victory. He was a couple of yards past the first-down marker, well in-bounds, wide open after a great comeback route, and the ball hit him square in the palms of both hands. And he dropped it. Wow. So is he the man among boys that he appeared to be all night, or the choke-artist who cost his team the game in the end? Hard to figure.

On the Georgia side of the ball, I really liked outside linebacker Rennie Curran, who, at 5'11 225, might be a strong safety in the pros. He was all over the field disrupting the Georgia Tech triple option. The Yellow Jacket ballcarriers will be seeing him in their nightmares! The Georgia Tech offense has been destroying opposition all year, but they couldn't account for Curran. When it was all said and done, I thought he was the game's most valuable player.
 

Raider_69

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Watched the Stanford V Notre Dame game today

The Notre Dame WR's Floyd and Tate are pretty phenominal. Even though the Stanford 2ndary is ordinary, they slayed them. Golden Tate is a future #1 NFL wideout imo. Good hands, sharp feet, good route running, strong in traffic. He's got it all.

Meanwhile on the otherside they were talking up Stanford RB Toby Gerhart. Now i admit i looked at him, saw he was white and dismissed him instantly, i hadnt yet seen a white guy with the skills set to be a feature NFL back but i was wrong. Gerhart put up a huge 3 TD and 200 yard game. He was outstanding!
 

Raider_69

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the guy is a beast, i think he should be well worth a look for the heisman based on what i saw today and his numbers... 25+ Rushing TD. Hell he even threw a TD today against Notre Dame. They stacked the box alot trying to stop him, but it seemed every run he was breaking 3-4 tackles, and not just CB's, he hitting holes, dropping his shoulder and blowing up LB's on his way through the secondary.

I tend to think looking at him, he'd probably end up in the NFL as a FB and 3rd down back specialist. But he's showed he has the work rate and toughness to be a feature back.
 

Bumble

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Really liked the look of Dexter McCluster when I was watching Ole Miss the other day...has run for some insane numbers in the last few weeks:

22 Carries, 123 yards
22 Carries, 186 yards, 1 TD
25 Carries, 282 yards, 4 TD
24 carries, 148 yards
16 Carries, 82 yards
 

Tom155

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Some o-line prospects to keep an eye on:
Mike Iupati G Idaho
Matt Tennant C Boston College
JD Walton C Baylor
Thomas Austin G Clemson
Maurkice Pouncey C Florida
Michael Pouncey G Florida

and some others
Dan Williams DT Tennesse
Brian Price DT UCLA
Allen Bailey DE Miami
Syd'Quan Thompson CB Cal
Tyson Alualu DE Cal
Kyle Wilson CB Boise State
Alterraun Verner CB UCLA
Micah Johnson ILB Kentucky
Noel Devine RB WV
Cameron Heyward DE Ohio State
 
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