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DYNASTY: 2011 Top 15 Prospects (1 Viewer)
- Thread starter The Real Hipster Doofus
- Start date
He is not very good.
oukurt
Footballguy
Ingram and Richardson are locks to be RB1s for your fantasy team at the next level. WRs Green, Jones, Floyd as well. I think Luck is the best future QB prospect. We will also find out what we need to know about Mallett on Saturday. I am also adding Ryan Broyles to this list. He doesn't have the size of the Greens and Jones types, but he is just a football player. He will be the steal in the mid 1st round of rookie dynasty drafts next year. Much like Nicks was 2 years ago.
oukurt
Footballguy
After watching him play this year, I have moved him down my prospect list. Just not sure he has the burst and vision to be an elite back at the next level. He will be a late 1st round pick though in the draft and if he falls to the right team with a good OL he will do just fine.
FreeBaGeL
Footballguy
Ditto, I've made a point to watch him this year and I've been very unimpressed. On top of the stuff you mentioned, he's weak. Arm tackles that he should be running right through instead slow him to a complete halt.
Faust
MVP
SI.com - Tony Pauline - Risers & Sliders
Excerpts:
Sliders
Jake Locker/QB/Washington: Locker started the season with uninspired performances against BYU and Syracuse before an awful showing against Nebraska last Saturday. He completed just four of 20 passes for 71 yards and had a pair of interceptions. Locker has forced the ball into coverage while trying to rely on his arm strength to make plays this season. His decision-making has been suspect at times. There's time for the senior to turn around his play, yet there's no denying he has hurt himself in the eyes of NFL scouts in the early going of the 2010 campaign.
Risers
Colin Kaepernick/QB/Nevada: The Wolfpack signal-caller was a one-man show on offense, leading Nevada to a 21-point victory over Cal by accounting for 329 total yards and five scores. Kaepernick must continue to improve his passing mechanics, but his decision-making and command of the offense against one of the Pac-10's best defenses impressed NFL scouts.
Ronald Johnson/WR/USC: The Trojans leading receiver is dependable and has big-play potential. He's averaged five receptions a game this season with four touchdown grabs, including a 53-yard score in the win over Minnesota last Saturday. Scouts gave Johnson a late-round grade entering the season, yet many feel he could move into the draft's initial 60 selections if he continues his present pace.
Torrey Smith*/WR/Maryland: The Terrapins offense was anemic in the loss to WVU, except for Smith. The junior receiver finished with 149 receiving yards on just three receptions with two resulting in touchdowns. Smith, also a game-breaking return specialist, is a true vertical threat who has NFL size and home-run hitting speed.
Jock Sanders/WR-RS/WVU: The multi-purpose Sanders produced in a variety of ways during the Mountaineers' border-war victory over Maryland. He made six receptions for 86 yards, added another 10 yards running reverses and averaged 23 yards on three punt returns. The senior nicely projects as a specialist for the next level and will be asked to line up in the slot, carry the ball on occasion as well as handle return duties.
Excerpts:
Sliders
Jake Locker/QB/Washington: Locker started the season with uninspired performances against BYU and Syracuse before an awful showing against Nebraska last Saturday. He completed just four of 20 passes for 71 yards and had a pair of interceptions. Locker has forced the ball into coverage while trying to rely on his arm strength to make plays this season. His decision-making has been suspect at times. There's time for the senior to turn around his play, yet there's no denying he has hurt himself in the eyes of NFL scouts in the early going of the 2010 campaign.
Risers
Colin Kaepernick/QB/Nevada: The Wolfpack signal-caller was a one-man show on offense, leading Nevada to a 21-point victory over Cal by accounting for 329 total yards and five scores. Kaepernick must continue to improve his passing mechanics, but his decision-making and command of the offense against one of the Pac-10's best defenses impressed NFL scouts.
Ronald Johnson/WR/USC: The Trojans leading receiver is dependable and has big-play potential. He's averaged five receptions a game this season with four touchdown grabs, including a 53-yard score in the win over Minnesota last Saturday. Scouts gave Johnson a late-round grade entering the season, yet many feel he could move into the draft's initial 60 selections if he continues his present pace.
Torrey Smith*/WR/Maryland: The Terrapins offense was anemic in the loss to WVU, except for Smith. The junior receiver finished with 149 receiving yards on just three receptions with two resulting in touchdowns. Smith, also a game-breaking return specialist, is a true vertical threat who has NFL size and home-run hitting speed.
Jock Sanders/WR-RS/WVU: The multi-purpose Sanders produced in a variety of ways during the Mountaineers' border-war victory over Maryland. He made six receptions for 86 yards, added another 10 yards running reverses and averaged 23 yards on three punt returns. The senior nicely projects as a specialist for the next level and will be asked to line up in the slot, carry the ball on occasion as well as handle return duties.
EBF
Footballguy
What makes you think Broyles will be a better NFL WR than someone like Mark Clayton or Peter Warrick? He's quite small and from what I can tell, doesn't have the blazing speed of someone like Eddie Royal or DeSean Jackson. Unless he's actually faster than I think he is, he looks like a classic case of a college star who might not have the sheer physical ability to dominate at the next level. He only averaged 12.6 yards per catch in 2009. This season he's averaging 12.3. These numbers suggest that he's a possession WR. Small possession receivers usually end up in the slot at the next level. I don't see a huge FF upside. Maybe if he's really explosive he can make a Derrick Mason/Eddie Royal type of impact. Otherwise he'll probably be more of a complementary WR.
Faust
MVP
NFL Draft Blog by Rob Rang
A few excerpts:
Jake Locker's 4 of 20 passing for 71 yards, two interceptions and a touchdown against Nebraska last Saturday continues to be the headlining topic of every interview I've done this week, including the video I did as part of CBSSports.com's NFL coverage earlier today.
As you've probably heard or read me explain before, Locker possesses a mind-boggling combination of size, athleticism and arm strength, but he has not yet been able to master the intricacies of the quarterback position. He remains very much a work in progress in terms of reading defenses and throwing a consistently accurate ball despite the fact that he's a fifth year senior. He made such gains in his first year under Steve Sarkisian that many, including myself, anticipated that he'd make similar gains in his second season in Sarkisian's pro-style offense.
That, however, hasn't (yet) happened as I noted following Locker's first game against BYU, second against Syracuse and, of course, following the historically poor performance against the Cornhuskers.
While I trust my own analysis, I do appreciate the views of others. And in this case, I think you will too.
Ian Furness, host of the afternoon show (1-3 pm PCT) show on KJR AM Seattle and his guest, former University of Washington and eight-year NFL quarterback Hugh Millen, broke down Locker's performance against Nebraska pass by pass with Millen assigning grades for every throw and decision.
Ian brings up excellent points of his own and Millen, quite frankly, is as good at scouting and articulating what he's seen with quarterbacks as any NFL general manager or scouting director I've ever spoken with.
Millen is quick to note that Locker's performance was "poor" but he also explains that the Huskies' receivers struggled to gain any separation against Nebraska's talented secondary (which I predicted here), meaning that Washington's loss should certainly not be pinned on Locker.
Rather than take my word for it, I suggest you take a listen. I warn you, however, Furness and Millen do a great job of breaking this down. Their segment is appropriately called "Hardcore Football." Whether you listen to only a few minutes of it or the full 30 minutes, I assure you that you'll be impressed with the depth of the analysis. The final eight minutes, however, Ian and Hugh shift their analysis to Matt Hasselbeck's performance in the Seahawks' loss to the Broncos.
The first 22 minutes, however, are all Locker. Millen's real breakdown pass by pass begins at approximately the 4:20 mark.
Again, this audio isn't for light-hearted football fans.
A few excerpts:
Jake Locker's 4 of 20 passing for 71 yards, two interceptions and a touchdown against Nebraska last Saturday continues to be the headlining topic of every interview I've done this week, including the video I did as part of CBSSports.com's NFL coverage earlier today.
As you've probably heard or read me explain before, Locker possesses a mind-boggling combination of size, athleticism and arm strength, but he has not yet been able to master the intricacies of the quarterback position. He remains very much a work in progress in terms of reading defenses and throwing a consistently accurate ball despite the fact that he's a fifth year senior. He made such gains in his first year under Steve Sarkisian that many, including myself, anticipated that he'd make similar gains in his second season in Sarkisian's pro-style offense.
That, however, hasn't (yet) happened as I noted following Locker's first game against BYU, second against Syracuse and, of course, following the historically poor performance against the Cornhuskers.
While I trust my own analysis, I do appreciate the views of others. And in this case, I think you will too.
Ian Furness, host of the afternoon show (1-3 pm PCT) show on KJR AM Seattle and his guest, former University of Washington and eight-year NFL quarterback Hugh Millen, broke down Locker's performance against Nebraska pass by pass with Millen assigning grades for every throw and decision.
Ian brings up excellent points of his own and Millen, quite frankly, is as good at scouting and articulating what he's seen with quarterbacks as any NFL general manager or scouting director I've ever spoken with.
Millen is quick to note that Locker's performance was "poor" but he also explains that the Huskies' receivers struggled to gain any separation against Nebraska's talented secondary (which I predicted here), meaning that Washington's loss should certainly not be pinned on Locker.
Rather than take my word for it, I suggest you take a listen. I warn you, however, Furness and Millen do a great job of breaking this down. Their segment is appropriately called "Hardcore Football." Whether you listen to only a few minutes of it or the full 30 minutes, I assure you that you'll be impressed with the depth of the analysis. The final eight minutes, however, Ian and Hugh shift their analysis to Matt Hasselbeck's performance in the Seahawks' loss to the Broncos.
The first 22 minutes, however, are all Locker. Millen's real breakdown pass by pass begins at approximately the 4:20 mark.
Again, this audio isn't for light-hearted football fans.
oukurt
Footballguy
I am not wearing homer glasses on this one. As evidenced by my statement of Murray being overated. Broyles is undersized, but exceptional in space. I mean flat out scary. Don't let the ypc fool you. OU runs a lot of bubble, jailbreak, and middle screens to get him the ball in space. Really good hands and really good with his first move after the catch. As for Clayton, he had great QBs throwing him the ball, not to mention other great college WRs on his team that made it impossible to double or roll coverage his way. Broyles has never had that luxury, yet he still dominates games. He has the speed to beat cornerbacks deep and the moves to turn short passes into long gains. If he lands on a good team, which is a strong possibility as he should be a late 1st round pick, he will be a beast in PPR leagues.
Instinctive
Footballguy
Having watched every down live and focused on Broyles, I have to say he reminds more more of Torry Holt every play. His route running and body control are both incredible for a college athlete. I've only seen him mess up a route once, and that was when he thought Landry started scrambling and he got pushed out of bounds a step only to come back in and make an illegal catch...Every step has a purpose, and 12 ypr is impressive when you catch the ball two yards behind the line and have to go one on one or one on two with a guy in space each time...because Stills is NOT a blocker.
Broyles actually has a decent catch radius too, as I see some throws come out of Landry's hand with a "WTF" reaction only to see Broyles somehow get to it once or twice a game...He is a playmaker in a similar mold to DeSean Jackson in that when he gets the ball, something good happens. Without fail, Broyles getting the ball is a positive result. He may not have Jackson's speed, but he makes up for it with exceptional hands and route running.
As a matter of fact, an offense like the Eagles West Coast would be great for him, although a more pure Walshian West Coast would be better for him. I see Torry Holt upside, with a much more probable Derrick Mason of the 2002-2005 variety.
Glaven
Footballguy
Based solely on that video, as I have never seen him play before, I don't come away very impressed by him. He looks really tall for a RB, i wouldn't be surprised if he's taller than 6'2. He also runs pretty tall, so there's a lot for defenders to grab onto. His speed and quicks are decent at best. Though his cuts are real sharp for a guy his size. Overall I think he's OK, not particularly special. Personally, I don't think I would spend a 1st round rookie pick on him at this point in a fantasy rookie draft, though there's still time for things to change. I'd be shocked if he ended up to be a first round NFL draft pick like someone had mentioned earlier in this thread. I think his upside is a 2nd round pick NFL pick, with 3-4th round being more likely and 5th+ not entirely out of the question.
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MAC_32
Footballguy
Curious to see more of Michael Floyd this week but for all the good I saw from him vs. Purdue (not just as a receiver but blocking too) he looked equally as bad vs. the Michigan schools, very inconsistent play - drops, poorly timed jumps, bad routes, wrong routes, quitting mid play. Not sure what the deal was, but very underwhelming performance.
I'm slightly leaning AJ Green if I had to with Floyd #2 and a toss up between Baldwin and DeAndre Brown for now, but none of them really wow me to be honest. Much like Bradford vs. the non Dez Bryant's in the WR class last year, I'm taking Luck before any of them in the lot as of right now and would take him in the top 5*
*By would take him in the top 5 I mean I'd trade that pick to someone in the 8-10 range and pick Luck there
I'm slightly leaning AJ Green if I had to with Floyd #2 and a toss up between Baldwin and DeAndre Brown for now, but none of them really wow me to be honest. Much like Bradford vs. the non Dez Bryant's in the WR class last year, I'm taking Luck before any of them in the lot as of right now and would take him in the top 5*
*By would take him in the top 5 I mean I'd trade that pick to someone in the 8-10 range and pick Luck there
EBF
Footballguy
Speaking of Luck, here's a nice quote from Wake Forest HC Jim Grobe after Saturday's thrashing:
Tomorrow is a big day for Luck and Stanford. It will be their first nationally televised game of the season against a legitimate opponent. It should be a good opportunity to see how Luck performs under pressure in a hostile environment.
Don Quixote
Footballguy
Mallett definitely falling way behind Luck after today. Two bad INTs in crunch time.
MU Seminole
Footballguy
No Julio?MAC_32 said:
EBF
Footballguy
Watched the entire Stanford/ND game from start to finish. Thoughts:
- Not a great day for Luck. He looked confident all game, did a pretty good job of keeping drives moving, effectively checked down when his initial reads were covered, and demonstrated good accuracy on his shorter throws. On the other hand, he missed some potential big plays downfield (although the coverage was pretty good) and threw a few ill-advised passes into coverage. Neither of his INTs was a horrendous throw (both were tipped), but he threw at least one ball into the end zone that should've been intercepted. It's almost like he had a little bit too much faith in his skills today, floating a couple passes across the field into risky spots. I still think he's the best QB in the country. He has all of the requisite physical tools that you want in a pro starter, his mental intangibles are top notch, and even on his mediocre days he keeps the chains moving.
- I wasn't overly impressed with Michael Floyd. He finished with good stats, capped by a leaping grab over a defender on a deep pass to set up a short TD late in the game. He's tall with a strong upper body and reliable hands. What his game lacks is explosive burst. He's not exceptionally fast and doesn't show a lot of flash running with the ball or making cuts during his routes. Physically he reminds me of Braylon Edwards. Tall targets with decent upper body strength, minimal leg drive, and merely adequate mobility. He can be a late first round pick and potentially an effective possession WR at the next level, but I didn't come away from this game thinking he's the next great WR prospect.
- Notre Dame TE Kyle Rudolph was invisible today. Totally taken out of the game.
- Stanford sophomore RB Stepfan Taylor played well. He's a compact back with good strength and decent quickness. I don't think he's ever going to be an elite prospect, but he looks like a guy who could potentially make a pro roster as a backup.
- For the IDP crowd, Notre Dame sophomore LB Manti Te'o had another great game. I think he finished with something like 18 tackles. He doesn't look insanely quick or fast, but he's a decent athlete with very good strength and a nose for the ball. He always seems to be in the right place and if he checks out well at the combine, I could see him being a first round pick in 2012. He was the best defensive player on the field today.
- Not a great day for Luck. He looked confident all game, did a pretty good job of keeping drives moving, effectively checked down when his initial reads were covered, and demonstrated good accuracy on his shorter throws. On the other hand, he missed some potential big plays downfield (although the coverage was pretty good) and threw a few ill-advised passes into coverage. Neither of his INTs was a horrendous throw (both were tipped), but he threw at least one ball into the end zone that should've been intercepted. It's almost like he had a little bit too much faith in his skills today, floating a couple passes across the field into risky spots. I still think he's the best QB in the country. He has all of the requisite physical tools that you want in a pro starter, his mental intangibles are top notch, and even on his mediocre days he keeps the chains moving.
- I wasn't overly impressed with Michael Floyd. He finished with good stats, capped by a leaping grab over a defender on a deep pass to set up a short TD late in the game. He's tall with a strong upper body and reliable hands. What his game lacks is explosive burst. He's not exceptionally fast and doesn't show a lot of flash running with the ball or making cuts during his routes. Physically he reminds me of Braylon Edwards. Tall targets with decent upper body strength, minimal leg drive, and merely adequate mobility. He can be a late first round pick and potentially an effective possession WR at the next level, but I didn't come away from this game thinking he's the next great WR prospect.
- Notre Dame TE Kyle Rudolph was invisible today. Totally taken out of the game.
- Stanford sophomore RB Stepfan Taylor played well. He's a compact back with good strength and decent quickness. I don't think he's ever going to be an elite prospect, but he looks like a guy who could potentially make a pro roster as a backup.
- For the IDP crowd, Notre Dame sophomore LB Manti Te'o had another great game. I think he finished with something like 18 tackles. He doesn't look insanely quick or fast, but he's a decent athlete with very good strength and a nose for the ball. He always seems to be in the right place and if he checks out well at the combine, I could see him being a first round pick in 2012. He was the best defensive player on the field today.
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Dave Larkin
Moderator
Thanks for the thoughts, EBF. I'm especially interested in this kid Te'o. I watched him play last season against Stanford in that classic game where Gerhart rushed for some insane 200+ yards number that I can't quite remember. 18 tackles is tremendous though. You didn't happen to notice if he played all three downs, did you?
EBF
Footballguy
I didn't specifically pay attention to the downs, but I'm pretty sure he played almost every snap on defense. He even made one or two good plays in pass coverage, including an important deflection early in the game. Big guy who flies to the ball and brings an aggressive attitude. Seems to have the mindset of Patrick Willis/Ray Lewis/Junior Seau. He might not be up to par with those guys physically, but he's neither small nor slow. He looks like he'll play on Sundays.
FreeBaGeL
Footballguy
Meh, Mallet had a solid day minus two bad passes against the #1 defense in the country. Luck had a mediocre day against a mediocre Irish defense.
Dave Larkin
Moderator
EBF
Footballguy
He didn't really stand out in the Stanford/UCLA game.
King of the Jungle
Footballguy
Watching Mark Ingram run the ball is a lot of fun. ELITE vision, balance, burst....exceptional lateral movement and short area acceleration....guy is a vicious runner. IMO on the same elite level as Adrian Peterson when he was coming out.
I keep waiting for Julio Jones to do something that will make me think he is worth the hype, but it hasn't happened.
I keep waiting for Julio Jones to do something that will make me think he is worth the hype, but it hasn't happened.
kremenull
Footballguy
Rudolph looks slow and very stiff, which is what I thought just from seeing some of his highlights, even the big plays he's made.......I don't think his game will translate to the next level as a top TE. Kyle Brady-esque looking career to me. Watched him run quite a few routes today, not fluid in the least bit. I'm not impressed at all. Suspended S.Carolina TE Weslye Saunders is a much better prospect.
broncofan13000
Footballguy
glad i got him in elite
kremenull
Footballguy
Yep! You are the one who put him on my radar. After you drafted him in that league, I took a really good look at him, gave him the 'stamp' as a potential stud talent, then acquired him in like 3 other devy drafts.:( glad i got him in elite
jurb26
Footballguy
I disagree. Mallet looked pretty bad in this game IMO. He put up huge stats off of Alabama blown coverages. I saw a lot of things that concern me as he projects to the NFL. 1. He didn't seem able or willing to read the whole field. On his 1st INT (in the Red Zone mind you, as if that isn't bad enough) he forced a pass into double coverage when the S rolled to the left. He never read the right side of the field on this play. Had he, he would have had an easy TD pass to the wide open slot guy to his right. He only read half the field and he had plenty of time in the pocket on that play. He made several other mistakes like this throughout the game but this was the most obvious.2. He is inconsistent with his foot work and looks lazy with it under pressure. On the designed roll outs where he was given a clear direction to go vs the pressure he looked great. When just getting pressure in the pocket however, the kind you will see more often in the NFL, he got lazy and threw off balance and against his body. Both of his later picks where a result of this.All in all I came away far less impressed with Mallet after watching this game. The mental aspects of the game and consistency still seem to be a struggle for him. He is surrounded with great talent and there were opportunities for him to have had a HUGE day and also win that game for his team. He didn't handle the pressure well though and Arkansas lost primarily because of his mistakes.Sure Alabama is a great D and it was just one game. I don't think Alabama's D matched up very well vs. this Arkansas team though. They are young and inexperienced in the secondary and that showed early and often. We'll see, maybe he just had a bad game. Still, I wasn't impressed because of the 2 things above.On a brighter note, Ingram is a stud. This guy is going to be a monster in the NFL. The guy has insane balance and power. I don't think I saw him get tackled by one guy all game long.
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Don Quixote
Footballguy
As can probably tell from my original post, I'm with jurb. Even before the two picks at the end of the game, I was ambivalent about Mallett's performance. Even on his TD toss, which helped pad his stats, Mallett underthrew the ball -- Bama's coverage was so bad on that play that it did not matter.Ingram looks even better than he did last year. It's a shame he missed the first two games of the season or else he would be on track to win his second Heisman....On the IDP side, I watched a lot of the Rutgers-UNC game. Bruce Carter is a beast. It's not often you can say this about an OLB, but he single-handedly won that game for UNC.GreatLakesMike
Footballguy
No biggy.
Uruk-Hai
Footballguy
Another big day yesterday for Smith: 8/159 and a TD with a F QB making his first start. I know folks are going to say he's another DHB, but he's not. He's got better hands and, though not quite as blazing fast, he's got plenty of speed. He also looks like a football player when he plays, not a track guy in pads.
24-40, 310, 1 TD, 0 INT + 12-111. More importantly, 32-31 win at USC (first since 1996). Led the team down for the winning FG as time expired.He was victimized by A LOT of drops. Also lost a rushing TD as a result of a great play by the defender. Got knocked out at the goal line and the back up threw for a TD.The win will cover up some Locker mistakes. He missed some wide open players during the game. Throws weren't close.This game is a good example of what Locker brings to the table: explosive talent, great leadership, and inconsistency. Like I've said before, of Tebow is worth the #24 pick, the Locker should be in the top 10.
Glaven
Footballguy
He isn't/wasn't.
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EBF
Footballguy
I was able to watch a few games simultaneously this weekend. Mostly focused on Oregon/Stanford, but also saw good chunks of Alabama/Florida, USC/Washington, and Iowa/Penn State. Thoughts on some of the prospects:
- Andrew Luck had a mixed outing for Stanford. He showed good poise under pressure and generally did a good job of keeping drives moving. He was deadly accurate in the short and intermediate passing game. It was a different story on deep passes. Luck floated a few into coverage, resulting in two second half interceptions. I think he puts too much loft on his deep passes. I'm not sure if this is an arm strength problem or just bad decision-making. I suspect it's more of the latter because he has shown pretty good arm strength in the past. Either way, it's an area where he needs to improve. Overall, I think Luck is a first round prospect when he comes out, but there are areas where he needs to improve. I expect him to return to Stanford for the 2011 season.
- Despite the stat line, LaMichael James didn't stand out. He broke one long TD against a goal line D late in the game when Stanford was desperate. It was an easy play because there was nothing but green grass in front of him once he broke through the line. James is fast, but he's very small and in this particular game he never really made anyone miss in the open field. Right now I would compare him to Steve Slaton, another undersized straight-line speed back who capitalized on a gimmicky spread offense in college.
- Matt Barkley and Jake Locker have great arm strength. Both guys can really sling the ball. Locker had a good game against the Trojans, using his legs and his arm to help lead Washington to the upset win. His accuracy and instincts are still spotty, but I think his physical skill set will still see him drafted in the first round.
- WR Ronald Johnson looked solid for USC. He ran a really nice comeback route where he beat the corner for a first down. I don't think he's a first round talent, but I think he's a better prospect than Damian Williams was. He offers a similar skill set and he's a smoother runner. I expect him to be a second or third round NFL draft pick.
- RBs Allen Bradford and Marc Tyler looked promising for USC. Bradford doesn't have much in the way of moves, but he has good power and he can really hit a seam and get going in a hurry. Tyler reminds me of Ryan Mathews. Both are athletic, slightly upright runners in the 5'11"-6'0" 215 range whose style exposes them to injury.
- While we're on the topic of Pac-10 RBs, Chris Polk also looked decent in the USC/UW game. There are a lot of RBs in the Pac-10 who look like they might eventually play in the NFL, but there's no single guy who looks like a can't-miss first rounder.
- Iowa RB Adam Robinson looks like a slightly lesser Shonn Greene in that black and gold uniform. He's a stocky, compact back with just enough quickness and speed. I could see him being a late round pick or priority free agent.
- John Clay is the one with the hype, but teammate James White might be a better pro RB prospect for Wisconsin.
- Andrew Luck had a mixed outing for Stanford. He showed good poise under pressure and generally did a good job of keeping drives moving. He was deadly accurate in the short and intermediate passing game. It was a different story on deep passes. Luck floated a few into coverage, resulting in two second half interceptions. I think he puts too much loft on his deep passes. I'm not sure if this is an arm strength problem or just bad decision-making. I suspect it's more of the latter because he has shown pretty good arm strength in the past. Either way, it's an area where he needs to improve. Overall, I think Luck is a first round prospect when he comes out, but there are areas where he needs to improve. I expect him to return to Stanford for the 2011 season.
- Despite the stat line, LaMichael James didn't stand out. He broke one long TD against a goal line D late in the game when Stanford was desperate. It was an easy play because there was nothing but green grass in front of him once he broke through the line. James is fast, but he's very small and in this particular game he never really made anyone miss in the open field. Right now I would compare him to Steve Slaton, another undersized straight-line speed back who capitalized on a gimmicky spread offense in college.
- Matt Barkley and Jake Locker have great arm strength. Both guys can really sling the ball. Locker had a good game against the Trojans, using his legs and his arm to help lead Washington to the upset win. His accuracy and instincts are still spotty, but I think his physical skill set will still see him drafted in the first round.
- WR Ronald Johnson looked solid for USC. He ran a really nice comeback route where he beat the corner for a first down. I don't think he's a first round talent, but I think he's a better prospect than Damian Williams was. He offers a similar skill set and he's a smoother runner. I expect him to be a second or third round NFL draft pick.
- RBs Allen Bradford and Marc Tyler looked promising for USC. Bradford doesn't have much in the way of moves, but he has good power and he can really hit a seam and get going in a hurry. Tyler reminds me of Ryan Mathews. Both are athletic, slightly upright runners in the 5'11"-6'0" 215 range whose style exposes them to injury.
- While we're on the topic of Pac-10 RBs, Chris Polk also looked decent in the USC/UW game. There are a lot of RBs in the Pac-10 who look like they might eventually play in the NFL, but there's no single guy who looks like a can't-miss first rounder.
- Iowa RB Adam Robinson looks like a slightly lesser Shonn Greene in that black and gold uniform. He's a stocky, compact back with just enough quickness and speed. I could see him being a late round pick or priority free agent.
- John Clay is the one with the hype, but teammate James White might be a better pro RB prospect for Wisconsin.
jurb26
Footballguy
From the portions I saw of the Stanford/Oregon game I really didn't come away all that impressed with Luck this week. Granted, I was only flipping over during the breaks in the Florida/Alabama game. This is 2 weeks in a for I've down graded my opinion of the "elite" QBs in this class. Last week Mallet and this week Luck. I don't think either guy compares favorably to our last 2 QB prospects, Bradford and Stafford.
Instinctive
Footballguy
I came away very impresses with Mikel Leshoure today, a guy I wanted to make a point to see after some impressive per carry stats last year. He showed some really nice burst getting to some holes (albeit relatively large ones many times) against Penn St today
jurb26
Footballguy
Newton is not a NFL caliber QB. He is a great athlete and great college QB but that wont translate to the NFL. He's Pryor with less development in all categories IMO.
mcintyre1
Footballguy
Alshon Jeffrey is a true soph, correct? He passes the eyeball test to me. On the Nebraska front, not a lot to look forward to FF wise this coming draft class. They'll have a couple drafted from the defense, but the only FF related prospect that might make a splash is Roy Helu Jr (RB). Thanks to the terrifying efficiency of Martinez running the Zone-read, Helu is rocking a 8.1 yard average with 451 yard on 51 carries with 5 TDs.
Helu is intriguing as a sleeper, as he will certainly fly under the radar among scouts due to being a RB in a spread system who isn't considered as Superstar. He's played injured his last two seasons, and still finished with 1200 yards on the ground last year on a dismal offense with a bum shoulder. He's a bigger back (6', 220lbs), but I wouldn't call him a power back. He can run through some chop, but he's nowhere near Mark Ingram, for example. If I had to guess a 40 time for him, I would say he puts up a 4.45 or so. However, rumors out of camp a few years ago were that he was running in the high 4.2/low 4.3 range. We can't know for sure, though, as Nebraska doesn't officially log 40 yard dash times, only 10 yard dashes.
Speaking of 10 yard dashes, Niles Paul, WR Nebraska, set the record among all positions with a 1.4 sec 10 yard dash, breaking his uncle Ahman Green's long standing record. Has it shown on the field? Nope. Pauls fumbles a lot, and seems to have major concentration issues. He also complained publicly that he wasn't getting the ball enough after an embarrassing win over South Dakota State where the offense sputtered mightily. Yeah, he had a point that we didn't try to throw the ball enough, but a) you don't say that in public, especially in college and b) hold onto the damn rock and we'll talk, Niles.
Helu - 6th - 7th rounder with sleeper potential as a change of pace back that could even earn a starting job in the right system, but not an elite talent.
Paul - 7th - UDFA. He'll probably stick on a roster thanks to his return abilities, but he's a guy who is destined to float around on NFL rosters for a few years as a 5-6th WR and returner that's always considered a candidate to break out due to his physical gifts, but won't ever put it together and will fade into the night, never to be seen again.
Helu is intriguing as a sleeper, as he will certainly fly under the radar among scouts due to being a RB in a spread system who isn't considered as Superstar. He's played injured his last two seasons, and still finished with 1200 yards on the ground last year on a dismal offense with a bum shoulder. He's a bigger back (6', 220lbs), but I wouldn't call him a power back. He can run through some chop, but he's nowhere near Mark Ingram, for example. If I had to guess a 40 time for him, I would say he puts up a 4.45 or so. However, rumors out of camp a few years ago were that he was running in the high 4.2/low 4.3 range. We can't know for sure, though, as Nebraska doesn't officially log 40 yard dash times, only 10 yard dashes.
Speaking of 10 yard dashes, Niles Paul, WR Nebraska, set the record among all positions with a 1.4 sec 10 yard dash, breaking his uncle Ahman Green's long standing record. Has it shown on the field? Nope. Pauls fumbles a lot, and seems to have major concentration issues. He also complained publicly that he wasn't getting the ball enough after an embarrassing win over South Dakota State where the offense sputtered mightily. Yeah, he had a point that we didn't try to throw the ball enough, but a) you don't say that in public, especially in college and b) hold onto the damn rock and we'll talk, Niles.
Helu - 6th - 7th rounder with sleeper potential as a change of pace back that could even earn a starting job in the right system, but not an elite talent.
Paul - 7th - UDFA. He'll probably stick on a roster thanks to his return abilities, but he's a guy who is destined to float around on NFL rosters for a few years as a 5-6th WR and returner that's always considered a candidate to break out due to his physical gifts, but won't ever put it together and will fade into the night, never to be seen again.
benson_will_lead_the_way
Footballguy
Went to the Notre Dame/Pitt game yest.
-Dion Lewis is very very quick. For a smaller back he isn't afraid to hit it up inside either.
-Jonathan Baldwin is more athletic than I thought. For a guy his size(6'6) he is quick and runs solid routes too(saw him stem a CB to get wide open on a post). But he doesn't appear to be high energy and perhaps lazy at times...he was taken out of the game often too(if he was great I would imagine he would be involved more often).
-Michael Floyd is the real deal. Size, routes, quickness, hands...but much faster than I thought. Late in the 4th, Floyd scored a TD but it was called back. I saw a DB have an angle on him, but he outran the angle.
-Dion Lewis is very very quick. For a smaller back he isn't afraid to hit it up inside either.
-Jonathan Baldwin is more athletic than I thought. For a guy his size(6'6) he is quick and runs solid routes too(saw him stem a CB to get wide open on a post). But he doesn't appear to be high energy and perhaps lazy at times...he was taken out of the game often too(if he was great I would imagine he would be involved more often).
-Michael Floyd is the real deal. Size, routes, quickness, hands...but much faster than I thought. Late in the 4th, Floyd scored a TD but it was called back. I saw a DB have an angle on him, but he outran the angle.
That guy looks like a total beast. I don't know if he's draft eligible or not.Another WR who played really well yesterday was Terrence Tolliver from LSU. He shredded Florida for 111 yards and 2 tds, including the game winner, in a breakout game. Unfortunately, he is a SR, so I'm not sure what his prospects are.
