NFLN, for the next four days... it's the place to be! The OL/TE/K kick it off today. As far as the OL goes, watching them run these drills, the main focus is the footwork. Beyond that, there's not much to learn from these things. Will be paying attention to the tight ends as I can see us looking for one at some point in the draft. Will they even show the kickers this year?
I like Luke Stocker from Tennessee a lot; he reminds me of Witten. Also, Virgil Green from Nevada. I'm not sure tight end is our biggest need though. It all depends on who you ask. I say: 1) RB 2) QB 3) G/C 4) TE 5) FS 6) OLB Only way we get Stocker is if we trade back from 15 or up from the 3rd round... Green could fit as is, though.
I put the %'s at our #15 pick being part of this OL group at about 60%. With about a 5% chance of a trade up. A 30% chance of a trade down... and about a 5% chance that we'll stay at 15 if one of the qb's falls to us.
Interesting. There aren't that many home run offensive linemen in this draft a la Jake Long, so I'd like if we took some of the mid round guys. I'm thinking Joseph Barksdale for tackle and Marcus Cannon/DeMarcus Love as guards. The only early prospects I feel confident about early are Gabe Carimi and Stefan Wisniewski. Who were you thinking?/Who looks good?
Well, one of the guys that sticks out to me everytime I see him is Hudson, but I don't know that he fits in with the large theory we look for along the lines. Only 6-2. Any of the big 4 tackles at 15.
Please God, let us draft Joe Barksdale for our OL. I have had my eye on him for months now and this kid can really play.
Constanzo & Hudson are the two that stand out to me. I thought that for all that guy Carmi said before the thing started, he looked rather pedestrian to me.
I don't mind Stocker, but I don't think he best accents what we need at the position. I'd rather get Shockey, who's NFL ready, and then look at TE with a higher pick next year if necessary. David Paulson from Oregon fits the bill to a tee for what we need in a playmaking TE IMO. *I wouldn't mind using a 5th (of whiskey.... j/k) on Charles Clay as an Hback now that his weight is up to 245. I know you're not fond of him, but I REALLY like the kid. Think about it---- 1000 yard freshman receiver (with another 300 rushing) who's asked to take on another position. Most kids would be dejected by that idea and not put their heart into, but I don't see that from Clay. He seems like a great teammate willing to do whatever is asked of him. I see a kid who loves the game of football, a kid who gets as excited for his teammates scoring a TD as if he had scored it himself....... and IMO that's the kind of character we need on offense. If Daboll can be creative enough, there's potential galore with Clay, especially if he continues to get bigger & stronger. If he can get up to 250-255, he could blossom into everything we've been missing at TE. He can be that seam buster that we're all dying for. *Clay's WR teammate at Tulsa, Damaris Johnson (2012), is outright explosive, yet is a guy whom nobody speaks about. He's closer to a DeSean Jackson clone than anyone in this draft IMO, and if we can grab Greg Little this year, I'd be looking at Damaris to round out our corps next year. *Tulsa's other WR, Trae Johnson, might be a pleasant 7th round-FA acquisition. He caught 70 passes for 1088 yards, 15.5 ave, and 13 TDs as a Freshman. He's 5'10, 195..... runs a legit 4.4 and can make plays with the ball. IIRC, Tulsa has had 2 different HCs and 2 different OCs the past 4 years, so I'm wondering if that's part of the reason why Clay and Johnson's production have dropped since they combined for 2100 yards receiving and 20 TDs their freshman year. Here are the highlights of Tulsa vs Tulane that show off Clay and Damaris Johnson. Fast forward to the 3:50 mark for the first video....... and then fast forward to the 2 minute mark of the 2nd one. Damaris Johnson is #1, Clay is #9, and Trae Johnson is #3. [video=youtube;QiwPhPTmD7k]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QiwPhPTmD7k[/video] [video=youtube;rl4zYIjAsso]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rl4zYIjAsso[/video] And then Tulsa vs Rice. First video highlights begin at 3:50 mark....... 2nd one begins at 3:08 mark that starts with a KO return by Damaris. More great stuff of Thomas and Clay. [video=youtube;MuJBCnsL414]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MuJBCnsL414[/video] [video=youtube;SIF3427MbqU]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SIF3427MbqU&feature=related[/video]
How do you know so much about Tulsa? Lol Anyway, I guess you have me convinced on Clay, but I've gotta say; his stats are... interesting. You wouldn't expect them to look like they do based on his body size. Let me ask, what position would you want him to play? I'm almost thinking H-Back
I watched them a few times here and there b/c Tulsa's just fun to see in action. lol. Start Clay off at Hback like you said....... and slowly transition him to TE as he settles in and gains more size. If we can groom him into a fulltime TE, he becomes a matchup nightmare for most LBs IMO. If not, I'd just keep him as an Hback and try to use him creatively. Either way, as a 5th rounder, he represents good to tremendous value as far as I'm concerned. Daboll figured out ways to maximize Hillis, so maybe he can do the same with Clay.
