If you take a look at these highlights you will notice some of his playing qualities.He has vision and he has the patience to wait for his blocks to develop .He is shifty and he has good lateral movement .He has good hands .He will fight for a first down .He has a nose for the goaline.He has good ball security.In addition he gets better as the game goes on and wears defenses down as he did to some of the better defensive teams in the country like LSU and FSU last year. The Gators were a one dimensional offense last year.The defenses knew he was coming but they still could not stop him . Not shown in these highlights is that he is an excellent blocker himself which makes him a candidate to be a 3 down player. [video=youtube;46F1Yt3jF10]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=46F1Yt3jF10[/video] What follows are not highlights but a review of his plays against LSU.You will note he made several first downs after apparently being stopped. At the end of the game the LSU defense were exhausted and Gillislee made it look easy by scoring a couple of TDs and then running out the clock.Enjoy [video=youtube;97g8WTgvrSs]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=97g8WTgvrSs[/video] Please keep in mind the level of competition .Many of the defenders were the top picks in the draft .
I got nothing against him, but damn he looks so slow lol. I hope he turns out to be a really good pick though
He didn't look that slow to me. Plus, with that vision and lateral quickness he can be very effective. From what I see he ran a 4.5 40.
He is a great blocker. An all-around solid RB, I think Gillislee will make a heckuva backup this season. I don't think he'll challenge Miller, but I think he has a very good chance at displacing Daniel Thomas.
He's slow but he's what we need. Consistently picks up the short yards, does the little things like ball security falling for extra yards etc. and is a consistent 1 cut back. He played big boy football and is way more prepared for the nfl than someone like daniel thomas, and still quite a bit faster than him.
Same here. Of course college is a little slower but once he got past someone he didn't get caught from behind unless he got slowed down. Contrast that with Daniel Thomas
I don't think he's all that particularly physically talented beyond his shiftiness. He's got good vision, he plays hard, and he looks like a good passing down back. He fits pretty well as someone who can be change of pace or a third down sub, but I think if you've got crappy blocking he isn't going to do much for you.
Didn't look slow to me. He pulled away from Lineman and LBs. He was hawked down by safeties and corners which I assume would be the case with most RBs.
I really liked the fact that he hit the hole with minimal dancing and gained positive yards. I think he is a good addtion to this team.
love gillislee, i may be a biased since im a gator fan, but the guy was a workhorse last season, and he plays much faster than the 4.57 or 4.58 he ran at the combine.
He lacks long speed,but he plays with a good crouch in his posture, keeps himself small, doesn't take big hits, excellent protector of the football, nice hi and tight hold, is Basically the antithesis of what Reggie bush brought to the table, Mike has a downhill style that involves compact precision in his running, not escapability,Reggie is more all over the place with his thought process and moves..you will get some big runs out of it, but seeing it for two years combined with a nature not condusive to the position, I welcomed a change, and Mike for fifth round value along with the hi upside of Lamar Miller I'll take the combo over Bush.
What is not mentioned on any review is that he is really a nice quiet type.He never complained when inferior RBs were starting ahead of him .A real team player.You know that Philbin will like that quality .
I don't much about Gillislee but what I see in those clips is a RB that sets up and uses his blockers well, even when he is already into the secondary.
Hes a bit lithe for my liking though hes plenty quick and bursty. His running style reminds me of Jamaal Charles without the extra gear or going back a few years Bobby Humphrey. Im not as high on him as an every down back like others on the board because I don't think he has the lower body strength to break tackles and consistently gain tough yardage in the pros. I do however think he could take over backup running back duties from Daniel Thomas and provide a dynamic threat out of the backfield. But make no mistake - this is now Lamar Millers job to lose.
He has the makings of just a decent all around back. He doesn't do one thing that amazes you but he does everything well and he does the little stuff...Like pick up blocks..He can catch a pass out of the backfield. Like I said he doesn't blow you away with any physical measurements and the Jamal Charles comparison is way off in my opinion. Gillislee reminds me more of the traditional steady workhorse backs. I'm not saying he's Curtis Martin but guys like Derrick Ward, Pierre Thomas, Robert Turbin come to mind when I watch Gillislee. If Miller goes down i'll feel pretty good about having Gillislee carry the load if needed. He wont fumble the ball, but he's also not going to break someones ankles or take off for an 85 yard run. Florida backs for the most part do pretty good in the NFL i've noticed. Fred Taylor was great, Earnest Graham has had some good seasons, Erict Rhett was pretty good, that Smith guy from Dallas was decent. I'm not saying Gillislee will be Emmitt Smith but I do see the same workhorse abilities that Rhett had.
I think it's pretty clearly Lamar Miller's job, but I think it's also clear that Daniel Thomas's days are numbered. He looks like he has soft hands and can block too. seems to be a solid pick.
THe keys are vision and explosiveness when the opportunity hits. He looks to have good vision and quick lateral moves (instinctive). But, he doesn't explode with speed or power. He is tough and a fighter. I actually think his long speed was decent for his height on the long runs. It's the explosiveness in the 20 yard range. It's not slow, it's just adequate and doesn't pop on the screen. But, he'll be competitive. Frankly I am utterly tired of Mr. 2.7. I'm anxious to see the kid from ND. I thought he showed a lot in college.
Hes going to have to show me something i havent seen from him to make it in the NFL. Dont think he will be A dolphin in a few years
Making the assumption that Miller takes the lead role and continues to be a liability as a pass protector, I could see Gillislee overtaking Thomas as the 3rd down back.
We are not talking about the second coming of Adrian Petersen here.He does have his limitations but I dont think we could have done better at the spot he was drafted. He does so many things well that I am sure he will be a contributor to this team .He is a very good fit for the offense we run.
A couple things to also consider, he's great at finding the end zone in red zone situations which is something daniel thomas lacks and miller may be too small to be relied on to do consistently. also he is a great character guy, waited as a back up for a few years even though he produced whenever he got carries. I'm a huge gator fan and have watched almost every game for years. then when he finally gets a chance to play he just shows and carries the offense for the season while battling through injuries. textbook Philbin guy and can be a solid complement to Miller.
He's better than Thomas, but not Miller. Looks like to me he did well when his o-line did well. Not that good at breaking tackles, but he can throw a nasty block that's for sure.
No worries Deej. Gillislee isn't here to be an every down back he's here to be a part of a RB committee and play ST. He's not a dynamic runner, he doesn't have the burst that Miller displays but he gets north and south in a hurry, has good feet plus excellent vision, if you give him good blocking he can be productive. And one of the few things we did well on offense last year was run block.
For where we took him, good value. He shows really good vision and understands the position, better than Miller actually. He is undoubtedly physically limited, and to be honest, at 208 I'm surprised he's not stronger..but at the same time, at 208 is pretty shifty. One thing I did notice, he REALLY likes to carry the ball in his right hand. Almost exclusively. This will not be good if he doesn't learn to change it more often I think. The only source I can find that records such, shows he doesn't have any fumbles in his Collegiate career. If so, then this might not be an issue...or the issue for that matter. I agree with one poster. If Jonas Gray can come back to where he was pre-injury, this guy won't get much playing time. Until then, it is a good pick at 5-31
I agree with everything but the "one cut back". He is much more a read and react back that can make several moves more than Lamar. Not really in a bad way, it is just he runs under control and makes several moves when the opportunity presents itself. Lamar is much more of a 1 cut back IMO. Lamar is slightly bigger, considerably faster. Lamar beat Mike in the 40 (4.35 vs 4.5), the vertical (35.5 vs 30.5), the broad jump (120 vs 119), the 20 yrd shuttle (4.08 vs 4.40)and the 3 cone (6.94 vs 7.12). And those numbers were with Lamar still not 100%, still had a bad shoulder. On the other side Mike is the better blocker, although at one point late in the season Philbin said Lamar had made the most improvement of any of the backs in that area, and was taking it serious and wanted to get better. By the end of the season Lamar was nearly as good as Bush in that area. Both are very good recievers so I don't know I would give either an edge in that department. Both have exceptional vision, and Lamar is VERY good at taking what is there rather than forcing a play and losing 5 yards like Reggie did every other snap. I did notice Mike running backwards to gain extra yards. That will have to be cleaned up. It works every time is HS, about half the time in college and NEVER in the pros. It is sometimes a hard habit to break, something to this day Reggie has never learned. Bottom line: I love the pick. He is exactly what the team needed. But if Lamar can come back healthy he is an absolute BEAST!!! A true game changer. Gillisless is a great backup, and if Jonas Gray or Cameron Marshall (who I have hope for) can come in to be a 4th quarter power back/short yardage back, then we can get Daniel Thomas off the team. That should save us about 7 lost fumbles per year. Overall I think we have a better group of running backs than we had last year. Now we just need to get the OL figured out.
They show intelligence and vision. His best play is the counter wherein he has to read blocks and make quick decisions. They show agility. He can dance his way around tacklers while still maintaining north, south. They show deceptive speed. He can beat you to the outside and can explode through holes. They show toughness. He decides to turn into the field rather than step out of bounce and never once gets pushed back- always falls forward. IMO, excellent value. This is a football player. He will excel in his role; special teams, 3rd down back, or wherever you stick him. He could be more than just a serviceable back on a team that provides consistent run-blocking ala not Miami. Something tells me the that someone in this organization really likes Daniel Thomas and I have no idea why. I hope I'm wrong but I see Thomas staying put in this roster.
I know someone said I was biased against Jenkins as I disliked the pick, and I am an FSU fan. But I love Gillislee. I love his game and the way he runs. I wish his frame would be bigger and stronger, as I think if he was he could be a starting back in this league. But as it is, hes a real good back up IMO. His body type and running style will limit him to spot duty, but he will definitely be a player in the NFL IMO.