Draft talk, mocks, prospects

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-X-

Medium-sized Lebowski
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The Dude
All,

If you wouldn't mind, please keep all mock drafts, talk about college prospects, and draft talk in this thread until such a time that the season is over. There are lots of people who don't really care about prognosticating about the draft in the middle of the season. As a compromise, I can offer you a dedicated thread here instead of redirecting everything to OT. Pretty fair, I think.

The moment the season is over, we can go ahead and talk about all of that stuff ad nauseum, because that's really the only thing to talk about anyway. But for the duration, I would appreciate it if we could streamline all that talk and keep the focus of this (Rams-NFL Talk) forum on the Rams and the rest of the NFL.

Cool?

Thanks.
 

-X-

Medium-sized Lebowski
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The Dude
  • Thread Starter Thread Starter
  • #3
Is discussion of how much Washington sucks allowed outside the thread?
Of course. That's NFL Talk.

Once we get into who we're going to select with their pick, or which players are going to be available in the draft with their projected record right now, then it becomes draft talk. I'm not trying to be rigid or anything. I'd just rather not have multiple threads dedicated to the draft before the season is over. A lot of people just aren't in that mode yet. Even if we're technically mathematically eliminated right now, it's still a drag to jump over 4 weeks of football and focus on April.
 

max

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max
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Sammy Watkins WR Clemson

TALENT BOARD ROUND 1

STRENGTHS
Sammy has that combination of speed and quickness that will make him a matchup nightmare and an impact player for the team that drafts him. He is very strong and shows on film good hands to catch the ball in any kind of weather. Sammy likes to make a play that breaks the game open at the same time he is an excellent teammate and does a solid job blocking for his teammates on sweeps and screens when his number is not called. Sammy has excellent run after the catch skills and is strong enough and has the balance to break tackles and gain more yards after the catch. He has strength in both his upper and lower body and this will serve him well at the next level to limit injuries. Sammy is the type of receiver that likes the ball given to him quick and although his is adept at catching the deep ball, he excels at catching the quick pass and making yards after the catch. He can run all the routes and is smart enough to play more than one receiver position, inside or out. He is a smooth operator.

CONCERNS
Sammy has had some off field issues and was suspended from the team. He said he was sorry he embarrassed his teammates, coaches, and the university for “getting caught”. He also has a problem catching the ball when he has to extend his arms on short passes and passes over the middle. On deep passes behind the safeties, this is not a problem. Teams will have to do their homework and decide if Sammy is a potential #1 receiver or just an impact receiver.

BOTTOM LINE
An impact receiver is just that -- a player who can score points and break a game open with a return on special teams and make a defense account for him. When you need to make a first down to move the chains or have to throw him the ball for a go ahead touchdown, they seem to be the player the QB or coaches goes to. There are a lot of impact receivers in the NFL, that once they score a touchdown, they seem to disappear for the rest of the game. Sammy has the potential to be a #1 receiver because of his strong body, speed, football intelligence and the fact he does a very good job blocking. The problem is that Sammy doesn’t make the tough catch going over the middle in traffic and until he shows on film that he can do that, he will not be a #1 WR, but still will be an impact receiver. If your team needs an impact receiver to go along with your #1 receiver then drafting Sammy in the first round is a no brainer. But, if your team is looking for a #1 receiver who will go over the middle and move the chains making a tough catch with a cornerback hanging all over him, I suggest you look for someone else. Sammy is no Wes Welker. He is not that style of receiver, but he is the type to scare a defense and score points, just not when the game is on the line. I would draft him in the first round and use him in the slot and on the outside deep in my own territory, but in the red zone? Not sure he is up to the task; however, I’ve been wrong before.

Drew Boylhart DEC/2013

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Mike Evans WR Texas A&M

TALENT BOARD ROUND 1

STRENGTHS
Mike is a franchise wide receiver. He has those strong hands you look for in a #1 wide receiver along with the body type, quickness, and speed to run all the routes and catch the ball. He likes the physical part of the game. On deep passes he will use his big body to shield the ball from the defender like a tight end and he will make the difficult catch while adjusting to the ball in the air. He can get deep because he has surprising quickness off the line, strength down the field and cannot be moved off his route. He has a very high football IQ and understands how to run routes to get open. Mike will move the chains on third down from outside as a wide receiver or being used as a slot receiver. He is a matchup nightmare for cornerbacks because of his size, strength, and quickness. In the slot he is too quick, fast, and has the needed strength equal to deal with the linebackers and safeties. He has excellent feet and great balance and will fight for the ball in the air. He has that nasty attitude that QB’s like to see in a receiver who they depend on to move the chains. Mike will catch the ball when everyone in the stadium knows the ball is going to him. He has good run after the catch skills and, because of his size, is very hard to bring down. I call him Mike (the Hump) Evans because during the most difficult times in a game, when others are struggling and making mistakes, Mike will get the whole team over the hump and back on the right track if you keep throwing him the ball.

CONCERNS
Mike needs to be paired up with an accurate strong armed quarterback to reach his full potential. I’m sorry…that’s just B.S. -- he just needs to get to the NFL as quickly as possible!

BOTTOM LINE
The first time I saw Mike play I thought: “That’s what Andrew Luck would play like if he was a wide receiver.” I’m comparing athletic talent, body types, mental strength, size and football intelligence and not positions. Mike sees the whole field from every receiver position like a basketball player coming down the court reading a defense and reacting to it. Texas A&M runs a pro style spread offense. In that offense, receivers have to read the defense on the run and be in sync with the quarterback on what routes to run, when to cut off routes, when to go inside or out and when to go deep. When game planning the coaches will set the depth of the routes depending on what they see on film. An example might be run all routes ten yards before you make your breaks. The QB and WR reading the safety help or zone coverage or single coverage, dictates the break of the route after the 10 yards and the QB lets the ball fly right at the ten yard break and hopes the receiver is reading the same break as he is. Mike’s ability to read defenses like a quarterback at this point of his career is unique and his ability to adjust routes during a game in sync with the QB is unique also. In game planning, the coaches might set up all the routes to start at 5, 10 or 12 yards depending on the opponent’s base defense. During the game, the QB, according to pass rush pressure, will change the route depth. Sometimes a savvy quarterback will even change the route depth for just that one play. This can affect the productivity of a receiver because they have a tendency to start thinking too much, but Mike handles these changes easily without it affecting his productivity. Mike is an impact receiver in a system like this because of his ability to see the whole field like a quarterback. That’s why he can get a quarterback and team over the hump when the passing game is struggling. Mike (The Hump) Evans is a quarterback’s dream come true and a franchise Wide Receiver.

Drew Boylhart Dec/2013
 

duckhunter

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I'm probably in the minority but I like Lee. He run routes well and has good hands. He'll be the 3rd WR taken after Evans and Watkins.

I like Evans over Watkins because of his strong hands. Evans has tailed off these last few games and my guy EJ Gaines shut him down last Saturday. Evans is a bull and he usually always outfights for the ball. His shielding is unbelievable. You need to work a lot of angles with him as opposed to jump ball stuff.
 

Tron

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Currently debating which Cb's i like and want the rams to take. Who are your guy's fav's?

I already know duckhunter like Gaines, and a lot of others do too since a lot of you are Zou fans.

Right now i am really liking Darquze Dennard from MSU and Pierre Desir from Lindenwood. Verrett is still strong on my list.
 

A55VA6

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As for WR i like Evans, Watkins, and Lee far more than any other WR's in the draft. IF the Rams draft a WR, it's gotta be 1 of these guys. Lee reminds me of Dez Bryant a little bit.
 

duckhunter

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Justin Gilbert, Okl St, has a nice blend of size and speed. He's a returner supreme, tied a Barry Sanders record for returning. Plays the big men well and fights for the ball.

Verrett may be a bit small to play the outside. We'll have to see his height and weight but he blankets guys.

Actually, quite a few good CBs this year. No top ten guys but plenty of depth mid 1st to third round.
 

duckhunter

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Justin Gilbert, Okl St, has a nice blend of size and speed. He's a returner supreme, tied a Barry Sanders record for returning. Plays the big men well and fights for the ball.

Verrett may be a bit small to play the outside. We'll have to see his height and weight but he blankets guys.

Actually, quite a few good CBs this year. No top ten guys but plenty of depth mid 1st to third round.
 

RamsOfCastamere

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As of yesterday, after watching defenders push our receivers around and Bolden push our defenders around, after observing the duo of Marshall and Jeffery,I officially want Mike Evans. Think about the possibilities with 6'5 Evans and 6'3 Quick on the outside -- we could have one of the most physical threats in the NFL.
 

NERamsFan

Pro Bowler
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Oct 4, 2011
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Real quick:

cut: Dahl, Wells, Finn, Langford
resign: Saffold, dunbar, williams
sign: Byrd, cheap DT plugin (or wait till draft)

1.a. Matthews
b. Blake Bortles/trade down/Top BPA player at DT, CB or LG
2-7: BPA

Still studying up on the prospects. Admittedly, have only been focusing on top 15 prospects

Real basic, but we're not that far off! Still not sold on Bradford like I was when we first selected him. GO ahead and fire away!! I'm ready:juiced:
 

max

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max
Hey, Max. Does he say anything about offensive taclkes?

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Jake Mathews OT Texas A&M

TALENT BOARD ROUND 1

STRENGTHSJake is a technically sound offensive lineman with excellent mental toughness. He shows on film good quick feet and strength. He is smart and does an equally good job pass blocking and run blocking. Jake shows leadership qualities through his play on the field. His quick feet allow him to set up quickly when pass blocking and gives him the ability to recover when he gets beat off the edge against a speed rusher. Jake’s football intelligence helps him to understand when and how an opponent is trying to set him up for a move later in the game and this allows him to be better prepared and anticipate when that move will be tried against him. He has the athletic talents, intelligence and machismo to play more than one position for you on the offensive line at a very high level and this versatility is something every team needs for its team to be successful at the next level.

CONCERNS
Jake doesn’t have the lateral agility you would like to see in a pure left tackle, but he does have some lateral agility. This makes him more of a “systems” Left Tackle in spite of the fact he plays in a spread offense right now. A vertical play action offense would fit his talents very well, but a spread offense at the next level might give him more problems than it does at the college level. He is a good run blocker, but he has the talent to be much better. He needs to fire out quicker and stay with his blocks longer. I don’t think this is a big problem, but out of a two point stance in a spread offense he seems to get frustrated when run blocking because he can’t get to his blocks with the power he would like to hit with.

BOTTOM LINE
Jake is the type of offensive lineman every team needs on its roster to be successful. He can play more than one position on the defensive line and play them all at a high level because of his football intelligence and excellent techniques. I like his mental toughness to stay with those techniques when he gets beat. He doesn’t panic and commit penalties. I like his leadership qualities and that he enjoys a challenge and wants to be considered one of the best. The pocket this year for his Quarterback is far more secure than it was last year. You don’t see the quarterback leaving the pocket so soon because of him not being able to trust his blind side. There is a lot more passing being done from the pocket this year compared to last year. That’s because Jake has the confidence of his quarterback to protect his blind side. Jake has played left and right tackle and I know he can play any of the guard positions if needed because he is quick out of his stance and has the strength and techniques. I would work him out at center and see if he can make all the snaps just to see if he could play all five positions on the offensive line. Jake should be drafted early in this draft because he can play left tackle and because of his versatility. I call him Jake (Macho Man) Mathews because he has just enough strength and aggression in his play to be a successful offensive lineman for the next level.

Drew Boylhart Dec/2013


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Taylor Lewan OT Michigan

TALENT BOARD ROUND 1

STRENGTHS
Taylor has excellent athletic talent to be a Pro Bowl right tackle for the next level. He has excellent size and upper body strength as well as strong leadership skills. He works well with his line mates and shows the mental stamina needed to succeed at the next level. Taylor’s athletic talents overall are solid. He has good feet, strong hands and uses solid techniques when he gets his hands on his opponent. He has decent quickness out of his stance, but his true strength is his ability to never to give up and to recover mentally when he struggles. Taylor could play Left Tackle for the team that uses a vertical play action type of offensive system (in a pinch), but his impact position for the next level will be at the Right Tackle position and he should be a good one. He reminds me a lot of Brian Bulaga (OT Packers), only bigger.

CONCERNS
Taylor is much improved over last year in his conditioning and that alone has improved his overall play. He still has to become more consistent. He needs to study his opponents -- their strengths and weaknesses -- and rely less on the fact that he is bigger than most players he goes up against. He struggles to move his feet once engaged with his opponent and relies on his upper body strength too much. When he does this, he loses balance and leverage which is why he doesn’t finish his blocks when run blocking as well as loses his man when pass blocking. He has decent feet, but he lacks the lateral agility to be a pure left tackle at the next level. Once he gets it through his head to move his feet more once he engages his opponent, his run and pass blocking will become more consistent. A drill he should work hard on is to run up the steps and DOWN the steps of the stadium to get his feet and mind moving together. The quicker he learns to go down the steps, the better he will be moving his feet. That foot movement will transfer to his blocking skills and improve consistency on the field.

BOTTOM LINE
Taylor gets frustrated in a game when he starts to get tired and feels he is getting beat. This happens because he relies too much on his upper body and not enough on his lower body once he gets engaged. He is very susceptible to swim moves because just before he run blocks, he drops his head into his opponent’s chest which lowers his body, gets him off balance and makes it easy to swim around him into the backfield. All of that is correctable and Taylor has the attitude to correct it, but he will need good coaching and he will have to believe in new techniques and use them on every down, even when he gets beat. He will also have to accept the fact that all good offensive linemen get beat and have bad games. He must learn to turn the page, stay with his techniques, keep his balance, keep his head up and commit to his blocks mentally when he goes to the second level. Taylor has the potential to be an excellent right tackle. He has the leadership skills and in the new pass happy, pass catching NFL, right tackles are becoming almost as important as left tackles because more and more of them are not being covered up on third and long downs. A playoff team has to be looking hard at drafting Taylor in the first round, I would think. I don’t think for a moment he will last until the second round and I would be looking at drafting him in the first if I was playoff team.

Drew Boylhart Dec/2013
 

lasvegasrams

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My Mock Draft (rd 1-7)
Pick 5 (Via WAS) - Louis Nix, DT, Notre Dame
Pick 14 - Hasean Clinton-Dix, S, Alabama
Pick 46 - Trent Murphy, OLB, Stanford
Pick 78 - AJ McCarron, QB, Alabama
Pick 110 - Shaq Evans, WR, UCLA
Pick 142 - Spencer Long, G, Nebraska
Pick 174 - Chris Coyle, TE, Arizona State
Pick 206 - Ashton Dorsey, DT, Lamar
 

jrry32

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Whoops, just saw the sticky thread. Delete.
 
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jrry32

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You guys know how much I love the draft which means getting started early and keep on trucking until May. Before I unveil it, I wanted to cover a few things that I have happening.

Cut
Cortland Finnegan
Scott Wells
Harvey Dahl

Key Re-Signings
Rodger Saffold
Jo-Lonn Dunbar

Trades
Rams trade:
#3

Browns trade:
#7
2nd(#7)

Rams trade:
#15

Saints trade:
#30
2nd(#30)

Explanation: Bridgewater and Clowney go #1 and #2. Rams shop the pick around to a few teams and the Browns decide they will move up for Derek Carr. Carr has the tools for Norv's offense and his biggest issues are things that Norv excels at fixing(footwork and mechanics).

The Saints have a nice year but feel they need a big time piece on defense. Rob Ryan salivates over the idea of Khalil Mack in his 3-4. Mack has a versatile skill-set with the ability to get after the passer at OLB. This is something the Saints would love to have. They move up over a few teams that are a threat to take the versatile Mack.

NFL Draft
http://www.draftnikcentral.com/dream-draft/view.cfm?id=116
Round 1 Pick #7 - Mike Evans WR Texas A&M
Round 1 Pick #30 - Cedric Ogbuehi T/G Texas A&M
Round 2 Pick #7 - LaMarcus Joyner CB/S FSU
Round 2 Pick #15 - Aaron Donald DT Pittsburgh
Round 2 Pick #30 - Calvin Pryor FS Louisville
Round 3 Pick #15 - Morgan Moses T Virginia
Round 4 Pick #15 - David Fales QB San Jose State
Round 5 Pick #15 - Andrew Jackson SLB Western Kentucky
Round 6 Pick #15 - Victor Hampton CB South Carolina
Round 7 Pick #15 - Spencer Long G Nebraska

Projected Starters
QB: Sam Bradford
HB: Zac Stacy
FB: Cory Harkey
XWR: Mike Evans
ZWR: Stedman Bailey
SLWR: Tavon Austin(starts in 2 WR sets)
TE: Jared Cook
LT: Jake Long
LG: Cedric Ogbuehi
C: Tim Barnes/Barrett Jones
RG: Rodger Saffold
RT: Joe Barksdale

LDE: Chris Long
LDT: Kendall Langford(until Donald overtakes him)
RDT: Michael Brockers
RDE: Robert Quinn
WLB: Alec Ogletree
MLB: James Laurinaitis
SLB: Jo-Lonn Dunbar
RCB: Janoris Jenkins
LCB: Trumaine Johnson
SLCB: LaMarcus Joyner
FS: Calvin Pryor/Rodney McLeod
SS: T.J. McDonald

K: Greg Zuerlein
P: John Hekker

It's nice that in this mock, for the first time in quite a few years, I don't have like 6 rookies having to start at different positions. :lol:

I think it shows how far we've come. If we re-sign Rodger and Jo-Lonn, the only spots that NEED filling in the STARTING line-up(we do need a lot of depth) are FS, slot CB(not technically a starting job but basically is), LG and #1 WR.

And McLeod and Quick could realistically battle for the FS and #1 WR jobs.

Feel free to tear it to shreds. Haha.
 

jrry32

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BTW, if there's one under-appreciated name in my mock that you guys need to watch, it's Aaron Donald from Pittsburgh. I can't even begin to explain how excited this guy made me when I flipped on his first game of film. Now I gotta go jump in deeper. His balance is exceptional, he can get skinny through gaps and swat the OL's arms down like it's nothing(main weapon is the swim but he uses clubs and rips as well), he has plus burst/speed for a DT and he attacks the half man as well as anyone in this class. His arm length is acceptable despite his short stature(I'd say 32-33 inches) and he's a surprisingly tough player to move in the run game...uses his natural leverage, exceptional balance and strong lower base well to anchor.
 
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brokeu91

The super shrink
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Michael
My Mock Draft (rd 1-7)
Pick 5 (Via WAS) - Louis Nix, DT, Notre Dame
Pick 14 - Hasean Clinton-Dix, S, Alabama
Pick 46 - Trent Murphy, OLB, Stanford
Pick 78 - AJ McCarron, QB, Alabama
Pick 110 - Shaq Evans, WR, UCLA
Pick 142 - Spencer Long, G, Nebraska
Pick 174 - Chris Coyle, TE, Arizona State
Pick 206 - Ashton Dorsey, DT, Lamar
I think when it's all said and done, McCarron will be a late first round, early second round pick. I also think that the Rams will use one first round pick on a defensive player (very possibly Nix) and one on an offensive player, likely a lineman.