So What Did Fisher/Snead Know about Aaron Donald Before the 2014 Draft?

[RamFan503]

@jrry32 is my favorite draft analyst for real.
I don't always agree but more often than not, he is right for the right reasons.
Nobody is going to get them all right.
I was aware of Donald being a productive player with good character - which is always what I am looking for - but it was jrry32 that had me really excited about him before the draft

Meh... He sucks.

:neener:

 

[A.J. Hicks]

I have had my share of misses over the years (Bortles, Tavon, etc.). But I was right about AD. This is the scouting report I wrote on him back then:

Jrry32 you are one of the best to read evaluators of talent that I have found.

I still, even though he doesn't play for us, feel like Tavon is going to turn a corner. It's likely not happening but I was with you on him. I really thought he was going to be pretty lethal in the league.

 

[hotanez]

The second I saw the film of him tackle 2 players at the same time in the backfield I wanted him to be a Ram.

 

[tempests]

I knew he was the best interior rusher in the draft, and that he was a rare commodity. My thing was arguing with other fans on RamStalk who wanted Clowney or Mack. I pushed for Donald because he brought what we didn't have.

I did not think he would be so good against the run as a first and second year player, and I did not know he would be a 20 sack player at this level. That never even entered my mind.

 

[fanotodd]

I remember him winning every conceivable award an interior DL can win and thinking he can't be all bad!
At the Sr. bowl practices, he was destroying every OL they put in front of him. He was mentioned every day.
I knew he was good, really good, but the Rams were loaded on the DL. I didn't think we would pick him, but I was very happy when we did.

 

[dieterbrock]

All you guys need to stop stroking @jrry32 ego. I mean really, what does he know?
In fact he wanted Alshon Jeffrey when Brian Quick was still on the board

- Jeff Fisher

 

[bluecoconuts]

I didn't know shit about him, and would never have thought to make that pick based on the talent we had, but I remember someone here had a mock draft where they raved about him, pretty sure it was Jrry, so when we did pick him, I saw how excited Jrry was and figured it was a good pick.

I'm not a big college guy or a big draft guy, so I mostly trust the people here for how to feel.

 

[theduke]

I went to Duke, so I watch more than my fair share of Duke football games. I once saw him tackle our quarterback and our running back on the same play. I couldn’t believe we could get him at 13. He’s only gotten better since then.

 

[OC--LeftCoast]

I have had my share of misses over the years (Bortles, Tavon, etc.). But I was right about AD. This is the scouting report I wrote on him back then:
Aaron Donald Prospect Evaluation

Build

Aaron Donald does not possess a prototypical frame for a NFL Defensive Tackle. He is a short and squatty player that lacks ideal height and weight for the position at 6’1” 285. Donald’s arm length is long relative to his size and is about average for the position at around 32 inches. His hand size is around 10 inches and more than adequate for a Defensive Tackle. Donald has broad shoulders, a thick lower half, and a muscular upper body with very little bad weight. He has a bubble and very thick thighs. There does not appear to be much growth potential on his frame. He should play between 290 and 295 in the NFL after adding weight in a NFL Strength and Conditioning Program.

Pass Rushing

Donald is an exceptional pass rushing prospect for a DT. He has a full repertoire of pass rush moves and knows how to use them. Donald has elite first step acceleration, nimble feet, and anticipates the snap count well. This makes his get off deadly at times. Many teams resorted to doubling him for much of the game because he was such a disruptive pass rusher. Donald showed the ability to setup speed with power and vice versa. His arm-over swim move is his most deadly weapon in his arsenal and he used it to humiliate numerous collegiate offensive linemen. Donald is the best DT in this class at attacking the half man and using his combination of speed and power to fight into the back-field. His hand placement and punch timing are top notch, often allowing him to land the first blow, lock the OL’s arms out, and then control his man with his natural leverage and powerful lower body. Donald also showed the ability to bull-rush his man into the back-field and then beat him back inside with his suddenness or spin move. When bull-rushing, Donald is smart enough to not get out of control and allow the OL to recover. He gets his hands into the OL’s chest-plate, drives him backwards, and continues to push the OL upwards while keeping his feet under him and staying well balanced. Donald also flashes effective rip and club moves. He seems to understand how to attack and beat the man in front of him often keeping the OL on his toes by varying his moves and changing up his attack style. Donald’s full arsenal of moves, powerful lower body, natural leverage, balance, punch timing, hand placement, and violent hands make him nearly impossible for most collegiate OLs to block 1 on 1. Donald is also a relentless pass rusher with a non-stop motor that will get his hands up into passing lanes if he’s stonewalled. However, he has had some issues taking down bigger and/or athletic QBs at times after he beat the man despite his top notch closing speed for a DT. Donald can also be too aggressive on play-action fakes leading him to run himself out of the play. Still, Donald has the potential to be a DT that consistently puts up 8-10+ sacks a year in the NFL.

Run Stopping

Donald is a more effective run stopper than one would expect a guy with his size to be. Donald is very strong in the lower body, anchors quite effectively, uses his natural leverage well, and has a strong upper body with powerful hands. He also has a low center of gravity and top notch balance which makes it difficult to cut him and makes it rare to see Donald off his feet. Donald has excellent lateral agility for a DT with nimble feet that make it difficult for OLs to get across his face and make him effective at moving laterally down the line of scrimmage on zone stretch plays. When Donald is playing disciplined, he has the get off, power, and balance to get into and hold his gap forcing running plays away from their desired location. However, Donald is an aggressive player and can allow run himself out of plays or get too far up-field on running plays while attacking. Donald shows the ability to stack blockers and find the HB when run at. However, due to Donald’s size, he can be engulfed by bigger OLs and taken out of plays by double teams. Donald can also lose his vision when tied up with bigger OLs and struggle to find the football. However, Donald is usually very good at using his hands and lateral agility in order to find a lane to get his eyes into the back-field while still keeping his gap integrity. He is very effective at finding the football while moving laterally. Donald has a very hot motor for a DT and will pursue plays down the field. While Donald will never be Vince Wilfork, he can hold his own 1 on 1 in the running game and should not be a liability. He also has the ability to penetrate the back-field due to his get-off, blow plays up, and pick up tackles for losses.

Intangibles

Donald was very clearly the best player on a Pittsburgh defense that was lacking in talent and often was shouldering the load. He was reportedly an extremely hard worker in the weight room and on the practice field. Donald plays the game with passion and intensity; he did not take plays off and often pursued plays that most DTs would have given up on. He was relentless in the running and passing games. He also played with a competitive fire and a mean streak. There were some moments where he lost his head including getting called for a personal foul in Pittsburgh’s Bowl Game against Bowling Green but those type of mental errors were few and far between. Donald understood how to walk the line between intense and hot-head. Donald seems to be a high character kid that works extremely hard on and off the field. His play, build, and power all reflect those qualities.

Overall

While being far from your prototypical DT, Aaron Donald is an exception to the general rules. Yes, he’s undersized. However, Donald’s play is so dominant that it cannot be overlooked. He consistently showed the ability to be a game changing talent from the DT position and players like that are quite rare. When teams did not double and triple team Donald, he wrecked their game-plan. When they did double and triple team Donald, he still found ways to make an impact. Donald showed the ability to get after the QB from any and every spot on the front four. He has elite physical attributes for the position, impressive technique for a college player, and the perfect mind-set for a player with his sort of size deficiencies. Donald is cut from the same cloth as DTs like Rod Coleman, La’Roi Glover, Geno Atkins, and dare I say John Randle. Once he has adjusted to the pro game and receives pro coaching, Donald will settle in as one of the NFL’s premier pass rushers and a guy that pushes double digit sacks seemingly year in and year out. Even more than that, though, he will provide consistent pressure and push up the middle while being able to hold his own in run defense and contribute splash plays. I would take him in the top 10 picks in the draft.

Nicely done, yes sir even a blind nut finds a squirrel occasionally

JK of course, you’re one of our best

 

[PhillyRam]

I liked the pick. Had read a lot about him and he had a 10 minute college highlight video that was sick.

My son hated it... I always remind him of that. Of course then he reminds me that I refused to give up on Greg Robinson while he wrote him off after 1 season.

BTW, my son showed me a video of Robinson who recently said, "I am now listening the my coaches and it is really starting to pay off"... He also said that he always did what he thought was best and relied on his athletic ability and did not work on the techniques he was being taught.

Can you believe this clown is admitting that he never really listened to coaching?

 

[ramfan46]

@jrry32 was all over him pre draft and that got him on my radar as well. It was easy for me to get on board with his size because of how dominant Geno Atkins had been recently. Once Aaron blew up the combine I was all in. He ran a 4.68 at 285 pounds! I don't remember how many reps of 225 he put up, but I know it was a lot. He just kept checking the boxes with eye popping performances.
I want to thank the Detroit Lions for passing on Aaron Donald for Eric Ebron in the 2013 Draft.

2014 Draft, excuse me.

 

[Loyal]

Lol..c'mon guys...40 of 57 poster's knew that Aaron Donald would be a STUD? I didn't know we had a bunch of guys who were employed as NFL scouts in here!

 

[kurtfaulk]

.

I can remember a few of us were fantasizing about getting clowney at #2 and Donald at #13.

We knew it wouldn't happen but it was sure fun to think about happening that draft.

.

 

[TexasRam]

I remember Jrry was all over Donald. And I highly respect Jrry's draft analysis, probably over anyone elses.

I specifically remember Jrry mentioning Donald blowing up the combine. 3 cone I think and some other ones, but that Donald also completely Dominated the Senior Bowl practices and was "unblockable".

So when Donald fell to us at 13 I was praying we picked him and was ecstatic when his name was called. Then some posters on here were asking what all the hype was about because most were posting on this board that we hit the Jackpot with Donald.

Some should pull up the old thread from the 2014 draft and bump it here, it would be a great read.

 

[Akrasian]

I remember Jrry was all over Donald. And I highly respect Jrry's draft analysis, probably over anyone elses.

I specifically remember Jrry mentioning Donald blowing up the combine. 3 cone I think and some other ones, but that Donald also completely Dominated the Senior Bowl practices and was "unblockable".

So when Donald fell to us at 13 I was praying we picked him and was ecstatic when his name was called. Then some posters on here were asking what all the hype was about because most were posting on this board that we hit the Jackpot with Donald.

Some should pull up the old thread from the 2014 draft and bump it here, it would be a great read.

Yup The reason I (and so many others) were excited about him falling to #13 and being picked by the Rams is that Jrry and some others had been hyping him for a while, especially after blowing up the combine. A highly productive player in college who also looked great at the combine? What's not to like about him falling to the Rams at #13?

 

[TexasRam]

Yup The reason I (and so many others) were excited about him falling to #13 and being picked by the Rams is that Jrry and some others had been hyping him for a while, especially after blowing up the combine. A highly productive player in college who also looked great at the combine? What's not to like about him falling to the Rams at #13?

Well that and the mention of Donald being “unblockable” at the senior bowl practices.

Not only Jrry but a few media outlets mentioned this same thing.

There seemed to be a growing consensus after the Senior Bowl practices that Donald might end up being the most impactful player coming out of that draft class, while others questioned if he could get washed out in the run game.

 

[Jacobarch]

They got lucky. You can draft by looking at tape, measurable's, smarts, and combine. None are foolproof.

The draft and it's players are nothing but rolling the dice, sure you can you bet there are safe bets/players and they usually get chosen in later rounds but make no mistake these GM's and scouts are often guessing when it comes to top talent. Proof is in the puddin, only 50% of first round picks don't bust out of the nfl. That's literally a coin flip.

 

[Zaphod]

.

I can remember a few of us were fantasizing about getting clowney at #2 and Donald at #13.

We knew it wouldn't happen but it was sure fun to think about happening that draft.

.

Yes, I was way past trusting Fisher with offensive picks, but I remained hopeful on Greg Robinson until he was no longer a Ram. I still don't know if it was the selection or the development (probably both), but I cringed at the thought of Fisher picking an offensive player.

I really wanted Mack and Donald. I think we all expected Clowney to go first, and I think some were hoping that we'd trade up for the first to take Clowney instead? I can't get behind something like that unless it's for a quarterback.

 

[thirteen28]

I'm no draftnik like some of these posters here, but I knew he'd be good. I had heard a lot of stuff about how dominant he was in college, and then, during the pre-draft process he absolutely killed it. He was dominating other OLs that were slated to be high picks, guys that were the best of the best in college. If I missed anything on AD, it's that while I knew he'd be good right out of the gate, I didn't realize he'd be HOF worthy right out of the gate. But he was definitely someone I really wanted the Rams to get, even though DL was not an area of need.

I very distinctly remember that draft, and I had him going to Tampa Bay at around 7 or so, figuring he was exactly the type of DT that was perfectly suited to their version of the Cover 2 D. He was a better version of Warren Sapp. When they passed on him and took Mike Evans (who, admittedly has been a decent pick), I started thinking we had a shot at him, but I was on pins and needles for every pick until it was our turn again. When the Giants took OBJ one pick prior, I was elated, although that quickly turned into some trepidation, hoping that Snead and Fisher would do the right thing. I should have put a lump of coal in my a$$ as I waited for the card to be turned in, as it would have yielded a very nice diamond. And once the pick was announced, I was beyond elated.

 

[bomebadeeda]

Most of us thought Donald would be good. But he has completely blown past my expectations and then some...… Fisher couldn't hit offensive coordinators....but damn, that guy knows defensive players.