Players I like in this draft class for our needs etc.

[Bostonheelfish]

Preface: This is still pre combine. I think the combine is best for ruling out bubble players, discovering big weaknesses, and finding TEs. We draft at No. 8, and am going to assume Mason Graham, Travis Hunter, and Abdul Carter are gone by then. I have a hard time deciding  between Starks and Jalen Walker at No. 8. I love Walker, but Evero is due a star at safety and the versatility Starks provides allows us to disguise blitzes and coverages, and you can see how important that is in today’s NFL (see Spagnolo’s D - thanks Chris Jones) We may have to miss on good Edge rushers if we take Starks, but we can improve our pass rush and run D with talent at DL in this draft when you add D Brown back in the mix.

Please note, my research is ongoing, so this isn’t a final nail in any player who is not mentioned’s coffin. This is what has stuck out to me so far.

The following are players I think are excellent players for our team regardless of round projections. I’m intentionally skipping players guaranteed to be gone after we pick in the first round.  No particular order below:

1. Jamaree Caldwell - Great run stuffer, sheds blocks, and as you can see in the film he doesn’t use wasted steps. His feet are very well coached.

2. Deone Walker

Closest player to Chris Jones. Even when he plays too high he stays in his gap and holds his ground. Huge strength, good instincts, and athleticism. Excellent 3-4 end.

3. Danny Stutsman MLB

Looks like Luke on film because of PLAY STYLE. But he diagnoses plays very well, hits the gaps, good instincts in zone coverage. Bigger than he looks on tape, and flies around. Our LB depth is a concern, and his tape is so good I would understand taking him in the second round. If this were 15 years ago he’d be chosen in the first round. I love his tape.

The above are players I think fill our needs and would love to snag. We will be lucky if Deone Walker makes it to us in the 2nd round.

I like Jack Sawyer from Ohio State at Edge. Most important quality in Evero’s scheme for an Edge is to set it. Sacks come in various ways. In today’s NFL they mostly come if you make the QB get to his second read. The need for Edges that run by OTs in a flash aren’t as necessary as they once were, and you risk losing contain with those players. It’s why Haason Reddick, while an excellent pass rush specialist, is a complete liability as a starter.

We need Center depth- Collins from Texas showed out really well, but he should be a 4th round pick. Centers should not be picked earlier unless they can completely change your OL dynamic, but he is a very good center, nonetheless.

RB - Omarion Hampton might need to be picked if he is there in the second round. Groan all you want, but we paid too much money, deservedly so, to Chubba Hubbard, only for him to be worn down at the end of the year. A stout run game with fresh bruisers with first step speed will help Bryce more than 98% of the WRs in this draft.

RB - Raheim Sanders, more likely available 3rd round and beyond, but he’s as good as Hampton. I love him.

RB - Traveyon Henderson, would love to have him, but concerned about his height in the passing game. Bryce has to loft the ball high over the OL given his size, and Henderson would do better catching from a QB that throws down towards him.

QB - Will Howard, we need a back-up when Andy’s hair eventually leaves. Kid is huge and can run, and has an arm. Also, simply good to have a guy on Bryce’s heels who offers what Bryce can’t to make sure Bryce stays focused. I was a little disappointed and surprised to hear that Bryce wasn’t putting in the work in year one, but glad he is now and so excited for our future with him, but he may need a threat as a back-up to keep him from getting too comfortable.

 

Players I’m not as high on:

Edge James Pierce Jr. - not good enough at setting edge, and pass rush isn’t good enough to justify a high pick.

Edge- Mykel Williams - see James Pierce Jr.

CB - Will Johnson - good, but not high first round good. CB depth in this draft is decent, and I really want a good corner opposite Horn, and for insurance in case Horn gets injured again or we decide not to extend him, but Will Howard isn’t worth a first round pick *considering our needs*

Safety - Andrew Makuba - small small small why why why. 
 

Safety - Nick Emmanwori - Talented, no doubt, but I have doubts about his fit in our scheme (I disagree with Natalie on this). Certainly draft worthy, but not until 4th round. He really needs to improve his balance.

DL - Omarr Norman-Lott - talented player but lacks strength for DE in our system. Relies on athleticism to get past OL that aren’t very good. 6th round grade. Would have earlier grade if we ran a 4-3, he could be a good 4-3 DE.

DL -TJ Sanders - good player, but not a fit for every down, right now. 4th round grade, but he’s a beast. I like him, just not early round pick because we can’t plug him in right away to stop the run. He took advantage of college OL, and needs more time for his skills to translate.

Not a fan of the TE draft class on the whole. Too many Y tight ends and we have Sanders. No need to draft a player with our TE room, right now. Having said that, Orande Gadsden II out of Syracuse will make an excellent WR and tall end zone threat which Bryce needs. He and Bryson Nesbit from UNC would be good late round steals. Bryce needs to be able to throw it up to someone in the redzone. I just don’t think we need to use early picks to a player like that. The combine is really good for evaluating TEs so my attitudes could change. 
 

Edited Sunday at 07:56 PM by Bostonheelfish

[LinvilleGorge]

Jack Sawyer - EDGE, OSU

Kyle Kennard - EDGE, SCar

Jabbar Muhammad - CB, Oregon

Xavier Watts - S, ND

Lander Barton - LB, Utah

Jay Higgins - WR, Iowa State

Jalen Royals - WR, Utah State

Jared Wilson - C, UGA

[ChuckWag78]

1 hour ago, Bostonheelfish said:

Players I’m not as high on:

Edge James Pierce Jr. - not good enough at setting edge, and pass rush isn’t good enough to justify a high pick.

Man, I love JPJ. For his size, I think he stands up to the run pretty good, and his pass rush is elite. 

I have watch a lot of UT games and he is always in the mix. There is an 8 min video on YouTube for every holding that WASN'T called this past year. He is  super quick and bendy with high drive. 

Carter, Hunter, Graham, Tet are my top 4 hopes at 8, but JPJ is a very close 5th.  

https://youtu.be/ph6dQmAqxW8?si=hrCe86_LiB39_mrP

 

[Aussie Tank]

I really like that Stutsman

[Bostonheelfish]

56 minutes ago, ChuckWag78 said:

Man, I love JPJ. For his size, I think he stands up to the run pretty good, and his pass rush is elite. 

I have watch a lot of UT games and he is always in the mix. There is an 8 min video on YouTube for every holding that WASN'T called this past year. He is  super quick and bendy with high drive. 

Carter, Hunter, Graham, Tet are my top 4 hopes at 8, but JPJ is a very close 5th.  

https://youtu.be/ph6dQmAqxW8?si=hrCe86_LiB39_mrP

 

I hear you, but he’s not going to get those calls in the NFL either, and NFL OTs won’t need to hold him. He loses contain a lot too. When he’s blocked solely by RB he does well, but that’s not a first or second round pick. He’s smaller and less athletic than Brian Burns, but Burns could make up for it with lightning quick speed. Burns wasn’t good enough at setting the edge in Evero’s scheme which is why we didn’t pay him, and he was much better coming out of college than Pierce. I’m rooting for Pierce because he’s talented, but he’s not a three-down player.

[PanthersNCSU]

Minor piece of a good list, but if we spend a 2nd round pick on a RB (again) to be a backup (again) Dan Morgan needs to go. 

There are 20+ RBs in this draft. You'll be able to get a good one in the 4th or 5th round. Using a 2nd round pick on a RB to get 7 or 8 snaps, over any defensive position, is a fireable offense. 

[panthers55]

So who is our best defensive lineman? Brown hands down. He can play any of the three positions.  I think we need to draft the next Derrick Brown in the first and his best clone in the second. Seriously, if all three guys on the  line were interchangeable and able to go inside or out we have flexibility in case of injury and can collapse the pocket from all sides. I dont know who that guy is but I know he is out there and that could cement our DLine for years to come instead of the yearly patchwork which doesnt really work.

[Bear Hands]

Nice write up.  Not sure I agree with the Pearce Jr assessment as he's a strong run defender and one of the few 3-down EDGEs in this class that aren't either just edge setters or PR specialists.  He's got sneaky power and he could easily fill into around 260.  

Top of class run stop rate % (10.1) and pass rush win rate (23.0%) -pff

And he's just really strong on tape IMO.  Has great decisiveness with peeling off blocks to laterally get to runners.  Top tier spatial awareness/understanding of what's going on.  The awareness also came in handy when TEN pulled him back and he stepped into coverage instead of rushing.  Huge added ability that not many of the bigger guys can pull off.   

Bend - check, burst - check (explosive), hands -check, run defense - check.    

I've seen a Leonard Floyd comp which I think makes some sense.  

[Bear Hands]

Also - I kind of like your Will Johnson take; if Quinyon was in this draft, he'd be ahead of WJ. 

If injuries weren't there, Benjamin Morrison would be CB1 this year - elite press corner, ballhawk, run support.  His knock is he's just not the physical man type prototype, but he's gonna be making plays in the NFL.