Rumblings Draft Scouting: College Football Recap, Week 3

I like Jake Locker, but i’m not sure what his pro prospects are yet. I think he’s still more a run first qb (although the USC numbers dispute this) than he is a pure pocket passer. That being said, there’s still big place in this league for tough quarterbacks, especially if you want to continue with the wildcat or something like that. Also, I think there’s tremendous upside if he can be taught to be an effective passer, but that remains to be seen.

Berry would be a great pickup…its pretty much a no-lose scenario to bet on a standout SEC defender.

Also, I wouldn’t throw out mays yet – the only reason his stock has dropped is because he’s injured. Also, his injury showed what an asset he was to that USC defense, when he wasn’t in there against Locker & co.

Here’s a list from SI.com of Risers and Sliders…

While I agree that Mays has not done much of note this year, I disagree with the statement that he would need a strong finish to cement his 1st round status. The guy is 6’3", 230 pounds, and has 4.25 speed. Really the only Safety that would pass him in rankings is Berry (and he prob has passed him already).

I’m pretty sure Mays could play the rest of the year hopping on one leg and come draft time everyone would fall back in love with his “measureables” and he’d still go 1st round.

Great college football info though. Love the articles.

I heard an interview with the coach at Cal saying that this is the best offensive line he’s ever seen, even with the departure of Alex Mack to the NFL. That probably helps out Best quite a bit when he gets to run through a hallway sized hole every play. No doubt he’s talented, but he’s got some help.

Even Cal fans don’t think Best is of “Beast Mode” status, but they like him a lot.

His numbers have been down, but the first two weeks, teams were keying on the run and daring them to pass. That, and the line play has been remarkably inconsistent.

Regardless, I agree that he needs another year, probably not so much for his own development, but just to improve his draft stock.

Unrelated to that, you guys could add in a category for people that could be interesting (for lack of a better word) in the draft. Like USF’s QB tearing his ACL- he was probably a 3-4th round pick before that (IMHO) and could drop and be a decent value pick in a later round. Maybe call them sleepers? I don’t know.

We need some talented big guys on this team. I don’t think you can ever have enough of them. If we could get guys like Russell Okung, OT OK State, Trent Williams, OT, Oklahoma, Bryan Bulaga, OT, Iowa, Ndamukong Suh, DT, Nebraska, or Gerald McCoy, DT, Oklahoma, I think we would be doing ourselves a big favor.

I havn’t really watched and scouted Mays yet, but I’ve always been a fan. He’s definitely a bit of a product of internet hype (and there’s no way he runs a 4.3 at the combine, right?) but his size/speed combo is really impressive.

One thing to know about Mays is that he plays FS and in deep coverage all the time. People look at his listed weight and assume that he plays SS or close to the box, but it isn’t the case. If you ever read that his size might make him shift to OLB, immediately disregard the scouting report and anything else that guy writes about college prospects. USC ran a ton of cover 1 last year, with LB Kevin Ellison playing safety. It’s tough to get a read on what kind of player Mays would be at strong safety, but at free safety, he’s an intimidating presence. Teams rarely threw deep on him (probably why he has so few turnovers). He does play with a great front 7 that generates pressure and shuts down the run though. Since teams don’t test Mays and due to how great the defense he is a part of is, I think Mays is still a bit of an unknown.

I wouldn’t have put Eric Berry on the three up list, but that’s only because when you disregard position value, I think he’s the best prospect in the country. So he can’t climb any higher for me. Unlike Mays, he plays SS for the Vols. I think he’s a better strong safety and a better free safety than Mays and is clearly the better player.

Jahvid Best has got to be the first RB drafted. He’s going to make any team that passes him over for a bigger back regret it.

I wouldn’t have had Colt McCoy on the three down list either. The stats warrant it, but he doesn’t have an NFL arm. He’s always been a mid round pick and a career backup in my mind.

…due to some job related stuff, but here’s some observations:

Ndamukong Suh, DT Nebraska. The most mobile big DT I’ve seen since Kevin Williams, though he’s not quite Williams size (yet). Watch him on twists and stunts against Virginia Tech… you’ll immediately pick this up. What’s also impressive is the strength he showed against a really good guard, Sergio Render. He was able to play both 2 gap and 1 gap effectively. In any other draft he’s a top 5 lock.

Eric Decker, WR Minnesota. Again, impressive as a possession receiver with athleticism. Reminds me of Joe Jurivicious in terms of playing style and a taller Jordy Nelson in terms of physical skills. Took an unbelievable shot against Cal and came back to play. 2nd round talent that will probably slip to round 3.

Ryan Mallett, QB, Arkansas. Wow this guy is big and wow, can this guy throw the deep ball. He’s only a sophomore, but he’s got the best arm in the SEC IMO. Classic drop back passer to keep an eye on. He may be a Bledsoe-type, but if can show mobility and ability to avoid the rush, he could be special.

Jimmy Graham, TE, Miami, Fla. Basketball player transitioning to football. Short development cycle, as he’s already a senior. Mostly a project but great tools to work with. Listed as 6-8 but probably shorter- that’s still great size. 260 pounds but carries it like a basketball player and may not have the functional football strength to in-line block at this point. What makes him special is his wingspan and hands. Hard for Jacory Harris to miss, as his wingspan allows him to out reach anyone who is covering him. Great hands. Would be a great mid- to late round project.

Short bits: The Tebow-Berry collision was classic. Tebow got the best of it, but he’s also got Berry but 40 pounds… Clausen was again impressive throwing deep… Not as impressed with Best as the original FanPost or posters. Let’s see him against someone other than Minnesota. He is fast but I’m interested in how quickly he picks up speed. You don’t really see that against lesser defenses where to holes are as big as the ones he ran through. I need to see more against a better defense… Jordan Shipley, if he can stay healthy, could be Wes Welker part duex…

He hits like Ronnie Lott, another USC back, along with Troy Polamalu. You basically have a linebacker playing safety, who runs a 4.4 forty.

If you’re not watching the South Carolina-Mississippi game, you’re missing out. If you missed how awesome David Pollack was a few years back for Georgia, don’t worry. You get to see it all again in South Carolina DE Eric Norwood.

Through 3 quarters, Norwood has 2 sacks, a blocked punt, multpile QB hurries, and has been the driving force in dismantling the Ole Miss offense so far. I’ll get specific about him during next weeks post comments, but his performance is the best single game performance so far this season IMO.

Other things to note from this game: Snead is playing hard but is playing bad so far, SC DT Jarrell Powe looks decent, and Mississippi DE Greg Hardy is playing OK even though he’s hurt.