Researching the Pickup Artist (PUA) Community is truly one of the best and worst things in the world. There are a lot of times where you will find something so ridiculous that you will find yourself laughing about it days later.
There are other things that remind you that PUAs are basically the worst human beings in the world. Seriously, people make fun of Juggalos, but PUAs are so much worse. I could slam some Faygo and party with Juggalos; hanging out with PUAs may be the worst experience of my life. The release of a book called Day Bang has made me dive back into this dark, sad world where many of the people involved actually think that women are far more evil than Hitler.
Day Bang introduced something called "Elderly Game" as its backbone for seducing women during the day. My ears perked up like I was a dog about to go for a walk when I heard about it. Elderly game is talking to people like you're an elderly person. A better name for it would be "Seinfeld Game," because the main point behind it is making observations and talking to people about them. Here are some examples.
“Beautiful day.”
“Those shoes look comfortable."
"That's nice; where did you get that?"
“Hello.”
That's it. That's all there is to it. I have to say I was a little disappointed, but at least I got to post that picture of Mystery going undercover. Earlier I said "Seinfeld Game" might be a better name for "Elderly Game." The best name is "Human Being Game." If you talk to people like they are human beings, they will probably respond in kind. Of course, if you naturally thing of women as being sluts, bitches, and lizards (that one I just learned about), then treating them like human beings is probably a pretty foreign idea.
"Elderly Game" was pretty disappointing. The only thing unintentionally hilarious about it is the name for it, but they do get bonus points for encouraging men to treat women like human beings. Still, it loses major points for not pretending to be handicapped or removing one's teeth for sympathy bangs.
Finally, it is time to look at the Bears last pick of the 2014 NFL Draft, seventh rounder, Charles Leno Jr. If you are looking for a comprehensive breakdown of game film, you may want to keep looking on this one, because I am going to be spending most of my time looking at the intangibles that he brings to the table. Still, here are the only 42 seconds of cohesive game tape that I was able to find, so enjoy it.
He does his job on every one of these highlight plays. If he does that every time, he will be a perennial Pro Bowler. So that sounds good to me. Still, I am not quite able to fully sign off with that little bit of film. But there is one other thing about this late round pick that definitely needs to be addressed.
There is no way I can stop without talking about the elephant in the room. Although I did no actual research, I can confidently say that Charles Leno Jr. is related to Jay Leno. You may think with their difference in size, skin color, and first name that at best, they are only distant cousins. But after a complete lack of research, I learned that Jay is actually Charles's father. I have to say that it was a little surprising, but I learned that Charles "Jay" Leno earned his name early on in his life. He talked a little funny as a young lad, so when he introduced himself as Charles, everyone thought he said Jarles. Since Jarles is a ridiculously stupid name, they decided to call him Jay for short.
Obviously, this is a huge boon for the Bears locker room atmosphere. With Leno cracking wise with teammates, there is no way they won't have the best team chemistry in the entire league.
But it's not just inside the locker room that his quick wit will be a huge advantage. Imagine him lining up across from Ndamukong Suh and pulling a a newspaper out of his helmet just to show Suh the hilarious announcement of the Smelley-Kuntz wedding. Suh will be doubled over laughing while Matt Forte walks into the end zone. You can't make this stuff up, folks.
I will admit that things got weird towards the end of these Bears scouting reports, but I hope you have a better idea of what these rookies will be bringing to the table in their inaugural seasons.
Now is the time for the most exciting of all the Bears draft picks, sixth rounder Pat O'Donnell. The man who is a game changer anytime he gets on the field. Before we get into him, here is a list of the guys I have already looked at from the Bears draft.
As I said, Pat O'Donnell is a game changer. There is nobody who makes big plays as consistently as this guy does. If he's only getting a 40 yard play, you can bet that he's going into the red zone with it. Also, he's not some glory boy who is all about touchdowns. In fact, he actively avoids the end zone, as it "isn't his thing." A lot of prospects in the draft are seen as boom-or-bust guys. Well, this guy is definitely a boom, as every time he touches the ball, that is what shortly follows.
Obviously, you want to see the highlights. Well, that's kind of an issue. Since he is not a glory boy, nobody cared to make highlights of all of his greatest moments. Still, this minute long tribute video does a nice job of showing the highest of his highlights. It will definitely leave you wanting more.
When you watch video of this guy, you won't be surprised that he was asked to star in the remake of NBC's hit show, "Hang Time." I was unable to confirm whether they were going to make a parody cop comedy starring him and former Bears offensive coordinator, Ron Turner entitled, "Turner and Pooch."
What the Bears acquired here is the Tom Brady of this draft, except he isn't going to wait to take the starting gig.
Teams cursing themselves for not taking him? Check.
Pro Bowls every year? For sure.
Super Bowl Championships? Definitely.
Coitus with Super Models? Oh, yeah.
So, yeah, I definitely approve of this pick. Great job, Bears. And Pat, we're happy to have you on our side.
This is going to be my easiest review, because I broke down David Fales before the draft, and I have to say that I was excited with this pick. It shows that although Jay Cutler is their quarterback for the next three years, it may not be the direction that Emery and Trestman go in the future, because David Fales and Jay Cutler are about as opposite as two quarterbacks can be. The short version is that David Fales does a great job of everything a quarterback can do except for the physical gifts. He makes good decisions, has good accuracy, and can read a defense. However, he's not real athletic, and there isn't much zip on his passes. If arm strength didn't matter, he may have been the first quarterback taken. Unfortunately, it does matter, so he was picked in the sixth round. People like to point to the guys who improved their arm strength when reaching the pros, but that stuff gets overblown. If it does happen for Fales, he could be a stud, but considering Josh McCown set the world on fire last year, there's no reason Fales can't be a good backup for Cutler over these next few years. That's the quick version, for the full report on Fales, read below, as I have copied it from my report earlier this year. Also, you can check out all of my other reports before the jump.
David Fales is a very interesting prospect as people were very excited for him to come back this year and solidify his spot as one of the top quarterbacks in the draft. He went out and nearly duplicated his Junior season (his only real dropoff was completion percentage which went from a ridiculously high 72.5 to a still very solid 64.1) and everybody seemed to downgrade him. Also weird is that there are no 2013 game tapes on YouTube, but half of his season from 2012 is up there. Since I had not heard of any significant step forward that he made this past season, I took a look at his 2012 tape of his games against Stanford and BYU.
The mental side of the game is definitely a strength for Fales. He shows that he can smoothly work through his reads on this throw over the middle.
He starts off looking to his left, sees that his receiver is covered, then calmly bounces his feet to focus on the middle and throws a nice ball up the seam.
Fales does a really nice job of trusting his blocking on this play. He tries to stick with the deep route as long as possible, sees it is not going to happen, and then quickly looks to his right and fires a nice pass for a first down.
That sort of patience is an incredibly value asset for a quarterback to possess.
With that pocket presence, he also moves very well inside the pocket. Here he makes a nice move to avoid the rush, give himself space, and make a play.
This isn't a throw that is going to wow people, but considering he is on the move, throwing a well placed ball on the short route is very nice.
He's not going to wow teams with his athleticism, but he makes the most of his moves. On this play, he shows his maximum shiftiness, but it's a nice gain for him when nobody was open.
His awareness helps his mobility play up since he rarely wastes steps and knows the best ways to move when he is under duress.
The next play is an intermediate route where Fales successfully threads the needle. He does this with accuracy, as the lack of arm strength nearly gives the Stanford defender a chance to make an interception.
I'm still not sure how that pass was completed. The ball goes right through the defender's hands into his receivers.
I really love the anticipation here, as he knows his receiver is going to curl back right at the goal line, so he throws it so it arrives as the receiver is turning around in front of the cornerback who had coverage over the top.
The replay really shows the greatness of the timing of the throw and delivering it right to the receiver's chest makes it an easy touchdown.
He does a very nice job with intermediate throws as he places the ball right where it needs to be.
His receiver does get some separation on the out route, but Fales puts the ball on the outside shoulder so the defender has no chance of making a play and his receiver can pick up the first down.
Here is a deep ball that illustrates the worries that teams are going to have with Fales. Arm strength. On this pass, the ball flutters in the air and takes a long time to get to his intended receiver. Look at how the ball hangs in the air, and receiver has to slow down for it.
Yes, the receiver should have made the catch and had a touchdown, but that was more from the coverage falling down than the pass being great.
Here is the problem with a lack of arm strength. This receiver has a small opening over the top of the cornerback before the safety is over the top of the route. Fales sees that opening and throws the ball there.
Unfortunately, it hangs in the air far too long and the safety gets an easy interception.
These are the sort of windows that are common in the NFL, and this is why people are going to doubt Fales.
It's throws like this one that makes me want to believe in Fales. It's not wow arm strength, but it looks like enough on this throw over the middle.
It is thrown right as the receiver breaks towards the middle, and it is placed perfectly which saves his receiver from taking a big shot from the safety.
This was my favorite throw that I saw from Fales.
It's a throw like this that gives me hope.
Fales reminds me of quarterbacks that I've loved too much in the past. The name that comes to mind for me is Greg McElroy. The question that I struggle with when I look back is whether McElroy has not put it together in the NFL because of arm strength or whether I overrated him due to being surrounded by studs at the college level. Fales does not have to worry about the latter problem as San Jose State is not quite the football powerhouse that Alabama is. Still, I keep coming back to that arm strength. At times, it looks fine, but that's the high end of where his arm can be, just okay. Arm strength isn't everything, but there is still a minimum level that almost always must be met. On top of the arm strength issue, he is only an average athlete and has one of the lowest ceilings of any quarterback in this draft. But, he has accuracy, good pocket presence, and makes smart decisions with the football. Those are highly desirable qualities in a quarterback, but I still don't think it's enough to be any more than a late round pick.
The Bears traded their fifth round pick this year and another fifth round pick next year in order to move up to select Minnesota Safety, Brock Vereen. Although I would have loved for them to have used that extra pick to go up and get Timmy Jernigan (I'm not bitter; I'm just sad), but safety was a definite need for them, so it made sense to go up and get a guy that they clearly liked. I broke down his game against my alma mater, the Iowa Hawkeyes to see what Vereen brings to the table.
The first good sign that I saw for Vereen is when teams went to spread formations, he was the most likely safety to come up and take man coverage on a wide receiver. Unfortunately, he wasn't real great in man coverage. I feel more comfortable with him giving up size to a tight end as his technique leaves a little to be desired so wide receivers can beat him bad if he is forced to match up in man coverage, but he has speed to recover against a tight end. Here is an example of Kevonte Martin-Manley, who as much as I love is probably an undrafted free agent at best next year, burning Vereen on back-to-back plays.
The first play, KMM jukes to the outside and crosses in, leaving Vereen in his dust in the process. The second play is more of the same, although it could have been much more costly. The last replay of the second play is the most important. KMM jukes his head to the outside, and it is enough to get Vereen to turn his hips and even take a step backwards with his right foot. At that point, he's toast, and a slightly better pass probably leads to a touchdown.
I would describe his work in the run game as hesitant. He seems to shuffle his feet a lot and jump into piles as opposed to coming in like a missile trying to take a running back head on. I know that isn't exciting, but considering he is likely to be a free safety, this is not that big of an issue.
One positive that I saw was his acceleration. He gets up to top speed very quickly and seems to have good speed to go along with it. When he isn't burned badly in coverage, he has makeup speed that can get him out of some bad spots.
The one thing that I rarely got to see were his abilities to play in a zone and make a break on a pass. Luckily, the one time he did get a chance, he made the most of it.
Neither angle is ideal on telling whether the quarterback made a really poor read or if Vereen just made a very good play, but the end result of an interception is certainly nice.
Overall, Vereen displays the tools to be a good safety. He has shown that he can read a pass and make a good break and create a big play. He has very good acceleration and speed which helps him as he does make false steps. The false steps and his hesitancy in the run game are both concerns, with the former being far more important than the latter, although fans may get just as frustrated with both. Watching one game, I saw flashes of a good safety and flashes of things I have seen too much of from Bears safeties in the last few years. The Bears watched enough to trade up in the draft for him, so I am going to hope that he makes less false steps than Chris Conte. If he can do that, he can use his athleticism to make a difference in the middle of the field, and the Bears will add a vital piece to their secondary.
After being uninspired with the Bears first two picks, third round pick Will Sutton got my heart beating faster. I had butterflies in my stomach and wanted to give him heart-shaped candy that says, "Will You Be Mine?" Luckily, the Bears already drafted him, so he will be mine. But more importantly, I was hoping that this was a sign that the Bears were going to dominate the later rounds of the draft. Before we get to that next player, here are links to their first three picks.
Their next pick was in the middle of the fourth round when they selected Ka'Deem Carey from Arizona. He had great production in his final two seasons in Tucson, but would the tape match the stats? I decided to break down his game against UCLA to find out.
Unfortunately, the first thing that shows up on tape is average acceleration as he goes through the hole. There are guys who get up to top speed quickly, but Carey doesn't appear to be one of them. I actually think it is less of a hindrance for him in the NFL than it would be in the spread offense he played in during college as the quick backs are usually the ones that succeed in those systems.
The good news is that he delivers hits in the hole. This is not a guy who is afraid to lower his shoulder and take on a defender. This should make him a good short yardage back while Forte takes the bulk of the carries.
Another thing that he shows is good balance.
A lot of running backs lose their footing when faced with that sort of contact, but he keeps chugging forward until there is no place for his feet to land and picks up an extra five yards after the initial contact.
I really liked what he did in both run and pass blocking.
The first play is a QB draw where he nails the safety who tries to come up and plug the hole. He laid down the boom to the point that the safety was slow getting up from the block. After that, he does a nice job of seeing the blitzer from the opposite side, crosses in front of the quarterback and takes out the blitzer before he can get to the quarterback.
The reason he was able to rack up all of those yards despite not being elite in speed or acceleration is that he showed a great ability to make strong cuts when he got in the open field.
He did show some nice burst by getting through the hole, but then does a nice job of making the safety miss. He is still immediately wrapped up by the trailing linebacker, but the linebacker pushes him forward and since he loses such little speed despite cutting to make the safety miss that his legs keep churning him forward even with a player wrapped around his waist.
The big flashy things like speed are not his forte, so his slow 40 time is not really a surprise, but the little things are where he excels. He will do everything to help his team gain an advantage, and although it may never add up to an explosive game-changing back, there is no reason it can't lead to a good one. If he was picked in the first round, I'd be very disappointed, but in the middle of the fourth round, this is good value and Carey should complement Forte well.
It is now round three of my look at the Bears draft. After looking at the Bears first two picks, I was less than enthused, but the third round brought a guy that had impressed me in limited looks, so I was pretty excited to take a closer look. Will Sutton is a classic 3-technique defensive tackle and will hopefully have a similar impact to healthy Henry Melton and early career Tommy Harris (although I do have dreams of Warren Sapp and Geno Atkins). Below are links to the Bears first two picks scouting reports:
Now it is time to take a look at Arizona State's Will Sutton. If there is one thing I always want my teams to acquire, it is undervalued assets. One way that teams consistently undervalue players is when a prospect's production drops off. Will Sutton was an absolute monster in his Junior year, and his Senior year simply did not meet expectations. His numbers dropped across the board, but the good news is that he had multiple reasons for this. Like Jadeveon Clowney, offenses geared their game plans towards limiting his impact. Along with that, he gained weight to help his chances at the next level, and the weight did not suit him well. Because of those factors, I wanted to take a look at games from both years by watching his 2013 Holiday Bowl performance against Texas Tech and his 2012 performance against Oregon State.
More important than numbers on a stat sheet is the impact that he has on a team's game plan. This is a nice look at how Texas Tech minimized Sutton's impact.
The latter is not as important as Texas Tech uses the wide splits to nullify all defensive linemen, but the first part was important as they made a point to put multiple blockers on Sutton as they knew he had the talent to blow up a play in the backfield.
Here are examples of what Sutton's ability to penetrate can do to a running game.
Even with his extra weight, he showed quickness off the line to cause problems for the offense. With the first play, he doesn't let the lineman get between him and the back and swallows up the back immediately. On the second play, he knifes through the offensive lineman, and gets to the running back before he can make it to the line of scrimmage. The gist of this is that the reports of his demise were greatly exaggerated.
With that being said, the second and third play of the Oregon State game in 2012 made my eyes get misty from tears of joy. Him at a lighter weight is a different animal. The first play is a nice job of reading a play and realizing that the best option is not just charging forward.
He drops back in a zone as he recognizes that they are setting up a screen and absolutely obliterates the running back.
I know that I said he obliterated the running back, but I'm struggling with that now. He definitely did obliterate the back, but now I don't know what to call what he does to the quarterback on this play.
Murder? Murder feels like the closest word to describe what happens on that play. Maybe a tad strong, but he basically made the quarterback look like a GI Joe action figure where the torso gets stretched from the middle groin part, but luckily the rubber band springs him back together. He hit him so hard that the quarterback dropped the ball before he got there. This may be evidence that Will Sutton has broken the space-time continuum.
Here is a play that Sutton does not make, and yet I love it almost as much as his highlight plays.
He could stand and let the play in, he could jump in on the pile, but instead he goes for the strip from the outside. He doesn't get it, but I love where his head is at on the play, as it's the kind of effort that could lead to a turnover.
From watching his play in 2013, two things became abundantly clear. The weight he added did not do him any favors either in performance or aesthetic appeal. The second thing was that even if he hadn't been circled in this cut-up, he still would have been the guy that jumped off the screen. He had four tackles in the game, but he was almost always the guy who got by far the most penetration out of all of the defensive linemen. He displayed good quickness and a nice club move that caused issues for the Texas Tech line. If the Bears drafted this player, it's a solid pick for them.
Meanwhile, watching him in 2012, he's Geno Atkins good (that is absolute ceiling, but ceilings for 3-techniques don't get much higher than that). Like, it's scary watching him, because there are plays where it looks more like a high school highlight tape where the guy is just outclassing his competition. If the Bears got this guy, they may have gotten the steal of the draft. I was happy when the Bears drafted him, but I am now elated. Thanks, Phil.
I have long been an advocate of toe shoes, so I had many friends point me towards the backlash that has been on the internet as Vibram has had to settle a lawsuit for their FiveFingers (toe) shoes. What people have gotten stuck on is that these shoes don't work and nobody should wear them, because they are stupid looking and will ruin you as a runner. Let's take a look at the second claim first.
The shoe company had to settle because Vibram claimed that these shoes would reduce foot injuries and even make people's feet stronger. Unfortunately, there is no scientific evidence to back this up. If you look at this at face value, it will mean that these shoes are bad for you, and everyone should immediately stop wearing them. Unfortunately, this is a misconception that shows a blatant disregard for other benefits that shoes can have. Those other benefits are why I will continue to wear my toe shoes, but even with that endorsement, I still plan on collecting my settlement money, because I more than earned it.
The claim on helping feet is bullshit. It isn't going to make your feet stronger, and it can cause stress fractures in your foot when switching to the shoe. I know, because I got a stress fracture in my right foot when using the shoes for a road race. It really sucked, and the shoes are definitely to blame. But much like Achilles had his heel, my weakness is foot bones, as I also got a stress fracture in my foot when I wore traditional running shoes. Vibram needs to make it very clear that people need to take it very slow and run very little before amping up your runs in those shoes. Trying to do a lot quickly will mess up your feet and not making this clear is the reason they are going to pay out a lot of money.
So these shoes broke my foot, yet I still wear them. Why? Well, the other benefits that I mentioned earlier have outweighed the costs compared to traditional running shoes. I started off as a hard-hitting runner as my feet really went heavy against the road. Likely, this was caused by being involved in sprint heavy sports like basketball, football, and tennis where speed is created by pushing hard against the ground with your foot. I ran in toe shoes with a heavy foot and I paid the price. But these shoes have made me adjust my running where at times, I feel myself gliding across the pavement instead of pounding it. When I first got the shoes, it killed my feet any time I would step on a rock, road grate, and especially tactile pavings. Now my foot strike is way softer, so I barely notice when I land on those things (although gravel is still very tricky, so I try to avoid it).
In combination with landing softer on the pavement, I have also adjusted where I land on my foot. I used to be a heel striker when wearing traditional running shoes. Even in my mid-20s, I would occasionally have pain in my knees as well as lower back pain that was likely a direct result of that pain in my knees. My Dad has bad knees and a bad back, so those were two things that really worried me as I got older. Switching to the shoes forced me to start landing on the balls of my feet instead of my heel. What this does is forces my calves to take the brunt of punishment when I run. When I first got the shoes, my calves killed me, but I kept using them, and my calf muscles have gotten stronger, and it takes a very long run for them to get sore. With the pressure in my calves, it took it off of my knees, and that is why I love these shoes so much. Since switching, I have had no pain in my knees or back, and that is the biggest reason that I absolutely love my toe shoes.
Honestly, toe shoes aren't for everybody. In fitness, everything gets disputed, so find out what works for you. If you feel good using traditional shoes, keep using them. If you are having knee and back problems, maybe give toe shoes a try. Vibram FiveFingers have no proven benefits for your feet, but they have had positive benefits for me. Because of that, I will continue to be the guy running in toe shoes.
And as for them being ugly? Yeah, that's probably a fair point.
Now that the draft is over, I feel pretty good about things. I am basing this off of approximately 30 second of highlight videos, and that their final pick has a very famous pedigree.
I'm just going to assume that Jay Leno's real first name is Charles, and the Bears just drafted the Prince of Late Night.
— Hott Joe (@HottJoe) May 10, 2014
That's enough to go off of, right? Well, I'm unemployed, and that means that I don't need to settle when it comes to consuming sports, so I'm going to go through every draft pick that the Bears made to see what kind of talent they were able to bring in through the draft. So far, I have finished the following reports:
So the first thing that you have to know about Ego Ferguson is that he was not drafted to make plays. That sounds weird, but his job is much more to prevent the offense from making plays. He's 325 pounds, so he isn't going to be knifing through the line as the 3-technique. His job is much more to take up blockers and hold his ground. So expecting some mind-blowing highlights will probably leave you disappointed in Ferguson's performance.
He can get moving and penetrate if a team tries to stop him with a single blocker.
He doesn't make the play, but he does blow by the left guard who is unable to close the distance as the center blocks to his right. This may have been a miscommunication by the offensive line, but it shows that the big man can move, even if the final result is not ideal on the play.
The one thing to like is that he keeps his feet moving when he is engaged with a blocker. When he gets his hands underneath the lineman, he is able to manipulate him well enough. He's not quite Timmy Jernigan where he never really gives up ground, but as long as he stays low, he is tough to move without multiple blockers.
This is what happens when Ferguson is unable to do his job.
On this play, the lineman turns Ferguson's shoulders, and the running back has a huge lane to go through for a first down.
This is what it looks like when Ferguson is able to do his job.
He doesn't make the play. The quarterback even gains a few yards on the draw, but he occupies two blockers long enough where the guard can't peel off and take out the linebacker before the quarterback has no place to go.
I like the idea of Ego Ferguson more than what I actually saw from him in this game. The Bears run defense was awful last year. It was so bad that I truly don't understand why teams passed against them. So a person like Ego Ferguson was a necessary addition. But man, just three picks before the Bears took Ferguson, the Ravens got Timmy Jernigan, and that dude is a beast. After looking at the Bears first two picks, I am left thinking about what could have been. Had the Bears lost one more game, they end up with Aaron Donald and Timmy Jernigan in the middle of their line. That would have had me excited. Instead, I'm trying to give myself a reason for optimism, because from what I have seen Fuller and Ferguson are just fine. Still, Emery has made enough good decisions in his tenure to earn the benefit of the doubt. I just hope I'm not left dreaming of what might have been.
A lot happened in the NFL Draft last night, and instead of recapping that here, check out my Twitter feed where I gave lots of thoughts on just about everything that happened last night. One thing that I wasn't able to give much of an opinion on was the Bears selection of Kyle Fuller. I think that defensive backs are the hardest position to scout from regular game tape. They aren't on the screen a whole lot, so that makes things pretty difficult. Still, I would rather watch some game film than no game film, so I checked out Fuller's game against Marshall from Draft Breakdown to get a better idea of what the Bears acquired with the 14th pick.
The first thing that is easy to see is that he is a very solid tackler for a defensive back. He closes quickly on receivers and wraps up nicely.
Marshall tries the smoke screen, but it goes for minimal gain as Fuller is quick to close the distance and doesn't give the receiver enough room to make a maneuver for a larger gain. He's not a hitter, but his form is good enough to make tackles in the open field.
I was kind of surprised he only had six career interceptions when watching tape of him as he showed an aptitude to jump out routes. He couldn't quite get in position to pull off the interception when doing it, but he showed the skills necessary to make quarterbacks a bit hesitant when throwing the ball towards the sideline.
He also blocked a punt in this game and came close on another. He showed a very clean rout to the punter, but they sent an overloaded rush, so he wasn't really forced to beat a blocker. Still, I would rather have a guy who did block punts than a guy who didn't, although I have my doubts that those skills will translate to anything in the NFL.
He primarily played in off-man coverage, so he could backpedal and break on any route in front of him. He really believed in his recovery speed when guys tried to go deep on him, and looking at this game, his speed didn't look all that great.
On the first play, the wide receiver gets about three yards on him which is obviously not good. Still, there was a safety on that side of the field, whose job was likely to be over the top of that route, but I can't say for sure. On the next play, the ball doesn't go anywhere near him, but it looks like the receiver again gets behind him, and it doesn't appear that he has help over the top on it. I would say this is the most worrisome part of his game. He is going to get beat for big plays if he doesn't make some serious changes to his coverage strategy.
The good news is that he's a sure tackler who puts himself in positions to make big plays. The bad news is that his risk taking has some pretty extreme adverse effects. He was getting beat by Marshall receivers, so pro receivers are going to give him a lot of trouble, especially on double moves. It's one game, but he really reminds me of Prince Amukamara when he was coming out of Nebraska. All the tools are there, but that belief in his recovery speed is going to cost him. Amukamara has been about an average cornerback when healthy, and that's not the impact a team should be looking for in the first round. The good news is that this was only one game, so he very well may have done a better job of containing receivers down the field in some of his other games (there is also the chance that the safeties are as much to blame as Fuller). The other good news is that the Bears have a cornerback who takes chances for interceptions without having great recovery speed in Tim Jennings. Still, with the uncertainty the Bears have at safety, it's going to take a lot of things to go right for Fuller to have much positive impact in his rookie season.
I would have rather taken Calvin Pryor to fill the gaping hole they have at safety, but, I must remember my mantra, "In Emery We Trust."
We have finally reached the NFL Draft, and people have completely talked themselves into full circles, half circles, three quarter circles, every type of circle you can imagine. There used to be a quarterback ranked as the number one overall propsect, Jadeveon Clowney wasn't worth a top 5 pick before the combine, and Tom Savage wasn't good when he was forced to play in football games, but he's a stud now. It's all so stupid. But this is what the media does. Sadly, it is also what some teams do, but I feel those teams are in the minority as I think front offices are consistently getting better at the draft process. With all of that being said, I wanted to give a quick rundown of a guy I like more than most at each position. Some of these guys I have already gone in-depth about, but others will be new names.
Quarterback - Teddy Bridgewater, Louisville
Bridgewater, along with Clowney, were the two names in discussion for the first overall pick before this season began. Then the season happened and Bridgewater got some separation from Clowney. Then the combine happened and Clowney retook the lead. Then Bridgewater had a poor workout at his pro day, and now he might not be a first round pick. Here's the thing: He's worthy of the number one overall pick. Clowney might be a better prospect, but quarterbacks have such a huge impact that they are worth way more than any other position. I think all of the concern about an epic drop is not going to come to fruition. I predict he'll be a Top 10 pick, and considering he is worth a Top 5 pick, that will be great value. I just hope the Vikings aren't the team that pulls the trigger. Check out my in depth report on Bridgewater here.
Running Back - James White, Wisconsin
I covered him a couple days ago. He was always overlooked at Wisconsin, but he was also always good. There is a decent chance he doesn't get drafted, but in the right situation, he can become a very good back. He might be best served as the smaller share of a running back committee, but that's still good value late in the draft. Check out my in depth report on James White here.
Wide Receiver - Jeremy Gallon, Michigan
I just don't see a way that he is not a good slot receiver. He never had a quality quarterback but still put up good numbers because he found ways to get wide open where even bad tosses couldn't stop him from producing. The size is a problem, but his job won't be to go deep; it'll be to go across the middle and get first downs, and I think he can definitely do that much.
Tight End - CJ Fiedorowicz, Iowa
You can call me a homer if you like, but I think he provides good value in the third round where he is likely to be drafted. Probably not a pro bowler, but has a good possibility to start for a decade in a Heath Miller-esque career. Check out my in depth report on Fiedorowicz here.
Offensive Lineman - Jake Matthews, Texas A+M
I know this isn't much of a reach, but I think Matthews is the best tackle in this draft. Johnny Football owes a lot of his success to great offensive line play, and Matthews was the biggest reason for that. He isn't the most explosive athlete, but he is rock solid in his technique, and if he can handle that SECSPEED, he should be able to handle the speed of the pros.
Defensive Lineman - Will Sutton, Arizona State
I'll go with Will Sutton, just because he has fallen so far in people's minds. Had he switched his Junior and Senior years, he'd be a second round pick. Getting him in the fourth round is good value, because he has shown the ability to dominate games. It's tough to pass up on that.
Defensive Back - Loucheiz Purifoy, Florida
I probably feel the least confident in this selection, but it was either him or taking another Hawkeye in Fernando (Boots Junior) Lowery. But he was good two years ago. I didn't watch much Florida this season, because I don't hate myself, but I like guys who show greatness even if there is a fall off in their final year of college.
Special Teams - Kirby Van Der Kamp, Iowa State
And some love for a rival in my final pick. Van Der Kamp always pinned Iowa deep, so he will probably have a statue in Ames within a few years.
And that wraps it up. I realize I have a bias towards the Big Ten, as that is the conference that I watch the most of as a fan, but I still see these guys as underrated for one reason or another.As for the live draft coverage, follow me on Twitter @HottJoe. I will be live tweeting the draft, and I will likely be joined by Lukewarm Jonah who you can find @JonahDrama. Join in on the conversation if you'd like. We're going to be tweeting fast and furiously, RIP Paul Walker.
During the National Championship, there were many standout players, but there is one guy that jumped out whether he was on the field or on the bench. Timmy Jernigan was the engine that made Florida State's defense go. When he was on the field, he was raising havoc. Unfortunately, he got gassed causing all that havoc, and had to spend a significant amount of time on the sideline. Still, that is a pretty good sign that his presence is that valuable. I thought he would look good in a Bears uniform, but I wanted to take a closer look to decide how badly I wanted him in a Bears uniform, so I rewatched the National Title game thanks to JPDraftJedi.
His quickness is good, as he stays active and jumps around the sides of blocks to help make plays at the line of scrimmage. Still, his strength is where he really makes a difference. He was able to hold his position on the line without getting moved back and exposing large holes.
One reason that he got tired is that Auburn's offense has to be about the most tiring thing for any defensive line to face. With the high pace, lots of read options, and so many cutbacks, it is meant to get the defensive linemen to run around despite having a low chance of actually being able to reach the runner. It definitely wore down Jernigan, whose use of his hands ebbed and flowed throughout the game.
It's tough to shine as a defensive tackle, but when this guy is on, it is incredibly exciting. Watch these three plays, and you will see why it is easy to get hyped up about Jernigan.
The first play, he holds his ground against the offensive lineman before turning him and stopping a running back at full speed dead in his tracks and then drives him backwards.
The next play, he punks out the center with a rip and hurries the quarterback into an incomplete pass.
Finally, the coup de grace. He blows up this running play by running straight through the right guard , and stands over his vanquished opponent while destroying the running back in the hole. That is not fair, and that is something so very few guys can do.
When I watched Florida State's defense, the most noticeable thing was how much better they played with Jernigan in the game. When he was out, it changed their defense, as he allows others to make plays. Still, he can make his own plays as well. I still think Aaron Donald is probably the top guy in this class of defensive tackles, but Jernigan isn't a bad consolation prize for teams that aren't able to select Donald, as I definitely see the tools to make him an impact player at the next level.
It's time for another Hawkeye scouting report. There are three reasons I am doing this.
1. I wasn't a big fan of James Morris, and I would rather end on a positive note for my alma mater.
2. I found two guys that I really liked from Wisconsin, so I felt like I needed at least that many for Iowa.
3. I really like Christian Kirksey.
That third one is the most important, as Kirksey didn't have flashy numbers, but that was mostly due to the role that he played within the Iowa defense. He was three year starter, and he is a guy who did show improvement with experience. Thanks to Draft Breakdown, I was able to rewatch his game against Michigan.
Here is a play that illustrates why his tackling numbers trailed his linebacking counterparts.
He protects the edge and forces the run inside. If he tries to peel off from his block and make a tackle, the runner can bounce outside, but Kirksey maneuvers his blocker wherever he wanted and became twice as wide in blocking the outside options for the runner.
The biggest thing with Kirksey is that he moves very well. James Morris is a solid athlete, but Kirksey is a good athlete. He started as a very small linebacker, and although he is not big, he has put on some weight to alleviate most of those concerns. He is still by no means a big linebacker, but he should be big enough, and his quickness makes up for his lack of size.
With that athleticism, he was always Iowa's best linebacker in coverage which is going to be a key part of his contribution at the next level. Iowa likes to keep their base 4-3 in there unless it is a passing down. This meant that they often had to send Kirksey out wide when teams went three wide on first or second down. Iowa plays a lot of zone coverages, but Kirksey still was able to hold his own when he was asked to play man coverage on a slot receiver.
But even though he is known for his quickness and is not a big linebacker, he can still fill a hole when need be. These are the type of plays that give me a chub.
Michigan's left guard pulls to the outside to kick out Kirksey to open up a hole on the inside, and even with the momentum, the guard doesn't only not push Kirksey out of the way, but Kirksey, giving up about 75 pounds, pushes the lineman back and tackles the running back. When this play started, my computer was on my lap, it is now touching the ceiling. Football porn at its best..
If you are looking for negatives, he is not much of a pass rusher, so sticking him in that role would not be beneficial to the team that drafted him. Most of his sacks are hustle plays as opposed to legitimate pass rushing maneuvers.
With Kirksey, it's almost all positive, but without the standout features that make a first round pick. He's a very good athlete, and he's got solid strength in the hole. He does a good job in coverage, so he can be trusted in man and zone schemes. All of these things are areas he is good, but not great in. Still, a whole lot of good adds up, and for Kirksey, it adds up to a guy who can be counted on as a starter. For a mid-to-late round pick, that's not good, that's great value.
Anybody with even a passing interest in the NFL Draft knows that this is not the year to look for an elite running back. There just isn't that one guy that stands out above the rest of the class. I agree with this assertion, but like all drafts, I think there are diamonds in the rough that will make a team happy late in the draft. A guy that I have liked for a long time that has not gotten much hype is James White (Also, I have no idea why I seem to like Wisconsin players during their Freshman year; I should probably go to a doctor). Despite there being a lot of evidence to the contrary, I was always a much bigger fan of James White than his former teammate, Montee Ball. And thanks to Aimal Arsalla, I was able to check out his game against Illinois from this year to remind me of all the reasons I see a future for James White in the NFL.
When James White started at Wisconsin, he was behind John Clay and Montee Ball. Clay was a slow bruiser, and Ball was a more balanced back, but White was the quick one who was very adept at finding the holes that the big hosses up front were able to create. That's one thing that consistently showed up when watching him. He makes one strong cut and goes for it. There is no dancing, no stutter steps, he just sticks his outside foot in the ground and cuts up field. He rarely makes a bad decision on these cuts and can do it behind the line of scrimmage or down the field. This screen pass does a nice job to show his ability to make strong cuts in the open field.
He makes the first Illinois defender look about as bad as any defender can ever look. Then he sprints down the field, slightly alters his route to go inside his blocker and goes through that seam where the defender is forced to tackle him forward which gains a few extra yards.
He's not a powerful back, but what he lacks in power, he makes up by being slippery. He rarely takes a square hit, and because of that, he is usually able to fall forward instead of getting driven backwards. This is a good example of his shiftiness.
There isn't a lot of room to work with, but he makes the linebacker look terrible and even with a safety right there, he managed to pick up a couple extra yards.
Some people may look at it as a concern that he has always shared time with another back, but there is a positive in that where he has not taken as much abuse as other college running backs, so there may be more miles on that engine. He's not a powerful back, but he makes up for it with his other skills, as he makes smart cuts and he manages to be slippery on contact where he can fall forward without having to plow forward. I see a lot of Warrick Dunn in his game (that is obviously absolute best case scenario), and I think a team will be very happy if they play to his strengths. I really haven't seen much talk about him outside of a late round/undrafted free agent, but if this guy is available in the fifth, he can provide some excellent value. This may not be a great year for running backs, but there are always good running backs available late, and James White is one of those guys.
For Hawkeye fans, James Morris became Mr. Reliable. He was never outstanding, but fans were rarely left cursing his name. He got his first start as a true freshman and never relinquished the role from his sophomore year on. Still, it was hard not to want more from Morris. Don't get me wrong; he got better, but there was never a leap in production that everyone kept predicting. Without a doubt, his Hawkeye career was a huge success, but does his talent translate to the next level?
Iowa players are not known for their athleticism, but they are known for having the fundamentals. James Morris is actually more athletic than many people would expect as he has decent speed for a linebacker and moves fairly well. Still, he's going to make his money by being a very sure tackler. He's not a big hitter, but he's going to have proper technique when wrapping up the ball carrier.
Although athletically he is solid, he is not great at reading and reacting. Everything is just a split second slow, which means that runners who make quick cuts can make him look bad as he will fill the wrong hole, and a lot of times his zone coverage has him bouncing around on an island by himself.
He seems at least a little active in his zone on that play, but in the end, he moves about a total of two yards when the ball is thrown. He's likely not going to be able to make a play on that ball either way, but if he drifts back a few more yards, it gives him a much better opportunity. At the same time, it's tough to ever judge somebody in a zone, as his sole responsibility may have been to stop any drags across the middle and quarterback scrambles. Still, I would like to see the awareness to peel off that responsibility to drift into possible passing lanes while still keeping an eye on the quarterback.
The biggest problem with Morris is that he positions himself out of plays. When watching a player like Chris Borland, even if he didn't make the tackle, he was almost always around the play. Morris often makes decisions that put him far away from having any impact on a play. But then there's those times where he guesses right, avoids a blocker, and stuffs a runner in the hole. The problem is that it is a guessing game with him. Imagine the middle linebacker as the quarterback of the defense. A quarterback with a good accurate arm would look like they have the tools to succeed. If their first read is open, then they are going to look great. But if that first read is covered, they are going to make big mistakes that cost their team. James Morris is the linebacking version of this. He has the tools to succeed, but he often guesses wrong in his defensive positioning, and it costs his team.
Optimistically, he had a ton of turnover in both his linebacker coaches through his career which can make assignments confusing in some areas. Still, after watching him for four years, I like all the tools, but I just can't envision him becoming reliable enough in his instincts to become a starting linebacker. Because of that, I wouldn't feel comfortable taking him as anything more than a 7th round flyer.
CJ Fiedorowicz might as well be Chuck Norris to Iowa Hawkeye fans. In most fans' minds, CJF can do anything on the football field. Just throw him the ball and good things will happen. First downs, touchdowns, probably a cure for cancer; anything is possible with CJF. Unfortunately, through his four years at Iowa, it never quite came together like Iowa fans had hoped. Still, this guy is a specimen. At 6'7" and 265 pounds, he is an absolute monster, and he should be a very useful piece for a team.
Maybe his biggest strength was his biggest weakness when he entered college, and that is his blocking. There are a lot of tight ends that look like floppy messes when they try to make blocks, just relying on their size to get in the way of a rushing defender to slow them down enough so they can stay in the game to catch passes. CJF is not like this He's basically a lighter left tackle out there as he uses excellent technique to complement his size to stop blitzers and takes it to the defense when it comes to opening up holes in the run game. He's an old school tight end, and there's nothing wrong with that. He also blocks down field, as is shown here.
He seemed to get open over the top and then ignored, but it didn't matter, as he makes a block on one guy while still being long enough to slow down the progress of another. That's good hustle.
So along with him using his size for good in blocking. He also does a really nice job of using his size to post up on defenders. If he gets inside leverage on a route, there isn't a defensive back with long enough arms to do much with a pass coming to CJF.
Now with him being an old school tight end, this also means that he is not the most explosive athlete. He's a fine athlete, but he's not going to get confused with the new breed of tight ends like Jimmy Graham and Jordan Cameron. Still, he's mobile enough that he won't get confused with strict blocking tight ends. Also, his hands are not great. He dropped some passes he should have had, but he also made some really nice catches while stretching out. The consistency is not great, but it's also not worrisome.
Fiedorowicz will likely have far more real world value than fantasy value. Early on, he's probably going to be brought in to be a bruising blocker, but he has the size to be a big time threat in the red zone. Although he isn't a great athlete, it was often frustrating to see him get separation from his defender and an Iowa quarterback never look to his side of the field. Still, he has all of the necessary tools to be in the top half of starting tight ends in a few years. I'm not great at comparisons, so I'd say he's somewhere between a plodding Jason Witten and a dynamic Dwayne Carswell. I'm guessing he'll get picked in the third round, and I think he provides nice value for a team that wants a good blocking tight end who is a threat in the red zone. I think just about any team could use a guy like that.
So I'm going to try and squeeze as many as my man crushes in before this draft, so now it's time to move on to Mormon country for Brigham Young Linebacker, Kyle Van Noy. Van Noy got on my radar before last year's draft as I was looking at Ezekiel Ansah. Ansah did not impress me as he got stood up and stonewalled pretty easily, but there was another guy flying around the field that jumped off the screen. That player was Van Noy, and I kept an eye on him throughout the 2013 season. Also, special thanks to Draft Breakdown's video of his game against Utah State.
It doesn't take an expert to get excited about Van Noy, because the dude has speed and power. He gives large offensive tackles problems with his speed and tight ends and running backs problems with his power as he is willing to dodge the big guys and blow up the smaller guys.
He had far worse stats in 2013 than he did in 2012. This had a lot to do with the Jadeveon Clowney effect. It was not nearly to the same extent as Clowney, but teams definitely changed their game plans to minimize the effect that Van Noy could have on the game. This play really stood out for me. Note that the offense is snapping the ball from the near hash, and Van Noy is lined up outside the far hash.
Despite all that, Utah State kept a tight end back to block him and had extra help from the right tackle to peel off and help out the tight end. Two blockers for a guy who starts about 20 yards away from the quarterback at the snap of the ball.
Another mitigating factor in his shrinking stat line was his enhanced role in coverage. He dropped back into zone and man-to-man coverage quite frequently last year because of his athleticism. What he showed is that he handles zone coverage fairly well, but he can struggle in man coverage, especially against quicker tight ends or wide receivers.
Honestly, even with all of the physical gifts he displays, his tackling is a little shaky. He fails to wrap up on some plays that he could make with better form.
Overall, he's not perfect, but I would be considering him as early as the middle of the first round and would definitely take him anytime in the second round. I would prefer to see him as an outside linebacker in a 3-4 as I think he has shown a lot of potential with his pass rushing, but I think he has displayed the necessary skills to excel in a 4-3 as well as he's solid in coverage and quickly reads and reacts on run plays. I don't consider him a wow guy, but he's very good, and I fully expect his talents to translate well to the next level.
With my quarterback scouting series ending a couple months ago with Johnny Manziel, I took some time off since I had reviewed all of the quarterbacks that I was interested in (Sorry, Tommy Rees). But with the draft happening next week, I'm going to try to highlight players that I really like at different positions. These are not going to go nearly as in-depth as the quarterback reports, but they should still get you a good idea of what these guys bring to the table. I wanted to start off with a guy that I have liked since he played as a True Freshman. Even as an Iowa alum, there was no denying how much fun it was to watch Chris Borland play for Wisconsin. The guy was all over the field and made plays in every facet of the game.
The first thing you know you are getting with Chris Borland is a motor. This guy goes nonstop until the whistle blows. This is easy to see in his tackle numbers, but when you watch tape of him, you see that he is almost always close to making a play. That displays another quality that he has which are instincts. He knows how to always be around the ball by diagnosing plays, and he never gives up on anything.
One thing that people didn't see much of this season was his pass rushing ability, but it was something that really stood out for me a few years ago when he still played more outside linebacker. This is where he uses his small frame to his advantage. He does a great job of bending to avoid contact and makes it very hard on tackles without good mobility. During Watt's last year at Wisconsin, they did some nasty things with Watt at one end and Borland at the other on third down passing situations. Since he has played middle linebacker successfully these past couple years, I expect that to be his main position, but I would definitely give him opportunities to rush from the outside to take full advantage of his skills.
And even if he is permanently put in the middle, he still has pass rush skills, because even though he doesn't have great speed, he is extremely quick. There are not many players that can recover from a chop block and still almost get after the quarterback, but that's what makes Borland such a fun player to watch.
He's not known as a great athlete, but I do think that he knows how to best translate his physical skills to football better than 99% of players.
There are two concerns with Borland: Size and injuries. The former is only a slight concern for me. Many people worry about his size (especially with his shorter than ideal arms), because it will be tough for him to fight off blocks from offensive linemen. This would be more of a concern for me if he was a defensive lineman, but he's a linebacker, so he basically needs to avoid letting them get close to him anyway. It reminds me of Brian Urlacher who had fantastic seasons when his defensive linemen were occupying the offensive line's blocks and he was free to roam to make plays. When he lost that, he struggled, because it's really tough for a 250 pound guy to fight off a 320 pound guy, especially when the bigger guy knows where the play is going and the littler guy has to diagnose the play and react. That being said, he does get swallowed up on runs up the middle more than I would like to see, but he does a very good job of moving sideline-to-sideline on outside runs.
The latter is a much bigger concern for me. Injuries have cost him games here and there, as well as missing an entire season. His shoulder has caused a lot of issues, and that is something that should make teams hesitant to draft him. A possible move to an outside spot may help him take less of a grind, but at middle linebacker, although I think he'll be very good when he's on the field, I don't know how may full seasons you can get out of him.
I love watching Chris Borland play. He has been one of my favorite players to watch for five years now, and I am excited to see him at the next level. If he can keep his shoulder together, he'll make a great mid-round draft pick for a team. With in-depth medical reports, it would be easier to make a decision, but this is how I would handle things from what I know. In the second, the injury concerns are a little too much for me; in the third, I would strongly consider him; in the fourth, I'm taking him unless I'm stacked at linebacker, and if he makes it to the fifth, I'm jumping all over him no matter how much depth I already have.
