Category Players

Kendall Wright and the Money Catch

0 Comments read Players, Wide Receiver
Nyan Boateng earning his scholarship over the middle versus USC. This is the kind of play that receivers must make between the hashes to earn that second NFL contract. Photo by Avinash Kunnath.

If you didn’t see yesterday’s post, there’s more analysis of Kendall Wright’s routes here.

I love the intellectual component of football. There’s rich material to explore with every position, unit and team from the perspective of technique and strategy. It’s what I do here almost daily.

But to say football is essentially an intellectual game is horseshit. It’s far and away an emotional game. Hitting might require a technical component to doing it the right way, but it also requires violence to do it properly and violence is an emotional act.

Think I’m wrong? Take up boxing or a martial art and spar with an opponent. There’s a big difference between knowing how to Continue reading →

When “Flat” is Good: Route Running and Baylor WRs Kendall Wright and Terrance Williams

0 Comments read Players, Wide Receiver
Baylor WR Kendall Wright is a top prospect, but he still has things to learn as a route runner. Photo by GoIowaState

[Editor’s Note: The second route is actually one from Terrance Williams. Thanks for pointing this out, Bryan. However, the concept of making a correct break and not drifting away from the ball is still the same. ] See Also: Kendall Wright And The Money Catch.

For the next two months, I’ll be providing excerpts of film study I’m doing for my 2012 Rookie Scouting Portfolio publication, which will be available here on April 1. The David Wilson Vision Series is one example of what you’ll be seeing: analysis of one particular skill set of a player and his position. Although the Wilson Series was a little more comprehensive, you’re going to find highly critical or praiseworthy analysis on an aspect of a player that might not match my overall take that you’ll find in the 2012 RSP.

Kendall Wright is likely an example. There is a lot like like about the Baylor wide receiver and I won’t be surprised if he’s among my top prospects at his position. He’s explosive, dynamic after the catch, and he demonstrates some strong skills as a perimeter deep threat. In many respects he reminds me of what Mario Manningham brings to the table for the Giants, but has potential to become much more (of course, so does Manningham).

However, today’s post is about route running and like Manningham, when it comes to this aspect of the position Wright has things to learn. So does his talented counterpart, underclassman Terrance Williams. Continue reading →

David Wilson’s Vision: Part IV – Exploring the Gray Area

0 Comments read Players, Running Back
Wrapping up David Wilson Week at the RSP Blog with some good plays that might have been better in more experienced hands. Photo by Tech Sports.

If you’ve missed David Wilson Week at the RSP blog you can catch up by reading parts I, II, and III. If you want to start here that’s fine, too. No one is going to write you a ticket for improper blog reading.

Ever watch a ball carrier in a football game finish a good run and still wonder if his choices were the best ones? If you watch the game with any regularity it has probably crossed your mind numerous times. The “what-if” game is a natural part of being an avid football fan.

I had these questions arise while studying Virginia Tech RB David Wilson’s Sugar Bowl performance against Michigan. I frequently saw good runs where Wilson deserved praise for the work he did, but his decisions still left me wondering if he left better choices on the field. Would a runner with Wilson’s physical skills and greater vision been able to do more with these attempts? I don’t know if I have a good answer.

These runs are “gray area,” plays. I watched these runs enough to believe there’s a chance Wilson could have made a different decision and generated a better outcome on the play, but I think its highly debatable. Still, the alternative for each run profiled below is obvious enough to generate a post and potentially some worthwhile discussion. Continue reading →

RB David Wilson’s Vision: Part III – Flashes of Refined Play

0 Comments read Players, Running Back
David Wilson might rely too much on his superior athleticism, but there are flashes of maturity that I think he'll continue to develop as a pro. Photo by VaMedia

This has been David Wilson Week at the RSP blog. In case you missed it, here’s the analysis I have done – and what is still slated – for the Va. Tech runner:

What I have seen from Wilson this game are things that I’ve seen from him in other starts: He’s a runner with tremendous athleticism and fundamental skills, but occasional bouts of immaturity when it comes to applying the tools of his trade. One could have said the same thing about LeSean McCoy or Jamaal Charles when they were prospects – I know I did.

If you agree that Wilson is a quality RB prospect and accept the fact that he has shortcomings to address before he becomes a consistent and productive NFL starter, then the question becomes “how long will his transition take?” I think one telling indicator is if a running back prospect flashes moments of NFL-caliber decision-making. Another is how often that back flashes these moments despite immature plays like the ones I profiled of Wilson in the previous post.

I’m going to examine runs in this and the next post that I believe are good indicators for NFL success. The analysis in this post is a list of plays where Wilson shows some refined decision-making and skill. Continue reading →

RB David Wilson’s Vision: Part II – The Low Lights

0 Comments read Players, Running Back
David Wilson has the physical tools of a Pro Bowl RB, but the decision-making and patience of a college player. There's reason for optimism with this pro prospect, but find out his specific deficiencies as a runner based on film study. Photo by Michael Miller.

As I explained yesterday, Vision is often poorly defined as an abstract, catchall intangible that is vital to the success of a ball carrier. Vision should be something we actively try to define and despite its intuitive characteristics I believe there are major components of the skill set that running backs learn as late as years into their pro careers. Reggie Bush, C.J. Spiller, LeSean McCoy, and Jamaal Charles are recent backs that had to improve some aspect of their vision to complete that transition from promising prospect to effective performer.

One of the runners in the 2012 class with the skills to potentially make that transition from college star to NFL starter is Virginia Tech’s David Wilson. This four-part series on Wilson comes from analysis of a single game from Wilson for the 2012 Rookie Scouting Portfolio available here on April 1, 2012. I’m going to group the analysis of Wilson’s runs into four categories:

After studying two games and over 50 touches from the 2011 season, I believe Wilson is one of those players that my evaluation checklist will deliver a lower grade than the analysis seen in my evaluation profile. What I love about the RSP evaluation process is that when this happens, I generally know that I have a player with immense upside but clear deficiencies that might take time for him to address. Continue reading →

RB David Wilson’s Vision: Part I Raw Skill in Action

0 Comments read Players, Running Back
Virginia Tech RB David Wilson is the subject of a four-part study on his game, specifically his vision. Photo by Michael Miller.

To come to be you must have a vision of Being, a Dream, a Purpose, a Principle. You will become what your vision is.

  – Peter Nivio Zarlenga

Vision is a magical term. Even in the world of business, visionary leaders are seen as semi-fictional characters. For all of his petulance, coldness, and cruelty towards friends, employees, and business partners, Steve Jobs’ vision transformed Apple into a real life WonkaVille.

Football players with great vision also seem magical. Watch a highlight of Gale Sayers, Barry Sanders, or Ladainian Tomlinson in their prime and their performances frequently dance along the borders of the impossible. Great vision in football is said to be intuitive. Many scouts say it can’t be taught. I agree with much of the first statement, but not with the second.
Continue reading →

Senior Bowl Interview with WR Jeff Fuller

0 Comments read Players, Wide Receiver
Fuller has the build and core skills of a future NFL starter, but his status as a top-tier player at his position in this class is now questionable due to an inconsistent senior year.

This Q&A of Texas A&M wide receiver Jeff Fuller took place at the Senior Bowl’s media night. I was unable to identify the reporters at the beginning of this session so I have labeled them Reporter 1 and Reporter 2. Fuller is a 6’4”, 217-pound receiver with experience in a pro-style offense brought to College Station by former Green Bay Packers head coach Mike Sherman. Here’s what Fuller had to say about his up and down senior year, his learning progression during his college career, and what he expects to face during his transition to the NFL. Continue reading →

A Bait and Switch Fiesta: How Oklahoma State’s defense revealed chinks in Andrew Luck’s armor.

0 Comments read Players, Quarterback
Apple pie, (Chevrolet), con men, and football. Its all America unfiltered. Photo by Bucklava

I’ve always loved movies about con men. I think con men are as American as apple pie.

-Bill Paxton, American actor and director.

Good football is about successfully perpetrating a con. Almost every element of the game is designed to persuade the opponent to fall for a bait and switch. The most basic techniques of head fakes, dead legs, spin moves, and swim moves are used to execute strategies like play action passes, trap blocks, shotgun draws, and fire zone blitzes to trick opponents into a vulnerable position and ultimately earn a team an advantage.

One of the best football games I saw last week was a seesaw affair in the Fiesta Bowl where Oklahoma State edged Stanford 41-38 in overtime. The most fascinating moments of the game came when OSU’s defense faced Stanford’s offense. Both units excel at the art of the bait and switch and the game’s first quarter was a display of strategic and technical savvy that makes football a riveting contest of trickery thinly disguised as a battle of brute force.

If the Cardinals offense is a road gang of con men, Continue reading →

RSP Cutting Room Floor: College RB and WR Notes

0 Comments read Players, Running Back, Wide Receiver
Jarrett Boykin has NFL athleticism but the Hokie offense didn't demand him to develop NFL receiver skills. Photo by Gary Cope.

If you haven’t noticed, the RSP blog is often my catchall area to write about anything I can relate to football. Nonetheless, rookie evaluation is still far and away the headliner. With the regular NFL season in the books I’ve ramped up my film study of college players. Here’s a few odds and ends about several players I’ve watched recently. For much more in-depth analysis, get the Rookie Scouting Portfolio publication available April 1.

Western Kentucky RB Bobby Rainey is the best running back prospect you’ve never heard of. Continue reading →