Reads, Listens, Views 10/14/11

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1973 Week 7 Chargers vs. Browns

A lot has been going on behind the scenes for me. Illness, additional work requirements (and new opportunities), and my home office PC on its last legs have all contributed to fewer posts than the dog days of August. However, I offer a sincerest thanks for the continued support from my Rookie Scouting Portfolio readers during a hectic September that has bled into mid-October.

If you’re new to this blog, thank you for checking out the digs. Even more thanks if you liked enough of what you’ve seen to subscribe.

The reasons I provide this content are simple.  Continue reading →

Quarterback Techniques Part II (Not Safe for Work)

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Aaron Rodgers is the total package and a standard setter when it comes to the arm quality of a quarterback. Photo by Elvis Kennedy. Not to be confused with Malcolm Gaye

Warning: This blog post isn’t for the corporate mindset. It’s safe to read at work except for the first link you come across. However, if you’re the kind of idiot (and I use the term affectionately – we all act like idiots from time to time. It’s part of the human condition) that feels the need to share everything with co-workers because you think you know their sense of humor better than you actually do, then it’s not safe for work. In fact, if you’re that kind of idiot don’t read this post until you get home.

If you get canned it’s because your listening skills suck. Continue reading →

RSP Flashback: Bills WR Naaman Roosevelt

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University of Kansas head coach and former Nebraska QB Turner Gill played some good poker with two prospects he recruited at the University of Bufalo because there were no losers. Photo by GoingStuckey.

Buffalo wide receiver Naaman Roosevelt lost a bet that eventually earned him a job. When Turner Gil arrived at the University of Buffalo he recruited two terrific athletes who played quarterback and wanted to remain quarterbacks. Gil made a deal with them. Win the starting job and remain a quarterback. Lose the job and change positions to help the team win.

Roosevelt’s competition: James Starks and Drew Willy. Continue reading →

Best of the Q&A Mail Bag

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Time to answer some mail (although mine arrived on a screen). Photo by Kris Krug

Questions came this morning on Twitter and the names in parenthesis are Twitter accounts.

Q (Dave Larkin): Is this the day Mark Ingram breaks out?

A: I think this five-week stretch with Carolina, Tampa (twice), Indianapolis, and Saint Louis is the time that Mark Ingram is going to either build steam or become a wait-til-next year guy. Either way, I don’t think Mark Ingram has shown anything counter to his standing as a top-tier draft prospect at his position. Carolina has the best chance to maintain a points pace with the Saints offense, but the next four opponents will struggle offensively and I think Ingram will then see more game-sealing opportunities.

Q(Haydn239): How close are Landry Jones and Andrew Luck in talent?

A: I think it’s Luck and not even close. Cam Newton might have a better statistical year this year than Luck next year because Newton has the great athleticism combined with smarts and an offensive system that really has been tailored well for him, but I think Luck’s demonstration of how to change plays at the line of scrimmage and manage a game is rare.

Luck runs a west coast offense that is very close to what we see in the NFL and his ability to manipulate a defense before the snap is very much like Manning or Brady. I just watched him against UCLA last week on a 99-yard drive where he consistently moved around his personnel to the optimal run or pass play after getting the defense to reveal its base shell. This isn’t something that we see very often with college football quarterbacks and it is not that noticeably impressive to the casual fan because it doesn’t involve athleticism.

Landry Jones is a nice physical talent with the type of skills to have been a top-tier guy in other drafts. He still is a top-tier QB prospect. However, Luck is in another realm because he is given the conceptual keys to the offense that few quarterbacks his age are.

Q(Baxinpin): Thoughts on Jahvid Best the rest of the way?

A: Best is a terrific receiver from the backfield and I think the Lions are a smart enough group to make offensive adjustments to exploit defensive weaknesses that will generate big plays in the next 6-8 weeks. However, I don’t think the Lions have enough evidence to change their minds about Best and use him as a 15-20 carry back.

I think it will take injuries to other offensive pieces in the passing game and Best to show he can handle a higher workload to prove to the Lions that he can be more of a Marshall Faulk or a Tiki Barber in terms of role. It might evolve for Best over a course of years. However, I don’t think we’ll see it this year. Maybe some big runs this year, but the Lions are a pass-first team and the addition of Mikel LeShoure in the draft was an attempt to develop a power running game that they lack.

 

12th Round

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Forget Sports Illustrated, back in the pre-digital cable era you know you made it when you were on the TV Guide. Keenan McCardell may have been a 12th-round pick, but he was one-half of one of the better receiving duos of the `90s. Photo by Jim Ellwanger.

 

If you want evidence that the talent gap among NFL prospects is extremely small, consider that just 19 years ago there were 12 rounds in the NFL Draft. We’re talking about nearly twice the draft pool than the present day. Some may argue that fewer starters emerge from the late rounds and free agency than those drafted during the first day.

That is only a theory that hasn’t been proven in a pseudo-scientific manner. I have another theory. The talent gap is small, but how an organization handles these early round picks compared to its late round picks artificially induces a wider gap than what should be there. The reason is the heavy financial subsidization of early picks.  It exerts an indirect, but strong pressure on coaches to give these high-paid players more opportunities than its late-round picks and free agents. Continue reading →

Pocket Presence

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Philip Rivers is a standard setter when it comes to making throws in a tight pocket. Photo by Nathan Rupert.

One of my first blog posts was  Losing Your Football Innocence: 10 Things to Develop A More Critical Eye. It stresses the importance of studying NFL players and using them as a standard for evaluating college talent. Many of my peers who study games agree that while you’ll be hard pressed to find a college quarterback that performs just like an NFL veteran in his prime, it’s good to judge these prospects according to pro standards.

What you’re seeking isn’t an exact match technique for technique. You’re looking for enough moments Continue reading →

Crossing the Divide: Titans WR Damian Williams

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Damian Williams has the ability to become a primary WR in the NFL, but does he have the mindset? Photo by Nathan Rupert.

Last week, I wrote about the great emotional divide that NFL prospects must cross in order to transition from college talent to productive pro player. A player currently attempting to cross this divide is Titans wide receiver Damian Williams, a third-round pick in the 2010 NFL Draft currently starting in place of the injured Kenny Britt. Williams epitomizes a player balancing precariously on the line separating a breakthrough and a breakdown. Continue reading →

Maryland RB Davin Meggett

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Davin Meggett (No.8) comes from good NFL bloodlines. But does he have NFL game? Photo by John Martinez Pavliga.

I finished studying Maryland RB Davin Meggett’s performance against the Miami Hurricanes and I discovered that someone posted all of Meggett’s touches from this game. So I’m providing my analysis of Meggett’s performance with these highlights.

When it comes to the son of the former New York Giants star, four things stand out:

  1. Meggett has enough burst to generate positive plays as a runner.
  2. Change of direction is a talent this runner uses to a fault.
  3. He has the makings of a sound pass protector.
  4. What holds him back the most is his lack of maturity with his decision-making at the end of runs.

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0:05 – Meggett’s first target came on this 1st and 10 with 14:40 in the first quarter as the single back flanking the QB’s left in the shotgun Continue reading →

New Blog-Article Menu

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Continuous improvement is an ingrained part of what I try to do here at the Rookie Scouting Portfolio. Although I haven’t been adding new posts for the last week I have been creating a new menu to find my 99 other posts from the last four months. Many of you are new to the blog and a lot of what I write isn’t just about news that becomes old after a day or a week. You can find this Blog-Article Menu along the top menu bar of the site and it should provide a drop down menu to view articles grouped into these categories.

Scouts and Scouting – Here you can find essays on a variety of aspects about the player evaluation process and interviews of former scouts and current talent evaluators including NFL Films executive producer Greg Cosell, ESPN blogger and former Cleveland Browns scout Matt Williamson, NFL Draft Scout’s Chad Reuter, and National Football Post’s Wes Bunting.

Technique and X’s and O’s – Learn more about the technique behind what makes a good NFL skill player. This includes instructional analysis with video and even a film study interview series with the leading touchdown producer in the FBS in 2010. There are also essays and interviews about specific offensive schemes and personnel trends.

Reads, Listens, Views –  Check out my weekly recommendations when it comes to online reading for football, fantasy football,  and non-football. This section also includes my Audible segments A Walk on the Wild Side and miscellaneous football opinion pieces.


Gone Fishing…

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Hey Folks,

I’ve been ill for the past week and I was in Baltimore the week before on a family trip. I’ve only had enough energy to direct to the paid gigs. However, beginning next week I will be posting with greater frequency.

Best,

Matt