Posts tagged Denarius Moore

Sunday Mailbag 11/13

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Find out which rookie receiver reminds me of the late Chris Henry in this week's Mailbag. Photo by Donkerdink.

Fusue Vue via Twitter: Does Denarius Moore remind you of Brandon Lloyd?

MW: Fusue, I can see where Moore and Lloyd’s games have parallels. Both receivers do a tremendous job adjusting to the football. However, I think each player has some distinct differences.

I think Moore is a better player with the ball in his hands. He’s faster, a little more rugged, and he can also make defenders miss. The comparable player that immediately came to mind for me as a ball carrier as well as their physiques and skill at adjusting to the football was Continue reading →

Suggested Reading

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If this blog hit you out of nowhere the way Denarius Moore was a welcome surprise to you, read on for suggested links. Photo by Wade Rackley.

In recent weeks there have been a lot of new readers to the Rookie Scouting Portfolio. This site is constantly evolving and one of the things I intend to do during the next few weeks is to add a page that categorizes links to every article on the blog for easier navigation.

Whether you’re new to the site and haven’t had a chance to delve into it or you’ve been returning for a while, I thought it would be a good idea to provide some suggested reading:

Interviews

If you became acquainted with the RSP blog from the Greg Cosell or Dan Shonka conversations, I highly recommend checking out these posts.

Conversation with NFL Draft Scout’s Chad Reuter: This is the first part of a series of conversations I did with Reuter. It was pleasure to engage in football talk with a dedicated, intelligent evaluator of talent who uses his economics and player evaluation skills to present research information to NFL teams.

Conversation with National Football Post’s Wes Bunting: Just like Reuter, Bunting does the work. I should know, their processes sound eerily familiar to my early mornings. A very interesting read.

Film Study

Chad Spann is currently on the Colts' IR. He's a long-term sleeper to monitor. Learn more about his mind for the game below.

Grinding Tape: Chad Spann – Stiff arms and Green Dogs: How often do you get to read an interview where the interviewer and the subject are studying football together? This excerpt from a 2-hour study session (Just search “Chad Spann” for more) includes play diagrams and explanations of what the NCAA’s 2010 touchdown leader was thinking about with each play.

Walk on The Wild Side

The Unwritten Rules of Football and Life: These are transcriptions of podcast editorials I occasionally deliver at The Audible’s Thursday Night Roundtable with Sigmund Bloom and Cecil Lammey.

I’ll suggest other pieces each week until I create the navigation page. I hope these are enjoyable reading for you.

Who is Phillip Tanner?

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[youtube=http://youtu.be/olYhvsfdSso]

If you watched the Cowboys-Chargers preseason game last night then you saw a rookie running back putting on a display of what Cecil Lammey likes to call, “running hot.” There were probably 4-5 running backs in this game that ran hot. However, if I were to provide a photo next to Lammey’s definition in the yet-to-be-written football dictionary the image of Cowboys rookie Phillip Tanner running helmet-less through the Chargers secondary would be my first choice.

Who is Phillip Tanner? Was last night a fluke? Does he have a shot to stick to a roster? Let’s consult the 2011 Rookie Scouting Portfolio for some insight.

Players like Tanner, Denarius Moore, or other camp surprises who aren’t rated as high as their abilities in preseason have shown are one of my favorite topics of discussion, because they get to the core of what scouting is and what it isn’t. Most players graded have NFL talent. If you look at the history of the NFL draft, there were twice as many rounds at one time than there are now. Some of the greatest players in this game where drafted in rounds that don’t even exist today:

  • Deacon Jones was a 14th round pick.
  • Johnny Unitas was a 9th round pick.
  • Bart Starr was a 17th round pick.

I could list several others, but you get the point that a player registering on the collective Richter Scale of NFL scouts has the talent to develop into a contributor. These are young men capable of learning a lot in the span of a few years and their games can improve significantly in a short period of time. In addition a college system or surrounding talent can hinder a player’s ability to show his true potential. This is why teams will still value height, weight, speed, strength, agility, and conditioning over great technique. Sometimes teams err too far on that side, but there are always players who validate the notion that drafting a great athlete who didn’t consistently show great positional skills with his college team might yield gold.

Phillip Tanner is a free agent from Middle Tennessee State. In some respects he was overshadowed Continue reading →

Conversation with Wes Bunting – Part II

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The Oakland Raiders were the gateway to Wes Bunting's love of pro football. Photo by Fonticulus.

Wes Bunting is a little like one of his mentors, former NFL offensive coordinator and current Montreal head coach Marc Trestman. Both got their start in the business early. Bunting earned his job as the National Football Post’s Director of College Scouting straight out of college after impressing Michael Lombardi as an intern. In Part I, Bunting discusses the role of stats and measurements in his evaluation process; a couple of teams that haven’t maximized its talent on the field; and a player who surprised him.

In this part of our conversation Bunting talks about his youth, how he fell in love with the game, and translated that passion into what he does now. He also reveals what he learned from Ravens director of college scouting Eric DeCosta and the differences between evaluating for a football team and as a member of the media.

Waldman: Tell me about your personal background. Where did you grow up? How did you develop an interest in football? How did that interest lead to scouting? What was your education in this field? What about your education in other endeavors? Continue reading →

Eye Catching Tweets: NFL Preseason Week 1 (8/15)

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49ers RB Kendall Hunter is demonstrating that he's a good fit with the team because he's decisive and explsoive. Photo by Wunderlich Photography.

Randall Cobb

@gbpressgazette #Packers rookie receiver Randall Cobb shows ability to do damage in slot position: gbpg.net/n4FREL

@MattBowen41 I am impressed with #Packers rookie WR Randall Cobb. Post up at NFP at 11 E

The gist of the situation: Cobb’s 60 yards on 3 catches – 2 of them third down conversions – has everyone excited about the possibility of Cobb becoming a regular season factor on offense as a rookie. Even Packers cornerback Charles Woodson is impressed with Cobb. Even Aaron Rodgers was quoted in the Press-Gazette as saying that he’s excited about Cobb and looks forward to getting reps with him.

My take: The receiver depth chart is a crowded place in Green Bay. Donald Driver might be 36 in football years (47 in media years), but Continue reading →

Reads, Listens, Views…and Preseason Takes 8/13

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In case you've been away from NFL news this week, rookie WR Denarius Moore burning up Raiders camp. Just an excuse to use another cool photo by Wade Rackley

Preseason football is underway and before you know it, college football. Thank you to those of you who are making the Rookie Scouting Portfolio Blog a part of your regular reading schedule. As I’ve been saying weekly, if you like what you’ve seen thus far, please consider these three acts of kindness:

  1. Subscribe to this blog. It’s free.
  2. Share this blog with your friends.
  3. Send me feedback.

And then consider performing one special act of kindness to yourself: Get my publication The Rookie Scouting Portfolio. Those who buy it keep coming back year after year. See what they have to say about this player evaluation resource with a fantasy-friendly approach.

The RSP is a 120-150 page rookie report loaded with analysis, rankings, and player comparisons of over 150 offensive skill position prospects. And unlike any publication, I also show the reader my work with an appendix containing hundreds of pages of game study notes as well as my position-specific scoring checklists adopted from best-practice methods for performance evaluation.

In the coming weeks, I’ll be posting more prospect analysis that you’ll likely see in the 2012 Rookie Scouting Portfolio, which will be available here for purchase in the early spring.

Back issues of the RSP (2006-2010) are available for purchase by emailing me.

A Few Preseason Takes

Dallas WR Dwayne Harris scores twice, earns over 100 yards: Harris demonstrated his patented open-field skill as a runner, spotting a huge lane up the gut of the Broncos defense in the fourth quarter and put the hammer down for a 76-yard score. Continue reading →

Hall of Fame and Tweets 8/6

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Lott's bust even looks fierce. Might be the best rendition of any player in that sense.
A couple of months ago I had a chance to visit the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Here’s the link to the original post with a slideshow of the exhibit.

Blaine Gabbert

ChrisWesseling: From @PriscoCBS: What I saw from Gabbert is “like nothing I’ve witnessed on any #Jaguars‘ practice field in 16 years.” http://bit.ly/ptc4Mw

Continue reading →