This is one of my favorite posts in a while, because it is two very different angles of one play. The first angle will leave you shaking your head at the wide receiver. The second angle will provide a more sympathetic feeling towards him and less so for the quarterback. Continue reading
Spring is here, flowers are in bloom, and now’s the time to look at next year’s NFL Draft prospects. A player I didn’t see much of the past two years, but I intend to watch a great deal in 2012 is Oklahoma quarterback Landry Jones.
Jones considered leaving school a year early to enter the 2012 NFL Draft, but wisely chose to stay for one more. Not that I have a definitive list of reasons why Jones made the right choice, but one of the things I would like to see him improve upon is his decision-making. This is true for most college quarterbacks heading to the NFL, but I think Jones could use another year to master the speed of the college game before he tackles the challenge of the pros.
Jones has the fundamental tools to develop into a good pocket passer in the NFL. However, like Tom Brady, he’s not going to wow anyone with his athleticism. This means his skill at finding the open man, manipulating the defense, and delivering the ball with uncanny accuracy will need to be top notch for Jones to maximize his potential. Continue reading
Carolina Panthers rookie receiver Joe Adams has dynamite skills after the catch. I also like his ability to catch the football. However, one thing I consistently saw at Senior Bowl practices was difficulty getting early separation against press coverage.
On at least five down field routes, I saw Adams still fighting for separation against the defensive back 10 yards past the line of scrimmage. On each of these routes he was at least a step shy of a well thrown pass. This had nothing to do with speed. Adams has plenty of it. But route running isn’t about straight-line speed. Continue reading
Friday News
It’s been a little quieter around here as May winds down, but that’s because I’m busy working on a lot of fantasy football material at Footballguys.com. We’re rolling out an iPad magazine that is going to be Continue reading
With the NFL Draft over and mini camps underway, we’re getting close to that time of year where football writers can take a breather. That’s my rationale for delaying the RSP Writers Project a few months (if you’re new around here, I’m re-posting the original description of the project below). It’s a nice way of saying that those of us involved have been way too busy to set it up and deliver the information our owners need to build teams.
Good news! The project will be delivered to the writers on June 18 and they will have until July 20th to submit their teams and questionnaires. I’ll begin posting one team at a time beginning July 23rd.
Details (Original Post)
Secretly, we all want to build a football team. It’s why we’re passionate about every player recruited, drafted, traded, and signed. It’s why we play fantasy football. It’s why many of us are fanatical about the NFL draft. Continue reading
For more analysis of skill players like the post below, download the 2012 Rookie Scouting Portfolio. Better yet, if you’re a fantasy owner the 56-page Post-Draft Add-on comes with the 2012 RSP at no additional charge. Best, yet, 10 percent of every sale is donated to Darkness to Light to combat sexual abuse. Here’s an update on my pledge.
Bryce Brown was the top-rated running back entering college football in 2009 – over Trent Richardson.The Eagles made him a seventh-round pick to ensure no other team could sign him. Ability-wise, Brown is nowhere near a seventh-round grade: he’s a big back with soft hands, good burst, long speed, and finishing power.
The reason he dropped so far in the draft is past history:he left the Tennessee Volunteers after one year, sat out a year to comply with NCAA rules, and then only carried the ball three times at Kansas State before leaving the team and then entering the NFL Draft. There’s very little to see with Brown in college action. However, what’s available is filled with impressive moments. Continue reading
Press “Play,” then read the news when the music begins…
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The 2012 Post-Draft RSP Add-on is Ready for download! You know you feel like dancing!
That’s right, 56 pages of post-draft goodness:
This analysis is part of the overall 2012 Rookie Scouting Portfolio product. If you already downloaded the RSP, just return to www.mattwaldman.com, enter your login and password from your original purchase, and download the post-draft analysis from the 2012 folder.
That’s right, 1031 pages of 2012 NFL Draft-Fantasy Rookie analysis. If you haven’t bought the 2012 RSP, now’s the time. Get on it!
Reads
What All Teachers Should Learn from Jazz-band Teachers
Listens
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You’re kidding, right? 56 pages of the 2012 RSP Post-Draft Add-on!!! Go get it.
I’m wrapping up the weekend with my impressions of the NFL Draft. Yesterday was the first part. Today is the final half. Continue reading
I don’t believe in grading the draft. Many of my colleagues, ones I respect a great deal, will be providing draft grades this week. Some of them will say that they don’t believe a draft can be graded accurately for a few years, but two paragraphs later they are grading away like they’re teaching middle school. The reason is they believe they are giving readers what they want, and they’re right.
In this case, I don’t care. I’m not indulging in that practice. Although some may want to read it, perpetuating a practice that none of my writer brethren believe in but do it anyway is not something I have to do here. This is when I love having my own blog. I’m going to try something a little different and discuss what I think teams are trying to do with certain picks and whether I can see the logic. Continue reading
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If you can look at Irvin’s game through the lens that he can learn better technique to stay low, learn a change-up move, and learn to diagnose run plays with extra work, the physical talent is evident. Read more below.
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That was quick. And as someone who loves evaluating players and has less patience for waiting on picks, I loved how fast the first round flew by. I’m going to share some takes, but in case you’re new to this blog, here’s a list that includes seven first-round picks that I’ve analyzed in detail in recent months so I don’t have to rehash anything.
While I’m not a huge fan of Brandon Weeden, I see the logic Continue reading
