Posts tagged NFL draft

Reese’s Senior Bowl Day 1 Offensive Practice And Media Night

0 Comments read 2014 NFL Draft
Was Bradley Roby's performance against Jared Abbrederis (above) a case of rust or a that of a polished receiver winning his routes? Photo by Matt Radickal.
Jared Abbrederis will be a minor revelation to some. Photo by Matt Radickal.

It’s not where you start, but how you finish. This is true in life and often during a Senior Bowl practice week. While not true for all players, the first practice session for an all-star game is good for setting an informal baseline for the week ahead.

We did not attend the Jaguars’ South practice, but according to an AFC scout we didn’t miss anything more than basic play installation and a bunch of minor errors. The Falcons’ practice wasn’t much different. If judging by first impression, the Atlanta coaching staff’s practice format isn’t the best I have seen for Senior Bowl observers, but it is far from the worst.

The positive of practice is that the Atlanta staff focused a lot on footwork, releases, and one-on-one drills between receivers and corners while also giving running backs chances to show their stuff in light scrimmage conditions. The negative is that there was a period of 10-15 minutes during field goal drills where the Falcons could have been working with the skill position players on the opposite side of the field.

Understandably, a coaching staff running practice at the Senior Bowl should not and could not care less about what the media wants to see. The event’s director Phil Savage has an opportunity to get the coaching staffs to provide an agenda of what the practices will include, but there’s only a handful of people like Jene and I who actually care about things like this. Still, it’s one of those things that many in attendance might value once they see the result.

As for the players, the first day reveals little things that provide layers to their overall analysis: who’s flexible, who has difficulty executing basic drills, what’s their level of effort, etc. Here’s a list of notes we observed from the North’s initial session.

Quarterbacks

Logan Thomas, Virginia Tech: He missed throws high and wide on basic drills to receivers running routes without coverage. He also threw an interception on a check-down to a back, which is something I rarely see in scrimmage conditions like these. He was not aggressive down field on his first day.

Tajh Boyd, Clemson: The Tigers’ quarterback led off scrimmages with a play action roll right with a deep throw long and wide of a wide open Josh Huff. Beyond this play, Boyd stuck to short passes and quick decisions running the basics of an offense that emphasized wide receiver and running back screens during this session.

Stephen Morris: The Hurricanes’ quarterback weighed a surprising 208 lbs. today. I fully expected him to be at least 10-15 pounds heavier. While I’ve seen Morris throw the football 60 yards in the air against Florida State like it was nothing, today he under threw a wide-open Huff up the right sideline and forced the receiver to work inside and wait on the ball. The Oregon receiver almost made a tricky one-handed grab on the play. Otherwise, Morris stuck to the short stuff.

Running Backs

David Fluellen, Toledo: Fluellen is one of several running backs in this class who I still don’t have a great gauge of his acceleration and short-range explosiveness. Some plays look better than others and today it was no different with Fluellen. At 226 pounds, the Toledo back looked good in receiving drills and fluid with his change of direction. He made a nice decision inside left tackle with a strong cut down hill early in practice that caught my eye.

Charles Sims, West Virginia: Strong hands, good feet, and a feel for the openings ahead of him. Nothing new from what I’ve seen on film, which is a good all-around runner with lead back potential. We’ll see what happens tomorrow.

James White, Wisconsin: The 5’9″, 206-lb. runner was a fun interview with a good sense of humor. I asked him about recent alums from his program and how their performances have contributed to the perception that Wisconsin backs are a product of great line play. We also shared a laugh about the general surprise that the draft community had about his weigh-in. The best thing I got from White was a brief but informative take on what he watches when diagnosing run blitzes before the snap.  I believe White has a realistic sense of who he is as a football player attempting to earn a job as a professional.

Wide Receivers

This is the position I spend the most time watching and the first day of practice confirmed (thus far) much of what I’ve seen on tape from these guys. The focus of the next few days will be looking for examples that they’re learning new things and on the way to improving their craft.

While some new lessons have a quick turnaround time, others will require far more than three practices to matter. If these players are making the effort and demonstrating incremental improvements – even if small – it can be a good sign.

Shaq Evans, UCLA: What I’m most interested in seeing is Evans’ vertical game. The Bruins receiver told me this evening it was the untapped aspect of his game that wasn’t on display at UCLA and many don’t realize he has the skill to make big plays down field. While I agree with him, I’m not confident his quarterbacks have the deep accuracy to help him this week as much as we saw from Marvin Jones a couple of years ago.

Still, Evans’ practice was among the better performances in positional drills. Other than a route where he was late looking for the ball from his break and it got on top of him before he could raise his hands, I didn’t see a dropped pass.

Evans was consistent at attacking the football away from his body. He also adjusts to the ball with fluid athleticism. What’s most notable is the speed and precision of his footwork in drills.

Atlanta’s opening drill was an emphasis on footwork patterns that ended with a break across the field to catch a pass. Over half of the receivers were either fast with their feet or precise with their steps, but only two possessed both characteristics. One of them was Jared Abbrederis. The other was Evans.

One of Evans’ best plays of the session was a fade route where he didn’t get too close to the sideline until he beat Dez Southward by a step and angled to the boundary for a catch over his inside shoulder with good extension of his arms. This was not the typical route of 12-17 yards that he says he saw routinely at UCLA.

Kain Colter, Northwestern: A quarterback-turned-receiver, Colter has a lot of work to do, but the frame and athleticism to get there. The opening footwork drills were sloppy in terms of precision, but the foot speed was there. He was the one receiver position coach Terry Robiskie had repeat a rep in practice and it was handled with a level of patience that connotes and understand that Colter is a behind the curve compared to his peers.

Colter had multiple reps where he struggled to get free from press. He lacks the polish to execute more than one release move and he doesn’t appear to recognize how to read the ways he should approach a release from the line at this stage of his development.

When Colter got down field on a route, Dontae Johnson pinned the receiver to the sideline and forced a throwaway. When he caught the ball on a route breaking to the left flat, his opponent forced a fumble.

These are the type of plays one should expect from a new convert still thinking his way through all the steps required to play the position. The quickness, hands, and hustle are all traits he brings to the table, but his athleticism won’t come to the fore until he isn’t thinking about the small things. The fact Colter is covering punts in this team is a good indication of his immediate potential value for an NFL team.

Jared Abbrederis, Wisconsin: I have admired Abbrederis’ game since he got the best of Ohio State’s Bradley Roby last fall. Some observers will be impressed and/or surprised with his performance today, but Abbrederis’ opening practice was not the best I have seen from the receiver.

Still it was a good overall afternoon for the receiver. As mentioned, his opening performance on the footwork drills was cleaner and faster than anyone’s save Evans and the occasional strong rep from Michael Campanaro. He also made a number of good plays in one-on-ones with cornerbacks.

He forced Pierre Desire to commit deep before breaking short and also flashed a strong rip move to get inside on his teammate Southward. Late in one-on-one sessions, Abbrederis caught a slant in tight coverage and ran through a wrap attempt. He plays bigger than his 189-lbs. frame.

At the same time there were reps that highlighted the need for Abbrederis to add more muscle. He had multiple one-on-one reps where he failed to get a clean release on press coverage and would not have earned a target if it wasn’t a drill where he was the sole receiver. He also had an early drop on a slant after contact from Stan Jean-Baptiste.

Yet, these plays weren’t indicative of his game and minor notes in the scheme of a player capable of winning just as many as he loses. The play that spoke most to his skill was his best of a the afternoon: A streak up the right sideline against Marqueston Huff.

Abbrederis beat the corner with a good outside-inside to earn the initial release and he had a solid step on the corner when quarterback Stephen Morris released the ball. Morris, under-threw the route  and Abbrederis had to turn to face the trailing Huff and make the catch in the tightest of quarters.

The Wisconsin receiver will be a minor revelation to the uninitiated this week.

Jeff Janis, Saginaw Valley State: As Abbrederis validated his skills, Janis further demonstrated that he drops as many passes that he catches when forced to attack the ball with his hands. He trapped his first two reps and then dropped the third when forced to extend his arms from his body on an accurate throw. He resorted to trapping the ball for most of his reps where he had a chance to make the catch with the exception of a quick slant in 11-on-11s that resulted in a hard hit that knocked Saginaw on his side and drew oohs from the media.

Between that drop early and that catch late, Janis struggled beating press against Marqueston Huff, Dez Southward, I believe Deone Buchannon. During one-on-ones he failed to break to the quarterback on an in-cut that his opponent undercut for a near-interception and also failed to work to the quarterback after a good break on a stop route.

There will be some talk about what Janis can do based on isolated moments on tape where they see him make a good catch with his hands or get open and earn the reception in tight coverage. However, the volume of plays I had to watch to see these good moments were too large to give significant weight.

Robert Herron, Wyoming: What I liked most about this smaller receiver was his initial quickness and variety of moves to earn a clean release. Although I’m not convinced he has the down field speed to extend a lead against top corners, he was consistent at getting on top of his opponents in practice.

Herron demonstrated a swim move, rip, and underhanded release, and integrated these skills with good footwork. His play of the day was an excellent double move on a post-corner and flashed enough closing speed to corral a pass over his shoulder with full extension of his arms on a throw I didn’t believe he’d reach.

The Wyoming receiver was also a good interview. He shared some quality tips on the technique of position, including how to successfully find the ball on quick-breaking timing routes where it’s mandatory to get his head around fast.

Josh Huff, Oregon: As anyone familiar with his game would guess, Huff got open deep multiple times on Monday. He beat Dez Southward on a double move and then later had a touchdown in on a go route where he got open early and maintained his position.

Huff demonstrates some skill to catch the ball with his hands, but when he has to make a more difficult adjustment there’s a tendency to fight the ball. He juggled a low and away throw in drills and had another awkward catch in the middle of practice.

I like what I see from Huff as a future deep threat in a rotation, but not a slam-dunk future starter. No only do his hands need to get better, but he needs to display greater precision with his footwork. He was one of the three best with his feet today, but he lacked the precision of Evans and Abbrederis.

Michael Campanaro, Wake Forest: The 5’9″, 191-lb. receiver was shorter than I thought, but his weight was a pleasant surprise. A quick player, the Demon Deacon got the best of every corner he faced at least once on Monday. He displayed a variety of release moves that worked and he often displayed good feet in one-on-ones even if his footwork was less consistent in opening drills.

When defensive backs got the best of Campanaro it came when they pressed the receiver. It wasn’t an automatic loss for Campanaro, but he had to work hard on some plays where his peers had an easier time.

For analysis of skill players in this year’s draft class, download the 2013 Rookie Scouting Portfolio.The 2014 RSP will available April 1 and if you pre-order before February 10, you get a 10 percent discount. Better yet, if you’re a fantasy owner the 56-page Post-Draft Add-on comes with the 2012 – 2014 RSPs at no additional charge and available for download within a week after the NFL Draft. Best, yet, 10 percent of every sale is donated to Darkness to Light to combat sexual abuse. You can purchase past editions of the Rookie Scouting Portfolio for just $9.95 apiece.

Senior Bowl Weigh-In

0 Comments read 2014 NFL Draft

Scale by vividbreeze

Funky historic undertones aside, the Sr. Bowl Weigh-In provides necessary data. 

By Matt Waldman with contributions from Jene Bramel

Save the occasional whisper, the shuffling of paper, and feedback from a microphone, there’s a period of 109 minutes at the Senior Bowl Weigh-In where you only hear five things. It begins with a man at stage right announcing a name.

Next comes the muffled thud of steps from an athlete in his early twenties. He’s barefoot and stripped to his underwear as he makes his way for measurement at center stage.

The attendant at center stage announces the athlete’s height. There’s a 10-12 second pause followed by three digital beeps from a scale at stage left and the announcement of said athlete’s weight.

It’s a process that cycles through 109 players with the slow-moving precision of an assembly line as a crowd of scouts and media seated in 7 rows of 67 chairs, 12 rows of risers, and 8-10 rows of overflow convert everything they see and hear into data for their notebooks, spreadsheets, and databases.

The weigh-in is the ultimate sign of the commoditization of an athlete. Watching this process set in the Mobile Convention Center “Ballroom,” a warehouse space with a cement floor and loading doors across the street from what used to be a dock in Mobile, Alabama. Although gussied up with black drapes, three large projection screens, and a podium, it doesn’t disguise the fact that men are being evaluated for purchase on the Martin Luther King holiday – a fact not lost on us.

The weigh-in has the mood of a slave auction posing as a beauty pageant with ex-jocks-turned-librarians as judges. It’s not a fun thing for any man with a sense of history to attend, but it’s hard to imagine football ever finding a way to fix this vibe and getting what needs to be seen.

And what needs to be seen is what these football players look like. It’s not just about height and weight, but build and expectations validated or dashed. Here are some observations Jene Bramel and I have from the 2014 Senior Bowl Weigh-In.

Pageant Winners

SimsD5

These players not only fit the size/weight/wingspan prototypes of their positions, but they were also in fine physical condition. If the weigh-in was a beauty pageant, they’d earn a sash. Just remember substance trumps looks every day of the week and twice on Sundays.

RB Charles Sims, West Virginia (5-11, 214): Sims’ carries his weight on a well-distributed frame and there was still room to add a little more muscle to his arms if necessary. Much like Demarco Murray and Darren McFadden two players he physically resembles, Sims looks the part of an elite athlete.

WR Jeff Janis, Saginaw Valley State (6-2, 212): Janis has well-defined build with broad shoulders and an even distribution of muscle. He looks the part of an NFL wide receiver.

QB Logan Thomas, Virginia Tech (6-5, 250): Tall, strong, and athletic without any flab that one often sees from some quarterbacks over 210 pounds. Some team will see him as a raw material.

RB Jerick McKinnon, Georgia Southern (5-9, 209): The former quarterback has a thick trunk with a build that looks a lot like Frank Gore’s. If only he had that kind of game. If only most running backs had that kind of game.

DE Kareem Martin, North Carolina (6-5, 272): It isn’t the height / weight measurements that stand out for Martin. It’s the 84 1/4 wingspan and 34 3/8 arm length. If Martin can use that to his advantage by keeping offensive tackles away from his body, he’ll do well in the pit battles and gain some momentum as Pro Day workouts approach.

OLB Jerry Attaochu, Georgia Tech (6-3, 252), DE Dee Ford, Auburn (6-2, 243) and DE Chris Smith, Arkansas (6-1, 266): The South defensive line doesn’t have the names it had in 2012, when Quinton Coples, Melvin Ingram and Courtney Bishop dominated their offensive line counterparts. Ford and Smith all showed impressive frames during the weigh-in. All three are on the shorter side of the ideal prototype but stood out with strong frames. Smith, despite measuring two inches smaller than his pre-weigh in roster listing, had a thick base and an above-average arm length (34 1/8) and wingspan (82 1/2).

OLB Telvin Smith, Florida State (6-3, 218), OLB Chris Kirksey, Iowa (6-2, 234), ILB Christian Jones, Florida State (6-3, 234), ILB Jordan Zumwalt, UCLA (6-4, 231) and ILB Lamin Barrow, LSU (6-1, 229): Size isn’t everything at the linebacker position in today’s NFL. 235 pound linebackers once considered too small for most schemes are now found throughout the league. But those players need elite technique and athleticism to be successful. None of the linebackers above looked to have a frame capable of adding much bulk. Smith, in particular, looked like a safety as he walked across the stage.  Of course, the only real question scouts have to answer will be, “Can he play?” Smith and Kirksey are probably the best bets to overcome physical limitations.

CB Stanley Jean-Baptiste, Nebraska (6-2, 215): It’s dangerous to overreact to measurements at the defensive back positions. Fluidity and flexibility are much more important physical attributes for corners and safeties than how they look in shorts. A solid frame and defined build don’t say much for how well a defensive back can turn his hips, change direction and use his feet. Jean-Baptiste will be another test case here. Jean-Baptiste looked capable of lining up at strong safety or outside linebacker with a tall but stout frame. If his play matches his measurables this week, he may get teams talking about him as a second or third round pick.

Good Surprises

These players exceeded my expectations based on what I perceived of them in pads on the field. Some have probably added weight so it will be interesting to see how they perform with those changes.

RB James White, Wisconsin (5-9, 206): I had doubts White was 5-10 or 5-11 or remotely near the 200-lb. range. His true height is still in the wheelhouse of a quality NFL runner and his weight was a pleasant development. If White can demonstrate more physicality with his running style, he could find a place in the NFL. He’s a smart runner with good agility.

RB Antonio Andrews, Western Kentucky (5-10, 225): I didn’t think Andrews was this big and based solely on appearances, he carries the weight well. The definition isn’t there but I like that much of the weight is in his hips and legs. He’s solid, not flabby.

WR Cody Hoffman, BYU (6-3, 218): The height is nice, but I was happy to see he was as big as he looked in pads. Hoffman has a quick first step so I was glad to see he possesses the size to run through contact.

Maxxed Out

These players could play today with their builds, but I don’t see them adding more than 5 pounds and carrying it well.

TE Arthur Lynch, Georgia (6-4, 258): Lynch has that natural-looking muscle definition in nice-sized frame. He looks like a fluid athlete. I don’t think he’s capable of getting bigger, but he’s big enough to make a roster. Lynche’s question marks are speed and quickness. If he has these two commodities, he could contribute down the line.

WR Josh Huff, Oregon (5-10, 201) and Jordan Matthews, Vanderbilt (6-2, 209): I’m skeptical that these two players have the frames to support another 10-15 pounds of muscle and maintain their current athleticism. I don’t think either of them needed it, but Huff has better proportions in terms of his weight distribution than Matthews.

QB Derek Carr, Fresno State (6-2, 215) and QB Jimmy Garoppolo, Eastern Illinois (6-2, 219): Not sure what it was about their frames because their height is the same, but Garoppolo appears as if he could add a little more weight than Carr. I’d be surprised if either reach that 230-mark – it won’t be necessary either. Both are well-defined athletes and don’t look like some of the beer-league softball players in training that we sometimes see on Mobile’s stage.

Construction Projects

SS Craig Loston, LSU (6-0, 214): If you look at his torso, you’d think he was 190 pounds but if you only checked out his bottom half you’d swear he was 225.

WR Kevin Norwood, Alabama (6-2, 197): This receiver has nice height and a frame that I believe will support additional weight, especially his upper body where he can get stronger. With his height, this is a plus.

WR Jared Abbrederis, Wisconsin (6-0, 189): The Badgers’ wide receiver plays bigger than he looks. He has the frame to gain another 10 pounds of muscle, maybe 15. If he can maintain his quickness and explosion (leaping ability), he has the technique to contribute.

For analysis of skill players in this year’s draft class, download the 2013 Rookie Scouting Portfolio.The 2014 RSP will available April 1 and if you pre-order before February 10, you get a 10 percent discount. Better yet, if you’re a fantasy owner the 56-page Post-Draft Add-on comes with the 2012 – 2014 RSPs at no additional charge and available for download within a week after the NFL Draft. Best, yet, 10 percent of every sale is donated to Darkness to Light to combat sexual abuse. You can purchase past editions of the Rookie Scouting Portfolio for just $9.95 apiece.

Below the Radar: Alabama Utility Back Jalston Fowler

0 Comments read 2014 NFL Draft, Running Back
Photo by Football Schedule.
Photo by Football Schedule.

Alabama FB/HB Jalston Folwer reminds me of Atlanta Falcons’ underrated ‘tweener Jason Snelling, only Fowler is a better ball carrier. 

The eye in the sky doesn’t lie. It’s a pithy football cliché. But the eyes in our heads can fool us.

It happens to everyone while watching a football game and play-by-play commentary can reinforce inaccurate depictions of what’s happening on the field. If you’re a casual viewer this is nitpicking criticism. If you’re focusing on a player it’s important to forget what you saw on the couch with your buds and ignore what you heard during the game.

A good example is what I heard from announcer Brent Musberger’s during Alabama’s 2012 opener against Michigan when he described Crimson Tide fullback/halfback (and H-back) ‘tweener Jalston Fowler “hammering away” at the Wolverine front. I thought I saw the same thing from the 250-lb. Fowler. However, when I studied his performance last month, what I saw on repeat views was a big man making defenders miss.

If what you see below didn’t fool you upon first viewing, good for you. You have truthful eyes today. Congratulations, you’re a football analysis god. Now go away.

Whether Fowler returns to Alabama this year or leaves for the NFL (and I believe he’s staying), he is the type of prospect who heightens my interest as a talent evaluator because he has been a supporting actor on a stage that has included leading men Trent Richardson, Eddie Lacy, and T.J. Yeldon. If Folwer makes an NFL roster and develops into a contributor along the lines of Snelling, Mike Tolbert, or ascends to a lead role, it wouldn’t be the first time a runner in a collegiate supporting role earns a greater opportunity as a ball carrier as a pro.

William Andrews was a fullback for Joe Cribbs. Terrell Davis was backing up Garrison Hearst. Priest Holmes took a backseat to Ricky Williams. And Willie Parker knew every grain and knot of the pine where he sat at UNC.

These examples and others are often personnel decisions that factor scheme fit in addition to talent. In the case of Fowler, a four-star prospect as a running back at the prep level, it was an embarrassment of riches in Tuscaloosa.

Here’s an introduction to those unfamiliar with Fowler as a ball carrier.

Footwork in the Hole

Fowler is the single back on 2nd and 10 with 5:37 in the first quarter from a 21 personnel weak side twin, strong side I-formation set at the 33 of Alabama. Michigan is in a 4-3 with the free safety in the box at linebacker depth over right defensive end. This is a zone run with the right guard collapsing the defensive tackle inside  and the center working to the middle linebacker.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zStxtcjBRmU&start=44&w=560&h=315]

Fowler works behind the right guard to reach the line of scrimmage, entering the hole with low pad level as the outside linebacker from the left side pursues inside. At 6’1″, Fowler is a tall runner but his pad level is excellent and I’m impressed with his ability to change direction running from this crouched position. He dips outside that linebacker’s reach two yards down field and turns up the left hash for another eight.

Then Fowler bends inside the cornerback coming from the left hash at the first down marker maintaining that strong pad level with the ball high and tight under his right arm. The Alabama runner finishes the play dropping his pads into the safety 13 yards down field gains another four yards for a total of 17.

This finish warrants Musberger’s characterization, but it’s Fowler’s maneuvering around these blocks untouched for three-quarters of this carry that is most noteworthy.

Feature Back Agility

This 2nd-and-10 gain of four with 2:11 in the first quarter isn’t a display of Lesean McCoy’s skill at cutting against the grain, but it reveals that Fowler has the agility to execute NFL-caliber, press-and-cuts down hill at the line of scrimmage. This is a 12 personnel weak side twin set versus a 4-3 with the Michigan strong safety outside the wing back on the unbalanced strong side. Alabama runs a zone blocking play to the strong side.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zStxtcjBRmU&start=75&w=560&h=315]

Fowler presses the run towards the end and then cuts the play downhill. He cuts inside his left tackle and then bends the run under his left guard. I have the 49ers-Panthers Divisional Playoff game on as I’m writing this and I just watched Frank Gore execute the same press and cut – Fowler’s was no different.

Alabama’s big back bursts through the line of scrimmage for a gain of four before the defensive back hits Fowler in the legs. This is when 250 lbs. of north-south burst and pad level does it’s job: Fowler keeps his legs moving and earns another four on the play, carrying two more defenders on his back.

This 1st-and-10 wind back play from a 12-personnel weak side twin set at the 43 of Alabama is good display of quick, economical feet that transitions well to the NFL.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zStxtcjBRmU&start=159&w=560&h=315]

The left guard and center do a good job with their double team to the middle linebacker. Combined with the tight end’s effort on the edge, there’s a huge lane to the left side of the line of scrimmage. However the outside linebacker manages to shoot this gap unblocked straight for Fowler.

The runner executes a nifty cut inside the attempt, reaches the line of scrimmage, and runs through the arms of the next defender. Fowler maintains his balance for another five yards down field and then out runs a wrap attempt eight yards past the line of scrimmage, splits the safety and cornerback with strong pad level and falls forward for a gain of 12. The replay does an even better job of showing the footwork.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zStxtcjBRmU&start=167&w=560&h=315]

Mature Decision Maker

Fowler may have good feet, but he’s not a big back with a little back’s mindset like Lendale White or Marc Tyler. If a large crease doesn’t open, Fowler makes the most of what’s ahead.  This 12 wind back play from a 12 personnel weak side twin set with 9:58 in the game isn’t a big gain, but it’s a mature decision.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zStxtcjBRmU&start=153&w=560&h=315]

At the snap, the wing back works across the formation to the weak side end as Fowler takes the exchange. Fowler spots the right defensive end working across the face of the runner’s edge block to penetrate the middle of the line. Fowler dips to the left for three yards, gaining all three after contact at the line of scrimmage when there was no crease.

With Richardson and Lacy the marquee backs while Fowler was an underclassman and Yeldon and Derrick Henry as the present and future of the Alabama backfield, Fowler isn’t a name the public will know. But whether it’s this year or next, Fowler is a player I expect to make an NFL roster as a special teams contributor who will develop into a factor in a pro offense.

For analysis of skill players in this year’s draft class, download the 2013 Rookie Scouting Portfolio.The 2014 RSP will available April 1 and if you pre-order before February 10, you get a 10 percent discount. Better yet, if you’re a fantasy owner the 56-page Post-Draft Add-on comes with the 2012 – 2014 RSPs at no additional charge and available for download within a week after the NFL Draft. Best, yet, 10 percent of every sale is donated to Darkness to Light to combat sexual abuse. You can purchase past editions of the Rookie Scouting Portfolio for just $9.95 apiece.

You can begin placing orders for the 2015 RSP in January. 

Futures: Senior Bowl Preview

0 Comments read Matt Waldman

Is UNC defensive end Quinton Coples the next Jason Pierre-Paul? Jene Bramel says the potential is there but like everything earned in life, he has to put in the work to hone his gifts.
The Senior Bowl practices begin next week on the Martin Luther King holiday. Photo by Jene Bramel.

Another year, another Senior Bowl. What I am looking for, and what does the format of the Senior Bowl help me see?

Futures: Senior Bowl Preview

by Matt Waldman

There will be hundreds of Senior Bowl Previews available within the next seven days. Most of them will explain why the game is important to the NFL and the participating player. Only a few writers won’t provide 3-4 sentence summaries of the prospects.

I have provided this type of preview in one form or another since I began attending five years ago. I’m doing some of that once again this year, but I’m also sharing a more personal preview of the event. In addition to disclosing what I want to see from dozens of players, this preview will cover what else all-star games offer me as an evaluator of talent with my own publication devoted to offensive skill prospects.

Continual Football Education

.

At its core, studying tape is a solitary pursuit focused on the end product. Attending all-star game practices provides a glimpse into another dimension of the game, its coaches, and its players behind the scenes.

The opportunity to watch two NFL coaching staffs conduct a practice for a week provides insight into not only what’s important to them, but also what I can reasonably expect a player to reveal about his game during these sessions.

There are prospects that arrive in Mobile with a reputation for a certain skill set based on their junior and senior film, but the practices reveal something important about their game that the past two years of tape doesn’t show. I was fortunate enough to see Bengals receiver Marvin Jones showcase his skills as vertical threat during his sophomore year, but because his role at Cal changed after his sophomore year, many observers had their eyes opened for the first time when they witnessed Jones’ big-play ability at the Senior Bowl.

Practices vary in tone, tempo, and detail and it means the type of information one can gain varies from year to year. While I’ve expressed my utopian ideal for the Senior Bowl in the past, the practical approach is to be prepared to take what you can get.

When Buffalo’s staff ran a week of practice a few years ago, special teams had heightened priority and the teaching moments from individual drills were less frequent. There’s still a lot to see, but practices don’t serve as an informal technique clinic, which Bengals and Lions practices often were.

Former Detroit offensive coordinator Scott Linehan’s practice sessions for the offense at the Senior Bowl were especially good. He had an up-tempo style and packed the mornings with a variety of drills that tested and taught details that prospects needed to develop into more complete players.

Learning What’s Valuable (And What’s Not) From Practices

Everyone gets something different from watching practice. My book focuses on skill prospects, so I don’t spend much time . . . (read the rest at Football Outsiders)

“One Good Year” And Other Asinine Thoughts on QB Evaluation

0 Comments read 2014 NFL Draft, Players, Quarterback
This guy had "one good year" in college football. Photo by PDA.Photo
This guy had “one good year” in college football. Photo by PDA.Photo

One good year. It’s a cautionary refrain from the chorus of skeptics not sold on Central Florida junior Blake Bortles as a top-flight quarterback prospect (see my evaluation of Bortles vs. South Carolina). In the wee hours of the morning in a video-lit room evaluating quarterbacks, this three-word phrase will strike the fear in the hearts of most veteran scouts.

One good year could be Akili Smith, who  like Bortles, was another 6’3″, 220-plus-pound college wonder who the Cincinnati Bengals took third overall in the 1999 NFL Draft. Smith had the arm and the legs to carry team, but according to Smith, who is now coaching quarterbacks at St. Augustine High School in San Diego, he spent more time curling glasses at bars than he did grinding tape in Cincinnati.

However, one good year is also Cam Newton, who took the NFL by storm as a rookie and along with a fine defense has pried open the Panthers’ window of contention. Many scouts were also singing the One good year dirge during the winter of 2011 for this rocket armed athlete who has grown each year as a quarterback and team leader despite concerns he didn’t possess the right kind of potential to handle the role on the field and in the locker room.

More than anything, one good year means NFL scouts don’t have enough evidence to cover their collective assets if a quarterback like Bortles fails. It’s one thing to invest a second, third, or fourth-round pick in players like Colin Kaepernick, Russell Wilson, Drew Brees, Matt Schaub, or Aaron Brooks and spin their development as a surprise or a stroke of scouting/coaching genius. It’s another to anoint first-round picks the future of the franchise and watch them set back a team’s development.

Personally, I think the phrase one good year is just a phrase. Giving those three words anywhere close to the weight of what’s seen in a game, in practice, or during a team interview is asinine.

Let’s go with the popular idea that a first-round quarterback should be more than a “capable starter.” I know what that means to me, but I have no idea what it means to everyone else. The same goes for “he should be a star.”

Then there’s the inevitable truth that stars rise and decline. If you don’t believe me, look in the sky.

There are many ways to define what that either term means. I’m defining a star as a quarterback who has done at least one of the following during his career:

  • Earned multiple trips to the Pro Bowl.
  • Led the league in meaningful passing categories (yards, touchdowns, completion percentage, or QB rating) for multiple seasons.
  • Led his team to multiple conference championship games.

Here is my criteria for capable starter status. A quarterback with this label should have done at least one of the following:

  • Led his team to the playoffs at least once.
  • Earned one trip to the Pro Bowl.
  • Earned top-5 production in meaningful passing categories (see above) for multiple seasons.

Using this criteria on the 51 first-round quarterbacks drafted since 1993, 22 of them are or were at least capable starters. That’s an underwhelming 45 percent success rate. Only 8 of these first-round picks can be considered stars – an appropriate stardom rate of 15 percent even in this day and age where everyone earns a trophy for participating.

Here’s a look at 17 years of first-round quarterbacks courtesy of DraftHistory.com.  I’m not counting the 2013 class – even in today’s ever-impatient media-fan-ownership environment of the NFL, they get a pass.

Year No. Round Pick Name Star Capable Comments
2012 1 1 1 Andrew Luck x Quintessential rising star. But by this conservative criteria, a “capable starter.”
2 1 2 Robert Griffin III x Pro-Bowl rookie season, toilet bowl sophomore year. Still, a “capable starter.”
3 1 8 Ryan Tannehill Flashes of good work, but jury still out.
4 1 22 Brandon Weeden Two years in and the Browns are eyeing the draft for a QB once again.
2011s 1 3 0 Terrelle Pryor Had moments this year, but regressed and lost the starting job.
2011 1 1 1 Cam Newton x On the cusp of stardom accoridng to my simplistic criteria.
2 1 8 Jake Locker Injuries and play mean the jury is out.
3 1 10 Blaine Gabbert The Jaguars are giving him one more year. I think they mean with the team and not as a starter unless he wows everyone.
4 1 12 Christian Ponder Like the coaching staff, out with the old and in with the new.
2010 1 1 1 Sam Bradford The talent is there but he cannot be considered a capable starter yet.
2 1 25 Tim Tebow Italy is calling.
2 1 5 Mark Sanchez Sanchez is the fly in my criteria’s ointment, because it considers him a star. Fortunately, I’m not counting it. Common sense is a beautiful thing.
3 1 17 Josh Freeman Where will Freeman land?
2008 1 1 3 Matt Ryan x Not quite a star, but more than capable.
2 1 18 Joe Flacco x Highly capable.
2007 1 1 1 JaMarcus Russell Have we heard anything from Jeff Garcia lately?
2 1 22 Brady Quinn Storied program, big muscles, QB looks, and holds a clipboard with the best of them.
2006 1 1 3 Vince Young x At one time, capable but blew it. Still, it counts.
2 1 10 Matt Leinart The next Tom Brady . . .
3 1 11 Jay Cutler x Capable starter.
2005 1 1 1 Alex Smith x Capable starter.
2 1 24 Aaron Rodgers x Stud.
3 1 25 Jason Campbell Career backup.
2004 1 1 1 Eli Manning x Capable starter.
2 1 4 Philip Rivers x Low end of stardom, but qualifies.
3 1 11 Ben Roethlisberger x Stats don’t justify stardom, but the postseason does.
4 1 22 J.P. Losman Trent Edwards was better until Adrian Wilson got to him.
2003 1 1 1 Carson Palmer x Capable starter.
2 1 7 Byron Leftwich x Low end of capable starter at one time.
3 1 19 Kyle Boller Big arm, big-name school, big disappointment.
4 1 22 Rex Grossman Low-end of capable starter w/his Super Bowl appearance.
2002 1 1 1 David Carr Human pin cushion.
2 1 3 Joey Harrington Good college quarterback, good at the piano, and decent on FS1 Network.
3 1 32 Patrick Ramsey Reserve.
2001 1 1 1 Michael Vick x One-time capable starter with exciting gifts.
2000 1 1 18 Chad Pennington Not healthy enough to earn capable starter status even if he was in spirit.
1999 1 1 1 Tim Couch Capable SEC commentator for a regional cable network.
2 1 2 Donovan McNabb x One-time star.
3 1 3 Akili Smith High school QB coach.
4 1 11 Daunte Culpepper x One-time star.
5 1 12 Cade McNown Where are they now?
1998 1 1 1 Peyton Manning x Hall of Famer.
2 1 2 Ryan Leaf Still in the news on occasion.
1997 1 1 26 Jim Druckenmiller Big, strong, and UDFA/NFL Europe’s Jeff Garcia much better.
1995 1 1 3 Steve McNair x Underrated star. Yes, I’m biased. I don’t care. Don’t argue . . .
2 1 5 Kerry Collins x Capable starter at one point.
1994 1 1 3 Heath Shuler I wonder what Norv Turner was thinking when he laid eyes on Shuler.
2 1 6 Trent Dilfer x Beginning to remind me of F. Murray Abraham in “Finding Forrester.”
1993 1 1 1 Drew Bledsoe x Low-end star at one time.
2 1 2 Rick Mirer Goes to show you even Bill Walsh was fallible.

I inadvertently omitted Matt Stafford from this list (capable starter), but I did count him into my calculations. I don’t know about you, but a 45 percent success rate for a first-round quarterback developing into a capable starter tells me that having hard and fast rules about where and when you invest in a quarterback is foolish.

Another acceptable notion of “common sense” is that NFL teams shouldn’t draft a quarterback unless they believe that player sees star potential from that prospect. Using the same sample size and criteria, there are 35 quarterbacks since 1993 that were drafted with one of the top-15 overall picks. Only 6 of those 35 passers became stars – a whopping 17 percent success rate for meeting these organizations’ expectations.

Go easier on these top-15 picks and consider them successful as “capable starters” then that rate jumps to 54 percent. Still, the probability for turning a top-15 overall pick at quarterback has been marginally better than a coin flip.  If the NFL hasn’t figured out how to project the talent with more accuracy than it has, then why should anyone listen to a former or current scout, coach, general manager, or owner when they explain their criteria for what makes a good first-round caliber quarterback?

This is not a complete indictment of NFL personnel men. Injuries and surrounding talent can alter the prospects of a young player that teams probably did a fair job of evaluating. However, the idea that the NFL and the draft community should be critiquing what constitutes a potential “bull’s-eye” with an anecdotal theory about “one good year” when it has difficulty hitting the target is putting the Super Bowl before the regular season.

This week, I’ll post some evaluation notes on Bortles. I promise you “one good year,” won’t be a part of my analysis.

 For analysis of skill players in this year’s draft class, download the 2013 Rookie Scouting Portfolio.The 2014 RSP will available April 1 and if you pre-order before February 10, you get a 10 percent discount. Better yet, if you’re a fantasy owner the 56-page Post-Draft Add-on comes with the 2012 – 2014 RSPs at no additional charge and available for download within a week after the NFL Draft. Best, yet, 10 percent of every sale is donated to Darkness to Light to combat sexual abuse. You can purchase past editions of the Rookie Scouting Portfolio for just $9.95 apiece.

Aspire For The Catch, Settle For The Trap

0 Comments read 2014 NFL Draft, Players, Wide Receiver
Marqise Lee demonstrates why good technique matters. Photo by James Santelli.
Marqise Lee demonstrates why good technique matters. Photo by James Santelli.

Marqise Lee, Gator Hoskins, and Draftbreakdown.com, provide good examples why extending the arms to catch the ball is important.

Draft Breakdown.com is a wonderful source for viewing cut-ups of games. When I don’t have a game I need from my own growing library of recorded games (probably in the thousands by now) this site filled with YouTube cut-ups is an excellent resource.  Aaron Aloysius and the fellas at Draft Breakdown.com are worth your eyeballs and minds.

I encourage anyone still using soundtrack heavy highlight videos for a “serious” understanding of a player’s game to end that practice and head to Draft Breakdown.com for videos that are often as brief as the “fan boy tributes”, but show the good, the bad, and the ugly of prospects within the proper context of that game.

Periodically, I’ll be accumulating these tips to place on page on my site. Here’s the first.

Tip No.1 – Aspire For The Catch, Settle For The Trap

The number of NFL receivers who trap the ball to their bodies as their primary method of catching that ball who have produced in starting lineups since the 1980s is tiny. The ones I can recall since I began studying players with the RSP’s formal process is even small. I can name most of them without looking at my database: Golden Tate, Early Doucet, Robert Meachem, and Darius Heyward-Bey.

Only Golden Tate looks like he might emerge from career statistical mediocrity and that’s no guarantee. One of the reasons is Tate – like Doucet – actually can use his hands as a reliable resource to catch the football. When watching DraftBreakdown.com’s  library of cut-ups on receiver and tight end prospects, this 3rd-and-15 pass on a crossing route to Marshall tight end/receiver hybrid Gator Hoskins is a visual example of why trapping the football is not the ideal way to secure a pass in most situations.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sMswzIC9sr4&start=13&w=560&h=315]

Hoskins finds the open middle in the zone as the inside trips receiver on the right side of this formation after working outside the linebacker and under the safety. The ball arrives on time for Hoskins to make the catch at the left hash at the first down marker.

Ideally Hoskins should turn his pads to the quarterback’s throw and extend his arms towards the ball. The reason behind this is to attack the ball at the earliest window of arrival. The earlier a receiver can make contact with the ball on its flight to the receiver, the more chances he can create to make the catch.

We all say that the ball bounces funny as an excuse for plays that don’t work out. It’s often true. However, the techniques I’m showing you also lower the incidence of the “Oblong Ball Factor”.

Squaring the pads and extending the arms to the ball provides a three-sided environment for the ball that helps a receiver herd the ball into his body if his hands fail him. If he isn’t square to the ball, the ball sails away from his frame and gives his opponent a greater opportunity to make the play.

If he doesn’t extend his arms to meet the ball early, then his choices are limited if he doesn’t catch the ball on the first try. Here’s a great example of what I’m talking about with Marqise Lee on a two-point conversion against Stanford this year. Watch the replays.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qWIL_futp44&start=87&w=560&h=315]

Lee whiffs on the ball at its earliest window, passing between his hands. But the framework he establishes with his arms and chest gives him a second chance to trap the ball as he’s leaning towards the boundary. This is an excellent catch and good technique that serves as a redundancy when the attempt to catch the ball at the earliest window goes awry – and it does for even top receivers.

For analysis of skill players in this year’s draft class, download the 2013 Rookie Scouting Portfolio.The 2014 RSP will available April 1 and if you pre-order before February 10, you get a 10 percent discount. Better yet, if you’re a fantasy owner the 56-page Post-Draft Add-on comes with the 2012 – 2014 RSPs at no additional charge and available for download within a week after the NFL Draft. Best, yet, 10 percent of every sale is donated to Darkness to Light to combat sexual abuse. You can purchase past editions of the Rookie Scouting Portfolio for just $9.95 apiece.

Futures: Fresno State QB Derek Carr

0 Comments read 2014 NFL Draft, Players, Quarterback

Footwork

Want a glimpse into a quarterback’s mind? Watch his feet. Derek Carr’s reveal initiative and impulsivity.

Futures: Fresno State QB Derek Carr

by Matt Waldman

Want a glimpse into a quarterback’s mind? Watch his feet.

If there’s a minimal amount of footwork before a throw, the passer is making quick decisions. If there are hitches after the initial drop, the decision process is taking longer.

If the footwork in either instance is precise, there’s a greater chance the quarterback has a mental command of his environment and the resulting passes will be accurate. If the steps and stance are sloppy and off balanced, chaos – in the pocket or in the passer’s mind – is often afoot.

One of the pervading concerns about individuals from this spread generation of NFL quarterback prospects is their ability to transition from a shotgun attack to dropping from center and reading more advanced defensive concepts on the retreat. Even as the NFL has adopted the spread, these are concerns that place Fresno State’s Derek Carr front and center among this crop of quarterback prospects.

A first-round prospect on many analysts’ draft boards heading into the pre-draft madness, Carr runs an offense that uses a lot of screens and slants. This is nothing new. Cam Newton, Robert Griffin, Brandon Weeden, Geno Smith, Blaine Gabbert and Nick Foles all came from spread-heavy attacks.

However, there’s a perception among many analysts based on conversations with scouts that prospects from spread-heavy offenses have more to prove when it comes to selling a team on their ability to transition to the NFL. It’s among the reasons why there was a much more grounded, confident mood around the selection of players like Andrew Luck, Ryan Tannehill, Christian Ponder, Mike Glennon, and Sam Bradford – even if the returns have been equally mixed.

This week’s Futures examines Carr’s game with footwork as an underlying focus. David Carr’s younger brother has all the physical tools to become a productive NFL starter. The question is – as it is for more prospects at the top half of the draft – does he possess the mental acumen to integrate these skills into the complexities of leading an NFL offense?

Carr’s spread offense doesn’t provide definitive answers, but it does offer worthwhile clues about his future transition. These indicators tell me Carr is not an instant star, but give him two to three years and he can be the quarterback a team can build around.

Read the rest at Football Outsiders.

Boiler Room: Penn State WR Allen Robinson

0 Comments read 2014 NFL Draft, Players, RSP Boiler Room Videos (Short Form), Wide Receiver
Photo by Penn State News.
Photo by Penn State News.

Most believe Allen Robinson is a good prospect, so why show a positive play in the Boiler Room?

The Boiler Room Series is my attempt to capture the state of an NFL prospect’s development into a single play. This is an impossible task, but what if you have a limited number of plays to state your case about a prospect to the leadership team within your organization? If you’ve researched enough about this player, a cut-up of choice plays with a short presentation can provide a decent assessment of strengths, weaknesses, and potential fit for the team. You can read the rest of my Boiler Room Series here.

Penn State junior Allen Robinson is tall, quick, strong, and adjusts well to the football. There are times he looks like a player in the mold of the Marc Trestman’s outside receivers in Chicago. I could show you plays that make Robinson’s fan boys write me and respond with “great read,” but it’s pointless. If I were contributing to a cut-up of Robinson’s play that would inform a coaching staff what they have to address with Robinson early in his career, the play I’d choose is a crossing route against Nebraska.

It’s a simple play, Robinson is the single receiver in a 3×1 receiver 10 personnel shotgun set with the cornerback playing tight to the ling of scrimmage with a slight outside shade with 0:55 in the half at the 29 of Penn State. The receiver does a solid job of using an outside-in release with his footwork and he doesn’t encounter any resistance from the corner. The free release inside gives Robinson some cushion to accelerate and then break inside on a cross.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8XjPVcKDF00&start=178&w=560&h=315]

The ball arrives and Robinson makes the catch, takes a hit in the back, and is dropped a couple of yards inside the catch point. No yards are gained on after the catch. Good route, good catch, what’s there to say?

No yards gained after the catch.

One of the best things about a crossing route is that it gives the receiver a chance to earn yards after the catch. Robinson failed to do so on this play not because of the coverage or the throw. He left his feet.

A common mistake young receivers make on crossing routes thrown at chest level and above is to leap for the target. Sometimes it’s difficult to gauge the trajectory of the ball and receivers would rather err on making the catch than not earning yards after contact. However, the best receivers track the ball well enough to make the reception on the move with their hands away from their bodies.

If Robinson can fix this one area of his game, and it’s a correctable flaw, he becomes a more productive player immediately.

For analysis of skill players in this year’s draft class, download the 2013 Rookie Scouting Portfolio.The 2014 RSP will available April 1 and if you pre-order before February 10, you get a 10 percent discount. Better yet, if you’re a fantasy owner the 56-page Post-Draft Add-on comes with the 2012 – 2014 RSPs at no additional charge and available for download within a week after the NFL Draft. Best, yet, 10 percent of every sale is donated to Darkness to Light to combat sexual abuse. You can purchase past editions of the Rookie Scouting Portfolio for just $9.95 apiece.

Reads Listens Views 1/3/2014

0 Comments read Reads Listens Views
Black Eyed Joe’s Collards wish you a Happy New Year. Photo by Joe Bryant.

This week at RLV: Frahm, Kluwe, Farrar, Collard Greens, and Yemeni Blues.

Listens – This Is My Kind of Joint . . .

[youtube=http://youtu.be/SDoQIF1erLo]

Views – The Most Spectacular Abandoned Places In The World

miranda

Click Here For The Rest

Welcome

If you’re new to the Rookie Scouting Portfolio blog, welcome. Every Friday, I post links to things I’m checking out when I’m online. You may not like everything listed here, but you’re bound to like something. It’s also my chance to thank you for reading my work and encourage you to follow the RSP blog and buy the Rookie Scouting Portfolio publication.

For those of you new to the Rookie Scouting Portfolio, the publication is available every April 1. You can learn more about the RSP here. If you want to see samples of the play-by-play notes I take to write the analysis, you can find them here. And to download past versions of the publication (2006-2012), go here.

Remember, 10 percent of each sale is donated to Darkness to Light, a non-profit devoted to preventing and addressing sexual abuse through community training in schools, religious groups, and a variety of civic groups across the U.S. Here is what the RSP donated to D2L this year. According to D2L, the RSP’s 2013 donation amount was enough to train 250 adults in communities across the country.  I will have an announcement about the 2014 RSP next week. Stay tuned.

In Case You Missed It/What’s Ahead at The RSP Blog

  • Boiler Room: Ole Miss RB/KR Jeff Scott– A dynamic space player.
  • Isaiah Crowell – Why he might be the most talented back in this `14 class and why talent isn’t everything.
  • Futures: TE Jace Amaro
  • Coming Soon: Discerning starter and superstar vision and agility in a running back.
  • Coming Soon: RSPWP#1 – Looking back at the teams two years later.
  • Coming Soon: No-Huddle Series – Cal TE Richard Rodgers
  • Coming Soon: Senior Bowl Reports (late January) – I decided to apply for media credentials as the RSP rather than do joint work with other groups. You’ll find most of my takes and practice reports here.

Reads (Non-Football)

Views – The Incredible Versatility of Photographer John Dominis

If you are within 10 years of my age (43) you probably have seen Dominis’ photo of a leopard poised to kill a baboon in the sand, but didn’t know who it was that took it. Click the link above to see subject that span the range of everyone and everything. Incredible work.

Listens – This Is Also My Kind of Joint . . .

[youtube=http://youtu.be/Z2soF1Me81c]

Reads (Football)

Boiler Room: Ole Miss RB/PR Jeff Scott

0 Comments read 2014 NFL Draft, Players, RSP Boiler Room Videos (Short Form), Running Back, Wide Receiver
Photo by Lukeamotion.
Photo by Lukeamotion.

Curling into the fetal position was a highlight I considered, but it wouldn’t be fair to a dynamic player.

The Boiler Room Series is my attempt to capture the state of an NFL prospect’s development into a single play. This is an impossible task, but what if you have a limited number of plays to state your case about a prospect to the leadership team within your organization? If you’ve researched enough about this player, a cut-up of choice plays with a short presentation can provide a decent assessment of strengths, weaknesses, and potential fit for the team. You can read the rest of my Boiler Room Series here.

If I were to present one play to an NFL team on Jeff Scott, the Rebels’ fine running back and return specialist, it would be of him turning the corner on a sweep only to drop to his knees and curl into the fetal position at the feet of a defensive back and linebacker. This does not sound like a complimentary depiction of Scott, but it’s more of a reality check to a potential investor.

Truth be told, this is not disparaging commentary on the 5-7, 168-pound running back’s game. If Scott wasn’t tough enough, he wouldn’t be the team’s starting running back in the Southeastern Conference.

One upon a time, friends of mine had an impromptu backyard game in Athens. Most of these guys playing were in the range of 6-1 to 6-4 and 200-240 pounds. They were decent shape for former high school football players. They were the type of 20-something dudes who would think, “I could tackle Jeff Scott.”

One of those guys playing that day was Mark Maxwell, a local guitarist and recording studio owner (scroll down to bottom of link) who is known in town for producing an album of lullabies that have sold 100,000 copies. The local hospital even gave them to newborn parents (buy them here). Mark was a skinny, long-haired musician with glasses.

[youtube=http://youtu.be/edTBdfd1ABI]

He also played college football at Georgia Tech for Bill Curry.

Maxwell was a running back and returned kicks for the Yellow Jackets. According to my friends, when Maxwell fielded the kickoff he left everyone on the ground holding a body part in well under seven seconds.

That skinny, long-haired musician ran through everyone like a hot knife through butter and he did it wearing a pair of sandals. I don’t know if this is accurate, but legend has it this was the day they nicknamed Maxwell “Sandals.”

Like Maxwell – and even more so, considering that Maxwell quit football and transferred to Georgia to study music – Scott’s game is built on speed and agility. He’s a space player on the lightest end of the spectrum of running backs.

Scott knows his limits and testing his mettle on plays that aren’t vital to the outcome of the game isn’t smart of him if he wants to help his team with more touches.   Showing a play of Scott curling into the fetal position at the end of a run would be my reminder that he’s a space player and not a traditional running back.

Like Scott, Dexter McCluster is plenty tough, but well under 200 lbs., he's not a 200-lb. guy you run between the tackles. Photo by Tennessee Journalist Wade Rackley.
Like Scott, Dexter McCluster is plenty tough, but well under 200 lbs., he’s not a guy you run between the tackles. Photo by Tennessee Journalist Wade Rackley.

Develop him as a hybrid or a slot receiver if you see something about his skills that fit into the current offensive scheme.  Just remember that you’re seeking chunk plays from Scott.

How he’ll do that first – and best – is on special teams. Therefore, the Boiler Room play for Scott is a punt return with 32 second in the third quarter versus Texas.

It’s a high, booming punt that Scott tracks to the right hash at the Ole Miss 27. He bounces it a few yards to his right and then uses his terrific agility to reverse field and make three defenders miss good angles to him. Not only does he reverse field, but he layers a second move into that series of steps to beat that third defender and access a lane under a block.

Is this all planned? Of course not, but it’s a demonstration that his open field game unfolds with greater control than his peers.

Scott isn’t big, but give him space and momentum and he’s a tough player to take down. Not long after beating these first three defenders on the return, Scott reaches the 40 and runs through a wrap to his outside leg.

Scott regains his balance and turns down hill bending the run behind a blocker at the 45, avoiding a defender just inside the left hash. At this point, Scott has the advantage with a blocker in the left flat and a swath of open turf ahead at the 45.

He gains another 20 yards up the left flat, picks up a block, and has a convoy of five teammate for the final procession to the end zone – a 73-yard touchdown. Here’s the return.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nGtAkNYUqOc&start=230&w=420&h=315]

That’s a play that can make the collective psyche of the opposition curl into the fetal position.

For analysis of skill players in this year’s draft class, download the 2013 Rookie Scouting Portfolio.The 2014 RSP will available April 1 and if you pre-order before February 10, you get a 10 percent discount. Better yet, if you’re a fantasy owner the 56-page Post-Draft Add-on comes with the 2012 – 2014 RSPs at no additional charge and available for download within a week after the NFL Draft. Best, yet, 10 percent of every sale is donated to Darkness to Light to combat sexual abuse. You can purchase past editions of the Rookie Scouting Portfolio for just $9.95 apiece.