Posts tagged Rookie Scouting Portfolio

Pro Football Focus Fantasy Editor Alex Miglio’s Q&A

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Whitney Mercilus will have a pivotal role in PFF writer-editor Alex Miglio’s defensive scheme. Is he ready? Photo by The Daily Herald.

PFF writer and editor Alex Miglio unveiled at roster with promising offensive skill players, linebackers, cornerbacks, and safeties under 26 years of age. This is a young and physically talented team. What intrigues me most about this team is that Andrew Luck has been compared often to Peyton Manning, but unlike the Colts or Broncos, Miglio is going to give Luck and his young squad a complex offense with a variety of personnel sets and formation shifts.

While Luck may be up to the task, the question might be whether the rest of his team is up to the scheme complexities Continue reading →

Pro Football Focus Fantasy Editor Alex Miglio’s RSP Writers Team

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Pro Football Focus fantasy redraft editor Alessandro Miglio is banking big on the Andrew Luck to Coby Fleener tandem. Photo by Han Shot First.

Alessandro Miglio is the Redraft Editor for Pro Football Focus’ fantasy content and a featured columnist at Bleacher Report where he covers the Dolphins and the NFL. Miglio and I both share a fondness for the Miami Hurricanes football team and Foster 206, which is not a beer but a location for excellent music.

Miglio believes he built his team for the long haul.

This team was built to last. There is youth and upside at many vital positions. While that means there is some uncertainty about quality of play, the youthful makeup of this club was intentional. While they may not be immediate Super Bowl contenders, they should quickly grow into one.

With players like Andrew Luck, Jonathan Stewart, Taiwan Jones, and Demaryius Thomas, Miglio has some explosive elements to his team. The questions arise on defense where he has a lot of promise and physical talent, but is there enough savvy to make it work? Continue reading →

Brought to You by the Miller Brewing (and Growing) Company

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Percy Harvin’s migraines have been more problematic than his past marijuana-related issues. Despite what the NFL says, pot is much ado about nothing. Photo by Mark Trammell.

Two years ago, Boston.com reporter Albert Breer quoted an unnamed NFL coach that estimated that at least one-third of the players on NFL draft boards had a history of marijuana use. Think that’s bad? Consider the rest of the American public.

Depending on the poll, between 40-60 percent of (honest) Americans have tried marijuana as a recreational drug. A 2011 Gallup Poll says 50 percent of Americans favor legalization of pot. Yet we condemn athletes that tried (or still use) marijuana.

The best argument for condemnation of these athletes is logical: Marijuana is illegal. If an athlete has the goal to take his talents to the professional level, he has to be incredibly foolish to try or continuously smoke pot when he knows he’s going to be tested.

I agree. How does anyone risk his career, family, and freedom to engage in illegal activity? Why don’t we ask that question about the 40-60 percent of Americans that smoke pot but Continue reading →

Thoughts on Josh Gordon to Cleveland

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Hint: Hakeem Nicks earned average to below average marks at his pre-draft workouts. Those that relied on what they saw in games weren’t as disappointed. A lesson to consider when judging Josh Gordon. Photo by Romec1

As I mentioned last week, I’ll have more analysis on Gordon’s game within the next 7-10 days. But I have a little time to share some thoughts on the Browns drafting Gordon with a second-round pick and the general tenor of reactions I have seen regarding the former Baylor wide receiver.

“Not enough to see”

He might not have made good choices off the field, but don’t let anyone tell you there was not enough “tape” to evaluate Gordon. They simply couldn’t find enough to watch him or they don’t know how to watch in-depth with an entire season that was available. Gordon as a sophomore and Gordon in 2012 could be vastly different players due to time away from the game. However, Muhammad Ali Continue reading →

Reads Listens Views 7/11/12

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If Fitzgerald is at the pinnacle of the receiving position in today’s game, these three publications that are now available are at the top of theirs. Photo by Photogeek21.

Reads

This is a quick post, but one I want to make this week before my access to Internet becomes less constant. I have three recommendations for reading material before the season begins. One is a fantasy football magazine. The other is a book. I’m sure most of you have one and plan to get the other, but I still want to do my due dilligence and give them a mention.

The first is the Footballguys Interactive Magazine, which is iPad, Android, desktop, and laptop friendly. The magazine is jam-packed with fantasy football goodies, photos, swipeable navigation, and yes, even an Upside Down (and counterpunch) draft strategy that many of you have been asking me about. Check it out here and learn about the deal Footballguys offers for subscribers to the site.

And for the few of you that haven’t made the connection, yes, I write for the site. I love working at Footballguys and a big reason why is the quality of work that so many of the people produce. They produce far more than what they charge for it.

My newest gig is with Football Outsiders and I’m thrilled to be starting a column with a top-notch group of writers at this terrific football resource. The Football Outsiders 2012 Almanac is now available for download. This publication has become an annual “must-have” for football fans. Lot’s a great work there and the link I just provided includes links to samples from this highly praised annual publication.

One of the things I enjoy about Football Outsiders is the thought-provoking work that you’ll see there on a regular basis from excellent writers. The RSP blog recently posted FO columnist Ben Muth’s RSP team and Muth was instrumental in creating our player values to help this blog deliver a project that has been a hit with readers.

My final recommendation this week is a publication that I have no connection to in terms of employment, but I read chapters from nightly. I’ve probably read this book twice through since I got it six weeks ago: The Essential Smart Football by Chris Brown. Almost every writer participating in the RSP Project has cited Brown’s work thus far. That should tell you how influential his knowledge is to the writer’s community. I’ve learned a ton from Brown when it comes to the X’s and O’s of the game and it is helping me gain a valuable scope with the work I do.

These three publications are the must-haves that cover three of the four essential parts of football table today: fantasy football, statistical football analysis, and strategic X and Os analysis. What’s the fourth you ask? You don’t have to ask about rookie analysis, do you? 🙂

Listens and Views

[youtube=http://youtu.be/S4RmxOveTNA]

I get the sense that Dickerson is the most underappreciated of the great backs in recent NFL history.

[youtube=http://youtu.be/h9EqeVuk8F8]

I’ll tell you about it when I get back.

Ryan Booher’s RSP Reader’s Team

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Who is this bird? Ryan Booher will give you the word as he reveals his RSP Readers Team, which will feature Diamond formation sets and West Coast/Spread Concepts. Photo by Jeffery Beall.

As promised, I’m posting reader-submitted teams for the RSP Writers Project. Ryan Booher has been excited about participating in this project for months now. He has delivered a fascinating roster filled with many players that I haven’t seen on teams submitted thus far. He’ll also be using the Diamond formation in a lot of base sets, which we might see a little bit in the NFL this year. Continue reading →

Matt Waldman’s RSP Writer’s Team Q&A

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How do you make A.J. Green even better? Make him work against Darrelle Revis in practice. Photo by Wade Rackley.(http://www.flickr.com/photos/tnjn/5064947481/sizes/l/in/photostream/)

I will have two teams in this project because I had too much fun just building one. I’m also learning too much from the process to build just one. If you’ve tried building a team, I think you know what I mean. However, I’ll make this squad my official roster despite how much I like the other team I’ll share later this month.

Offensive System

I’m implementing a system with a streamlined playbook and simple concepts that complement each other while hopefully using variations of plays that don’t force additional complexity with my blocking and route schemes. I want my quarterback to have enough freedom Continue reading →

Matt Waldman’s RSP Writers Team

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Rob Gronkowski is the best tight end in the NFL? Not so fast. Give Vernon Davis surrounding talent capable of creating plays at quarterback, receiver, and running back, and I think the difference is negligible…possibly in Davis’ favor. Photo by The Bay Area Bias.

I will have two teams in this project because I had too much fun just building one. I’m also learning too much from the process to build just one. If you’ve tried building a team, I think you know what I mean. However, I’ll make this team my official roster despite how much I like the other team I’ll share later this month.

The genius of this project is Continue reading →

Reads Listens Views 7/6/2012

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Busts of (diagonal from l-r) Jim Brown, Vince Lombardi, and Bronko Nagurski at the Pro Football Hall of Fame last summer.
Happy Birthday Sigmund Bloom

If you are a Footballguys subscriber, an Audible listener, Bleacher Report reader, or a frequenter of Twitter, then odds are you know the peripatetic football intellectual that is Sigmund Bloom. Happy birthday to my colleague, football muse, and friend and thank you for what you contribute to this community – substantial is too bland of a word for what you do. I think if Bloom could have the equivalent of a Parisian salon and be the Gertrude Stein of football, he’d be hosting writers yesterday. In a sense, I have a feeling he already is doing so in the virtual sense. Continue reading →

WR Josh Gordon: Hands are for more than catching the football

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Josh Gordon reminds me of Demaryius Thomas, but I believe Gordon has more physical upside and flashes more technical skill than Thomas at the same point of their careers. Photo by Jeffery Beall.

Warning: Although the video clips illustrating the analysis of this post are more than adequate to get the point across, they are amateurish, at best. Future analysis will likely be in still frames as I’ve used in the past.

Josh Gordon’s current skill and style of play reminds me of a mix between a raw Terrell Owens and Demaryius Thomas. However, his potential could be as limitless as Calvin Johnson. Gordon has a fascinating amalgamation of strengths and weaknesses for a wide receiver and this post will examine the strengths and weaknesses of the former Baylor wide receiver, who is the wildcard of the 2012 NFL Supplemental Draft.

This post will focus on Gordon’s speed, acceleration, and his knowledge and execution of separating from defenders as a receiver and ball carrier. The quick and dirty on Gordon’s skills in this area is that the former Baylor receiver has to speed to be a dangerous deep threat in the NFL, a big-play ball carrier in space, and the strength and quickness to put some toast under a cornerback’s jam and leave the defender standing by himself in the kitchen as his coach turns up the heat.

But Gordon’s sophomore performances against Kansas, Texas Tech, and Illinois are a wonderful illustration why size, speed, and strength are precious commodities, but at the NFL level these characteristics don’t have the same value if the player in possession of these athletic gifts doesn’t learn the craft of his position. If his off-field indiscretions are a thing of the past, I believe Gordon’s on-field performances demonstrate that he was learning the skills of his position and there is a good chance he’ll grow into a strong technician in the NFL.

One of the more important things Gordon will have to improve Continue reading →