Posts tagged Rookie Scouting Portfolio

Conversation with Wes Bunting Part III

0 Comments read Matt Waldman
In Wes Bunting's wildest dreams he'd be a receiver in the mold of Fred Biletnikoff. Photo by Lambdachialpha.

National Football Post’s Wes Bunting has been a featured interview this week at the Rookie Scouting Portfolio Blog. Here are links to Parts I and II of his conversations.

In Part III, Bunting discusses rookies making a good impression, young players in good situations, and young players in difficult situations. Bunting also reveals the players he liked that surprised others as well as how NFL defenses are reacting to a specific offensive trend.

Waldman: Let’s go to dreamland for a moment. If you could play any position in the NFL and you had the skills to do it what would it be?

Bunting: I’d be a tough, gritty receiver. Continue reading →

Conversation with Wes Bunting – Part II

0 Comments read Matt Waldman
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 →

Walk On The Wildside: Unwritten Rules Of Football (and Life)

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Derek Anderson, as my old friend Russ Bell would say, “It’s just f’n whiffle ball.” Photo by Matt McGee

This is an opinion piece of mine from last year that I delivered for my weekly segment “A Walk on the Wildside,” at The Audible on Thursday nights at 10pm EST. The opinions expressed here are not those of The Audible, Cecil Lammey, Sigmund Bloom, or Footballguys.com

As many of you know, I grew up in Atlanta, Georgia, home of Coca-Cola.

If you’ve never been to Georgia then you might not realize how much Coke is a part of life around here. Unless of course, you’re a (North) Cackalacky like my wife who still wonders why people look at her funny when she asks for a Pepsi. There are some things you just don’t do – or at least have the sense to know what you’re getting into when you do it.

Coke is so ingrained around here that my buddy Russ Bell, who runs a local grocery chain in Athens, made the drink a semi-official sponsor for his obsession with wiffle ball.  Yes. Wiffle Ball.

Years ago, Bell became the owner-proprietor-groundskeeper of a wiffle ball diamond. Not so coincidentally it was part of a package deal in the mortgage that included his first home (as backyards generally are). Just off the bank of a small river that runs beyond the boundary of his backyard, Bell christened his ballpark Frank Field.

Frank Field was inspired by Bell’s love of two people: Continue reading →

Conversation with National Football Post’s Wes Bunting

0 Comments read Matt Waldman
The National Football Post's Wes Bunting believes Philip Rivers is the most underrated QB in the league, but he also thinks the San Diego Chargers have not maximized its talent. Photo by Janna McLaughin.

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 this part of our conversation, 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. I actually asked Wes 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 →

2012 First Takes: Three RB Prospects

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Oregon runner LaMichael James' moves and speed will wow you, but he impressed me with his maturity and decision-making behind them. Photo by Neon Tommy.

Throughout the 2011 college football season I will be providing initial impressions of prospects based on my research for the 2012 Rookie Scouting Portfolio. Here are three backs you’ll be hearing about this winter. Continue reading →

A Walk on the Wild Side: NFL and FBS Politicking

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This is where politics and public relations can go horribly wrong.

The following post is the transcript of an on-air editorial I presented on The Audible Roundtable during Week 11 of the 2010 football season. The opinions herein do not reflect those of my Audible co-hosts Cecil Lammey and Sigmund Bloom our our sponsor Footballguys.com. The Terry Tate Office Linebacker Undergoes Sensitivity Training segment was not broadcast in the original segment (but you know you want to see it again).

[Author’s Note]: Two days after this segment, the University of Illinois and Northwestern came to their senses after enormous media exposure in the days preceding  game at Wrigley Field to implement a stopgap safety measure 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 →

An RSP Flashback: QB Brian Hoyer

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Brian Hoyer wasn’t a top prospect for draft analysts, but his skills revealed a promising player worthy of development. Photo by The Brit_2

An excerpt from the 2009 RSP on Browns QB Brian Hoyer, who I saw as a backup with developmental potential as a future starter.

Brian Hoyer, Michigan State: I think Hoyer has a greater chance to be a success than Brady-in-a-Box candidates Tom Brandstater and Hunter Cantwell. The reasons are pretty clear when you examine Hoyer’s game. He’s a strong-armed passer with no major issues with his delivery and is capable of pinpoint accuracy in the intermediate and deep range.

Hoyer has good pocket presence he’s always looking down field and he can step away from pressure. He throws well while rolling right or left on short routes. He possesses the maturity to throw the ball away. He shows some ability to look off the coverage.

He throws well while rolling right or left on short routes. Hoyer will throw the ball away and he shows some ability to look off the coverage. He possesses decent play fakes and pump fakes. He can take a hit and come back to deliver a good pass on the next play.

He just has to shore up minor footwork issues with his set up to address the problem. Hoyer moves and throws well moving to his left as a right-handed passer, and I think this a very good sign that he’ll be able to refine his other issues.

What I like about Hoyer the most is whenever I watched him experience a bad play, he would frequently follow up with a strong play. He didn’t play with a great receiving corps and I watched two games where he had a total of 13 drops – 10 of them in one game alone. He demonstrated patience and I liked that he didn’t mind throwing the ball out of bounds when he couldn’t spot anyone open. He doesn’t appear to get rattled.  Hoyer makes very good throws under pressure while behind in this game.

He’s a reasonably mature player who plays within himself and was able to guide the Spartans to a winning season in a tough Big Ten Conference. He also impressed with his performance in the East-West Shrine Game practices. I actually considered listing Hoyer as underrated, but I think he’ll be brought a long slower with lower expectations so that makes him a project in my eyes. He’s one of those players that could surprise 3-5 years into his NFL career, if drafted.

For analysis of skill players in this year’s draft class, download the 2014 Rookie Scouting Portfolio – available to pre-order now, and for download April 1. 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.

Conversation with Jene Bramel Part IV

0 Comments read Matt Waldman
Giants DE/LB Mathias Kiwanuka could prove to be a great loophole playher in IDP fantasy leagues because of his role in the Joker package that could emulate Charles Haley or Terrell Suggs. Photo by Alexa627

In the final part of our conversation, Footballguys IDP guru Jene Bramel discusses the possibilities for Mathias Kiwanuka’s role in New York, the roles of tiers in fantasy drafting, and what I believe is the absolute best scoring system to reflect the value of very position in an IDP/Offensive Player combo league. You have to see it.

Waldman: Tell me your thoughts about Mathias Kiwanuka and the Joker Package. He was off to a great start last year before the herniated disc. Do you think the Giants will surprise with this combo of Tuck, Pierre Paul, Kiwanuka, and Umenyiora.

Bramel: The Giants have a couple of things going on. They had that “Big” package last year where they took bigger linebackers and put them on the strong side. My first thought is it might be akin to what Terrell Suggs might be doing with the Ravens, but I’m not 100 percent positive on that. Kiawanuka is so versatile Continue reading →