Italian Raven

I made this one on M.Word during the post-season, I eventually fixed a few things since then but it's always been pretty much the same, so don't worry I didn't copy pasted it I really like to mock drafts and enjoy the entire post-season developement, using someone else's job wouldn't give me anything. Yeah it's pretty much between Bosa and Buck at #3.. I just think they have a bigger need inside next to Luiget than outside, but as said, time will tell.

oh.. I didn't think my memories of him were that old dated.. too bad for him then.. then I'd only bet Billings will be the top performing DT, for now

Billings will have a great bench press. Will Redmond will also display a good 40 yd dash.. i just wouldn't bet as high as with the previous forecast. My favourite 2016 prospect is Javon Hargraves and I really wish him to turn some heads.. probably with the three cones drill given his low center of gravity and crazy hips.

I have him at GB with the #27. He'll show off his upper body strenght at the bench press, which will likely solodify his round one/top 20 grade imo. He doesn't have that quick side step and powerful slap that Poe displays in order to rush the passer, but he's a crazy run stopper.

Thanks for posting. Very well put; I would like articles like that to be more frequent on the ravens main page. I can't even read the fans comments on FB without shivering.. everyone claiming for Tread through the draft, Jeffrey through FA, or that drafting OT with a top ten pick equates to "untouchable QB". Scheme fit and playcall should be taken into account as well.. for instance we could draft Bosa and he might never be able to reach his full potential (sure it's an hyperbole).

I also have plenty of stuff to do. I won't be a starter but if you need me, you find me on the bench

Yeah, it makes sense. However, he wasn't asked to block or to run much through the middle (right where WRs tend to be more insicure, expecting a big hit), so my definition of "tough" is only partially met. It's like calling me a good student. I may even have the skills to be one but if there's no exam how do I prove it? I know, I'm unnecessarily nitpicking today. Just wanted to clarify what I meant ;D

Thanks for the link, though I can't open it. I know what you mean, and I'm aware BU isn't the biggest help for any WR who wants to really improve his route-running skills.. My point is: I relate the word "tough" to every aspect of the game (running and catching fearless through the middle, the ability to fight through blocks and take hits, his willingness to block and finish) and since I've never seen him blocking I have to call myself out. He is probably capable of doing it but I just can't say it yet. If I had to name one WR 'tough' I'd definitely think about Tread, before CC.

I like Coleman too, but I don't get what you mean with "toughness".. he doesn't block a fly and more shocking to me is that he doesn't even attempt to run his route when Baylor was running an option or when the pass didn't go his way. SSS fights his 'heart' off and is by far one of the greatest competitors in the game. I hope Coleman changes his attitude but 'tough' is not an attribute I'd describe him with.

ouh.. wow.. Thanks Mt, hadn't read it anywhere. Good for him, he'll boost his value quite a bit. This also means I already have my two favourite prospects for the next year's draft

If we're playing the talent card, injuries aside, I'd rather go with Carl Lawson. In the very worst scenario, even if we don't draft any ILB, we still have CJ, Daryl, Orr, maybe McClellan, maybe even Brown and a decent FA ahead (Kelvin Sheppard, Craig Robertson who's even above average in coverage, Danny Trevathan, Zach Brown,..). Jack and Jay.Smith are very good players and athlets but I'd say 3-4 OLBs are harder to find. I wouldn't be toooo happy if we end up picking either of them, honestly.

Even Wilkerson "only" has 7.4 sacks per year. Also, Suh and Dareus recorded 10 just once in their careers. They average rispectively 6.1 and 7.

Nah I don't think that's a new mainstream. People tend to agree with the media hype and get overly excited about a prospect since the beginning of the season; same for the early NCAA rankings. However as the season progresses you have time to watch a player closely and start to have a bigger picture. I, for instance, have always admitted to be skeptical about his "top 3 prospect/baby JJ Watt" tag but I can't deny his insane punch, probably the best in a 4-3 DE I've ever seen. He has a very good rip, a good pad level, but: 1) The amount of hype toward his double-triple teams has been ridiculous 2) He doesn't always direct his hips in the QB's direction, which leads to some easy blocks where the T simply pushes him off the pass-rushing line. 3) Has to work better with his hands to prevent the Olineman from getting to his chest, because he doesn't possess an insane ability to escape with spins or lateral moved when engaged. Does this mean I'm dumping him? Surely not, he even has the arm lenght and strenght to stab his man and control 2 gaps imo, but he's far from being a certainty, especially if the intent is to use him as a pure 3-4OLB.

I agree on every point and add that was this year's MSU game. He played 65 snaps (those 3 offsides are not included), 8 of which he was unblocked (9%) and 10 double-teams (11%, I considered the RB chips in assistance to the T as double-teams too). I was just curious to verify this legendary amount of double-triple teams that Bosa faced and that everyone writes about, last but not least Kiper, so I started to write down every play of a relatively small sample (7 games). It turned out that yes, teams have to take his presence into account, as they tend to play a lot of screens or options, but that stat alone doesn't match the hype it received.

I don't agree on this one. I don't like to talk about stats because they only tend to give a partial picture of a situation, but in this case they're necessary. -There's a strict correlation between teams who entered the playoffs and their run-D ranking (8 of 12 teams rank in the top10): #1 SEA, #3 DEN, #4 CAR, #5 PIT, #6 ARI, #7 CIN, #8 KC, #10 HOU. The only one ranking in the 'bottom 10' is WAS at 27# These teams also rank (similarly) in the top ten for PPG allowed..: #1SEA, #2 CIN, #3 KC, #4 DEN, #5 MIN, #6 CAR, #7 ARI, #8 HOU (8/12 in the top10 again, with WAS being the lowest at #17, which says a lot) and for Takeaways: #1 CAR, #2 ARI, #3 PIT, #5KC, #6 CIN, #7 DEN, #9 WAS (7/12 in the top 10 and only NE in the 'bottom 10) -If we want to look at it offensively results are quite different: It's TRUE that these teams score a lot: PPG #1 CAR, 2 #ARI, 3 #NE, #4 PIT, #5 SEA , #7 CIN, #9 KC, #10 WAS (8/12) BUT the YPG tells a different story #1 ARI, #3 PIT, #4 SEA, #6 NE (4/12 against 3/12; #29 MIN, #27KC, #23 GB) This shows, at least partially, how important the D is when turning the ball over or giving their O a good field position to start the next drive. Without a dominant defensive performance a team has to gain more yards and is more likely to score FG rather than TD, hence less PPG.

Well, this is pretty realistic and would send me ecstatic. Dallas needs many players, including WR, ILB, DB; everything is possible at this point. There are also some relatively low-budget ILBs (Denny Trevathan, Craig Robertson,..) and WRs (Nate Washington, Jermaine Kearse,..) possibly hitting FA and who can fill some needs prior the draft. The addition of 1-2 of those to compensate such a draft would let me doubt-less entering the 2016 season.

In all honesty, in this moment I rank Buckner higher than any other player. He's dominant either squeezing in A/B or using his arms to push the opponent and controlling two gaps. His very long arms which paired with such quickness and strenght will give you a 100% effective player both in run support and rushing the passer. I can't wait for the FA to unfold, so that we can have a better picture of what teams ahead of us are planning to do with their early picks.

You're right. We don't have many positions of need like some teams which just have few solid pieces in addition to the QB; in that case it may be good to have more picks (an additional 2nd and 4th rounder is not few). We simply need 1-2 playmakers and there's a visible drop in terms of talent after the top 10 imo. I'd keep my shining #6 too, unless crazy offers occur.

Their #15, #45, #107. 1015+450+80=1580 which is just 20pts shy of our 6 overall (1600). http://www.draftcountdown.com/features/Value-Chart.php

No definitely not a fit. I like him, as I tend to like technically sound players but he wouldn't thrive here.

He's not as complete as Carl Lawson or Bosa, I certainly give you that. He doesn't possess a huge upper body strenght to help his bull-rush but he has a good understanding of what he does, you'll never see him spinning unnecessarily (like Nkemdiche). However I saw him performing some stab and grab, or slap pretty effectively. I know he's no sexy pick, but I would be more concerned with Robinson moves than his. I'll quickly give a look at few other tapes later but in the first 3 I didn't see him doing anything but bull-rushing the opponents without really mantaining control of his gap. He looks like a freakish athlet, very explosive but I'm quite skeptical in this moment.

I do like Shaq, as I previously mentioned. However I had to change my pick in the poll, as I don't think he'd be a good fit in Baltimore; he lacks the ideal bending and speed to be a 3-4 OLB. I don't see the comparison with Za'Darius/Dupree though.. they were both much more agile, our 4th rounder used a ton of swim moves and Dupree was just a freaking fast/unpolished edge-rusher, more similar to Floyd. I'd say he's the next Robert Ayers. Now, it's not that I have to pull for Lawson at any cost; I'm not his mom nor I'd take him at #6 overall, but I don't know if you've ever seen Upshaw spinning or using the hands like he does. Even the "good when unblocked" tag sounds unfair imo: (I don't want to fill an entire forum's page with gifs, so I'll just highlight his spin) (spins against Stanley) I don't have enough time to dig into vids now, but he will fare well as a base 4-3 DE and when coaches don't ask him to 'spy'.

Totally agree. I like him a lot, but not enough to take him in the top 10. I think Floyd is also getting more attention than he deserves, if I were to take a speedy guy and have him playing 5/6/7t I would go with Striker in the early 4th, not with the Georgia guy (especially not in the first round). Neither of them can bullrush nor have a decent set of pass-rushing moves, and while both simply try to beat the man off the los with speed (which is not the same of 'explosion'), possibly take 2-3 steps and cut inside, Striker has the lowest pad-level and is the better leaner. Floyd is versatile, does look good in coverage, but not as good while rushing the passer nor in the running game to have me saying "ok, that's a first rounder".

I honestly see him better on the outside catching back-shoulders.. that's where he could dominate with his insane body control. But he's not a slot guy, just as much as he ain't no possession WR.. pretty sure you guys misinterpretate that "possession". Joey you don't have to try to impress me,I know you have a crush .I like the guy more then I liked White last year and I would like him in a ravens' uniform too, just not as much as Hargreaves or Buckner, who are scheme-fit; however you didn't give me yet any solution to the "possession" attribute I previously mentioned. I didn't label him as such (for real), so let's get over it. Point is I don't think he's a realistic option for an organization that tends to invest money and picks in the trenches and that has lately proved how much a good playcalling helps even the most depleted WR corps . We could end up taking Thomas, Fuller in the 2nd, a Shepard, Robinson, or Dural in the 3rd giving us the same kind of production and letting us fill greatly one other big need at the same time.

Well the fact I used the '' clearly mean I didn't literally picture him as such. If you find a better word to help me with it you're welcome. He ain't a speedster nor someone you would use in the slot to convert on a ton of slants.. so I can't find a word. However, Upshaw was clearly less versatile, more stiff, and not as good as a pass rusher as Shaq, who's more similar to Bosa than the former Raven (for what I've seen so far).