Courtney Upshaw--Speak On Him

[BloodRaven]

On tape he looks stronger than Woodley, more like Harrison. His 10 yard split of 1.66 would put him around 7th out of all the defensive ends in the draft.

Fun fact: James Harrison weighs 265lb at 6'0", not his listed weight of 245lb.

[izvoodoo]

[quote name='BloodRaven' timestamp='1335689752' post='1066968']
On tape he looks stronger than Woodley, more like Harrison. His 10 yard split of 1.66 would put him around 7th out of all the defensive ends in the draft.

Fun fact: James Harrison weighs 265lb at 6'0", not his listed weight of 245lb.
[/quote]
That's actually only .01 seconds slower than woodley.

[steeler hater]

[quote name='arnie_uk' timestamp='1335614935' post='1063275']
freeney has great burst and acceleration, Upshaw to put it nicely does not
[/quote]Well, I guess we will see. Listening to Harbaugh and Ozzie, I doesn't sound like they see Upshaw as merely a run-stuffer- they expect him to be able to get to the quarterback. Hope they're right.

[SecretAgentMan]

[quote name='adam713' timestamp='1335621026' post='1063402']
If there's one position that I'm not worried about with this team and the coaching staff that comes with is the LB position (any type). When is the last time we've had a complete bust in a LB? The dude definitely lacks speed but is incredibly strong, has great arm and hand technique, and a beast on run D (which will immediately help the team as we'll play against Law Firm (x2), Lesean McCoy, Trent Richardson (x2), Arian Foster, Demarco Murray, KC's triple threat, Darren Mcfadden, Ryan Mathews, Willis McGahee, and Ahmad Bradshaw.

Think about it....With our secondary, and you have Suggs & Upshaw on both sides bull rushing, teams will make some forced throws right into our outstanding core. He's a Strongside LB specialist and won't be asked to chase done receivers in the open field...his role is very specific to pass rush/run support/ and help interfere with TEs routes.

Dude will be a beast for us...just watch.
[/quote]
The man has a point here. Now, if we can only trade up for Manti Teo in the next draft

[arnie_uk]

[quote name='steeler hater' timestamp='1335706494' post='1067052']
Well, I guess we will see. Listening to Harbaugh and Ozzie, I doesn't sound like they see Upshaw as merely a run-stuffer- they expect him to be able to get to the quarterback. Hope they're right.
[/quote]i never said he cant, he just snt comparable to freeney at all.

[GrimCoconut]

[quote name='Mr. Irrelevant' timestamp='1335707106' post='1067059']

The man has a point here. Now, if we can only trade up for Manti Teo in the next draft
[/quote]
I think it's possible. I've give up a 3rd and a 6th and a player to move up and take Te'o. He might even fall to us wherever we draft.

[arnie_uk]

[quote name='GrimCoconut' timestamp='1335707828' post='1067067']
I think it's possible. I've give up a 3rd and a 6th and a player to move up and take Te'o. He might even fall to us wherever we draft.
[/quote]we would need Ray Lewis to retire to do that, to free up cap room to sign FAs to fill all the needs prior. Mark my words, if we have as many holes next year as we did this year we wont be trading up for anyone cause we will need all the picks we can get. But we wont be able to move into the top 10 were kuechley went, who Teo may be as good, if not better than

[SecretAgentMan]

[quote name='GrimCoconut' timestamp='1335707828' post='1067067']

I think it's possible. I've give up a 3rd and a 6th and a player to move up and take Te'o. He might even fall to us wherever we draft.
[/quote]
Ad if he doesn't we will have extra pick

[GrimCoconut]

[quote name='arnie_uk' timestamp='1335708281' post='1067074']
we would need Ray Lewis to retire to do that, to free up cap room to sign FAs to fill all the needs prior. Mark my words, if we have as many holes next year as we did this year we wont be trading up for anyone cause we will need all the picks we can get. But we wont be able to move into the top 10 were kuechley went, who Teo may be as good, if not better than
[/quote]
I hear you, but I'm not necessarily agreeing with you that we would need Lewis to retire. Here's why I think it would be OK for us to trade up to get Manti:

Next year our unrestricted free agents are Paul Kruger, Joe Flacco, Bryant McKinnie, Bernard Pollard, Ed Reed, Cary Williams, Dannell Ellerbe, and Considine. We have other guys who are restricted free agents, such as Dickson and Pitta. Essentially, our entire 2010 class are unrestricted free agents and our entire 2011 class are restricted free agents except for Terrence Cody. We should also get four compensatory selections because of the free agents we lost compared to those we've gained, which will help with depth. This is why I find it feasible that if we want to trade up to get Manti, we have the ammo to do it. Next year, I expect our needs to be:

CB, OT, S, WR, LB.

[mdrsharon]

[quote name='izvoodoo' timestamp='1335660760' post='1066389']
Yeah, personality wise he's a real great fit.
[/quote]

So polite, calling everybody sir! WOW!
this guy is ready to be a Raven!

Love it!

PS slow? are you kidding? he is going tobe All - Pro, hangin' out with Suggs, Reed and of course, the Man - Mr Ray!
can't wait!

[wolfpack]

A little off topic.
In Madden Upshaw will most likely be rated 70 overall. Madden Ultimate Team has created his rookie card. I took a picture of his card, they don't show all his ratings, but only some of them.

[URL=http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/19/dsc00587up.jpg/][IMG]http://img19.imageshack.us/img19/6940/dsc00587up.jpg[/IMG][/URL]

[BloodRaven]

Ugh they look pretty similar to Krugers ratings, it's going to be tricky playing Madden this year with two starting linemen in the low 70's.

[wolfpack]

[quote name='BloodRaven' timestamp='1335719462' post='1067247']
Ugh they look pretty similar to Krugers ratings, it's going to be tricky playing Madden this year with two starting linemen in the low 70's.
[/quote]
They have him as a ROLB

[BloodRaven]

[quote name='wolfpack' timestamp='1335719611' post='1067251']
They have him as a ROLB
[/quote]

He'll probably be rated lower than Kruger at OLB and higher than Pernell McPhee if you put him at DE.

[Blex64]

[quote name='BloodRaven' timestamp='1335719997' post='1067256']
He'll probably be rated lower than Kruger at OLB and higher than Pernell McPhee if you put him at DE.
[/quote]

Because that makes a lot of sense.

[wolfpack]

[quote name='BloodRaven' timestamp='1335719997' post='1067256']
He'll probably be rated lower than Kruger at OLB and higher than Pernell McPhee if you put him at DE.
[/quote]
Yeah you are right. There is some sort of mistake in madden when you put OLB's at DE, they are rated much higher

[BloodRaven]

[quote name='wolfpack' timestamp='1335720337' post='1067262']
Yeah you are right. There is some sort of mistake in madden when you put OLB's at DE, they are rated much higher
[/quote]

I used to do this with JJ because of his average LB rating and low speed, he would turn into 90 rated DE.

[Bltravens]

[quote name='BloodRaven' timestamp='1335689752' post='1066968']
On tape he looks stronger than Woodley, more like Harrison. His 10 yard split of 1.66 would put him around 7th out of all the defensive ends in the draft.

Fun fact: James Harrison weighs 265lb at 6'0", not his listed weight of 245lb.
[/quote]
And the split is all you need to look for in a pass rusher. Hell Suggs ran a 4.8 as well, but clearly he can rush the passer.

[Ed_Reed20]

Apparently, he fell partially because of[url="http://www.nationalfootballpost.com/NFP-Sunday-Blitz-7470.html"] his pro day weight[/url].

[quote]
[color=#333333][font=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif][size=3]*The fall of Alabama pass rusher Courtney Upshaw to the third pick in the second round was not shocking. Some personnel men anticipated him falling after Upshaw showed up at his pro day weighing 279 pounds. Upshaw looked surprised when his weight was revealed. He may have discouraged 3-4 teams from considering him at outside linebacker, and caused some to question his commitment. Said one front office man, “That weight hurt him.”[/size][/font][/color]
[/quote]

Even though he's a naturally thick guy, I don't see him letting his weight balloon to the point where it really hurts him.

[The King]

Say what you will about his burst and explosion, all I know is that the guy knows how to get to the QB. He did it in college playing in the SEC, including doing it in the Championship Game. He can bull rush, he can shed blockers, and he can find the ball in the backfield. There's a reason such a high percentage of his tackles were behind the line of scrimmage. The guy has a nose for the ball and the bulldog mentality to get to it in tight quarters.

[RavensRevenge]

All the talk about Upshaw centers around his immediate impact. However, I wonder if a short OLB/DE is going to be able to overpower bigger men at the line of scrimmage four years from now. I don't see Upshaw having a long career, even though he might be great during it.

Meanwhile, I like Kindle. I hope the Ravens figure out a way to use him.

[Cville-Raven]

[quote name='wolfpack' timestamp='1335718780' post='1067232']
A little off topic.
In Madden Upshaw will most likely be rated 70 overall. Madden Ultimate Team has created his rookie card. I took a picture of his card, they don't show all his ratings, but only some of them.

[url="http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/19/dsc00587up.jpg/"][img]http://img19.imageshack.us/img19/6940/dsc00587up.jpg[/img][/url]
[/quote]
How do you get his card? Is it a Collection or do you buy gold packs?

[BloodRaven]

[quote name='Ed_Reed20' timestamp='1335724549' post='1067319']
Apparently, he fell partially because of[url="http://www.nationalfootballpost.com/NFP-Sunday-Blitz-7470.html"] his pro day weight[/url].

Even though he's a naturally thick guy, I don't see him letting his weight balloon to the point where it really hurts him.
[/quote]

As long as he still gets to the QB and carries his weight well it shouldn't matter what the scales say. Suggs had weight issues at one point too but was able to get it under control.

[colljb9]

The reason we become better with upshaw is because jarrett johnson, as good as he may have been at setting the edge, was not a pass rusher. We no longer have to be handicapped by playing johnson every down across from suggs. Now teams will be forced to deal with both our outside linebackers, with either upshaw or kruger across from suggs, every down. The fact the upshaw can rush the passer immediately makes us a better team. Hopefully he will perform this way on the field, but on paper we have upgraded from johnson at this point

[Ravens1991]

I love this pick. Worst case scenario is a JJ with slightly better pass rushing skills. Best case scenario is Lamar Woodley. Such a good move by Ozzie. Plus 4 (McCllean,Kindle,Kruger,Upshaw) guys battling for playing time next to suggs will be great competition to have in training camp.

[wolfpack]

[quote name='Cville-Raven' timestamp='1335752111' post='1067779']
How do you get his card? Is it a Collection or do you buy gold packs?
[/quote]
I don't have the card, but I just found it on an auction and took a picture of it.

[BloodRaven]

[img]http://lh6.ggpht.com/-QcjstUstMRg/T5r1p_IoCeI/AAAAAAAADEY/xhlq0Z5hioA/s800/dontahightowermutratings.jpg[/img]comparison

[wolfpack]

[quote name='BloodRaven' timestamp='1335768153' post='1067870']
[img]http://lh6.ggpht.com/-QcjstUstMRg/T5r1p_IoCeI/AAAAAAAADEY/xhlq0Z5hioA/s800/dontahightowermutratings.jpg[/img]comparison
[/quote]
I would have thought that Dont'a and Courtney would have been rated a little higher, but then again, we can't really use these ratings to much, they will be more correct like 5 weeks into the season. It's hard to predict someone without they have played a single snap in the league. I mean Luck is rated 85 before having played a single down, kinda overrated.

[usmccharles]

I very happy about getting upshaw, but would you guys of rathered have....him or hightower?

[wolfpack]

[quote name='usmccharles' timestamp='1335793536' post='1067932']
I very happy about getting upshaw, but would you guys of rathered have....him or hightower?
[/quote]
For this year i would rather have had Upshaw because that was a bigger need, for the future i would rather have Hightower. But it's too early to tell, we need to see how they play on the field in the NFL and not at a dominating school like Alabama.