Blinkscout 2020 draft analysis ...
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I like to come at things from my angle, so hopefully you'll get something out of this that you haven't seen elsewhere.
If you know my style, I follow players their entire collegiate career. I start watching them as freshman ... or whenever they show up on the big screen. Because I do this, I have expectations for their growth as a big part of my analysis.
Case in point ...
Deandre Hopkins vs. Sammy Watkins. They shared the field. One player was a polished amazing freshman and the other not so much. Watkins was the better talent to begin with. Deandre Hopkins though, he outpaced him in work ethic, route running, and focus. So predicting who would be the better pro was leaning toward Hopkins form early on.
I also follow programs who regularly churn out players coming through position coaches ... Not just Wisconsin and Iowa O lines or Clemson and Ohio State D lines.
So I will give you my player analysis along with my relationship with the player and what the pick means to me about Snead and McVay's perspective of the team. I think we can all say that their picture of the O line strength is not what ours had been.
I'll say in advance, this is one of my favorite Rams drafts, if not the favorite. First 5 picks were all what I wanted. (though its true I wanted Dobbins and Mims)
52) Cam Akers FSU RB
I think like many of us, my pick would have been Dobbins here based on what I thought we needed. So, I had to think about what I liked about Akers and watch some tape to see what differences had them leaning toward him.
1) Used to running behind an O line that did not open great holes for him. Regardless of how good an NFL O line is, they don't open the kinds of holes the Ohio State O line does. So being used to making jump cuts in the backfield is a plus.
2) Duce Staley drill.
These feet are epic.
So that tells me they want explosiveness to the hole and the ability to sidestep players.
My first meeting with Akers was in 17' and I noted "Dalvin Cook 2.0" ... and honestly they are pretty similar. Lateral agility and power in one person. I think Akers was dinged a bit last year ... then this year was just terrible for FSU. Wheels completely came off. So I was hoping he could be taken/stolen later ... but he and my other candidate (AJ Dillon) didn't make round 3.
He's not Henderson 2.0 He can plow for short yardage and he can make a defender miss in a phone booth.
I think Dalvin Cook is his ceiling ...
57) Van Jefferson UF WR
Again, I thought based on meetings that this was likely to be Mims. I ALSO thought Mims was faster. This is based on tape and guesses. I had the assumption that Jefferson's top gear was 4.55 or so. The analysis from the senior bowl puts him at low 4.4s or high 4.3s. I can guess that he was not sent deep much at UF because of his being the best route runner among the three of he, Swain (4.46) and Cleveland (4.46), but it's still just a guess. We will certainly find out if this is accurate or not.
If it's not, then Reynolds is our deep threat this year.
I started watching Jefferson in his freshman year when the "OMG trio" got to Ole MIss ...He, DK Metcalf, and AJ Brown were all fighting for time. He transferred and I lost track of him a bit.
UF had QB injury issues and they did a lot of "short stuff" ... not really highlighting WRs talents.
Then at the senior bowl he was simply uncoverable.
They started talking about him as a top 50 player. Route running was 2nd only to Jeudy (debateable). So if he had not found that injury and been able to run at the combine, and run in the low 4.4s ... no way does he get out of round 1.
What it tells me ... Route running and hands come before "certainty" of speed. It also tells me they think he can run by people.
His ceiling is really high and his floor is also really high. Worst case scenario in my mind is that he serves as Woods replacement when his contract is up. Best case? He runs a legit 4.4 and can be Torry Holt 2.0
84) Terrell Lewis OLB Alabama
If you had told me he'd be available at 84 I'd have laughed. But? Without in person meetings to feel out whether or not you'd be willing to take a chance on his injury history, the level of risk changes. This is a pick that you can afford to make because you've been stockpiling talent and don't need to make a pick out of need. That is one reason you build a strong roster. It gives you opportunities that other teams are not talent wealthy enough to take.
Lewis freaked me out the first time I saw him because I thought he was a safety wearing 24. Then I saw how big he was and looked up his numbers ... 6-5 262. Long arms. Massive wingspan. Reminded me of Bud Dupree but longer and with more bend.
He's made some amazing plays when healthy. He's made some really talented kids on the O line look like fools Then I'd forget about him because he wasn't on the field.
If he's healthy, he could be a top talent at the position. If he gets hurt, we got a him for a 3rd. So be it.
I will say this ... as far as his measurables, he looks to be the 2nd most athletic person on this team behind AD.
104) Terrell Burgess S Utah
I mentioned above that I watch positions on certain teams ... one of those is the Utah secondary. They can turn out 3 prospects one year and have 3 more ready the next year. Burgess was a monster ... I liked him better than Blackmon, who went first, and honestly did not have him getting out of round 2. He played smart, fast, instinctive, and active in a conference that asks a lot of safeties and gives them a lot of opportunities to make plays.
Ex CB, that can cover, he looks to be a possibility at slot or backup FS. Because he can hit, playing near the LOS is good ... and because he runs a 4.46, he can pivot and chase.
I like him as Johnson Insurance ... in case we can't lock him up. We missed a year of his rookie contract and that's bothersome to me ... but we have two more years and now a suitable understudy that should make an impact at least in sub packages in year one.
All four of those players made my Top 2 rounds ... The next one just missed.
136) Brycen Hopkins TE Purdue
I started watching Hopkins back when Purdue had 2 solid TEs ... Brycen was the younger. the older was not as fast nor as athletic ... so I shifted to Brycen and focused on him. I love this pick. You grab talent that slides and keep your team loaded. He was my 3rd TE and many liked him as their top TE. I had a high 3rd round grade on him and see him as having a low floor and High-ish ceiling if he wants to beast out. TEs are the craziest to predict because they need to decide that they're a monster, and they need to take that onto the field. Mundt is unlikely to birth that kind of player, so we need someone in case one of our top 2 get injured because I want two TE sets. Having Higbee for Brycen to watch and train behind is like Goedert behind Ertz. Does Everett stay? I doubt it. He's a great talent and I can't see us investing another 10 spot in the TE position.
So liked this kid coming into this year and this is the kind of pick that makes me happy. I was thinking about spending a mid round pick on him in 2020 when I was watching in 2018.
6) Jordan Fuller S Ohio State
Locker room pick. Does he make our team? The practice squad? Don't know. But he was a team captain at Ohio state so he'll be a good presence in the rookie rooms. I was surprised at this pick given some other players on the board ... but I rarely argue with taking a team captain in the 6th round.
Note ... when the 7th round starts I imagine every team on the phone with potential UDFA targets ... and the guys that they think they may not land, are the ones they draft ... so these are UDFA level guys that we targeted for whatever reason.
7) Cody Johnston ILB Baylor
This guy had really good tape and then an injury ... so my guess is that we wanted to have "first right of refusal" on seeing where he is in recovery and drafting him is the only thing that ensures that.
7) Sam Sloman K Miami (Ohio)
HIs kicking was really solid from 40-49 this last year and that's an area of focus more than distance from what I understand form what the brain trust has said ...
7) Tremayne Anchrum IL Clemson
There was competition for him in UDFA. He was a right tackle with some solid power that is likely to move inside. I liked his combine workout almost as much as Simpson who was drafted round earlier. He's pretty smooth so we'll see how much work he gets in preseason.
CB Levonta Taylor - Florida State Small kiddo that can fly ... slot ... anyone remember if he returned punts? Likely found during Akers study. 5-9 190
DL Jonah Williams - Weber State 6-5 275 ... Pretty sure this was the freak workout guy ... with a 4.67 40 and a 6.77 3 cone. I don't know how you want to address that level of athleticism ... but it deserves a lot of attention and consideration before being cut.
WR Easop Winston - Washington State This kid could be a steal ... 6-0 200 and low 4.4s .... crowded WR room at Washington state.
WR Trishton Jackson - Syracuse This kid can play ... great WR class and we got 2 UDFA that can make the team. 4.45 guy 1.57 split 6-1 200
RB Xavier Jones - SMU Work horse pro back ... smaller but do NOT count him out. Like Eno Benjamin, I wanted to not like him, but he was feisty and consistent.
OL Cohl Cabral - Arizona State Solid kid, unspectacular, a little slow footed but a decent blocker. Practice squad possible
CB Dayan Lake - BYU Pretty sure this is Dayan Ghanwoloku ... hitter athletic safety. I had him about as high as Trishtan Jackson ... 5th round talent. 5-9 197 ...
Thanks to everyone for a great draft season. Truly a pleasure.
This is a good class. While we may look at the Cards and 9ers rosters and compare them ... I think most of what will bring this team together is rallying around new leadership on offense without whatever drag Todd Gurley had on the locker room. I think the execution will change. I think excitement will return and I think the Super Bowl hangover will not be ours.
Thoughts and comments welcome.
If you know my style, I follow players their entire collegiate career. I start watching them as freshman ... or whenever they show up on the big screen. Because I do this, I have expectations for their growth as a big part of my analysis.
Case in point ...
Deandre Hopkins vs. Sammy Watkins. They shared the field. One player was a polished amazing freshman and the other not so much. Watkins was the better talent to begin with. Deandre Hopkins though, he outpaced him in work ethic, route running, and focus. So predicting who would be the better pro was leaning toward Hopkins form early on.
I also follow programs who regularly churn out players coming through position coaches ... Not just Wisconsin and Iowa O lines or Clemson and Ohio State D lines.
So I will give you my player analysis along with my relationship with the player and what the pick means to me about Snead and McVay's perspective of the team. I think we can all say that their picture of the O line strength is not what ours had been.
I'll say in advance, this is one of my favorite Rams drafts, if not the favorite. First 5 picks were all what I wanted. (though its true I wanted Dobbins and Mims)
52) Cam Akers FSU RB
I think like many of us, my pick would have been Dobbins here based on what I thought we needed. So, I had to think about what I liked about Akers and watch some tape to see what differences had them leaning toward him.
1) Used to running behind an O line that did not open great holes for him. Regardless of how good an NFL O line is, they don't open the kinds of holes the Ohio State O line does. So being used to making jump cuts in the backfield is a plus.
2) Duce Staley drill.
These feet are epic.
So that tells me they want explosiveness to the hole and the ability to sidestep players.
My first meeting with Akers was in 17' and I noted "Dalvin Cook 2.0" ... and honestly they are pretty similar. Lateral agility and power in one person. I think Akers was dinged a bit last year ... then this year was just terrible for FSU. Wheels completely came off. So I was hoping he could be taken/stolen later ... but he and my other candidate (AJ Dillon) didn't make round 3.
He's not Henderson 2.0 He can plow for short yardage and he can make a defender miss in a phone booth.
I think Dalvin Cook is his ceiling ...
57) Van Jefferson UF WR
Again, I thought based on meetings that this was likely to be Mims. I ALSO thought Mims was faster. This is based on tape and guesses. I had the assumption that Jefferson's top gear was 4.55 or so. The analysis from the senior bowl puts him at low 4.4s or high 4.3s. I can guess that he was not sent deep much at UF because of his being the best route runner among the three of he, Swain (4.46) and Cleveland (4.46), but it's still just a guess. We will certainly find out if this is accurate or not.
If it's not, then Reynolds is our deep threat this year.
I started watching Jefferson in his freshman year when the "OMG trio" got to Ole MIss ...He, DK Metcalf, and AJ Brown were all fighting for time. He transferred and I lost track of him a bit.
UF had QB injury issues and they did a lot of "short stuff" ... not really highlighting WRs talents.
Then at the senior bowl he was simply uncoverable.
They started talking about him as a top 50 player. Route running was 2nd only to Jeudy (debateable). So if he had not found that injury and been able to run at the combine, and run in the low 4.4s ... no way does he get out of round 1.
What it tells me ... Route running and hands come before "certainty" of speed. It also tells me they think he can run by people.
His ceiling is really high and his floor is also really high. Worst case scenario in my mind is that he serves as Woods replacement when his contract is up. Best case? He runs a legit 4.4 and can be Torry Holt 2.0
84) Terrell Lewis OLB Alabama
If you had told me he'd be available at 84 I'd have laughed. But? Without in person meetings to feel out whether or not you'd be willing to take a chance on his injury history, the level of risk changes. This is a pick that you can afford to make because you've been stockpiling talent and don't need to make a pick out of need. That is one reason you build a strong roster. It gives you opportunities that other teams are not talent wealthy enough to take.
Lewis freaked me out the first time I saw him because I thought he was a safety wearing 24. Then I saw how big he was and looked up his numbers ... 6-5 262. Long arms. Massive wingspan. Reminded me of Bud Dupree but longer and with more bend.
He's made some amazing plays when healthy. He's made some really talented kids on the O line look like fools Then I'd forget about him because he wasn't on the field.
If he's healthy, he could be a top talent at the position. If he gets hurt, we got a him for a 3rd. So be it.
I will say this ... as far as his measurables, he looks to be the 2nd most athletic person on this team behind AD.
104) Terrell Burgess S Utah
I mentioned above that I watch positions on certain teams ... one of those is the Utah secondary. They can turn out 3 prospects one year and have 3 more ready the next year. Burgess was a monster ... I liked him better than Blackmon, who went first, and honestly did not have him getting out of round 2. He played smart, fast, instinctive, and active in a conference that asks a lot of safeties and gives them a lot of opportunities to make plays.
Ex CB, that can cover, he looks to be a possibility at slot or backup FS. Because he can hit, playing near the LOS is good ... and because he runs a 4.46, he can pivot and chase.
I like him as Johnson Insurance ... in case we can't lock him up. We missed a year of his rookie contract and that's bothersome to me ... but we have two more years and now a suitable understudy that should make an impact at least in sub packages in year one.
All four of those players made my Top 2 rounds ... The next one just missed.
136) Brycen Hopkins TE Purdue
I started watching Hopkins back when Purdue had 2 solid TEs ... Brycen was the younger. the older was not as fast nor as athletic ... so I shifted to Brycen and focused on him. I love this pick. You grab talent that slides and keep your team loaded. He was my 3rd TE and many liked him as their top TE. I had a high 3rd round grade on him and see him as having a low floor and High-ish ceiling if he wants to beast out. TEs are the craziest to predict because they need to decide that they're a monster, and they need to take that onto the field. Mundt is unlikely to birth that kind of player, so we need someone in case one of our top 2 get injured because I want two TE sets. Having Higbee for Brycen to watch and train behind is like Goedert behind Ertz. Does Everett stay? I doubt it. He's a great talent and I can't see us investing another 10 spot in the TE position.
So liked this kid coming into this year and this is the kind of pick that makes me happy. I was thinking about spending a mid round pick on him in 2020 when I was watching in 2018.
6) Jordan Fuller S Ohio State
Locker room pick. Does he make our team? The practice squad? Don't know. But he was a team captain at Ohio state so he'll be a good presence in the rookie rooms. I was surprised at this pick given some other players on the board ... but I rarely argue with taking a team captain in the 6th round.
Note ... when the 7th round starts I imagine every team on the phone with potential UDFA targets ... and the guys that they think they may not land, are the ones they draft ... so these are UDFA level guys that we targeted for whatever reason.
7) Cody Johnston ILB Baylor
This guy had really good tape and then an injury ... so my guess is that we wanted to have "first right of refusal" on seeing where he is in recovery and drafting him is the only thing that ensures that.
7) Sam Sloman K Miami (Ohio)
HIs kicking was really solid from 40-49 this last year and that's an area of focus more than distance from what I understand form what the brain trust has said ...
7) Tremayne Anchrum IL Clemson
There was competition for him in UDFA. He was a right tackle with some solid power that is likely to move inside. I liked his combine workout almost as much as Simpson who was drafted round earlier. He's pretty smooth so we'll see how much work he gets in preseason.
CB Levonta Taylor - Florida State Small kiddo that can fly ... slot ... anyone remember if he returned punts? Likely found during Akers study. 5-9 190
DL Jonah Williams - Weber State 6-5 275 ... Pretty sure this was the freak workout guy ... with a 4.67 40 and a 6.77 3 cone. I don't know how you want to address that level of athleticism ... but it deserves a lot of attention and consideration before being cut.
WR Easop Winston - Washington State This kid could be a steal ... 6-0 200 and low 4.4s .... crowded WR room at Washington state.
WR Trishton Jackson - Syracuse This kid can play ... great WR class and we got 2 UDFA that can make the team. 4.45 guy 1.57 split 6-1 200
RB Xavier Jones - SMU Work horse pro back ... smaller but do NOT count him out. Like Eno Benjamin, I wanted to not like him, but he was feisty and consistent.
OL Cohl Cabral - Arizona State Solid kid, unspectacular, a little slow footed but a decent blocker. Practice squad possible
CB Dayan Lake - BYU Pretty sure this is Dayan Ghanwoloku ... hitter athletic safety. I had him about as high as Trishtan Jackson ... 5th round talent. 5-9 197 ...
Thanks to everyone for a great draft season. Truly a pleasure.
This is a good class. While we may look at the Cards and 9ers rosters and compare them ... I think most of what will bring this team together is rallying around new leadership on offense without whatever drag Todd Gurley had on the locker room. I think the execution will change. I think excitement will return and I think the Super Bowl hangover will not be ours.
Thoughts and comments welcome.
