I'm back to write a whole bunch of words about male anatomy. Round grades are not predictions; most of these players will be bumped up dozens of slots because this is a weaker draft.

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Assuming size and arm strength hit the NFL's baseline limits, I believe there are three traits a prospect needs to sustain success at this position: anticipation, pocket presence and the ability to manipulate. If you're not throwing to a window before the defense knows it's open, you're already too late against NFL speed. If you can't feel 270-pounders with the worst intentions closing around you, and don't know how to take three steps in any direction to avoid them, while keeping your eyes downfield at all times, you're in a world of trouble. And if you can't understand how to use your eyes to hold or move defenders on all three levels of coverage, you can't execute elite-level NFL passing concepts.

Decision-making and reading defenses can be improved. Mechanics can be improved. Even arm strength can be improved. But I think it's incredibly rare for even the most talented prospects to improve their manipulation/anticipation/pocket awareness if they've never shown it at the college level.

I'm on the side that believes those are instincts you have or don't have. You can be schemed away from your weaknesses, you can be on a great team and DLTG, you can even have a run of high-level play, but nobody breaks into the upper tier of quarterbacks without what I've mentioned.

Of course, as historically bad as my quarterback evaluations have been, feel free to disregard this section entirely.

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I'm in. Only half the league's teams have a franchise quarterback, and I see him being in that tier. I don't care about the offense he ran in college because of two things: he can move defenders with his eyes, and he shows pocket presence on the occasions it breaks down. A lot of these "system" quarterbacks make one read against an easy-to-identify coverage shell with no pressure -- and that does happen a lot for him -- but when he has to look off a safety and hit the third progression, or step up in a collapsing pocket and squeeze the dig route in there, he's got the ability to handle it.

His arm plays fine in the NFL, at times looking very good. Smooth release, quick enough, and he makes it easy on his guys to play catch. However, he's got a consistent issue hitting deep routes, and really anything to the corner. It's usually a mechanics hitch with how he plants his front foot, although sometimes he fades away on those throws too. He's probably left 10 touchdowns on the field the past two seasons due to that.

The other flaw I've seen is how often secondary blitzes can fool him. Send a nickel corner or delayed safety runner at him, and he can be on the unsure side. That's where his mobility helps, because even if he botches the read, once he's out of the pocket he kills defenses throwing on the run.

Not perfect, but he checks off the most important boxes on the NFL signal caller list. High first rounder in any draft, and top three in this one.

+ Throws with NFL timing and accuracy to most of the field, resetting quickly when the pressure comes
+ Scramble drill master who looks to pass first, and will make a defense look wrong even if they do everything right
+ If he does tuck it, he's fast enough to beat linebacker angles and will make every defensive back work to catch him
+ Rarely makes a game-losing decision with his arm
- Deep ball is erratic, especially to the sideline
- He can get stuck on a read and rely on his legs to bail him out
- Takes way too many hits in the open field, and a soft fumbler (latter may improve when he gets away from a mesh point read every snap)

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maybe my brain isn't fully working, but who from a spread system has had any real level of NFL success?

*Jews you*

"this is okp tho, reading is completely optional" (c) desus

Proceed with caution. I am overtly racist.

<-- In Pigpen we trust

Cam Newton or Alex Smith, I guess. although "spread option" encompasses a lot.

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I'd rather see the Jets take Cooper or Scherff in the first, and steal Gurley in the second.

For QB, they can either try one later on, sign a FA, or maybe trade for RG3 on the cheap.

Jameis in NYC is a terrible combination, and I know that if the Jets get Mariota it will guarantee that he's a bust.

*Jews you*

"this is okp tho, reading is completely optional" (c) desus

Proceed with caution. I am overtly racist.

<-- In Pigpen we trust

Jets definitely should take that tackle, Scherff, he will be a beast.


No point buying a Ferrari like Mariota when your crib is miles away from paved road.

I'm from the lost black tribe of Israel, the Yos

http://coolehmag.com/frontEnd/

Titans need a lot of things but we need to start with the QB.

<--- Big Baller World Order

I remember that with Bradford too

And we all thought it was just because he was that
good...he wasn't

I have to see some suffer and struggle in a QB

Luck had a bunch of struggle

Cam had a bunch of struggle

I like to see someone overcome something

When its too easy, makes me think its the system +
athletes
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O_E: "Acts like an asshole and posts with imperial disdain"




"I ORBITs the solar system, listenin..."

(C)Keith Murray, "

When he's at his best, he's better than Mariota's best, and better than anybody else that's played quarterback in college over the last three years. That's why his scuffling is so painful to watch.

Yes, the senior offensive line looked like they'd never seen a stunt before (the center Cameron Irving replaced was a sieve) and the inexperienced receivers ran some interesting "routes" at times, but that's football, and he simply made too many bad decisions. The first halves against Florida and Louisville, the second half against NC State, the entire Miami and Wake Forest games...a collection of back foot throws, getting fooled by fire zone blitzes and mix coverage, along with plain WTF decisions that had Jimbo Fisher putting on his Clemson pregame face.

I'm still buying though, because his pocket instincts and arm talent are elite. Not elite for college, but elite for anybody who can spin a football. Every bad game he's had -- and I've watched them all -- he still makes a half-dozen only-in-the-NFL plays.

Double A-gap blitz that nobody picks up, deep in his own end-zone? Quick side-step, and he throws a laser that splits a tiny zone window and is on his receiver's numbers the second he turns around. Blindside tackle gets beat on a play-action? Despite having his back turned to execute the ball fake, he feels the defensive end on him without dropping his eyes, ducks under him and pops back up to calmly hit a 30-yard strike to the corner. Excellent coverage, pass rush pending and nowhere to go with the ball? He'll head fake the safety and find the defender who is the slightest step behind, then throw it past him with impeccable, indefensible placement.

There are successful NFL quarterbacks right now who wish they could make those throws under that kind of pressure. While another dozen college starts would be wondrous for him, as he'll be only 21 when next season begins, first round quarterbacks stopped getting redshirted about a decade ago. Inconsistency will be part of the deal in the early years, and the gamble is that he elevates above it. But you have to take a risk on rare skills, especially at a position where the demarcation between haves and have-nots is so punishing. Top ten.

+ Makes throws against pressure that only a few people in the world are capable of
+ Ideal frame and arm strength, plus he fixed his long release from freshman year
+ No matter what's happened, you want him to have the ball at the end
- The peak and valley aspect of his game may not be inexperience, but an actual career-long problem
- Rough in a lot of areas, from bad habits in his drops to simplistic coverage reads
- Needs a serious off-field vetting, as immaturity doesn't play well when they give you the keys

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dude definitely needs a mature environment that can nurture him but not put up with his bullshit. otherwise, i can absolutely see him going the vince young route. the problem is, he's getting drafted early by shitty orgs.

----
bshelly

"You (Fisher) could get fired, Les Snead could get fired, Kevin Demoff could get fired, but I will always be Eric Dickerson.” (c) The God

If he's lucky though, it's Tennessee or Tampa. I think they fit the bill.

Yes, I'm mad. Let's move on.

Jays | Cavs | Eagles | Sabres | Tarheels

PSN: Dr_Claw_77 | XBL: Dr Claw 077 | FB: drclaw077 | T: @drclaw77 | http://thepeoplesvault.wordpress.com

>If he's lucky though, it's Tennessee or Tampa. I think they
>fit the bill.

I like Lovie as a coach...but he wants a veteran QB...not a rookie QB...he'll ruin him...

You guys really hate black people

Strange

>I like Lovie as a coach...but he wants a veteran QB...not a
>rookie QB...he'll ruin him...

He needs to get away from Florida to be honest

Just like the Lions picking Charles Rogers in 04 or whatever

Vince didn't have criminal behavior at Texas...was
basically a saint

Vince Young never recovered from a benching from his
coach, in part because he didn't have the pure talent
to compensate...he was a pure mental toughness and
instincts player

The better Jameis comparison is Ryan Leaf. Both had/have
prodigious arm talent. Jameis is much better neck up
than Ryan Leaf, though

K

----
bshelly

"You (Fisher) could get fired, Les Snead could get fired, Kevin Demoff could get fired, but I will always be Eric Dickerson.” (c) The God

No reason to be mad, breh

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O_E: "Acts like an asshole and posts with imperial disdain"




"I ORBITs the solar system, listenin..."

(C)Keith Murray, "

<--- Big Baller World Order

Hopefully closer to Brady

Those are his two skill sets

----------------------------



O_E: "Acts like an asshole and posts with imperial disdain"




"I ORBITs the solar system, listenin..."

(C)Keith Murray, "

But I actually watch the games, make proper comparisons.

----------------------------



O_E: "Acts like an asshole and posts with imperial disdain"




"I ORBITs the solar system, listenin..."

(C)Keith Murray, "

Second of all, doesnt every QB fall somewhere between rocket armed moron and average arm field general?

Thats like guessing someones age by saying "somewhere between 1 and 90"

Well no shit lol

Any other good comparisons?

Penchant for weird INTs included

I actually thought of that while he was directing FSU to their TD right before halftime of the ACCCG.

That sounds better

________________________________________

"A Slew Of Empty Gas In My Tank" (C) Khujo Goodie

http://i.imgur.com/gFXu2he.jpg

http://bit.ly/1r3dl53

>


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O_E: "Acts like an asshole and posts with imperial disdain"




"I ORBITs the solar system, listenin..."

(C)Keith Murray, "

The snooze button of this year's quarterback class. I think he's trying, and I think that offense may be shackling him to a degree (the swing pass is their favorite play, and their routes against pressure look more like clear-outs than real options), but I have never seen him being a comfortable passer from the pocket.

There are glimpses: he can do well with blitz-beaters, standing in the pocket and hitting late crosses or rub routes if he knows the extra pressure is coming. And he executes the short game well enough, throwing accurately and letting his receivers run after the catch (which is usually how all his long touchdowns happen).

But most defenses are content to drop seven into coverage against him, take their chances against a running play and spy him underneath. He doesn't threaten the deep part of the field, and works his progressions short to deep instead of vice-versa. Even when he makes the right read against single coverage, his downfield passing is "sporadic", if we're being optimistic.

Big arm, dynamic and bullish runner, but overall his game is mechanical and plainly boring. Late second round, but I don't see the huge potential as a starter.

+ Executes the horizontal passing game solidly
+ You have to commit an extra defender to him as a runner, he can break down a defense with power or speed
- Hasn't been "on the same page" as his receivers on deep routes for three years
- Too often skittish in the pocket, and gives up on receivers quickly when he scrambles
- Not much progression to his game after three years starting

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Can chuck, run and loves football.

In Tannenhill's case, all of the mechanics seemed to
have worked themselves out (jury is still sorta out
on him, but he's at least "decent" as an NFL QB) because
he loves to play football.

Hundley is that kind of kid.

Dude's lead the best UCLA run of my adult life and I love him for it but the two assessments above are pretty much spot on. Dude checks off everything in the physical checkbox but there's just something mechanical about his game. For a guy who is a mobile QB there just really isn't anything improvisational about his game, it's almost sort of strange. If his first option is there or that first outlet is there, he's fantastically efficient, but if anything goes out of schedule he basically only relies on the run to beat you.

UCLA's line wasn't great (and was absolutely abysmal the first half of the season) and the skill players weren't all world but still there were times you expected him to bail out inferior teammates like great QBs do and it never really happened.

I think Tannenhill, while far from great, is a legit
starter

And he was FULL of flaws coming out

Like I said, Tannehill could throw, run and loved football

That's all he had going for him

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O_E: "Acts like an asshole and posts with imperial disdain"




"I ORBITs the solar system, listenin..."

(C)Keith Murray, "

he's my guy and all...

but a couple things concern me...

sometimes it doesn't seem like making decisions as quickly as I'd like him to...

the 10 sacks he took against Utah I thought a lot of them were him just holding the ball too long or not thinking quickly to get out of the pocket or get rid of the ball..

he's an accurate passer....

he's got a very strong arm..

and when he does make the play...he's a play maker..

some of what I want to give him a pass for is that I'm not the biggest fan of Mazone's play calling.... I actually kind of wish we would go in another direction with another spread option type coordinator... We had the top running back in the pac 12 and sometimes Mazone forced Bret to make a play ..when the run could have set up a more advantageous look for him... the games we played poorly we were in 3rd and long too much... and they just tee'd off on Bret...

he got a little Jason Campbell in him.... who still has a job...but wasn't really a star you know..

the Utah game had breakdowns (and Nate Orchard is a grown man, more on him later) but Hundley mostly sacked himself. ditto for Mazzone, who ran a lot of vanilla stuff and made awkward calls on third down (long developing routes on third and eight with no check-down...I think Hundley was told to make one read and then tuck it).

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unless you're hurt or already considered a top 15 lock, quarterbacks should go to the Senior Bowl. EJ Manuel was out impressing scouts and personnel men in a practice environment, while Geno Smith and AJ McCarron did nothing and paid for it.

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Do not be fooled by the prototypical size and melanin level for a franchise quarterback. Do not look at the highlights, and only observe the gorgeous throws and placement he makes to all sections of the field. Forget about the long lineage of amazing Spartan quarterbacks, from Stanton to Hoyer to Cousins. This guy is a mirage. He makes decisions that will get people fired.

That innate sense of pocket presence I mentioned before? He doesn't have it at all. He's danced into more sacks than he's actually been pressured into. If he can't scramble out of a clean pocket, or those tricky progression reads hit the number two, then he'll just pull the trigger on the worst throw imaginable, down and distance be damned.

It's possible he can become a caretaker, since that's basically been his role on a run-heavy, defense-first Michigan State team the past two seasons. But even at that level of responsibility, he has to improve his decision-making a ton. Third round if he declares.

+ Fits passes into NFL-sized windows, with great touch and timing...if the pocket is nice and clean
+ Especially dominant throwing between the hashes, even beating bracket coverage with his accuracy
+ Not scared to let them hang, he plays with a Favre-like amnesia
- Not scared to stick his head up his own ass, making some of the dumbest situational throws possible (even without pressure)
- Defines a scramble opportunity as anytime a defender breaks into the six-yard radius around him
- Never saw an incoming sack he couldn't turn into a fumble or interception

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I've really come to appreciate Art Briles. He does this old-timey Texan routine at press conferences, but behind the façade is a stone-cold killer when it comes to offensive strategy. His simple to execute but devastating play-design got Kevin Kolb drafted in the top 40, had the Shanahans copying him during RG3's immaculate rookie season, and now has Petty looking like one of the elite college quarterbacks of the past two years.

Petty is just another cog in Southwest Chip Kelly's system, however, which is apparent when he has to make a progression read (he can't) or gets pressured (zero awareness). I'd say 90 percent of his completions come off the same formula: play-action > no pressure > wide-open first read due to a combo route or linebacker biting up. If that initial option is covered, he's completely lost. And even his accuracy is come-and-go despite so many open looks.

So basically, I'm not a fan. Fifth or sixth rounder as an emergency back-up on a talented team.

+ Good arm talent, and makes some great deep throws down the sideline
- Definition of a system quarterback, needs his hand held to manipulate defenses or dissect morphing coverages
- Stares down routes while triple pump-faking, which surprisingly doesn't move most defenders
- Shaky accuracy to all levels of the field, great pocket or not

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He gets rid of the ball...he's pretty accurate...a bit of a chunker but I think he has the pocket tools to be a solid passer down the field...

he's a gritty ball player too... he'll run it on you..

I like the kid...wouldn't mind the Rams getting him..

if he balls in the all star game and the combine I think he's going in the first round..

he's got a chance to press Hundley for the #3 QB...

Which one of these guys is a gym rat and cerebral leader?

Who's the Jake Locker of this draft class?

(if we're being serious)

--------

is that he sometimes has a Favre way about him, which leads to turnovers. He'll go for the big play over the simple 8 - 12 yarder.



Anti-gentrification, cheap alcohol & trying to look pretty in our twilight posting years (c) Big Reg


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>is that he sometimes has a Favre way about him, which leads
>to turnovers. He'll go for the big play over the simple 8 - 12
>yarder.



----------------------------



O_E: "Acts like an asshole and posts with imperial disdain"




"I ORBITs the solar system, listenin..."

(C)Keith Murray, "

(Romo is Favre 1.5 BTW)

most of his turnovers weren't the classic "bad reads" this year, it was just plain ol over trusting in his arm.

Favre, Luck, Cutler, Jeff George and a few other QB's have had this issue.






Anti-gentrification, cheap alcohol & trying to look pretty in our twilight posting years (c) Big Reg


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He's got interesting tools...but is a long, long way from ever seeing a NFL field. When he steps between the lines he looks like a pro quarterback, with great size and the mobility to make things happen off scrambles. It's his arm, however, that's most intriguing -- he's got an absolute cannon attached to his shoulder. He can shoot lasers into NFL-sized windows (which his receivers often dropped). Even with his legs being taken out from him, I've seen him fall backwards and throw a 25-yard deep out, to the opposite hash, with smoke on it.

He has to be built from the ground up, though. Mechanics are more like ideas with him at this point, whether it's the insane elbow drop on his deliver or the footwork that is jacked up in nearly every way possible. Coverage traps and zone in general confuse him, and he'll start feeling pressure in the pocket that isn't there. He might need more time and reps than any team could possibly give to a third-string quarterback. A time capsule project for the end of the draft.

+ Big-time NFL arm talent, and on the higher scale
- Starting from the bottom in nearly every facet of basic quarterbacking
- Even if he mastered all the fundamentals, there's serious questions as to whether he'll be anything more than an impressive camp arm

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Though Cardale's mechanics don't look very bad at all

Apparently his best is the best of the 3, and worst is
worst of the 3

lots of quarterbacks have shaky mechanics, but Bridge does shit that you'd cringe at in 5A high school ball. Feet pointed all sorts of directions and his release makes Tebow look like Dan Marino on certain snaps.

Ohio State is so loaded for 2015 though. They could have four first rounders (including the top overall pick) in the 2016 draft.

--------

>Ohio State is so loaded for 2015 though. They could have four
>first rounders (including the top overall pick) in the 2016
>draft.

Who is this top overall pick on OSU? And who are the other
four first rounders?


----------------------------



O_E: "Acts like an asshole and posts with imperial disdain"




"I ORBITs the solar system, listenin..."

(C)Keith Murray, "

especially since no quarterbacks have emerged so far with #1 potential. Ezekiel Elliott will be draft eligible, so will Darron Lee. Taylor Decker would've been a second or third rounder this season in a deep tackle class; he could be a late first in 2016.

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>especially since no quarterbacks have emerged so far with #1
>potential. Ezekiel Elliott will be draft eligible, so will
>Darron Lee. Taylor Decker would've been a second or third
>rounder this season in a deep tackle class; he could be a late
>first in 2016.

how does his NFL potential compare to someone like Brian Rolle?

Lee is prob a touch faster and more fluid but their game seems similar.

honestly I haven't watched Lee too much outside his splash plays, and right now I doubt he comes out after just two years on the field.

as for comps, Rolle played like an old-school ILB, which hurt him the most (NFL is looking for guys with Lee's skillset). and even if Lee is only 6'1 instead of 6'2, that's still a big difference than Rolle's 5'10.

either way, a ton of Ohio State players will be on the radar for 2016. should be interesting.

--------

HAD TO DO IT.

STAND OUT HAND OUTS: http://basquiatwhenipaint.tumblr.com

TWEET ME: @PROMO206

Great college player who probably won't get much more than a camp invite. His arm is below-average, as deep outs die on arrival, and he’s a frail-looking 6'1. Perhaps his biggest issue is the way he falls apart when he has to move in the pocket. He'll stand in and throw slants on the money all day, but anytime he has to step off his drop, the ball could end up anywhere. And for being in an offense that took so many downfield shots, his long-range accuracy isn't anything special. Seventh round, or more likely, a UDFA.

+ Big balls in clutch situations
- Barely meets the most minimum physical requirements to play in the NFL

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You may hear about him over the next six weeks as a "rising prospect" with a "NFL arm" and "valuable experience in a pro system", but don't be fooled by the white quarterback code-speak. He sucks.

His whole throwing process is agonizing to watch. He's one of those awkward tall guys with sloppy footwork (drops are rarely on time with his throws), only uses his upper body when passing and has zero pocket presence. A classic fade-into-pressure-and-sack-myself quarterback.

And whatever "pro-style concepts" he was taught, he didn't pick up very well. Coverage reads are consistently terrible and he never made a bad decision he didn't want to repeat. Loved seeing him throw to his plodding tight end over and over with Shaq Thompson in coverage; it took two deflections and a pick-six before the "cerebral part of his game" kicked in.

Desperate search for a third-best quarterback prospect + height + whiteness + nice arm for uncontested passing drills = ridiculous public overvaluation.

+ Will definitely raise your post-draft grade from Peter King by a letter
- Guessing-game accuracy on intermediate throws
- Every moving part from the snap to his release needs an overhaul
- Has a lot of experience being a terrible pro-style quarterback

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Should be an easy position to evaluate, because great running backs are almost always born and rarely made. They might have stone hands, they might have atrocious technique in pass protection, but running around and through people is an innate skill.

That said, it *is* tougher these days because of how college offenses dominate. A lot of backs get huge running lanes every snap, ones they might see once or twice a game in the NFL, due to play-design and just the overall lesser talent level in college. So seeing instances where they have to succeed against NFL-type fronts is rarer.

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Not much to say, since I love everything about this guy. He can run out of any formation. NFL vision to wait or attack blocks, with the quick feet and burst to get through the narrowest creases. Stack the box with run blitzes and he'll leg drive his way into a dozen broken tackles (see: South Carolina). And once he's in the second level, he can run past or over anybody to turn 12-yard gains into 50-yard touchdowns.

The most overlooked part of his game is that he's also one of the best third down backs in the draft. He was deciphering Saban's blitz packages to perfection as a true freshman, and he's got great hands when it comes to off-target throws. He was stuck with occasional screens and dump-offs in college, but I see him doing so much more as a NFL receiving threat on the right offense.

Running backs don't get drafted high anymore because very few of them can dominate a game themselves. He can, and his future team is getting a top ten talent at an ACL discount.

+ Literally can do everything you look for out of a feature back
+ Untapped potential in the passing game
+ Monster at the goal-line
- Tore his ACL late in the season and could be an IR luxury for a team who can burn a 2015 pick

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