yayanjl
Admin
Number of posts : 252
Age : 30
Location : Northwestern Wisconsin
Registration date : 2007-04-13
 | | Subject: Draft Selections 7/8/2007, 9:49 pm | |
| JAMARCUS RUSSELL Positives: Has a well-built, strong and athletic frame with good overall muscle definition, long arms, large hands, high-cut with wide shoulders and thick thighs … Has outstanding arm strength and size for his position … Shows good overall foot quickness and agility to step out of the pocket and buy time for his receivers … Has the lower body power to break tackles … Demonstrates above average body control and balance driving back from center and shows good accuracy firing the ball up the seams … Has a fluid throwing motion, much like the Colts' Peyton Manning … Made good strides in recognizing protections and is capable of calling audibles … Not the type who needs the glory and attention most quarterbacks relish … Determined field leader with ice water running through his veins … Will play through pain and does a great job of standing tall in the pocket … Has good balance in his drop-back and generally moves in control, showing a nice rhythm while planting his feet through his delivery … When he sits back and scans the field, he can pick apart the zones … Makes right decisions on long throws, thanks to his raw power, but needs to vary the speed on his short throws, as his targets sometimes have a hard time fielding the ball cleanly (puts too much zip on the throws) … His arm strength and fluid mechanics let him get the ball out quickly, once he sets his feet … Shows no wasted motion and is consistently in good position to deliver the ball on time … Has the strongest arm in football, at any level … Can throw the ball the length of the field and put on an impressive show during Sugar Bowl practices, when he sat down on the ground and effortlessly flicked the ball out more than 40 yards … Generates great velocity and ball speed firing up the seams and is an excellent prospect for a vertical passing game … Makes it easy for receivers to stay in stride when firing up the seam … Effective throwing on the move and has the ability to consistently place the ball on the receiver's outside shoulder … When working from a three-step technique, Russell shows very good timing and placement attacking the deep secondary, but must take some heat off his short throws … Steps into his throws well, but also has more than enough arm strength to throw off the wrong foot … Stands tall in the pocket and there is no panic in his game … Will take shots and throw under duress, but just needs to check off his primary target quicker rather than try to buy time with his feet moving around the pocket … Made great strides in maintaining his focus down field, even under heavy pressure … Has enough movement skills to buy time in the backfield … Earlier in his career, he would step back and fall away from his throws, but now is much more confident in his arm and ability to step up and find the throwing lanes … You don't see Russell scramble much, but when he tucks the ball and runs with it, he has the size, strength and bulk to consistently break tackles … Puts good velocity on his throws firing from the outside hashes and has a fluid release, whether throwing from the left or right side.
Negatives: At maximum growth potential and any more weight will affect his quickness … His weight needs to be monitored, as he will lose some of his agility when he hits the 260-pound range … Lacks the change of direction agility to make the initial tackler miss … Has a good grasp of the passing game, but sometimes gets too confident in his arm strength and will try to force the ball into tight spots … Quiet sort who seems to shy away from the media attention … Shows good fluidity and quickness in his drive back from center, but is not a threat to run with the ball … Can buy time for his receivers when rolling out, but appears a little stiff in his hips when having to escape pocket pressure for too long … Tends to get a bit impatient in the pocket and showed too much confidence in his arm strength, firing the ball right into coverage … Will hold the ball too long waiting for his targets to get open, resulting in a sack or costly fumble … Can make all the throws, but needs to take a little of his zip off his shorter area tosses … Cool under pressure, but will get impatient at times and force the ball in tight areas … Not the type who can get into the second level with his feet, as he is a little stiff in his hips changing direction.
Compares To: Daunte Culpepper, Miami Dolphins … Russell has a defensive lineman's build with quick feet for a player his size … He has one of the strongest arms in the game and showed better patience waiting for his targets to get open … He did a better job with his reads to improve his overall accuracy as a junior … He is a perfect prospect for a vertical passing attack … Unlike most big quarterbacks, he doesn't have a windmill-type release and can throw the ball almost the length of the field. MARSHAWN LYNCH Positives: Has a solid build with good upper body muscle definition, big bubble, thick thighs, high calves, broad shoulders, good chest thickness … Can generate a second gear to separate in the open and has the nimble feet needed to make precise lateral cuts … His loose hips and change-of-direction agility make him very elusive avoiding traffic … Keeps his feet after contact and has the pick-and-slide agility to elude when running in-line … Runs with a normal stride, but is very crisp redirecting on the move … Has a good understanding of the offense and blocking schemes … Shows the vision to locate the soft areas in the zone and shows no hesitation redirecting when rush lanes are clogged … Effective blocker and a tough inside runner who loves to challenge the defender in one-on-one situations … Will aggressively take on a tackler and will sacrifice his body to compete for the pass over the middle … Mentally tough character who doesn't let mistakes take him out of his game … Highly respected by his teammates and staff, bringing a good attitude into the locker room with his work ethic and ability to keep the players "loose" … Shows good in-stride quickness when adjusting his direction and can clear the line of scrimmage in an instant when he keeps his pad level down … Has a quick burst out of his stance and shows steady acceleration on his long runs … Has that competitive quickness and balance, along with loose hips to redirect and separate in the open … Excels at finding cutback lanes … Has the ability to bounce off the tackle and make the initial defender miss … Patient runner who has success because of his feel for the rush lanes, as it is rare to see him run into traffic … Downhill runner with the slippery moves and change-of-direction agility to get through trash … Very good stop-and-go runner, whose precise cutting agility will generally cause the initial tackler overrun and overpursue … Compensates for a lack of sudden sustained speed with very good lateral slide and veering moves to avoid … His balance lets him keep his feet, redirect and race through cutback lanes to gain additional yardage after contact … Has soft, natural hands and does a good job of catching the ball outside his frame … Possesses the vision to look the ball in over his outside shoulder and the cutting agility to separate after the catch … Willing blocker with a good eye for picking up the blitz … Shows good intent and aggression chipping on edge rushers and gives the quarterback enough room to operate when protecting the pocket.
Negatives: Not an explosive runner around the corner, but shows very good patience waiting for blocks to develop … Has good body lean, but sometimes gets too high in his stance when attempting to race into the second level, failing to sidestep low blocks in the process … Can be tripped up when he gets tall in his stance, as he does not always protect his feet … Knows how to get skinny through tight creases, but needs to improve his leg drive, as he is not the type of running who can move the pile … Will sometimes get too fancy and execute multiple moves (see 2006 Washington State, Washington and UCLA games), allowing the defender to recover … Needs to distribute the ball better to keep it away from the defenders (see 2006 Minnesota and Stanford games and 2005 Sacramento State and Oregon State) to prevent costly fumbles … Protects the ball better running through traffic than when bouncing outside, but also struggled some when handling a pitch or toss.
Compares To: Joseph Addai of the Indianapolis Colts … Lynch is slippery as an inside runner and, like Addai, is patient and possesses the second gear needed to break away from the pack. He has the acceleration to separate from defenders in the open, excellent arm strength for the option pass and natural hands as a receiver coming out of the backfield. STEVE SMITH Positives: Has good upper-body muscle definition with an adequate bubble, thick calves, tight waist and abdomen … Has good initial quickness and builds to top speed smoothly, using proper hand technique to defeat the jam and prevent from being re-routed … Runs with good balance and displays loose hips to change direction … Is a student of the game, putting in the extra hours after practice and in the film room … Has shown marked improvement in his training habits, adding needed strength and bulk to his frame before his senior year … Tough athlete who will play through pain … Shows a smooth running stride and the plant-and-drive agility to cut quickly … Has the loose hips to deliver good shake-and-bake moves in attempts to elude … Uses an effective veer move to get into his patterns and is alert to find the soft spots in the zone to settle under … Glides in and out of his breaks … Has the vision to recognize coverages and is alert to sideline markers … Does a good job of working back to the ball when the quarterback is pressured … Used mostly on hitches, out patterns and underneath, as he has the body control to adjust to the ball in flight, especially when being used on hitches and curls … Has good knee bend coming out of his breaks to get to his catch point and despite average speed, he can get down the seam smoothly … Has made some improvement in extending his arms to catch away from his frame … Best when used on controlled routes, where he can better use his agility to scoop up the low throws and make the tough grab … Tracks the ball well in flight and is effective at looking the ball in with a defender behind him … Relies more on his leg drive to break tackles and separate rather than an explosive second gear … Better blocker upfield, as he can sink his weight, keep his pads down and attack second-level blockers … Quick off the line and has the hip snap and transition burst to come out of his breaks with no loss in acceleration … Very alert to defensive coverage and is quick to eat up the cushion working versus the zone … Has the ability to stay focused tracking the ball in a crowd, showing no flinch when defenders are zeroing in on his jersey … Has the ease-of-movement agility to catch the ball without breaking stride … Has the head fakes and hip snap to sell the route and separate after the catch.
Negatives: Quick off the line, but does not have that explosive second gear needed to elude in the deep secondary … Showed improvement in 2006, but needs to maintain consistency using his hands to escape the jam (struggled in the past when he failed to get his arms up to push off the defensive back) … Best on sidelines and curls, as he does not have the power to prevent from getting bounced around when trying to compete for the ball in a crowd over the middle … Rounds and gathers on cuts at times … Has made strides in extending for the ball away from his frame, but when he body catches, he will double catch or drop the ball, especially when going over the middle … Shows good veer in his route, but has yet to display that second gear needed to instantly separate from the defender … Good second-level blocker, but does not have the sand in the pants to sustain when asked to block along the line.
Compares To: Bobby Engram-Seattle … Neither player is known as a speed burner, but if a lethargic defender gives Smith any space to create, he more than likely will come up with the big play. Both play with a blue-collar work ethic, but given more than a few touches, they will move the chains with regularity. | |
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