onejayhawk Posted May 1, 2018 Share Posted May 1, 2018 He is the son of Reggie McKenzie, GM of the Raiders. He's 20 years old, having played three years on the DL, where he became a marginal prospect as a 2-gap NT. The Chiefs drafted RKM Jr. in the 6th round, announcing they planned to convert him from DT to OG. Can anyone give insight as to why they want to make the move, chances of success? All I have seen is a scout saying he looked better doing OL drills than the three OL Tennessee had at their Pro-day. J Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MSURacerDT55 Posted May 1, 2018 Share Posted May 1, 2018 Two trains of thought: 1. Brady Hoke didn't get the best out of him and could have been a lot better under better coaching 2. He always had an NFL OG type of build and the transition was inevitable Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Broncofan Posted May 1, 2018 Share Posted May 1, 2018 Sometimes you can give college coaches a pass for not seeing a guy’s best position. But given McKenzie Jr. wasn’t great at his D spot and his lineage if he pans out even to be just league average OL it’s hard not to think Hoke and the coaching staff completely missed the boat here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CalhounLambeau Posted May 1, 2018 Share Posted May 1, 2018 Jarron Jones, the Notre Dame DT got picked up by the Giants as an UDFA last year and they tried the OL conversion with him. Believe he's w/ the Cowboys now. It's happening more. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Broncofan Posted May 1, 2018 Share Posted May 1, 2018 10 minutes ago, CalhounLambeau said: Jarron Jones, the Notre Dame DT got picked up by the Giants as an UDFA last year and they tried the OL conversion with him. Believe he's w/ the Cowboys now. It's happening more. SEA kind of made it a thing, which is ironic, given their track record isn't stellar. But you can't argue the price if it's UDFA/6th-7th round gambles. It only takes 1 guy in 5-6 to hit to make it worthwhile. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chiefer Posted May 1, 2018 Share Posted May 1, 2018 1 hour ago, Broncofan said: Sometimes you can give college coaches a pass for not seeing a guy’s best position. But given McKenzie Jr. wasn’t great at his D spot and his lineage if he pans out even to be just league average OL it’s hard not to think Hoke and the coaching staff completely missed the boat here. McKenzie Jr said his father told him he could be a great OL, position he played in HS, but he wanted to switch to DL and try it out. But now hes got no problems switching back to OL in the NFL. also it's hilarious we drafted our rival GM's son. That draft party was devastated.? chiefs had him do some OL drill a at his pro day and according to them he was better then the other Tenn O L prospects at it. Well see what happens. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Da_Ducktator Posted May 1, 2018 Share Posted May 1, 2018 Why the hell do you all keep blaming McKenzie playing DT in college on Brady Hoke? Hoke was in Tennessee literally only last season where as McKenzie has been with UT since 2015, came in as a DT recruit (and was dominant there in high school and in camps) and never changed. If you're going to blame anybody, I guess blame Butch Jones and the staff that originally recruited him, but McKenzie was a consensus 5-star DT recruit and his dad was a linebacker, so hard to fault anybody for not moving the guy to the other side of the ball.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
onejayhawk Posted May 1, 2018 Author Share Posted May 1, 2018 The story is that they were desperate for DL when he came in. It was a way to play as a freshman. From that point, they never moved him. The point is fairly made that he is only 20 and three years from playing OL in HS. Trying a conversion on a player that is 24 year old, been through a few training camps, and around the league a few times, would be very different. The scout said several times that he kept his head up while playing NT. why is that particularly important? J Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Oregon Ducks Posted May 2, 2018 Share Posted May 2, 2018 he was a greeeeat player in HS. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Roninho Posted May 2, 2018 Share Posted May 2, 2018 15 hours ago, Chiefer said: McKenzie Jr said his father told him he could be a great OL, position he played in HS, but he wanted to switch to DL and try it out. But now hes got no problems switching back to OL in the NFL. also it's hilarious we drafted our rival GM's son. That draft party was devastated.? chiefs had him do some OL drill a at his pro day and according to them he was better then the other Tenn O L prospects at it. Well see what happens. I can respect not wanting to push your kid a certain direction as a father if the kid doesnt want to. However as a NFL GM Mckenzie knows that the best shot for his kid to get a long term career in the NFL would be to stay in his HS position of OL during college. He's drafted as an OL player in the 6th round, while being a junior and playing DL. Imagine where he gets drafted if he plays OL for 4 years in college. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
onejayhawk Posted May 2, 2018 Author Share Posted May 2, 2018 That's very much what the scout said, "If he had played at OG from a Freshman, there is no telling where he could be." It may be worth noting that the Chiefs did this once before. In 2000 they picked up an UDFA dropped by Dallas. Brian Waters went on to six Pro-Bowls. J Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SeanTaylorsaPIMP Posted May 2, 2018 Share Posted May 2, 2018 I just remember seeing him in the combine and thinking he had the most stout lower body I saw all combine. His legs were the size of tree trunks. I could definitely see his body type being a guard in the NFL. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
onejayhawk Posted May 2, 2018 Author Share Posted May 2, 2018 8 minutes ago, SeanTayorsaPIMP said: I just remember seeing him in the combine and thinking he had the most stout lower body I saw all combine. His legs were the size of tree trunks. I could definitely see his body type being a guard in the NFL. No lie. Tree trunk thighs. If I understand his NT style, it was more grab and control than penetrate and disrupt. That's the nature of 2-gap, but he may need to be more aggressive on the OL. J Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Oregon Ducks Posted May 2, 2018 Share Posted May 2, 2018 11 hours ago, Roninho said: I can respect not wanting to push your kid a certain direction as a father if the kid doesnt want to. However as a NFL GM Mckenzie knows that the best shot for his kid to get a long term career in the NFL would be to stay in his HS position of OL during college. He's drafted as an OL player in the 6th round, while being a junior and playing DL. Imagine where he gets drafted if he plays OL for 4 years in college. His best position in HS was on the DL. Easily. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VanS Posted May 2, 2018 Share Posted May 2, 2018 On 5/1/2018 at 11:59 AM, Broncofan said: Sometimes you can give college coaches a pass for not seeing a guy’s best position. But given McKenzie Jr. wasn’t great at his D spot and his lineage if he pans out even to be just league average OL it’s hard not to think Hoke and the coaching staff completely missed the boat here. Remember, this is the same coaching staff that thought Alvin Kamara was best suited standing on the sideline beside them rather than playing in the games. NFL scouts have been saying Kahlil McKenzie is better suited for OG than DT going back to his freshmen year in college. Tennessee's former coaching staff was simply incompetent. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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