2023 CFB Talk/Draft Prospects

[Nobellythrower]

2 hours ago, diamondbull424 said:

Just as an FYI for some of the top prospects we’ve discussed and their pro days.

 

How do you feel about hyatt/mingo fitting in the system? 

[diamondbull424]

3 hours ago, Nobellythrower said:

How do you feel about hyatt/mingo fitting in the system? 

I think Hyatt can fit into most any system just because he’s a deep threat. You can’t teach speed and an elite ability to track the football, which he brings to the table. The bubble screens could be a factor if the defense is playing off.

However from a versatility of what the new offense could bring, I’m not sure Hyatt will be able to, early on, be utilized in as many ways. His route tree is limited and he’s not a particularly detailed route runner. Plus he hasn’t proven that he can defeat press coverage. However just based off what he brings to the table, I think his floor should be as an above average deep threat option.

 

Whereas Mingo, who looked pretty good at the senior bowl, also isn’t the best route runner and isn’t particularly consistent on tape.

However his Deebo-esq play style would in theory fit the offense well. The screen game, slants, we could get him the ball in space.

I just don’t trust his ability to process and read NFL defenses, nor his ability to truly develop… considering he’s still very much the same player that arrived on campus.

So would he fit the offense, probably, but I’m not sure I would rather utilize him over Devin Duvernay be it in the slot or spread out wide. They’re both of similar styles, Mingo is simply stronger and slower.

[Nobellythrower]

1 hour ago, diamondbull424 said:

Plus he hasn’t proven that he can defeat press coverage

hmm well our best fits would be quinten, addinson, njiba although I'd prefer a big, physical guy like quin

[diamondbull424]

12 minutes ago, Nobellythrower said:

hmm well our best fits would be quinten, addinson, njiba although I'd prefer a big, physical guy like quin

Yeah as @DreamKid and I discussed regarding Johnston, he’s an interesting case. His physical traits and his draft profile are very intriguing.

He shows nuances that he’s developed that show great evidence that he can develop, being able to drop his hips at that size for great stop/start ability in particular.

However as a physical WR with the ball he’s not physical without it. He’s not physical at the top of the route and not particularly physical at the catch point. So he sort of is like a guard in centers body. He doesn’t play quite as big as you’d think.

There’s some Denzel Mims to him, similar size, speed, and explosive ability. Both had some weakness with their hands, I liked Mims coming out, but he also hasn’t developed as I thought he might. And as Steve Smith alludes, Quentin Johnston is very up and down. A lot of reasons to believe he could and could not succeed.

 

[DreamKid]

After watching his cutups and other available tape, I came away liking Cam Smith way more than I thought I would. He's kind of been sold by draft pundits as this low ceiling CB2/3 prospect who is getting elevated almost artificially because people want him to be Jaycee Horn, but I don't agree with that assessment. 

Smith is sticky in man coverage and almost always glued to the WR. He needs to get a little better at identifying double moves and selling downfield contact to refs better, but overall he's patient, doesn't flip his hips too early, and consistently stays in phase. He tracks the ball well and is super physical through the catch point, which is a keystone ability for top flight CBs in the NFL.

He's good in Zone too, but I think you'd wasting his talents if you drafted him and put him in a Zone heavy defense. 

Cam's on field mentality is admirable as well. There's a lot of communication with his teammates, he's an energy giver who wants to lead, and he's ultra competitive. He's also talked about as being a student of the position, which is always great in a prospect. 

Smith ran sub 1.5 in the 10YS and sub 4.45 in the 40, with jumps of 38" and 11'2- even though he isn't 20-21YO, that's not the athletic profile of a low ceiling player. 

I'd be more than fine with him being our pick in the 1st Round.

[DreamKid]

@diamondbull424

 

[diamondbull424]

28 minutes ago, DreamKid said:

@diamondbull424

 

Yeah there’s a lot to love with Marvin Mims. He’s Hollywood Brown… only he plays like a Raven.

If we ultimately add someone like Mike Evans for a run (which with Baker Mayfield as their QB, we probably have a shot at them going into a rebuild), then I think Marvin Mims would make a lot of sense.

Addison’s production and proven ability to handle a workload has me lean slightly towards him as being more bustproof, but of the WRs I think Mims might be my favorite. He plays bigger than his size, is a physical blocker (same as Addison), but I just see a player with a higher ceiling between the two.

[diamondbull424]

On 3/12/2023 at 12:42 PM, diamondbull424 said:

Jordan Addison = 3/21
Jaxon Smith-Njigba = 3/22
Zay Flowers = 3/24
Parker Washington = 3/24
Joey Porter Jr = 3/24

We’ll see if any talents in this weeks bubble decide to perform in additional tests.

[Ray Reed]

 

[DreamKid]

Common thread among most of those prospects is size.

[diamondbull424]

On 3/23/2023 at 12:42 PM, DreamKid said:

Common thread among most of those prospects is size.

Yup. What’s also interesting to think back on in retrospect, last season the talk was that the Ravens had a specific WR that they were in accordance with.

Considering who we’ve been targeting as of late, I think there’s a strong possibility that WR we were targeting was Drake London.

[DreamKid]

Ravens met with Utah OL Braeden Daniels at his pro day, a versatile and athletic middle round riser at OL. 

On the defensive side it looks like we might have some interest in another middle round prospect Michigan EDGE/DI Mike Morris. He confirmed to TDN that he had an interview forthcoming with us(which can only really mean a virtual or in house visit). He's 6'5 275 and looks to be that inside/outside type defender we're always hot after. Michigan connection, vocal big energy player, depth at EDGE & 5T.

 

Both of these guys look like potentially interesting additions and it really sucks that we don't have more ammo in this upcoming draft. If JSN or Christian Gonzalez aren't miraculously on the board at 22 I see no reason why shouldn't trade down at least once to add some more picks.

[diamondbull424]

Nolan Smith

I can’t help but think Nolan Smith could  be an under the radar 1st round pick for the squad as of late.

Obviously we’ve got bigger fish to fry at both WR and CB, plus we already have plenty of promise options with Ojabo, Oweh, and Bowser… thus adding Smith would take away some opportunities from the other young guys and obviously a veteran would likely make more sense.

However watching Smith I can’t help but love his potential to develop into an elite OLB at the next level. If we’re faced with a draft situation where WR talent is sub-optimal and CB isn’t the BPA, it could make sense to go edge and as opposed to choosing Justin Houston, choosing Marcus Peters instead.

[DreamKid]

 

[wackywabbit]

On 3/27/2023 at 12:34 AM, diamondbull424 said:

Nolan Smith

I can’t help but think Nolan Smith could  be an under the radar 1st round pick for the squad as of late.

Obviously we’ve got bigger fish to fry at both WR and CB, plus we already have plenty of promise options with Ojabo, Oweh, and Bowser… thus adding Smith would take away some opportunities from the other young guys and obviously a veteran would likely make more sense.

However watching Smith I can’t help but love his potential to develop into an elite OLB at the next level. If we’re faced with a draft situation where WR talent is sub-optimal and CB isn’t the BPA, it could make sense to go edge and as opposed to choosing Justin Houston, choosing Marcus Peters instead.

It's hard to see another pick there with Oweh and Ojabo back to back years. Ojabo being a known redshirt is like we traded a 2nd for a future pick, which with time/value escalation had to be viewed like a 2023 1st.

There are a lot of great matches in our range like Joey Porter Jr or Banks at corner. I still like Zay Flowers as a first rounder (though, ideally a trade back a bit and grab). What's weird for me this year is that there is no one I'm going to be really really hoping slides down to us or hope we trade up for (which we will never do).