2023 Combine

[LORK88]

4 hours ago, ET80 said:

That was a master class on throwing with timing and anticipation… and he never worked with any of these receivers before. 

Other guys may have stronger and more lively arms, but I don’t think anyone has this level of polish. What he did for OSU carried over to this event, and he didn’t have the luxury of repeated reps with the guys he was throwing to yesterday - which makes it really impressive overall.

I’m very glad so many options are becoming available at 2; Regardless of what Chicago does at 1, the Texans are in line to grab a franchise guy.

The only thing that worries me: his agent is David Mulugheta (Deshaun's agent) and  Quincy Avery (Deshaun's personal QB coach). Has that bridge been burned enough or would we still take him regardless of all this? 

[tab]

18 minutes ago, LORK88 said:

The only thing that worries me: his agent is David Mulugheta (Deshaun's agent) and  Quincy Avery (Deshaun's personal QB coach). Has that bridge been burned enough or would we still take him regardless of all this? 

its really my only hesitation with him, but i think if you have a watson type player without the scandal who actually wants to be here, its fine. i dont have the inside info to say if he is is that or not. im assuming if the GM like him, these other things dont matter (as long as he isnt assaulting people ala watson)

[ET80]

1 hour ago, LORK88 said:

The only thing that worries me: his agent is David Mulugheta (Deshaun's agent) and  Quincy Avery (Deshaun's personal QB coach). Has that bridge been burned enough or would we still take him regardless of all this? 

I’d have a conversation with both, but I have to assume everyone is a professional and can see the Deshaun Watson situation as an isolated incident (with one key element removed from the equation - the ex-VP of Football Operations). 

[ET80]

As expected - Devon Achane right now leading the pack with a 4.32 run. Jahmyr Gibbs not too far behind with a 4.36. Bijan Robinson maintains his top RB status with a great 4.47 at 5’ 11” 215lbs… might be the only three down guy in this draft. Robinson’s teammate Roschon Johnson lagging behind with a 4.59, but managed to tie Robinson with a 1.52 10yd split.

So far, no real surprises at RB. Everyone is doing what we expected from them. I sort of expected Gibbs to come in around 205 (he weighed in at 199) but everything else from this class is as expected.

[PAtexansFAN_99]

I'd love to get Achane or Gibbs to pair with Pierce. If Robinson is somehow there at 33 it'd be worth considering.

[ET80]

So... after this weekend...

I'm higher on this guy:

- CJ Stroud. He's my QB1, after spending the majority of the year as QB2. Not because I'm low on Bryce Young; Still high on him, for the record. It has to do with the effortless passing. Stroud has a smooth delivery, ideal footwork puts the ball where his guy can get it; He is surgically precise with his ball placement, and that while throwing it guys who he's never thrown to before. Stroud or Young at 2, with a preference for Stroud.

- Darnell Washington. He came in about 15 lbs lighter than his listed weight of 280, but he looked about 25+ lbs lighter, dude was RIPPED solid. It showed in drills; he was moving like an H-Back, but still blocking like a T in sled drills. He also had the catch of the combine, a one handed snag over his back shoulder. If he's developed and deployed correctly, he's going to be a mismatch; Too fast for a LB in coverage, too big for just about anyone in coverage. He's a throwback TE (Ben Coates, Mark Bavaro, Eric Green) with modern TE tools. 

I'm lower on this guy: 

- Quentin Johnston. 6' 3" 208lbs is much smaller than expected, and while his hands looked better in some drills... it was clear he's not a natural hands guy. He caught the ball, but he didn't catch the ball well. I 100% don’t draft him until the mid-2nd; He’s got Denzel Mims written all over him.

- Jordan Addison. Small, slow, didn't catch the ball well. He's fallen drastically behind; JSN, Zay Flowers and Tank Dell are clearly ahead of him in the position order. (WRs in general is pretty bad this class, none of these guys would be first rounders in 2024). Late 2nd to early 3rd at best, IMO

- Kayshon Boutte. Same as Addison, minus the small. His hands are very problematic, he’s not going to have a very long career if he can’t get that working correctly (or he’s relegated to life as a gunner on ST). If he's available at 65, he's worth a risk… but between his underwhelming tape and poor combine numbers, I'm not seeing him as draftable in the first two rounds. 

- Jahmyr Gibbs. I really had him in the 205-210lb weight range, so 199lbs is a bit of a disappointment. It’s a small complaint for the most part, as everything else looked as anticipated. I actually see him as an ideal lightning compliment to Dameon Pierce as the thunder; If he’s there at 33… why not? He’s a better target for a rookie QB than any WR not named JSN in this draft.

Guys I’ll be watching from here on out: 

- Lukas Van Ness. I generally like Iowa OL/DL guys, they’re coached well and have the proper disposition and work ethic to succeed at the next level. Van Ness seems like that sort of guy, and he’s got a lot of room to grow physically as well as mentally. He comes off to me as an ideal SWARM guy, and a potential lynchpin guy who could make guys like Jon Greenard better football players.

- Christian Gonzalez Jr. I heard the hype around him, wasn’t sure what to make of it… but boy, is he a tantalizing prospect at CB. Long, quick, fast, very athletic. If I had to play a game today, I would probably want Joey Porter Jr or Kelee Ringo over Gonzalez; But I do suspect within 2-3 years, Gonzalez is going to be the best of this group, he reminds me of AJ Bouye. 

- Brian Branch. If you look at him as a CB, he’s pretty underwhelming for the most part. But if you watch him play, you see a guy who is adept at being a Starbacker/Joker who can play the slot, in the box, up top as a S or as a big nickel in a 4-2-5. He might end up as one of the best defenders from this draft, he’s going be a lot like Tyran Mathieu. Pairing him with a true S like Jalen Pitre could be a great tandem.

- Trenton Simpson. Similar to Branch, but he’s listed as a LB. He’s got a skillset and athletic profile that lines up as a big S who works across the formation. He’s a poor man’s Derwin James at his peak, but always has a fallback as a traditional OLB. 

[Pastor Dillon]

I really like Devon Achane. How many guys at his size with 4.32 speed can run for 1100 yards in the SEC? He carried the load behind a bad offensive line and averaged 5.6 yards per carry and carried almost 20 times per game. You just can't find very many guys like him. 

[ET80]

15 minutes ago, Pastor Dillon said:

I really like Devon Achane. How many guys at his size with 4.32 speed can run for 1100 yards in the SEC? He carried the load behind a bad offensive line and averaged 5.6 yards per carry and carried almost 20 times per game. You just can't find very many guys like him. 

Yeah, I’m very high on him too. If not Gibbs, then Achane is the guy.

[LORK88]

3 hours ago, Pastor Dillon said:

I really like Devon Achane. How many guys at his size with 4.32 speed can run for 1100 yards in the SEC? He carried the load behind a bad offensive line and averaged 5.6 yards per carry and carried almost 20 times per game. You just can't find very many guys like him. 

If he slips to round 3, we should be all over him. I get faster Brian Westbrook vibes.