2024 NFL Draft Discussion

[R T]

9 minutes ago, vegas492 said:

I have a question for you and for anyone else.

How does NIL money affect the draft and these prospects?  That is a new, key variable at play here.

I'm not positive that Caleb Williams having 20M plus in his bank account won't affect how hard he is willing to work to be successful in the NFL.  And I say Caleb Williams, but that would ring true for me with any top prospect right now.

Are teams scouting harder on the character and work ethic of the kid?  Trying to see how he worked when he was broke versus how hard he worked after he got a ton of NIL money?

I'm just curious to know thoughts on the subject as it doesn't come up much in Sirius XM (Kirwan and Miller).

As much as NIL is a pain in the backside of colleges it might help give NFL team a slight insight into what money does to a young man. Historically getting paid as a rookie it effects each player a little differently. Does the player stay motivated when he gets the big NIL deal or is obsessed with cars, clubbing etc. Not a huge insight, but guessing it is a little telling.   

[Leader]

 

[packfanfb]

29 minutes ago, Packerraymond said:

There's no reason to not start Barton at LT, 33" arms is adequate, not like he's rocking 31's out there. I would say 24-25 to Dallas/GB should be his floor at this point. His tape is so consistent, think teams will prefer him to Guyton and may have him graded equally to Fautanu. 

Yea if it helps the Packers Org sleep at night to start Barton at OT as justification for picking him at 25, by all means, but I think that is being way overblown anyways. If the guy is going to be a damn good interior OL, he's still worth 25. Just get a good player, figure out his best position later. 

Edited April 2 by packfanfb

[vegas492]

9 hours ago, hitnhope said:

Was Love the only plater that improved through the season?  All of the young guys improved.  It was total TEAM improvement that changed throughout the season.   

If the OL didn't improve we wouldn't have seen the improvement in QB play.  Football is won at the LOS, the focus on QB's carrying the team is ridiculous.  Lineman block, receivers get open, RB's make big plays.  Aaron Jones was as responsible for the late improvement as anyone.

Quarterback is the single most important position on the field.  

He makes everything look better.

If he stinks?  All those other pieces that improved do not look as good.

If you do not agree with that, go talk to a Texans fan.  Maybe @ET80 can chime in here, as I feel like he was/is a Texans fan and saw how much Stroud improved everything.

Football is won at the LOS, if you have the QB.  If you do not, you are getting stacked boxes to take away the run on run downs and put you at a bad down/distance on 3rd down.

We are very, very fortunate to have found Love and developed him to the point where now we can fortify those lines and be successful.  

[R T]

5 minutes ago, Arthur Penske said:

is it the genius GMs or genius owners in some of those situations? 

There is context that gets ignored with each situation, the Carolina GM is trying to win games, get his team to go on a run of playing good football down the stretch to keep his job. Weaking the team by trading one of his best players doesn't help his cause and only will tee up the next GM with extra 1st round draft capital. 

[vegas492]

[skibrett15]

On 3/29/2024 at 5:18 PM, squire12 said:

Hypothetical....if NE offered pick 68 for Doubs, would you do it?

oh hells yes.  

[Leader]

Adam Schefter -   Iowa DB Cooper DeJean - one of the top defensive prospects in the upcoming draft - sent a letter to all NFL clubs last week informing them that, after suffering a broken fibula in November, he now has been cleared to return to all football activities.

DeJean will hold an individual workout April 8th at Iowa. Cooper will do all on-field testing and position work without any restrictions.

[R T]

5 minutes ago, vegas492 said:

That short shuttle and 3-cone is just silly good, but those 31.5 arms. 

Before some people want to attack and make a big deal out of the arm comment, I get he is not playing OT in the NFL. Still a disadvantage. 

[skibrett15]

On 3/29/2024 at 9:09 PM, beekay414 said:

Joe Flacco, in reality, is Rex Grossman 2.0

Joe Flacco could easily have won 3 super bowls if he played on the bears.  Joe Flacco was a great quarterback some of the time, and a good qb the rest of the time until he got old.  And even now he's fine! 

Consider some of those teams that they built around Cutler?  If Flacco was playing with Alshon and Marshall you gott like the Bears to be NFC reps for at least a few years.

Rex grossman was never even good.

 

Rex Grossman 2.0.... hmm I feel like that's Josh Rosen or someone else who never really played because they sucked. 

Grossman only ever started 1 season in the NFL, he just happened to start for one of the best teams of all time and was the sole reason they didn't win the super bowl.

[skibrett15]

On 3/31/2024 at 9:28 PM, incognito_man said:

Let's all remember I said Reed was my favorite WR in the draft and Wicks was the next Davante before @beekay414

yes you said he was antonio brown/tyreek hill hybrid.  I say why stop there he's definitely Jerry Rice!

You said he would lead the team in targets and receptions - he led in receptions.  Even with missing a game!

All with having never heard of the player before we drafted him.

You have some sort of reverse confirmation bias gift my friend.

[craig]

31 minutes ago, R T said:

As much as NIL is a pain in the backside of colleges it might help give NFL team a slight insight into what money does to a young man. Historically getting paid as a rookie it effects each player a little differently. Does the player stay motivated when he gets the big NIL deal or is obsessed with cars, clubbing etc. Not a huge insight, but guessing it is a little telling.   

Agree completely.  If anything, I think you may be under-selling.  Getting paid, and getting famous, can impact young men in more than "little" ways.  Time, money, women, clubs, late nights, very easy to get distracted from improving your craft.  Fame and success can mess up rich athletes just as it can mess up rich actors and music stars.  So I think scouting the personality, the drive, the focus, the love for the game, the ability to stay obsessed with being the best you can play, I think that's a huge part of scouting, and that can't be combine-quantified.  

That's long been a factor in player projection.  I fully agree with what RT says.  If anything, NIL helps scouts because prospects have already tasted NIL wealth, so you already get some hints as to how much wealth distracts them.  

[Packerraymond]

2 minutes ago, skibrett15 said:

yes you said he was antonio brown/tyreek hill hybrid.  I say why stop there he's definitely Jerry Rice!

You said he would lead the team in targets and receptions - he led in receptions.  Even with missing a game!

All with having never heard of the player before we drafted him.

You have some sort of reverse confirmation bias gift my friend.

If you hadn't heard of Jayden Reed before the draft, you really shouldn't be allowed to post this take. 

[craig]

I also wonder with Vegas how Caleb Williams will handle all the fame and wealth.  Enormously gifted, but I wonder how well he'll handle all of that.  Self-entitlement might be a challenge for him.  

[NFLGURU]

I'll always have concerns about handing an 18 year old kid $500k to sign and $275K a month often going away from home to live.   Sounds great for the kid, but I think it often leads to issues with your teammates.   We all know 18 year old kids make great decisions with money?  

It used to be money was needed for a little spending money on the side for the college player to have some entertainment or to get home for Thanksgiving.  This has turned into Lamborghinis and luxury penthouse apartments.  I'm all for the kids getting the bag but I think their access to it should be limited to a certain amount and they can take it the balance when the graduate or their eligibility is up. JMO.

Edited April 2 by NFLGURU