Justin Harrell - What can we reasonably expect?

[Partial]

Moving from one defensive tackles to another, what are reasonable expectations going forward for Harrell?? Does letting Williams go affect those expectations at all?

Discuss.

[Deputy Nutz]

Thank you Partial for starting a thread on a player other than Corey Williams.

I think Harrell is going to be a legit defensive tackle this fall. He made a decent impression the last 4 or 5 games this season. He needs work in learning to split double teams, rushing the passer, and keeping offensive linemen from getting their hands on him, but he showed that he is a tough SOB in the trenches is tough to move with one blocker.

[Merlin]

So basically, he has to vastly improve in every facet of th position. As long as we have depth at DT, Harrell will be allowed to mature behind them. A number one draft pick isn't the type of player you "develop". Let's hope this year we can draft someone who can actually play day one at #1.

[Lurker64]

Let's hope this year we can draft someone who can actually play day one at #1.

There aren't many of those available late in the first round. The guys who can step in and play day #1 are generally the top 10-15 of the draft. The late first round is generally for guys who have a large upside and a resume, but have some notable questions about their ability to play.

Keep in mind that the guy drafted at #30 last year caught 20 passes for 188 yards and a TD.

After all, the growing consensus among Packer fans is that this year we should draft a CB prospect in the first round to develop behind our aging veterans and replace one of them at some point in the future. Sure it would be nice to get a guy who could start from day #1, but given the state of the roster that's fairly unlikely. This draft is for future starters and depth, for the most part.

[SD GB fan]

A number one draft pick isn't the type of player you "develop".

not true. no one is a finished product coming out of college and even the best has room for improvement. of course, some players will make a contribution faster but the general trend for positions like cornerback and DT is that rookies don't generally make a difference until later.

look at cromartie of the chargers. this is a guy that i believe SD drafted solely based on athletic ability. everyone knew of his abilities but only started one game in college due to injury in his last year. cromartie sat behind jammer (above average) and florence (average) and learned. he is similar to harrell. harrell got injured in his last year. both were projected higher if the injury didnt happen. i am okay with harrell "developing" given that he will make a difference down the road.

[Merlin]

Yes true in this case. Harrell had "project" written all over him and still does. He was not worthy of a first round selection, was not the BPA or certainly even close to being NFL ready. We had better options that would have gotten us either a better player and/or competition at the one spot there has not been competition for since Aaron Rodgers was drafted, QB. So if Harrell is a project then wtf is Rodgers? Harrell has competition, why doesn't Rodgers? I don't get your logic.

[The Leaper]

Harrell is a capable starter right now IMO. Is he a difference making starter? No.

He needs to improve his fundamentals (leverage, use of hands, etc) and also increase his strength and stamina. Having the chance to do this while healthy in the offseason will be a big plus over last year, when he was still recovering from injury.

I think reasonable expectations for Harrell would include being the starting DT opposite Pickett on run downs, but I'm not going to assume he will be part of a pass rush package. I think Harrell has far more potential and talent than Jolly...and should beat him in camp this year. If he doesn't, it would be a major blow to his career path IMO.

[Freak Out]

We can expect Harrell to work his ass off this offseason to get stronger, smarter and in better condition for next year.

[Tyrone Bigguns]

Pro bowl or he is a bust.

Correct that. 10 consecutive All pros or he is a bust.

[twoseven]

A number one draft pick isn't the type of player you "develop".

look at cromartie of the chargers. this is a guy that i believe SD drafted solely based on athletic ability. everyone knew of his abilities but only started one game in college due to injury in his last year.

http://seminoles.cstv.com/sports/m-footbl/mtt/cromartie_antonio00.html

Not really. Cromartie was not an unknown at Florida State, he was a very good player before he blew his knee out. Check out the link. Much like a Brett Favre he suffered a major injury in his junior season that kept him under the radar come draft time. His knee was put back together and his getting drafted as high as possible hinged on the strength of that operation. He posted extremely fast times in the 40 at his combine and then with his height and athletic ability made him look like the player he was before the injury. SD took a chance on his knee, not on his abilities at corner.

[Patler]

NFL rookies are like college freshman, their respective head coaches would prefer that they watch and not play.

[red]

what can we expect?

well if you look at his resume, you can expect a major injury at some point this year

[KYPack]

It should be remembered that the kid was a rookie. And he made just about every rookie mistake that he could. He didn't anticipate what the NFL game was, or the pace of NFL speed. & He wasn't ready.

This year, his cardio will be vastly improved. Because he got tired of puking all during camp. His strength will be improved, he's been in an NFL weight room with real live strength coaches that push ya. He also knows he needs to be game strong.

I really look for him to make a big leap this season, & explode his 3rd year.

Of course, baring injury. I was concerned about him sitting out games with small hurts. DT's have to play hurt & Harrell had a little "China doll" in him his first year.

[Bretsky]

It should be remembered that the kid was a rookie. And he made just about every rookie mistake that he could. He didn't anticipate what the NFL game was, or the pace of NFL speed. & He wasn't ready.

This year, his cardio will be vastly improved. Because he got tired of puking all during camp. His strength will be improved, he's been in an NFL weight room with real live strength coaches that push ya. He also knows he needs to be game strong.

I really look for him to make a big leap this season, & explode his 3rd year.

Of course, baring injury. I was concerned about him sitting out games with small hurts. DT's have to play hurt & Harrell had a little "China doll" in him his first year.

I'd agree that realistic expectations for this year are for him to be a capable DT in our rotation (not nearly as good as Williams but a good step above Colin Cole) and beginning in year three my expectations for him to begin to excel start..........all the more reason to keep CW for one more year IMO

[oregonpackfan]

The first thing he needs to do is show up in camp in shape! That is one of the major steps in being a professional athlete. Please don't give me the excuse "He was recovering from an injury." He had plenty of time to rehab from the mid-season injury and get himself into playing shape for training camp.

He has a lot to prove this season before I am convinced he was worth a #1 draft pick, IMO.

[The Leaper]

DT's have to play hurt & Harrell had a little "China doll" in him his first year.

True...but I'm not sure how much of this I attribute to being soft because he hadn't been on a football much for the past 2 seasons or that he is truly will have continual problems with injuries. Not being on the field slapping helmets probably affects the guys in the trenches in terms of stamina and little scrapes and nicks more than any other position.

[run pMc]

I expect him to improve, contribute and see more playing time.

The depth on the DL is good compared to other teams, but injuries started to wear them out the last few weeks. I didn't expect Harrell to start his rookie year, but I did expect him to push harder for a spot than he did. I think his injury set his progress back and prevented him for competing for a spot. That excuse aside, from what I've read it sounds like he's the type of player who will be motivated to improve. I doubt Kampman and Pickett will let this guy slack off anyway.
The guy played against FLA with a torn bicep for crying out loud. He'll play hurt, but I don't know how effective he is hurt.

I don't think you can expect a R1 guy to start from day 1 unless you're drafting top 5 or maybe top 10. Starting a rookie right away indicates you have some talent or depth problems. Nothing wrong with developing R1's...look at all the QB's who sit for a year. Rodgers would be probably starting if he were on another team.

IIRC, the draftniks were saying that if Cromartie was healthy (or had gone back to school) he would have been a top 5 pick. Same thing for McGahee. I don't blame those guys for coming out -- better teams pick lower, and they have pretty good medical staffs. Plus they get paid lots to rehab and learn.