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3irty1
04-29-2013, 10:39 AM
#26) Datone Jones
My initial reaction was to like the player a lot more than the fit. Jones reminded me of Cameron Jordan as a prospect and a guy who ultimately would be best in a 4-3 scheme where he could move inside and outside and be a plus on any down, distance, and formation. In the 3-4 he’ll obviously be a pass rush upgrade but his size is not as attractive. People like to compare him to Cullen Jenkins but neglect that Jenkins was not a 3-down stud for us at DE. Jones can be worth this pick on pass rush alone and should open up the playbook a bit in terms of zone blitzing and will make more than his share of plays in pursuit. Not a bad pick.


#61) Eddie Lacy
This is a tremendous value at a position that has long plagued the offense. Lacy’s pitbull build of solid muscle is already exciting to think about in a Packer uni. The injuries are a concern but he certainly looks the part of a back that’s built to last in the NFL and has done a great job so far of playing through injuries. Just his presence on the field will do a lot. Soon the days of DE’s in 4-point stances lined up way outside and constant 6 in the box 2-deep coverage may be a thing of the past. Lacy is nimble in the hole and it’s going down from arm tackles.

#109) David Bakhtiari
Depending on who you ask the pro opinion on this guy ranges pretty wildly. He’s certainly mobile enough to fit in a zbs but he looks more like Ted’s earlier draft picks in regards to his smaller frame. He seems like an able backup with a little bit of versatility and strikes me as the type that will always find a way to be effective even if it doesn’t always look pretty doing it. This pick could just be a need pick, providing Newhouse and possibly Sherrod with some quality competition.

#122) JC Tretter
I’m excited about this one, I feel he’s a center. Physically he’s exactly what you’d draw up for a Ted Thompson offensive lineman. His tightend and prep basketball background suggest that he’s got the hands to be a center. His Ivy league intellegence (33 on the wonderlick) shows he’s a perfect fit to handle the mental workload McCarthy looks for in a center. He’s got length for pass protection (33.5 inch arms, 10 inch hands) yet short enough to see over at 6’4”. Incredible size, athleticism, and strength for the position, and a nasty finisher attitude. As a prospect this guy is a better Matt Birk than Matt Birk was. It doesn’t bother me that he was a left tackle in college, that’s simply where you put your best offensive lineman.

#125) Johnathan Franklin
Franklin was somewhat of a steal here obviously and while I don’t necessarily agree with it I like that others have compared him to Ray Rice. Franklin is slippery has hell and even after watching 4 of his games I haven’t seen any defender manage to square up and get more than a glancing blow on him. He is elusive but in a very special way that wastes no motion and makes him look faster on gameday than he runs. I’m not surprised we liked him in our fit. Probably most exciting thing about him is his ability to pick up the blitz, if he can help us out in that area and also provide something in the run game we’ve got a major find IMO.

#159) Micah Hyde
He seems like a backup corner, and possibly a safety and a much better football player than athlete at those positions. He plays really smart like the kind of player you’d want to stop the bleeding if injuries were to force him into action. I think the real reason he was picked was because he was a solid gunner in college. He’ll likely handle that role and allow us to eventually dump Jarrett Bush’s salary.

#167) Josh Boyd
A very exciting pick for our defense in my opinion. He’s an evenly distributed 6’3” 310 lbs with a big frame and long thick limbs. He has good country boy strength and very rare hustle for a big guy. His plays in pursuit remind me of John Jolly. He’s very good with his hands and routinely wins slap fights for leverage and draws a lot of double teams both in college as expected but even in the Senior Bowl game and Shrine game. Boyd has much more than just phone booth quickness. His 3-cone at the combine was linebackeresque. Boyd isn’t going to be a probowler or a sack artist but is the kind of behind the scenes dude who outplays his paycheck by a huge margin and builds capacity on a line. If he were a baseball pitcher he’d be the innings eater at the back of the rotation. He’s got 4 quarters worth of effort on game day so in addition to being a perfect fit to be a stud LDE in our scheme, he can also be enough of a workhorse to help keep our streakier guys like Raji and Worthy from disapearing late in games.

#193) Nate Palmer
There is no way his nickname isn’t “Napalm” so that’s a plus. I don’t know jack shit about this guy but his workout numbers are promising. A 35.5” vert and 10’5” broad jump suggest he’s got the explosiveness to at least threaten the edge as a passrusher. 34” arms bode well too. His 10 yard dash of 1.58 is very good and his 3-cone of 6.98s suggest he isn’t physically limited in coverage either. Seems like a high ceiling guy, one to watch in camp!

#216) Charles Johnson
Already the best athlete we’ve ever had at the WR position since Javon Walker and maybe just as much of a bitch. Sounds like he was already kicked out of two college football programs before landing at Grand Valley. He was highly productive though and with that speed of his he can make an impact from deep on the depth chart by making a few big plays in the long passing game. We needed a guy like this.

#224) Kevin Dorsey
He led his team in special teams tackles last year which should help him a lot in making the roster. Guy could be Jerry Rice and we wouldn’t know it because of how terrible the QB play was at Maryland last year. He seems like a pretty physical blocker though. With the special teams thing and his blocking I’d think he should do well against the press at this level. Much safer, more boring pick than Johnson IMO. In Ted we trust (especially at WR).

#232) Sam Barrington
Barrington was a turd at the combine but much much better at his pro-day. He’s an intelligent player and a vocal leader. His pro day workout numbers suggest he is exceptionally explosive (37in vertical) and has enough athleticism for considerable upside although I expect he was a few pounds lighter and he might just be the type of guy who looks like a bag of crap once he gains a few pounds like AJ Hawk. He was solid in the East-West Shrine game and was a tackle machine for South Florida so he could challenge for backup spots and contribute on special teams.

George Cumby
04-29-2013, 11:07 AM
Nice write up. Thanks.

woodbuck27
04-29-2013, 01:57 PM
#26) Datone Jones
My initial reaction was to like the player a lot more than the fit. Jones reminded me of Cameron Jordan as a prospect and a guy who ultimately would be best in a 4-3 scheme where he could move inside and outside and be a plus on any down, distance, and formation. In the 3-4 he’ll obviously be a pass rush upgrade but his size is not as attractive. People like to compare him to Cullen Jenkins but neglect that Jenkins was not a 3-down stud for us at DE. Jones can be worth this pick on pass rush alone and should open up the playbook a bit in terms of zone blitzing and will make more than his share of plays in pursuit. Not a bad pick.


#61) Eddie Lacy
This is a tremendous value at a position that has long plagued the offense. Lacy’s pitbull build of solid muscle is already exciting to think about in a Packer uni. The injuries are a concern but he certainly looks the part of a back that’s built to last in the NFL and has done a great job so far of playing through injuries. Just his presence on the field will do a lot. Soon the days of DE’s in 4-point stances lined up way outside and constant 6 in the box 2-deep coverage may be a thing of the past. Lacy is nimble in the hole and it’s going down from arm tackles.

#109) David Bakhtiari
Depending on who you ask the pro opinion on this guy ranges pretty wildly. He’s certainly mobile enough to fit in a zbs but he looks more like Ted’s earlier draft picks in regards to his smaller frame. He seems like an able backup with a little bit of versatility and strikes me as the type that will always find a way to be effective even if it doesn’t always look pretty doing it. This pick could just be a need pick, providing Newhouse and possibly Sherrod with some quality competition.

#122) JC Tretter
I’m excited about this one, I feel he’s a center. Physically he’s exactly what you’d draw up for a Ted Thompson offensive lineman. His tightend and prep basketball background suggest that he’s got the hands to be a center. His Ivy league intellegence (33 on the wonderlick) shows he’s a perfect fit to handle the mental workload McCarthy looks for in a center. He’s got length for pass protection (33.5 inch arms, 10 inch hands) yet short enough to see over at 6’4”. Incredible size, athleticism, and strength for the position, and a nasty finisher attitude. As a prospect this guy is a better Matt Birk than Matt Birk was. It doesn’t bother me that he was a left tackle in college, that’s simply where you put your best offensive lineman.

#125) Johnathan Franklin
Franklin was somewhat of a steal here obviously and while I don’t necessarily agree with it I like that others have compared him to Ray Rice. Franklin is slippery has hell and even after watching 4 of his games I haven’t seen any defender manage to square up and get more than a glancing blow on him. He is elusive but in a very special way that wastes no motion and makes him look faster on gameday than he runs. I’m not surprised we liked him in our fit. Probably most exciting thing about him is his ability to pick up the blitz, if he can help us out in that area and also provide something in the run game we’ve got a major find IMO.

#159) Micah Hyde
He seems like a backup corner, and possibly a safety and a much better football player than athlete at those positions. He plays really smart like the kind of player you’d want to stop the bleeding if injuries were to force him into action. I think the real reason he was picked was because he was a solid gunner in college. He’ll likely handle that role and allow us to eventually dump Jarrett Bush’s salary.

#167) Josh Boyd
A very exciting pick for our defense in my opinion. He’s an evenly distributed 6’3” 310 lbs with a big frame and long thick limbs. He has good country boy strength and very rare hustle for a big guy. His plays in pursuit remind me of John Jolly. He’s very good with his hands and routinely wins slap fights for leverage and draws a lot of double teams both in college as expected but even in the Senior Bowl game and Shrine game. Boyd has much more than just phone booth quickness. His 3-cone at the combine was linebackeresque. Boyd isn’t going to be a probowler or a sack artist but is the kind of behind the scenes dude who outplays his paycheck by a huge margin and builds capacity on a line. If he were a baseball pitcher he’d be the innings eater at the back of the rotation. He’s got 4 quarters worth of effort on game day so in addition to being a perfect fit to be a stud LDE in our scheme, he can also be enough of a workhorse to help keep our streakier guys like Raji and Worthy from disapearing late in games.

#193) Nate Palmer
There is no way his nickname isn’t “Napalm” so that’s a plus. I don’t know jack shit about this guy but his workout numbers are promising. A 35.5” vert and 10’5” broad jump suggest he’s got the explosiveness to at least threaten the edge as a passrusher. 34” arms bode well too. His 10 yard dash of 1.58 is very good and his 3-cone of 6.98s suggest he isn’t physically limited in coverage either. Seems like a high ceiling guy, one to watch in camp!

#216) Charles Johnson
Already the best athlete we’ve ever had at the WR position since Javon Walker and maybe just as much of a bitch. Sounds like he was already kicked out of two college football programs before landing at Grand Valley. He was highly productive though and with that speed of his he can make an impact from deep on the depth chart by making a few big plays in the long passing game. We needed a guy like this.

#224) Kevin Dorsey
He led his team in special teams tackles last year which should help him a lot in making the roster. Guy could be Jerry Rice and we wouldn’t know it because of how terrible the QB play was at Maryland last year. He seems like a pretty physical blocker though. With the special teams thing and his blocking I’d think he should do well against the press at this level. Much safer, more boring pick than Johnson IMO. In Ted we trust (especially at WR).

#232) Sam Barrington
Barrington was a turd at the combine but much much better at his pro-day. He’s an intelligent player and a vocal leader. His pro day workout numbers suggest he is exceptionally explosive (37in vertical) and has enough athleticism for considerable upside although I expect he was a few pounds lighter and he might just be the type of guy who looks like a bag of crap once he gains a few pounds like AJ Hawk. He was solid in the East-West Shrine game and was a tackle machine for South Florida so he could challenge for backup spots and contribute on special teams.

Solid post...that adds to my hope.

Just imagine how good that draft might have been in terms of quality? Except for TT's way to trade down over and over (even with the worst enemy) to secure his primary focus>>>more picks.

More 'so called prospects' that will work their tails off; to simply arrive where the stars and time aligns them. Disappointed and ...... cut.

The Draft is like draft beer, as opposed to very good brew. Do you enjoy water in your draft beer? That's an analogy of what TT served you as a Packer fan, last Saturday.

He went into Saturday afternoon with some real power and he optioned it away. We got a small hint that that would be 'just that case' Friday night.

Sorry .... but it's not anything else.

GO PACK GO !

3irty1
04-29-2013, 04:58 PM
Trading down does not necessarily mean Ted is taking quantity at the cost of quality. He could well be getting both. For instance:

Ted may have had Eddie Lacy and Monte Ball rated equally on his board, He could flip a coin and draft one of them at #55, or he could trade back slightly where he feels he'll still be able to get one of the two but also pick up a late draft pick. Sure enough Ball is chosen and Lacy is still there. He got a player he would have taken anyways but got a draft pick out of it as well. That's good drafting IMO.

Same thing in the 3rd. Ted moves down just a bit with a bunch of good players on the board and increments back until he's getting one of the last players left in his tier of quality. Him moving back shows me he would have been happy with Bakhtiari at #88 but instead got him at #109 with a bunch more picks. The fact that he traded down twice into the 4th, then drafted two guys and traded back up into the 4th for his UCLA running back supports that there was a tier of high quality players he viewed as equals and drafted 3 of them.

Also amassing picks like this is what its going to take to round out a roster now that we've got a QB making more than the GDP of the whole city of Green Bay. Lots of players on lots of rookie deals are a great way to fill a roster with guys playing above their pay grade.

smuggler
04-29-2013, 07:34 PM
I'm in that logic boat with you, 3irty. We'll see if his player evaluations were right. His strategy is pretty transparent.

Iron Mike
05-05-2013, 08:42 AM
http://cdn2.sbnation.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/6223843/stifflacy.0_standard_730.0.gif

RashanGary
05-05-2013, 01:01 PM
3hirty1,

I think your initial views on these players is close to spot on. I don't love the Boyd pick as much as you, and I like the Jones pick more. Other than that, when I put together the things I read and see, it adds up really close to your write-up.

Two of McGinn's scouts thought Lacy was better than both Richardson and Ingram. Richardson was the 3rd overall pick a year ago. Obviously Lacy is a huge upside pick. He has potential to be a big-time playmaker at RB.

smuggler
05-05-2013, 09:11 PM
http://cdn2.sbnation.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/6223843/stifflacy.0_standard_730.0.gif

Get off me, foo!