Official 1st Round Of The 2015 NFL Draft Thread

[pbmax]

Ian Rapoport @RapSheet 39s40 seconds ago
#Bucs talked to more than 75 people, more than 100 man hours looking into Jameis Winston’s past. They are confident in him as a person.

Johnny Cash on Pandora. Starting draft out right for Jameis Winston.

They missed one person to interview: https://medium.com/the-cauldron/the-...n-9a56b00651c4

[Rastak]

Berman already looking like the drunk moron he is...and we've got 3 more hours to go.

NFL Network is the way to go.

[Rastak]

From PFF:

Tampa Bay Buccaneers select Jameis Winston, 1st Overall

No surprises here as the Bucs make Jameis Winston the face of their franchise. He’s coming off a pretty average 2014 season and comes with a lot of baggage, but if you go back and watch his 2013 season then this pick is a slam dunk. Steve Palazzolo broke Winston down in great detail here and it would be a surprise if he isn’t starting come Week 1 with only Mike Glennon in his way. Winston has earned comparisons to Matt Ryan and Ben Roethlisberger with his play, with his Roethlisberger like ability for keeping plays alive highlighted by how only 12.1% of the plays he was pressured on turned into sacks against Power-5 teams. That was the third best number out there.

[pittstang5]

2nd pick and I'm already irritated. Announce the fuckin pick and move on!!!

[pbmax]

OK, who is tipping picks? Pro Football Talk says they are leaking but I am not seeing them.

[King Friday]

somewhere, Chip Kelly is crying.

[Striker]

NFL Network is the way to go.

^ This

[Rastak]

2nd pick and I'm already irritated. Announce the fuckin pick and move on!!!

Agreed

@pbmax - Not seeing it either.

[pbmax]

Found him.

Paul Kuharsky @PaulKuharskyNFL 5m5 minutes ago
The pick is Mariota. #TENpick #Titans

Scout.com

http://profootball.scout.com/story/1523424-marcus-mariota-player-evaluation?s=127

MARCUS MARIOTA
Oregon
POSITION
QB
HEIGHT/WEIGHT
6'4"/222
NO.
8
VERIFIED 40 TIME
4.52
COLLEGE
Oregon
HS
St. Louis School
HOME
Honolulu, HI
YEAR

SCOUT RANK 07
POSITION RANK 01

Bio

Mariota holds the rare distinction for being the only Oregon quarterback to start every game (41) during his career, as he completed 779-of-1,167 passes (66.75%) for 10,796 yards, 105 touchdowns and only 14 interceptions, averaging 263.32 aerial yards per game…The junior carried the ball 337 times for 2,237 yards (6.64 ypc) and 29 touchdowns. Mariota had just 1.20% of his pass attempts intercepted (14-of-1,167), breaking the NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision record of 1.43% by Geno Smith of West Virginia.His average gain of 8.67 yards per play (total offense) was just shy of the NCAA all-time record of 8.70 yards by Sam Bradford of Oklahoma. Among active players in the major college ranks, Mariota leads that group in passing efficiency (171.75 rating), average gain per total offense play (8.67), ranking third for touchdown passes (105), yards gained per game (317.88 total offense) and touchdowns responsible for (136), as he is one of only four players in college at all levels to throw for at least 4,000 yards and rush for at least 1,000 yards in a career…Mariota won the 2014 Heisman Trophy.

EVALUATION
Mariota has above average lower and upper body mechanics, showing quickness in his pass set. He shows good mobility getting back quickly to set up and unlike most West Coast/spread quarterbacks, looks very comfortable lining up under center rather than in the shotgun. He shows a snappy overhead release. Even when he carries the ball lower than ideal when moving out of the pocket, he shows good zip behind his tosses.

Marcus Mariota NFL Scouting Combine measurable

6-4/222 (4.52 forty)
32-inch arm length
9 7/8-inch hands
36-inch vertical jump
121-inch broad jump
6.87 3 cone drill
4.11 20 yard shuttle

[Joemailman]

Jacksonville is on the clock.

This will be Leonard Williams, no?

[Striker]

Jaguars with the snap pick.

[smuggler]

Jags pick is in.

[esoxx]

Has to be Williams.

[red]

wow, the bears tried hard for #2, is the cutler era over?

[Rastak]

2. MARCUS MARIOTA | Oregon 6036|222 lbs|4JR Honolulu, Hawaii (St. Louis HS) 10/30/1993 (age 21) #8

BACKGROUND: Mariota was mostly unknown as a high school recruit because he didn’t see the field until his senior season, but Oregon had the inside track after seeing him at a quarterback camp and offered him a scholarship as a junior before he started a high school game. He was the 2010 Hawaii Gatorade Player of the Year (2,597 passing yards, 64.7% completions, 39 total touchdowns, 11-1 record) and was officially a three-star recruit, choosing the Ducks over only one other scholarship offer (Memphis). With Darron Thomas entrenched as the starter, Mariota redshirted in 2011 and beat out Bryan Bennett for the starting job in 2012, becoming the first freshman to start the season opener for Oregon since 1991. He was the Pac-12 Offensive Freshman of the Year and earned First Team All-Pac 12 honors with 68.5% completions, 2,677 passing yards, 38 total touchdowns (32 passing, five receiving, one receiving) and six interceptions. Mariota became the first Oregon player to surpass 4,000 yards of total offense (4,380) as a sophomore in 2013, finishing with 63.5% completions, 40 total touchdowns (31 passing, nine rushing) and four interceptions, earning First Team All-Pac 12 honors. He had his most productive season in 2014 with 5,250 yards of total offense (4,454 passing, 770 rushing, 26 receiving), 68.3% completions, 42:4 TD:INT ratio as a passer and 15 rushing touchdowns. Mariota became the first Oregon player to win the Heisman Trophy, also adding the Davey O’Brien and Johnny Unitas Golden Arm awards to his trophy case, earning First Team All-American and All-Pac 12 honors. He decided to bypass his final year of college eligibility to enter the 2015 NFL Draft and declined an invitation to the 2015 Senior Bowl.


STRENGTHS: Terrific foot quickness and lower body athleticism with gazelle-like speed, forcing defenders to respect his athletic range…fearless, but smart and tough ballcarrier, using his speed to erase pursuit angles and pick up chunk yardage…slippery in the pocket to improvise on the move to keep plays alive, showing the start/stop quickness to make controlled moves before turning on the afterburners…quick pocket footwork and throws strikes on the move…adequate height for the position and has done a nice job filling out his frame with lean muscle…enough arm strength to make all the NFL throws with the needed zip and velocity…efficient set-up, release and delivery and the ball shoots off his hand with unforced motion…improved eye use and field vision to scan and hold safeties with experience working through progressions in Oregon’s offense…processes the action with excellent reaction awareness to diagnose, reading and finding vulnerable match-ups – showed improved anticipation in 2014…nice downfield touch to drop the ball in the bucket…highly intelligent and a quick learner with studious habits that translate on and off the field – graduated in three-and-a-half years with a degree in general science (GPA of 3.22)…coaches rave about his preparation traits and ability to retain and digest information…grounded character with a strong grasp of the mental aspect of football and life – comfortable in his own skin and always in control…durable and will fight through minor injuries, playing in every game (41 starts) the last three seasons for the Ducks…holds almost every passing record at Oregon and one of only four FBS players to pass for 10,000+ yards and run for 2,000+ yards in a career – also holds the Pac-12 records for total touchdowns in a career (136) and season (58) and consecutive pass attempts without an interception (353).


WEAKNESSES: Lacks ideal build and body mass and doesn’t have the power to routinely break tackles as a ballcarrier…doesn’t consistently incorporate his footwork and properly use his hips in his delivery – inexperienced taking snaps under center (single digit snaps under center at Oregon)…questionable pocket presence and his internal clock needs time to mature at the next level, taking too many hits in the pocket by holding the ball too long – too many sacks are because of his inconsistent feel in the pocket…needs to do a better job recognizing pressures pre-snap to speed up his process…ball placement runs hot/cold, missing too many open targets, even with a clean pocket…will panic when the walls close in and doesn’t consistently make clutch throws while under pressure…a lot of pre-determined reads in Oregon’s offense and wasn’t asked to make many tight window throws – benefited from a lot of open reads due to Oregon’s spread offense…doesn’t consistently see all 11 defenders or anticipate coverages…ball security questions (27 fumbles over the last three seasons)…quiet individual and lack of vocal leadership skills will be a turn off for some…leaner-than-ideal body type leads to durability concerns.
SUMMARY: The most decorated player in Oregon history, Mariota finished with a 36-5 record (.878) as the Ducks’ starter and leaves Eugene with double-digit school records, including total offense (13,061), passing yards (10,796), completions (779), completion percentage (66.8%) and total touchdowns (136) – accounted for at least three touchdowns in 30 of 41 starts (29-1 record in those games). He is a dangerous dual-threat with above average natural athleticism and enough arm strength to spray the ball to all levels of the field. He operated out of a shotgun, spread offense at Oregon with a lot of zone reads and easy progressions, but still struggled with ball placement downfield, making it very tough to accurately predict his transition at the NFL level when he’s asked to do things he didn’t have to worry about in college. Mariota has to refine his mechanics in certain areas, notably his footwork and eye use, especially under pressure. He has very nondescript mannerisms and lacks an alpha male personality, but displays leadership traits through his resilient and efficient play on the field, also showing elite character and intelligence. Mariota has durability concerns due to his leaner-than-ideal body type and ideally needs to redshirt as a NFL rookie because of the jump he faces going from Oregon to a pro-style scheme. When isolating the physical and mental traits, it’s all there for Mariota to be successful at the next level in the mold of a Colin Kaepernick style passer and, although he will need time, he’s worth a top-10 pick.