Supplemental Draft?

[packrat]

Will someone who has done a lot of research suggest whether there is anyone we should go after in the supplemental draft and what we should pay? I've always liked the supplemental draft, especially when we are picking higher this year than we hope to pick in next year's draft. It gives us an opportunity to develop a player one year sooner and that is a big plus for a rebuilding team.

[BallHawk]

The ones that come to mind are Paul Oliver (CB out of GA) and a guy's name which I can't remember (OL out of MD.) All I can remember about him is that he is massive.

I don't really think the supplemental draft would do much for us. These guys are here for a reason and it's not a good one. I'd pass on any player available.

[Rastak]

I don't really think the supplemental draft would do much for us. These guys are here for a reason and it's not a good one. I'd pass on any player available.

Ummm, guys like Bernie Kosar and Mike Wahle were taken in the supplemental draft.


The Supplemental Draft is to accommodate players who did not enter the regular draft because they thought they still had academic eligibility to play college football (per wikipedia,not the best source) but why would you consider that to be a reason to bypass all players with such a broad stroke.

[MJZiggy]

The gimp makes a good point... :P

[Rastak]

The gimp makes a good point... :P

Gimping would be a dramatic improvement....


Actually, it isn't just acedemic issues but could also be discipline issues to that gets a guy into the sup draft. I just think you have to judge guys individually.

[Bretsky]

Ted Thompson would have to give up a future draft pick for a supplemental pick. And that would be one less pick he could trade down with. I'd be highly surprised if TT gets involved in this.

[Scott Campbell]

Ted Thompson would have to give up a future draft pick for a supplemental pick. And that would be one less pick he could trade down with. I'd be highly surprised if TT gets involved in this.

I think Ted values picks - supplemental or regular. I see no evidence of a pick pecking order.

[Lurker64]

I don't think it's Ted's style to say "I need this guy, I'll pay what it takes" but at the supplemental draft if he thinks he can get a guy that would help for good value, I wouldn't be surprised if he pulls the trigger. Thompson was the director of pro personnel when we took Wahle (for a second?) in the supplemental draft. I think that both shows "Thompson is aware that the Supplemental Draft works out well for you sometimes" and "Thompson doesn't object to taking players in the supplemental draft in principle."

Still, I think the roster is full enough, that the only guy I can imagine us taking is Oliver assuming we can get him for cheap. Then again, Thompson has surprised me every time, so who knows?

[Tarlam!]

.... a pick pecking order.

I just tried to say that 5 times really fast and sprained my tongue!

[Charles Woodson]

When is the sup. draft?

[gbpackfan]

When is the sup. draft?

Sometime after the regular draft and before the season starts. :P

[MJZiggy]

July 12.

[Charles Woodson]

When is the sup. draft?

Sometime after the regular draft and before the season starts. :P

that narrows it down

[Fritz]

I believe I read here that Oliver's workout was not good. His 40 time was in the mid 4.5's. As for Maryland's massive offensive tackle, that does not sound like a zone scheme kind of build. Look for the Lions to take a flyer on him for maybe a third rounder.

[HarveyWallbangers]

http://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/news?slug=jm-updatedsupplementalprospects071007&prov=yhoo&type=lgns

Gaither likely first selection
By John Murphy, Yahoo! Sports
July 10, 2007

Editor's note:This is a completed list and evaluation of the prospects eligible for Thursday's NFL supplemental draft that Yahoo! Sports previously posted on June 22.

Since our initial preview, six other prospects have received special eligibility for Thursday's NFL supplemental draft. The latest group includes several unknowns and Maryland offensive tackle Jared Gaither, who figures to generate heavy interest.

The possibility of adding a potential starting left tackle without using a first- or second-round choice will likely secure Gaither the highest bid of any player available over cornerback Paul Oliver. There are at least six teams believed to be highly interested in selecting him.

Here's a snap shot of the 11 available prospects for Thursday afternoon's draft:

Jared Gaither
A former prep basketball player that played defensive tackle at first, Gaither moved to offense where he started 17 games at left or right tackle. He has long arms (36-37") and has hit 36" mark on the vertical in the past. He moves his feet well for a big man and has the body type to further develop if he decides to focus on workouts. He plays with good balance, shows some explosiveness and bends at the knees. He will drop off at times, get moody and slides off defenders instead of riding them out of the play. He is also just average as a run blocker overall.

He had an on-campus workout on Monday with most of his 40 times ranging between 5.02 and 5.18, but with several watches catching him at 4.94/4.98 on one of his efforts. He had a 31.5-inch vertical, 4.52 short shuttle, 7.18 3-cone, 9'3" broad jump and 15 bench reps of 225 pounds.

Gaither, suspended twice last season for violating team rules, entered the supplemental draft after being ruled academically eligible for the upcoming season. Two former teammates have commented that he is not a troublemaker, but that he is immature and easily influenced. He also tends to baby some nagging injuries, but at over 6-foot-8 ¾, 324 pounds, his attitude and aggressiveness could improve with the right coaching. The 2008 draft looks solid for offensive tackle prospects, so Gaither could slide to the third round of the supplemental draft if he fails to impress at his workout.

Eric McCain
The wide receiver was an Honorable Mention NJCAA selection at Glendale (Ariz.) Community College. He had 40 catches for 759 yards and 10 touchdowns as a sophomore.

After two years of community college, he failed to land at a four-year school and sat out all of last season. He is a long, lanky prospect that has long arms, but seems to build up to top-end speed. I would estimate him in the 4.55-4.60 range off of two tapes.

Aaron Turner
The East Central (Okla.) offensive lineman has very good natural size at roughly 6-4¾, 340, but lacks ideal footwork and conditioning to remain at offensive tackle for the pros. He has good upper-body strength and can create problems when he latches onto defenders off the snap. He's slow to recover if beaten off the ball and his weight could be an issue down the road as staff members say he has been above 350 pounds at times.

Brian Soi
The Utah State defensive tackle could be one of the most interesting prospects in the supplemental draft as he had a very good freshman campaign and possesses the size/strength to receive a make-it grade if he can improve his technique and off-field efforts. After posting 31 tackles, 7½ tackles for a loss, 4½ sacks and one forced fumble in 2005, he missed last season for unspecified reasons. He is roughly 6-2½, 298, and shows good strength, and plays with leverage at the point of attack. He also shows a few flashes of quickness off the ball in pass-rush situations.

RoShawn Marshall
The Central Missouri cornerback/return man is a former JC All-American and very talented return man. At roughly 5-9¼, 190, Marshall has been timed in the 4.38/4.45 range during his JC days. He averaged over 23 yards per punt as a junior in 2005. He spent time last season on the practice roster of the CFL's Calgary Stampeders.

Clifton Dickson
The former Florida State defensive tackle has been a tease. He missed the 2005 season because of academics and than failed to produce results at Tallahassee CC, so he jumped to the supplemental draft this summer. He had 17 tackles, six tackles for loss and 2½ sacks as a sophomore, but it was mostly in reserve/backup time. He shows some quickness and up-field moves for a player with good size and some talent as an interior pass rusher.

Dickson weighs in at 6-3 7/8, 320, but his weight has varied between 305 and 320 over his career. He's estimated by coaching staff at 5.10 in the 40-yard dash at around 310 pounds.

Paul Oliver
The All-SEC defender displayed very good footwork, quickness and ball skills, but failed to overwhelm evaluators with his 40-yard times (4.50 range) and vertical jump (33.5 vertical) during his workout last month. However, he did shut down wide receiver Calvin Johnson, taken No. 2 overall by the Detroit Lions during the NFL draft in April, during the Bulldogs' win over Georgia Tech last season.

He had 57 tackles, three interceptions and showed ideal size (5-11, 195 pounds), while also being able to run stride for stride with most of the top SEC pass catchers. Oliver has long arms and shows the ability to time his leaps to keep taller receivers from gaining an advantage on him while the ball is in the air.

His game film would seem to show that he has better game speed than 40 times, which offers him the chance to help out in nickel and dime packages for the team that decides to add him through the draft. He has had private workouts with at least the Atlanta Falcons and the San Diego Chargers.

Oliver could have conceivably entered his senior campaign with a first-round grade. However, his early entry into the NFL because of his failure to keep up with his academics means that he'll likely be targeted by teams holding an extra third- or fourth-round pick in 2008 or franchises which were unable to secure a top-rated cornerback in the regular draft.

Chris Patrick
Patrick is an interesting prospect that began to show signs of becoming another in the long line of talented Cornhuskers' blockers last season. He recorded times in the 5.20-5.30 range, although a few watches showed times just under 5.20. His 31 bench reps of 225 pounds show that he has the weight room strength to be a worthwhile long-range prospect, although there was a split between whether he should remain at tackle or move inside to guard.

At 6-4 5/8, 303, he ran 4.50 in the short shuttle, and recorded a 7.60 3-cone and 27" vertical. He moved well for a player of his size, but was a little stiff in certain drills. But according to his agent Joe Linta, who represents a number of offensive linemen in the NFL, most teams attending his workout (12 overall) said they had a sixth- to seventh-round grade on him.

Robert Armstrong
Armstrong, a former Maryland transfer and potential sleeper of this group, has the necessary size (6-4, 318) and has flashed both quickness off the ball and pass rush skills for an interior lineman. He had three sacks in a contest against Norfolk State. One stumbling block though is an old back injury which will be reviewed by team officials.

He can get a little heavy at times, lose focus and take off some reps when he wears down. He's not bad as a big-bodied kid to bring in if you use a rotation-based, 4-3 scheme and need some fresh legs for camp.

Donta Moore
Moore, though a much better defender in the box than when asked to drop into deep coverage, played out of position at outside linebacker as he is built ideally for strong safety. He has been timed in the 4.50 range and showed great tenacity last season as he played the final eight games of the year with a broken arm. If he can flash the type of workout numbers (37" vertical, 10' 4" broad jump) to go along with the fact that he had 16 tackles against West Virginia and 12 tackles, including 6½ tackles for loss versus Wake Forest, it could get him a solid free agent look. Keep an eye on the Green Bay Packers since their scouting director, John Dorsey, is a former Hall of Fame member of the Huskies football team.

Mark Washington
Washington is an interesting athlete who, at roughly 6-3, 245, has been timed in the 4.55-4.60 range and transferred to Texas State from Arizona State. He was miscast in the role of being a very under-sized defensive tackle, but also failed to reach certain academic and team standards in the offseason.

John Murphy is Yahoo! Sports' NFL personnel and college prospect evaluator. Murphy's sixth annual NFL Draft Bible is now available. Learn more at www.nfldraftbible.blogspot.com.