Ok GM's. Pick one and only one player that you would take a chance on if you had an "extra" draft pick? It could be a QB that you would want to convert to WR, a small school (Bethard) pick, or a player that was injured. Just make it a draft eligible player. I will start..... Safety Ray-Ray Armstrong "The former Hurricane and top recruit received his diploma from UM less than six months after he was kicked off the football team. The safety went on to attend Faulkner University in Montgomery, Ala., but a school spokesman confirmed Armstrong returned to Miami for the commencement ceremony. Armstrong was dismissed from the Miami football team in late July after more concerns surfaced regarding his NCAA eligibility. A lawyer representing Armsrtong later threatened to sue the school for reinstatement claiming his NFL draft status would be harmed by missing his senior season. The suit was never filed and Armstrong enrolled at the small school in Alabama. Ultimately, the NAIA ruled him ineligibile and Armstrong didn't play a single football game this fall. Armstrong, who could have left school after last season, has since seen his draft status drop.CBS Sports does not list him among the potential free safety draft picks while WalterFootball.com ranks him 23rd among safeties." http://www.miamiherald.com/2012/07/19/2900966/miami-hurricanes-dismiss-safety.html http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ray-Ray_Armstrong http://collegefootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2012/09/11/ray-ray-armstrong-denied-eligibility-by-naia/
A couple guys: Travis Chappelear - 5-Tech, Northwest Missouri State: His technique is raw, his athleticism for a guy his size (6'5", a solid 270 lbs) is no joke. He's a guy who can take some bulk and not likely lose his explosiveness, burst, and speed; he's tenacious and doesn't quit with a great work rate, and he's a guy who could back-up both the RDE in base 3-downed lineman packages and the LDE in 4-man. Makes plays all over the field (we're talking like 30-40 yards down the field sometimes... and this is a 270 pounder!) Keith Pough - ILB, Howard: He's the kind of guy coaches want to have on their team... PERIOD. He practices just as hard as he plays and he plays ferocious and with unbridled intensity. Good size (pretty much identical to Butler), fantastic hustle, and a natural penetrator up the middle and knifing through blocks. Needs to learn to shed a bit more cleanly - he tends to get skinny like a running back does to avoid blockers en route to the runner/QB, but that's not going to work as well against stronger NFL linemen who can stall you with a good punch from a single free arm. Zeke Motta - Safety, Notre Dame: Probably a bit ambitious to figure him for a "take a flier" type pick since he's got pretty firm early Day 3 stock that could still jump a bit if a team falls in love with him in the interview process. This is the chessmaster of the Notre Dame defense last year. Te'o got all the pub and, wrongfully, some of Motta credit for being the guy "setting up" the pieces. Even if his athleticism is pretty average, I'll take a solidly-built (pretty much identical to Harrison Smith) with a great mind for the game because those are the guys who carve out there initial spot on ST and at worst push their way to being quality depth (something this team has sorely lacked at safety since what... the 90's?). Alex Carder - QB, Western Michigan: Built more like Brees than Rivers, but he's got a great head on his shoulders and his arm is legit (not outstanding, but he can make all the pro throws and effectively). I'd compare him to Ryan Fitzpatrick - he's not a guy ideally you want to build around, but he's a guy you can feel plenty secure in going under center should your franchise guy take a knock and need to come out. He sees the game extremely well and doesn't make a lot of mistakes, and he's a voracious learner (coaches at the Shrine Bowl were raving that he was able to digest just about all of the playbook only 2 days after getting hold of it).
I like Tavarres King and Robert Lester at the moment as mid round picks go. If either were there in the 4th I'd happily pick them.
Other than that he played at Alabama, I really don't see much to like about Lester. He got his *** handed to him at the Senior Bowl in practices and the game (despite poor QB play most of the way around, he was out of position and beaten by his man plenty). He's declined substantially over the past year and at some point you have to start considering the amount of talent on a particular side when evaluating a prospect (John McCargo looked like a damn stud years ago playing on an Alabama line, but hit the pro's and was shown to be a guy made to look better by the people around him). Lester has never not played with a top safety to partner him, which gives cause for concern as to how much that guy's actually making up ground or covering for him. I wouldn't touch Lester with anything earlier than a 6th round pick... especially considering how deep this safety class is otherwise.
Does Denard Robinson count? some say he might not get drafted, I read that he looked bad returning punts but the guy knows what to do with the football in his hands
Justin Higdon @afc2nfc Former Miami DB Ray Ray Armstrong is at Tex v Nation this week after being out of sight out of mind. Checked in at 6'3 227. Big week for him Dane Brugler @dpbrugler Former Miami safety Ray Ray Armstrong wearing Faulkner helmet this week. Passes the eye test on the field. #TexasVsNation Niall Gransaull @NiallG_54 Ray Ray Armstrong is looking good in this all star game. I wish he was at Miami last year mario smith @falconfiend2 There is ray ray Armstrong on the special teams tackle. That's how you make the NFL. #texasvsnation
Really like Earl Watford, the OG from James Madison. Great ZBS fit and really could make an impact with a team IMO. Cornelius Washington the OLB/DE from Georgia is a beast athleticially, but needs some work, but i think he can be a really good edge rusher eventually, since its such a athleticism based position. I think Terron Armstead can be a solid NFL OT for a god while, never going to be elite, but can definitely be a good OT for a while. Michael Mauti i think is going to be really good LB if he can get over his injury issues. Cypien or whatever it isn't really underrated, everyone who's into the draft knows him by now, and he's a 2nd round pick.
Vince Williams ILB Florida State I went and re watched the senior bowl, This kid played a part on a lot of tackles. I loved how he plants his feet and lays hard hitting strikes knocking down the RB's.
Vince Williams is a stud, and can flat out fly from sideline to sideline for his size. Last I checked I think he is somewhere around 6'1" 245-250 lbs. I would not be opposed to us taking a flyer on him either at some point in the draft.
I still think if Tyrann Mathieu can get his head right, he will be a force in this league. Lot of people like to point to his size at 5'9, but the kid plays with heart. He could be a really, really good Nickel CB and CB2.
I want to preface this by saying that I don't know how tall you are. I'm 6'2, and my father is 5'8, which is probably how tall Mathieu actually is. I've towered over him since I was 16 years old. When I stand up and raise my arms over my head, my dad can't touch my wrist. My mother is 5'5. She can barely put her fingers over my elbow. The difference in size between someone who is 5'8 and someone who is 6'2 or 6'5 is ENORMOUS. This is why Calvin Johnson can still make catches even when triple covered. It's simply not worthwhile investing in a player of his height on defense.
Hence why I said Nickel CB or CB2, cause most slot guys are only 5'9-5'11, and most WR2's are in the 5'11-6'2 range. Those bigger receivers are usually the #1 guys. But, honestly, I don't see 3-4 inches a problem when he has incredible leaping ability as well. I would take a flier on him in the 6th or 7th, but he'll definitely go in the 4th or so.
From the above, must say "The Honey Badger" (Tyrann Mathieu ) fits this scenario perfectly. With an extra pick with no risk, could pay off big. I find Denard Robinson intriguing as well.
The thing is the best (and by that I mean the ones who turn out to be most successful as pro's) sleepers are almost never guys who were "big/nationally-recognized names" in the college game - which is what Robinson and Mathieu were. Richard Sherman was just viewed as a tall corner out of Stanford who lacked great straight-line speed. Marques Colston was viewed as a late-rounder because he was coming out of D1-AA and was considered a project convert-to-TE. Chris Harris ended up an undrafted FA because he didn't get a combine invite and didn't do a pro day - a product of him being one of the few pro-caliber pieces on an otherwise pretty poor Kansas Jayhawks team. Antonio Brown was known almost exclusively as a returner in college, even though he posted a 1200 yd/9TD season as a junior.
Completely forgot about him till earlier today...but.... This is the best story coming into the combine. I LOVED Walter Stewart before the injury, thought he was a 1st round pick and his burst and quickness as well as his character is off the charts. I'm really rooting for this kid reguardless of where he goes. If he checks out medically and Chao's ok with it, i'd be more than happy to bring him in. http://www.nfl.com/combine/story/0a...es-inspirational-path-to-nfl-scouting-combine Here's a couple videos of him (he DOMINATED Pitt)...
Intriguing player, really reminds me a lot of Larry English in college. I mean that in the good way, not the future bust part. The spine issue is going to make him a UDFA for sure.
The more I watch Stedman Bailey's tape, the more I like this kid as a 3rd rounder. Probably the best in this draft class tracking the ball and making that over the shoulder catch. Ridiculous hands, and one of the best pure route runners in this draft class. Only knack on him is his explosiveness and of course height (5-10), he'll still run a 4.50, so he's not slow, its his explosiveness off the line.
Two others I'll throw on for later round guys who are quite good scheme fits for what it appears like we do or plan on doing: CB, Micah Hyde (Iowa) - The knock on him is he doesn't have great recovery speed, but he's intelligent, extremely instinctive, and rarely caught out of position. Well... we play off-man with a good deal of Cover-1 looks from our base 3-4 and in our nickel packages. This is a sneaky pick, and a guy who (like Iowa State's Leonard Johnson last year) will likely fall because he doesn't have great timed speed, but he's a polished "football player". He also has experience playing the centerfield-type safety position. Likely to still be on the board in the 6th round. TE/H-Back Mychal Rivera (Tennessee) - I've been following this kid since he was initially recruited by Oregon and he may honestly be the closest thing to another Delanie Walker in this draft class. He has experience lining up all over the place (in the backfield, in the slot, inline), already has quality blocking technique in all those facets (needs to continue working on maintaining leverage after he gets it, but that's very coachable), and has a consistent knack for showing patience on his routes, finding holes in zone coverage and then breaking off quality YAC. He's Aaron Hernandez without the girth in a sense - and probably isn't going to get a ton bigger (he's 6'3", 242 right now) but he can also be had in the 5th or 6th versus Hernandez's 2nd round stock.
But SOOOOOOO MUCH MORE STUPID THAN TALENT. Guy is dumb as a rock, and IMO was overrated to begin with, all these Miami 5* recruits get massively overrated year in and year out, just because they were big name recruits, but their play was so bad it didn't matter.
Pfffft. Did you even watch Ray Ray? How do you know he is dumb? Just curious? I guess Miami players are just not NFL worthy. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Miami_Hurricanes_in_the_NFL http://sports.yahoo.com/news/complete-list-miami-hurricanes-nfl-221200626--nfl.html
Ray-Ray Armstrong, Jacory Harris among 20 at UM pro day By Michael CasagrandeSouth Florida Sun Sentinel8:33 a.m. EST, March 6, 2013 CORAL GABLES — This may not be the deepest class of Miami players eligible for the NFL draft, but there will still be 20 former players on hand for Thursday's pro day in Coral Gables. The event, closed to the public, will include 12 players from the 2012 Hurricanes. There will also be eight others with a few recognizable names on the list. Former UM quarterback Jacory Harris will be on hand along with ex-Cane safety Ray-Ray Armstrong. Armstrong was kicked off the team in July after multiple incidents threatened hisNCAA eligibility. He did not play in 2012 after enrolling at an NAIA school in Alabama. His eligibility was denied by that governing body. The pro day workouts include weight-room evaluations, the 40-yard dash and other football skills tests. The full roster of players involved: P Dalton Botts LB Ramon Buchanan RB Mike James WR Davon Johnson OL Ben Jones OL Jeremy Lewis CB Brandon McGee DL Darius Smith DB Andrew Swasey S Vaughn Telemaque WR Kendal Thompkins K Jake Wieclaw S Ray-Ray Armstrong WR Ben Bruneau WR Thearon Collier RB Graig Cooper QB Jacory Harris LS Chris Ivory DL Marcus Robinson OL Andrew Smith http://www.sun-sentinel.com/sports/...-among-at-um-pro-day-20130306,0,4336850.story
I mean its hard to argue against the stupidity he consistently displays but it aint like he'd cost us more than a 6th rounder... A 6-3 230 strong safety, his pro day is tomorrow but id expect to see a mid 4.5 time from him. Hes an explosive dude not to mention he definitely likes to hit.. id like to see us toss him a chance why not especially with our hole at SS
Ray-Ray Armstrong headlines UM football pro day (video) http://www.sun-sentinel.com/sports/...mpus-for-nfl-pro-day-20130307,0,2241721.story Miami Pro Day results: Brandon McGee impresses, Kendall Thompkins steals show http://www.sbnation.com/nfl-mock-draft/2013/3/7/4076296/miami-pro-day-results-brandon-mcgee
