Senior Bowl Players Packers Fans Should be Watching

Fresh off his Senior Bowl trip (and a stop in Las Vegas), Andrew Garda gives you an early look at some players the Packers might be looking at.

With another year of Senior Bowl madness (and massive amounts of BBQ) out of the way, we can now get into the full swing of draft analysis.

The Green Bay Packers were out in force down in Mobile, Alabama, including Ted Thompson. While there wasn't a ton of top talent in Mobile this year, there were plenty of players who should interest the organization and we saw some impressive displays of football.

As you can see in the attached picture, Mr. Thompson left impressed.

Here are some players the Packers should be looking at as we move towards the 2014 NFL draft.

 

Ra’shede Hageman, DT, Minnesota

At one point last week I ran into the fabulous Ty Dunne of Milwaukee Journal Sentinel an enthusiastically told him about Minnesota DT Ra’shede Hageman, mostly that the Packers should be looking at him.

Yes, safety is a higher priority right now, but the team was horrific against the run and are desperate for an inside presence to clog up lanes.

Hageman stood out in very drill for the first two days of practice and while he had a bit of an off day on Wednesday, he still looked good overall. Constantly overwhelming the offensive line and clogging what would have been running lanes, Hageman showed good speed and strength, which he used on an overwhelmingly effective bull rush.

The downside to Hageman that I can see is he doesn’t have much more than a power move to get past offensive linemen. If they can stymie that, as they did Thursday, that’s about it.

That said, he eats up so much space and overall plays so well that the overall lack of moves wouldn’t hurt much.

 

Pierre Desir, CB, Lindenwood

Don’t feel bad if you have no idea where Linwood University is. I had to look it up myself.

Located in Missouri, Lindenwood (according to Wikipedia) has about 12,000 students and the Lions play Division II football and went an underwhelming 3-6 last season.

Now that you know where he comes from, let’s talk about who Pierre Desir is and where he could fit for the Packers.

As you might expect, Desir is a bit raw. Coming from a DIV-II program, he didn’t get the best coaching nor face the toughest competition. That’s not a knock on Lindenwood’s program, just a reality. There’s a difference.

But after a good performance at the Shrine Game, Desir went to the Senior Bowl where he played very well, primarily as a press corner.  He finished the Senior Bowl game itself with a pair of tackles and a pick, with only two balls thrown in his direction when he was in the game.

He needs to work on his footwork and overall technique but he is an incredible athlete who can play physical football and is tall and long enough to win in coverage. He could also be shifted to safety if need be, which could be what would attract the Packers to him.

 

Dee Ford, DE/OLB, Auburn

You probably just twinged when you saw DE/OLB next to his name. After all, the last two transitional athletes who general manager Ted Thompson drafted (Nick Perry and Jerel Worthy) have yet to work out.

However, as I reported in an article for CSSSports.com, Ford rushed the passed with his hand off the ground a lot at Auburn and the Jacksonville Jaguars used him as a hybrid linebacker/defensive end, attacking from the weak side.

The idea of turning Ford into a linebacker has generally been thrown around in reference to a 3-4 scheme, but the Packers shift to enough different fronts to find many ways to use him.

On top of it, Ford is an outstanding athlete with a high motor, tremendous energy and a nose for the football.

Here’s a guy who can transition for the Packers and actually work out.

 

Jaylen Watkins, CB, Florida

For a defensive back on the smaller side (5’11”), Jaylen Watkins had a tremendous Senior Bowl Week.

Watkins is a fast, physical corner with a smooth backpedal who almost never got beat in drills during practices. He broke up a ton of passes during the course of practices and appears to be a willing run-stopper as well.

Watkins could easily play corner or safety in the NFL, and the Packers could use him in either capacity.

 

Caraun Reid,  DT, Princeton

I haven’t talked enough about Caraun Reid since the Senior Bowl and it’s a shame because he had a fantastic week. I hadn’t seen much of him prior to the week of practices, but after witnessing him dominate offensive linemen, I look forward to watching his film.

Given conversations with those who already had taken a closer look at the small-school player, I’ll see him double-teams quite a bit as teams schemed specifically to get him out of action.

I saw a ton of excellent pass rush technique, strength and speed in one-on-one drills and he beat players all along the offensive line. We also saw him in live action, as he notched two sacks and brought pressure which forced an interception during the South squad’s domination of the North.

As I mentioned before, the Packers need to firm up the middle of the defensive front.

Reid is a guy who can clog running lanes as well as disrupt pass plays.

 

Andrew Garda is a member of the Pro Football Writers Association and fresh off another trip to the Senior Bowl. He is also a member of the fantasy football staff at FootballGuys.com and a Featured Columnist at Bleacher Report. You can follow him at @andrew_garda on Twitter.

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Comments (65)

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Evan's picture

January 28, 2014 at 09:38 pm

The Jacksonville Jaguars played Dee Ford as a hybrid LB/DL?

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Jeremy VanDerLinden's picture

January 28, 2014 at 09:52 pm

The Jags coaches coached his SR Bowl team.

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steven's picture

January 28, 2014 at 09:55 pm

dang beat me to it lol

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Evan's picture

January 29, 2014 at 07:20 am

Ahhhh....thank you.

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andrewgarda's picture

January 29, 2014 at 09:13 am

Sorry that wasn't clear. Sort of assumed people knew from prior posts but that was a silly assumption.

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Evan's picture

January 29, 2014 at 09:29 am

Nah, it just totally slipped my mind that NFL coaching staffs work the Senior Bowl.

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steven's picture

January 28, 2014 at 09:54 pm

Yes Evan, the jaguars were the Nfl coaches that ran the practices for ford. The falcons coached the other.

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QOTSA1's picture

January 28, 2014 at 09:48 pm

I would be happy with Hageman as the Packers 1st round pick.

Reid reminds me a lot of Mike Daniels. He doesn't have the prototypical size for a 3-4 end, but he can get pressure on the quarterback.

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MarkinMadison's picture

January 29, 2014 at 12:45 pm

I think Hageman does have prototypical size for a 3-4 DE. I'm worried about how he stacks up against the best competition. As Andrew noted, it wasn't necessarily there in Mobile. And he didn't stand out to me in Minnesota's bowl game, at least not the part I watched. I'd love to see Andrew or someone who is smarter than me do an article on him after some film study, because this guy could be boom or bust.

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Stroh's picture

January 28, 2014 at 10:35 pm

I'm keeping my eye on Hageman. Other players I like would be Tuitt since either would be terrific 34 DE. Clinton-Dix and Pryor at Safety, Nix at NT and Mosley at ILB. Among those 6 players the Packers should have their pick among 2 or 3 when they are on the clock at #21.

If they don't like their options at #21 or if they have a lot of option (very possible) a trade down to net another 2nd would be a good move.

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Stroh's picture

January 28, 2014 at 10:44 pm

One other thing. If the Packers were to move Hyde to Safety, which I am in favor of, drafting Justin Gilbert would be a terrific pick as well IMO.

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steven's picture

January 29, 2014 at 01:18 am

I would honestly love any one of those. And i am hoping they pick one. That... and seferain jenkins in the second or the te from Iowa 3rd

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RC Packer Fan's picture

January 29, 2014 at 07:56 am

Stroh- You and I agree for the most part with the draft talk. We have talked about the guys before.

I do think though that if they were to draft Gilbert it would be more based on if they weren't able to resign Shields then it would be moving Hyde to Safety.

Hyde is a slot type of CB, and that is where Hayward plays. They will need an outside CB if Shields left and that is more of where they would use Gilbert.

I will say though too, that you can never have to many good CB's and if Gilbert is the BPA, I would consider him. Williams will be a FA after next year. We still don't know what happens with Shields this year.
Gilbert has good size, and with the North having so many big WR's it would be good to have some bigger CB's.
I don't think Gilbert will be available to the Packers at 21, but its a possibility.

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Stroh's picture

January 29, 2014 at 08:05 am

Hyde can still play the dime CB role in the slot. The CB ranks is missing a player who can take over for Tramon. Unless the re-sign him, which is pretty uncertain at this point. I have no doubts about shields getting done. Signing Tramon to another contract is less certain. I like House but he hasn't stepped up like I was hoping, so I'm thinking ahead a year. Gilbert would be a nice player to step into Tramon's shoes after a year learning the ropes.

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RC Packer Fan's picture

January 29, 2014 at 08:17 am

Yeah, I agree with you.

Honestly, I like the thought of Hyde being a safety, because he has proved he can cover and tackle, so that would allow Capers to be a little more flexible with his play calling. He would be allowed to run more base defense, with Hyde sliding down into the slot.

I agree though that Gilbert would be a good pick. Even if they resign Shields this year, Williams is a FA next year.

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Bert's picture

January 29, 2014 at 09:53 am

If House doesn't pick it up this TC he probably becomes extinct assuming we draft another CB. We need to keep Tramon and Shields around as they are the only real outside cover guys we have on the roster. I can't imagine going into 2014 with House at CB and no major improvement at safety. Terrible!

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Evan's picture

January 29, 2014 at 10:04 am

I doubt House's roster spot is in jeopardy this off-season, unless he completely falls on his face. He's in his final year making less than $700,00.

He's shown flashes. Just needs to stay healthy and play consistently.

I agree they could use another outside guy, though. That's where Bush's roster space really starts to strain the roster.

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RunAndHyde's picture

January 29, 2014 at 11:50 am

I like Gilbert ..great size. I also like Tuitt Ford and ofcourse Pryor. I'm not sold at all on Hageman. Im sure we could grab a fatty run stuffer with only the power move goin for em in the 2nd or 3rd. Oh and if we could grab Van Noy in the 2nd that would be awesome.

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Thegreatreynoldo's picture

January 29, 2014 at 02:44 am

+1.

Trading (not too far back) might be a very good idea. Deep draft. Unless C.J. Mosely is available at #21. Even a mid 3rd round pick would be valuable.

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andrewgarda's picture

January 29, 2014 at 09:14 am

I could totally see them trading a bit back. There's a lot of value around.

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RC Packer Fan's picture

January 29, 2014 at 09:47 am

I'm in favor of them trading back, if a player isn't there that they wanted.
This is a deeper draft and I think if they could drop back 10 spots and pick up another 2nd, 3rd and/or 4th they could find another starting caliber player.

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ben's picture

January 29, 2014 at 07:39 am

Why would we draft another 3-4 DE? If we're sticking with the 3-4, Daniels, Datone, Boyd, Worthy are all DEs, Neal, if he comes back is also a part-time DE and better off there than OLB anyway.

DEs are all we have, but you want to use a 1st round pick on another one. And at the same time arguing that drafting Jace Amaro in the 1st would be a wasted pick, while we have ZERO established TEs on the roster.

WOW! I wish you'd think stuff thru before spewing it all over here.

Hageman is ideally a 4-3 DT and can also play as a 3-4 DE. But he is not 3-4 Nose, he doesn't play with enough leverage and gets pushed out of gaps too easily for Nose. Forget him unless we're making the switch to a 4-3.

Tuitt another 4-3 DT, 3-4 DE, forget'em.

Now Nix is big enough to play Nose. But too bad he's really not that good or effective. I pray we don't waste a 1st round pick on his fat ass.

Mosely could be thee most overrated player in the 2014 draft. Remember I said that.

Pryor is not a 1st round talent. Slow. Had 14 pass break ups though. Too bad that's over 4 years. No way.

Hasean broke up 4 less passes than pryor in 3 years at Alabama. He's a good safety, but just because there isn't any "elite" safeties in this years draft doesn't make him a 1st round pick.

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ben's picture

January 29, 2014 at 07:58 am

If New England doesn't move up ahead of us to take Jace Amaro, we take him at 21. If they do, I see Ted moving back and taking Jimmie Ward who is better than Pryor and as good if not better than Hasean.

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ben's picture

January 29, 2014 at 08:21 am

Would be happy with these 2 safeties that can also play corner.

Marqueston Huff(4thRound)
Alden Darby(5thRound)

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Stroh's picture

January 29, 2014 at 08:25 am

Here's the difference between you and I. You look at the position they are listed at, I look at the role they play. Daniels and IMO Worthy were drafted to be pass rushing DT in the nickel, neither one, while listed at DE for the Packers, is a true 34 DE. Jones is and maybe you think one true 34 DE is enough. I don't... I want to play more base 34 and want more length at the DE and DT spots. Is Daniels or Worthy going to disrupting passing lanes? Hell no... Jolly, Pickett, Raji and Wilson are all FA and we don't know which if any will be back.

DL that can play all 3 downs, get pass rush and disrupt passing lanes are at a premium in a 34 D.

I don't know how or who you use for your scouting, but Pryor and Clinton-Dix are easily the 2 best Safeties in the draft. I would say Pryor is much like Eric Reid in last years draft. We don't know what he speed is as yet.

You might want to start cross referencing whatever scouting service you use. Jimmy Ward is another MD Jennings! 190 lbs Safeties I don't want or need!

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Hank Scorpio's picture

January 29, 2014 at 08:36 am

DL don't really play 3 downs much anymore unless they are monsters. Otherwise, they are rotated with other players to keep them fresh. Sometimes that is based on situation and sometime just to rotate them. I think the Packers have enough bodies for the outside to effectively cover the number of snaps & situations they'll need to cover.

I would love to find a stud DE that break the mold of rotational guy. If the Packers think one is sitting for them @ 21, by all means they should jump on it. Those guys are rare and you should never pass one up when available. But there are far more pressing needs on this team, IMO.

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Stroh's picture

January 29, 2014 at 07:01 pm

I agree there are more pressing needs to some extent. However, all the starting DL are FA along w/ Wilson. So really we have Jones, Boyd, Daniels, Worthy and no one else of talent locked up. Its likely they sign one of Pickett, Raji or Jolly, but hardly guaranteed. I think if they can get Raji to sign the based D can be OK, but we are still missing a true 34 LDE in base, especially if its a guy that has the ability to be an everydown kinda player. IMO both Hageman and Tuitt fit that mold. Clearly they may not be asked to play every down since those big guys need a breather occasionally too. But DL, at least for now, is definitely a need. Maybe not so much if they re-sign someone, but that's hardly a given.

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ben's picture

January 30, 2014 at 01:23 am

Stroh,
A big difference between you & I is that we simply value players differently. Daniels for instance. I couldn't say, "is Daniels going to disrupt passing lanes?, Hell no....." ....I say Hell yes. I get that he doesn't have that Hageman Length that even I love at 3-4 DE. But Daniels couldn't remind me of Cullen Jenkins more. And both Daniels and Cullen Jenkins disrupt them some passing lanes. I think he is good enough to be considered not only a nickel rusher, but a good 3-4 base DE, especially in a base passing situation.

We seem to agree that Datone, a #1 pick, is a legit 3-4DE or at least better be. I also remember you stating that "Datone made all of his plays as a Nickel DT. So Datone should be able to account for a lot of snaps at nearly every Dline position.

Another difference may be I value Josh Boyd more. It's often said that Boyd's game tape at Mississippi state caught the packers eye. He has also caught my eye as a rookie. Although he didn't seem to finish strong, he flashed. He tested out pretty fast and very quick at the combine. He's also over 310lbs and did 32 reps; I'm comfortable that he can play some base-run RDE and LDE and account for a large percentage of what left at DE.

And I'm not a huge Worthy Fan, but Worthy was a 2nd round pick and has at least shown a quick 1st step at times. I'd go as far as to say I have more hope for him than I do for a more popular Derek Sharrod. I'd be fine with Worthy getting a couple scraps at 3-4DE or Nickle DT; just to see what we got.

I'd also say that jolly and Neal are both consistent in disrupting passing lanes as 3-4 DLineman in their own ways. One who had clear synergy with Clay at both baseRE & RnickelDT and the other with a thing for batting down passes, some big-time nasty, and an eddy lacey like spin move.

That brings up another difference between you and me. We may be assuming different players being brought back. I may be assuming Neal and Jolly are brought back while you may be assuming Quarless is being brought back. You like Neal at OLB, I believe Neal is more valuable as a Dlineman where he doesn't get caught out in space or need to cover. Ultimately I believe that Neal is the kind of freak athlete with pass rushing skill that makes him a keeper. To me he needs to be part of the solution, preferably as a Dlineman, and if possible in the 4-3.

If Neal and Jolly were to return all defensive dlineman snaps could be considered accounted for except at Base-Nose.

I think we all agree that base DT, Nose, (if we're going to play the 3-4)is our main concern. I'm a fan of Hegeman and even disagree with people having a problem with his effort. I think he plays hard and gets good penetration. His measurables will be elite. He reminds me of a slightly more finesse Sharrif Floyd. But I don't think Hegeman would be a good NFL 3-4 Nose. So I'd rather get an Elite Jace Amaro at what is at least right now a huge position of need and security blanket for the franchise. On Tuitt, we both would at least agree is not a Nose. Nixon's a Nose, but I personally would rather get that smaller school fat-ass prospect somebody posted links to a couple weeks ago. (blue and red unis? North Mississippi?)

I don't think Pryor is a 1st round prospect. And am on the record with Mosley possibly being the most over-rated player in this draft. And comparing Jimmy Ward to MD Jennings is over the top man.

MarquestonHuff
(CB/S,Compensatory4th)

Alden Darby
(S/CB,Round5pick21)

Love'em

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Stroh's picture

January 30, 2014 at 08:20 am

Who cares what your on record saying? Your no scout... Your just a commenter on a website. No one cares what your on record as saying. Quite acting like what your on record saying means squat... It doesn't except to you.

FYI I do value Daniels disruptiveness, and he does an outstanding job in his role as a pass rush specialist. But Daniels is 6'0 290+ as compared to Jenkins who was 6'2 305+ and a proven everydown playmaker and pass rusher. Daniels hasn't shown that he can handle being an every down player and continue to be a force as an pass rusher.

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HUMP's picture

January 30, 2014 at 03:44 am

jimmy wards skill set is a lot closer to nick collins or earl thomas than md jennings! jennings was deemed not worthy to draft,where as ward will be 2nd rd as was nick

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Stroh's picture

January 30, 2014 at 08:07 am

I didn't say anything about his skill set. I said I don't want or need more 190 lb Safeties. Collins BTW was coming out as a 205 lb safety w/ sub 4.4 speed and outstanding measureable across the board. And Earl Thomas was a high 1st rd draft pick. So comparing him to Collins and Thomas is crazy too. Collins was so athletic that most teams viewed him as a CB instead of safety.

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andrewgarda's picture

January 29, 2014 at 09:16 am

Did I ever say anyone was a first round pick? I'mnot even predicting round here, saying 'they should keep an eye on them'.

FWIW, in case you didn't read, I didn't say Hageman was a DE - I said OLB. Reading comprehension isn't your strong suit is it?

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ben's picture

January 29, 2014 at 09:43 pm

1st Andrewgarda,
Hageman a OLB?

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zippyjoe's picture

January 28, 2014 at 11:50 pm

Hageman has the raw talent, but he seemed to disappear during the Senior Bowl week according to Tony Pauline. Is he overrated? I'd rather have the Packers draft Pryor or Nix if available.

I think Ted will be in favor of trading up or down to get a decent safety in the first round or two. We are only a player or two away from a championship team.

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andrewgarda's picture

January 30, 2014 at 04:49 pm

I would take a lot of what Pauline says well salted. He said a lot that week which was either off or premature. He does good work at times, but since the Tajh Boyd thing, I don't listen as closely.

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steven's picture

January 29, 2014 at 01:17 am

I would love if they could pick up one of those 6'3 corners so they could learn from williams and shields.

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Jamie's picture

January 29, 2014 at 01:27 am

I want absolutely NOTHING to do with Ra'shede Hageman. He is a huge boom/bust player and we need defensive linemen who can play consistently well and are more of a sure thing. The only reason Hageman is getting so much first round buzz is because of his physical profile. He's got good length and athleticism to go with his weight. That's about it.

To be honest, I was never impressed by his body of work at Minnesota. He had flashes but he never once took over a game. I don't think he's physical enough against the run and he takes a lot of plays off when he's pass rushing.

The last time I felt this way about a defensive linemen...we drafted him. I hated the Jerel Worthy pick and I don't think he'll ever pan out as a Packer. I hope we don't make the same mistake this time around.

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RC Packer Fan's picture

January 29, 2014 at 07:27 am

I want to look at Hageman more, but I agree that he definitely has the boom/bust qualities.

Right now I am skeptical of him. He had a good week at the Senior Bowl, but then you watch him in the game and he doesn't do much. But I wasn't keying on him either so I want to see how he was being used.

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andrewgarda's picture

January 29, 2014 at 09:17 am

I thought he did very well down in Mobile, but definitely need to look at the tape on him (concentrating on QB/WR since that's what I do for the CHTV guide.

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RC Packer Fan's picture

January 29, 2014 at 09:45 am

I didn't watch him a lot during the senior bowl game. I want to go back and watch the tape again, because he is a player they could consider at 21.

I just am not sold on him. He fits the 5 technique perfectly and could be a guy we have been missing. That big long DE that can stop the run and clog passing lanes.
The game tape I have seen of him though hasn't overly impressed me.

He IMO, is a player that could go to the combine and dominate there pushing his draft grade higher then what it should be.

Right now I'm just skeptical of him.

That being said he really did a great job in the practice portion of Senior Bowl week, which ultimately is what scouts want to see.

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andrewgarda's picture

January 30, 2014 at 04:50 pm

Skeptical is good, skeptical is fine. Its SUPER early really. Just guys to watch.

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RC Packer Fan's picture

January 29, 2014 at 07:37 am

A few more names I would like to add to the list above as names Packer fans should keep an eye on from the Senior Bowl are:

Chris Borland-ILB. I have stated before that I have a man crush on him. True story. The guy is a beast and has superb insticts. The player he reminds me in todays game is Luke Kuechly with his insticts.

Christian Kirksey-ILB. I was impressed with Kirksey last week at the Senior Bowl. He flashed talent to me. He has good speed and seems to find the ball really well.

C.J. Fiedorowicz-TE. Probably the 4th best TE in the draft. His size would be great in the redzone. He is a more traditional TE that can play inline and block as well as be able to catch the ball pretty well.

Arthur Lynch-TE. I was impressed with Lynch. I thought he caught the ball really well.

Chris Smith - DE/OLB. He is a guy who showed some good pass rush ability. He could be a guy in the middle rounds that could be picked to develop into an OLB.

Jared Abbrederis - WR. He has good speed, and good hands. He is an extremely well route running WR. Packers love WR's that run great routes. He might not be dynamic doing so but he can return kicks and punts as well.

Just a few names from the Senior Bowl to keep an eye on.

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andrewgarda's picture

January 29, 2014 at 09:18 am

GREAT list. Couldn't fit everyone in otherwise the article goes on forever.

But I like the list.

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RC Packer Fan's picture

January 29, 2014 at 09:40 am

I agree.
I could go on and on with the list of players to keep an eye on. These were the players that really stood out to me though in some way or another.

One more player that I heard a lot of good things about is Weston Richburg. He would be another guy to add to the list to keep an eye on.

There were so many good players there, Not all will be 1st or even 2nd round picks, but I think a lot of the players will really contribute early in their careers.

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lmills's picture

January 29, 2014 at 07:39 am

1st round picks shouldn't be picked on "upside or potential". They need to be picked because they were one of the top players in the country!! We have lot's of positions that could use an upgrade on defense and I will be happy with TT taking whoever is the top defensive player on the board at #21. Give me Tuitt, Nix, Dix, Pryor, Gilbert or Mosley. All are instant starters.

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andrewgarda's picture

January 29, 2014 at 09:19 am

and many of them were not at the senior bowl so.... they aren't in the article.

Again, not all of these players to watch are first rounders, nor do I say any such thing.

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lmills's picture

January 29, 2014 at 10:55 am

Right. I understood you weren't saying that. I was just saying in general...1st rounders shouldn't have question marks about where/or how they play. i.e. Perry,Neal

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Evan's picture

January 29, 2014 at 11:07 am

I agree.

While I understand that most 3-4 OLBs played DE in college, I'm going to be annoyed if there is a transitional question mark in their 1st round pick this year (or the phrase "needs to add weight.").

If the go OLB, I'd like them to have at least some experience playing upright (such as a Dee Ford).

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Hank Scorpio's picture

January 29, 2014 at 08:29 am

For the first two rounds, BPA should be the guiding factor. With the exception of QB & RB, there is no positional group that couldn't use an upgrade.

Having said that, the guys listed to watch are mostly edge defenders at all 3 levels. The Packers are stronger at the edge than the inside on all three levels of their defense. So I hope the Packers are looking at Safety, ILB and NT at least as much (if not more) than CB, OLB and DE.

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Bert's picture

January 29, 2014 at 08:57 am

I agree with Hank. Outside of QB and RB there isn't a position that we can't upgrade. If there is an immediate upgrade starter at about any position then I'm all for it. Some positions (Safety, ILB, TE)are worse than others but it's not like this team has an over abundance of Pro Bowlers.

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Al Fresco's picture

January 29, 2014 at 11:34 am

I have my money down on a Safety first then a TE, either or depending on who is available. Just my opinion.

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Albert Lingerfeld's picture

January 29, 2014 at 11:40 am

It wise to suggest you draft the best player available at that time but wiser to draft the best player available to fill a need position.
If the best player available is a running back and we need none, then the frist arguement is moot.
Take Perry. He was a DE on a very good SC team. When people around you have talent they make you look better.
The analyst took this into consideration and rated him at best, a late round first but most had him early to mid second. And that was as a DE. So we take him as an OK DE, make him a
linebacker (I read he is still bitching about that) and expect what out of him?

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Bert's picture

January 29, 2014 at 01:43 pm

I think you need to build a roster with good players. Period!! Most draft picks (even for need) do not provide immediate help anyway. If you look too short-term to fill needs you end up with a mediocre roster. I would say kinda like our roster has become but I don't want to get anybody stirred up today. Too nice a day to get anybody stirred up.

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4thand1's picture

January 29, 2014 at 03:58 pm

Just watched high light reel of Mosley. It was the LSU game. He did a ton of dropping into coverage. Should of had a pick or 2. Dropped an easy one. Made some good plays in the open field. Has speed that's for sure.

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Bert's picture

January 29, 2014 at 04:43 pm

Mosley is a guy that jumped out at me when I watched the Alabama games this year too. Much more so than C-Dix. I only saw them maybe 3 times but it seemed like Mosley was around the ball and making plays quite often against top notch competition. I wish I was more of an expert (or knew anything) in scouting college talent but Mosley does pass the "eye test" anyhow.

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Shlizzy's picture

January 29, 2014 at 08:27 pm

I thought I heard that at Iowa, they tried Hyde at safety, and the results weren't good. I can't remember where I read this though. If he could make the transition well though, damn, that would be huge.

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Evan's picture

January 29, 2014 at 08:49 pm

It's been talked about a lot here. I don't put too much stock into it. It seems it was a 1 or 2 game emergency type situation in Iowa. Given a full off-season of practice, I have confidence in him.

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cLowNEY42's picture

January 29, 2014 at 09:01 pm

Personally, i'm getting pretty tired of guys coming to the Packers and having to learn how to play new positions.
DE's to OLB, DE's to ILB, OLB's to ILB, DT's to DE, OT's to OG, OT's to OC.

Now you wanna turn a CB into a S.

This whole idea that any slow CB can be a S is ridiculous.

Here's a crazy idea... you need a safety? GO GET A F'N SAFETY!

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Stroh's picture

January 29, 2014 at 11:23 pm

Personally I'm getting pretty F'in tired of Cow coming here to bitch about EVERYTHING Packers! Positional transitions happen on most teams almost every year. Eveny NFL team drafts college OT and makes them OG. Every 34 D drafts college DE and makes them OLB. A lot of teams draft college CB and turn them into Safeties.

Packers almost certainly will draft a Safety to play Safety. But if you have a CB that isn't fast enough to be a full time CB, but he has good tackling and coverage instincts switching him to safety puts him in the best position to succeed!

What in the Hell is wrong w/ that?

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RC Packer Fan's picture

January 30, 2014 at 07:40 am

Correct me if I'm wrong, but wasn't the 3-4 initially created to use the DE/OLB 'tweener' players that other teams didn't want? The undersized DE but to big for LB. So they created the 3-4 OLB.

In today's game, not many college players actually play the 3-4 in college, so to get the OLB generally they are DE's in college.

When you look at the offensive side, some players may play OT in college but aren't big enough or fast enough to play there in the NFL so they slide inside.

Its not uncommon for players to have to come to the NFL to learn new positions.

Every team employs their own scheme and any player coming into that scheme has to learn the nuances of their position in that scheme.

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HUMP's picture

January 30, 2014 at 04:20 am

i know you just put a few names in the article,but theres a few i think would be obvious .... TE crockett gilmore-3rd rd S jimmy ward 2nd rd CB stan jean baptiste 3rd rd WRs josh huff 4th rd and abbredairus 4th rd LB kirksey and borland 3rd rd and as you said the list goes on and on. player comparisons might be....gilmore=pitta with proto type size.......ward=nick collins baller type........baptiste=browner sea........huff=stevie johnson.....abbredairus=little less physical jordy nelson....kirksey=more athletic less instinctive chad greenway and the obvious is borland=little luke kuechly. this is a simple off the cuff analogy for fun, just quick observations from tape study,so dont lambast me too hard boys

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andrewgarda's picture

January 30, 2014 at 04:51 pm

I like Crockett Gilmore a ton from just a cursory glance.

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shoptablet's picture

January 30, 2014 at 06:24 am

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jeremy's picture

January 31, 2014 at 09:28 pm

keep drinkin...

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4thand1's picture

February 01, 2014 at 06:14 am

wtf,wtf,wtf?

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