2005 Draft: Names to watch

[kerouac9]

Scouts, Inc. did a ranking of the 2005 prospects by position. I don't want to reproduce the whole list, but I'll put down the early-round prospects that I think the Cards will be looking at.

I expect us to be drafting somewhere between 10 and 20, turning in a 7-9 season or better. That's why you won't find a guy like Aaron Rogers of Matt Leinart on this list (they'll both probably go Top 10). Or Marlin Jackson or Antrel Rolle, who may both go in the top 5.

Quarterback
3. Andrew Walter, Arizona State, 6'4.8", 238 (!)
4. David Greene, Georgia, 6'3", 217
5. San Orlovsky, Conneticut, 6'4.2", 230

Running Back
1. Carnell Williams, Auburn, 5'11", 208
3. T.A. McLendon*, N.C. State, 5'11", 215
6. Deangelo Williams*, Memphis, 5'10", 208
7. Walter Reyes, Syracuse, 5'10", 203

Tight Ends
1. Heath Miller*, Nebraska, 6'4.5", 252
2. Joel Dreesen, Colorado State, 6'3.6", 250

Offensive Guards
4. Richard Incognito*, Nebraska, 6'3", 300 (Name-only addition)

Defensive Tackles
2. Rodrique Wright, Texas, 6'4.5", 325
6. Marcus Jasmin, Texas A&M, 6'4.5", 313
7. Haioti Ngata*, Oregon, 6'3.2", 333
9. Albert Means, Memphis, 6'3.4", 322

Inside Linebackers
1. Lance Mitchell (INJ), Oklahoma,6'1.6", 240
2. Kirk Morrison, San Diego State, 6'2.5", 242
3. Odell Thurman*, Georgia, 6'0.5", 230
4. Abdul Hodge*, Iowa, 6'2", 235
5. Barrett Ruud, Nebraska, 6'2", 243

Cornerbacks
3. Justin Miller*, Clemson, 5'10.5", 180
4. Corey Webster, LSU, 5'11.5", 193
5. Will Blackmon*, Boston College, 6'0", 178
6. Charlie Peprah, Alabama, 5'11", 195
7. Carlos Rogers, Auburn, 6'0.4", 196
8. Antonio Perkins, Oklahoma, 6'1", 193
9. Kelly Jennings*, Miami (FL), 6'0", 180
10. Domonique Foxworth, Maryland, 5'11", 178

* - Denotes underclassman.

 

[SECTION 11]

Was Chijoke Onyenegecha anywhere on that list?

 

[Russ Smith]

Nice list, I talked about Rodrique Wright last year very impressive prospect, huge and athletic. People at Texas say he was better as a frosh and soph than Shaun Rogers at the same time.

I've liked David Greene for a while too, not an eye popping can't take your eyes off the guy type of player. The offense they run holds his numbers down, and he had a tough year last year but he's a VERY smart guy(pre med I think) and he throws an extremely catchable ball. I have seen him at times look like a vintage Ken Stabler(he's a lefty) but at other times he has struggled. Surprised a lot of people by coming back this year at all.

Greene will either be a complete steal, or he'll be a guy who never decides in camp he isn't going to play anytime soon and he'll quit and pursue a career outside of school.

 

[kerouac9]

Was Chijoke Onyenegecha anywhere on that list?

Not that I saw. Other good names, though: Craphonso Thorpe (WR, Florida State), Chris Kemoeatu (OG, Utah), Mathias Kiwanuka (DE, Boston College), Anttaj Hawthorne (DE, Wisconsin), Atari (that's right, he's named after a gaming system) Bigby (S, Central Florida), and Oshimo Otagwe (S, Stanford).

As I'm sure y'all noticed, I only put up 2-Gap DTs. Love 'em. Need 'em.

Greene: How does he compare to a Kurt Kittner? Sounds like the same kind of player.

 

[SECTION 11]

How 'bout a link there, sparky?

 

[kerouac9]

How 'bout a link there, sparky?

It's ESPN Insider, Chester, but if you can pony up the dough, follow this link.

 

[abomb]

Atari Bigby is the best name ever.

A-Bomb
/hoping I can convince the future Mrs. Bomb to name our kid that

 

[kerouac9]

Atari Bigby is the best name ever.

A-Bomb
/hoping I can convince the future Mrs. Bomb to name our kid that

You should meet his siblings, PlayStation, Nintendo, and sister Genesis.

 

[SECTION 11]

It's ESPN Insider, Chester, but if you can pony up the dough, follow this link.

Thanks, Louie.

 

[kerouac9]

Thanks, Louie.

You're welcome, Cliff.

 

[Russ Smith]

Atari Bigby is the best name ever.

A-Bomb
/hoping I can convince the future Mrs. Bomb to name our kid that

There's another Atari somehwere, played RB at De La Salle HS with DJ Williams can't remember what college he went to or what year.

 

[SECTION 11]

There's another Atari somehwere, played RB at De La Salle HS with DJ Williams can't remember what college he went to or what year.

Who's the coach there? That program's unbelievable.

 

[Skkorpion]

Justin Tuck, DE, Notre Dame. Will come out early after another losing year. I really like Tyrone Willingham but he's proving he can't recruit kids to come to Notre Dame either.

 

[Russ Smith]

Who's the coach there? That program's unbelievable.

Bob Ladoceur (sp?). Atari Callen was the guy I was thinking of.

On De La Salle, it is an incredible program but a lot of people don't realize it's a private Catholic High School so they DO recruit(no matter how much they deny it). They get a lot of players on word of mouth of course but they absolutely do go out and pursue the best young players in the area.

So it's not like it's a public school solely dependent on kids in the area attending. but there are private schools all over the country that don't come close. he's a notorious stickler for fundamentals, they run an option offense and there have been years where their biggest OL is like 220 but they still run the hell out of the ball because they execute so well.

 

[kerouac9]

Justin Tuck, DE, Notre Dame. Will come out early after another losing year. I really like Tyrone Willingham but he's proving he can't recruit kids to come to Notre Dame either.

He did not make the Top 10 of the Scouts, Inc., list. I don't think he's on The Sporting News' watch list, either.

 

[Russ Smith]

Justin Tuck, DE, Notre Dame. Will come out early after another losing year. I really like Tyrone Willingham but he's proving he can't recruit kids to come to Notre Dame either.

This will sound bad but I really think what happened to Notre Dame this year can be put at the feet of that idiot Paul Hornung. I have an idea what he meant, but the way he said it he really alienated a LOT of potential recruits for Notre Dame, which is why he's no longer connected they knew they HAD to disassociate themselves.

Willingham is a terrific coach, Stanford hasn't recovered from losing him. But it does appear so far he's not able to recruit the guys he needs to take that team back to the top.

FWIW they could really help themselves by joining a conference, it's really helped in basketball recruiting. I also think the NBC deal is hurting them because they aren't on ESPN, ABC etc and kids care about that stuff these days.

But I admit I'm very biased with Willingham, I watched what he did at Stanford and I think he's a terrific coach, I had him at the top of my list to replace Mac along with Heimderdinger.

 

[WizardOfAz]

Running Back
1. Carnell Williams, Auburn, 5'11", 208
3. T.A. McLendon*, N.C. State, 5'11", 215
6. Deangelo Williams*, Memphis, 5'10", 208
7. Walter Reyes, Syracuse, 5'10", 203


Cornerbacks
3. Justin Miller*, Clemson, 5'10.5", 180
4. Corey Webster, LSU, 5'11.5", 193
5. Will Blackmon*, Boston College, 6'0", 178
6. Charlie Peprah, Alabama, 5'11", 195
7. Carlos Rogers, Auburn, 6'0.4", 196
8. Antonio Perkins, Oklahoma, 6'1", 193
9. Kelly Jennings*, Miami (FL), 6'0", 180
10. Domonique Foxworth, Maryland, 5'11", 178

Whatever the record ends up being next year, these are the two areas that will need to be addressed in my opinion.

 

[kerouac9]

Whatever the record ends up being next year, these are the two areas that will need to be addressed in my opinion.

Mmm-hmmm. I'm guessing that we'll see CB-RB-MLB-DT (maybe even in that order) through the first four rounds of the draft next season. They're easily the thinnest and weakest positions on the team. Easily.

Sadly, next year seems to have a really specactular crop of OLBs. Too bad we've drafted first-dayers at that position for it seems like the past decade.

 

[SECTION 11]

We'll be set with Thompson, Dansby and Hayes inside.
I'd still like to get Lance Mitchell though...

Next year:
will: Thompson, Woods
mike: Hayes, McKinnon
sam: Dansby, Fisher

I know you keep wanting to put Dansby behind Thompson, but he's on the strong side.

 

[kerouac9]

We'll be set with Thompson, Dansby and Hayes inside.
I'd still like to get Lance Mitchell though...

Umm... Maybe Hayes, but I don't believe that Dansby has any experience on the inside. Part one of his liabilities is that he's not great at the point of attack. Remember his pre-draft scouting report?

Vs. inside run: Is quick, instinctive and athletic. Slips blocks. Needs to improve bulk and strength. Must play with better leverage at the point of attack. Has trouble in the phone booth; must improve ability to disengage once reached. Grade: 7.6

Vs. outside run: Terrific size and speed. Is more effective vs. the outside run. Has excellent speed and closing burst. Plays with a good motor and has outstanding lateral movement. Is smooth and makes plays with his natural ability. Grade: 8.3

Blitz/coverage: Is at his best in the passing game. Has long arms and huge hands. Is versatile; has the potential to play strongside, weakside or outside in the 3-4. Has excellent upfield burst and closing speed as a pass rusher. Has the size and speed to match up in man coverage with most running backs and tight ends. Grade: 8.7

Run/pass recognition: [/B]Can be undisciplined and play out of control.[/B] Would have better range in zone with better reaction skills. Made up for inconsistency with athleticism in college but will have to do a better job of reading, reacting and playing with discipline in the NFL. Grade: 7.4

Pursuit/tackling: Is high-cut and doesn't have elite quickness but makes up for it with speed. Has good range vs. the run. Takes solid angles to the ball and is an explosive tackler. Can seal off the backside and chase down plays from behind. Grade: 8.5

Bottom line: Dansby has the potential to play on the strongside or weakside, but his best fit might be at outside linebacker in a 3-4 scheme to take advantage of his versatility in the passing game. He could be drafted late in the first round.

You really, really, really don't want this guy locked in the middle. He may replace Raynoch "The Big Letdown" Thompson, or allow Hayes to move to the inside next season, but personally, I want this guy moving off the edge and dropping into coverage against RBs and TEs, not trying to fill gaps in the middle.

 

[SECTION 11]

Umm... Maybe Hayes, but I don't believe that Dansby has any experience on the inside. Part one of his liabilities is that he's not great at the point of attack. Remember his pre-draft scouting report?



You really, really, really don't want this guy locked in the middle. He may replace Raynoch "The Big Letdown" Thompson, or allow Hayes to move to the inside next season, but personally, I want this guy moving off the edge and dropping into coverage against RBs and TEs, not trying to fill gaps in the middle.

We're on the same page here (except for Thompson, who's better than you think he is).
"... and Hayes in the middle," meant Hayes in the middle, with the other two outside.

 

[kerouac9]

Next year:
will: Thompson, Woods
mike: Hayes, McKinnon
sam: Dansby, Fisher

I know you keep wanting to put Dansby behind Thompson, but he's on the strong side.

Not this year, he's not. This year, I guarantee you he's put in on third downs to do nothing but destroy the QB off the edge. Maybe next season they move him over to the strong side (if he can beat out Levar Fisher), but I bet we'll be seeing a LB corps of

Wendy: Dansby
Mike: Hayes
Sam: Fisher

If Fisher's knees recover--and I think they will--he can be a special player. Otherwise, we have Raynoch and his bloated contract to sub in on either side. Fisher is not the best blitzer, but he can cover recievers and fill gaps. That makes him pretty valuable on the strongside, where those are the primary responsibilites.

Dansby has the potential to collect 10 sacks a season on the weak side (remember, the JET system as the Wendy as it's blitzing LB)--why mess with a good thing?

 

[SECTION 11]

Not this year, he's not. This year, I guarantee you he's put in on third downs to do nothing but destroy the QB off the edge. Maybe next season they move him over to the strong side (if he can beat out Levar Fisher), but I bet we'll be seeing a LB corps of

Wendy: Dansby
Mike: Hayes
Sam: Fisher

Who's this Fisher guy you keep mentioning?

Dansby's backing up Fisher as of right now, per MJ's recap of the starting lineups after mini-camp.

 

[kerouac9]

(except for Thompson, who's better than you think he is).

I don't know. Mac did everything he could to place Thompson in a position to succeed (at the expense of other players, IMO), and Raynoch has never been able to deliver.

Of course, Pro Football Weekly also seems to take my point of view:

Our sources in the Valley would not be surprised if Cardinals OLB Raynoch Thompson changed his mind about wanting to leave Arizona after realizing that his market value on the open market [sic] wasn't nearly as high as he thought it might be.

When Green talks about a loser's mentality, it wouldn't surprise me to find that Raynoch is one of the players he was talking about. That might have been why his job was in jeopardy.

 

[SECTION 11]

I don't know. Mac did everything he could to place Thompson in a position to succeed (at the expense of other players, IMO), and Raynoch has never been able to deliver.

Of course, Pro Football Weekly also seems to take my point of view:



When Green talks about a loser's mentality, it wouldn't surprise me to find that Raynoch is one of the players he was talking about. That might have been why his job was in jeopardy.

At this point I like LeVar Woods better than either Thompson or Fisher.

We'll see what happens, but go ahead and pencil in (with a Sharpie) Dansby and Thompson on the outside.