80th pick Jamell Fleming

[Duckjake]

Anyone who doesn't think that cornerback was a need wasn't following the Arizona Cardinals very closely. Greg Toler is a former 4th round pick from a teeny tiny program who hasn't spent any time in the system. A.J. Jefferson is hot garbage. William Gay was the worst starter for the Pittsburgh Steelers last year.

You can never have too many corners, and we didn't have enough even before Greg Toler got hurt last year. This makes it less likely that Mike Adams ever sees the football field except on special teams. That in itself is a good thing.

Another thing is this kid is supposed to be a really good special teams player. Overshadowed by Petersons punt returns was that our coverage units weren't the greatest last season. So this selection should bring some help.

Also probably means Marshay Green's days as a Cardinal are over. Good kid but he was just too small for the NFL.

 

[D-Dogg]

I love the pick. BPA all day long.

 

[Duckjake]

Big 12 defensive players make me scratch my head and shrug my shoulders.

Except for Texas defensive players: Sam Acho, Michael Griffin, Lamar Houston, Brian Orakpo, Earl Thomas, Brian Robinson et al.

Well those that don't fall down the stairs anyway.

 

[Southpaw]

Except for Texas defensive players: Sam Acho, Michael Griffin, Lamar Houston, Brian Orakpo, Earl Thomas, Brian Robinson et al.

Well those that don't fall down the stairs anyway.

I see so many Big 12 teams throwing up 50 points on each other so regularly, it makes me wonder if the O's are that good or the D's are that bad or a combination of both. Fun to watch, though.

 

[Dougmo]

Easy Duck!

Of course I'm a total homer, but everytime I watched this kid, I always thought he would be playing on Sundays. He was pretty domininating. Always in good position, and really reacted well to the ball when it was in the air.

Its hard to say exactly how his skills will translate to the next level, but I wouldn't be surprised if this season he ends up starting next to peterson.

That's good to hear from somebody who had watched this guy quite a bit. When you say 'dominating' do you mean like in press coverage? I've read totally conflicting things about this, one saying he was a press guy and the other saying he was a finesse cover guy. One also said he very good zone awareness, another saying the reason he struggled at the senior bowl was because they had him play so much zone, which wasn't his thing.
Stupid interwebs!

 

[BigRedRage]

That's good to hear from somebody who had watched this guy quite a bit. When you say 'dominating' do you mean like in press coverage? I've read totally conflicting things about this, one saying he was a press guy and the other saying he was a finesse cover guy. One also said he very good zone awareness, another saying the reason he struggled at the senior bowl was because they had him play so much zone, which wasn't his thing.
Stupid interwebs!

hes a press guy who fails in zone coverage.

 

[ajcardfan]

Anyone who doesn't think that cornerback was a need wasn't following the Arizona Cardinals very closely. Greg Toler is a former 4th round pick from a teeny tiny program who hasn't spent any time in the system. A.J. Jefferson is hot garbage. William Gay was the worst starter for the Pittsburgh Steelers last year.

You can never have too many corners, and we didn't have enough even before Greg Toler got hurt last year. This makes it less likely that Mike Adams ever sees the football field except on special teams. That in itself is a good thing.

Totally agree. It's now the hardest position to find guys who can fill it, and play well, for several years. With the rules the way they are, the slightest loss of confidence or speed means you are going to get burned a lot. Plus, CBs are often counted on for special teams.

As far as I'm concerned, we can draft a CB in the first three rounds every draft. I watched Oklahoma a lot, and this kid is good. Even if we had two Pro Bowlers starting last season, I wouldn't bitch about it.

 

[ajcardfan]

I see so many Big 12 teams throwing up 50 points on each other so regularly, it makes me wonder if the O's are that good or the D's are that bad or a combination of both. Fun to watch, though.

I'm an Aggie, so I watched a lot of Big 12 football. The last few years, I don't any other conference had more good QBs top to bottom. Even bad teams like Kansas have QB as the strength of their team.

 

[Crazy Canuck]

Anyone who doesn't think that cornerback was a need wasn't following the Arizona Cardinals very closely. Greg Toler is a former 4th round pick from a teeny tiny program who hasn't spent any time in the system. A.J. Jefferson is hot garbage. William Gay was the worst starter for the Pittsburgh Steelers last year.

You can never have too many corners, and we didn't have enough even before Greg Toler got hurt last year. This makes it less likely that Mike Adams ever sees the football field except on special teams. That in itself is a good thing.

Gay had a bad 2010. The worst DB in Pitt in 2011 was the guy he replaced. You may remember him.

 

[gmabel830]

Saw this in passing.. assuming that Sando was referring to our Fleming?

Mike Sando:
Fleming has had three surgeries on his left shoulder, something to consider.

EDIT - Nevermind, different Fleming - as noted below.

 

[CardsFan88]

Saw this in passing.. assuming that Sando was referring to our Fleming?

Mike Sando:
Fleming has had three surgeries on his left shoulder, something to consider.

Niners picked a guy with the same last name. I think he was referring to him.

Yep

Darius Fleming (OLB) Notre Dame

 

[gmabel830]

Niners picked a guy with the same last name. I think he was referring to him.

Yep

Darius Fleming (OLB) Notre Dame

Thanks for the clarification! Just googled it and you are correct. Saw the line in passing in an ESPN live chat.

 

[Crimson Warrior]

hes a press guy who fails in zone coverage.

all I know is that 95% of the time, when the opposing QB threw his way, fleming was right on his man. He was our best cover corner, and the college equivalent of a shut-down DB.

I completely believe we would have won the 2011 Texas Tech game had he played.

Again, at this point, I'm not saying that he will be anything more than a dime back and ST contributor, he won't be covering 20 year kids from Lubbock HS anymore.

However, I do think he has a legitimate chance to take over the #2 CB spot on our roster. He's a talented and fundamentally sound football player.