Draft Preview: LB

[Mitch]

Starters:

LOLB: 91-Matt Schaughnessy---strong versus run
LILB: 51-Kevin Minter---adds youth and inside toughness
RILB: 58-Daryl Washington---star player facing another suspension
ROLB: 55-John Abraham---impact rusher

Backups:

LOLB: 94-Sam Acho---injured, high character underachiever
LILB: 54-Kenny Demens---played well in PS last year
RILB: 97-Lorenzo Alexander---injured ST ace shifting back inside
ROLB: 59-Marcus Benard---nickel rusher opposite JA

Bubble:

53-JoJo Dixon (I)
57-Alex Okafor (O)
44-Kenny Rowe (O)
47-Adrian Tracy (O)

Draft Possibilities:

Steve Keim has mentioned LB as an early priority in this draft---and has stated that he wants "length" at the OLB position, which is a little curious since the Cardinals have drafted two Texas OLBers with reasonable length in Sam Acho and Alex Okafor, both of whom have yet to show the consistent ability to generate edge pressure.

Smaller OLBs Kenny Rowe and Adrian Tracy are faster than Acho and Okafor, but not as physical. Marcus Benard is the second best edge rusher on the current roster (behind Abraham) at 6-2, 256. Speed rusher Dontay Moch was released and re-claimed by the Bengals.

It could be that Todd Bowles' edge philosophy is to have longer edge players like Shaughnessy (6-5, 285) who can hammer down versus the run and offer solid, outside arm-free contain in the pass rush---as they effectively orchestrated versus Seattle where the strategy was to box QB Russell Wilson into the pocket.

If this is the case, one wouldn't expect the Cardinals to draft Dee Ford (6-2, 243, Auburn) or Ryan Shazier (6-2, 230, Ohio St.), both of whom are speed guys on the edges with the ability to chase down mobile QBs.

The OLB/DE types of intrigue in this draft are:

Anthony Barr (6-5, 248, UCLA)---whom some compare to John Abraham.
Kony Ealy (6-5, 275, Missouri)---can play inside at 34DE would have to transition to OLB
Scott Crichton (6-3, 265, Oregon St.)---compares to a young Shaughnessy
Trent Murphy (6-6, 252, Stanford)---tenacious, but not s speed guy
Kyle Van Noy (6-3, 244, BYU)---a versatile 3 down LB
Trevor Reilly (6-5, 255, Utah)---a player in his mid-20s, who has good instincts
Marcus Smith (6-4, 258, Louisville)---long armed rusher w/o elite speed
Will Clarke (6-6, 271, West Virginia)---long and strong but lacks quicks
Jeremiah Attaochu (6-3, 252, Georgia Tech)---speedy but lacks strength
James Gayle (6-4, 255, Virginia Tech)---active feet, but slow off the snap
Aaron Lynch (6-5, 244, South Florida)---ND transfer with talent, but red flags
Ethan Westbrooks (6-4, 264, West Taxas A&M)---raw but athletic
Kareem Martin (6-6, 272, North Carolina)---strong side edge w/ limited flexibility
Demarcus Lawrence (6-3, 245, Boise St.)---quick edge rusher, high effort guy
Adrian Hubbard (6-6, 255, Alabama)---athletic underachiever whom Cards worked out
Ronald Powell (6-3, 240, Florida)---explosive rusher returning from ACL tears
Jordan Tripp (6-3, 237, Montana)---fiery athlete on smallish side
Howard Jones (6-2, 229, Howard)---smallish speed rusher whom Cards have worked out.
Tyler Starr (6-4, 249, South Dakota)---small school dynamo who played well at the East/West Shrine game
Larry Webster (6-6, 249, Bloomsburg)---small school star who is a little light, but very athletic---Cards worked out.
Chris Smith (6-1, 266, Arkansas)---would not fit the mold size-wise, but has rushing talent

Inside Possibilities:

My gut feeling is that after the draft the Cardinals will sign a veteran, as they did with Dansby last year. The guy they may pursue is Larry Foote who is coming off an injury riddled season with the Steelers.

Some intriguing ILBers in this draft:

C .J. Mosely (6-2, 232, Alabama)---should he slide to #20, he could be too good to pass up as BPA. Could play outside too.
Yawin Smallwood (6-3, 236, Connecticut)---fluid and versatile like Dansby
Christian Jones (6-4, 234, Florida St.)---has Dansby-like qualities
Chris Borland (5-11, 245, Wisconsin)---small, but super productive
Shayne Skov (6-2, 245, Stanford)---Physical and fierce, but lacks speed
Lamin Barrow (6-1, 229, LSU)---speedy but on the small side
Preston Brown (6-1, 262, Louisville)---physical and feisty

 

[Cbus cardsfan]

That's alot of talent at the OLB position. I wouldn't be surprised if the Cards drafted 2 LB's this draft.

Another ILB I like is Max Bullough.

Compare these numbers:

6'3 249, 4.78, 31 vertical, 30 bench, shuttle 4.30, cone 7.22
6'2 234, 4.63, 35 vertical, no bench(thumb), shuttle 4.40, cone 7.30

The bigger guy seems to be more nimble in the box and change of direction.

One is a likely top 20 pick. The other is a 5-6 rounder. Bullough vs. Mosley. Granted Mosley is a much better player but Bullough was a 2 time captain and is a pretty good player in his own right.

 

[WildBB]

It'll be interesting what they do in the 1st if they keep their pick.'

They could go SS, DL or OLB with that pick easily.

There has been some speculation about getting TB's rookie QB Glennon for a later Rd. pick (4-5). That would surely open the door for going with three D picks in succession 1-3. With a TE possible as well.

1-Hageman
2-Ward
3-Lawrence

1-Pryor
2-Easley
3-Lawrence

 

[az jam]

Shazier can play inside or outside. Keim (in an interview with Ron Wolfley) compared him to the 49ers Patrick Willis. Cards also brought Shazier in for a visit. I would not be surprised if the Cards take him at #20.

 

[Garthshort]

I like Easley, but he has injury CONCERNS.

 

[Bodha]

Good breakdown, thanks for taking the time

It could be that Todd Bowles' edge philosophy is to have longer edge players like Shaughnessy (6-5, 285) who can hammer down versus the run and offer solid, outside arm-free contain in the pass rush---as they effectively orchestrated versus Seattle where the strategy was to box QB Russell Wilson into the pocket.

If this is the case, one expect expect the Cardinals to draft Dee Ford (6-2, 243, Auburn) or Ryan Shazier (6-2, 230, Ohio St.), both of whom are speed guys on the edges with the ability to chase down mobile QBs.

I feverishly disagree. Guys who actually get to QB are infinitely more valuable than guys who can box a QB into the pocket. Peyton Manning probably has dreams about facing Ds filled with Shaughnessy pass rushers.

The best pass rushers in the NFL have always been speed guys. And they still currently are. Very few bull rushers can alter a game. The rarities are Justin Smith and sometime Watt, although he is also very fast (but neither are OLBs though)


Dee Fords upside is appealing


however I feel Shazier is the winner. Hes already on the Cards radar and he offers a beautiful 1-2 punch complement to your power man Matt Shaughnessy. Shazier is lightning fast, versatile and extremely instinctive.

I think hes a cant pass. He checks every box on our wants/needs list. TE coverage, speed off the edge. And like I said, hes a perfect complement to what we have in place already.

 

[WildBB]

I like Easley, but he has injury CONCERNS.

Otherwise he'd go 1st. High reward pick.

 

[WildBB]

Good breakdown, thanks for taking the time



I feverishly disagree. Guys who actually get to QB are infinitely more valuable than guys who can box a QB into the pocket. Peyton Manning probably has dreams about facing Ds filled with Shaughnessy pass rushers.

The best pass rushers in the NFL have always been speed guys. And they still currently are. Very few bull rushers can alter a game. The rarities are Justin Smith and sometime Watt, although he is also very fast (but neither are OLBs though)


Dee Fords upside is appealing


however I feel Shazier is the winner. Hes already on the Cards radar and he offers a beautiful 1-2 punch complement to your power man Matt Shaughnessy. Shazier is lightning fast, versatile and extremely instinctive.

I think hes a cant pass. He checks every box on our wants/needs list. TE coverage, speed off the edge. And like I said, hes a perfect complement to what we have in place already.

Was he asked to cover much at OSU? I thought he stayed in the box more or less. Van Noy would be the best cover OLB, mtl. I'd say he's a possibility in the 2nd.

Shazier wouldn't be a horrible pick @20 though. I'd be able to live with that. He just can't bring the heat like Ford could though. We need a young pass rusher.

 

[GuernseyCard]

Combine Measurables

(Comparing 1. P. Willis - 2. Shazier - 3. D-Wash)

1. 6'1" - 242
2. 6"1" - 238
3. 6'2" - 230

Vertical
1. 39"
2. 42"
3. 31"

Bench (225)
1. 22
2. 25
3. 17

40 yard dash
1. 4.51
2. 4.38
3. 4.58

Broad Jump
1. 11.9
2. 13.0
3. 11.4

20 yard Shuttle
1. 4.46
2. 4.21
3. NA

Cone Drill
1. 7.23
2. 6.91
3. 7.07

 

[Mitch]

Good breakdown, thanks for taking the time



I feverishly disagree. Guys who actually get to QB are infinitely more valuable than guys who can box a QB into the pocket. Peyton Manning probably has dreams about facing Ds filled with Shaughnessy pass rushers.

The best pass rushers in the NFL have always been speed guys. And they still currently are. Very few bull rushers can alter a game. The rarities are Justin Smith and sometime Watt, although he is also very fast (but neither are OLBs though)


Dee Fords upside is appealing


however I feel Shazier is the winner. Hes already on the Cards radar and he offers a beautiful 1-2 punch complement to your power man Matt Shaughnessy. Shazier is lightning fast, versatile and extremely instinctive.

I think hes a cant pass. He checks every box on our wants/needs list. TE coverage, speed off the edge. And like I said, hes a perfect complement to what we have in place already.

I too like Dee Ford and Ryan Shazier---and of the two, I am leaning toward Shazier---but what i love about Ford is how excellent he was at containing and tackling mobile QBs such as Manziel and Winston (similar in some ways to Wilson and Kaepernick).

Ford played DE at Auburn while Shazier played LB at Ohio St. As a 43 DE, it is expected that scouts would question his ability to defend the run---but---on the edge as a 34OLB Ford might be solid---it's just that no one knows yet because there's no tape to confirm.

What I love about Shazier is his sheer speed in getting to the football. It's like he's shot out of a cannon. Plus, he's got like a 40" vertical, which makes him a great threat to bat passes down and to break up passes in coverage.

The other reason why I am leaning toward Shazier is that I believe he could start for D-Wash until D-Wash returns. Shazier's versatility is very appealing---plus moving him around in blitzes is very similar to what we got with Adrian Wilson.

What I question is whether Shazier can rush the passer as a nickel DE. With Ford I have no doubt. So---it's an intriguing choice.

I know others scoff at this, but I think Shazier could play SS. He has the size, strength, tackling ability and speed to play well there. He's faster (4.36) than all of the top safeties in the draft.

Check out this recent article with video:

http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap20...zier-could-be-instantimpact-rookie-on-defense

 

[Mitch]

Combine Measurables

(Comparing 1. P. Willis - 2. Shazier - 3. D-Wash)

1. 6'1" - 242
2. 6"1" - 238
3. 6'2" - 230

Vertical
1. 39"
2. 42"
3. 31"

Bench (225)
1. 22
2. 25
3. 17

40 yard dash
1. 4.51
2. 4.38
3. 4.58

Broad Jump
1. 11.9
2. 13.0
3. 11.4

20 yard Shuttle
1. 4.46
2. 4.21
3. NA

Cone Drill
1. 7.23
2. 6.91
3. 7.07

What an excellent post! Thank you!

 

[Cbus cardsfan]

The only thing I worry about with Shazier is his size. He's pretty much maxed out at 238(even then I think he's hiding rocks in his pockets). He hasn't played at OSU over 225. That's safety size in the NFL.

 

[GuernseyCard]

The only thing I worry about with Shazier is his size. He's pretty much maxed out at 238(even then I think he's hiding rocks in his pockets). He hasn't played at OSU over 225. That's safety size in the NFL.

Didn't they say the same about D-Wash when he came out at 230? He put on 10 LB's of muscle since.

(If we are looking for a Safety, let's draft someone who has actually played the position.)

 

[Ohcrap75]

I agree with Cbus, Shazier might not have ability to add size n strength he needs to compete in NFL. He looks like a safety playing LB at Ohio st, that scares me for his transition to the next level.

 

[Cbus cardsfan]

Didn't they say the same about D-Wash when he came out at 230? He put on 10 LB's of muscle since.

(If we are looking for a Safety, let's draft someone who has actually played the position.)

I didn't and wouldn't advocate playing Shazier at safety.

As for the D wash comparison, it would be fine if the Cards were drafting Shazier to play the same position but they are looking at OLB and, in a 3-4 scheme, both Dwash and Shazier would have issues because of their lack of size.

 

[GuernseyCard]

I agree with Cbus, Shazier might not have ability to add size n strength he needs to compete in NFL. He looks like a safety playing LB at Ohio st, that scares me for his transition to the next level.

Really?

He's bigger, stronger and faster than D-wash coming out.

 

[juza76]

Shazier can play inside or outside. Keim (in an interview with Ron Wolfley) compared him to the 49ers Patrick Willis. Cards also brought Shazier in for a visit. I would not be surprised if the Cards take him at #20.

Can u post the link ?

 

[Jay Cardinal]

I am really excited by the depth at OLB this year. Would love to end up with any one of:

Anthony Barr
Dee Ford
Jeremiah Attaochu
Kyle Van Noy
Ryan Shazier

I have to think they will all be picked by the end of the second round. I think Barr probably goes early, but Cards have their choice of the next four at #20. A trade down would make sense, but it all depends on how Keim values these guys. Keim may have Shazier off the board as he is a perfect fit for a 4-3 OLB, and very small for a 3-4 OLB.

 

[kerouac9]

That's alot of talent at the OLB position. I wouldn't be surprised if the Cards drafted 2 LB's this draft.

Everything that I've read and heard about this draft is that there's a number of prospects at OLB that are gambles, but few players that you're going to be able to get between 15 and 90 or so that you'll feel good about after a year.

I don't know if the Cards drafted 2 OLBs--they've got some draft and developmental capital invested there, as well as some free agent money. Are they preprared to cut Okeafor and/or Acho at the end of camp, or give up on a prospect from this draft class? I just don't know.

I do expect that we'll draft an ILB if one falls in the third round or later, because we'll have a need on special teams and depth with the departures of both Brinkley and Dansby.

 

[Totally_Red]

Can u post the link ?

This was at the Cardinals Spring Tailgate last Thursday. It was televised live on Fox Sports Arizona.

I saw the same interview and SK was effusive in his praise of everyone Wolfley asked him about including Johnny Manziel, Calvin Pryor and Ryan Shazier. If he had a problem with Shazier's size he concealed it well.

Excluding height, Ryan Shazier perfectly fits what the Cardinals are stocking their roster with IMO. He is a high character team leader who seems to eat, sleep and breath football. When Keim compared him to Patrick Willis, I sat up and took notice. He's most definitely one of the players on the Cardinals radar.

 

[BigRedRage]

Everything that I've read and heard about this draft is that there's a number of prospects at OLB that are gambles, but few players that you're going to be able to get between 15 and 90 or so that you'll feel good about after a year.

I don't know if the Cards drafted 2 OLBs--they've got some draft and developmental capital invested there, as well as some free agent money. Are they preprared to cut Okeafor and/or Acho at the end of camp, or give up on a prospect from this draft class? I just don't know.

I do expect that we'll draft an ILB if one falls in the third round or later, because we'll have a need on special teams and depth with the departures of both Brinkley and Dansby.

I think they were prepared to cut okeafor years ago

 

[juza76]

This was at the Cardinals Spring Tailgate last Thursday. It was televised live on Fox Sports Arizona.

I saw the same interview and SK was effusive in his praise of everyone Wolfley asked him about including Johnny Manziel, Calvin Pryor and Ryan Shazier. If he had a problem with Shazier's size he concealed it well.

Excluding height, Ryan Shazier perfectly fits what the Cardinals are stocking their roster with IMO. He is a high character team leader who seems to eat, sleep and breath football. When Keim compared him to Patrick Willis, I sat up and took notice. He's most definitely one of the players on the Cardinals radar.

Do u know where i can find video or audio of this interview?

 

[BigRedRage]

Do u know where i can find video or audio of this interview?

http://www.azcardinals.com/videos-photos/videos/channel/cards-tv

http://www.footballleaguevideos.com/arizona-cardinals-spring-tailgate-9626/

 

[juza76]

http://www.azcardinals.com/videos-photos/videos/channel/cards-tv

http://www.footballleaguevideos.com/arizona-cardinals-spring-tailgate-9626/

Thank u very much

 

[GuernseyCard]

This was at the Cardinals Spring Tailgate last Thursday. It was televised live on Fox Sports Arizona.

I saw the same interview and SK was effusive in his praise of everyone Wolfley asked him about including Johnny Manziel, Calvin Pryor and Ryan Shazier. If he had a problem with Shazier's size he concealed it well.

Excluding height, Ryan Shazier perfectly fits what the Cardinals are stocking their roster with IMO. He is a high character team leader who seems to eat, sleep and breath football. When Keim compared him to Patrick Willis, I sat up and took notice. He's most definitely one of the players on the Cardinals radar.

Same height as Willis - 6-1