Gareon

[Mitch]

Brett Kollman's analysis of Ohio St.'s Gareon Conley is equally impressive.

Conley ranked as the most efficient CB in CFB --- and with good reason.

However, as Kollman adeptly points out, the area of Conley's game that needs the most attention is his lack of aggressiveness and technique in press coverage. We know the Cardinals love to play press man. Conley excels in off-coverage, but with the proper training, with his length, footwork, ball skills and speed he could become a superb all-around cover CB.

Here's the analysis:

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[JeffGollin]

Four CB traits which, for me, raise the reddest of flags & are likely to be draft-killers:

- Too small

- Too slow

- Can't tackle

- Not aggressive enough in man coverage

I'm not sure aggressiveness can be coached (Either you got it or you don't). For this reason, I'd be nervous about drafting Conley.

 

[az jam]

Four CB traits which, for me, raise the reddest of flags & are likely to be draft-killers:

- Too small

- Too slow

- Can't tackle

- Not aggressive enough in man coverage

I'm not sure aggressiveness can be coached (Either you got it or you don't). For this reason, I'd be nervous about drafting Conley.

He is 6' 1/4" 195 lbs and ran a 4.44 forty at the Combine.

 

[overseascardfan]

Maybe OSU doesn't play press coverage. I interpret his lack of aggressiveness as a positive. It shows me he isn't reckless and plays to his strengths.

Let's start referring to him as his nickname "Con Man".

 

[Reddog]

Four CB traits which, for me, raise the reddest of flags & are likely to be draft-killers:

- Too small

- Too slow

- Can't tackle

- Not aggressive enough in man coverage

I'm not sure aggressiveness can be coached (Either you got it or you don't). For this reason, I'd be nervous about drafting Conley.

I agree with this. Usually aggressiveness physically ties with the overall competitive mentality.

 

[WildBB]

Talent yes, not sure he's a great fit for our defense. Is his tackling above average?

 

[JeffGollin]

He is 6' 1/4" 195 lbs and ran a 4.44 forty at the Combine.

You missed my point. Dude can be good in three of the four areas mentioned, but a weakness in the 4th is enough to avoid him. Conley is said to lack aggressiveness. I don't think you can teach that.

Boom.

 

[Mitch]

You missed my point. Dude can be good in three of the four areas mentioned, but a weakness in the 4th is enough to avoid him. Conley is said to lack aggressiveness. I don't think you can teach that.

Boom.

Gareon only lacks aggressiveness in jamming the WR at the line of scrimmage. The Buckeye coaches might have told him to shadow, not bump. In all other aspects of his play, he is very aggressive --- one of the more aggressive ballhawks in the draft, in fact.

 

[Bodha]

He reminds me of Marcus Cooper, in both the good and bad.


the good is very good

the bad is very bad



Given that we are a Man-D, and the #2 CB will be thrown at all day, I would prefer the top press-man-D specialist in the draft....Quincy Wilson.

I think the Ohio CBs might be more talented, but I think Quincy will have a better career than both here in terms of fit.

 

[overseascardfan]

He reminds me of Marcus Cooper, in both the good and bad.


the good is very good

the bad is very bad



Given that we are a Man-D, and the #2 CB will be thrown at all day, I would prefer the top press-man-D specialist in the draft....Quincy Wilson.

I think the Ohio CBs might be more talented, but I think Quincy will have a better career than both here in terms of fit.

"Press-corner with experience at both cornerback spots and an ability to fit into a variety of coverage techniques" This is from his draft profile on NFL.com. I'll concede he needs strength and muscle for run support but I would take a baggage free Aqib Talib (draft comparison).

 

[Mitch]

He reminds me of Marcus Cooper, in both the good and bad.


the good is very good

the bad is very bad



Given that we are a Man-D, and the #2 CB will be thrown at all day, I would prefer the top press-man-D specialist in the draft....Quincy Wilson.

I think the Ohio CBs might be more talented, but I think Quincy will have a better career than both here in terms of fit.

Bodha---not sure how you see GC playing "very bad." He had the highest CB rating in CFB. The one knock on him, as Brett K. alluded to is his tendency to shadow in press coverage, rather than bump and run. He is way more savvy, sticky and natural at flipping his hips and looking back for the ball than Marcus Cooper. With good coaching he can become a legit #1 CB.

 

[Bodha]

"Press-corner with experience at both cornerback spots and an ability to fit into a variety of coverage techniques" This is from his draft profile on NFL.com. I'll concede he needs strength and muscle for run support but I would take a baggage free Aqib Talib (draft comparison).

His lack of physicality in press is very concerning because press corners should be very physical. He's very athletic so he's able to shadow guys and run in-step, but its still very important to be able to jam guys. He's definitely a good player, I just think Quincy would be a better fit.

And also you should consider that he started all of 2015. I like that he has multiple years of experience, but 2015 wasnt as strong. People are only focused on 2016, without considering he had elite talent around him.

 

[Bodha]

Id be happy if we draft conley. i just feel Quincy would be better for our defense.


Im not a big fan of hype videos like this (always with bad music), but this video shows my 2 favorite things about Quincy:

1. Physical. Hes very physical with WRs. Always jamming them or bumping them
2. His timing. If you watch from 1:45 on, almost every highlight shows incredible timing to rip the ball away just as it reaches the WR. He doesnt grab the WR or pass interference.

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[Harry]

Conley will be a decent corner. He will be able to press when needed since he's solid physically. It was more of a system thing at OSU. Wilson is a good corner but he will get beat deep more than Conley.

 

[Cbus cardsfan]

I though Conley was the best DB at OSU last year.

I also think the OSU DB's will be more NFL ready than some other college DB's because of the addition of Greg Schiano to the staff last year. He brings a NFL HC background and that really helped.

Plus, OSU has a pretty strong history when it comes to DB's playing in the NFL.

 

[Garthshort]

Not sure who we should draft at CB, but I'm guessing the position will be addressed in round two, with a safety added in round three or four. But, no doubt, it is our biggest position of need.

 

[overseascardfan]

I though Conley was the best DB at OSU last year.

I also think the OSU DB's will be more NFL ready than some other college DB's because of the addition of Greg Schiano to the staff last year. He brings a NFL HC background and that really helped.

Plus, OSU has a pretty strong history when it comes to DB's playing in the NFL.

Man I hope SK feels the same way at #13.

 

[kerouac9]

Brett Kollman's analysis of Ohio St.'s Gareon Conley is equally impressive.

Conley ranked as the most efficient CB in CFB --- and with good reason.

However, as Kollman adeptly points out, the area of Conley's game that needs the most attention is his lack of aggressiveness and technique in press coverage. We know the Cardinals love to play press man. Conley excels in off-coverage, but with the proper training, with his length, footwork, ball skills and speed he could become a superb all-around cover CB.

Here's the analysis:

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You think this, but it is not so. The Cards love to play off-man. They don't play press man because they rarely provide the safety help over the top. This is why you frequently see the Cards giving 5-8 yard cushions on the outside.

 

[Mitch]

You think this, but it is not so. The Cards love to play off-man. They don't play press man because they rarely provide the safety help over the top. This is why you frequently see the Cards giving 5-8 yard cushions on the outside.

The reason why we saw so many cushions at RCB after the first couple of games is that neither B. Williams not M. Cooper were any good at it. Bettcher would prefer to press whenever he can. Even when he is disguising zones.

 

[kerouac9]

The reason why we saw so many cushions at RCB after the first couple of games is that neither B. Williams not M. Cooper were any good at it. Bettcher would prefer to press whenever he can. Even when he is disguising zones.

How do you know Bettcher's preferences? Even PP doesn't play press technique, nor Matthieu when he's in the slot.

Press puts the defender at a disadvantage unless there's structural protection over the top. You can't play press and cover-zero, and Bettcher has shown that he'd prefer to play cover zero.

You can play press with inferior talent if you're protecting them with a cover-2 shell. We don't do that.

 

[Mitch]

How do you know Bettcher's preferences? Even PP doesn't play press technique, nor Matthieu when he's in the slot.

Press puts the defender at a disadvantage unless there's structural protection over the top. You can't play press and cover-zero, and Bettcher has shown that he'd prefer to play cover zero.

You can play press with inferior talent if you're protecting them with a cover-2 shell. We don't do that.

Patrick Peterson presses on almost every play. Not sure why you think it's otherwise.

 

[kerouac9]

Patrick Peterson presses on almost every play. Not sure why you think it's otherwise.

Because I watch the games? Here are the Cards' first two snaps against New Orleans, I'll let the board decide whether Peterson is playing press technique.

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[Mitch]

The Saints' game was an anomaly---Bettcher fooled with a bunch of loose zones and Brees picked them apart left and right. It was ugly. As in 48-41 L ugly.

In fact, the FOX crew was incredulous as to why Peterson was not matched up man to man versus Brandon Cooks, who went off in this game to the tune of 7/186/2TDs.

Typically, Peterson is assigned to cover the other team's best WR and he loves to press and mirror, like he did with Julio Jones the entire game.

As for Bettcher he has said himself a numerous occasions that he prefers to play press man-to-man coverage. If you recall, he tried to do that with Brandon Williams all pre-season, which was a daunting task for a very inexperienced rookie. Press coverage takes years of reps to master. Even Peterson struggled with it his first couple of years.

 

[kerouac9]

The Saints' game was an anomaly---Bettcher fooled with a bunch of loose zones and Brees picked them apart left and right. It was ugly.

In fact, the FOX crew was incredulous as to why Peterson was not matched up man to man versus Brandon Cooks, who went off in this game to the tune of 7/186/2TDs.

Typically, Peterson is assigned to cover the other team's best WR and he loves to press and mirror, like he did with Julio Jones the entire game.

As for Bettcher he has said himself a numerous occasions that he prefers to play press man-to-man coverage. If you recall, he tried to do that with Brandon Williams all pre-season, which was a daunting task for a very inexperienced rookie. Press coverage takes years of reps to master. Even Peterson struggled with it his first couple of years.

I'll anticipate your citations on Bettcher's preference for press man. In reality, off-man and trail technique is a much more difficult task for NFL players to learn, because they have to anticipate breaks happening in front of them and study tendencies to anticipate them. It's much more mentally demanding than trying to stay in the opponent's hip pocket.

I'll check the tape on Peterson vs. Jones in the Atlanta game. On the first snap, Peterson did, in fact, play press technique.

 

[kerouac9]

Typically, Peterson is assigned to cover the other team's best WR and he loves to press and mirror, like he did with Julio Jones the entire game.

Utter nonsense. I just reviewed every play on the coach's tape from that game. Peterson was playing off man coverage three times as often as he was playing press technique. Even in the first half, before he got a slight ankle injury, he was playing off man twice as often.