Universaldraft.com's Updated Mock Draft 4/4/09 - 2 Rounds | Page 8 | FinHeaven - Miami Dolphins Forums

Universaldraft.com's Updated Mock Draft 4/4/09 - 2 Rounds

ckparrothead said:
Except that as I just explained, Paul Kruger is LESS of a projection than any other conversion prospect in the draft due to his experience. At this point, Clint Sintim isn't even a "conversion" prospect at all.



And yet the Matt Roths and Calvin Paces of the world continue to start, while the Vernon Gholstons and Quentin Moses, Charlie Andersons of the world...sit the bench.

Why? Because setting the edge, and getting off blocks to make a play on the runner, are the top priorities for the position on the strong side. Pass rush is a distant second.



Preferences are all fine and good but it does depend on whether we're talking about the strong or weak side.

Strong Side Candidates: Brian Orakpo, Robert Ayers, Connor Barwin, Paul Kruger, Clint Sintim, David Veikune, Henry Melton

Weak Side Candidates: Everette Brown, Aaron Maybin, Michael Johnson, Larry English, Lawrence Sidbury, Cody Brown
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CK, I know we've discussed Michael Johnson to death at this point, but could you explain why you prefer him to Larry English?
 
dsipher13 said:
If we chose Kruger with that pick with these other players on the board that are way more talented I would throw up. Kruger = Matt Roth . I have nothing against Matt but why we take a player that has the same build with short arms, lack luster speed, and a liability in coverage.
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Can you show me where it is said that Kruger has short arms?

That's why the Cowboys drafted Kevin Burnett, to fill that role in nickel situations. Allowing guys to rush more, and thats why they have looked at Marcus Freeman and Jason Williams for the same role. All of this was mentioned before.
 
DearbornDolfan said:
I don't remember the name of the cat who said it, but he works for NFL Network now and did quite a bit of time working for Al Davis on the management side and knows the guy quite well. If he says no 40, no draft from Davis, then it's a wrap. If Crabtree can walk at all right now after his surgery, it's only with crutches; he sure as hell won't be running a 40 in the near future.
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I believe you on this one. For sure. I'm not one that would project Crabtree to the Raiders at #7, though I respect Richard's opinion on it.

Can't tackle? Or hasn't been properly schooled? I could teach a guy to properly tackle every time with a couple weeks of fundamental drills. I'm sure the coaching staff would do an even better job. And the comparison to Jason Allen is exactly why I want the Fins to have nothing to do with Sean Smith. The cat's a safety, straight up, and the Fins need a corner with serious cover skills.
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I can guarantee that Darius Butler has had some very good coaching at Connecticut under Randy Edsall, who was a defensive coordinator under Head Coach Paul Pasqualoni at Syracuse University, and coached defensive backs under Tom Coughlin both at Boston College and with the Jacksonville Jaguars. The assertion that you could do with Darius Butler in a few weeks what Randy Edsall hasn't been able to do with him in four years...well, I don't want to insult anyone on the board, but it doesn't make you look good. I hope you don't take offense to me saying that.

As for the "comparison" between Jason Allen and Sean Smith...the proper question is, who is making the comparison? Because, it seems to me that if Sean Smith and Jason Allen are getting compared, then EVERY biggie-sized corner is going to be compared to Jason Allen for some reason or other.

The fact of the matter is Jason Allen has athleticism and burst that Sean Smith really couldn't dream of. On the other hand, Sean Smith has a smooth back pedal and level frame of vision, the ability to read players in front of him and press them at the line that Jason Allen does not display. They were both high school running backs, but Sean Smith was a receiver his first two years at Utah. He only played CB his final two years. Allen was playing on defense the whole time at Tennessee.

They're just two different guys, with two completely different sizes, two completely different levels of speed, two completely different histories. The ONLY thing they have in common is that coming out, people didn't know whether Jason Allen should be a safety or corner because when injuries forced him to play safety his junior year, he was an All SEC performer at that position, whereas he was not the best of cornerbacks. Nobody doubted that Jason Allen had the athleticism to play corner. The reason people wonder about Sean Smith at safety is specifically because they do doubt his athleticism and ability to play corner. That makes them two wholly different prospects.

Now, my feeling on Smith at safety is...why go there? He was a RB and then a WR, a late convert to defense. At CB, the pressure to think like a defensive player and tackle like a defensive player is much less, which is why a WR can make that conversion. But at safety, you have to get by on instincts, making calls on the field, making the exact right read and then filling like a ton of bricks (ideally). None of that screams to me "offensive-minded player".

Sean Smith is a CB prospect and a damn good one. But if that doesn't work out for him, I'm putting him back on offense as a WR rather than deeper into the defensive side of things as a safety. Minus an inch and 15 pounds, he's got the same athleticism and some of the same traits as a Brandon Marshall. His experience as one of the only true press coverage corners in this draft should give him an advantage getting off the line against the press as a WR. His experience in playing both zone and man coverage on defense should give him an advantage (much like Brandon Marshall's experience as a college safety) in recognizing how a cornerback is playing him and making the decision on how to counter, where to sit between the zones, etc. As a runner, he has a smooth gait which keeps his eye line level and allows him to focus on the ball. He also cuts with one step and this tends to make his cuts sharper rather than rounded.
 
Conuficus said:
Can you show me where it is said that Kruger has short arms?

That's why the Cowboys drafted Kevin Burnett, to fill that role in nickel situations. Allowing guys to rush more, and thats why they have looked at Marcus Freeman and Jason Williams for the same role. All of this was mentioned before.
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i like the comparison of kevin burnett to the 2 prospects you've listed and i think that fits very well.

marcus freeman is underrated imo.
 
Greyboy said:
So what you're saying is Paul Kruger is just another Matt Roth with longer arms.

The thing with English is that he had almost half his sacks last year against one crappy team in one game. I am not saying I don't like English, but there's some questions about him as well.
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Arm and hand length: 32.8, 9.5in.
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http://cdsdraft.com/profile.php?id=3492
Kruger only has 32.5" arms and 9.5" hands. He is not Matt Roth with shorter arms. He is Matt Roth.:sidelol:
 
Conuficus said:
Can you show me where it is said that Kruger has short arms?

That's why the Cowboys drafted Kevin Burnett, to fill that role in nickel situations. Allowing guys to rush more, and thats why they have looked at Marcus Freeman and Jason Williams for the same role. All of this was mentioned before.
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I appologize on that part I thought i read that some where. I just looked it up and I was wrong. But that still doesn't deter the fact that i believe that there are better prospects with that pick.
 
ckparrothead said:
And this is what people say when they examine players on a printed page instead of on a game tape...
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I agree. I just thought it was funny. But for what he is, Matt Roth can set the edge. He just needs to learn some other moves in his pass rush. I have seen him use a rip, but not often. You would think he would learn different ways to get the QB.
 
fishypete said:
Game tape isn't the sure thing either. How players looked like Tarzan on tape...and played like Jane in the NFL?
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Yes personally I believe that we should never even watch a college prospect play football. We should draft them based purely on measurements and production, as listed and sorted on a piece of paper. Or we should just pick names out of a hat, which could be much more effective.
 
ckparrothead said:
Yes personally I believe that we should never even watch a college prospect play football. We should draft them based purely on measurements and production, as listed and sorted on a piece of paper. Or we should just pick names out of a hat, which could be much more effective.
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Seems thats what some did when they wanted J. Allen and Gholsten. How many players over the years CK...failed...but looked like sure things in the NFL?

Just think over the years just how many Dolphin players that were selected...failed. We're they picked out of a hat? It takes everything to select the right players...even just dumb luck sometimes.
 
fishypete said:
Seems thats what some did when they wanted J. Allen and Gholsten. How many players over the years CK...failed...but looked like sure things in the NFL?

Just think over the years just how many Dolphin players that were selected...failed. We're they picked out of a hat? It takes everything to select the right players...even just dumb luck sometimes.
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Ok, well here's the deal why don't you go ahead and toss 250 names into a hat and then randomly pick one of the remaining players at every Dolphins pick and then three years from now we'll see if the Pete way of doing things was indeed more effective.
 
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ckparrothead said:
Ok, well here's the deal why don't you go ahead and toss 250 names into a hate and then randomly pick one of the remaining players at every Dolphins pick and then three years from now we'll see if the Pete way of doing things was indeed more effective.
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Actually...it's more likely the Dolphins will only have a board with appx 100 names on it. So why would I need so many useless names in a "hate"...hat. LOL.

By the way...I already have a mock draft where I post the players who I believe the Dolphins will select.
 
DKphin said:
http://cdsdraft.com/profile.php?id=3492
Kruger only has 32.5" arms and 9.5" hands. He is not Matt Roth with shorter arms. He is Matt Roth.:sidelol:
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Thats not bad actually. He doesn't have 35 inch arms, but they are not short. Most player considered to have good arm length are at 33" and over most times. If he's right there, thats not too bad.
 
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