First thing i noticed on his tape - it's one of my pet peeves when watching tape, so i have the same concerns. Too many guys skate by on athletic ability at lower levels but can't in the pros and never reach their potential. Many.....not all. Hopefully Baker is the exception and not the rule.
I've watched more tape since he was picked and I'm still torn on him as a prospect. One play you see a guy who looks like a laser - he slips a block, flies across the screen and makes a physical tackle. The next play, he bounces in place, gets completely swallowed by an olineman and shows more effort shoving the lineman off him after the play than he did while trying to disengage.....or he jogs backside like his has no care in the world. Next play his sticks to a receiver in man coverage, followed by him getting lost in zone watching the backfield. I do question his instincts. He seems more like a "see ball, get ball" player who only makes plays when he's clean and sees it all in front of him, or when attacking and beating any potential blocker to the spot. When he waits, he's so caught up watching that linemen easily engage him....and once they do, he's usually done.
That said, etlite tools and athleticism are there in bunches (like Ballage, another enigma). It was a huge need and the physical talent remaining on the board was about to plummet once him and Jefferson went, so the pick makes complete sense and does come with reasonable value. I just happened to think there was just as much, if not more value with a few other guys at that spot, especially if McDonald is in fact kicking down to play more coverage LB in nickel. If we hadn't sucked so bad with LB evaluations/trades/signings for so long, we would have had that flexibility.