Ask Boomer

[Boomer]

Hey Boom I'm looking ahead to 06 or more likely the 07 draft and wondering what you think of Brady Quinn from Notre Dame. I'm a Notre Dame homer but I think with Weiss coaching him now he can really develop into a nice player.

The important thing with Brady is that he already has starting experience under his belt which will be valuable because despite the new system, there's no substitute for live snaps. He has the size, but he needs to become more consistent. One of the vital things that made Charlie Weis's system run so well in NE was Tom Brady's accuracy. Quinn's accuracy is a legitimate concern - he needs to be better in the department more than any. He did improve his completion percentage last year and reversed his TD/INT ratio which shows me that he has the ability to learn and improve. This will be a defining year for him. I suspect that he will stay the distance at Notre Dame and come out in 2 drafts time. Like a number of QB's in the college ranks, he has the ability to be drafted high but needs to make some pretty major improvements to do so.

 

[Boomer]

Hey Boom- just wanted to thank you for taking the time to answer all our questions this offseason. You really know your stuff! Enjoy your family and hopefully you will stick around through the real season and talk some Fins football with us.

Last question: Can you maybe give us your top three winners and losers on draft day? Im curious as to who your losers are, just because I am hearing a bunch of different teams put in this category.

Thanks again :)

My pleasure mate. I really enjoyed it.

Winners - Arizona - you just can't argue with what they did. They needed CB help and they brought in Antrel Rolle and Eric Green, both of whom should start straight away; the needed a back and they brought Arrington in and he'll see plenty of carries; they needed defensive help especially at the LB spot to help Karlos Dansby and Lance Mitchell and Daryl Blackstock are 1st round talents. Before his ACL injury I thought Mitchell was a top 15 pick. On the OL they brought in the very mobile Elton Brown, who if he can keep weight and personal issues in check should be very nice. They also brought in a nice project in the 7th round in LeRon McCoy.

I thought Minnesota did very well - there is no excuse now for Mike Tice. They had the best off-season of anyone adding some great players to that defense - with Pat Williams, Sharper, Smoot, Nap Harris - in FA and then coming back to pair Troy Williamson with Nate Burleson, Erasmus James on a DL with Udeze, Pat Williams and the best DT in the game Kevin Williams, Marcus Johnson can start from week 1 on the OL, Ciatrick Fason goes into a tremendous TB rotation and Mosley should be a nice back-up.

And I think Dallas and us did very well. Parcells wanted to shift to the 3-4 if they got the right people and they added 3 straight off the bat in Ware, Burnett and Stroud, the perfect 3-4 end. Then they brought in Chris Canty who if healthy is a hell of a player at DE and in Marion Barber they have a great 1-2 punch with Julius Jones. Jay Ratliff is underrated and Rob Petitti won't surprise me if he's starting week 1 at RT.

Who did badly? I have to say that the Patriots did badly IMO. No one criticsed them but Mankins was a reach by a round, Hobbes is a 5'9 corner who seems to struggle in coverage when I saw him - I liked Sanders and Kaczur, but the rest........poor. I thought Seattle struggled some and the Saints summarily failed to address their terrible defense. And the Raiders - why trade up for Fabian Washington....no-one was taking him before them.....and Routt was a reach. And I have no idea what the Redskins are doing taking a QB when they took Ramsey late 1 2 years ago. Odd.

 

[Boomer]

Boomer,

I know it may be a bit too early, but if you had to take a wild guess, which 3 players would you say will be front runners for the #1 pick in 2006????

Good question Pred......

Matt Leinart, D'Brickashaw Ferguson and a DL like Mario Williams or Mathias Kiwanuka.

 

[Boomer]

Yeah, he made the right choice if he knew the injuries were continuous. New question Boomer. A lot of people are basing Brock Berlin's football playing ability on his wonderlic score. Now we all know that it shouldn't ALWAYS reflect that way by looking at Dan Marino, who scored a 14 on that test. What I was wondering is, does it look like he has a shot to be on the practice squad? Also, who are the players you think SHOULD make a spot on either our roster or practice squad?

I don't think Berlin's problems are Wonderlich based - the guy that invented the test questions its validity when it comes to testing sportsmen. The thing with Berlin is he isn't good enough. Arm - not good enough; mental ability - not good enough; accuracy - not good enough.

I think all the draftees makes the roster - I also think KJ Harris does and maybe Josh Davis. Then probably Alex Holmes, Lionel Turner, Meewusen and one of the big DT's on the PS.

 

[Jaj]

Good question Pred......

Matt Leinart, D'Brickashaw Ferguson and a DL like Mario Williams or Mathias Kiwanuka.

Rodrique Wright has a very good chance too if he has a monster season. I could imagine him having been a very high pick this year if he had come out. In fact he should have considering there would have been no question about him being the #1 DT. The same for a guy like Ferguson who had a chance to have been our pick.

 

[Pink_Dove]

Hey Boom man,
Just wanted to say how much I enjoyed this thread :) and ask one more general question concerning the draft: I remember you posting a post saying: JUST say NO to Crowder in the 2/3/4rd round.
Having never seen the kid play and based on your post, I was sad to see Saban plucking him in Rd 3. Have your thoughts about him changed ? His ****iness and brashness, compounded with legal and knee troubles, seem to make him a very risky pick (Kiper Jr. concurrs). Nevertheless, the brilliant KB has him as a top rated player and I love what I'm reading about him in scouting reports in terms of explosiveness and instincts. Do you think he was worth it, what's your gut instinct with this kid ?

Secondly, that first leg game was as dull as dishwater. I can see where Rafa's going in terms of strategy but it sure isn't entertaining. It'll be interesting to see how good Mourinho is in terms of adapting and pushing players up front. I reckon he'll have something clever to counter the Reds strategy. Neverthless I was hugely impressed with Carragher, doesn't get as much press as the big guns, but as a former defender, I thought he played lights out. Who's your (unbiased) pick for the next leg?

Thanks again mate.

 

[BocaHighQB]

Hey boomer-
I have a question about a guy that you probably haven't heard of but anyway do you know anything about Sabby Piscitelli, the safety from Oregon State, he went to my high school and know he has a chance of being drafted if not in 2006 then in 2007. If you do know anything about him I was wondering what round roughly you think he would be projected at? Thanks, and if anyone from Oregon who would give a guess that would be greatly appreciated.

 

[girthvader44]

"the best DT in the game Kevin Williams"


I have to respectfully disagree... Not a chance

 

[finsnchips]

"the best DT in the game Kevin Williams"


I have to respectfully disagree... Not a chance

Who do you suggest then? Jenkins? Stroud?

Williams is a monster. He put up huge numbers as a rookie and went to the pro bowl in his second year.

 

[DonShula84]

The important thing with Brady is that he already has starting experience under his belt which will be valuable because despite the new system, there's no substitute for live snaps. He has the size, but he needs to become more consistent. One of the vital things that made Charlie Weis's system run so well in NE was Tom Brady's accuracy. Quinn's accuracy is a legitimate concern - he needs to be better in the department more than any. He did improve his completion percentage last year and reversed his TD/INT ratio which shows me that he has the ability to learn and improve. This will be a defining year for him. I suspect that he will stay the distance at Notre Dame and come out in 2 drafts time. Like a number of QB's in the college ranks, he has the ability to be drafted high but needs to make some pretty major improvements to do so.

Thanks a lot Boomer, we all appreciate the work you do :)

 

[Boomer]

Rodrique Wright has a very good chance too if he has a monster season. I could imagine him having been a very high pick this year if he had come out. In fact he should have considering there would have been no question about him being the #1 DT. The same for a guy like Ferguson who had a chance to have been our pick.

Wright needs to step up the consistency and become the complte player that his skills indicate he can be. Along with Gabe Wilson, Jesse Mahelona, Orien Harris, Gerald Anderson, Manaia Brown, Claude Wroten, Haloti Ngata, etc, it's a decent year for DT's, which Wright is currently at the top of. But like I said, he needs to take it up a notch or 2.

 

[Lee2000]

Unclear how accurate the list of 29 invitees is?

Boomer,

the list of 29 invitees is not exactly accurate. Some players did not show, and there were others highlighted in newspaper articles that were not even on the list (e.g., Joe Walkins). Do you have any information on exactly who showed up for camp? In addition, you had mentioned a guy named Dustin Powell, a player out of Wisconsin at Lacrosse. He had great speed, but was a tweener between safety and linebacker. As far as I know he did not get picked up.
In addition, Saban said that they were very short at defensive back. Do you see them signing anyone else in the immediate future at that position. Joe Walkins (a former receiver), Atari Bigby, and Elam, from Kent St., were at camp.

Lee2000

 

[AjFazz85]

Hey, this is my first visit to this thread. Very interesting with the brief Q & As.

I'm an 'SC alum who is familiar with Keith Rivers. He is a fast and nasty young package of TNT. That kid will hit! Part of our surreal recruiting class of 2004.

How many ILBs are fast and versatile enough to split out to DE and terrorize the passer? That's what Rivers did last year. He came up with a few sacks and big plays when we were in trouble at Stanford last year. This year he should start although we're plenty deep at LB.

At homecoming last year the USC SID told me that one of the reasons Van Brown, a Miami FA signee, decided to transfer was that some of the young freshmen were being tried at DE even if it wasn't their natural position. Pete Carroll loves to terrorize the QB on every play. You don't start in his front seven if you don't have an upfield burst. He'll tolerate the height deficiencies, like the DT who went to the Eagles, as long as you harrass the QB.

I'm more of a Canes fan than USC fan, even as an alum. Rivers moved to Florida after being born in California. I was hoping the Canes would land him last year, but he was among many Floridians USC has snagged lately, like Mike Williams a few years ago.

I played high school football with Rivers and he was the best player I had ever seen at the high school level. He didn't like the way Miami treated him on his visit down there. They acted like it was a privilege for him just to be there at one of there home games. He said the players were arrogant and they were full of themselves. When he visited USC everybody was laid back and he said that Pete Carroll was a great guy. Now I am a Canes fan for life but I think he made the right choice in going to USC. He defintely has the potential to be a great NFL linebacker.

 

[Boomer]

Hey Boom man,
Just wanted to say how much I enjoyed this thread :) and ask one more general question concerning the draft: I remember you posting a post saying: JUST say NO to Crowder in the 2/3/4rd round.
Having never seen the kid play and based on your post, I was sad to see Saban plucking him in Rd 3. Have your thoughts about him changed ? His ****iness and brashness, compounded with legal and knee troubles, seem to make him a very risky pick (Kiper Jr. concurrs). Nevertheless, the brilliant KB has him as a top rated player and I love what I'm reading about him in scouting reports in terms of explosiveness and instincts. Do you think he was worth it, what's your gut instinct with this kid ?

Secondly, that first leg game was as dull as dishwater. I can see where Rafa's going in terms of strategy but it sure isn't entertaining. It'll be interesting to see how good Mourinho is in terms of adapting and pushing players up front. I reckon he'll have something clever to counter the Reds strategy. Neverthless I was hugely impressed with Carragher, doesn't get as much press as the big guns, but as a former defender, I thought he played lights out. Who's your (unbiased) pick for the next leg?

Thanks again mate.

Hey Pink.....my pleasure - I enjoyed it too. My concern about Crowder was not skill based - essentially he is a top 15 pick in the 3rd round. I just have huge concerns over 4 ACL injuries. If he stays healthy then he's a Pro Bowl player but that's a big if. I love his intensity and his ability but I have to temper that with the medical red flags.

As for the important matter, I can't be unbiased. I think you'll see us play a very similar game to the 1st leg and try and suffocate Lampard, Robben and Duff and try and score. I can see us winning 2-1 or 1-0 with either Cisse or more likely Gerrard scoring the winner. I will be there and can't wait.

 

[Boomer]

Hey boomer-
I have a question about a guy that you probably haven't heard of but anyway do you know anything about Sabby Piscitelli, the safety from Oregon State, he went to my high school and know he has a chance of being drafted if not in 2006 then in 2007. If you do know anything about him I was wondering what round roughly you think he would be projected at? Thanks, and if anyone from Oregon who would give a guess that would be greatly appreciated.

Ah so your a Boca Raton boy huh? I know very little to be honest, other than that he's a likely starter in the secondary this season, his junior year. As someone who hasn't started a game yet, he's kinda hard to project long term, other than that he'll be in the 2007 draft if good enough. As a safety in the PAC 10 he'll get plenty of chances to show himself.