Pro Day Discussion Thread - Page 2

TACKLE · 03-08-2012, 01:07 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by holt_bruce81

They can run though right?

Yes they can. Just can't participate in positional drills. I just remember it being brought up last year at FSU's workout because they didn't have any senior WR's who could participate so they had to bring in some random guys to catch passes from Ponder.

niel89 · 03-08-2012, 01:08 AM

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Originally Posted by JHL6719

Any results from UCLA pro day? I know the parents were banned from being able to watch their kids (which is ridiculous), but I can't find anything on how any of the prospects performed.....

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-The UCLA pro day was attended by all 32 teams and featured a number of seniors hoping to redeem themselves after failing to meet expectations in 2011. Most of the Bruins who took part in the workout impressed scouts.
The story of the day was receiver Nelson Rosario who was graded as a late-round pick entering the year. Rosario measured 6 feet, 5 1/2 inches, 230 pounds then ran 40 times of 4.55 into a stiff headwind. His other marks included a vertical jump of 36.5 inches and a broad jump of 10 feet, 1 inch. All were outstanding results for Rosario, who caught the ball well during drills. Scouts were impressed the way the big pass-catcher was able to quickly get into pass routes and stay on balance exiting breaks. There's a feeling Rosario could add weight to his frame and eventually develop into a field-stretching tight end.

-Safety Tony Dye, graded as a mid-round choice coming into the season only to struggle with several injuries, also turned in a solid performance. Dye was credited with an official 40 time of 4.56 seconds, posted 4.15 seconds in the short shuttle and 7.02 in the three cone. He also touched 36.5 inches in the vertical jump. These numbers were competitive with many of the safeties at the combine. He later looked smooth and quick in position drills.

-Former Vanderbilt cornerback Jamie Graham, who transferred to UCLA only to miss most of the season with injury, also turned heads with a good workout. Ditto for Josh Smith, the receiver/return specialist transfer from Colorado who was forced to play in the secondary last season after injuries started to mount for the Bruins. Both looked camp worthy and should be signed soon after the draft ends.

Read more: http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/201...#ixzz1oVTj5buC

Ten characters

Caulibflower · 03-08-2012, 07:03 PM

Saw this on NFL.com from MSU's pro day:

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Vick Ballard, RB (5-foot-10 1/8, 215 pounds) — He an 4.55- and 4.53-second 40-yard dashes and had a 6.99-second three-cone drill. Ballard looked very good in a blitz pick-up drill and caught the ball well. He has good quickness and really helped himself with this workout. He would probably be picked at the top of the second round if he were a lineman, but will probably be picked in the third round despite being a second-round talent. He’s a top-10 back overall.

...What? What is that even supposed to mean? NFL.com has some surprisingly poor coverage sometimes.

TimmG6376 · 03-09-2012, 11:30 AM

Just saw some unofficial times for Blackmon on the Twitter.

Supposedly sub 4.5

keylime_5 · 03-09-2012, 11:33 AM

4.43 and 4.45 unofficially at his pro day. keep in mind though that at the combine that probably equates to about 4.5+, and OKState has a notoriously fast track (Kendall Hunter ran a whole 10th of a second better than at the combine). Excellent times for Blackmon though. Just as impressive are his 10'4" broad jump and 35" vertical.

vidae · 03-09-2012, 11:58 AM

Great times for Blackmon. He solidified the top 10 grade today.

Hines · 03-09-2012, 12:04 PM

The Steelers, like always, were at the Ohio State Pro Day.

CDCB14 · 03-09-2012, 12:39 PM

Can someone really tell me why this is "impressive" for Blackmon? We know he didn't really have great speed, but shouldn't that be a down grade? How is running a high 4.4 some great achievement?

He's not even big.. 6'1'' 207 pounds running a 4.45-4.50 with a 10'4'' broad jump and a 35'' in vert? That's not impressive explosion and athleticism at all.

Don't get me wrong, great player, but people who were comparing him to guys like Dez and Demaryious Thomas were dead wrong. Those guys are 6'3'' 230 pounds running the same 40 time with much better jumps. Blackmon's tape is much better than Thomas' was, but as far as these athleticism numbers go, he isn't in the same class.

Shane P. Hallam · 03-09-2012, 12:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Hines

The Steelers, like always, were at the Ohio State Pro Day.

Tomlin, Lebeau, and Haley were all there!

zachsaints52 · 03-09-2012, 12:45 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CDCB14

Can someone really tell me why this is "impressive" for Blackmon? We know he didn't really have great speed, but shouldn't that be a down grade? How is running a high 4.4 some great achievement?

He's not even big.. 6'1'' 207 pounds running a 4.45-4.50 with a 10'4'' broad jump and a 35'' in vert? That's not impressive explosion and athleticism at all.

Don't get me wrong, great player, but people who were comparing him to guys like Dez and Demaryious Thomas were dead wrong. Those guys are 6'3'' 230 pounds running the same 40 time with much better jumps. Blackmon's tape is much better than Thomas' was, but as far as these athleticism numbers go, he isn't in the same class.

I think Demaryius had a solid tape. Coming from a option team when everyone knew if they passed it was going to him, and he out jumped a lot of people.

bitonti · 03-09-2012, 12:50 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CDCB14

Can someone really tell me why this is "impressive" for Blackmon? We know he didn't really have great speed, but shouldn't that be a down grade? How is running a high 4.4 some great achievement?

Blackmon is like Crabtree or poor man's Larry Fitz. Insane college production 2x Bilitnikoff winner (the other 2x winner was Crabby). The fact that he ran a 4.4 while Crab didn't run anything means he goes higher than 10. He should be in play at 4 for CLE.

CDCB14 · 03-09-2012, 12:56 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bitonti

Blackmon is like Crabtree or poor man's Larry Fitz. Insane college production 2x Bilitnikoff winner (the other 2x winner was Crabby). The fact that he ran a 4.4 while Crab didn't run anything means he goes higher than 10. He should be in play at 4 for CLE.

Don't get me wrong, Blackmon is a great football player, I'm just saying those numbers are nothing to write home about.

High 4.4 and average jump numbers at 6'1'' 207? Not that impressive.

A Perfect Score · 03-09-2012, 01:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CDCB14

Don't get me wrong, Blackmon is a great football player, I'm just saying those numbers are nothing to write home about.

High 4.4 and average jump numbers at 6'1'' 207? Not that impressive.

Of course it's not impressive when you just look at his triangle numbers. Tons of NFL receivers don't look impressive when you check just their triangle numbers. What is much more impressive then those numbers are the things in his tape that translate to the NFL. His ability to set up DBs and extend towards and fight for the ball are both stellar, he runs routes that are already better then the ones Demaryius Thomas still runs at the NFL level, and when you add in the YAC ability and the perceived nice intangibles, then you get a Top 10 pick.

keylime_5 · 03-09-2012, 01:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CDCB14

Don't get me wrong, Blackmon is a great football player, I'm just saying those numbers are nothing to write home about.

High 4.4 and average jump numbers at 6'1'' 207? Not that impressive.

keep in mind though that he'll really play at like 215-220 during his NFL career. He probably will bulk up to add strength since he's not a burner. Could be another Terrell Owens on the field in the NFL. I don't think there is much bust potential for Blackmon, he seems like a very safe bet to be a really good #2 WR at worst, but still excellent upside.

It will be interesting to see how well Blackmon seperates in the NFL since he won't get huge cushion coverage like he did in the Big XII....I don't think he'll have a problem and he'll showcase more vertical ability.

cmarq83 · 03-09-2012, 01:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CDCB14

Can someone really tell me why this is "impressive" for Blackmon? We know he didn't really have great speed, but shouldn't that be a down grade? How is running a high 4.4 some great achievement?

He's not even big.. 6'1'' 207 pounds running a 4.45-4.50 with a 10'4'' broad jump and a 35'' in vert? That's not impressive explosion and athleticism at all.

Don't get me wrong, great player, but people who were comparing him to guys like Dez and Demaryious Thomas were dead wrong. Those guys are 6'3'' 230 pounds running the same 40 time with much better jumps. Blackmon's tape is much better than Thomas' was, but as far as these athleticism numbers go, he isn't in the same class.

He's actually pretty close in measurables to guys like Hakeem Nicks, Dwayne Bowe, Stevie Johnson, and Dez Bryant who have had a lot of success in the league. Not everyone is Calvin Johnson. Not to mention he was a better college receiver than any of them. I'm fairly confident that Blackmon is going to be legit when he's in the league.

Clarkw267 · 03-09-2012, 01:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CDCB14

Can someone really tell me why this is "impressive" for Blackmon? We know he didn't really have great speed, but shouldn't that be a down grade? How is running a high 4.4 some great achievement?

He's not even big.. 6'1'' 207 pounds running a 4.45-4.50 with a 10'4'' broad jump and a 35'' in vert? That's not impressive explosion and athleticism at all.

Don't get me wrong, great player, but people who were comparing him to guys like Dez and Demaryious Thomas were dead wrong. Those guys are 6'3'' 230 pounds running the same 40 time with much better jumps. Blackmon's tape is much better than Thomas' was, but as far as these athleticism numbers go, he isn't in the same class.

It's impressive because the knock on him was that he has sub-par speed. His pro day just confirmed what his game tape says , which is that his speed is fine. He is a top 10 pick. His athleticism is on par with AJ Green's, and while he's shorter, he's much more physical, and better after the catch.

keylime_5 · 03-09-2012, 01:47 PM

Yeah, if I remember right AJ didn't light up the combine. He had numbers comparable to Blackmon.....though he is a few inches taller and has insane receiver skills and is certainly a superior prospect. I don't think Blackmon's athleticism is an issue. He's not a freak athlete. People just question if he has the size and vertical stretching ability of the kind of WR you use a top 5 pick on. He's certainly worth a top ten pick any year IMO.

bitonti · 03-09-2012, 01:50 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CDCB14

Don't get me wrong, Blackmon is a great football player, I'm just saying those numbers are nothing to write home about.

High 4.4 and average jump numbers at 6'1'' 207? Not that impressive.

It's not a perfect comparison, but he reminds me of Rod Smith. Remember him from the Broncos? Obviously Smith was undrafted, but my point is you can be a dominant WR at 6'1"

FUNBUNCHER · 03-09-2012, 02:03 PM

Running 4.4s at his pro day is infinitely better than running 4.5s, which I thought Blackmon might.

Blackmon was at risk IMO to not be the first WR drafted, but there's no question in my mind he's the first WR off the board now.

Hakeem Nicks/Dez Bryant....that's Blackmon's talent class. A nice group of WRs to belong to IMO.

zachsaints52 · 03-09-2012, 02:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by cmarq83

He's actually pretty close in measurables to guys like Hakeem Nicks, Dwayne Bowe, Stevie Johnson, and Dez Bryant who have had a lot of success in the league. Not everyone is Calvin Johnson. Not to mention he was a better college receiver than any of them. I'm fairly confident that Blackmon is going to be legit when he's in the league.

None of those guys were Top 10 picks though.

RaiderNation · 03-09-2012, 02:14 PM

Blackmon likely just locked himself into the top 6.

dannyz · 03-09-2012, 02:14 PM

I just kinda get a Crabtree feeling when I watch Blackmon, both are around the same size Dominated the same Conference Won the same Award twice. I Loved Crabtree coming out and alot of people on here I remember didn't like him but that was the year I really started following the NFL DRAFT. I remember watching Crabtree at the College Level and he looked kinda big and so does Blackmon now but I saw him in his first NFL Game and he looked like a shrimp, I just wonder how Blackmon is going to far against top level Corners because the best guy he went against was Prince Amukamara.

TACKLE · 03-09-2012, 02:56 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by RaiderNation

Blackmon likely just locked himself into the top 6.

I don't know about that especially if Cleveland 'wins' the RG3 sweepstakes.

keylime_5 · 03-09-2012, 03:22 PM

I'll be a little safer and say top 7 lock. If the Browns go to #2 and get Griffin, maybe the Redskins get Tannehill at #6, and that could push Blackmon out of the top 6.

BaLLiN · 03-09-2012, 04:27 PM

Height and speed aren't required to be a top 10 pick, especially in a weak draft class. Suddenness is really underrated, the ability to move a DB operate within a smaller amount of space using body positioning and a quick movement can be deadly.

Hakeem Nicks isn't a burner, but DB's can't cover him 1 on 1, or even in zones, well because he can run routes with elusiveness and without mailing in what he is doing. Physical attributes are overpowering and are hard to match up against, but its not the only thing that can make a great receiver.

Lance Moore is a great example, he's very sudden and uses space extremely well. I'm not saying Blackmon is like Moore, but I like how he sets the DB up in space and steps toward the ball while using his body and strength to hold off the DB.