Tuesday, May 1, 2012

Eighth Round Picks


Written By:  Anthony Bafaro

Kurt Warner, Tony Romo, Jeff Saturday, London Fletcher, Priest Holmes, Arian Foster, Wes Welker, James Harrison, Antonio Gates, John Randle, Warren Moon, and Dick “Night-Train” Lane—all of these players have two things in common—1) They were All-Pro players in the NFL and 2) No team thought they were good enough to warrant a draft pick.
  
The Rams wasted no time reaching out to a slew of undrafted free agents following the completion of the 2012 draft.  Most of these guys won’t make the team, so it may be a bit beyond diligence to delve, but some of them will.  Besides, this site is not named “RamsModeration”; I have a disease, and the only fix for my off-season itch is a continuous feed of pseudo-news.  Here’s a quick look at some of the undrafted rookies that will be competing in camp.    

Todd Anderson, FB, Michigan State: Run-blocking specialist.

Sammy Brown, LB, Houston: Good athleticism, decent pass-rush skills, and above-average coverage skills, especially in zone.  His problem is he’s lazy; he pretty much ignores any play that’s not directly in front of him.  If an NFL paycheck motivates him, this guy is making the squad.

Jeremy Caldwell, CB, Eastern Kentucky: Good ball skills, K/P returner.

Derek Choice, OLB, Stephen F. Austin: He received All-Southland Conference Honorable Mention in 2009…so there’s that …

Matt Conrath, DT, Virginia: It would be nice to stash this guy in the weight room as a scout team player.  He’s 6’7, 277lbs and has enough athleticism to still be functional if he adds 20 or 30 pounds—could be a 2-gap monster.
 
Matt Daniels, S, Duke: Smart, technically sound, high-motor player that had good production against inferior talent.  He lacks the athleticism to become a starter, but could be a solid backup and special teams player.

Austin Davis, QB, Southern Mississippi: Smart, accurate quarterback that gets rid of the ball quickly and is a natural leader.  He doesn’t have the arm-strength to be an NFL starter, but could be a very good back-up.  I wouldn’t be at all surprised to see him beat out Brandstater.

Cory Harkey, TE, UCLA: Fisher seems to love offensive tackles that pretend to be tight-ends.  Harkey is slow, and doesn’t know what a route-tree is, but he does have good hands.  He could supplant Matthew Mulligan as a goal-line tight-end.

Johnny Hekker, P, Oregon State: In the post-draft press conference, Fisher said the Rams won’t be punting this year.  However, based on my experience playing Madden, you have to at least have one on the roster.

T-Bob Hebert, C, LSU: He’s a fat bastard that can hold his ground in pass protection; plus he has a sweet name.  Most effective when opposing defensive tackles are wearing candy-necklaces with Twinkie pendants.  More pancake breakfasts than pancake blocks at LSU.

Alex Hoffman-Ellis, OLB, Washington State: Great athlete and natural tackler, but he’s the definition of raw in all other aspects of the game.  He’s an intriguing project player.  The fact that he can run and wrap-up might earn him a spot on special teams and buy him some time to develop.

Jamaar Jarrett, DE, Arizona State: I know we’re taking chances on some “red-flag” players, but if you fail a drug test at the combine, you’re either a complete moron, or you have a serious addiction problem.

Nick Johnson, WR, Henderson State: You know what this team really needs?  Another slot-receiver.  He did run a 4.34.

Noah Keller, LB, Ohio: He’s a solid run-stuffing MLB, but is too slow to do anything else.  The new regime seems to like Josh Hull.  Dunbar can also play the middle, so it seems unlikely that Keller would make the cut.

Rodney McLeod, S, Virginia: McLeod has a great chance of making this team.  He has great athleticism and starter-caliber awareness in zone coverage.  He’s instinctual and has a quick closing burst.  He’s also a very sound tackler.  His biggest problem is that he’s small for a safety—5’10, 183lbs.  It’s difficult to project how the defensive backfield is going to shake-out on this team; we may very well see Jerome Murphy or Bradley Fletcher starting at safety, but McLeod is definitely talented enough to add some solid depth. 

Calvin Middleton, RB, Jackson State: I have no idea who this guy is, but I know who he’s not—Jerious Norwood, and that is good enough for me.

Joe Long, OT, Wayne State: Doesn’t have the athleticism or polished technique of brother Jake, but he was the Division II offensive lineman of the year in 2011 and the Rams need offensive line depth.

DeAngelo Peterson, TE, LSU: He’s our new Fendi Onobun (who, if you were wondering, now plays for the Bills).  He’s 6’4, 243lbs, has great speed and all around athleticism, but is too raw to be of much service right away.

Quinton Pointer, S, UNLV: This guy wasn’t a very good athlete to begin with, then he tore his ACL. 

Nick Schwieger, RB, Dartmouth: Refer to Calvin Middleton analysis.

Scott Smith, DE, Texas Tech: Smith has a pro body—6’6”, 262lbs—but will have to improve his technique to make up for his average athleticism.

Travis Tripucka, LS, Massachusetts: He's strictly a long snapper, so I’m guessing he does that pretty well.

Undrafted rookie free agents always have long-odds, but this group of misfits has the advantage of trying out during the first year of a new coaching staff.  I doubt very much that Fisher and Snead are beholden to more than a few players brought in by the old regime.  If I were to wager, I’d say Sammy Brown and Rodney McLeod are on the team, and Austin Davis, Johnny Hekker, Alex Hoffman-Ellis, Joe Long have a good shot.  Hopefully some of them will reach the level of their undrafted pro-bowl predecessors.    

7 comments:

  1. This comment has been removed by the author.

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  2. Matt Daniels could be the sleeper in this group. He ended up third last year in the ACC player of the year award and seems to play with great instincts. Anyone other than Craig Dahl please.

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  3. I agree, death to Dahl...well..roster death; I have nothing against him personally

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  4. Todd Anderson is a great young man. He is able to play LB, DE, special teams (snapper/blocker/tackler) as well as a hell of a FB..... Go Green.

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  5. Didn't realize Anderson was a DR/LB

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