http://draftguys.com/index.php/articles/1/udfa_grades_-_afc/ New York Jets DT Ty Steinkuhler, Nebraska SS Keith Fitzhugh, Mississippi State OC Michael Parenton, Tulane WR Britt Davis, Northern Illinois SS Emanuel Cook, South Carolina FB Brannan Southerland, Georgia OL Ryan McKee Southern Mississippi OT Kyle Link, McNeese State QB Chris Pizzotti, Harvard OT Tavita Thompson, Oregon State TE J?Nathan Bullock, Cleveland State TE Andrew Davie, Arkansas DL Matt Kroul, Iowa P T.J. Conley, Idaho TE Robert Myers, Utah State DE Zach Potter, Nebraska DE Jamaal Westerman, Rutgers What a group - Steinkuhler, Fitzhugh, Cook, Southerland, Davie, and Potter were all draftable guys on my board, and I fully expect Potter to make the team as a 3-4 DE. Westerman is also an interesting guy because he would have been rated much higher if he hadn?t tore his bicep. Terrific job offsetting the pain of only having three picks because of two trade up deals. Grade: A
Wow there's a grade for everything now. I give this article a C+. The + was for their kindness to the Jets.
Nice to hear...too bad 7 out of 16 teams received an A. Makes you wonder how accurate these grades are...
its only an A if one of these kids becomes an All Pro... 90% of these players will be cut.. I understand this is a time of optimism being draft time and all, but reality is that these kids are UDFAs for a reason. i can see Cook making the practice squad because he tries to break your ribcage with each tackle.
Those guys do their homework.... I believe an A grade means alot of the pickups were players expected to get drafted but, didn't when the Raiders used up draft spots on other guys. I bet if you look at their pre-draft grades a lot of these guys were rated higher than drafted guys. And while we're on the name thing... I'm in the market for a Steinkuhler jersey.
Here's the predraft rating for Potter - as a 3-4 DE: Lets get this guy on the weight program and send him to the local Buffets!!!! 5. Zach Potter, Nebraska 6’7” 279 - When you first look at Potter, you see the body of a tight end, and unfortunately that shows up in his ability to anchor against the run and absorb double teams. He does have a lot of room to bulk up to 300 (or more) and he’s unbelievably instinctive getting up to disrupt passing lanes and deflect passes. He’s not very sudden, and he’ll have to learn to play more stout at the point of attack, but he has terrific upside in a 3-4, where he won’t be asked to make plays by himself. Why He’ll Succeed: He’s got the frame and length to be an ideal 3-4 end. Why He’ll Fail: He can be pushed around too easily, and he’s not that athletic. Bonus: Blocked five kicks during his time at Nebraska
The raiders didn't draft any guys who weren't expected to be drafted they just reached a lot on some of their early round picks, These guys were all in the 7th round area where there are about 100 guys of reasonably similar value for 32 spots. Really the only undrafted guy I was at all surprised didn't get picked was Brian Hoyer
This could be good: Brandon Myers, Iowa 6’4” 250 - Myers is a strong blocker, and his receiving skills might have been hidden in the Hawkeyes offense.
11. Emanuel Cook, South Carolina 5’10” 197 - You hate to see players forced into the pros early because of academics, but that seems to be what happened to Cook, who missed his bowl game because of classroom issues. Cook made an instant impact (literally and figuratively) as a true freshman, and led the Gamecocks in tackles in his sophomore and junior seasons. He’s built like a running back and he hits like a linebacker. His low center of gravity also allows him to change direction well. Cook didn’t have the coverage responsibilities of most of the other safeties in this class because of South Carolina’s 4-2-5 scheme on defense. Why He’ll Succeed: He’ll be a Bob Sanders-like light the fuse hitter from the secondary Why He’ll Fail: He’s not a two-way safety and he’s not fast enough for his game to translate to the NFL Bonus: Younger than most prospects at 21
I absolutely love Potter. I think in a year, he's our starting DE. He's already heavy enough, but he looks to be able to put on at least 15 more pounds. With extra muscle and some time in our system, he will be a beast. A cost-effective beast.
I think the real message here is that this is why giving up 6th and 7th round picks is not really any kind of a big deal, since many of these guys are people who could have easily been drafted in those rounds. Just like late round draft choices very few will probably stick, and that's the point.
How can they grade our UDFA crop a day after signing them? This makes even less sense then grading the draft right after draft day...
Not a single wideout in the group. You know they aren't starting the season with what they have now so I wonder what the plan is.
