Sorry, just realized I typed Ayers instead of Houston. Lack of focus. Anyway Here is the article http://espn.go.com/blog/new-york/jets/post/_/id/5006/draft-profile-georgia-olb-justin-houston
his one trick, if I am reading this right, is that he can get to the qb. which is the trick our defense seems to be unable to do. So ok, yeah lets avoid that, because he must bust like gholston... Houston actually wants to play this game, Gholston, not so much...
Of the name's presented I like Ayers b/c I think he fits the Jets exact need the best. The Jets have plenty of tough,physical thumpers within the linebacking corps. What they lack is an athlete who can play in space, disrupt plays behind the line and speed rush the QB. In other words,what Ayers' lacks as a prospect(Power/explosion) the Jets have a surplus of. However, Ayers strengths (Speed/athleticism) is what the Jets lack in the front 7. You add in Ayers top notch character and leadership quality, and he seems like an ideal fit
Gawd I was thinking the exact same, except Justin has been my favorite for the Jets to pick for a while even though I feel a NG is more important. My top three are Houston, Taylor, Paea (sp?).
Ayers does not have speed, and when they talk about a player being explosive off the snap, it is in relation to speed not necessarily power.
I disagree, GH. Not even considering his 40 timings, he looks slow to me in game videos, often diagnosing the play, but getting there too late to make the play. He just looks a step or two slow to me. He worked out on in college, but when he gets to the NFL and the action and players are ALL faster, I think he gets exposed.
I don't disagree that he's not as developed mentally as I'd like to see a player with his talent, but I just wanted to clarify that I don't think it has anything to do with footspeed. It's the reason that I think eventually his best position is as an ILB (weakside) in a 34 even though he fits the 34 OLB mold right now. He's a big strong guy with a decent ability to get to the QB, but much better skills in space. I think that he's the type that will thrive once he gets to an NFL staff, because he certainly seems like a bright kid.
I think that Ayers should go a lot higher then he probably will. The combine really hurt him, but he has a very solid skill set and he is much faster on the field. I think he is going to be nasty in the right defense, and I would love for the Jets to draft him.
Tyson Alualu is another example. You'll read this and have a shitty opinion on why he was taken 10th overall and how his stock jump didn't mean anything. Keep loving athletes and not football players you dumb motherfucker.
The official site of the ny jets has the jets taking houston, then edmund gates, john moffit, deunta williams, byron maxwell and chris neild...i would really like this draft- it fills practically all our needs/holes, but the only one that i feel needs more help id DL but outside of 1st rounders, kenrick ellis and jarvis jenkins i dont think they will make much of an impact. I think if one of the wr doesnt come back, gates could obviously fill that role and williams is a great value pick who i think can be a starter.
Interesting quote - Mike Mayock: I would rather draft Dontay Moch in the third round than Justin Houston or Akeem Ayers in the first round. Two years from now, Moch will be a better player.
Yeah, I saw that. I'm gonna have to take another look at Moch. If Mayock is right, that's impressive to be better than both of those guys, especially Ayers since he's already pretty polished and NFL ready. Of course 2 years is a long time to wait for a draftee to contribute and it does say he's raw. While the draft is supposed to be about long term contributions and not just immediate needs, the Jets have immediate needs, and that as much as anything has prevented their getting to the Super Bowl. Maybe Moch could contribute immediately on definite passing downs, and eventually evolve into a starter. For you guys that like Moch, do you see him as an ILB or OLB? IMO his size suggests that he might be a better fit as an ILB. He could play in Harris' spot and Harris would slide into Scott's spot. He could still rush the QB from the inside.
Harrison on the Steelers is 6-1, so if his strength, speed, and technique are there it won't be an issue, but Moch is so raw its tough to project how he'll do. I'm not big on measurables guys that are this raw when coming into the league unless you have a fearsome pass rush already and can take the flier on him without a problem. Waiting 2 years for a guy in the 3rd round to be starter ready isn't far fetched. It takes 3 years for a prospect to develop, no matter how much the fans demand immediate results from the draft picks. Because of Moch's ability, he should play on the outside. ILB isn't what he's suited for because you don't want that kind of player caught up in the traffic an ILB has to deal with.
Moch lacks Harrison's power from What I've seen of him. He's a good outside rush prospect, but is very raw. The Tools are thier though. Love his first step and speed, bend on the corner, needs to work on using more moves and his hands better because speed alone will not work against most NFL LT's.
JetsDWare, the guy whose sack record Gholston broke at OSU (Mike Vrabel) wasn't Gholston's equal in "measurables" but who became more than a check-cashing sideline fixture. And let's use OSU again as an example: in the 1988 NFL draft, OSU had a Lombardi Award winner by the name of Chris Spielman whose too-small "measurables" (6'0"/246) left him drafted in the 2nd round BEHIND his OSU team mate Eric Kumerow whose 6'7"/265 'measurables' prompted the Dolphins to grab him with their 1st round pick. Kumerow never started a game. Spielman's all-Pro record speaks for itself, i.e. his "unmeasurables" clearly translated to: football player. While a guide, numbers alone aren't everything despite what you think. (sad to say, the Jets approached the Fin's stupidity with their own 1st round pick that year--Dave Cadigan--esp. when you see the Tim Browns, the Michael Irvins, etc. in that year's opening round).
Looking for a place to post this and here seems as good as any. I know there's an unspoken rule against posting PFT stuff, but since all he's doing is taking excerpts from the Daily News here, thought this would be ok with the folks. LOL! Seriously, though, I thought this was good stuff: http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2011/04/27/akeem-ayers-i-dont-run-track-i-play-football/ UCLA linebacker Akeem Ayers‘ stock is perceived to be slipping due to disappointing pre-draft workouts. He ran in the 4.80-4.83 range during February’s Combine, and topped out at 4.69 during the Bruins’ Pro Day in March. Ayers insists that forty times aren’t indicative of his on-field skills. He’s a linebacker, not Usain Bolt. “That really doesn’t mean anything,” Ayers told the New York Daily News. “I’m not a sprinter. I don’t run track. I’m a football player. … When I’m on the field, I’m not running 4.8. I’m catching people down and running with running backs and rushing the QB. “That’s pretty clear and obvious when you watch the film.” Ayers is probably onto something. He was a dominant player in the Pac 10, despite arguably playing out of position at strong-side linebacker in the Bruins’ 4-3. (He’s projected as a 3-4, outside rush linebacker in the pros.) Ayers racked up 29.5 career tackles for loss, 14 sacks, and six interceptions, running two of them back for touchdowns. Ayers has demonstrated playmaking ability as both a pass rusher and coverage linebacker. Manish Mehta of the Daily News was told by “several scouts” that Ayers is a first-round prospect, and that his stopwatch speed is irrelevant. “The tape doesn’t lie,” one AFC scout told Mehta. “… He’s going to make some team very happy this week. He’s a steal late in the first round.” According to Mehta, Ayers is on the New York Jets’ “short list” with the No. 30 pick. “I’d love to play for Rex (Ryan),” said Ayers. “They have one of the best defenses in the NFL. That’s something I’d definitely look forward to. … It’d be an honor to play for the Jets.”
I'm willing to bet v-cash his comment about the 40 was a joke, but his comment about the thread sucking was dead ass.
