I figured I'd get this down now and then look at it again in a week to see if the pre-draft buzz had effected my opinions at all. This is my opinion on the top 10 players based on pure value in the 2007 draft. Positional biases are built-in to reflect the unusual value that QB's, LT's, DE's and DT's have. 1. Calvin Johnson (WR) 2. JaMarcus Russell (QB) 3. Alan Branch (DT) 4. Patrick Willis (LB) 5. Joe Thomas (LT) 6. LaRon Landry (FS) 7. Jamaal Anderson (DE) 8. Brady Quinn (QB) 9. Gaines Adams (DE) 10. Adrian Peterson (RB)
There is no way Branch is #3, he is probably like 20. And Peterson and Adams should definitely be top like 6 at least.
How can any WR (no matter how great) have more value than a QB or a Rb for that matter. A QB and running back have the ball in their hands more times than any Wr. A wr is still depended on someone getting ball in their hands. I think its clear C Johnson is the BPA but when your talking Value. QB, Pass rushing De, LT, RB have more value than a WR. Point is you can get a quality Wr later in draft than you can get at some of the other position.
I think Russell has way too many question marks to be number 2 on that list. Other then a strong arm and one great game he really hasn't proved much yet. On the other hand, other then one or two bad games Quinn has. So much depends on what team they end up on and who the receivers are. I would probably reverse those two. I also think Carriker may belong in there somewhere. Time will tell.
The other big adjustment has been the disclosure of the shin splints on Alan Branch. That would explain his slow workouts at the combine and pro day. I had shin splints twice in my late 20's and they screwed up my ability (and desire) to jog for months. I wound up just fine after resting the legs for a couple of months but they recurred the following fall after I had been jogging for a month. At that point I went and got a ridulously expensive pair of orthotic jogging shoes and they never recurred again. I weighed 185 lbs at the time. I can't imagine how a 330 lb person is going to deal with this. The guy never missed a down at Michigan and now a week before the draft he's diagnosed with a career-threatening injury. How nasty is that?
NO your wrong. according to alot of experts that watch game film. Russell is by far the better prospect than Quinn. 1. HE way more accurate of passer than Quinn(Thats biggest knock on Quinn is his accuracy) 2. Jamarcus russell completed passes in the high sixty percent playing in the toughest conference in america. Jamarcus Russell in fact played in a more complex offense than brady Quinn(alot of motion) Tom martinez- Tom Brady personal QB guru worked outy both Quinn and russell. he said every year there is a Brady Quinn type in the draft but a Jamarcus Russell comes alround only' once every fifteen years. Tom martinez cleaned up alot of his technique.
It seems a lot like the Vilma situation if you ask me. You hear nothing about a potentially very serious medical situation for a player's entire college career, then suddenly before the draft it's "uncovered" by someone that makes it big news, when in reality we know very little about the severity of the issue.
I agree but I still wonder about what the effect will be. That's a lot of weight on two sore legs and if he has stress fractures instead of shin splints I have no idea how they treat that and still have him play.
Like I said, time will tell. I see him as another Culpepper in how his career progresses. Especially if he ends up in Oakland. He may not even survive his first year there without a major injury. This is the same thing as Young/Leinart was last year. After a year of watching both who do you think will be the better QB now? In their last two years (that's all you count as full years) Quinn had more yards, more TDs, more completions, less ints(I think) and did it in a pro style offense behind a notoriously weak ND offensive line.
Only thing Jamarcus Russell has with culpepper is hes a monster sized QB that is black. Thats where the similiarites end. Jamarcus Russell not only has the fastball but he has great touch. Look up who Notre Dame plays- Army ateam no onewants to play. Notredame played alot more creampuffs than LSu did playing in the toughest conference in America. again according to experts. Jamarcus Russell played in a more complex offense than Quinn did at Notredamefor Weiss. Fact.
If I remember correctly, Vilma's alleged medical problem came out the night before the draft. Could have been a scare tactic to frighten off some teams so he would drop.
No, Vilma's knee was mentioned as dating back to when he was being recruited out of high school by Miami. The topic was bandied about loosely in the months leading up to the NFL draft and the general consensus (as it should be with Branch) was that the "injury" never caused him to miss a down at Miami so why should it start now? I have to admit the Branch injury has me just a little bit more spooked than Vilmas.
If you remeber, Vilma's knee was brought up Fri night and again Sat morning....someone was spinning his old injury. Nothing was said for months before the draft. I should have stated came out "again" the night before the draft........It was a non issue, and someone brought it out to cast some doubt.
To me the board goes like this... 1. Calvin Johnson 2. Joe Thomas 3. Gaines Adams 4. Jamarcus Russell 5. Adrian Peterson 6. Lauron Landry 7. Amobi Okoye 8. Jamall Anderson 9. Patrick Willis 10. Brady Quinn
Joe Gibbs Board would Be 1Jamarcus Russell/ Calvin Johnson . Here is his quote. The other viable options for the Raiders appear to be Notre Dame quarterback Brady Quinn and Georgia Tech wide receiver Calvin Johnson. Washington Redskins Coach Joe Gibbs recently described Russell and Johnson as the two closest things to an unflawed player that there are in this draft. "I don't see a hole there," said Gibbs, whose club has the draft's sixth overall selection. "What is the hole? We can't find one. And that's kind of rare, you know. Most everyone else has got something you're kind of worried about. We went to the workout with Calvin. We didn't think we had to with [Russell]. I think everybody kind of knows what's going to happen there." With the first pick in 2007 draft raiders select LSu QB Jamarcus Russell (The black John Elway)
