From a Foxsports.com article by Adam Schein: Zak DeOssie Pick up any draft publication or read any draft expert and you will read that DeOssie is a fourth- or fifth-round pick. My prediction: DeOssie gets selected in the third round. He is too valuable and too smart. If he lasts to Day 2, he will get scooped up right away. DeOssie, the son of long-time NFL vet Steve, is a football junkie. And the Brown University linebacker can help NFL teams immediately on special teams in coverage or as a snapper. DeOssie knows the knock against him is that he starred in the Ivy League. It's a perception he cannot change. But his performance at the Combine, his ball hawking ability, his diligent film study and his knack for fitting both the 4-3 and 3-4 at linebacker will have teams lining up for his services. DeOssie met with the Giants on Wednesday. He also reports a strong meeting with Lovie Smith. The Rams, Ravens and Bucs have also shown interest. But you get the sense the team that covets him the most is the Jets. DeOssie told us, "I really enjoyed my time with the Jets. I met Coach Mangini and Mr. Tannenbaum. I thought the interview went really well in Indianapolis. They quizzed me on football and we talked about my background. They know that I am a football lifer who loves the game. And I used to be a ball boy for the Patriots in high school for two years when Coach Mangini was there under Bill Belichick. I was honored to get to know him there and it was a mini-reunion in Indianapolis. He knows what type of person I am and he knows what he is going to get and what I am about." The entire article: http://msn.foxsports.com/nfl/story/6705916
Interesting...Do they really think this kid can be a started for us or would they draft him primarily as a back up and special teamer? I would hope he could start.
I definitely think he'll be a sleeper. I really like his ability. To modify the draft in my sig, move Walker into the late second and draft DeOssie in the third, and I'll be pretty happy. DeOssie isn't nearly as much of a pass rusher as we should probably be looking at, however.
oh, wow. i bet Mangini wishes this kid were his own son. he looks good, but i just hope we don't pass on someone with more potential and reach for this guy early due to Mangini's player prerequisites. cheers
http://www.thefootballexpert.com/zakdeossie070002.html NFL Draft Prospect Interview: Zak DeOssie, LB, Brown by Michael Abromowitz, 4/12/07. Zak DeOssie went to Brown University; however he is no sleeper. When DeOssie gets drafted on the first day, NFL draft nerds will not be surprise. DeOssie?s huge 6-5 frame and impressive speed have made scouts excited, and with that DeOssie?s stock is climbing quickly up the boards. DeOssie finished his career at Brown with 308 tackles, 36.5 tackles for loss, and three First-Team All Ivy League. What is your accurate height, weight and forty time? Zak DeOssie: 252 official, 4.58 at the Combine Describe your game in three words or less. Zak DeOssie: Never ending motor What do you feel is your greatest strength as a football player and what area do you feel you need to improve in? Zak DeOssie: I feel that my size and speed are my biggest attributes as a player which allows me to cover the field sideline to sideline. The area I need to improve on is getting off of blocks and not allowing linemen to engage with me. What NFL player do you do you think you compare favorably to? Zak DeOssie: If I had to choose, I would say Mike Vrabel or Brian Urlacher. Who is the best player you have faced during your career? Zak DeOssie: Ryan Fitzpatrick, Harvard QB What is your greatest football moment to date? Zak DeOssie: Winning the Ivy League Championship my junior year, 2005. Did you have a favorite pro team growing up? Favorite player? Zak DeOssie: New England Patriots. My favorite player was my father, Steve DeOssie When you get your first professional paycheck what is the first thing you will buy? Zak DeOssie: I will pay off my student loans immediately. How have you been preparing and training since the end of your college season? Zak DeOssie: I have been driving from Providence to Boston 4 times a week since December. I have been working with Mike Boyle, my strength coach. My workouts were geared towards perfecting combine drills and now it has gotten back to overall football conditioning. Do you have any goals in mind when it comes to the NFL Draft? Zak DeOssie: I am just looking forward to getting the opportunity to play for any team. What is the one thing you will most miss at college? Zak DeOssie: I will miss my teammates. I will miss the summers, working with my teammates and working out in the afternoon. We had so much fun over the last four years together. Where is the best place to get a bite to eat in Providence? Zak DeOssie: My favorite place in Providence is Cassarino?s up on federal hill. I have been going there since freshman year and their calamari is unmatched. What was your favorite college course and why? Zak DeOssie: My favorite college course was Corporate Governance which is an economics course which covered the fiduciary responsibilities of organizations. It was a very enjoyable and informal course which covered the Enron scandal and other various incidences in the business world. Any pregame rituals? Food? Music? Zak DeOssie: Music: Du Hast by Ramstein and Down with the Sickness by Disturbed. I take an old picture of my two sisters and I of when we were very young, and I put it under my pillow before every game, home or away. What is something football fans may not know about you? Zak DeOssie: I LOVE to ski. Once I am through with football, I can finally get back on the slopes. Do you think Chris Berman (fellow Brown alum)is going to do something special when your name is called on Draft Day? Zak DeOssie: I?m sure he will give me a nice shout out. THE Brown University has many prestigious alum and they are proud of this great institution. What is one thing most people won?t know about Ivy League football? Zak DeOssie: Non scholarship STUDENT athletes. Most of us turn down scholarships in order to get a great education and play some great football at the same time. Tell me your best Harvard joke? Zak DeOssie: Two recent Harvard grads shared a cab to get downtown. Both were excited about graduating and were talking about their aspirations after college. The cab drive interrupted and asked, ?Are you guys Harvard Grads?? They replied, ?Yes we are! Class of 2006!? The cab driver extended his hand and said, ?Class of 72? Do you read mock drafts or what draft experts have to say? Zak DeOssie: I try to pay no attention to those things. What do you plan to do once your playing career is over? Zak DeOssie: I will begin institutional sales and trading, take my series exams and start trading immediately, with hopes of becomes an institutional salesman soon there after.
At this point, I might just have to take the plunge on this guy in the late second since he'll be gone by the third. I love his athleticism and intelligence. EDIT: I'm actually gonna update my mock to address some trends that seem to be happening (Wright and Wilson likely gone, Walker rising) and throw DeOssie in there.
I remember watching his dad all through college. Big boozer, back in the day. Just opened a new steakhouse with Fred Smerlas. http://www.twinriver.com/dining/fredandsteves.cfm
Said all the right things, practiced all the drills for the combine-- Something tells me this guy is a workout warrior, who says what coaches want to hear in order to improve his stock. I would rather a guy just be real for once-- I can't stand the canned answers-- pay off the loans, miss my teammates, just want a chance to play, I took really hard classes because I'm smart- I want to throw up after reading this crap. I'd rather listen to the guy who says he wants to buy a 40" gold chain and rims for his SUV. You watch, we'll reach for him again like we did with schlegal and smith.
isn't there always some Ivy league guy every year who has some decent workouts and then ends up not making an nfl roster like that nick hartigan guy we had last year in training camp
I don't know how to take that comment, but I am biting my lip big time right now-- if it wasn't for mods having a hard on for me, I would have a flurry of verbal attacks going your way right now. BTW-- if he doesn't get banned for calling me a Bastard, than this site is totally biased. Am I not allowed to like Zak DeOssie? Do I have to conform to the New Jets Ideals-- where Character guys are the rave? What happened to the Jets fans of a few years ago, who chanted for Sapp, and Justin Miller? Those same guys are on the character guy bandwagon big time, and it drives me crazy.
So what, someone calls me a bastard, and I'm supposed to be happy about it? I got a private warning for telling someone "This thread is garbage" when it obviously was. This guy calls me a bastard, and I need to lighten up. Double standards with you mods big time. I have different opinions than most because I haven't changed my viewpoint as the new FO has. I don't just follow the masses like most on this site. However, I always back up my points with a reason- and never recycle the same garbage like most on here. I was the guy saying we shouldn't pick up KVO, and shouldn't trade for Barlow, and shouldn't sign Kassel, or Chatham. Now look at all of the fans on here-- acting as though they never wanted Kimo, or Barlow- it's garbage. I also wanted to draft Cutler, Mangold, and McNeil last year-- how nice would that have looked?
