Seems like a slash player to me. Don't forget LT would trow the ball on the half back pass in SD so mabye we will see some trickery with Smith.
Really...you're kidding? If he could "do it all", he would have been picked higher. Brad Smith? Not impressed. Whatever....I don't think this pick blows, but why are they are addressing passing rushing needs.
Attitude will be key, since during the senior bowl, he even fought his agent about practicing as a wide out or h-back, but I have faith in our staff to get thru to him. I'm excited.
This guy single-handedly took over the Independence Bowl in December and beat a better Spurrier-coached SEC Gamecocks squad that Mizzou wass behind 21 points to in the 2nd quarter. He really did it all by himself, he was unstoppable in the open field. I can't describe how elusive this guy is.
What I don't like about Smith is he is projected as a possession reciever which we already have 3 of. We could have really used a reciever with speed. Really he is nothing like Randle El or matt Jones because he just does not have the speed.
Confused with this pick...although the pick is liked by the ESPN staff, I am wondering when we will draft a RB to back up Houston in years to come. With Martin's 33rd birthday coming up, we NEED a RB.
?2005 1st-Team All-Big 12, All-Purpose Back (A.P., Houston Chronicle) ?2005 2nd-Team All-Big 12 (Coaches, Kansas City Star) ?2005 National Football Foundation Scholar-Athlete Award/Postgraduate Scholarship ?2005 Big 12 Offensive Player of the Week (Sept. 5th & Oct. 24th) ?2005 National Player of the Week, Oct. 24th (Walter Camp Football Foundation, USA Today, College Football News, Sports Illustrated) ?2005 Team Captain ?2005 Team Most Valuable Player ?2005 Team Offensive Back of the Year ?2005 Independence Bowl Offensive MVP ?2005 Hula Bowl Participant ?2004 Hon. Men. All-Big 12 (Coaches) ?2004 Big 12 Offensive Player of the Week (Nov. 29th) ?2004 Team Captain ?2003 4th-Team All-American (College Sports Report) ?2003 2nd-Team All-American, Sophomore Class (College Sports Report) ?2003 Hon. Men. All-American (College Football News) ?2003 3rd-Team All-Big 12 (Coaches) ?2003 Hon. Men. All-Big 12 (A.P.) ?2003 Hon. Men. All-Big 12 All-Purpose Back (A.P.) ?2003 National Player of the Week, Oct. 27th (Sports Illustrated, The Sporting News, USA Today, College Football News) ?2003 Big 12 Offensive Player of the Week, (Oct. 13th & Oct. 27th) ?2003 Team Most Valuable Player ?2003 Team Co-Offensive Back of the Year ?2003 Team Captain ?2002 Hon. Men. All-American (CNNSI.com, College Football News) ?2002 1st-Team Freshman All-American (FWAA, The Sporting News, College Football News, Rivals.com) ?2002 Big 12 Offensive Newcomer of the Year (A.P., Kansas City Star, Columbia Daily Tribune) ?2002 Big 12 Offensive Freshman of the Year (Coaches, Ft. Worth Star-Telegram, The Sporting News) ?2002 Big 12 Freshman of the Year (College Football News, Dallas Morning News) ?2002 Hon. Men. All-Big 12 (A.P., Coaches) ?2002 Big 12 All-Freshman Team (The Sporting News)
It's the 4th round,you don't draft 4th round rookies with the intention that they can start straight away.The rest of the draft is going to be projects or special team guys.
I have seen too much of this guy, he embarrassed the hell out of me in that bowl game. He had everybody saying "Who is this guy?" when he ran all over my team and nobody could tackle him. I believe he's the all-time leading rusher at QB in NCAA history, the commentators brought that up enough. But he's no possession reciever, he truly is a Randal-el, only quicker and bigger.
http://www.nfl.com/draft/profiles/2006/smith_brad Prospect Profiles Brad Smith Height: 6-2 Weight: 212 40 Speed: 4.54* Position: Wide Receiver College: Missouri Final Grade: H 6.0 QB GM JR Scouting LLC Grading Scale/Key SUMMARY Smith was a disappointing player to grade, because despite a promising start to his college career (remember the Missouri-Oklahoma game in Smith's freshmen season, where Smith almost single-handedly carried Missouri to a huge upset of the Sooners), his passing skills did not improve enough over the last three years to where he can be a consistently productive NFL quarterback. He has very good size and good athletic ability to make the switch to receiver, and the things that will help him most are his tremendous work ethic and competitiveness. He is a very tough football player, who will not only play through pain, but he will develop into a receiver who will not hesitate to go across the middle to make tough catches in traffic. Overall, Smith is a player that teams need to be careful not to over-draft, because few players succeed in switching from college quarterback to NFL wide receiver when they do not have elite, top-end playing speed -- Matt Jones, Antwaan Randle El and Joshua Cribbs all have 4.4 speed, which Smith does not. If given time to develop, Smith will become a solid starting possession receiver in the NFL who can make big plays running with the ball after the catch, but he is not going to be a field-stretching, speed-demon type receiver. CRITICAL FACTORS Size Athletic Ability Hands Competes Play Speed Instincts 6.5 6.0 5.0 5.5 6.0 6.5 STRONG POINTS Smith is a good athlete with nearly all the physical tools you could ask for in a receiver. He has excellent size for a receiver at over 6-2 and nearly 210 pounds -- once he gets into the open field, he has the play strength to break tackles and consistently gain yards after contact. He is a very elusive runner in the open field, who can stop and start in a flash, and he consistently has shown the ability to make tacklers miss. His foot quickness, agility and athleticism will enable him to become a good route runner. WEAKNESSES Obviously, the big weakness is that Smith was a college quarterback, and will be trying to learn a new position at the highest level. While he has many of the athletic traits that are necessary to be a very good NFL receiver, he does not have premier playing speed to stretch the field deep. POSITIONAL FACTORS Grade Category Comments/Description 5.0 Hands He showed good hands handling the ball as a quarterback, but he has no experience catching passes in games. 5.0 Initial Quickness He has the ability to burst off the ball fast, but will need time to learn to anticipate the snap. 5.0 Clean Release He has no experience, but once he learns to burst off the ball, he will be able to get into routes fast. 5.0 Release vs. Jam He never has really done it, but he has the athleticism, size and strength to be very good in time. 5.0 Patterns His athleticism, quickness and agility will enable him to run good routes with experience. 5.0 Adjusts to Ball It's impossible to predict his hands, but he has the athleticism to be very good if his hands develop. 6.5 Run after Catch His size, quickness and strength make him a very dangerous runner in the open field. 5.0 Deep Threat Despite being a good athlete with very quick feet, he lacks the top-level playing speed to be a true deep threat. 6.5 Hand/Eye Coordination Although he's never played receiver, as a quarterback, he showed that he clearly has very good hand/eye coordination. 6.0 Blocking He doesn't have a lot of experience, but was very effective blocking defenders on reverses, and he has size and strength. NA Return Ability He never returned in the games graded, and wouldn't be more than adequate at best. 5.5 Fumbles/Error He did not always wrap up the ball close to his body, and he made some judgement errors as a passer. ATHLETIC ABILITY Section Grade: 6.0 Smith was a rare athlete for a quarterback, which is what enabled him to be such a productive quarterback at Missouri, despite not being a very good passer. His athleticism gives him the chance to make the switch from college quarterback to NFL receiver. He has very quick feet, which help him to avoid tackles and burst out of the pocket easily, and teams should be confident that it will serve him well running routes. Obviously, he is going to need to learn how to burst off the ball into a route, but he has the quick feet to do so, and when you combine his agility, he will be able to burst out of his cuts once he learns the proper technique. His quick feet, agility and balance enable him to stop and start very quickly, and he can make tacklers miss when running with the ball. Smith has good natural flexibility, but after playing quarterback, he needs to learn to bend his knees and run with better flexibility and balance. It is remarkable how his coordination combines with his athleticism and strength to let him keep his feet vs. hard hits and consistently gain yards after contact. Q.A.B. Quick Feet C.O.D. Flexibility Coordination 6.0 6.5 6.0 6.0 6.5 COMPETITIVENESS Section Grade: 5.5 Smith has been a very tough football player throughout his career at Missouri -- he consistently stayed in the lineup despite taking a ton pf punishment. The only question teams will have about Smith's toughness is that just like any other player making the switch to receiver, Smith will need to prove he is willing to go across the middle and make tough catches in traffic. As a quarterback, Smith was extremely productive running with the ball and made many big plays with his arm, but he has no experience or production as a receiver, so his production and consistency are non-existent when it comes to catching passes. Smith's pride, work ethic and character are what give him the best chance of converting his athletic potential into on-field production as a receiver. He put in a lot of time working to improve as a passer in order to be a better quarterback at Missouri, and teams can be confident that he will maintain that work ethic in the NFL. Toughness Clutch Play Production Consistency Team Player Pride/Quit 6.0 5.0 5.0 5.0 6.5 6.5 MENTAL ALERTNESS Section Grade: 6.5 Smith is no doubt smart enough to learn to play a new position in the NFL -- he was smart enough to play quarterback at Missouri, so there is no issue with his learning ability. He has excellent instincts running with the ball, and consistently makes things happen when he runs in the open field; however, he is going to need to learn how to anticipate the snap, so that he can burst off the ball into his routes. His ability to maintain his focus and concentration is what enabled Smith to carry the Missouri team on his back throughout his entire four seasons. Learn/Retain Instincts/Reactions Concentration 6.5 6.5 6.5 STRENGTH/EXPLOSION Section Grade: 6.0 Smith is a tall and well-built football player, but is thinner below the waist than you expect for a player who is nearly 210 pounds. He has been a very durable quarterback at Missouri despite taking a huge pounding during his career, and he should be a durable receiver in the NFL. He is a naturally explosive athlete, who can burst out of cuts and makes big plays running with the ball, but he is going to need to learn to get off the ball quickly at the snap. His playing strength is very good for a receiver -- once he gets into the open field, he can run through arm tackles, keep his feet after hard hits, and break more tackles than most players. Body Type Durability Explosion Play Strength 6.5 6.0 5.5 6.5 l_j_r
Quit your bitching, we finally got a playmaker. Some of you people just get your jollys out of bitching huh?
How the hell is he projected as a possession receiver? He's 6'2", 213, 4.46 and has never played RB or WR before officially. We drafted him as an ATH, and he's a damn good one. He might be the best running QB in college football recent history. And if Tangini grilled all the players they were drafting to see how they reacted, I'm sure that if Smith didn't appear committed to a position change, they wouldn't have taken him.
Here is the key.... "may be reluctant to switch positions". My Take on that is judging by who they took in the 3rd round Smith would not have been drafted by the Jets if he was not going to commit to the goal of Tangini. If Smith didn't want to do what Tangini asked of him he'd still be on the board. Knock the pick all you want but this is a great pick for the Jets. As far as him being a possesion WR, I don't recall David Givens, Troy Brown or David Patten being big time 4.3 WR's and they all have a few rings to show for it. Hello trick plays.... I see it now Ben Graham throws a TD pass to Brad Smith
