MY TOP 10 34OLB's 01. Brandon Graham 02. Jerry Hughes 03. Jason Pierre-Paul 04. Sergio Kindle 05. Everson Griffen 06. Eric Norwood 07. Jason Worilds 08. Daryl Washington 09. Austen Lane 10. Ricky Sapp I voted for Hughes because I don't believe Graham will slide to 29 for the Jets
I really do not like Jason Pierre-Paul in the 3-4. At 6'6", I don't think he is going to be very effective at rushing the pass from a standing position. It's going to be difficult to get the leverage he needs against OTs and his long frame makes him a target for cut blocks from RBs. As far as a 4-3 player, I would definitely place him in the top 2 or 3 of DEs.
If he's a good athlete the HT won't hinder him. Calvin Pace and BT are both tall 34OLB's as was Willie McGinest and a number of others. I think JPP has the athleticism to make the transition, but I could be wrong, its certainly no gimmie. Doesn't matter though because he'll never be there at 29 anyway
Pace and Thomas are both 6'4" which puts them in the same class as DeMarcus Ware. McGinest was 6'5" but at that point it could be seen as nit picking. I'm not saying that JPP as a 3-4 OLB is an impossibility but a guy like Graham or Norwood would probably make a better transition. Can you imagine this board if we take a physical presence like Pierre-Paul and it actually takes 1/2 to a full season to develop him? We'll have posters jumping from the rooftops.
I have to agree with this, JPP looked really awkward and unnatural in flipping his hips and dropping back, I like him much better as a 4-3 end.
LOL :grin: No doubt, but again its most likely a non issue, Cato .. I would be stunned if he slid to 29
That's the ultimate point for the Jets but I see him being a frustration for any 3-4 team that picks him up.
Taylor Mays?? Interesting thought here. Watched him play some this year and I was not very impressed with his range and closing on plays when the ball is in the air. IMO, he does not read and react to plays as quick as you want from your free safety. He made plays in front of him exceptionally well, steps up to make the hit on the underneath routes and was excellent in run support. He showed exellent speed at the combine, but as stated by many not have the most of fluid hips - again something needed in an elite Free safety. With his strength, speed, run support and hitting ability having him play OLB is intriguing. The versatility he would offer a defense would be off the charts. Pass rusher, coverage of the TE or RB out of the backfield a presence over the middle in Nickle packages, loves to throw the body in run support....the big question,,,,his ability to shed and play off blocks. I highly doubt he would be around at #29, but just from the standpoint of how he could be used by the Jets or one of the other 3-4 defenses is intriguing. http://msn.foxsports.com/nfl/story/czar-nfl-combine-rumors-030210
I strongly disagree here. Not a lot of people can do 13 backflips at once. His counterpart could only do about 6 and looked much more unnatural.
I'm with ya here Jabba. Thought I would have JPP ahead of Hughes. I don't see JPP or Graham making it to our spot. I'd take Hughes over Kindle, but thats just me and I think both will be good NFL'ers.
Sean Weatherspoon is not the same kindof OLB as the other 3 on the list. Weatherspoon's fit is as a 4-3 OLB, and he is projected to ILB in a 3-4 but I don't know how he would fare there considering one of his biggest knocks is shedding blocks. I like Thaddeus Gibson a lot as a 3-4 OLB. Look past the fact that he hails from the same program as Vernon Gholston, he is just a good football player who is agile in space, a relentless pass rusher, and as shown in the combine, very strong (32 reps of 225 lbs). I don't care about the BP numbers, he looked good moving around and he knows how to get to the QB. I think had he stayed in college for his senior year he could have been 2011's version of Brandon Graham, but a quicker and stronger version. He should be a late second/early third round pick. I'd love for the Jets to come out of the first day with a pass rusher, defensive end, and safety since there will be a TON of great safety prospects available in the 2nd round: Morgan Burnett, Reshad Jones, Chad Jones are my three favorites outside of Berry, Thomas, and Mays who are 1st round picks.
Ditto, flipping his hips would not be the reason why he would have problems playing OLB. If you watch him play, you can see his biggest issue is his rawness and inexperience. At USF he really had one job and that was to get penetration. I don't think he is ready at this point to handle to additional responsibilities that comes with playing OLB at the next level.
