Greetings...

Alex...

There are 3 types of DE's...speed rushers, run stuffers, and someone whos balanced (could excel at both or just be ok vs both). Any elite pass rusher will be gone in the 1st rnd unless they have a serious problem (serious character issues, failed drug tests, ect). The only really dominant pass rushing DE in this draft was Gholston who himself had question marks (he takes plays off, didnt always dominate when he should have) and he went at #6. The Jags traded WAY up to get Harvey...a decent speed rusher but hasnt shown too much explosive ability. Then guys like Calais Campbell...elite run stuffers start going in rnd 2 or situational pass rushers or guys who can stop the run and could develop as pass rushers down the road (Jason Jones). Somewhere in the middle of the draft there will be big time passrushers from small school or lesser competition where there are question marks at how well his pass rushing skills will translate (since they usually dont have elite speed or COD). In rnds 5-7 you'll see ppl grab more run stuffers and seriously undersized pass rushers (guys in the 225-230 range who may never be big enough to be every down players and even bigger question marks how well they can rush against a 6'7 330lb OT in the NFL).

If you look at the draft a few teams took pass rushers very late who might contribute but have strength/speed/size issues.

The reason why it makes sense to get Hayes early in the 4th is because he doesnt have size nor speed issues - so someone was likely to take a flyer on the kid well before rnd 6-7 and because of his speed, size and his position, 4th rnd makes sense. I know Hayes says he's 272lbs, but at his pro day he was 258lbs...but he supposedly does have the same 40 as Gholston and only a little undersized which means he'll only need to put on 5-8 lbs and develop technique and then we could have an explosive pass rusher for passing downs...think travis LaBoy but potentially better...for a 4th rnd pick.

Consider one more thing...if Kearse gets hurt, what other pass rusher do we have opposite KVB? Ford is coming off injury too so a bit of a question mark and Kearse isnt young. Getting a guy with the speed AND nearly the size who can develop and potentially help out on passing downs makes a ton of sense. I think with the Jags having grabbed 2 of the pass rushers already and with them and Indy interested (and we would have known that), it behooves us to grab him before they do. I think the Titans probably got burned earlier by not moving up so they wanted to make sure they got him.

Whether he works out or not, this is the kind of move they should be doing...especially for prospects that - if they work out - can be dominant players...as opposed to solid players if they work out.

I don't listen to Fisher or Reese or MR...its all smoke.

Gut

 

Sk...

Actually, just the opposite happens more frequently. Every team in the draft had 1 of 3 players listed as best player available...Jake Long, Glenn Dorsey, and McFadden. It's funny, I'm pretty sure those weren't the first 3 players picked. To make the point more clear, virtually every team had Dorsey as 1-3 on their board...and he went 5th. Does everyone take BPA (best player available)? Definitely not. Many teams draft need over bpa - sacrificing value to do it. And you don't have to take my word for it...just look at who gets picked where.

I was making the point that other teams (not necessarily the Titans) had WR's rated more highly than CJ and yet none of them were taken before CJ. If you put that into the context of Dorsey, did he all of a sudden get worse as a player since he 'slipped' to 5? No. But a DE in Chris Long fit that team better even though they thought Dorsey was a bit better...but the NEED outweighed their value of the pick. So you or anyone else then saying he lost value is incorrect. Just because a team didnt take a better player doesnt mean that guy is worse. Just that the team gave up value to take a position of need.

First off, I played football in High school. I've coached football in High School. I've studied football of all levels and probably have as many coaching tapes/books/ect as many college football coaches. To suggest I dont know what Im talking about is silly since I can coach/teach any position in football except kickers. I have a pretty good idea of what players do correctly and what they don't. Now I don't have as much access to player film and workouts and stuff, but I only needed a few games to know that Lamont Thompson was terrible and killing our pass D. And yet the 'experts' stayed with him. Who was right...the guys getting paid to coach him or the at home draftnik? Guess us football fanatics might know something afterall. I'd guess 50% or more of the people on this board have not played nor coached football like I have, but it doesn't mean they don't make some good arguments or astute observations. Considering no scout can tell you the degree of success a player will have anymore than I or a bunch of the intelligent posters on this board will...makes this argument a bit moot.

And I don't believe you work for an NFL team either but make sound judgements about players, personel, offenses, defenses, schemes, techniques and a whole lot more. Are your opinions invalid?

How do you know Jones has the frame to carry more weight...do you work for an NFL team? Sorry, couldn't resist. He probably can bulk up to 290 eventually, but it takes a lot of time to add nearly 20lbs of muscle. He was 273 at the combine and also 273 at his pro day. I dont see him hitting 290 this season unless he's eating McD's or BK's...which is not the kind of weight we want! I think he'll be a run down LDE for the time being but might get a few shots at some situational interior pass rushing here and there...but at 273 and without explosive athleticism, not sure how much dmg he can do unless matched up with a bad OG or OC who doesn't get help (like we blitz opposite side to force protection to slide away from him...isolating the OG or OC - wait, how do I know that if I dont work for an NFL team?).

Well, Mason was primarily drafted for his return game and devloped as a WR. That's different than drafting a WR who's similar to 4 other guys already on the roster. And it's not about what his current salary is, its what his salary will be when he can actually contribute....if at all. Otherwise, he never really sees the field and doesn't really help us...so why draft him instead of a higher potential prospect (who might bust but we won't miss him anymore than a 7th wr) or use it to move up in the draft? 4th rnd would have been a nice spot for a run blocking TE with potential and we could have used that 3rd on a player with more likely impact.

Gut

 

Overalls

Bringing in Crumpler who is an excellent TE and Kearse (who may or may not still have it) are good choices...especially if Kearse is back to form. He was on pace to be as good or better than Odom last year. However, both players aren't young and both are coming off injury problems so it's SMART of the Titans to get young depth behind them and to back them up. It doesn't mean we think our FA's stink...lol

And if I were you, I'd be worried about the Texans personell before the Titans...

Gut