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Top 15 Tackles


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Everything is an educated guess at this point, but our board is a synthesis of 3 draft sites and two guys who do this for a living. Here's what we have so far.

 

Top-15 Offensive Tackles

Round 1

4 Russell Okung

10 Bryan Bulaga

14 Trent Williams

18 Anthony Davis

27 Bruce Campbell

31 Charles Brown

Round 2

Nobody

Round 3

83 Jason Fox

94 Rodger Saffold

Round 4 and Later

97 Selvish Capers

106 Jared Veldheer

123 Kyle Calloway

126 Ciron Black

152 Sam Young

157 Zane Beadles

160 Ed Wang

 

Great post Astro. I'm huge on Fox..and think he's extremely underrated, which is surprising considering he's coming out of Miami. Not a flashy player with the raw talent of a Davis, but Fox at least plays to his potential and doesn't underachieve.

 

Also, I'm kind of big on Calloway Veldeheer and Saffold as SOLID OT options in the 3rd round, in addition to Fox. :thumbsup: I almost like all of them more than the likes of Charles Brown or Trent Williams

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I think Bulaga can be as good as Roos of the Titans in a couple years, and at #9, I think that is about perfect value. He'll probably never be the pass protector of a W Jones, Pace, or Ogden in their prime, but he'll still be pretty darn good there. As a run blocker though, he'll always be taking out guys at the 2nd level like Roos including a nasty streak, which is essential IMO. On the right tackle subject, if Merideth commits himself to the offseason program I think he could give Butler a run for his money and we should be fine on that side.

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Davis won't last until 18. Some drafts have him as high as five and many have the Bills taking him at 9. How could he drop to 18?

 

No way Davis goes in the top 5. That would be simply criminal. Having watched Davis in every single game he's ever played in college, he's a mid to lower half 1st round pick. (IMO)

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As always, thanks for the contribution Astro.

 

I disagree regarding round 2 value, however, as I think both Brown and Capers will end up there. I also think that Davis will likely go ahead of Williams in round 1, and possibly even ahead of Bulaga if the team that selects the 2nd OT is looking for a better athlete.

 

Black and Saffold are guys that I've always felt would be better off playing in limited space as guards, but overall I think you're pretty much on target here.

 

I agree with you about Davis. The combines are going to push his pick spot past Williams. Davis has a chance to be a LT, as might Iupati, whose stock will climb. If someone wants a decent RT, Williams would be a good choice, but not a good first choice for the Bills.

 

Capers...meh. He locks onto his man (occasionally too high for NFL), but sometimes is unaware of what the QB is doing. He also doesn't have much push in the run game compared to guys going later on this list, like Veldheer and Calloway.

 

I like Saffold (see last game he played in) better than Ciron Black. Black could be a good guard, but you won't see him in RD2 or RD3 as some mocks say because he won't be playing tackle a year from now IMHO. Navorro Bowman totally disrupted Black in the Senior Bowl, and Black held way too often.

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I like Saffold (see last game he played in) better than Ciron Black. Black could be a good guard, but you won't see him in RD2 or RD3 as some mocks say because he won't be playing tackle a year from now IMHO. Navorro Bowman totally disrupted Black in the Senior Bowl, and Black held way too often.

 

 

I think Saffold is okay. He's a decent enough athlete, but has issues w/ his balance and w/ bull rushers. That doesn't scream blindside protector to me. Black has the bulk and the power, but boy did he get exposed (as many of the OTs did in Mobile) as a guy who couldn't handle edge rushers (Brandon Graham is forever in your debt).

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I think Bulaga can be as good as Roos of the Titans in a couple years, and at #9, I think that is about perfect value. He'll probably never be the pass protector of a W Jones, Pace, or Ogden in their prime, but he'll still be pretty darn good there. As a run blocker though, he'll always be taking out guys at the 2nd level like Roos including a nasty streak, which is essential IMO. On the right tackle subject, if Merideth commits himself to the offseason program I think he could give Butler a run for his money and we should be fine on that side.

Seems like we have pretty good run blockers via our athletic young guards. What we don't have are enough good pass blockers to keep our tbd franchise QB off his back. Help me understand why we use our #9 pic on a good run blocker, when we desperately need a good or great LT to protect our QB's blind side?

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Because Bulaga is a good run blocker AND pass blocker. It's only because of how good his run blocking is that his pass protection gets forgotten about. He totally shut down the best pass rusher in this draft in GT's Morgan in the bowl game. I believe he can be a great LT, just not maybe hall of fame caliber like Jones, Pace and Ogden, who were part of a decade of unbelieveable LT's that you don't see very often.

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Great post Astro. I'm huge on Fox..and think he's extremely underrated, which is surprising considering he's coming out of Miami. Not a flashy player with the raw talent of a Davis, but Fox at least plays to his potential and doesn't underachieve.

 

Also, I'm kind of big on Calloway Veldeheer and Saffold as SOLID OT options in the 3rd round, in addition to Fox. :lol: I almost like all of them more than the likes of Charles Brown or Trent Williams

Isn't Fox's stock dropping due to post season knee surgery and issues with an irregular heart beat that kept him out of games at the end of the season?

 

I wouldn't mind taking a chance on him late, but not in the 3rd round. I like Calloway as a 4th-5th round option.

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Isn't Fox's stock dropping due to post season knee surgery and issues with an irregular heart beat that kept him out of games at the end of the season?

 

I wouldn't mind taking a chance on him late, but not in the 3rd round. I like Calloway as a 4th-5th round option.

 

He did have surgery but from everything I've read is expected to recover perfectly...As for the heartbeat thing, that's totally up in the air...I mean, he is 3rd in the U's history in games played behind Ed Reed and I forget who else...starting every game during his tenure at the U until he got injured at the very end. I don't know much about that hearbeat condition but apparently it didn't affect him at all in his prior years..we'll see.

 

Anyway, I have him in the 3rd round assuming his medical condition is cleared by doctors..which hopefully it will. to me, he's one of the more consistent OT in this draft and I think he'd be much more of a sure thing at LT in the NFL than Davis for Rutgers for example.

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This is the breakdown on Fox, as per CBS, Baby Joe:

 

Pass blocking: At least moderate initial quickness, but is inconsistent with his depth on his initial kick-step. May lack the elite lateral quickness and balance to remain at left tackle in the pros. Appears to have the agility to beat the defender to the edge, but too often stops moving his feet and is susceptible to pass-rushers with a second move. Quick, active hands that he uses well to control the defender when he keeps his feet moving. Bends at the knees and has the core strength to anchor against the bull-rush. Alert, experienced pass blocker who reacts efficiently and correctly to the surprising blitz and loop.

 

Run blocking: More consistent with his quickness as a run blocker. Can get out and hook the defensive end to seal the edge. Strong enough to turn his opponent, but isn't a road grader that can consistently drive his opponent off the ball. Quick hands, but has only marginal upper-body strength and hand placement to sustain. Good short-area quickness to get to the second level and shows at least adequate balance moving forward and laterally to hit the moving target. Good effort downfield.

 

Pulling/trapping: Good initial burst to get off the line of scrimmage and out to the second level. Can adjust in space to oncoming defenders, showing at least adequate balance and agility for the cut-block. Gets his hands on the linebacker, but has to do a better job of keeping his feet chugging to sustain.

 

Initial Quickness: At least adequate quickness to gain depth on his kick-step. Good initial quickness to gain position on the defender in the running game. Can beat the defender to the edge for the seal block.

 

Downfield: Quick enough to get to the second level. Adjusts in space and can get his hands on his opponent. Generally provides a good effort, but could do a better job of keeping his feet moving once he engages the defender, as he lacks great strength or the nastiness offensive line coaches love. Good balance and accuracy as a cut-blocker.

 

Intangibles: Started eight games at right tackle as a true freshman, but was moved to left tackle for four starts due to injuries to teammates and started the final 39 games of his career on the blind side. Voted team captain in 2008 and '09. Graduated with a degree in Marketing. Tough player who played through various injuries as a senior. Will require a Combine check for a dislocated elbow suffered in 2006 and the injury to his left knee that kept Fox out of lineup against Wisconsin in the 2009 Champs Sports Bowl. Despite missing the bowl game, was voted Co-MVP (along with ILB Daryl Sharpton) by his teammates.

 

 

http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/draft/players/1116608

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