Magox Posted April 22, 2009 Posted April 22, 2009 Isn't Britton more projected towards the RT spot? I like the pick of Beatty better because he is supposed to have the feet of a LT (but I am against taking a OT at all in the 1st round) Actually John, I believe he is better suited for the LT than RT. Let me show you a couple different views on Britton: Strengths: Excellent feet for an offensive lineman prospect…uses his arm length to the maximum of his ability…able to keep defensive lineman on the outside with his length/strength combination…better athlete than he is given credit for…still developing, so there is room for upside…adept at both pass and run blocking…an underrated prospect who is going to fly under the radar… Weaknesses: Has the skills set, but can at times play with too much finesse…needs to develop a nastiness to his game…needs some more work on pass blocking to be a true left tackle…is far from a dominant run blocker, so the right side is probably not a good fit…will struggle early on with the speed of the NFL game…potential bust factor is higher than other top tier offensive tackle prospects… Overall: Rarely in the modern world of the NFL Draft is a 1st round type prospect under the radar. Eben Britton is the exception to that rule, you rarely hear his name spoken by your major media outlets, however, scouts know him very well. It is likely that your more well known offensive tackle prospects Jason Smith, Eugene Monroe, Andre Smith, and Michael Oher are likely to go before Britton, but offensive tackles seem to fly off draft boards, evidence supported by the 2008 NFL Draft. Eben Britton will be battling William Beatty to be the next offensive tackle selected, but both players seem likely to be selected in the latter portion of the 1st round of the 2009 NFL Draft. Here's another take: The massive Britton is one of the early risers in many 2009 Draft Boards and with good reason. Britton is a natural, fluid athlete who is very fast (5.05) for his immense size. He moves well once he gains the second level and is a good pass blocker who shows great footwork and natural knee bend. Moving very well laterally, he has enough strength to seal off a side. Britton has shown the ability to pull and work up the field and is a very competitive and well respected leader in the huddle. Although he has a high pain threshold, he has struggled with the wide rush and does not handle stunts well. He needs to bulk up, as well as finishing consistently and his tendency to play too tall. Britton is a top talent who will play regularly on Sundays. He does need better technique and more coaching, but he is a top tier player very similar to Denver's Ryan Clady. Here's another take: Run Blocking: Britton is a solid walk-off drive blocker who might lack an explosive first step, but once he gets into gear, he moves with ease getting into the second level. He plays with natural strength, but will need to improve his power base and increase his bulk to withstand the rigors in the trenches as an NFL player. He has the power to move the pile and drives block with leverage, but could be better here with added bulk. He drives off the snap hard, as he demonstrates the leg drive and feet to stay on his blocks and sustain. He is a good in-line blocker, possessing a wide base as he runs his feet well. He is very good at sustaining and is developing a nice feel for blocking angles (still learning technique, but is responding quickly). He is effective when asked to wall off and screen vs. down line-men, but will struggle to pick up the quick blitz. He brings power to his game when driving for movement and will generally finish, but can be walked back into the pocket when he overextends with his hands and lets the defender get into his chest. He has the good foot-work to stay on his feet on the move and can handle the switch-off well when working in combination with his guard (see 2008 Idaho, Oregon and Washington State games), making him a better fit on the right side than on the left … GRADE-7.3 Pass Blocking: Still learning blocking schemes, but demonstrates enough foot quickness to slide, good knee bend, patience and a strong hand punch. Britton stays square and balanced when shuffling and sliding. Even when he gets overextended, he is quick to recover because of his athletic ability. He could use more bulk to anchor, has the speed to make a run on the edge rushers. Separates himself from others in his drop-step and kick-slide to gain depth and width needed to anchor. Has the balance and body control needed to make reach blocks. Must improve use of change-of-direction agility to wall off and generate the foot quickness to recover when beaten by edge rushers. He does have outstanding quickness off the snap to gain advantage, but has good balance and control in his kick-slide. Makes cut-off blocks, readjusting quickly to the edge rush. His balance in his pass set lets him mirror and contain bull rushers, but he needs to keep his hands inside the framework to prevent edge rushers from slipping off his blocks. GRADE: 7.6 My view is that Beatty may have more upside on an athletic level, but Britton I'd say is more NFL ready to contribute now and according to some of these draft geeks, they think he has good upside as well.
Leonidas Posted April 22, 2009 Posted April 22, 2009 Actually John, I believe he is better suited for the LT than RT. Let me show you a couple different views on Britton: Strengths: Excellent feet for an offensive lineman prospect…uses his arm length to the maximum of his ability…able to keep defensive lineman on the outside with his length/strength combination…better athlete than he is given credit for…still developing, so there is room for upside…adept at both pass and run blocking…an underrated prospect who is going to fly under the radar… Weaknesses: Has the skills set, but can at times play with too much finesse…needs to develop a nastiness to his game…needs some more work on pass blocking to be a true left tackle…is far from a dominant run blocker, so the right side is probably not a good fit…will struggle early on with the speed of the NFL game…potential bust factor is higher than other top tier offensive tackle prospects… Overall: Rarely in the modern world of the NFL Draft is a 1st round type prospect under the radar. Eben Britton is the exception to that rule, you rarely hear his name spoken by your major media outlets, however, scouts know him very well. It is likely that your more well known offensive tackle prospects Jason Smith, Eugene Monroe, Andre Smith, and Michael Oher are likely to go before Britton, but offensive tackles seem to fly off draft boards, evidence supported by the 2008 NFL Draft. Eben Britton will be battling William Beatty to be the next offensive tackle selected, but both players seem likely to be selected in the latter portion of the 1st round of the 2009 NFL Draft. Am I reading this wrong?? Britton's arm length is horrible...
stinky finger Posted April 22, 2009 Posted April 22, 2009 I welcome your feedback, but at least be nice about how stoopid you may think I am, I did put several months of time, effort, and research into it. Wow. Really? Months? Geez, just this morning I jotted down the first couple of rounds and it was eerily similar to yours. Nice draft.
thebandit27 Posted April 22, 2009 Author Posted April 22, 2009 Wow. Really? Months? Geez, just this morning I jotted down the first couple of rounds and it was eerily similar to yours. Nice draft. Then I guess you are just naturally gifted! Seriously though, the months were spent scouting players one position group at a time, then confirming the things I noted from game tapes by watching each player's combine workout 2 or 3 times, and finally compiling all of the intangibles/off-field notes on each player. That's how I put my board together. Then comes the task of trying to reason out what each team will do, which is positively exhausting. I went through each team's draft history (back to 2000), each GM's draft history (back to 2005), each team's current needs, and each team's list of pending FAs after the 2009-2010 season (which is incredibly difficult with the upcoming CBA negotiation, since players in years 3 through 6 could either become UFAs in the 2010 offseason or be stuck as RFAs until after the 2012 season). Not that any of that means anything, I just figured it might justify the inexcusable amount of time I spend on the draft each year...it's a wonder my better half hasn't left me yet!
Leonidas Posted April 22, 2009 Posted April 22, 2009 Then I guess you are just naturally gifted! Seriously though, the months were spent scouting players one position group at a time, then confirming the things I noted from game tapes by watching each player's combine workout 2 or 3 times, and finally compiling all of the intangibles/off-field notes on each player. That's how I put my board together. Then comes the task of trying to reason out what each team will do, which is positively exhausting. I went through each team's draft history (back to 2000), each GM's draft history (back to 2005), each team's current needs, and each team's list of pending FAs after the 2009-2010 season (which is incredibly difficult with the upcoming CBA negotiation, since players in years 3 through 6 could either become UFAs in the 2010 offseason or be stuck as RFAs until after the 2012 season). Not that any of that means anything, I just figured it might justify the inexcusable amount of time I spend on the draft each year...it's a wonder my better half hasn't left me yet! Does your 'better half' know about what's going on between you and Kiper's Hair??
thebandit27 Posted April 22, 2009 Author Posted April 22, 2009 Does your 'better half' know about what's going on between you and Kiper's Hair?? Of course, she's into that kind of thing...
stinky finger Posted April 22, 2009 Posted April 22, 2009 Then I guess you are just naturally gifted! Seriously though, the months were spent scouting players one position group at a time, then confirming the things I noted from game tapes by watching each player's combine workout 2 or 3 times, and finally compiling all of the intangibles/off-field notes on each player. That's how I put my board together. Then comes the task of trying to reason out what each team will do, which is positively exhausting. I went through each team's draft history (back to 2000), each GM's draft history (back to 2005), each team's current needs, and each team's list of pending FAs after the 2009-2010 season (which is incredibly difficult with the upcoming CBA negotiation, since players in years 3 through 6 could either become UFAs in the 2010 offseason or be stuck as RFAs until after the 2012 season). Not that any of that means anything, I just figured it might justify the inexcusable amount of time I spend on the draft each year...it's a wonder my better half hasn't left me yet! I was pulling your leg, bandit. You're a draft zealot and the fact that you have a better half and manage to compile your board only speaks to your passion. Kudos!
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