Raidermania12
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ok, lets see if we can't get some impact weapons on day 2.
Pass-rushers available on Day 2
Pasquarelli
By Len Pasquarelli
ESPN.com
Archive
There aren't a lot of certainties on the second day of any NFL draft.
Except, it seems, for one: Some team will unearth a defender, a guy who somehow slipped through the cracks in the first three rounds, with innate pass-rush ability. A player who at some point early in his career, perhaps even as a rookie, will register double-digit sacks.
It happens just about every year, and there's no reason to believe that it won't happen once again Sunday.
"(It's) just one of those freak things," said Chicago general manager Jerry Angelo. "On the second day, you're looking for guys who might not be complete players, but who have one outstanding (characteristic). And if that one thing happens to be upfield speed, the ability to press the pocket, you're going to be interested. Those kinds of guys are always worth the gamble on the second day."
Angelo rolled the dice on such a player last season, choosing defensive end Mark Anderson of Alabama in the fifth round, and came up with a winner. With the 159th player selected, the 17th end taken in the draft, Angelo got a guy who notched 12 sacks as a rookie. Those dozen sacks led all rookie defenders and were 7½ more than Houston Texans defensive end Mario Williams, the top choice overall in the 2006 lottery, managed in his debut season.
The Texans paid Williams nearly $15 million for last season. The Bears' total investment in Anderson for 2006 was $431.550.
So finding a young outside pass-rusher on the second day of the draft is not only a windfall on game day, but also a bargain on payday.
Chicago wasn't the only team to discover a pass-rush threat on the second day of the 2006 draft. Denver chose Elvis Dumervil in the fourth round, and the former Louisville standout produced 8½ sacks as a rookie. Fact is, the list of solid pass-rushers gleaned on the second day of the draft since 2002 is very impressive.
Aaron Kampman of Green Bay, who has increased his sack total each of his five seasons in the NFL and who had 15½ quarterback takedowns in 2006, was a fifth-round pick in 2002. That same year, the Bears landed end Alex Brown, who has 27½ career sacks, in the fourth round. In 2003, Indianapolis tabbed Robert Mathis in the fourth round, and he's rewarded the craftiness of the Colts' scouting staff with 35 sacks in four seasons, including three years in which he had nine sacks or more.
Few drafts can compare with the 2004 lottery in terms of turning out second-day rushers. Kansas City got Jared Allen, who has 27 ½ sacks in four seasons, in the fourth round that year. The Bengals chose Robert Geathers, who has 17 sacks in three years, including 10 ½ last season, in the fourth round. And in the seventh round, Jacksonville selected Bobby McCray, who had 10 sacks in 2006.
In 2005, Philadelphia reached for little known Trent Cole in the fifth round, and the former University of Cincinnati rusher has 13 sacks in two years, with eight last season.
Said the Colts' Mathis: "People think that all there are on the second day are special teams players. But there are some people with special talents, period, who teams seem to find on the second day."
One player still on the board after Saturday's three rounds, a defender often compared to Mathis by scouts, is Antwan Barnes of Florida International.
A classic in-between guy who might project into a hybrid-type defender or situational pass-rusher, Barnes has 4.46 speed and comes off the corner like a heat-seeking missile. He is just 6-feet-0 ½ and 242 pounds, but has the kind of quick-twitch explosiveness that will make him difficult to ignore on the second day. Barnes had 23 sacks for his career, including 11 in 2005, and, like Mathis, is adept at the sack-and-strip technique.
"I just feel like my quickness is going to get me past a lot of (offensive) tackles," Barnes said. "And if I get close to the quarterback, I'm getting him."
Three more defenders with outstanding pass-rush skills who could be taken on Sunday:
• DE Mkristo Bruce (Washington State): In four seasons, Bruce had 29½ sacks, with 10 in 2005 and 11 in 2006, when he ranked among the nation's sack leaders. Bruce doesn't run as well as scouts would like, with a time of about 5.12 in the 40. But he's got the kind of long body (6-feet-5 ¾, 268 pounds) and long arms scouts love and just seems to have a knack for compressing the pocket.
• LB Marshall Murrell (Appalachian State): The son of former NFL tailback Adrian Murrell rang up 34½ career sacks. In the past two seasons, he had 26 sacks, with 13 each in 2005 and 2006. He also forced 13 fumbles in those two years. Murrell is 6-feet-1½, 233 pounds and runs in the high-4.7s. Scouts feel he might be able to contribute early in his career as a special teams player.
• DE/LB Justin Hickman (UCLA): He is not especially big (6-feet-1 ½, 254 pounds), quick (4.79) or athletic, but he blossomed as a pass rusher in 2006, when he had 12 sacks. He could start on special teams while he hones his skills.
Len Pasquarelli is a senior writer for ESPN.com.
i'd take a gamble on Hickman in he's available in the 5th or 6th.
Pass-rushers available on Day 2
Pasquarelli
By Len Pasquarelli
ESPN.com
Archive
There aren't a lot of certainties on the second day of any NFL draft.
Except, it seems, for one: Some team will unearth a defender, a guy who somehow slipped through the cracks in the first three rounds, with innate pass-rush ability. A player who at some point early in his career, perhaps even as a rookie, will register double-digit sacks.
It happens just about every year, and there's no reason to believe that it won't happen once again Sunday.
"(It's) just one of those freak things," said Chicago general manager Jerry Angelo. "On the second day, you're looking for guys who might not be complete players, but who have one outstanding (characteristic). And if that one thing happens to be upfield speed, the ability to press the pocket, you're going to be interested. Those kinds of guys are always worth the gamble on the second day."
Angelo rolled the dice on such a player last season, choosing defensive end Mark Anderson of Alabama in the fifth round, and came up with a winner. With the 159th player selected, the 17th end taken in the draft, Angelo got a guy who notched 12 sacks as a rookie. Those dozen sacks led all rookie defenders and were 7½ more than Houston Texans defensive end Mario Williams, the top choice overall in the 2006 lottery, managed in his debut season.
The Texans paid Williams nearly $15 million for last season. The Bears' total investment in Anderson for 2006 was $431.550.
So finding a young outside pass-rusher on the second day of the draft is not only a windfall on game day, but also a bargain on payday.
Chicago wasn't the only team to discover a pass-rush threat on the second day of the 2006 draft. Denver chose Elvis Dumervil in the fourth round, and the former Louisville standout produced 8½ sacks as a rookie. Fact is, the list of solid pass-rushers gleaned on the second day of the draft since 2002 is very impressive.
Aaron Kampman of Green Bay, who has increased his sack total each of his five seasons in the NFL and who had 15½ quarterback takedowns in 2006, was a fifth-round pick in 2002. That same year, the Bears landed end Alex Brown, who has 27½ career sacks, in the fourth round. In 2003, Indianapolis tabbed Robert Mathis in the fourth round, and he's rewarded the craftiness of the Colts' scouting staff with 35 sacks in four seasons, including three years in which he had nine sacks or more.
Few drafts can compare with the 2004 lottery in terms of turning out second-day rushers. Kansas City got Jared Allen, who has 27 ½ sacks in four seasons, in the fourth round that year. The Bengals chose Robert Geathers, who has 17 sacks in three years, including 10 ½ last season, in the fourth round. And in the seventh round, Jacksonville selected Bobby McCray, who had 10 sacks in 2006.
In 2005, Philadelphia reached for little known Trent Cole in the fifth round, and the former University of Cincinnati rusher has 13 sacks in two years, with eight last season.
Said the Colts' Mathis: "People think that all there are on the second day are special teams players. But there are some people with special talents, period, who teams seem to find on the second day."
One player still on the board after Saturday's three rounds, a defender often compared to Mathis by scouts, is Antwan Barnes of Florida International.
A classic in-between guy who might project into a hybrid-type defender or situational pass-rusher, Barnes has 4.46 speed and comes off the corner like a heat-seeking missile. He is just 6-feet-0 ½ and 242 pounds, but has the kind of quick-twitch explosiveness that will make him difficult to ignore on the second day. Barnes had 23 sacks for his career, including 11 in 2005, and, like Mathis, is adept at the sack-and-strip technique.
"I just feel like my quickness is going to get me past a lot of (offensive) tackles," Barnes said. "And if I get close to the quarterback, I'm getting him."
Three more defenders with outstanding pass-rush skills who could be taken on Sunday:
• DE Mkristo Bruce (Washington State): In four seasons, Bruce had 29½ sacks, with 10 in 2005 and 11 in 2006, when he ranked among the nation's sack leaders. Bruce doesn't run as well as scouts would like, with a time of about 5.12 in the 40. But he's got the kind of long body (6-feet-5 ¾, 268 pounds) and long arms scouts love and just seems to have a knack for compressing the pocket.
• LB Marshall Murrell (Appalachian State): The son of former NFL tailback Adrian Murrell rang up 34½ career sacks. In the past two seasons, he had 26 sacks, with 13 each in 2005 and 2006. He also forced 13 fumbles in those two years. Murrell is 6-feet-1½, 233 pounds and runs in the high-4.7s. Scouts feel he might be able to contribute early in his career as a special teams player.
• DE/LB Justin Hickman (UCLA): He is not especially big (6-feet-1 ½, 254 pounds), quick (4.79) or athletic, but he blossomed as a pass rusher in 2006, when he had 12 sacks. He could start on special teams while he hones his skills.
Len Pasquarelli is a senior writer for ESPN.com.
i'd take a gamble on Hickman in he's available in the 5th or 6th.
