The Case Against DeCastro

[The Emperor]

Very interesting:

--Not every scout is enamored with DDC: in a recent edition of their draft insider web column, the fine gents at Pro Football Weekly quoted an NFL insider as saying "DeCastrois overrated. On tape, he is a good guard, but he is not special by any means. You love the kid, you love the work ethic, you love the makeup. But in a normal draft, you’d like to get him in the second." The second? As in round? I think this might just be overstating things a bit. But this source does bring up a good point. In a draft with precious few sure things, a Steady Eddie like DeCastro is going to get over-rated. Scouts have likely taken a step back from DDC; now I think its time for us to do so.

The drop-off at guard isn't steep: Unlike other positions, where there is a steep decline in quality after a handful of first-rounders, there are several second-round guards to be had, all of them on the above list. No, they don't grade out as high as DeCastro, but the difference between their grades and his is less than between, say, that of Fletcher Cox and Devon Still. One of the reason for this is....

Guard is not a premium position: In the first round of the draft, the most talented players are available. As a result, teams should draft the positions that are either most dependent on raw ability or at which there is a premium on having a talented player. In a pass-oriented league, those positions are: QB, WR, OT, CB and pass rusher. I call these the Positions of Great Import (POGI). Typically, these positions square off against one another, and either enjoying or suffering a talent disparity in these match-ups can strongly affect its outcome. For example, if your left tackle is being whipped by the opposing pass rusher, your offense is going to struggle to pass the ball, regardless of what the other ten players are doing.

Read more from rabblerousr:

http://www.bloggingtheboys.com/2012/...stro#storyjump