Pro Day: Nick Bolton

[CalPolyTechnique]

Pro Day: Missouri

The junior linebacker measured a tick over 5’11” and 237 pounds. His 40 times came in between 4.58 to 4.60 seconds. His other marks included 32 inches in the vertical jump, 7.39 seconds in the three-cone, and 4.50 in the short shuttle. Bolton, a fierce run defender in college, struggled terribly in coverage drills.

 

[RamziD]

Pro Day: Missouri

The junior linebacker measured a tick over 5’11” and 237 pounds. His 40 times came in between 4.58 to 4.60 seconds. His other marks included 32 inches in the vertical jump, 7.39 seconds in the three-cone, and 4.50 in the short shuttle. Bolton, a fierce run defender in college, struggled terribly in coverage drills.

MLBs don’t have much coverage responsibilities, do they?

 

[beware_d-ware]

That's going to hurt with LB becoming more and more of an extra-safety coverage position. The 40 is fine, but the agility isn't.

He can play, but it will have to play in a scheme like Miami or New England that runs their defense more in the bear fronts and likes to stack the LOS. In our cover 3, the LB and the SS are pretty much the same player and both cover 5-10 yards deep with a lot of space. That's not a place where you want Bolton to be hanging out.

 

[baltcowboy]

That's going to hurt with LB becoming more and more of an extra-safety coverage position. The 40 is fine, but the agility isn't.

He can play, but it will have to play in a scheme like Miami or New England that runs their defense more in the bear fronts and likes to stack the LOS. In our cover 3, the LB and the SS are pretty much the same player and both cover 5-10 yards deep with a lot of space. That's not a place where you want Bolton to be hanging out.

I think he falls to the second round now. A short linebacker needs to be able to cover.

 

[unionjack8]

That's pretty low level athleticism imo, do we have any comparisons re his web metrics

 

[Gaede]

Gillespie on the other hand had some good numbers.

 

[cnuball21]

Pro Day: Missouri

The junior linebacker measured a tick over 5’11” and 237 pounds. His 40 times came in between 4.58 to 4.60 seconds. His other marks included 32 inches in the vertical jump, 7.39 seconds in the three-cone, and 4.50 in the short shuttle. Bolton, a fierce run defender in college, struggled terribly in coverage drills.

5’11 and below average athlete?

Whew...like the tape but that’s hard to overcome. I don’t think I can touch him until day 3.

 

[darthseinfeld]

5’11 and below average athlete?

Whew...like the tape but that’s hard to overcome. I don’t think I can touch him until day 3.

Ya, probably wouldn't expect more than a Damien Wilson type pro

 

[cnuball21]

Ya, probably wouldn't expect more than a Damien Wilson type pro

Prolly about right...I’d take Bolton in the 4th.

 

[Bigdog]

Can they test for instincts because from what I read his instincts are off the chart.

 

[Sydla]

I think some people said this a few months ago when people were wondering if Bolton was a worthy target for us - he's a real thumper but a liability in coverage.

 

[Future]

That's pretty low level athleticism imo, do we have any comparisons re his web metrics

 

[Future]

I think he falls to the second round now. A short linebacker needs to be able to cover.

He was a second-round pick anyway.

Only takes one team to draft him, but I bet a lot will have him with a 5th-round grade, if that. He basically can't play in the nickel, and there's very little value to guys like that. LJ Fort is basically his ceiling now, and Fort was undrafted.

 

[Clarke82]

Nick Bolton is a great player and I think he is perfect for today's NFL.

I see London Fletcher when I watch him play. There are more athletic players but, damn few make as many plays.

He plays fast and looks plenty athletic with the pads on.

I would guess he's still a 2nd round pick, trust the tape.

Remember, all the same things were said about Emmitt Smith but, when you turned on the tape he was plenty athletic.

 

[Plankton]

Bolton reminds me a lot of Barron Wortham - good run defender, but he's never going to be a factor on passing downs because of being built like a fire hydrant.

 

[Teague31]

A LB that can’t cover? He’s a perfect fit

 

[RamziD]

That's going to hurt with LB becoming more and more of an extra-safety coverage position. The 40 is fine, but the agility isn't.

He can play, but it will have to play in a scheme like Miami or New England that runs their defense more in the bear fronts and likes to stack the LOS. In our cover 3, the LB and the SS are pretty much the same player and both cover 5-10 yards deep with a lot of space. That's not a place where you want Bolton to be hanging out.

Are you talking about OLB or MLB, because I see him as a MLB. Are the coverage duties for MLB significant in Quinn’s scheme?

 

[garyv]

That's pretty low level athleticism imo, do we have any comparisons re his web metrics

I believe there will be a bunch of guys on the Cowboyszone with better numbers than that.....hmmmmm

 

[beware_d-ware]

Are you talking about OLB or MLB, because I see him as a MLB. Are the coverage duties for MLB significant in Quinn’s scheme?

Nickel LBs are generally interchangeable, and in Quinn's scheme they're basically interchangeable with the box safety too. Deion Jones was called a WLB at 6'1" 220, Keanu Neal was called a SS at 6'1" 215.

All three play under-zone from like 5-10 yards deep. The problem is that the under-zones are spread pretty thin, and the C3 is built around taking away sideline and deep throws. It encourages opponents to check down into your undermanned short zones, and puts a ton of stress on the LBs/SS. Speed is vital to cover ground, but so is the agility to match runners 1v1 in space, and good tackling to keep short gains short.

LVE would have been such a perfect Dan Quinn 'backer that it brings a tear to my eye. Remember in '18 how he dropped everything that moved in the open field? That's the prototype. That's exactly what you want. And he did it at 6'4" 260 too, because he's an absolute freak.

Anyway, Bolton has enough straight-line speed to play in the Cover 3, and his height doesn't really matter in a click-and-close style of defense where he won't be manned up that much (Bobby Wagner is going into the Hall of Fame at 6'0"). But the burst and agility scores scare me. This is a defense where LBs have to regularly track down high-octane athletes in space, and I don't think he has that juice.

 

[Future]

Are you talking about OLB or MLB, because I see him as a MLB. Are the coverage duties for MLB significant in Quinn’s scheme?

They're significant in every scheme, because teams are in nickel 70% of the time.

The coverage duties aren't complex, but you can't hide a LB, and everything you ask him not to do gives the other guys a hard responsibility, which makes a defense very predictable.

This is the problem with, like, Jamal Adams. You can't hide him, and the fact that he's only effective as a blitzer means teams know ahead of time where the coverage gaps are going to be.