PFW Blog
Wednesday practice review
MOBILE, Ala. -- In the last day in pads, both squads looked pretty good, showing pretty high effort and intensity. It was the last chance before Saturday's game for players to make a real impression in drills and in team work. There also were a few scraps in practice and some pushing and shoving after the whistle, which the coaches didn't discourage to a certain point.
Here are some observations from each of the practices:
North team
USC TE Fred Davis continued his productive week with another solid showing. He just seems to get open. Maybe he's not the most athletic tight end down here, but he has consistently caught the ball well, including making a fingertip catch early in practice.
West Virginia FB Owen Schmitt drove fellow RB Chauncey Washington all the way into the OL drills nearby in a pass-blocking, one-on-one drill. Schmitt has shown he knows how to block here, and he has been involved in the passing game as well.
Colorado DB Terrence Whitley stumbled a little bit during backpedalling and has looked a little behind other DBs in terms of technique.
USC LB Keith Rivers, who has consistently stood out, beat Washington --his college teammate -- in pass-rush drills and has looked the part as a three-down linebacker.
Oklahoma State WR Adarius Bowman had a rough start to the week, struggling on Tuesday especially, and he dropped a pass early in practice. However, he recovered later on with some nice grabs and made a better showing as the day went on. It appears he needs some coaching, but his physical traits are there.
Michigan LB Shawn Crable knocked Schmitt's helmet off -- in a reversal of roles, as Schmitt is usually the helmet buster -- but his day went south thereafter. After losing Oklahoma State RB Dantrell Savage in man coverage in a passing drill, getting turned around a bit, Crable later suffered an injury. His status for the game is questionable.
Penn State LB Dan Connor has looked solid for most of the week, but he has had a little trouble covering some of the quicker backs in practice. It's hard to say if Connor's stock has changed much for the better down here.
Kansas State WR Jordy Nelson has used his hands well, getting off the jam, and he has run nice routes. He looks a little like a tall running back and has caught almost everything. Nelson burned Iowa DB Charles Godfrey on a seam route for a touchdown from John David Booty. He told me this afternoon that the biggest adjustment has been the distance of the routes the coaches are asking him to run.
Indiana CB Tracy Porter has been up and down this week, showing good quickness but also looking vulnerable to some double moves at times. In passing drills, he lost New Mexico WR Marcus Smith on an out-and-up move and clapped his hands in anger afterwards. Raiders DB coach Darren Perry spent a few minutes talking with Porter after that play on the sidelines.
Notre Dame DT Trevor Laws has shown up a number of times this week, and he did so Wednesday by scrapping a little bit with Ohio State OT Kirk Barton. Both men have looked solid this week, and they have tangled a number if times.
Michigan State TE Kellen Davis made a nice catch in traffic but fell to the ground and was scolded by the coaches for not finishing the play. Typical college adjustment: In the pros, the ball would have been live because he hadn't been touched by a defender. Davis certainly looks the part and has made some nice grabs, but the mental aspect of the game might be a problem.
Virginia Tech LB Xavier Adibi was one of the few men to stop California RB Justn Forsett before he got into the open field, reading the screen beautifully and coming up to make the play on the ball.
Missouri TE Martin Rucker made two nice blocks: one on Connor on a swing pass to Forsett and one on a crackback pancake of Purdue DE Cliff Avril.
Delaware QB Joe Flacco dropped the exchange in one play during red-zone work, but he managed to pick the ball up and dump it off safely to Washington for a heady play.
South team
South Florida LB Ben Moffitt displayed so-so feet and quickness in a pad-agility drill to open practice.
Louisville WR Harry Douglas dropped what would be a sure touchdown on a well-thrown pass from Tennessee's Eric Ainge and probably needs to do something in the game to make up for a mediocre showing.
Another speed guy, Houston's Donnie Avery, is hard to miss because of his quickness, but he might be a one-trick pony. His forte is the deep route, and he runs them well, but those skills might not translate to being much more than a specialist in the pros. At one point, 49ers WR coach Jerry Sullivan got on Avery for running the wrong route. And later, Avery inexplicably ran into the backfield as if he thought the play was a reverse, throwing off the timing and getting into QB Andre Woodson's way.
Auburn CB Patrick Lee has looked good, but like Michigan State's Davis above, he needs to stay focused and finish off drills. Lee made an interception on one play but failed to turn up field and try to score, angerng the coaches.
Texas Tech DT Red Bryant is opening eyes with his play and massive size (6-5, 329), coming a bit out of nowhere. Most of the interior guys on the South roster who likely will fit best in zone-blocking schemeshave had their trouble matching up with him. In one play, Bryant pushed Bowling Green OG Kory Lichtensteiger back into the backfield, knocking his helmet off in the process.
Hampton DT-DE Kendall Langford went right around UTEP OT Oneil Cousins on one play, hardly touched.
The new star yesterday was Appalachian State WR Dexter Jackson, who made his first practice on Wednesday. He was added to the roster midweek after a spate of WR injuries and wasted no time making an impression. His route-running needs work for sure, but he caught the ball well in stride with his hands. And he overcame an easy drop later by making the best grab of the day -- a diving snag just inside the sideline on a pass from Hawaii's Colt Brennan. That was an NFL-quality catch.
Maryland DT Dre Moore is a load. He overpowered Texas A&M C Cody Wallace on two straight plays in OL drills and has looked tough to block all week. Moore spent a long time after practice talking to a Browns scout.
Georgia Tech DL Darrell Robertson developed a bad habit of jumping offsides during DL drills. He did it twice in a row then flinched on the third play, slowing down his eventual rush.
Alabama DE Wallace Gilberry made a fine play from the strong side, splitting Tennessee TE Cottam and Newberry College ORT BradHeath Benedict and getting into the backfield to tackle Tulane's Matt Forte for a loss.
It's hard to be sure what to make of Mississippi State LB Titus Brown. Some team likely will fall in love with his rush ability, and a few times this week he has flashed it. He went right around Cousins to get into the backfield in one play, maintaining his balance throughout. But Brown has looked out of place at times, too, likely needing some work before he can be a full-time linebacker. You know who he reminds me of a little bit? Giants LB Reggie Torbor, who never quite has lived up to expectations and has had to make a similar position transition in the pros. Of course, the guy is going to be starting in the Super Bowl next week for what it's worth.
Tuesday recap: North and South practices
I finally have given up hope of wireless connection and moved over to the plug in the wall, so I apologize for getting this up so late.
(No, I haven't forgotten about the Q&As I promised, but my computer issues took up most of my time. I'll get those up tomorrow.)
Humor gone, but undaunted, here's a report on the Tuesday practices:
North practice
The Raiders coaches spent the first part of practice installing the playbook, and the mood was loose early during stretching. The coaches mixed in with the player, throwing footballs around and keeping things light. But once the stretching was over, the mood changed. The Raiders' staff got very vocal and animated, both encouraging guys and challenging them. LB coach Don Martindale was perhaps the loudest, shouting out, "Where are my linebackers?"
In OL drills, Nebraska OT Carl Nicks and Oregon State OG Roy Schuening both showed a nice first step. Schuening continued his strong showing during one-one-one drills, stonewalling NC State DT DeMario Pressley, who otherwise had a good day.
Eagles coaches were keeping a close watch on the tight ends -- USC's Fred Davis, Missouri's Martin Rucker and Michigan State's Kellen Davis -- who all showed well at one point. The Ravens also appeared to be interested in Rucker, spending several minutes talking with him after practice. Rucker's best play was a tough catch on a play where he was interefered with by Notre Dame S Tom Zbikowski and had to readjust to the ball, which was thrown a little behind him.
UCLA OLB Bruce Davis, who played defensive end in college, is having some trouble adjusting to playing in a two-point stance. He lost California RB Justin Forsett on a wheel route, showing his stiffness. Davis will take some coaching to make the adjustment to linebacker, it appears.
Colorado LB Jordon Dizon had a good practice, receiving praise from Raiders defensive coordinator Rob Ryan more than once. Dizon showed good instincts in the run gam, always appeared around the ball and getting by blockers. He certainly could be a great fit as a "Will" linebacker in a scheme like the Bucs or Colts use.
The domination play of the day: USC OT Sam Baker crushing Purdue DE Cliff Avril, who looks undersized, into the ground. Avril tried to go wide, but Baker used his long arms and good balance to snuff out the rush. Later, though, Avril did get around Baker with his speed.
Boston College OT Gosder Cherilus has been up and down, but he flashed a real mean streak on Monday and was dominant at times on Tuesday, snuffing USC DE Lawrence Jackson once in one-on-one drills that favor the defender. That said, he hasn't been very consistent, and he might slip out of the first round, even with his Senior Bowl-best (almost) 35-inch arms.
Michigan QB Chad Henne, like the other quarterbacks, had some good throws and some bad ones, but he looked better than Delaware's Joe Flacco and USC's John David Booty. Henne has zip on his throws, but he appeared a little frazzled when the defensive pressure picked up. The throw Henne would have liked to have back was an overthrow of Cal's Lavelle Hawkins, who showed his speed.
The best player in Mobile might be USC DT Sedrick Ellis. He's built like a refridgerator and has dominated the one-on-one drills. He looks like a top-10 pick, though the layout of the top of first round might push him down into the 11-15 range.
South practice
Troy CB-KR Leodis McKelvin caught all of his kickoffs flawlessly after a rough first day. I wrote a feature on him that will be up at some point in the morning.
Georgia PK Brandon Coutu was good on placekicks, but his kickoff distance was not great.
Hawaii QB Colt Brennan connected with Texas WR Limas Sweed on a great deep in route. It was Brennan's best throw of the day and Sweed's best route and catch.
After a rough first day, Clemson S Quintin Demps made a pretty over-the-shoulder interception on the sideline during a DB drill with no receivers, staying in bounds and turning and running well. Still, Demps has had his troubles in coverage in two practices.
LSU CB Chevis Jackson is making the most of his opportunities so far, and he's not afraid to show up a college teammate to do so. Jackson defended LSU WR Early Doucet, covering him stride for stride on a fly pattern. But Doucet got his revenge a few plays later, making a circus catch over Jackson. Doucet suffered an unknown injury a few plays later and his status for the rest of the week mightbe in doubt.
Another pretty interception was turned in by Tennessee State CB Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie, who tracked down a wobbly Eric Ainge pas, high-pointed the ball and made an athletic move to stay in bounds and securing the ball. Rodgers-Cromartie has looked good.
Tulane RB Matt Forte hasrun hard and showed up well to date, battling with Georgia Tech's Tashard Choice as perhaps the two best backs in Mobile this week. Forte has caught the ball well and shown enough speed to make people take notice.
Alabama CB Simeon Castille's lack of speed is hurting him in coverage. He looks like he just can't work on a team that uses a high percentage of man coverage, based on his work here.
I'll have more later this week on Indiana CB Tracy Porter, who has looked agile and instinctive.
Another Bama kid, WR D.J. Hall, hasn't looked bad ... he just hasn't done much. He has been fairly invisible, in fact. Not good when your college coach -- Nick Saban, perpetually on a cell phone -- stops in to see how you are doing.
Pitt OG Mike McGlynn is the kind of kid the coaches love, sprinting to each drill and listening to the coaching. But his play has been nothing special so far.
Posted by Eric Edholm on January 23, 2008 12:40 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
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January 22, 2008
Quick take on Tuesday's North team practice
Updated 2:44 p.m. ET, Tuesday, Jan. 22
MOBILE, Ala. -- Having some Internet connection issues here at the hotel, so I’ll strike while the iron is bathwater warm.
Couple of notes: UNLV LB Beau Bell dodged a big bullet after appearing to suffer a significant knee injury. He went down in a heap and yelled out during team drills. He's having an MRI done today but Bell's representatives hope it's only a sprain. He’ll be done for the week.
Indiana CB Tracy Porter had a nice pick today. None of the quarterbacks (Joe Flacco, John David Booty or Chad Henne) had an outstanding practice, but none were terrible. USC DT Sedrick Ellis has looked dominant. At one point, seven of the 22 players on the field were from USC.
I’ll chime in later with a full report, including Q&As with Porter, Boston College OT Gosder Cherilus and Notre Dame S Tom Zbikowski, plus some guys from the North team.
Posted by Eric Edholm on January 22, 2008 12:37 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
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January 21, 2008
Monday recap of South team practice
MOBILE, Ala. – I won’t bore you with the details of a crawling El train, a nearly missed flight, miracles in the security line and the funny looks I got from members the Bears as I approached the gate with shoes, bag, laptop, belt and jacket still in my hands after running an entire terminal’s length.
My flight got in at 1:30, and after Nolan Nawrocki picked me up, we went straight to the South team practice, coached by Mike Nolan and the 49ers. We chose to attend that practice, which was going on at the same time as the North team’s practice, because we were able to get on the Fairthorpe Municipal Stadium field.
Practice started and opened with special teams work: punt protection, punters kicking to returners and gunners. The linemen went off and did one-one-one drills mostly during this time.
Here are some observations from practice, which lasted about an hour and 45 minutes:
Troy CB-RS Leodis McKelvin, who is one of the higher-rated prospects in Mobile, had a so-so first day. He started by dropping a couple of punts, misjudging the first and plain muffing the second. But he rallied during the special-teams portion and looked like a running back with the ball in his hands. He was maybe the most dangerous punt returner in the country last fall with an 18.2-yard average and three TDs on 23 returns.
LSU’s Early Doucet showed McKelvin how it was done, catching every punt flawlessly during the first portion of practice. He looked fluid and quick. Later, in passing drills, he caught the ball in stride and generally looked good. He made one sliding catch near the sideline, with McKelvin close in coverage but unable to make the play.
Georgia Tech P Durant Brooks hit some nice, high punts but also flubbed a couple. Most of his kicks, though, wobbled in the air and were not easily catchable.
Tennessee State CB Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie didn’t look out of place today at all. He showed a good rip move in gunner drills and then looked athletic and instinctive in a quarters defense drill. He’s one of the taller corners in Mobile (6-foot-2) and looked fairly fluid in backpedal. “I have been working out with that guy,” Doucet told PFW of Rodgers-Cromartie, “and that dude is an athlete!”
Arkansas DT Marcus Harrison was whipping some guys today. He looked like the best D-lineman in terms of power, quickness and technique in the one-on-one drills, though 49ers DL coach Jim Tomsula did stress several times that Harrison needed to do a better job of getting his hands inside the O-lineman’s pads. Harrison’s best play was blowing up a run play by running over Pitt OG Mike McGlynn.
Funniest moment of the day: Georgia Tech LB Phillip Wheeler, grabbing hold of Tulane RB Matt Forte’s shorts and pulling them down, revealing a full-moon backside to the roughly 200 fans on that side of the field. Even the scouts and coaches had to chortle at that one.
Second funniest moment of the day: Nolan, subtly trying to let Lions head coach Rod Marinelli know that his fly was down. It took Nolan three attempts before Marinelli actually heard what he said.
Speaking of Wheeler, he had a rough day other than the de-pantsing. For the record, Forte ran by Wheeler on the pants play. Later in a man-coverage drill with tight ends, Wheeler got all twisted around trying to cover a wheel route and grabbed the jersey of Auburn TE Cole Bennett – who was added at the last minute with Notre Dame TE John Carlson battling an illness – some 20 yards down the field. And in 9-on-7 drills, Wheeler got an earful from 49ers assistant head coach/LB coach Mike Singletary: “Too high, man! Get them pads down!”
Among those watching closely the defensive back drills: Buccaneers head coach Jon Gruden, Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin, Browns GM Phil Savage (plus three other Browns scouts) and Marinelli.
McKelvin looked better in DB drills, showing he can backpedal well and flip his hips quickly.
LSU CB Chevis Jackson showed some shaky hands, dropping a couple balls in those drills, but he appears to have good instincts, breaking up two passes in a zone drill later. One observation, though: When he did make a mistake, he instantly would turn around and look at either Vance Joseph or Johnny Lynn, the 49ers’ DB coaches, as if to check and see if they noticed his mistake. It appeared they did.
Maryland DT Dre Moore looked overweight with a bad body at the Monday weigh-in and he didn’t get off the ball very quickly in some of the 9-on-7 drills.
Kentucky LB Wesley Woodyard doesn’t have great size, and he didn’t help his stock by looking a little wooden in zone coverage.
South Florida LB Ben Moffitt looked OK at times, showing good instincts in passing drills and moving well, but he got burned on a long touchdown pass to Georgia Tech RB Tashard Choice and took a bad angle on a run by Kentucky RB Rafael Little. Choice, by the way, moved very well and weighed in at 210 pounds, without appearing to lack any speed. He just looks good. Great pad level, shifty. Good back, I think. Better person.
Texas A&M C Cody Wallace got overwhelmed twice in one-on-one drills, once by Moore and another time by Harrison. Then, during 9-on-7 drills, college teammate Red Bryant whipped Wallace with an inside rip move and helped make a play in the backfield.
Hawaii QB Colt Brennan threw the ball with velocity, but his throws came out looking weird and off target, with several different arm angles. New Niners offensive coordinator Mike Martz spent a lot of time talking with Brennan on the side. Could these two pair up? A match made in heaven.
Bowling Green OG Kory Lichtensteiger had the run-block of the day, pushing his man out of the way then clearing out a linebacker as well.
Kentucky QB Andre Woodson wasn’t accurate today. Several deep balls either sailed several yards too long or were off target left or right. Later, though, he connected with – oddly enough – Florida WR Andre Caldwell on a nicely run square-in.
UTEP S Quentin Demps took a bad angle on a couple of run plays and later overpursued on a reverse run in his direction.
Newberry College OT Heath Benedict will be under a microscope all week. He struggled in one-on-one blocking drills and was manhandled by Alabama DE Wallace Gilberry more than once. So far, Benedict has looked overmatched by the competition. Later, Gilberry continued his strong day by knifing past Arkansas OT Robert Felton.
Hampton’s Kendall Langford looks like a textbook “5-technique” in a 3-4 defense. The kid is baby-faced and well-spoken, though, which is a little surprising for a man who stands 6-foot-6 and 294 pounds. “I do not have a preference (playing tackle or end), but I think I will be inside a lot,” Langford told PFW. “I can play a few spots, I think.”
Alabama CB Simeon Castille appears to lack speed and he dropped a potential interception that hit him right in the hands on a badly thrown ball.
Florida State DT Andre Fluellen wasn’t the biggest interior lineman of the group, but he gained steam as the practice went on and had a few nice pressures.
Tennessee QB Eric Ainge had a poor day throwing the football. He repeatedly tried to fit the ball into tight spaces and was inaccurate both high and wide.
Ainge’s college teammate, 6-8 TE Brad Cottam, impressed with his athleticism, making more than one play right down the seam. He didn’t drop a pass that I saw.
Jets scouts were paying close attention to Forte it appeared.
Tiny Louisville WR Harry Douglas (169 pounds) is doing anything he can to impress the coaches and scouts. He’s even holding on extra points and field goals.
OK, that’s all for today. We’ll go at it again with reports from both teams’ practices tomorrow.
Posted by Eric Edholm on January 21, 2008 11:30 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)
