xwalker
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With the draft closing in, here is the yearly “How They Doing?" report on the 2014 rookies who had been associated with the Cowboys pre-draft. They were either brought in for visits, linked as strong possibilities for the team, or were talked about/hoped for/pet-catted by members here. Every year I get curious about what happens to those who don’t get selected by the team. So here’s what I found (and this doesn’t include Cowboys picks, just those that eventually went elsewhere).
This is taken from a combination of national writers, local media, local bloggers, in some cases what coaches and opposing teams are saying about them, and if I can’t find much else, what is being said on team message boards, and if I can’t find anything anywhere else, I take a deep breath and check out PFF. If it’ even worse than that, I hold my nose and go to Bleacher Report (I don't think I had to resort to those last two this year). Those of you who follow teams other than Dallas closely, may have some more accurate or detailed info on players than I was able to find.
I haven’t included any of the players that were ranked so high that the Cowboys never had a realistic shot at them, such as Clowney or Mack. I probably have forgotten and left some pet cats off. This group is heavy on defensive lineman, offensive linemen, safeties, with a few linebackers and quarterbacks thrown in, to reflect where the pre-draft interest was at its strongest. In particular, it proved to be a good year for rookie guards, with Zach Martin, Joel Bitonio, and Gabe Jackson all good-to-great Day One starters and Trai Turner eventually winning a starting job and having a solid season.
I’ve been doing this for four years now, and it always impresses me how many rookies start their first season slowly then start to figure things out the second half. Every year there are players who don’t make any midseason All-Rookie teams but by the end of the season, they are on virtually every All-Rookie team. And a few go the other way - they start fast and hit the wall or start to get exposed as time goes by.
Last year I did a three-year lookback on the 2011 class (which was the first class I did the year one report for). I hope to have the same three-year lookback on the 2012 class (Michael Brockers, Dontari Poe, David DeCastro, Mark Barron, Dre Kirkpatrick, Bobby Wagner, etc) later this offseason.
So here ya go, by round:
Round 1
Anthony Barr, OLB, Vikings - was having a very good season before hurting his knee in Week 11 and eventually having season ending surgery. Showed the ability to rush, defend the run, and cover. One concern about him was that he'd be raw and need time to develop, and that didn’t prove to be the case. He was a game one starter and played at a high level from the beginning. Was in many mid season conversations as a potential defensive rookie of the year. Cowboys scouts were right to be very high on him
Taylor Lewan, OT, Tennessee - a successful rookie semi-season in limited time on the field. Lewan stepped in at left tackle after a season ending injury to Michael Roos after five games, got very good reviews for his play for the next six games, then missed the final five games of the season with a high ankle sprain. Even with his limited playing time, he made most all-rookie teams. With Roos retiring, Lewan should step in as the starting LT.
Aaron Donald, DT, Rams - (AsthmaField, this ones for you). AP Defensive rookie of the year. Pro Football Writers defensive ROY. Pro Bowl. Nine sacks, most by a rookie, second most among all tackles. Seventeen tackles for loss, most by a rookie defensive lineman in NFL history. Dominant in run defense and pass defense. Pretty good rookie year.
Ryan Shazier, OLB, Steelers - inconsistent and frustrating rookie season for Shazier. Was a Day One starter, then missed eight games with two separate injuries. Came back for the final three games as a reserve. Was okay when he played, just not enough time on the field to work through the rookie moments and learning curve.
C.J. Moseley, LB, Baltimore - Excellent for the Ravens. Very good run-stopper and blitzer, had 133 tackles and two sacks. Had two interception but when he struggled, it was in coverage...opposing QB's had a 101 rating against him. But overall a very successful season, on most All-Rookie tams, was in the conversation for defensive ROY and made the Pro Bowl
Calvin Pryor, S, NYJets - tough rookie year for Pryor. The Jets secondary was a disaster much of the year and Pryor was forced to play at free safety much of the time, exposing his coverage weaknesses. Got criticized by his coaches and then benched for awhile, struggled with his tackling and showed up late for team meetings. Most Jets watchers thought he'd be much better at strong safety, which personnel and injuries and poor cornerback play never allowed to spend time at, and they think he’ll be fine if he can play closer to the LOS.
Ha Ha Clinton-Dix, S, Green Bay - Began the season as as nickel corner and worked his way into the starting lineup. Big hitter, gave up some big plays and had some open-field tackling issues at times, but improved through the year in coverage. Generally got positive marks from Packers watchers, made most all-rookie teams.
Johnny Manziel, QB, Browns - to save time, I'll just skip this one. Everyone knows anyway.
Dee Ford, OLB, Chiefs - didn't see much playing time for KC, making the transition from a college DE to an NFL OLB while playing behind Tamba Hall and Justin Houston. Limited snaps other than special teams.
Dominique Easley, DE, Patriots - Got a fair number of snaps in the Patriots d-line rotation when healthy, but had knee problems for much of the season. Not a great sign, given the knee injuries that caused his draft stock to drop. Was put on injured reserve in mid-December.
Jimmie Ward, CB/S, San Fran - started game one as a nickel coverage back, had plenty of struggles, then was slowed by injuries and put on injured reserve after Week 11. One of his injuries was a re-injury to the foot that he'd had surgery on before the season started, never a good sign.
Round 2
Xavier Su'a-Filo, OG, Houston - They hoped he’d be a plug and play guard. Started only one game and filled in in others, wasnt very good, many struggles in pass protection.
Ra’Shede Hageman, DE, Atlanta - Had to fight for snaps on Atlanta's d-line for most of the year. so far, showed very little early in the year, started to figure things out in the second half of the season and at least showed the potential to be a decent rotational player. Still a work in progress.
Kyle Van Noy, OLB, Detroit - missed the first eight games recovering from sports hernia surgery, then was mainly a backup and special teamed the second half.
Joel Bitonio - OG, Cleveland - Day One starter at left guard and a terrific rookie season for Bitonio. Got reviews not too different than Zach Martin’s, made virtually every all-rookie team. A few national writers even argued that if Martin was a candidate for Offensive ROY, then Bitonio should be as well, he just didn’t get as much pub. Excellent run blocker already. Arguably the best rookie in the league at any position outside of round 1.
Stephon Tuitt, DE, Pittsburgh - In the Steelers rotation at defensive end but didn't start until game 13. Reportedly played pretty well as a starter the final four games. Like so many rookie d-linemen, year two will probably tell the story on him.
Trent Murphy, OLB, Commanders - Became a starter in Game 8. Solid overall, better than expected in run defense, very hard worker, but didn’t show as much in pass rush as the Commanders hoped for at right OLB. Had the look of someone on his way to being a solid NFL player, the jury is still out about how dynamic a pass rusher he’ll be.
Timmy Jernigan, DT, Baltimore - Mainly a rotational player without too much playing time until Haloti Ngata went on a four game suspension. Jernigan started all four games and lit it up, with four sacks in addition to very good run defense. Made several all-rookie teams. He did well enough that it probably played into Baltimore trading Ngata to the Lions last month. Between Moseley and Jernigan, the Ravens made a big impact on infusing youth and talent into their defense in the first two rounds.
Jeremiah Attaochu, OLB, San Diego - Disappointing rookie season for Attaochu. Hampered by nagging hamstring issues early, he never did show much all year. Played in 11 games, 10 tackles, 2 sacks, 1 forced fumble.
Kony Ealy, DE, Carolina - Had a really slow start, struggling for playing time the first half of the season. Came on and ended up with four sacks, including three in his final three games.
Jimmy Garoppolo, QB, New England - Played pretty well in mop up duty for Tom Brady. In six games was 19 of 27, 1 TD, o INT, 101.2 QBR.
Round 3
Morgan Moses, OT, Washington - With Trent Williams as the longterm left tackle, Washington saw Moses as a RT. But most of his playing time, including one start, came when Williams got injured. Moses gave up two sacks in his start, didn’t see the field much more, and sustained a Lizfranc foot injury in December. They still hope he’ll be their future RT, but he’ll miss much of the offseason and the injury definitely sets him back.
Billy Turner, OG, Miami - Couldn’t get on the field as a tackle even though both starters were injured at times. Got moved to guard during the season, got in two games, still very green.
Scott Crichton, DE, Vikings - mainly a special teamer. Only saw 16 defensive snaps in two games. Ouch.
Gabe Jackson, OG, Raiders - Day 1 starter at left guard for the Raiders and had a steady and solid year. His combination of speed and power and an aggressive, nasty streak all translated well to the NFL right off the bat. Very nice third round pick by the Raiders.
Will Sutton, DT, Chicago - Mixed reviews for Sutton. Played pretty decently early on as a rotational tackle.. Then injuries to other DT’s increased his snaps and his play suffered greatly the second half of the year. Ate up a lot of snaps but generally didn’t do much else.
Louis Nix, DT, Houston - placed on IR by the Texans before game 1.
Kareem Martin, DE, Arizona - Injuries along the Cardinals d-line allowed Martin to get a decent number of snaps. Flashed a little, struggled a little, was okay, not much more. The rookie d-lineman mantra holds…next year will tell more of the story.
Khyri Thornton, DT, Green Bay - struggled mightily in the preseason before going on IR with a season ending injury.
Turner, Trai OG, Carolina - gradually worked his way into the Panthers starting lineup by game 5, started nine games overall, got good reviews. Allowed no sacks in over 600 snaps, was described as a road grader in the run game. Nice third round pick by Carolina. The Cowboys were spot on to have reportedly wanted him.
Brandon Thomas, OL, San Francisco - torn ACL during pre-draft workouts, picked by 49’ers late in round 3 anyway. Out for the year.
Round 4
Justin Ellis, DT, Raiders - Pretty quietly had a very solid year at DT for the Raiders, Won the starting job by week three, had no flashy stats but excelled as a lane clogger/run stopper. Made the Pro Football Writers All Rookie Team. Another good pick for Oakland. As bad as the team played, Ellis was part of a very solid rookie class.
DaQuan Jones, DT, Titans - Only active for seven games, didn’t make much impact. Flashed a little more late in the year, so hope springs eternal.
Kevin Pierre-Louis, OLB, Seattle A pre-draft CZ favorite. Only on the field for 79 defensive snaps before a shoulder injury in Week 11 landed him on injured reserve. Had a couple of nice games where he showed his speed and athletic ability, but very little track record to judge him yet.
Dakota Dozier, OL, NYJets - Made the shift from college tackle to NFL guard, and had no offensive snaps all year. Basically a redshirt year for Dozier.
Round 5
Telvin Smith, OLB, Jacksonville - Another CZ pre-draft favorite. Mainly a rotational player at OLB for the first six games, then after an injury to Paul Posluszny, started the final 10 games. Very solid and productive year from there on out, ended up with 104 tackles, two sacks, an int and forced fumble. Was both good in coverage and a sure tackler in run defense. Should be a starter from here on out. Nice pick by the Jaguars.
Aaron Lynch, OLB, 49ers - Nice rookie year for Lynch. Was used mainly as a situational pass rusher, got a lot of snaps and consistently provided pressure. Had six sacks and four forced fumbles. Speculation is that he may make Ahmad Brooks expendable by the team. Questions about his maturity coming out of college; at least in year one was a nice 5th round steal by San Fran.
Reid, Caraun DT, Detroit - Played in 12 games, got plenty of snaps as a rotational lineman, had two tackles, reviews were mainly middling. Many end-of-season rookie reports on the Lions didn’t even mention him.
Aaron Murray, QB Kansas City - third string developmental qb for the Chiefs, never saw the field.
AJ McCarron, QB, Cincy - on Cincinnati’s NFI list part of the year, scout team QB the rest of the year..
UDFA
Jackson Jeffcoat, DE/OLB - signed and later released by Seattle, then signed by the Commanders to their practice squad, then promoted to the active roster, then released, then resigned to their practice squad, then back to the 53 man roster. Got a little playing time, had one sack and one INT (picked off Tony Romo late in the season finale).
Kelcy Quarles - has already bounced from the Giants to New England to the Colts, waived by the Colts, re-signed by the Colts, played very little, had one sack, signed again by the Colts in the offseason to a reserve/future contract.
It is really amazing how little time is spent reviewing the progress of players after they are drafted. I'll admit that I don't follow up on players as much as I should. I'll spend hours reviewing some player before the draft but one he goes to another team I'll forget his name in no time.
