Bobby Carpenter Physical Testing

[jrcowboys]

Guys:

Does anyone have info on how Carpenter tested out physically at Ohio State?
I know he didn't participate in the combine.
Note: I know he ran a 4.68 forty at the last Ohio State Pro day but he didn't jump or do shuttle and was only at about 90% after recovering from broken ankle.

What I was trying to find out is how he tested in earlier Ohio State Pro days or Spring training tests. Kiiper says he's capable of running in the 4.5s when fully healthy. What I'm really looking at is how he compares to Ware in speed, strength, agility etc.

Not trying to start a discussion of how he's done this year, but more an analysis of his overall potential. Also, wondering if he is now approaching 100% physically as he may have had ankle problems earlier in training camp.

Your thoughts?

JR

 

[LittleBoyBlue]

I found this... mentions his ankle... not what you are looking for... just a FYI



Bobby Carpenter LB 6’3 255 Ohio St.
By: Robert Davis
Bobby Carpenter is a part of arguably the best linebacking group in the country. He teams with A.J. Hawk and Anthony Schlegel to form the heart and soul of the Ohio St. team this season. As a sophomore in 2003, Carpenter played in a part time role, but still managed to finish the year with 37 tackles, 6.5 for loss, and 4.5 sacks. In his first year as a starter in 2004, he was in on more plays, tallying 93 tackles, 6.5 for loss, 2 sacks, and 3 interceptions. As a senior this past season, Carpenter tallied 49 tackles, 10.5 for loss, with eight sacks.
Carpenter is a jumbo linebacker at the college level. You do not see too many 250+ linebackers that are quick enough to play in space. But Carpenter can. He is a good athlete, moves around the field fluidly, and closes very well on the ball. He plays hard on the field, and does not shy away from contact. He is strong and can take on a block, get off and bring down the ball carrier.
There isn’t much to not like about Carpenter. He may not be the 6’3 listed, but that’s being picky. Even though he is a good athlete, he does not always display it in coverage. He can have trouble when isolated in space. Carpenter will also need to have his ankle examined. His season ended early on in the Michigan game after breaking his ankle. Bobby Carpenter doesn’t have the upside of a lot of the linebackers in this draft, but he looks like a safe bet to be a solid NFL linebacker. As long as his ankle checks out fine - and it should - Carpenter will be a Day One selection and should move on to a successful NFL career.

 

[JPM]

http://www.nfl.com/draft/profiles/2006/carpenter_bobby

 

[CrazyCowboy]

I found this... mentions his ankle... not what you are looking for... just a FYI



Bobby Carpenter LB 6’3 255 Ohio St.
By: Robert Davis
You do not see too many 250+ linebackers that are quick enough to play in space. But Carpenter can. He is a good athlete, moves around the field fluidly, and closes very well on the ball. He plays hard on the field, and does not shy away from contact. He is strong and can take on a block, get off and bring down the ball carrier. .

I will remain patient.....

 

[MONT17]

until we start Blitzing him what does it matter? If CArp played in the Steelers 3-4 he would have about 5 sacks cpl with a nice total of TFL!


IMO, His greatess skill is something you cant teach and has nothing to do with his Speed and bench press.... his abilty to time a blitz is very impressive!

Tony Dixon had this skill maybe not on the same level as Carp and the Cowboys/Zimmer refused to use it!!!

 

[jrcowboys]

Agree with your comment. Why can't Carpenter be used to provide an inside rush from a linebacker position while he's learning to be a fulltime outside linebacker?

JR

 

[EPL0c0]

I think UTEP's Thomas Howard would have been a better option. He's currenntly #2 in tackles with the Raiders and has started all 12 games for them (took the job in TC almost immediately).

Thomas Howard: 6'3, 240lbs, 4.45 in the 40. Good speed, good aggresiveness. But he's probably small for a Tuna LB.

Size aside, Howard's biggest knock was playing @UTEP in WAC/C-USA vs playing @Ohio State alongside AJ Hawk.

I had my doubts about Carpenter, though admittedly I saw few tOSU games. But I wondered if he didn't benefit from playing along side AJ Hawk. Y'know, the sort of benefit that made Larry Brown a Super Bowl MVP with Dallas while playing along side Deion, then made him a million dollar bench warmer in Oakland?

 

[VACowboy]

Howard's on the light side, true, but the bigger issue is his lack of physicality. He's fast and makes a lot of tackles, typical of 4-3 outside linebackers who are protected by their DL and fly sideline to sideline making plays. His stats would be much less impressive if he had to take on 320-lb linemen every play.

He has great measurables and had a great junior season, but he was badly outplayed at UTEP his senior year by the other two starting LBs. Based on that, and the fact that he's not a prototypical 3-4 OLB, it's not surprising at all Parcells preferred Carp. Howard vs Carp isn't a good comparison, on any level.

Here's my pre-draft research on him:

Thomas Howard: (LB) 6-3, 240 - UTEP
Third on the team in tackles with 85 to Jones and Collavo (the other two LBs, 130 and 112, respectively). Fifth in TFL with 7 (Jones/Collavo each had 14). He collected 3 sacks, tied three ways for third on the team, and hurried the QB three times. He intercepted one ball, broke up *7* passes and recovered a fumble. His sacks came against: NM State - 1, Houston - 0, New Mexico - 0, Memphis - 0, Tulane - .5, Marshall - 0, Rice - 0, Tulsa - .5, TX Southern - 0, SMU - 0, Toledo - 1. Bottom Line: Howard had a much better junior season than he had this past year (8 sacks). Maybe it's something they do with their juniors at UTEP because two junior linebackers appear to have greatly outplayed Howard in '06. Ironically enough, he had played the WILL position until this past season when he moved to the strong side. The move could explain the dropoff in sacks, but I would think a guy with his talent playing the SAM LB in a 4-3 would be a tackling machine. He has good size and is obviously a great athlete with great speed: evidence... the pass breakups. But the production just doesn't match the talent, especially against the level of competition he faced.

I'm happy with Carp. He has the talent. He just needs a little time.

 

[EPL0c0]

Collavo is a C-USA 1st Team all-conference guy this season. Jones was looking to use 06 as a possible stepping stone for a shot at the NFL (likely late round or UDFA) but got hurt. Last season was special b/c they had 3 really good LBs.

Physically I like Carp, but either Bill's hiding him or the guy just may not fit in due to either the scheme or players already there maybe? I think I (and I'm sure many Cowboys fans were) was a bit spoiled after the 05 draft and the defensive guys it got us.

I do have to mention that I am a UTEP alum and heavily biased hehe