Plankton
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https://www.si.com/nfl/2021/04/26/monday-afternoon-quarterback-49ers-third-pick-secrecy
• I figured we’d get started with a global look at the class, and how it’s made up, per the teams that will be drafting out of this particular pool of players. Here’s what those teams are looking at, per one GM: “From 20 down, you can pick them out of a hat. Who knows? Someone you might have at 60 could be going there.” That dynamic speaks to two things. First, the weird draft cycle (no private workouts, no 30 visits, no combine, just one all-star game and limited school calls in the fall) has made for more guesswork, and less consistency in how players should fall from team to team. And two, there aren’t a ton of elite prospects this year. Some teams will be into their second-round grades by the late teens. I haven’t found a single team yet with more than 18 players carrying first-round grades on their board.
• Not all character flags are created equal, and so it’s worth sorting through some first-rounders who’ve had to answer for their reputations. Oregon’s Penei Sewell will likely be the first in this crew to be drafted, and there’s no question Sewell has some growing up to do. But I’ve talked to some people who’ve been digging on him who say that, in his NFL city, that’ll probably happen—and that his immaturity really hasn’t shown up in the football part of his life (although he could be more consistent on the field). Penn State’s Micah Parsons, similarly, has to mature, and I’ve sensed similar confidence that’ll happen. Parsons, as one person put it, carries himself like “someone who’s had his *** kissed his whole life.” Which won’t be disqualifying for too many people. Alabama’s Christian Barmore, conversely, is a little bit of a more difficult one for teams to wrap their arms around—and that’s one reason why he’ll go later than his talent should dictate.
• While we’re there, Miami’s Jaelan Phillips is widely seen, based on tape, as the draft’s best pass rusher—it surprised me the sort of consensus I’ve gotten on that the last few weeks. But he’s another one that has non-football issues for teams to sort through. Phillips’s troubles at UCLA were well-documented. The upshot here, after a couple months vetting him, is that most teams seem to believe he’s a really good kid, albeit one with demons. (And he’s been very upfront with teams about those demons too.)
• I figured we’d get started with a global look at the class, and how it’s made up, per the teams that will be drafting out of this particular pool of players. Here’s what those teams are looking at, per one GM: “From 20 down, you can pick them out of a hat. Who knows? Someone you might have at 60 could be going there.” That dynamic speaks to two things. First, the weird draft cycle (no private workouts, no 30 visits, no combine, just one all-star game and limited school calls in the fall) has made for more guesswork, and less consistency in how players should fall from team to team. And two, there aren’t a ton of elite prospects this year. Some teams will be into their second-round grades by the late teens. I haven’t found a single team yet with more than 18 players carrying first-round grades on their board.
• Not all character flags are created equal, and so it’s worth sorting through some first-rounders who’ve had to answer for their reputations. Oregon’s Penei Sewell will likely be the first in this crew to be drafted, and there’s no question Sewell has some growing up to do. But I’ve talked to some people who’ve been digging on him who say that, in his NFL city, that’ll probably happen—and that his immaturity really hasn’t shown up in the football part of his life (although he could be more consistent on the field). Penn State’s Micah Parsons, similarly, has to mature, and I’ve sensed similar confidence that’ll happen. Parsons, as one person put it, carries himself like “someone who’s had his *** kissed his whole life.” Which won’t be disqualifying for too many people. Alabama’s Christian Barmore, conversely, is a little bit of a more difficult one for teams to wrap their arms around—and that’s one reason why he’ll go later than his talent should dictate.
• While we’re there, Miami’s Jaelan Phillips is widely seen, based on tape, as the draft’s best pass rusher—it surprised me the sort of consensus I’ve gotten on that the last few weeks. But he’s another one that has non-football issues for teams to sort through. Phillips’s troubles at UCLA were well-documented. The upshot here, after a couple months vetting him, is that most teams seem to believe he’s a really good kid, albeit one with demons. (And he’s been very upfront with teams about those demons too.)
