DanTheMan 2015 Draft Film Review

[dantheman41]

Dan, if you had to rank your favorite 4-5 RBs in this year's Draft, in what order would you put them?

Awesome question... Let me finish up a couple more today and I'll do that for you

 

[dantheman41]

Duke Johnson (RB) Miami 5'9 207

Positives: Very shifty runner. Plays in a very similar offensive system, and understands the zone concepts. Excellent cut back runner. Willing in pass protection. Shows really good hands and route running ability in the passing game. Shows good vision and ability to follow his blockers. Really good agility and balance to stay on his feet.

Negatives: On the slighter side. Not as explosive as you would want for a guy his size. Durability concerns, injured a lot. Goes down far too often by first guy to touch him. Doesn't do anything great. Lot of negative runs.

Comparison and Where He Fits on Our Team: My least favorite RB so far. I was really excited to watch, but very disappointed. I would never draft a guy like this in the 2nd round. To me, he is a backup RB in the NFL. An injury plagued running back, who is slight, and not overly explosive? No thanks! If he is going to be slight framed, I want him to at least be explosive and he isn't. I would give him a 4th round grade.

 

[dantheman41]

Ameer Abdullah (RB) Nebraska 5'9 205

Positives: Really good kick returner! Very elusive, very hard for defenders to get a clean tackle on him. Doesn't go down as easily as size would suggest. His offensive line was awful so use to not getting much opened up. Outstanding in space, so many moves. Has an extra gear that he will occasionally kick in and look really explosive. See the field really well. Very patient runner, will see it and explode. Solid receiver with excellent hands. Really aware football player, knows where first downs are. Feisty player, will really fight.

Negatives: Doesn't get many yards through the A gap similar to Gordon, which often times doesn't translate well in NFL. Needs to improve in his pass protection, terrible technique at times. Runs half speed far too often. Can he hold up for 25 carries a game.

Comparison and Where He Fits on Our Team: Loved the player a lot more then I was expecting. Does so many things really really well. An all around RB. I have him as a 2nd round player for sure. Very similar type as Tevin Coleman, they both have the explosiveness in the open field and smaller frames. Coleman is a tad bit more explosive, but Abdullah offers more on special teams, better ball security and little tougher.

 

[dantheman41]

Mike Davis (RB) South Carolina 5'9 216

Positives: Solidly built player, who shows above average explosiveness for guy his size. Can run north/south and east/west. Difficult to tackle when he has a head of steam. Runs like a man possessed. Patient runner, who waits for hole to open up. Shows ability to find the first down in short yardage situations. Has a little Emmitt Smith to his game, shifty runner picks up sneaky yards. Rarely will lose yards. Shows good ability in receiving game to catch passes clean. Breaks a lot of tackles. Rarely goes down to first defender.

Negatives: Doesn't always show the best of balance, slips and has difficult time staying upright after initial contact or when making a move. Not a game changer or a home run hitter, rarely has a big play. Little lazy in pass protection at times, plays with poor technique. Offensive line opened up really big holes for him consistently, almost always looked like he was going to get 5 yards before he even touched ball and he did.

Comparison and Where He Fits on Our Team: Plug away type of back who will pick up 3-5 yards every single time he touches ball. All around back who can handle 20-30 carries a game. Will he ever be best RB in league? No. But he can be VERY solid. Does everything really well. Really impressed. Don't see a huge discrepancy between him and the top few guys. I would take him in the 3rd round without hesitation.

 

[dantheman41]

Jeremy Langford (RB) Michigan State 6'0 208

Positives: Nice balance and ability to stay on feet. Shows really nice route running ability as a receiver. Violent stiff arm that he uses well to fight off tacklers. Nice awareness to pass protect and pick up blitzes.

Negatives: Little top heavy, needs to build his lower body. Not overly explosive or powerful. Don't see quickness or an open field type of speed to his game, difficulty turning the field. Not going to plow forward for extra yards. No punch to his game, if he is stopped he isn't moving the pile. Goes down easily. His timed speed is much better then the speed he plays at.

Comparison and Where He Fits on Our Team: Don't see anything 'WOW' about the player to be honest. Shows some nice traits but he is a 5th round player in my book and I wouldn't take him any earlier.

 

[dantheman41]

Buck Allen (RB) USC 6'1 216

Positives: Really nice ability to play receiver and find the hole. Had a terrible offensive line, really had to battle. Nice one cut ability in the right system.

Negatives: Pass protection was REALLY rough at times. Goes down really easily when initially touched. Way too many negative plays. Almost looks like he doesn't know what to do when he touches the ball. Not explosive. Plays soft and timid.

Comparison and Where He Fits on Our Team: Waiting to find the tape that is going to impress me. Saw absolutely nothing from this kid except on screens and when used as a receiver. Don't see the hype, worst RB i've watched and it isn't even close.

 

[dantheman41]

Eric Kendricks (LB) UCLA 6'0 232

Positives: Read and react is outstanding. So quick to the ball. A lot stronger then his size suggests. Completely understands coverages and drops. Always around the football. Very patient and lets plays come to him. Saw him successfully cover receivers, tight ends and RB's. Can do it all in coverage. Very good tackler in space. Long arms make it difficult for pass catchers. Fights catch the entire way, and if it is caught he will tackle the receiver right away. Forces turnovers. Excellent play recognition. Really good blitzer. Sees the field so well. Football IQ off the charts.

Negatives: Will get overaggressive at times with receivers and get called for penalties. Needs to learn how to disengage and get off blockers at the 2nd level.

Comparison and Where He Fits on Our Team: Wow I found me another pet cat. This kid is ridiculous. Was not expecting to be as impressed as I am, can do everything. Best linebacker I've seen in the past 2 years, I like him better then Shazier. I would not hate it 1 bit if we drafted him even if linebacker isn't a huge need. He's an awesome football player!

 

[dantheman41]

Dan, if you had to rank your favorite 4-5 RBs in this year's Draft, in what order would you put them?

To answer the question now.... Its tough because of Ajayi now with the injury concerns. I will go strictly based off of tape, not how I would draft them. Based off of tape:

1. Gurley
2. Ajayi
3. Gordon
4. Coleman
5. Abdullah

If I was GM and had serious concerns about Ajayi's health, I would go:

1. Gurley
2. Gordon
3. Coleman
4. Abdullah
5. Davis

But the only RB I would take in 1st would be Gurley. I would let one of the other guys fall to me in the 2nd or 3rd.

 

[dantheman41]

Benardrick McKinney (LB) Mississippi State 6'4 246

Positives: Solidly built. Very strong at the points of attack. Used at times as a pass rusher, and shows a variety of moves. Knows how to get to the QB. Really good wrap up tackler. Very physical player.

Negatives: Doesn't move great side to side. Looks and plays a little stiff. Not great in space. Looks lost at times. Disappears way too much for me.

Comparison and Where He Fits on Our Team: At linebacker to me he is a 2 down linebacker. Wouldn't trust him in space. But I believe from things read about the player, Cowboys view him as a DE or a hybrid type of player. He played a lot more outside linebacker / DE his freshman year before team switched him to interior linebacker. Don't have tape on that. But he definitely has the size and strength to do it.

 

[dantheman41]

Paul Dawson (LB) TCU 6'0 235

Positives: Outstanding awareness. Knows how to get around and avoid blocks to find the ball carrier. Really good pursuit. Really good in space. Understands coverages. Saw him successfully cover RB's and receivers. Really good blitzer. Knows how to get off blocks. Knows off how read keys and react.

Negatives: Poor technique when tackling, tries to go up too high. Needs to get a little stronger.

Comparison and Where He Fits on Our Team: Awesome all around football player. Does everything really good. Not a huge step down from Kendricks. Can play will or mike.

 

[xwalker]

To answer the question now.... Its tough because of Ajayi now with the injury concerns. I will go strictly based off of tape, not how I would draft them. Based off of tape:

1. Gurley
2. Ajayi
3. Gordon
4. Coleman
5. Abdullah

If I was GM and had serious concerns about Ajayi's health, I would go:

1. Gurley
2. Gordon
3. Coleman
4. Abdullah
5. Davis

But the only RB I would take in 1st would be Gurley. I would let one of the other guys fall to me in the 2nd or 3rd.

Keep this in mind. Abdullah's fumble rate is horrible.

I prefer to see a fumble rate of better than 1 in 80. We complained about Murray and his 2014 fumble rate was 1 in 89.

35.4 -- Ameer Abdullah, Nebraska (8 5/8)
52.2 -- Kenny Hilliard, LSU (9 1/4)
54.4 -- Melvin Gordon, Wisconsin (9 3/4)
62.2 -- T.J. Yeldon, Alabama (9)
62.6 -- Jay Ajayi, Boise State (10)
63.2 -- Matt Jones, Florida (8 5/8)
72.3 -- Tevin Coleman, Indiana (8 5/8)
74.5 -- David Cobb, Minnesota (9 3/8)
77.5 -- David Johnson, Northern Iowa (9 5/8)
80.0 -- Javorius Allen, USC (9 3/8)
85.0 -- Duke Johnson, Miami (Fla.) (9 1/4)
87.3 -- Mike Davis, South Carolina (9 3/8)
91.5 -- Josh Robinson, Mississippi State (10 1/8)
92.7 -- Karlos Williams, Florida State (9 3/4)
123.2 -- Jeremy Langford, Michigan State (8 3/4)
125.0 -- Terrence Magee, LSU (9)
134.4 -- Zach Zenner, South Dakota State (9 5/8)
136.0 -- Cameron Artis-Payne, Auburn (8 7/8)
156.3 -- Dominique Brown, Louisville (9 1/2)
191.7 -- Todd Gurley, Georgia (10)
619.0 -- Malcolm Brown, Texas (10 1/4)

 

[xwalker]

Mike Davis (RB) South Carolina 5'9 216

Positives: Solidly built player, who shows above average explosiveness for guy his size. Can run north/south and east/west. Difficult to tackle when he has a head of steam. Runs like a man possessed. Patient runner, who waits for hole to open up. Shows ability to find the first down in short yardage situations. Has a little Emmitt Smith to his game, shifty runner picks up sneaky yards. Rarely will lose yards. Shows good ability in receiving game to catch passes clean. Breaks a lot of tackles. Rarely goes down to first defender.

Negatives: Doesn't always show the best of balance, slips and has difficult time staying upright after initial contact or when making a move. Not a game changer or a home run hitter, rarely has a big play. Little lazy in pass protection at times, plays with poor technique. Offensive line opened up really big holes for him consistently, almost always looked like he was going to get 5 yards before he even touched ball and he did.

Comparison and Where He Fits on Our Team: Plug away type of back who will pick up 3-5 yards every single time he touches ball. All around back who can handle 20-30 carries a game. Will he ever be best RB in league? No. But he can be VERY solid. Does everything really well. Really impressed. Don't see a huge discrepancy between him and the top few guys. I would take him in the 3rd round without hesitation.

He makes me think of Emmitt every time I watch him. He makes some very subtle moves to avoid tacklers when running between the tackles.

Where I differ is that I didn't see his OL as being that good. I often saw him run into a mass of bodies where I didn't see any openings and he somehow came out with good yardage.

He played a little too heavy, IMO. He said he was at 225 during the season but dropped to 217 for the combine and said he felt better at the lower weight.

 

[dantheman41]

Keep this in mind. Abdullah's fumble rate is horrible.

I prefer to see a fumble rate of better than 1 in 80. We complained about Murray and his 2014 fumble rate was 1 in 89.

35.4 -- Ameer Abdullah, Nebraska (8 5/8)
52.2 -- Kenny Hilliard, LSU (9 1/4)
54.4 -- Melvin Gordon, Wisconsin (9 3/4)
62.2 -- T.J. Yeldon, Alabama (9)
62.6 -- Jay Ajayi, Boise State (10)
63.2 -- Matt Jones, Florida (8 5/8)
72.3 -- Tevin Coleman, Indiana (8 5/8)
74.5 -- David Cobb, Minnesota (9 3/8)
77.5 -- David Johnson, Northern Iowa (9 5/8)
80.0 -- Javorius Allen, USC (9 3/8)
85.0 -- Duke Johnson, Miami (Fla.) (9 1/4)
87.3 -- Mike Davis, South Carolina (9 3/8)
91.5 -- Josh Robinson, Mississippi State (10 1/8)
92.7 -- Karlos Williams, Florida State (9 3/4)
123.2 -- Jeremy Langford, Michigan State (8 3/4)
125.0 -- Terrence Magee, LSU (9)
134.4 -- Zach Zenner, South Dakota State (9 5/8)
136.0 -- Cameron Artis-Payne, Auburn (8 7/8)
156.3 -- Dominique Brown, Louisville (9 1/2)
191.7 -- Todd Gurley, Georgia (10)
619.0 -- Malcolm Brown, Texas (10 1/4)

Awesome stat! Was looking for that. Thanks so much!

 

[Gaede]

Keep this in mind. Abdullah's fumble rate is horrible.

I prefer to see a fumble rate of better than 1 in 80. We complained about Murray and his 2014 fumble rate was 1 in 89.

35.4 -- Ameer Abdullah, Nebraska (8 5/8)
52.2 -- Kenny Hilliard, LSU (9 1/4)
54.4 -- Melvin Gordon, Wisconsin (9 3/4)
62.2 -- T.J. Yeldon, Alabama (9)
62.6 -- Jay Ajayi, Boise State (10)
63.2 -- Matt Jones, Florida (8 5/8)
72.3 -- Tevin Coleman, Indiana (8 5/8)
74.5 -- David Cobb, Minnesota (9 3/8)
77.5 -- David Johnson, Northern Iowa (9 5/8)
80.0 -- Javorius Allen, USC (9 3/8)
85.0 -- Duke Johnson, Miami (Fla.) (9 1/4)
87.3 -- Mike Davis, South Carolina (9 3/8)
91.5 -- Josh Robinson, Mississippi State (10 1/8)
92.7 -- Karlos Williams, Florida State (9 3/4)
123.2 -- Jeremy Langford, Michigan State (8 3/4)
125.0 -- Terrence Magee, LSU (9)
134.4 -- Zach Zenner, South Dakota State (9 5/8)
136.0 -- Cameron Artis-Payne, Auburn (8 7/8)
156.3 -- Dominique Brown, Louisville (9 1/2)
191.7 -- Todd Gurley, Georgia (10)
619.0 -- Malcolm Brown, Texas (10 1/4)

Do you keep this saved on your desktop or what?

 

[xwalker]

Do you keep this saved on your desktop or what?

I should put it in my signature.

 

[Fla Cowpoke]

Ameer Abdullah (RB) Nebraska 5'9 205

Positives: Really good kick returner! Very elusive, very hard for defenders to get a clean tackle on him. Doesn't go down as easily as size would suggest. His offensive line was awful so use to not getting much opened up. Outstanding in space, so many moves. Has an extra gear that he will occasionally kick in and look really explosive. See the field really well. Very patient runner, will see it and explode. Solid receiver with excellent hands. Really aware football player, knows where first downs are. Feisty player, will really fight.

Negatives: Doesn't get many yards through the A gap similar to Gordon, which often times doesn't translate well in NFL. Needs to improve in his pass protection, terrible technique at times. Runs half speed far too often. Can he hold up for 25 carries a game.

Comparison and Where He Fits on Our Team: Loved the player a lot more then I was expecting. Does so many things really really well. An all around RB. I have him as a 2nd round player for sure. Very similar type as Tevin Coleman, they both have the explosiveness in the open field and smaller frames. Coleman is a tad bit more explosive, but Abdullah offers more on special teams, better ball security and little tougher.

Abdullah is by far the worst at ball security.