Review of LB Anthony Hitchens against LSU

[xwalker]

Not really. A reach is taking a guy way over their perceived value. If you want to excuse that by saying the team that selected him thought it was value, then there's never been a reach in the history of the league.

Why you would tie it to positions is beyond me. Any RB taken in the first round this year would have been a reach. Regardless of whether it was your top rated RB.

Here's the bottom line on Hitchens. If I had mocked him to the Cowboys before May 10th, not a single member here would have supported the pick. Now we have the usual suspects, you included, defending what they would have found indefensible before the pick was announced.

The best description for the Hitchens selection is "horrendous reach". Probably not the worst of the draft, I think Seattle's selection of Justin Britt at the bottom of the 2nd round may deserve that award, but that pick was one of the top 5 biggest reaches in the 2014 NFL Draft.

It is impossible for fans to study all players prior to the draft. That fact that fans didn't know about Hitchens prior to the draft is irrelevant.

 

[AsthmaField]

It is impossible for fans to study all players prior to the draft. That fact that fans didn't know about Hitchens prior to the draft is irrelevant.

I did look at him a little bit, but honestly, I was so focused on DL in this draft, that really I only looked closely at a few LB's... and those were one's supposed to go first or 2nd round.

My only thoughts on Hitchens were that:

1) He probably would be a fit in Marinelli's system, so he was at least on the team's radar
2) I liked Iowa players because of how they're coached and they usually are tough guys
and
3) He would be someone who we might look at in later rounds.

Beyond that, I really didn't put too much thought into him, honestly.

I will wait and see how he plays before worrying too much.

 

[Risen Star]

Yeah, Anthony Hitchens was some hidden prospect. He came from a little known school called "Iowa" (pronounced: eye-oh-wah).

Hundreds of fans here. Thousands of draft posts. Not a single member even calling him a coveted priority free agent.

Had we only known. Thank God the Cowboys did and to Youtube for confirming it.

 

[CyberB0b]

This pick kind of upsets me for two reasons:

1. Big reach in the 4th. When I hear this, I think of Matt Johnson. No one had this guy being drafted and it looks like there was a reason why.
2. Drafting backups. This was the strategy of the 2009 draft.

 

[Hardline]

I would never draft anyone with the intentions of being a backup or special teams player.I would only draft players capable of starting or making a strong competition for the starting job. When there were 25 LBs on the board rated higher than Hitchens and you pass them all up you better know something the rest of the league doesn't.

 

[speedkilz88]

I would never draft anyone with the intentions of being a backup or special teams player.I would only draft players capable of starting or making a strong competition for the starting job. When there were 25 LBs on the board rated higher than Hitchens and you pass them all up you better know something the rest of the league doesn't. draftniks, media, and fans don't.

Fixed it. Nobody knows what the rest of the league thought of Hitchens. There are rumors that the Seahawks, 49ers, and two other teams rated him just as high.

 

[Hardline]

Fixed it. Nobody knows what the rest of the league thought of Hitchens. There are rumors that the Seahawks, 49ers, and two other teams rated him just as high.

Then the Seahawks,49ers and two other teams should have drafted him. If no one knew what the rest of the league thought of Hitchens,then how do we know those other teams had a 4th round opinion of him?

 

[AsthmaField]

Then the Seahawks,49ers and two other teams should have drafted him. If no one knew what the rest of the league thought of Hitchens,then how do we know those other teams had a 4th round opinion of him?

We don't know for sure. But he is their kind of player. Fast and physical with a hard nosed attitude.

It wouldn't surprise me at all for those two teams to be wanting him at the end of the 4th.

As for the backup part, Dallas didn't draft him as strictly a backup. They liked the guy and took him with the hope that he will become a starter, I'm sure. If it wasn't for the fact that Jerry can't be quiet around a microphone and that he apparently lives by the motto to disclose every last thought that goes through his head, we would have never heard that they wanted him to come in for Lee if he can't play.

Really, any team who didn't have a good backup to a guy like Lee who has been hurt some would have taken a guy who can fill that backup role. They would have to. However, they, just like Dallas would let him compete on the outside to see if maybe he is starting material.

There is no doubt Dallas needed to take a LB.

 

[starfrombirth]

Here's the bottom line on Hitchens. If I had mocked him to the Cowboys before May 10th, not a single member here would have supported the pick. Now we have the usual suspects, you included, defending what they would have found indefensible before the pick was announced.

T

I don't think that's the case Risen. I think most of us just want to quit beating the subject into the ground and see if maybe they found someone that fell thru the cracks, that we fans missed. I wasn't for the pick at all... BELIEVE ME!... but I just want to let it go and evaluate our guys going forward.. The picks are the picks now lets just move on... Yes?

 

[Iago33]

The price of a 4th round pick was grossly over investing in the player. Our recent run of 4th rounders is concerning, to say the least. I mean, if you actually look at things fairly and not just mindlessly rubber stamp every decision the team makes.

I agree that it was a reach. Am I rubber stamping every decision if I choose not to complain about it? There's enough complaining around here already. Just because someone chooses to focus on other things doesn't mean he is a Jerry-yes-man.

 

[ThreeandOut]

[quote="Risen Star, post: 5553713, member: 5331]

The best description for the Hitchens selection is "horrendous reach". Probably not the worst of the draft, I think Seattle's selection of Justin Britt at the bottom of the 2nd round may deserve that award, but that pick was one of the top 5 biggest reaches in the 2014 NFL Draft.[/quote]

It's not even the worst in the division. You can make the case that Philadelphia had their reach in the 1st and Washington and New York had theirs in the 3rd. The draft boards of a lot of NFL teams are littered with these types of "horrendous" reaches.

 

[MikeT22]

Even if Hitchens fails, I don't think that 'reach' is the right word. Reach to me implies that they had no LB on the board worth a flip and got a guy they rated at a lower round anyway.

Pierre and Smith were on their radar and rejected in favor of this guy. That is a failure in talent evaluation and not reaching within their board, assuming he flops of course.

Reach to me implies that he was taken higher than he was rated. Even if he were the highest LB left on the board if he were rated as a 6th/7th rounder then it's still a reach if he was taken in the 4th.

 

[SportsGuru80]

He might day one starter next to Lee.

 

[CyberB0b]

He might day one starter next to Lee.

And he might not make the team. Either scenario is just as likely as the other, but on two extremes.

 

[speedkilz88]

And he might not make the team. Either scenario is just as likely as the other, but on two extremes.

No they aren't. They have such a void after Sean Lee at MLB he has a really high chance of making the team. And even though they have had a lot of misses in the 4th round, how many were released the first year?

 

[CyberB0b]

No they aren't. They have such a void after Sean Lee at MLB he has a really high chance of making the team. And even though they have had a lot of misses in the 4th round, how many were released the first year?

How is he going to be a Day 1 starter?

 

[speedkilz88]

How is he going to be a Day 1 starter?

Lee's missed 14 games in the past two years. So there's one. As the guy you responded to in the first place he could possibly play next to Lee with one moving to the weak if Carter continues to struggle.

 

[OhSnap]

The Cowboys had a 4th round grade on him so technically the pick was right. It's important to stick with your board or all the work that went into it is wasted and the scout's get the message that they don't have to bother with looking for hidden gems because their team isn't going to value their opinion anyway and there is some evidence that he is worth the grade.
Hawk-Item - - Recorded 270 career tackles to tie for 20th in career stops . . . ranked sixth in the Big Ten in tackles per game (8.6) and seventh in tackles for loss (1.04) in 2013 . . . led Big Ten and ranked fifth in the nation in tackles per game (11.2) in 2012 . . . recorded 10 or more tackles in seven of 11 games in 2012 and six games in 2013 . . . one of six seniors named to 2013 Leadership Group . . . one of nine true freshmen to see action in 2010. 2013 Honors - - Roy J. Carver Most Valuable Player, Defense . . . Hayden Fry "Extra Heartbeat" Award, Defense . . . second team all-Big Ten by league coaches . . . honorable mention all-Big Ten by league media . . . second team All-Big Ten by Athlon Sports and Phil Steele . . . third team All-Big Ten by College Sports Madness . . . named CFPA honorable mention Linebacker of the Week vs. Michigan . . . selected by College Sports Madness as Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week for his play in win at Iowa State . . . named second team mid-season All-Big Ten by Phil Steele . . . named honorable mention mid-season All-Big Ten by BTN.com

 

[Doc50]

there is no way he avoided that many blocks in that video.

I wouldn't argue with the X-man, dude.
His posts have been spot on for years.

 

[FuzzyLumpkins]

Not really. A reach is taking a guy way over their perceived value. If you want to excuse that by saying the team that selected him thought it was value, then there's never been a reach in the history of the league.

Why you would tie it to positions is beyond me. Any RB taken in the first round this year would have been a reach. Regardless of whether it was your top rated RB.

Here's the bottom line on Hitchens. If I had mocked him to the Cowboys before May 10th, not a single member here would have supported the pick. Now we have the usual suspects, you included, defending what they would have found indefensible before the pick was announced.

The best description for the Hitchens selection is "horrendous reach". Probably not the worst of the draft, I think Seattle's selection of Justin Britt at the bottom of the 2nd round may deserve that award, but that pick was one of the top 5 biggest reaches in the 2014 NFL Draft.

You have to love how Risen makes it all about him. Risens' view defines whether it is a reach for all the world. If he had mocked something then it is meaningful in his deluded world.

If the club say that he was rated in the fourth round then he was rated in the fourth round. Ranking him there ahead of Smith and Pierre is not a 'reach.' If they end up being wrong in their rankings then its a gross misevaluation of talent.