Review of Travis Frederick tape

[dantheman41]

I was as negative as the next guy after this pick, especially since we considered it a reach in the 1st round. But after my review this is what I found:

Positives: This kid can play anywhere. I watched games at guard and at center, he was equally effective.

He will instantly be an upgrade to anyone in the interior part of the line. He brings a nastiness to this team we haven't had.

He is extremely stout, gets unbelievable explosion off the ball. Especially in the running game. Straight up plows guys backwards off the ball.

Even the biggest DT's and nose tackles don't get any push on him. Power moves do not work at all on him. He is not going to be Phil Costa and blown backwards into Romo.

Even though he tested really bad athletically, I saw him used in trap blocks as well as getting in front of screens and was effective.

Kinda a smaller thing, but his snaps at center are excellent. All his snaps were perfect.

Negatives

Didn't really find much, but only thing that worries me is when he lines up against a quick twitch guy. Someone who has great quickness off the snap. Saw him get blown by after a snap, and defensive player made disruptive play in the backfield. I assume going up against Ratliff in practice could help.



Watching these games gave me a lot more confidence then before. Maybe it was a reach, but to draft a plug and play starter who is an instant upgrade is a good thing. This guy will upgrade the running game to the next level.

 

[Hawkeye19]

We got the best C in this class, and as you said, he shores up the interior of our OL. The fact that we wanted Cooper or Warmack is encouraging b/c it means they were going to the draft hell bent on fixing this team's glaring weakness.

But the thing I love most about him is the push he gets in the ground game. We haven't had a plus run blocker in ages-- especially inside.

The dude flat out gets it done in the ground game. Not only will we have less pockets collapse up the middle-- Murray will have a lot more daylight-- and when Romo has any semblance of a ground game to work with he puts up elite QB numbers.

 

[Avenging Hayseed]

I was as negative as the next guy after this pick, especially since we considered it a reach in the 1st round. But after my review this is what I found:

Positives: This kid can play anywhere. I watched games at guard and at center, he was equally effective.

He will instantly be an upgrade to anyone in the interior part of the line. He brings a nastiness to this team we haven't had.

He is extremely stout, gets unbelievable explosion off the ball. Especially in the running game. Straight up plows guys backwards off the ball.

Even the biggest DT's and nose tackles don't get any push on him. Power moves do not work at all on him. He is not going to be Phil Costa and blown backwards into Romo.

Even though he tested really bad athletically, I saw him used in trap blocks as well as getting in front of screens and was effective.

Kinda a smaller thing, but his snaps at center are excellent. All his snaps were perfect.

Negatives

Didn't really find much, but only thing that worries me is when he lines up against a quick twitch guy. Someone who has great quickness off the snap. Saw him get blown by after a snap, and defensive player made disruptive play in the backfield. I assume going up against Ratliff in practice could help.



Watching these games gave me a lot more confidence then before. Maybe it was a reach, but to draft a plug and play starter who is an instant upgrade is a good thing. This guy will upgrade the running game to the next level.

Not picking on you,...just pointing out an error. Truth is,...he tested out very good athletically. Only thing he didnt test out well on was his 40 time which we all know has ZERO impact when it comes to his position.


Check it out.....

20 Yard Shuttle-
Travis Frederick 4.76
Jonathan Cooper 4.84
Menelik Watson 5.01
Larry Warford 5.10


That twenty yard shuttle time is better than the SUPER DUPER AMAZING most athletic guard to ever play football Jonathon Cooper....LOL



And heres the three cone drill

3 Cone Drill-
Jonathan Cooper 7.78
Travis Frederick 7.81
Kyle Long 7.83
Menelik Watson 8.31

Here he was only off Coopers time by a whopping 3 tenths of a second. Better than Kyle Long, and KILLED Watson.

These type of tests are far and away better indicators for an O lineman than a 40 yard dash.


Again,....not picking on you, just wanted to take this opportunity to clear this misconception up.

 

[nathanlt]

When you list the positives, you missed one thing that I heard on Jerry's phone call. It sounded to me like he finished his engineering degree in 3 years. That tells me the guy is super smart, and will not be missing the line calls and adjustments.

Pretty important.

I still think San Fran took us in the trade. I wanted O-line more than anything in round one, and I'm glad we went that way.

 

[FiveRings]

Finding more tape on him really surprised me, looking at him I thought he looked sort of small and would be more of an athletic threat, pulling etc. Turns out that's his weakness and he's actually a brick wall in the run game. I think I owe Jerry an apology, of course with the reservation of calling him an idiot for not getting a fourth with the trade

 

[Avenging Hayseed]

When you list the positives, you missed one thing that I heard on Jerry's phone call. It sounded to me like he finished his engineering degree in 3 years. That tells me the guy is super smart, and will not be missing the line calls and adjustments.

Pretty important.

I still think San Fran took us in the trade. I wanted O-line more than anything in round one, and I'm glad we went that way.

He is EXTREMELY smart. No basket weaving classes for this kid. Kid is gonna be an excellent anchor for us for a very long time. INSTANT STARTER. Unlike alot of rooks " ahem,... arkin anyone" he already has his "man body" , size/strength to hold the point on day one.

 

[Hawkeye19]

When you list the positives, you missed one thing that I heard on Jerry's phone call. It sounded to me like he finished his engineering degree in 3 years. That tells me the guy is super smart, and will not be missing the line calls and adjustments.

Pretty important.

I still think San Fran took us in the trade. I wanted O-line more than anything in round one, and I'm glad we went that way.

Frederick got a 34 on the Wonderlic... by all accounts he plays mentally error-free football, and if he ends up at C that alone is a HUGE plus.

Tough, intelligent, nasty, and a force in the ground game. I like the pick and when you pair him with the Williams pick at #74-- I think that trade with SF is at worst a push.

 

[nathanlt]

Not picking on you,...just pointing out an error. Truth is,...he tested out very good athletically. Only thing he didnt test out well on was his 40 time which we all know has ZERO impact when it comes to his position.


Check it out.....

20 Yard Shuttle-
Travis Frederick 4.76
Jonathan Cooper 4.84
Menelik Watson 5.01
Larry Warford 5.10


That twenty yard shuttle time is better than the SUPER DUPER AMAZING most athletic guard to ever play football Jonathon Cooper....LOL



And heres the three cone drill

3 Cone Drill-
Jonathan Cooper 7.78
Travis Frederick 7.81
Kyle Long 7.83
Menelik Watson 8.31

Here he was only off Coopers time by a whopping 3 tenths of a second. Better than Kyle Long, and KILLED Watson.

These type of tests are far and away better indicators for an O lineman than a 40 yard dash.


Again,....not picking on you, just wanted to take this opportunity to clear this misconception up.

Wow, I had no idea. I truly think we can cross "a reach in round one" off the list. I thought he was strong, but slow. He'll need some work contacting on the next level, but he could have the athleticism after all.

 

[Avenging Hayseed]

Finding more tape on him really surprised me, looking at him I thought he looked sort of small and would be more of an athletic threat, pulling etc. Turns out that's his weakness and he's actually a brick wall in the run game. I think I owe Jerry an apology, of course with the reservation of calling him an idiot for not getting a fourth with the trade

His natural playing weight is 330/335 pounds. Thats what he played guard at year before last. He lost 15-20 pounds in the offseason before moving to center for the Badgers. The Badgers pull the center ALOT and he/they thought it would give him a little more mobility to pull. My bet is the Cowboys get him back up to 330 before the season starts. At that weight....he is FRIGGIN DOMINANT! He was very good last year as center too,...but after watching him these last few years I believe he is better at the higher weight and it is more natural to him.

 

[Avenging Hayseed]

This is the guy I was telling everybody about last year. He was lifting over 770 pounds " SQUATTING" as a SOPHOMORE! This guy starting lifting when he was 10 years old with his brother. LOL Has been on the routine ever since!

In addition to this,....I personally dont want my INTERIOR Olineman to be too tall. I want that nice, low center of gravity. That blocky , squatty build with thick legs and bubble. REALLY helps to anchor in. Travis is only around 6-3 or so. PERFECT!

 

[Hawkeye19]

This is the guy I was telling everybody about last year. He was lifting over 770 pounds as a SOPHOMORE! This guy starting lifting when he was 10 years old with his brother. Has been on the routine ever since!

770?!

Those are near Larry Allen numbers. Didn't he only put up 225 21 times at the combine?

 

[Avenging Hayseed]

770?!

Those are near Larry Allen numbers. Didn't he only put up 225 21 times at the combine?

The Badgers weight train much differently than alot of teams do when it comes to O lineman. And I KNOW they are right about it too because one thing Badger o lineman can NEVER be accused of....is WEAK!...LOL

They train with MORE weight,....less reps. Its about building core strength, mass/ girth. They dont so much care about reps.

If you watch any Badgers game over the last 20 years,....99% of the time that O line is MANHANDLING defenses. Weakness is the last thing we need to worry about with Frederick.

 

[HoosierCowboy]

This is the guy I was telling everybody about last year. He was lifting over 770 pounds " SQUATTING" as a SOPHOMORE! This guy starting lifting when he was 10 years old with his brother. LOL Has been on the routine ever since!

In addition to this,....I personally dont want my INTERIOR Olineman to be too tall. I want that nice, low center of gravity. That blocky , squatty build with thick legs and bubble. REALLY helps to anchor in. Travis is only around 6-3 or so. PERFECT!

I too like 6'3 or 4 linemen--I'm tired of watching tall and stiff linemen who can only hold

 

[Avenging Hayseed]

I too like 6'3 or 4 linemen--I'm tired of watching tall and stiff linemen who can only hold

Yep....especially on the interior O line. To form a pocket you must form a " horseshoe" . If you look at the shape of a horseshoe this means the interior CANT give up much ground. The two tackles can be taller because their LENGTH is needed there as they are in CONTROLLED retreat as the give up ground in pass blocking.

I also feel that the lower center of gravity is needed to stay LOW and get under pad level in the running game for the interior.


HEY....Im a Wisconsin guy, what can I say! I LOVE O LINE PLAY, IT EXCITES ME! LOL

 

[Zordon]

I too like 6'3 or 4 linemen--I'm tired of watching tall and stiff linemen who can only hold

Amen.

I've grown tired of the thin framed linemen we've targeted lately as well.

 

[burmafrd]

When you list the positives, you missed one thing that I heard on Jerry's phone call. It sounded to me like he finished his engineering degree in 3 years. That tells me the guy is super smart, and will not be missing the line calls and adjustments.

Pretty important.

I still think San Fran took us in the trade. I wanted O-line more than anything in round one, and I'm glad we went that way.

a slight caveat there is that sometimes school smarts does not equal football smarts though indications are he has them.

Gurode was an honors student at Colorado and in a serious field as well- not basket weaving

 

[dantheman41]

Not picking on you,...just pointing out an error. Truth is,...he tested out very good athletically. Only thing he didnt test out well on was his 40 time which we all know has ZERO impact when it comes to his position.


Check it out.....

20 Yard Shuttle-
Travis Frederick 4.76
Jonathan Cooper 4.84
Menelik Watson 5.01
Larry Warford 5.10


That twenty yard shuttle time is better than the SUPER DUPER AMAZING most athletic guard to ever play football Jonathon Cooper....LOL



And heres the three cone drill

3 Cone Drill-
Jonathan Cooper 7.78
Travis Frederick 7.81
Kyle Long 7.83
Menelik Watson 8.31

Here he was only off Coopers time by a whopping 3 tenths of a second. Better than Kyle Long, and KILLED Watson.

These type of tests are far and away better indicators for an O lineman than a 40 yard dash.


Again,....not picking on you, just wanted to take this opportunity to clear this misconception up.

Tested bad on bench press as well

 

[Avenging Hayseed]

Tested bad on bench press as well

Explained in an earlier post. He actually benches around 540 or so last I heard.

 

[xwalker]

His natural playing weight is 330/335 pounds. Thats what he played guard at year before last. He lost 15-20 pounds in the offseason before moving to center for the Badgers. The Badgers pull the center ALOT and he/they thought it would give him a little more mobility to pull. My bet is the Cowboys get him back up to 330 before the season starts. At that weight....he is FRIGGIN DOMINANT! He was very good last year as center too,...but after watching him these last few years I believe he is better at the higher weight and it is more natural to him.

I don't think that is correct about his weight. He was listed at 338 his senior year. The draft analysts talked about it prior to the combine. He lost a drastic amount of weight before the combine where he weighed 312.

 

[Wezsh0T]

The really positive thing I noticed about his videos is that he's never getting pushed back into the pocket. This alone could be worth the draft pick.