The best player in the 2017 draft

[Tristan]

Its all subjective but hes definately in the top super blue chip tier of this draft or any other draft. Hes on my top 5 which could easily be interchangeable

1 - Deshaun Watson
2 - Myles Garrett
3 - Leonard Fornette
4 - Malik Hooker
5- Rueben Foster

 

[Risen Star]

Its all subjective but hes definately in the top super blue chip tier of this draft or any other draft. Hes on my top 5 which could easily be interchangeable

1 - Deshaun Watson
2 - Myles Garrett
3 - Leonard Fornette
4 - Malik Hooker
5- Rueben Foster

I have 4. Foster, Garrett, Allen, Hooker. Elite blue chippers. I don't think anyone else from this class belongs in that tier.

You can make a case for Adams and Fournette but they don't make the cut for me.

 

[Tristan]

I have 4. Foster, Garrett, Allen, Hooker. Elite blue chippers. I don't think anyone else from this class belongs in that tier.

You can make a case for Adams and Fournette but they don't make the cut for me.

I agree on Allen and could add Lattimore as well as I had them next. I realize I am alone a bit on Watson but I think hes gonna be a big time qb

 

[HookEmCowboys]

Foster is an even better, more physical version of C.J. Mosley. Another "overrated" player on Alabama's defense.

There's another fella by the name of Dont'a Hightower that isn't too shabby either.

Bama has consistently produced high level ILBs in recent years. Foster is yet another in the lineage.

 

[HookEmCowboys]

Could make a case for Garrett, Allen, or Foster imo.

 

[AsthmaField]

Who has he hit though? I don't recall him inflicting damage on NFL guys like Founette or Guise in his own conference. Always some no name guy who won't see an NFL roster. And yes, Cunningham is better.

The gif of him knocking the **** out of an LSU player on page 1 of this thread... uh, that was Fournette.

 

[AsthmaField]

I have 4. Foster, Garrett, Allen, Hooker. Elite blue chippers. I don't think anyone else from this class belongs in that tier.

You can make a case for Adams and Fournette but they don't make the cut for me.

I'd put Solomon Thomas in there... but that's just me. He checks every box for what I want in a DL.

I agree with you on Adams and Fournette. Adams is an elite athlete... not an elite football player. Fournette never has impressed me that much. I wrote on here last offseason that I thought Zeke was better than him and Gurley and I almost got tarred and feathered.

I mean... I'm ok... but it was close.

 

[AsthmaField]

There's another fella by the name of Dont'a Hightower that isn't too shabby either.

Bama has consistently produced high level ILBs in recent years. Foster is yet another in the lineage.

Yeah, I liked Hightower as well. Foster though, IMO, is on another tier than Hightower. Foster's movement and explosion are rare. I don't care what he times... the guy plays the game extremely fast and is a natural LB.

Hightower is just a big dude who is tough and can move pretty good. He isn't a fit for every defense.

Foster could play at a high level for any of the 32 defenses in the league, IMO.

 

[HookEmCowboys]

Yeah, I liked Hightower as well. Foster though, IMO, is on another tier than Hightower. Foster's movement and explosion are rare. I don't care what he times... the guy plays the game extremely fast and is a natural LB.

Hightower is just a big dude who is tough and can move pretty good. He isn't a fit for every defense.

Foster could play at a high level for any of the 32 defenses in the league, IMO.

They were all great in college and will continue to do so in the NFL. I wasn't so much comparing each than pointing out the pedigree that Bama has started. ILBs coming from that school are beasts.

Even Rolando McClain with all his baggage was a thumper on the inside. It's a shame he didn't work out as well as I'd hoped.

 

[AsthmaField]

They were all great in college and will continue to do so in the NFL. I wasn't so much comparing each than pointing out the pedigree that Bama has started. ILBs coming from that school are beasts.

Even Rolando McClain with all his baggage was a thumper on the inside. It's a shame he didn't work out as well as I'd hoped.

Yeah, I gotcha.

Rolando had a ton of ability. Like you said really a shame.

CJ Mosely, Hightower, Reggie Ragland (the worst of this bunch, IMO, but still really good)... Saban can find him some ILB's.

Foster is the best of that group though... by a shot, too.

Let me put it this way: I've never been a fan of drafting MLB/ILB in the first round. Particularly in a 43 scheme. Those guys are usually run and hit, chase players and to be honest... they just aren't that difficult to find past round 1. However, I wouldn't hesitate to take Foster in the first. He's an intimidator. A sledgehammer. He's a force to be reckoned with and he will routinely swing momentum in your favor with big plays and big hits.

Guys with his skillset definitely are hard to find.

I love the guy.

 

[AsthmaField]

For those of you who might not have gotten a chance to watch the guy play... here is a video of him. He's like a guided missile.

The video starts out with him still in high school, where he was an all-american and 5 star recruit. You can immediately see his intensity, explosion, and athleticism… even in high school. He plays mean and likes the physicality of playing LB.

 

[AsthmaField]

In that video, watch him take on a kick returner in the hole at 2:40. Foster is standing still and the ball carrier has up a full head of steam. Usually, when that happens, the tackler gets shoved back 4 or 5 yards before bringing the runner down. Foster is standing still and still has enough power and explosion to stop the guy on a dime and knock him back instead.

It is a remarkable play.

 

[AsthmaField]

Also in that video at 6:16, watch the hit Foster puts on D Watson as he scrambles outside the pocket. It looks like Watson got him by a car.

 

[stilltheguru88]

The gif of him knocking the **** out of an LSU player on page 1 of this thread... uh, that was Fournette.

It wasn't head up but a good hit nonetheless. I still don't see transcendent play.

 

[FuzzyLumpkins]

Reuben Foster hits big and gives a nice emotional appeal but I want my blue chippers to be both elite athletes and at the very least technically sound. I am not sure Foster meets either of those criteria.

He has good speed for his size but he is a long strider with stiff hips and while he is certainly explosive his stop start leaves a lot to be desired. He overruns and whiffs on jukes and hesitations regularly and his unwillingness to breakdown in space so he can go for the kill shot is irritating to me. He is not going to be able to keep up with the routes that NFL TE run unless it is the seam and ball carriers are much more elusive in the NFL and he was already having issues with it in college.

As for his skillset, his awareness is lacking. You will see him bite on playaction and not recover even when the QB does show the ball and in zone coverage he drifts laterally and stares down plays far too often for my likeing.

He also does a poor job taking on blocks. If his swim move to fly past the OL does not work then he is helpless to disengage and does that hopping body wiggle you see guys do when they don't know the handwork required to disengage. Elite NFL OL like Zach Martin will take him for a ride and pancake him as he is now.

Now don't get me wrong, I think he is a top 15 talent but that is solely on projection. He is absolutely explosive and can run but he needs a lot of work. If he continues to do the dog in the butcher shop routine in the NFL then he is going to flop hard. He was only able to get away with it as much as he was because he had an elite DL demanding doubles and keeping him clean more often than not. You don't have to protect blue chippers IMO.

I have yet to seen anyone close to Myles Garrett this year.