I love Ojomo's build, his long arms, and huge hands but I don't know if it's because Texas played him there or he wants to be there but he is usually over the tackle or outside the tackle when I have watched. Also, doesn't seem to me to be a grinder and gives up quickly. It may be just me but, thats how I view him and why he's not on my list. For what its worth.
I dunno. We might've watched different games, but I just re-watched him against Alabama, and he looked like a guy we can use. No speed whatsoever, which makes him a feast-or-famine proposition at 5T (and beyond!), but he still got some pressure in that role. He's just not going to run anyone down in pursuit, and yeah, he plays like he knows it. As a 3-tech, or lined up right over the guard, he was nails. It's a weird DT class in some respects, but Ojomo's rising a lot higher on my list than I expected him to specifically because from what I've seen he consistently makes a significant difference whether he's single- or double-teamed. He's not everything I'd want in a complement to a good 3T, but he's got enough going for him IMSO to be a guy who makes other teams pick their poison. I think that's what we're after in the broader scheme of things.
Ojomo is a bit of an enigma to me. He played mostly a 4i in the Longhorn scheme (a weird 4-3 defense that's really more of a 2-5 alignment) and looks like he should transition to a 5T, but he didn't hold up against the double-team particularly well; and he doesn't seem to have the juice to contribute much at 3T. Plus, since he struggles against double-teams, he's not especially cut out to play a 1T or nose.
I think he's at best a rotational guy, the sort you're always seeking to upgrade. YMMV.
We might have found this year's elephant to our pack of blind men. Seems like every year there's a guy who for whatever reason just seems like a completely different player to each person who watches a bunch of game video. Me, I see a guy who takes on double teams like I want him to, and who was too much for most guards at his level.
That Texas front has been all over the place these last two years--Ojomo started as a 275-pound OLB in a two-DT alignment, but they settled down to something that was either a one-gap 3-4 or a zone-blitzing 5-2, or...I dunno. The two guys I still know back in Texas don't know (though they're TTU fans). That might account for some of the variation. If all you saw was him playing on the edge, I can see how you'd figure that he can only win with power and leverage, and doesn't have the speed to affect plays once the QB leaves the pocket. I agree with that pretty well--he reminds me of Adebawore without the long speed and with hands twice as heavy. To me, that makes him an intriguing DT candidate, albeit one with a scattershot resume after moving around so much.
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True but no other DT ever was faster than Aaron Donald. I did mention ever didn't I? It's a comp, not the end-all.
Hell I remember being told comparing Aaron Donald to a future HOF like Sapp was stupid. Again it was a comp based on athletic ability and lack of size.
It is interesting that Sapp held that 40 record before Donald. All three are about the same size, which is undersized for a DT. So compare the kid to Sapp then if it makes you feel better.
AA's 40 at the combine was the fastest by a 280+ pound guy since 2000. He's faster than Donald, faster than Kancey. He's got to be in the equation for the Bears although I doubt he lasts until 54.
My dream is to come away with AA and ANUDIKE-UZOMAH somehow in this draft but I don't think either is there at our pick in the second. I wouldn't mind trading down into the 16-20 range or lower to pick up a second this year and next. Land AA in the lower first and ANUDIKE-UZOMAH with the earlier 2nd. Love both these guys.
G08 wrote: Tue Mar 21, 2023 6:30 pm
Didn't realize he was 24 though, woof.
Lotta super old prospects these days.
I get that the COVID additional season contributes - but that's only 1 extra year at most. It feels like just a ton of 23-25 year old guys floating around.
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True but no other DT ever was faster than Aaron Donald. I did mention ever didn't I? It's a comp, not the end-all.
Hell I remember being told comparing Aaron Donald to a future HOF like Sapp was stupid. Again it was a comp based on athletic ability and lack of size.
It is interesting that Sapp held that 40 record before Donald. All three are about the same size, which is undersized for a DT. So compare the kid to Sapp then if it makes you feel better.
AA's 40 at the combine was the fastest by a 280+ pound guy since 2000. He's faster than Donald, faster than Kancey. He's got to be in the equation for the Bears although I doubt he lasts until 54.
He is not considered a DT. He is considered a DE for this draft class. That is who he ran with. I personally believe he is better suited for DT then DE. But he did his workouts with DE's in this class. I know it is schematics but it is why he isn't considered the fastest DT to ever run.
AA's 40 at the combine was the fastest by a 280+ pound guy since 2000. He's faster than Donald, faster than Kancey. He's got to be in the equation for the Bears although I doubt he lasts until 54.
He is not considered a DT. He is considered a DE for this draft class. That is who he ran with. I personally believe he is better suited for DT then DE. But he did his workouts with DE's in this class. I know it is schematics but it is why he isn't considered the fastest DT to ever run.
He's being looked at as a 3T. Van Ness, I'm not sure if he's a DE or a DT.
He is being looked at as a 3T for us. I saw a Raven thread that was looking at him as an OLB. A 49er thread that was looking at him as a DE. But I am not denying he is a super freak.
Kinda like when we drafted Urlacher. We drafted him to play LB. The steelers were on record that they were looking at him playing Safety in their defense. But Urlacher ran with the LB group not the safeties at the combine.
I’m looking at Karl Brooks from Bowling Green as a Hail Mary if something crazy happens in the early rounds and you’re starting your Saturday with no 3T drafted yet. He got some hype around the senior bowl but that was back during the “the Bears are signing Payne or Hargreaves” days so I forgot about him
Mazi Smith (Michigan), Siaki Ika (Baylor), Jerrod Clark (Coastal Carolina), Keondred Coburn (Texas) are all those 300+ plug uglies who are the run-stopping type of DT. I'm sure there are others in the draft. Billings is signed for one year, the Bears should be looking at drafting another in rounds 2 and lower.
Grizzled wrote: Thu Mar 30, 2023 4:48 am
Mazi Smith (Michigan), Siaki Ika (Baylor), Jerrod Clark (Coastal Carolina), Keondred Coburn (Texas) are all those 300+ plug uglies who are the run-stopping type of DT. I'm sure there are others in the draft. Billings is signed for one year, the Bears should be looking at drafting another in rounds 2 and lower.
Agree on this one. Smith and Ika may be too high but there are than Clark and Coburn later in the draft. We do need to take one though.
I keep coming back to Mazi Smith and challenging that he's not just a NT but can play 3T as well .... yes, he's huge (323) but he's incredibly explosive for his size.
The Athletic wrote:
As explosive as any big man in this class, Smith’s raw power with his punch and what he generates in his massive lower half makes him a prototypical space-eating, run-defending nose tackle in today’s NFL. He posted 34 reps on the bench at the combine, and Michigan says he has posted a broad jump of 11-4 at 6-3, 323 pounds — it’s important to note he did no testing at the combine other than the bench press.
I also have gone back and looked at Gervon Dexter of Florida and really like him in the Second Round.
The Athletic wrote:Dexter is a big-bodied player with nimble feet, making him a good fit in any scheme or style of defense. His active hands are among his best traits, and he uses them to keep offensive linemen off of him when he’s slanting across gaps. A 4.88-second 40 and a 31-inch vertical at 310 pounds were impressive, but Dexter needs to improve getting out of his stance and exploding upfield to maximize his athletic ability.
His raw strength gets him out of trouble when guards and centers get their hands on him, but that may not be enough to produce at a high level in the NFL. When he plays with a high motor, it’s impressive watching Dexter chase scrambling quarterbacks. His 105 tackles over the last two seasons shows that he’s not just resigned to eating up blocks and keeping linebackers clean.
With all his athletic gifts, the ultimate version of Dexter would have a clear case as the second-best defensive tackle in this class, behind Jalen Carter. Dexter has to find consistency early in his pro career, though, and land with a team that pushes him to play at 100 miles per hour all game.
That last bit was just based on what I saw of Dexter when I watched his game video. I was intrigued at first: our own DeForest Buckner, right? But his game film was just bleh.
But I thought I'd read a bit on what other people were saying about him. Give it a shot; it's hilarious. Roughly as many people criticize his motor as praise it. You'll find so-called analysts saying he's got a great anchor and others saying he routinely gets shoved off of plays. Is he great at splitting double-teams, or does he tend to give up? You'll find everything you're looking for, and plenty of the opposite. Seriously, those five minutes alone taught me more about the prospect-analysis landscape than everything I'd thought I'd learned up til then. For that, I thank Mr. Gervon. But I still don't want us to draft him in the first two rounds.
So much road and so few places, so much friendliness and so little intimacy, so much flavour and so little taste.
Friendship is better than fighting, but fighting is more useful.
karhu wrote: Mon Apr 10, 2023 12:12 am
Good lord. Gervon Dexter is exactly what people are worried Jalen Carter might become. No thanks.
In fact, I'll go further: if we draft Dexter, I'll take it as a strong bit of evidence that Eberflus is really pulling the strings when it counts.
I see Dexter rather differently. Most places questioning Dexter's motor aren't considering the number of snaps he played in 2022 (most defensive snaps in the Power 5). He's probably best as part of a rotation, but can be the starter in that rotation.
