R5 P144: Austin Booker, Edge - Kansas

[wab]

[wab]

There you go GO8

[UOK]

[Yogi da Bear]

Holy shit!

[wab]

What a phenomenal draft. I had Booker as a mid 2nd round pick.

[UOK]

[dplank]

Wow, big move there. Hope he can play! Mark Anderson comp?

[Bears Whiskey Nut]

Whoa!! In Ryan Poles we trust. What a great move. HUGE day three value.

[HisRoyalSweetness]

G08 hasn't posted yet. I think he must have passed out when they announced the pick!

[G08]

There you go GO8

[Hema2.0]

I love seeing this!

[G08]

[HisRoyalSweetness]

So in effect Poles traded a R4 pick next year for Ryan Bates.

[wab]

Dude is Maxx Crosby lite.

[Umbali]

so happy to see this I kinda yelped out loud and woke up the wife lol

[Hoog]

Man, I told ya in the punter thread, Poles would trade back in. Great draft he's putting together.

[G08]

[Magilla_Gorilla]

Should be noted that Texas' RT (Christian Jones) was a 5th round draft pick this year, and their LT (Kelvin Banks Jr) is a likely 1st round pick in the 2025 draft.

[Grizzled]

Wow, big move there. Hope he can play! Mark Anderson comp?

Maxx Crosby actually. Great move, can't believe he was still available.The topping on am excellent draft.

[wulfy]

I love the trade and the the pick. But let’s take it easy on the Maxx Crosby comps.

[Grizzled]

Wow, big move there. Hope he can play! Mark Anderson comp?

Maxx Crosby, 4th round, Eastern Michigan. Should have been a 3rd rounder. The cherry on the hot fudge sundae draft.

[Sweetness34]

Excellent pick and a very fair price paid to get back in! Give Poles a raise, he is performing at an All-Pro level as a GM!! Just wow.

[dave99]

Every mock draft where Rome went 9, I took this guy in the third.
Awesome move, awesome pick.

The Beast:
STRENGTHS: Long-limbed, rangy athlete with room to pack on more muscle … uses elongated strides to quickly cover ground as a pass rusher or o ut in space on
perimeter plays … sprints downhill to threaten the corner but can also work back inside with spins or lateral slides … can plant and dip the corner to flatten to the
quarterback … plays with force in his hands, including a stutter-bull and long-arm stab to put blockers on their heels … effective club-swim move and started to
introduce better deception with his counters, including jabs, hesitation and ghost moves … takes contain responsibilities seriously … bends knees and natu rally
unwinds from blocks to find his way to the football … works hard to not lose sight of the football … length gives him a large tackling radius, helping him make shoestring
stops … has pursuit speed to track down ball carriers away from the line of scrimmage … strong production in his final college season.

WEAKNESSES: Reminders of his inexperience appear all over his tape … doesn’t have ideal body mass (especially in his lower half) on his h igh-cut, lanky frame and
needs to continue developing his play strength … upfield gate shows hints of straight-line stiffness … struggles to unleash his length versus blockers who close space
quickly and don’t give him a runway … needs to dial back the wasted movements mid-rush and be more efficient … pops upright in his spin moves … undisciplined
tackler once he reaches the backfield and needs to cut down on the misses (also had several roughing the passer and targeting flags on his tape) … can be uproote d
by double teams and needs to better drop his anchor versus downhill attacks … inexperienced dropping into space … only one se ason of production and consistent
on-field reps.

SUMMARY: A subpackage player at Kansas, Booker lined up wide of the offensive tackle (two- and three-point stances) in defensive coordinator Brian Borland’s
versatile front. After he saw only 23 defensive snaps in his two seasons at Minnesota, Booker transferred to Lawrence for the 2023 season and led the team in sacks,
tackles for loss and forced fumbles, despite coming off the bench (averaged 40.2 snaps per game). Although he is still figuring out how and when to access his bag of
tricks, Booker instinctively uses his rangy frame to create various leverage points and surprise blockers with his forceful hands. He is lean in his lower half, but he
plays well versus the run to stack, stay balanced through contact and track the football. Overall, Booker is lacking in body mass and overall experience (just 505
career college snaps), but he is an ascending player with the ability to maximize his athletic traits and body length/force with proper biomechanics. With his tools
and instincts, he projects as a rotational player in Year 1 with the potential to become an impact starter.
GRADE: 3rd Round (No. 78 overall)

[BearsFanInMN]

I wanted him so badly at 75. This is great!

[HisRoyalSweetness]

[thunderspirit]

Some quoted excerpts from Bob McGinn's annual anony-scout quotes.

“I think he probably came out because the defensive side of the (draft) is lighter,” one scout said. “Shouldn’t have. You may not be able to count on him immediately. He’s a really, really interesting guy. He can be a designated rusher in a 4-3. He can be a 3-4 outside backer. Plays hard. Fourth round for sure, some might see him in the third based on talent level and upside.”

“Skinny guy — really skinny legs,” a second scout said. “He is active and nasty. Got explosiveness off the edge. Not built for the run game the way he’s built but he kills tight ends. Out in space he has explosive speed to close. Really talented dude.”

“Everybody will be scared of the person,” said a third scout. “He’s been entitled since he got there. He was a transfer. Position coach didn’t like him. Athleticism is off the charts. The ‘but’ is the 40. That’s why he gets bumped down.”

[UOK]

Sounds like he’s a bit of a project. Hopefully the rest of the defense will humble him and set him right.

[Bearfacts]

Quick, good size and length, has some moves he can use, productive. He's precisely the kind of player I was talking about. He'll need to get bigger and stronger to play as an every down DE but for now he's a kid who can bring some pressure off the edge. In a draft so thin on DL talent how did this kid manage to slide all the way into round five?

[G08]

Quick, good size and length, has some moves he can use, productive. He's precisely the kind of player I was talking about. He'll need to get bigger and stronger to play as an every down DE but for now he's a kid who can bring some pressure off the edge. In a draft so thin on DL talent how did this kid manage to slide all the way into round five?

Man I have no idea but I am hoping their loss is our gain! I was wanting to draft him at 75!

[HurricaneBear]

I guess it's ok they didn't draft offense here. Welcome to the Bears Austin Booker, he who I know nothing about.