SI ranks most impactful rookies rd 4-7

Thanks for saving me the trouble looking for the thread. I responded in the other thread. Is impactful the same as calling them steals? I don't think so.

 

It's certainly in the same ballpark.

Maybe some semantic argument that they are different.

But the point here is that they think they will be good value. Presumably biased toward immediate value.

I don't think we take Wetjen so early if we didn't have so many picks in rd 3. But having all those picks in rd 3 means that it's going to be harder for rd 4+ guys to make the team than it normally would (and it's not easy for those guys anyway). So I don't mind taking a guy who looks like a lock to make the team and play an important role (and maybe save a roster spot because not all guys can return both P and K).

My guess is that Wetjen touches the ball more this year than Roman Wilson (3rd round) has in 2 years (12 receptions on 21 targets, no rushes, no returns). And if he can bring our return game from dismal to at least average, that's not bad for a 4th round pick in a year when it's going to be hard for that guy to make the team because he's the 6th guy we picked.

I was kind of hoping that he could also be more than a zero at WR. But in yesterday's Terrible podcast, they went over his receiving results in college...it was not good. He did have 20 rec for 151 yards last season...but the sports reference page for college doesn't seem to have the targets or catchable balls. In the podcast, they went over targets...particularly on passes with more than 5 air yards. I think he had like 1 or 2 catches and the majority of the balls were graded as catchable (from sports info solutions IIRC).

So it sounds like he's almost exclusively a returner. Maybe MM and friends can try to scheme something up for him to get it in space on offense. But it seems to me that having one-note guys like that on the field is a tell.

 

I agree that it will be too much of a tell if he is on the field, which is one reason I don't like the pick. On the day he was drafted, I wrote that him doing so little on offense in college makes it very unlikely he will help on offense.

Touching the ball more than Roman Wilson isn't much of an accomplishment given he has only those 12 touches, certainly not enough to make him look like a good selection.

I do mind taking a kick returner when the team has needs they haven't addressed, such as help at safety or linebacker.

 

I think ILB is OK for this year. But I wouldn't have minded taking one given that the class was supposedly deep.

Same with S.

Ultimately, I do think that a return specialist on this team will make more impact than an ILB3 (still going to start Queen for sure...hopefully Wilson gets more burn than last year to let him learn through growing pains in the run...but I want us to prioritize the medium term over the now).

I really don't understand our plan for S. I'm guessing we'll try to keep Ramsey there. Hopefully having an offseason for him to focus on how to play the position will help him.

 

That is my biggest problem with this draft, not getting any safety help until the seventh round. They seem to be deluding themselves in thinking all they needed to add was one starter.

 

Agree with the bold part especially.

You can only do so many things each year.

I think the decisions we made in the draft were reasonable. And I think that's all you can hope for in real time. No one knows how things will turn out. Even "experts".

I think we made sensible picks. And I'm very glad we didn't reach for the next WR on the board after the Lemon thing.

 

Do they actually have a linebacker who is good in pass coverage? That assumes they would even leave him at linebacker rather than move him to safety, which I'm not sure would have been the case.

 

Iowa is a running team. The team leader in receptions only had 29. Wetjen was third with 20. It appears that Wetjen did impress the coaches with his receiving ability at the Senior Bowl.

 

I think the plan is to try Brisker at FS, and they're still waiting for the Darnell Savage signing to go through.

 

I see three clear starters by year's end (T, WR, G). One on day one.
They got good depth for the defensive backfield, who could be starting next year. They got d-line depth with NT capabilities. And a high upside QB.

 

He has played both, but his is primarily a strong safety, so that is not a great solution. Savage is a former starter, but he bounced among three teams season and started only one game. That doesn't inspire confidence. Elliott is coming off a major injury and can't stay healthy. Ramsey might get better in year two of playing safety, but he seems ill-suited for free safety given his aggressive nature. It does not seem to be a good plan.

 

Three of the four picks you mentioned were guys who are physically talented, but didn't play very well last season. Allar wasn't good even before he got hurt this past season. Everette is a great athlete who got burned far too often at Georgia. Spears-Jennings is fast, but he fell to the seventh round for a reason.

I'm not sure the raw first-rounder or the tackle who is projecting to move to guard are safe bets to start as rookies.

 

The thing I was worried about re: Terrible Podcast wasn't so much that he didn't get enough targets, but that he wasn't coming down with catchable balls.

Hopefully, this is just a stats/evaluation mirage. Seems to me like someone who is good at fielding punts and kicks wouldn't be terrible at receiving .