~OFFICIAL 2020 TSF.COM FANTASY DRAFT STEELERS VOTING & DISCUSSION~

Vote tally so far:

4 Jordyn brooks, ILB, Texas Tech
1 Ben Bredeson, OL, Michigan
5 Matthew Peart, OT, UCONN
2 Matt Hennessy, OL, Temple

 

Ugh, so sorry English, I’d like to because it would help Peart but once a vote is cast it’s not allowed to be switched.

Just opens a can of worms that leads to people wanting to change votes.

 

Vote tally so far:

5 Jordyn brooks, ILB, Texas Tech
1 Ben Bredeson, OL, Michigan
5 Matthew Peart, OT, UCONN
2 Matt Hennessy, OL, Temple

Got a tie, close race!

 

One of the things that I like about doing this mock is that it brings guys to my attention that otherwise might have gone unnoticed. Regardless of what happens here, I‘d be very happy if he ends up on the team in the real thing.

 

The value is much greater for Peart. He’s a swing tackle with the potential to be elite.

I’ll take that all day over a thumper ILB.

 

I go off of PPF and Draft Network for evaluations. PPF says he has no playmaking ability, not one pick or pass break up. And Draft Network had this to say:

Jordyn Brooks was an effective downhill defender for Texas Tech that racked up 360 tackles across four seasons in college, including 108 tackles and 20 tackles for loss in 11 games as a senior. For a team looking for a big, physical and rangy downhill run defender then Brooks is an ideal target. He is an outstanding tackler and effectively shoots gaps. Outside of processing development that is needed, Brooks is completely unproven in coverage despite four seasons of heavy usage in college. Rarely did he ever take a step backwards, work in man coverage or was tasked with defending deeper zones. While he seemingly has the physical tools to perform, there is likely to be some growing pains as he adds this responsibility to his game. Brooks was often a spy or blitzed on passing downs in college. At a minimum, Brooks should be an early down linebacker and special teams ace but his ability to develop his passing down skills will be critical for him becoming a more complete player.

 

That’s the key right there.

I thought the write ups on Brooks overall were positive, just that certain aspects of the game aren’t in his toolbox, as of now anyway.

I’ve seen Peart going 2-3 mostly. PPF has Brooks going in the 4th and I think I’ve seen some 3rd rd projections. Not that any of that means anything really, see it every draft, guys going sooner and later than where they were projected.

 

Sounds like the perfect guy to put in man coverage on Keenan Allen!

 

I’m getting intrigued by the debate on Jordyn Brooks, so I decided to watch some of his games (not just highlights). I started with their loss to Oklahoma last Fall. He was nearly useless for the first 2 1/2 quarters of that game while OU built a 41-13 lead. I saw 2 assists up to that point, one of which was on a 14 yard gain on a run in the middle of the field. During that time he positioned himself to make tackles near the line of scrimmage 2 or 3 times, but whiffed. Halfway through the 3rd quarter he finally made a play on a blitz by forcing Hurts to throw the ball away. Later (with the game well out of reach) he made a tackle for a 2 yard loss - his ONLY solo tackle of the entire game. His stat line was 1 solo tackle, 5 assists and 1 TFL (down 30+ points late in the game).

one game does not mean all that much when evaluating a player, but man oh man what a lousy start to film review of a player. I’m going to try to watch at least 2 more games.

EDIT #1: I watched his game vs. Baylor last season. Better, but still nothing that you don't see from dozens of LBs every college season. He made some plays in run defense near the line of scrimmage, and left some on the field. He mostly spied the QB and blitzed on pass plays. He's fairly effective at both when unblocked, however he was easily neutralized on blitzes with any contact by any blocker. I'm going to try to watch at least one more game, and I'll try too find one with a really good stat line. So far I'm not seeing play against his top opponents that matches the hype.

EDIT #2: The only other game that I found on Youtube was his 2018 game vs. Ole Miss. He played mostly on the outside, and was a bit more effective. He tended to maintain contain on running plays to his side, though didn't make many plays. He played more in coverage in that game than in the two 2019 games combined, and showed the ability to hang with a receiver in the 0-5 yard zone outside the hashes, but as soon as he needed to turn his hips he got completely lost.

My final verdict based on less info that I usually work with is that he's a guy who may be a good value starting in the 5th round, but I wouldn't even consider him before that. I see a lot of Vince Williams in him. He's definitely faster than VW, but is more likely to whiff on a tackle and easier to block. Also, while VW is no star, he does make occasional big plays. I saw nothing even close to a big play for Brooks in those 3 games. @Blast Furnace noted that PFF said he's not a playmaker, and I think that's dead on. He seems to be too late to the action to do anything but make a tackle. I'm just not seeing a player that matches the hype.