Photo by Matt Sachs, TexAgs
Texas A&M Football
“There is no doubt that Christian Kirk could carry on A&M’s first round streak. He is a spectacular player who came in last year. What impressed me the most about Christian Kirk last year was not only that he came in and had a huge year offensively and made a huge impact as a punt returner, but he did it stepping into the deepest, most talented wide receiver corps in the SEC. That say an awful lot when you consider the ladder he had to climb depth chart wise to get into the position that he did. With A&M you can put Seals-Jones and Reynolds on the outside and you go four wide with a slot look with Noil and Kirk on the inside, you are talking about a pretty devastating amount of talent and Kirk came right in and out performed them all.”
“I think Calvin Ridley is the most talented wide receiver in the SEC, but when you talk about proven depth and start asking who your third guy, fourth and fifth guy are, I think that is where A&M’s group separates itself from a lot of teams in the SEC. Ridley was just so explosive last year and really he more or less stepped in as a freshman and gave Alabama Amari Cooper all over again. I would have to put him at the top of the league at that position but I would not put any team’s depth at the position ahead of Texas A&M.”
“I really think that A&M needs more depth and production on the defensive side of the football. That is where they have to get better and Daylon Mack being in shape is a big step in the right direction. When you talk about a guy who can drop that much weight, it makes you quicker and faster. From a stamina standpoint, a guy like that, if you play him too much in a game, in the fourth quarter he can't give you anything. Some of those guys who are really overweight can hurt you more than they can help you if they are out there in the fourth quarter and they are too fatigued. You look at that and not only does it make him a step quicker, it gives A&M more late in the game.”
“Avery Gennesy steps into a position at left tackle at A&M that has developed some pretty high expectations considering the sting of left tackles that A&M has put together that have gone in the first round. It is a pretty big pair of shoes to fill but I think he is fully capable of doing it. He is a guy that I think can play on every down, not just with the pass block; he is also solid in the run game, too. I know A&M doesn’t run the ball a ton but from an NFL standpoint when these guys are in an offense like A&M’s, they look for traits in the offensive linemen and project is they will be able to run block at the NFL level. I think Gennesy is a guy that they are going to favor on that.”
“I was highly impressed with Myles Garrett. I told Olin that right after his interview in the main room in Hoover. It was actually another reporter that spoke to him about wanting 20 sacks but I was able to squeeze in quite a few questions. Myles is really thoughtful and I thought his answers were measured. He is a bright guy. He's definitely not the kind of guy that is going to say the wrong thing, but he is honest and he will tell you what's on his mind. I was as impressed with Garrett from an interview standpoint as I was with anybody in Hoover all week.”
“It is hard to imagine (a player sitting out their junior season to protect draft spot). Garrett completely dismissed the notion. Leonard Fournette did the same thing. It is not the first time Fournette has been asked about it, either. He totally dismissed it. Garrett said he considers it a betrayal of him team to do that. I think a lot of players feel that way. I’m not sure I will see it in my lifetime but sooner or later it is going to happen, right? There is a first time for everything. I just don’t see it happening any time soon. I think it would be a new experience on the NFL end for scouts because they would obviously have a lot less film to look at but if a guy is good enough to say and try that then they would have enough film to begin with because he would be a superstar. There would be questions about competitive fire with a guy like that. Does that knock a guy way down in the draft? Probably not. At the end of the day, talent outweighs everything else. I don’t see it happening. I'll be shocked if I see that happen anytime in the near future.”
“(Players leaving early and going undrafted) is a difficult problem that college football and the NFL both have a vested interest in solving. Some efforts have been made and I think some of the efforts that have already been made are steps in the positive direction. For instance, the draft advisory board changed its feedback system for underclassmen a few years ago. They cut down on the number of players that they will take and even look at and grade. They have also changed the feedback that the players receive. Now all they get is a first and second round grade or go back to school. Anytime you see a guy who got a fifth round grade from the NFL, there is something wrong with that report because that isn’t how they do it anymore.
Looking forward, I think to get to the underclassmen combine, I think it would make a difference. Saban has said the NFL is interested in the idea. It would be tricky from the NFL end of things to do it in the spring, probably after spring practice, which for most schools is going to be early April or late April. You are talking about the last 30 days before the draft on the NFL calendar. I would be interested to ask a GM how far he would want to stretch his resources in the month of April when they are making final preparations for the draft to dispatch scouts to college campuses all of the country to watch underclassmen. If they decide to go forward with it, I promise you scouts would be there but I would be interested to know whether a GM would want to use his resources if that became a reality.”
NFL.com's Chase Goodbread talks A&M draft potential prior to 2016 season
Key quotes from Chase Goodbread interview
“Obviously Myles Garrett is at the top of the list as far as A&M prospects go with no close second. There are plenty of other guys I think that have a pro future. Ricky Seals-Jones is put together so well physically, it is hard to imagine him not being a guy. Some guys are better pros than they are college players and Seals-Jones has been a good player for A&M, maybe not quite the megastar that people thought he might be coming out of high school. I look at him as a guy who may be better as a professional, production wise, than he was as a college player. Who knows? Maybe he comes out this year for A&M and has the monster year that so many people have been waiting on. You look at Armani Watts at the safety position. I am really high on him. You go back to receiver from there and you have Josh Reynolds, etc. Speedy Noil’s last year was a little bit of a wash for him but everyone saw what he is capable of in 2014 so he is another one to watch there.”“There is no doubt that Christian Kirk could carry on A&M’s first round streak. He is a spectacular player who came in last year. What impressed me the most about Christian Kirk last year was not only that he came in and had a huge year offensively and made a huge impact as a punt returner, but he did it stepping into the deepest, most talented wide receiver corps in the SEC. That say an awful lot when you consider the ladder he had to climb depth chart wise to get into the position that he did. With A&M you can put Seals-Jones and Reynolds on the outside and you go four wide with a slot look with Noil and Kirk on the inside, you are talking about a pretty devastating amount of talent and Kirk came right in and out performed them all.”
“I think Calvin Ridley is the most talented wide receiver in the SEC, but when you talk about proven depth and start asking who your third guy, fourth and fifth guy are, I think that is where A&M’s group separates itself from a lot of teams in the SEC. Ridley was just so explosive last year and really he more or less stepped in as a freshman and gave Alabama Amari Cooper all over again. I would have to put him at the top of the league at that position but I would not put any team’s depth at the position ahead of Texas A&M.”
“I really think that A&M needs more depth and production on the defensive side of the football. That is where they have to get better and Daylon Mack being in shape is a big step in the right direction. When you talk about a guy who can drop that much weight, it makes you quicker and faster. From a stamina standpoint, a guy like that, if you play him too much in a game, in the fourth quarter he can't give you anything. Some of those guys who are really overweight can hurt you more than they can help you if they are out there in the fourth quarter and they are too fatigued. You look at that and not only does it make him a step quicker, it gives A&M more late in the game.”
“Avery Gennesy steps into a position at left tackle at A&M that has developed some pretty high expectations considering the sting of left tackles that A&M has put together that have gone in the first round. It is a pretty big pair of shoes to fill but I think he is fully capable of doing it. He is a guy that I think can play on every down, not just with the pass block; he is also solid in the run game, too. I know A&M doesn’t run the ball a ton but from an NFL standpoint when these guys are in an offense like A&M’s, they look for traits in the offensive linemen and project is they will be able to run block at the NFL level. I think Gennesy is a guy that they are going to favor on that.”
“I was highly impressed with Myles Garrett. I told Olin that right after his interview in the main room in Hoover. It was actually another reporter that spoke to him about wanting 20 sacks but I was able to squeeze in quite a few questions. Myles is really thoughtful and I thought his answers were measured. He is a bright guy. He's definitely not the kind of guy that is going to say the wrong thing, but he is honest and he will tell you what's on his mind. I was as impressed with Garrett from an interview standpoint as I was with anybody in Hoover all week.”
“It is hard to imagine (a player sitting out their junior season to protect draft spot). Garrett completely dismissed the notion. Leonard Fournette did the same thing. It is not the first time Fournette has been asked about it, either. He totally dismissed it. Garrett said he considers it a betrayal of him team to do that. I think a lot of players feel that way. I’m not sure I will see it in my lifetime but sooner or later it is going to happen, right? There is a first time for everything. I just don’t see it happening any time soon. I think it would be a new experience on the NFL end for scouts because they would obviously have a lot less film to look at but if a guy is good enough to say and try that then they would have enough film to begin with because he would be a superstar. There would be questions about competitive fire with a guy like that. Does that knock a guy way down in the draft? Probably not. At the end of the day, talent outweighs everything else. I don’t see it happening. I'll be shocked if I see that happen anytime in the near future.”
“(Players leaving early and going undrafted) is a difficult problem that college football and the NFL both have a vested interest in solving. Some efforts have been made and I think some of the efforts that have already been made are steps in the positive direction. For instance, the draft advisory board changed its feedback system for underclassmen a few years ago. They cut down on the number of players that they will take and even look at and grade. They have also changed the feedback that the players receive. Now all they get is a first and second round grade or go back to school. Anytime you see a guy who got a fifth round grade from the NFL, there is something wrong with that report because that isn’t how they do it anymore.
Looking forward, I think to get to the underclassmen combine, I think it would make a difference. Saban has said the NFL is interested in the idea. It would be tricky from the NFL end of things to do it in the spring, probably after spring practice, which for most schools is going to be early April or late April. You are talking about the last 30 days before the draft on the NFL calendar. I would be interested to ask a GM how far he would want to stretch his resources in the month of April when they are making final preparations for the draft to dispatch scouts to college campuses all of the country to watch underclassmen. If they decide to go forward with it, I promise you scouts would be there but I would be interested to know whether a GM would want to use his resources if that became a reality.”
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