Breaking down prospects' weaknesses

[mesaSteeler]

Breaking down prospects' weaknesses
March, 12, 2010
http://espn.go.com/blog/afcnorth/pos...cts-weaknesses
By James Walker

Scouting can be harsh.

Instead of looking at what prospects do well, the process often puts a heavy emphasis on where players struggle.

I spent some time this week going through my 2010 draft guide from Pro Football Weekly, which is a highly respected publication with in-depth scouting reports. (The AFC North blog recommends it for draftniks.)

With that said, here are the negatives of 10 quality prospects being considered in the draft for the AFC North:

Jermaine Gresham, TE, Oklahoma

Interested teams: Cincinnati Bengals, Baltimore Ravens

PFW negatives: "Makes some concentration drops. Is not explosive or sudden out of his breaks and tends to drift at the top of his stems. Shows some lower-body tightness and has difficulty adjusting to the low ball."

Aaron Hernandez, TE, Florida

Interested teams: Bengals, Ravens

PFW negatives: "Not physical and brings little value as a blocker. Has not run a full route tree. Struggles to sink his hips and separate against tight man coverage. Not strong or powerful after the catch."

Joe Haden, CB, Florida

Interested team: Cleveland Browns

PFW negatives: "Shows hesitation deciphering combination routes and too easily can be sucked up by underneath action. Jumps routes prematurely and leaves voids in coverage behind him. Inconsistent. Tackling is a work in progress."

Eric Berry, S, Tennessee

Interested team: Browns

PFW negatives: "Has some tightness in his hips and could stand to bulk up in order to better handle the constant pounding of the pro game. Leads with his shoulders seeking blow-up shots instead of wrapping up, and can do a better job of breaking down."

Dez Bryant, WR, Oklahoma State

Interested team: Browns

PFW negatives: "Will drop some easily catchable balls. Not a crafty route runner. Mistimes some jumps. Could require some time to absorb a NFL playbook."

Arrelious Benn, WR, Illinois

Interested teams: Ravens, Bengals

PFW negatives: "Is not a blazer and was not asked to run a lot of vertical routes in college. Lacks elite agility and shows some rigidity in his movement. Does not have great leaping ability."

Golden Tate, WR, Notre Dame

Interested teams: Ravens, Bengals

PFW negatives: "Still developing as a route runner, rounds out some breaks. Will let balls into his body and drop some catchable passes. Can be tracked down from behind, lacks elite vertical speed."

Mike Iupati, OG, Idaho

Interested team: Pittsburgh Steelers

PFW negatives: "Too often reaches and grabs when trying to block on the second level. Footwork can use refinement, crosses his feet and cannot always recover from missteps. Can show better timing."

Dan Williams, DT, Tennessee

Interested team: Steelers

PFW negatives: "Lacks upper-body strength and needs to do a better job using his hands to play off blocks -- too often stays tied up. Not an inside rusher and cannot win with quickness.'

Sean Weatherspoon, LB, Missouri

Interested team: Steelers

PFW negatives: "Stays hung up on blocks and can be engulfed. Will dip his head and miss some tackles. Struggles to navigate through traffic. Can be bounced around between the tackles."

Ouch!

I'm not sure I'd want any of these projected first-round picks after this beatdown.

Can we just skip to the second round (wink, wink)?

[mulldog24]

Man that will shed some new light on some of the prospects out there!!!

[St33lersguy]

I watched the senior bowl and I saw Iupati hold a lot. The steelers should not draft a guard who holds a lot escpecially since we already have a solid guard in Chris Kemo.

[Steeldude]

i like how some reports contradict themselves.

for example, in "positives" it will saying something like, "he has great speed". then in the "negatives" it will say, "lacks speed at the next level". or "excellent size" only to later say "needs to add bulk".

[Galax Steeler]

I would not shed to much light into what they are saying. Players have a tansition when they get into the NFL. They may not do none of this they just have to learn the new style of play.