Alontae Taylor and the importance of scouting (1 Viewer)

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TCU, curious about one thing. You mention that he has very loose hips. It does not look that way watching the videos and many of the experts on TV have said that he has tight hips. Did you misspeak or disagree with their assessments?
 
TCUDan said:
I just wanted to post real quick regarding this pick and offer a little perspective as a lot of people run around with their hair on fire.

In my last article, I made a point of saying that I see mock drafts as kind of pointless because we aren't in the war room (I still am not calling what I did a mock draft :)). But when I was considering what I think the Saints should do in round 2, before slotting in Jalen Pitre, I actually went and looked at a few scouting reports to try and ID a CB prospect who was 1) a freak athlete and 2) had S potential. The only one I kind of landed on who I was familiar with was Kyler Gordon, but I don't think he has the football IQ/instincts to make the move.

But I really felt like, if this type of player was there--a versatile CB with all the tools to move to safety (and more athleticism than Pitre and the other S candidates available)--that was the direction the Saints would go. Pitre was the closest fit in terms of fitting that poor man's Honey Badger/CGJG mold, where he can play on top of the tree, in the box, or in that slot role.

The Saints, however, seem to have found the guy I couldn't in Alontae Taylor. I've only scanned a little bit of film on him and the athleticism and football instincts are ABSOLUTELY there. As a CB, he is a little raw/inconsistent in his technique, but he's over 6 feet, runs a 4.3, has very loose hips (something the other S prospects including Pitre lacked), is very aggressive (both on the ball and in the run game) and plays with instinct!

Dennis Allen (who I will absolutely give the benefit of the doubt on drafting DBs, given his track record these last few years) and his staff seem to have a vision for Taylor, either in that slot role of CGJG (which would mean moving CJGJ to a more traditional SS role) or as a more traditional safety. Either way, the hsyteria over this pick is a little unwarranted, because when you watch film on this guy you love him. Yes, he may not stack up with some of the other CBs in terms of being ready to hit the field day 1 b/c he gets high is backpedal and stuff like that... but the dude covers the field, plays the run and the ball like an NFL player.

I don't know if he'll be a starter right out the gate, but he'll definitely be hitting the field somewhere. Honestly, I love this pick, and THIS is exactly why scouts get paid. They have a vision for a guy every fan under the sun overlooked (including myself). It is literally their job to do more than the draft pundits and find guys like this.

If drafting Olave and Penning was an A+, I would give this pick a solid A/A-.
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Excellent post. Thank for taking the time to write this. Good stuff!
 
TCUDan said:
Talking about football IQ, I just came across this interview with the New Orleans media. Around the 5 minute mark Alontae is asked about the difference between playing nickel and playing outside. It is a question EVERY DB should know, but not all of them can verbalize/answer as fluently and precisely as he did. The way he answered (talking about leverage, using the sideline outside, and the spatial difference of playing in the slot) shows A TON about this kid's football smarts.

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Dan I noticed how articulate the kid was talking to Bobby Hebert and Mike. He seems like a smart kid and quite knowledgeable. I was impressed. Think he'll turn out quite well
 
SAINTSFAN said:
TCU, curious about one thing. You mention that he has very loose hips. It does not look that way watching the videos and many of the experts on TV have said that he has tight hips. Did you misspeak or disagree with their assessments?
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A little tight for a corner, but loose for a safety. It's relative and depends on the position you're evaluating him for.

Comparing him to Pitre, for example, he looks much better in transition.

Edit: I'll also add that while I don't know his shuttle and 3-cone times, some of that "stiffness" at corner could be a technique issue. The times where his transition really popped was him coming off of an assignment or triggering across the field to make a play in the run game. I saw him flip his hips and flat out GO.

That film, plus fact that he was still being ranked in the relatively high as a corner, tells me he has more than enough snap in his butt to get where he needs to be as a safety.
 
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I'm not going to lie, my hair was on fire for about an hour. Wondering what the heck the Saints were thinking, but I calmed down and did some research on him and watched some film And after reading TCU Dan's assessment of him, I sure feel a lot better about the pick. This kid is going to be a baller, He has all the skillset, athleticism and instincts. He's always making plays around the ball.
 
DSnfla said:
Dan I noticed how articulate the kid was talking to Bobby Hebert and Mike. He seems like a smart kid and quite knowledgeable. I was impressed. Think he'll turn out quite well
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I just want to dig in a little bit on how impressive this seemingly small nugget is, from a coach's perspective.

"Football IQ" is one of those things that's talked about a lot but not really crystallized and defined well, in terms of how it's presented. Understand that at every level of a football, including the NFL, football IQ is not just a common thing that should just be taken for granted.

So much of this game is intuitive, and skill is acquired through drill, repetition, muscle memory. Instinct plays in, of course, and IS NOT the same as football IQ.
So when a reporter just kind of innocuously asks a rookie what the differences between nickel and perimeter corner are, the most common answer would be something general about where you are on the field or the type of WRs you match up against, or some very canned "You just gotta be ready to step up where the team needs you" type stuff.

To have a rookie go into a detailed explanation about space, leverage (being able to use the sideline to your advantage), and technique (how you play a lot less press man in the slot)... and to do it articulately, without pausing to think, using precise language, to the point where he sounds like a coach... that means he really UNDERSTANDS football. There is a degree if introspection and awareness of his play.

So on top of being a very instinctive player (just roll the tape), that 1 minute in answer in his first Q&A with the NOLA media told me A LOT about Taylor's football IQ. He absorbs the information, he understands the dynamics of his play... AND he has those rare anticipatory instincts on film (like a CJGJ) AND he runs a freakin 4.3!

I have zero doubt in my mind that this kid is going to be a wildly successful NFL player. The question right now is just how quickly he acclimates and which position he'll be making plays at.
 
TCUDan said:
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Edit: I'll also add that while I don't know his shuttle and 3-cone times, some of that "stiffness" at corner could be a technique issue. The times where his transition really popped was him coming off of an assignment or triggering across the field to make a play in the run game. I saw him flip his hips and flat out GO.

...
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Here ya go, Dan. A comparison of RAScores between CGJ and Taylor at the SS position.

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TCUDan said:
I wouldn't put too much into that. According to Taylor, they mentioned nickel and safety.

Maybe they did draft him for CB depth. But the guy's got the athleticism, instincts and intelligence to play anywhere on the back end. I think we'll be seeing a lot of him this season in roles other than perimeter corner.
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I mentioned earlier I was listening to WWL on the way home when the pick was made. Deuce watched this kid and
liked the pick. Deuce said he began his career at TN as a FS. He was moved to CB due to injuries to other starters.
If he does play safety for us,we have one who is over 6ft tall and runs a 4.3. There are not many of those and most
play Wr.
 

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