Talent or Character? -- Mike Detillier (1 Viewer)

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Talent or Character?

By Mike Detillier

The NFL draft is no more than an educated guess on a player. It was a line used often by former San Francisco 49ers and NFL Hall of Fame head coach Bill Walsh and it is 100% accurate. Everyone has a plan when it comes to draft day, but never does it work out just right.

It is the part of the draft that is intriguing because with 32 teams there are 32 different opinions on who are the best players and which player “fits” what that team wants on their squad.

For all the talk and game-planning, that moment of surprise always happen. While teams won’t admit it, those events happen and you have to be ready to make a choice on a player that you didn’t think would be there for various reasons and also to have a lengthy bullpen of players ready for when you select in the early rounds of the draft. Those moments are starting to emerge early on in the process with less than a month to the 2015 NFL draft.

Just a month ago no one thought that Nebraska defensive end/outside linebacker Randy Gregory would be available for the New Orleans Saints at the thirteen overall pick.

That is in play today.

There were rumblings of problems with Gregory at Nebraska, but on the field in his two seasons with the Cornhuskers, Gregory wreaked havoc in the Big Ten and he recorded 29 tackles for losses and 17½ quarterback sacks.

He was projected by most as a top 7 pick in the 2015 NFL draft when he decided to leave Nebraska a year early, but since he failed a drug test at the NFL Combine and has admitted to having problems at times in the past with marijuana use, Gregory has fallen out of the top 10. He has witnessed Florida’s Dante Fowler, Jr, Missouri’s Shane Ray, Clemson’s Vic Beasley and the biggest draft jumper of them all in Kentucky’s Alvin “Bud” Dupree, spring ahead of him on most boards.

With Cleveland sitting at #12 and New Orleans selecting one pick later I don’t see Gregory getting out of that fire-zone of picks, but if Gregory is available and the Browns pass on him the big question mark will be would the New Orleans Saints pass on him?

Pass rushers are at a premium. They don’t last long on the football shelf. Despite Gregory’s issues he may get selected before the Saints pick, but if he was available would the Saints pull that trigger?

The Saints under Mickey Loomis and Sean Payton have never used an early round pick on a player with issues off the field. They did select Nebraska offensive guard Carl Nicks after he had an incident which led to draft plummet, but Nicks was a fifth round pick in 2008. The reward was well worth the risk. When Nicks left the Saints to sign on with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers he was the best offensive guard in the game.

But now we are talking about a first round choice and that is a totally different story, but in the end talent normally wins out. If Gregory would slip through the football cracks and be available I would select him and I think the Saints would too.

Supply and demand is high for pass rushers and with Fowler, Beasley, Dupree and Ray likely off the board, the Saints would have a shot as a premium “potential” pass rusher and I think they sprint to the draft table with Gregory’s name on the card.

In this case it is talent over character issues.

At the 31st spot in Round One I really believe the Saints shop this pick around.

They would love to accumulate more picks, especially in the second and third rounds of this draft class, but if they stay at 31 the player choices are interesting.

One player who I think will get picked right ahead of the Saints selection is Minnesota tight end Maxx Williams. He would be a perfect fit for the Saints offense.

At 6-4, 250 Williams has great size, but he is really a big wide receiver playing tight end. Williams is an explosive downfield target and he will also excel in the NFL in the short to medium range areas out on the field. But I have a hunch Williams will be off the board.

If the Saints are looking to shore up their defensive line, one name to keep a close eye on is Florida State defensive tackle Eddie Goldman. Goldman can play end in a 3-4 alignment, he can play tackle in a 4-3 defense and the 6-4, 330 pounder has seen work at nose-tackle. Perfect fit for the Saints.

Another player in the mix at 31 is my top rated offensive guard in A.J. Cann from South Carolina. Cann is a devastating lead blocker and he was the one player that when South Carolina needed a critical third down conversion they ran the football with halfback Mike Davis right behind the 6-3, 320 pound guard. Cann is a good pass protector and while he will needs some work on refining his pass blocking skills he is an elite offensive guard built in the same mold as Jahri Evans and Carl Nicks.

New England, New Orleans and the Chicago Bears have shown the most interest in Cann according to folks close to the All-SEC performer.

The Saints have also spent plenty of time doing research on Auburn wide receiver Sammie Coates, Miami (Fla.) speedster Phillip Dorsett and LSU cornerback Jalen Collins. All three players projected as late first round or early second round selections.

But the intrigue guy is former Missouri/Oklahoma wide receiver Dorial Green-Beckham.

The 6-4½, 235 pounder was the highest rated prep wide receiver in the nation and rated the top prep player in the nation by many.

His first season at Missouri Beckham just flashed big play skills as a receiver, but he blossomed in his sophomore year by catching 59 passes for 883 yards and he scored 12 touchdowns.

He was poised to be rated alongside Alabama’s Amari Cooper and West Virginia’s Kevin White in 2014, but his off-the-field issues were too much for Missouri to put up with and he was dismissed from the team.

He decided to transfer to Oklahoma, but Green-Beckham never played a down for the Sooners and he decided to come out early for the 2015 NFL draft.

Beckham has rare size, excellent straight-line speed and he is a nightmare to match up with downfield due to his length and his great leaping skills. While he does need some work as a route-runner the problem lies in the fact that he has had numerous issues off the field and many involving drugs. In many ways he is his own worst enemy.

But as a player he has the skills to be “special” in the NFL and his skillset can match that of former Texas A&M and current Tampa Bay Buccaneers wide receiver Mike Evans. The big question mark will be, if available, do the Saints select Dorial Green-Beckham?

Just a gut feeling, but I think someone else will decide to select the former Missouri star before the Saints are ready to pick at 31, but if he is there at 31, I would never let him get to 32.

Remember last year with all the trouble that halfback Jeremy Hill got into at LSU. The Saints, and in particular Sean Payton, wanted the troubled back and would have selected him had he been available in Round 2.

It’s the big question mark for many teams to ponder on what to do with two tremendous athletes in Randy Gregory and Dorial Green-Beckham and in an off-season that has seen Sean Payton clear a lockerroom out of folks due to salary cap issues, attitude and distractions off the field. Does he make that tough call and pick either Gregory or Beckham if he gets a chance?

One thing has become obvious. In previous columns I have written, I truly believed that the 2014 version of the New Orleans Saints showed their age out on the field. In the past, the Saints had been one of the best “finishing” teams in the NFL, but a hint of advanced age is the fact that many times late in games they couldn’t make that big play offensively or couldn’t make that big stop defensively.

We relish the players that helped put this team on another level in the NFL, but father-time caught up with the New Orleans Saints. They need a big influence of young, talented and energetic players to mix with a group of strong veterans.

In the next few weeks the Saints and a number of other teams will be discussing exactly what to do if either or one of two talented performers in Gregory and Beckham are on the board when they select. It’s not fair, but most things aren’t in this world. Talented players get more chances than the blue-collar guys not as gifted.

Some took a little bigger tumble than others, but just look at the pro careers of Warren Sapp, Ray Lewis, Andre Rison, Brandon Marshall, Dez Bryant, Jeremy Hill, Von Miller, Marshawn Lynch, Justin Houston, Rob Gronkowski, NaVorro Bowman, Vernon Davis, Tyrann Mathieu, Lardarius Webb, Aldon Smith, Kiko Alonso, Aqib Talib and DeSean Jackson and the negatives about them coming out of college.

Some with attitude and some with off the field issues that were questionable, but when on the field they were all game-changers.

In an off-season of controversial moves, picking Gregory or Green-Beckham would be headliner stuff for New Orleans. It would go to show in many cases at draft time talent trumps character. Just remember the first overall pick in the 2015 draft, unless he gets into trouble again, will be Florida State quarterback Jameis Winston.

No one knows how someone handles fame and fortune like the NFL provides. Not everyone is wired the same and not everyone in the NFL is a choirboy on and off the field.

It’s no more than an educated guess.


By the Numbers

When LSU’s Danielle Hunter gets selected in the early rounds of the 2015 NFL draft it will mark the 12th straight year LSU has produced a defensive lineman for the NFL draft.

It is unmatched by any team in college football.

If LSU cornerback Jalen Collins gets picked in Round One, it will mark the fourth time in five years the Tigers have a defensive back get selected in the opening round. Collins would follow Patrick Peterson, Morris Claiborne and Eric Reid in that category over the past five years.

LSU defensive line coach Ed Orgeron is noted for being one of the best defensive line coaches in the world of college football and also one of the best developmental coaches at that spot. When USC defensive tackle Leonard Williams gets selected early in Round One, it will mark the 11th defensive lineman Coach O has recruited and developed that has gone on to become a first round choice during his college coaching tenure with Miami (Fla.), USC, Ole Miss, Tennessee and back to USC.

All eyes have been featured in the spring with the development of Tiger defensive tackles Christian LaCouture and Davon Godchaux and the rapid improvement in play of defensive ends Lewis Neal and Tashawn Bower. Coach O has continued to work his magic with defensive linemen.


Media Run

One of the top young female sportscasters in the business today is former Northwestern State (LA.) and LSU graduate Corley McCord.

McCord, who now works for CBS Q104 in Cleveland, is one of the brightest on-air personalities and interviewers you will find in the Midwest.

McCord, who covers the Cleveland Browns, says that the Browns picks in Round One will have an influence on what happens to her home-state team in the New Orleans Saints.

“I really think that the quarterback signing of Josh McCown and the outspoken vibe of owner Jimmy Haslam in Cleveland on being invested in Johnny Manziel, leads me to believe there will be no quarterback taken by the Browns early in the draft. I really think they go defense in the first round with the 12th overall pick as they want to build as strong a defense as they can and this will affect the Saints pick at 13. Defensive linemen like Washington’s Danny Shelton or Kentucky defensive end/outside linebacker Bud Dupree are in play, and now with the situation occurring with Nebraska’s Randy Gregory, he is also a person of major interest with that choice also. I agree that there could be a huge run on the pass rushers and Cleveland could be the landing spot for the last one left if Dante Fowler, Vic Beasley, Shane Ray or even Dupree are gone.”

“The other issue is at wide receiver. The Browns are lacking targets and while the recent signing of former LSU Tiger and Kansas City Chiefs end Dwayne Bowe helps, that is not enough. They also brought in Brian Hartline and he is a good role player, but they need a top target. Josh Gordon is no longer there, tight end Jordan Cameron is gone also and that leaves this team with some inexperienced and unproven wide receivers. It’s hard to match targets when you don’t know who your starting quarterback is going to be, and so that is why they need a strong, “go-to” versatile wide receiver and if Louisville’s DeVante Parker is there at 19 they select him. If he is gone, they could go after Breshad Perriman from Central Florida. I can’t see them pick Dorial Green-Beckham due to his off-the-field issues and the problems Josh Gordon had here. It’s really a culture change that Mike Pettine is trying to do here in Cleveland. They have the picks to get this straightened out, but Manziel needs to come through for them and they need to hit football gold in the early rounds.”

McCord, a former Miss Northwestern State (LA.) in 2010 and Miss Baton Rouge in 2013, says she keeps up closely with the LSU Tigers.

“Well, you know how strongly I feel about LSU and like everyone else, it will be how much production they get at the quarterback spot. It seems like every year there is a battle and this year is no different, but in the end it will be Brandon Harris that will eventually become the starter at quarterback. He has admitted to not knowing the plays, not understanding the concepts and he has worked hard on understanding the mental part of the game better in the off-season. In my opinion the coaching staff wants him to take the reins.”

“Leonard Fournette will have a dominating year on the ground rushing the ball and while he is very gifted, he is also aided by an experienced and huge offensive line with veterans like Ethan Pocic, Vadal Alexander and Jerald Hawkins returning.”

McCord, who was an on-air personality for LSU Tiger TV, says like usual, LSU’s defense will be a strong point on their team.

“It’s DBU right, so you know with Jalen Mills, Tre’Davious White, Ed Paris and Jamal Adams back that unit will be strong again,” McCord said. “And they have your old buddy Coach Ed Orgeron coaching the defensive line and he brings so much energy to the unit and they have a strong array of good young talent along the defensive line. But really the 2015 season will come down to what happens at quarterback.”


Great article by Thomas M. Baker from the St. Charles Herald newspaper on Destrehan High School star sophomore basketball player Cara “Moon” Ursin who was chosen as Louisiana’s Gatorade Player of the Year for girl’s basketball.

She became the first athlete in the great history of St. Charles Parish athletics to win the coveted award.

The sophomore guard averaged 26.3 points per game, 11.5 rebounds per game and 6.9 steals per game for Destrehan. Ursin has been courted by the likes of Baylor, LSU, Duke, Auburn, Louisiana Tech, Texas Tech and Southern Mississippi.

Outstanding interview by Baker on one of the most talented athletes in the Bayou/River Parish area.


Follow Mike on Twitter at @MikeDetillier


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