The Rest of Them

Apologies for slipping Mayle into the third round, which probably would have been a dumb pick.  He was taken in the fourth.

Ibraheim Campbell is listed as a strong safety with an "in-the box" label by many scouts.  They say he's "choppy" in his backpedal.

But this is another guy who played in the Senior Bowl, and Farmer and company seem to have paid attention to his multiple deflections and two interceptions in coverage there, combined with his pretty good clock-times.

Of special note here is his recovery speed.  He can get beat in man-coverage, but he makes up for it quickly with unusual explosion and acceleration.

We can take his tackling and instincts vs the run off the table--nobody disputes these.  He'll certainly be a special teams asset on coverage units, but based on what those few of us who paid attention saw in the Senior Bowl, could evolve into a starting safety in time.

Pettine runs a base cover two, which uses two safeties rather than a free and strong safety.  But no coverage scheme is etched in stone, and free/strong are sometimes used, so Ibraheim could get some spot duty immediately.

In that scheme, Ibraheim could compete to start right away.

Highly underrated.

Charles Gaines is a cover corner with all the instincts and tools, except he needs work with Hans and Franz.  5'10", 180, he's sometimes pushed around, and can't be expected to press cover in the NFL yet.

His frame has a lot of room for growth, but at this point he's probably a practice squad guy.

"Fullback" Malcom Johnson might be the most interesting guy here, because he's unique.

A former wide reciever, Malcom's 4.68 speed isn't good enough there.  Lucky for him, he was switched to tight end/h-back/fullback and used all over the place.

He's 6'1", 231 lbs.,  so playing actual tight end here isn't going to happen.

But he is a very good reciever, and loves to block.  Here, he'll be used at H-back and fullback--sometimes coming out of the huddle and going to a slot position.

Tony Grossi should be happy with this one, because he really likes knocking people on their butts to clear the way for ballcarriers.  Unlike many blocking fullbacks, he has a little height and reach, making it harder to shed his blocks in space.  He's also much faster than most fullbacks.

He should not only make the final roster, but play on special teams and situationally in the offense.

Randall Telfer is a real tight end who is injured a lot.  He's a good blocker, and would be a really good reciever if he didn't drop balls.  He's not a natural pass-catcher.  This was a calculated risk.

Haynes Pullard is an inside linebacker with a lot of knocks on him.  He was kicked out of Stanford for dirty hits, which right away bothers me.  Headhunting, spearing.  

He does have good instincts and covers more ground than his 4.78 clock time indicates, but he's only 6' tall, and (they say) "maxed out" at 240 lbs.

He needs to be protected from blocks.

He's a strong special teams candidate, and beyond that  could play very specific positions here--where it's hard to get a hat on him ("run-and hit" guy).

Ifo Ekpre-Olamu beamed down here from Andromeda...no really...Oh my God what a name...

Anyway he is injured and is strictly a wait-til-next-year pick.  But he's really worth the wait, because he's an excellent cornerback who scouts believe would have gone in the first round if not for the injury.

I have to call this one a steal.  Ray bought a penny stock that might be worth ten bucks next season.

They're also just loading up on defensive backs (and some wide recievers) among the undrafted free agents, and I have a feeling Ray might dig up another safety here.  If he finds another Charles Johnson, I sure hope he doesn't kick him to the curb for an inferior but more eggzzbeereeunzed player again.  Dammit.

Most of these guys have a good shot at special teams, and I'm sure that Ray had that in the back of his mind with each pick.  Some were dice-rolls, but many have a pretty good chance to make this team and be players down the road.

This was mostly for the future.

Malcom Johnson is a big exception, as he fills a clear niche in this new offense.  Listen to me: This guy was more than an afterthought, and could play on ten or more downs per-game as a rookie.

He'll be in-motion, in the slot, or lead-blocking.  He'll catch some passes and he'll hit a lot of people very hard.  This guy is a real football player!

It's funny to hear fans calling into NFL Radio to grade their teams' drafts.  Well, this one for me is incomplete for a couple years, but I do sure feel good about it.

I'd feel better with a Mariota or even a Grayson, but Pettine's logic is NOT flawed.  A journeyman surrounded by talent can win a lot of games.

Light a candle for Johnny.  We can dream, can't we?