Bandit ~ Eli Harold ~ Virginia Cavaliers 6030/246
Regarding Bandits
Throughout the FootBall World, Defenses are in the process of undergoing spectacular Disruption and Revolution. Old Roles are getting dramatically transformed, and virtually every Front 7 ~ or Front 6!! ~ Defensive Job Description is transitioning into an Hybrid Role where the Defender is asked to excel in multiple Roles and multiple Fronts.
For that reason, and in order to offer NomenClature that speaks not to archaic, obsolete "Positions", but rather to Skill Sets that accurately reflect the dynamic Changes of the 21st Century Game and the Roles they have spawned, I have undertaken to craft Terminology that is designed to break Skill Sets down as they really are.
Defensive Coordinators have, since Time Immemorial, employed highly creative terminology in devising Defenses and in designating Assignments. In that Spirit, I have admittedly indulged myself considerably in devising the following NomenClature. It is undeniably colorful, but I like to think that there's an underlying Logic, as well:
Bandits ~ This is my term, derived from Defensive Schemes, for Players with the WingSpan for the Defensive Line yet who, unlike Dragons, lack the Size to play there regularly, because they can't be expected to Anchor against the Run.
They are thus the right Size though a bit tall to play MidFielder and can generally do so, but I believe are optimally employed as Wild Cards, deployed all over the Formation from Snap to Snap, usually in the murky, shifty region between the Defensive Line and the MidFielders, usually standing up, and generally giving no clue as to their Intentions.
I believe that the Bandit, whatever he's called in a given Formation, stands at the very EpiCenter of the disruptive Changes that Defensive Formations are undergoing today. Their unique combination of Size & Speed offers precisely that Wild Card Variable that I believe is potentially priceless for Defenses to compete and indeed to excel in the incessantly and rapidly evolving Strategic LandScape of the 21st Century. The Prototype would be around 6050/245 or so, I'd say.
As the ultimate Defensive Hybrid, Bandits could quite conceivably Rush the Passer, Blitz the Run, or Drop into Coverage on any given play, and from virtually any alignment on the Line or in the BackField. They won't anchor against the Run very effectively, they won't overwhelm with Power in their Pass Rush, and they're not built to Turn & Burn with WideOuts in Coverage, but they are in fact optimally built to conceivably compete effectively in all three Facets of the Game.
Of course, where and how any given Coach chooses to deploy his Players is his Business. Players that I characterize as Bandits may often or even routinely line up anywhere, on any given Down. My only purpose is simply to identify what I perceive as Skill Sets, to distinguish types, if you will, and perhaps create a universal Point of Reference.
When evaluating Bandits, this is how I break down the Attributes to which I pay most particular attention:
Power: Above all: Core Power. Torso Power is important, but Core Power, from the Knees to the Ribs, is absolutely crucial. All the upper body strength in the world still fails if you can't dig in your heels. But Core Power enables a Defensive Lineman to project Power in the Passing Game and to reject Power in the Running Game.
Agility: Launch Velocity, Acceleration, and above all: Fluidity or Core Agility. Core Agility is even more essential to sustained good Health ~ and to sustained good FootBall ~ than Core Power. The ability to react with Serpentine smoothness is a tremendous asset in all Aspects of the Game, and certainly in the Hand to Hand Combat that characterizes Trench Warfare. All the Power in the World goes only so far if you're stiff and lumbering out there.
Combat Skills: Paw Power, Mechanics ~ Hand Speed & Positioning ~ and of course: Frame.
Intangibles: Processing Speed and Motor. Processing Speed or Diagnostic Velocity is about how quickly and effectively one Reads & Reacts to how the Rapidly Roiling Tactical LandScape effects Blocking Schemes, and Motor is about Endurance and Drive: How much Work has been put into Conditioning, and how it manifests itself.
Run Defense: Power, Agility, Combat Skills, Navigating Traffic, Processing Speed, Motor, and Tackling.
Pass Coverage: Agility, Processing Speed, and Catch Point Capacity.
Pass Rush: Power, Agility, and Combat Skills.
Broken down into SubCategories, it'd go something like this:
Broken down into SubCategories, it'd go something like this:
Power
* Core Power ~ lower body Power. Core Power trumps Torso Power. Tyrannosaurus Rex had exceptional Core Power.
* Torso Power ~ upper Body Power. Important, but not crucial. T Rex had lousy Torso Power...yet was King.
* Anchoring Strength against the Run.
* Drive Power in the Pass Rush.
Agility
* Fluidity, above all things: Core Agility & Flexibility makes everything possible.
* Launch Velocity ~ Speed into Contact off the Snap.
* Acceleration ~ Short Speed or Quickness.
Combat Skills
* Paw Power ~ The Power & Speed of the initial Punch.
* Paw Velocity ~ How active the Hands are.
* Paw Positioning ~ It's all about Angles & Leverage.
* Frame ~ Above all: WingSpan.
Intangibles
* Processing Speed ~ Field Vision. Rapidly Reading & Reacting to the Offense.
* Motor ~ Intensity and Duration.
Run Defense
* Power
* Agility
* Combat Skills
* Navigating Traffic
* Processing Speed
* Motor
* Tackling
Pass Coverage
* Agility
* Processing Speed
* Agility
* Processing Speed
* Catch Point Capacity
Pass Rush
* Power
* Agility
* Combat Skills
For that reason, and in order to offer NomenClature that speaks not to archaic, obsolete "Positions", but rather to Skill Sets that accurately reflect the dynamic Changes of the 21st Century Game and the Roles they have spawned, I have undertaken to craft Terminology that is designed to break Skill Sets down as they really are.
Defensive Coordinators have, since Time Immemorial, employed highly creative terminology in devising Defenses and in designating Assignments. In that Spirit, I have admittedly indulged myself considerably in devising the following NomenClature. It is undeniably colorful, but I like to think that there's an underlying Logic, as well:
Bandits ~ This is my term, derived from Defensive Schemes, for Players with the WingSpan for the Defensive Line yet who, unlike Dragons, lack the Size to play there regularly, because they can't be expected to Anchor against the Run.
They are thus the right Size though a bit tall to play MidFielder and can generally do so, but I believe are optimally employed as Wild Cards, deployed all over the Formation from Snap to Snap, usually in the murky, shifty region between the Defensive Line and the MidFielders, usually standing up, and generally giving no clue as to their Intentions.
I believe that the Bandit, whatever he's called in a given Formation, stands at the very EpiCenter of the disruptive Changes that Defensive Formations are undergoing today. Their unique combination of Size & Speed offers precisely that Wild Card Variable that I believe is potentially priceless for Defenses to compete and indeed to excel in the incessantly and rapidly evolving Strategic LandScape of the 21st Century. The Prototype would be around 6050/245 or so, I'd say.
As the ultimate Defensive Hybrid, Bandits could quite conceivably Rush the Passer, Blitz the Run, or Drop into Coverage on any given play, and from virtually any alignment on the Line or in the BackField. They won't anchor against the Run very effectively, they won't overwhelm with Power in their Pass Rush, and they're not built to Turn & Burn with WideOuts in Coverage, but they are in fact optimally built to conceivably compete effectively in all three Facets of the Game.
Of course, where and how any given Coach chooses to deploy his Players is his Business. Players that I characterize as Bandits may often or even routinely line up anywhere, on any given Down. My only purpose is simply to identify what I perceive as Skill Sets, to distinguish types, if you will, and perhaps create a universal Point of Reference.
When evaluating Bandits, this is how I break down the Attributes to which I pay most particular attention:
Power: Above all: Core Power. Torso Power is important, but Core Power, from the Knees to the Ribs, is absolutely crucial. All the upper body strength in the world still fails if you can't dig in your heels. But Core Power enables a Defensive Lineman to project Power in the Passing Game and to reject Power in the Running Game.
Agility: Launch Velocity, Acceleration, and above all: Fluidity or Core Agility. Core Agility is even more essential to sustained good Health ~ and to sustained good FootBall ~ than Core Power. The ability to react with Serpentine smoothness is a tremendous asset in all Aspects of the Game, and certainly in the Hand to Hand Combat that characterizes Trench Warfare. All the Power in the World goes only so far if you're stiff and lumbering out there.
Combat Skills: Paw Power, Mechanics ~ Hand Speed & Positioning ~ and of course: Frame.
Intangibles: Processing Speed and Motor. Processing Speed or Diagnostic Velocity is about how quickly and effectively one Reads & Reacts to how the Rapidly Roiling Tactical LandScape effects Blocking Schemes, and Motor is about Endurance and Drive: How much Work has been put into Conditioning, and how it manifests itself.
Run Defense: Power, Agility, Combat Skills, Navigating Traffic, Processing Speed, Motor, and Tackling.
Pass Coverage: Agility, Processing Speed, and Catch Point Capacity.
Pass Rush: Power, Agility, and Combat Skills.
Broken down into SubCategories, it'd go something like this:
Broken down into SubCategories, it'd go something like this:
Power
* Core Power ~ lower body Power. Core Power trumps Torso Power. Tyrannosaurus Rex had exceptional Core Power.
* Torso Power ~ upper Body Power. Important, but not crucial. T Rex had lousy Torso Power...yet was King.
* Anchoring Strength against the Run.
* Drive Power in the Pass Rush.
Agility
* Fluidity, above all things: Core Agility & Flexibility makes everything possible.
* Launch Velocity ~ Speed into Contact off the Snap.
* Acceleration ~ Short Speed or Quickness.
Combat Skills
* Paw Power ~ The Power & Speed of the initial Punch.
* Paw Velocity ~ How active the Hands are.
* Paw Positioning ~ It's all about Angles & Leverage.
* Frame ~ Above all: WingSpan.
Intangibles
* Processing Speed ~ Field Vision. Rapidly Reading & Reacting to the Offense.
* Motor ~ Intensity and Duration.
Run Defense
* Power
* Agility
* Combat Skills
* Navigating Traffic
* Processing Speed
* Motor
* Tackling
Pass Coverage
* Agility
* Processing Speed
* Agility
* Processing Speed
* Catch Point Capacity
Pass Rush
* Power
* Agility
* Combat Skills
Eli Harold Scouting Report
Power: Mediocre. Impressive Torso Power but deficient Core Power. Mediocre Drive Power. Deficient Anchoring Strength.
Agility: Superb. Impressive Launch Velocity, exceptional Fluidity, and superb Acceleration. The general view on Harold's Athleticism seems to be much higher than mine, because of the Combine. But I would argue that while his Numbers certainly beat most of the Defensive Ends, they were only moderately superior against the MidFielders.
Combat Skills: Tremendous. Exceptionally active Hands and excellent Combat Tactics.
Intangibles: Impressive, but mixed: Outstanding Motor, but mediocre Field Vision and shaky Gap Discipline. His Field Vision is especially difficult to get a bead on, as he flashes equal parts Brilliance and awful, rash Reads.
Run Defense: Deficient. Tremendous Combat Skills, working through Traffic, and superb Acceleration in Pursuit, but deficient Anchoring Strength, poor Tackling Mechanics, shaky Gap Discipline, and mediocre Field Vision.
Pass Coverage: Mediocre, due to light Deployment, but with impressive Potential. Harold boasts exceptional Fluidity, and that should translate nicely in Zone Coverage and even, I speculate, in Man Coverage. His Field Vision is actually a potential Strength, but only if his Diagnostic Acuity catches up with his Diagnostic Speed.
Pass Rush: Impressive, with Potential to become Formidable, and perhaps more. Harold brings an impressive mixture of impressive Launch Velocity, exceptional Fluidity, and tremendous Combat Skills to the BattleField, which enable'm to effectively Ricochet past Defenders who set up too far outside, initially. But I believe that what I consider to be mediocre Drive Power costs him egregiously, both in his consistent inability to segue from Speed to Power, and, perhaps more emphatically, in an incessant failure to generate enough Torsion at the top of his Route to drive back towards the QuarterBack. There is potential, here, though, if he continues to Beef Up, as he has in recent Years.
Agility: Superb. Impressive Launch Velocity, exceptional Fluidity, and superb Acceleration. The general view on Harold's Athleticism seems to be much higher than mine, because of the Combine. But I would argue that while his Numbers certainly beat most of the Defensive Ends, they were only moderately superior against the MidFielders.
Combat Skills: Tremendous. Exceptionally active Hands and excellent Combat Tactics.
Intangibles: Impressive, but mixed: Outstanding Motor, but mediocre Field Vision and shaky Gap Discipline. His Field Vision is especially difficult to get a bead on, as he flashes equal parts Brilliance and awful, rash Reads.
Run Defense: Deficient. Tremendous Combat Skills, working through Traffic, and superb Acceleration in Pursuit, but deficient Anchoring Strength, poor Tackling Mechanics, shaky Gap Discipline, and mediocre Field Vision.
Pass Coverage: Mediocre, due to light Deployment, but with impressive Potential. Harold boasts exceptional Fluidity, and that should translate nicely in Zone Coverage and even, I speculate, in Man Coverage. His Field Vision is actually a potential Strength, but only if his Diagnostic Acuity catches up with his Diagnostic Speed.
Pass Rush: Impressive, with Potential to become Formidable, and perhaps more. Harold brings an impressive mixture of impressive Launch Velocity, exceptional Fluidity, and tremendous Combat Skills to the BattleField, which enable'm to effectively Ricochet past Defenders who set up too far outside, initially. But I believe that what I consider to be mediocre Drive Power costs him egregiously, both in his consistent inability to segue from Speed to Power, and, perhaps more emphatically, in an incessant failure to generate enough Torsion at the top of his Route to drive back towards the QuarterBack. There is potential, here, though, if he continues to Beef Up, as he has in recent Years.
Eli Harold Prospectus
Eli Harold scares me. I'm really nervous about his shaky Core Power and his equally shaky Field Vision.
The combination could quite conceivably prove fatal to his Chances of Success.
As a Bandit, whether lined up in the Bandit spot itself, as a Standing Lineman, or deployed elsewhere, Run Defense is of course going to be crucial to Harold's Impact on'is prospective Team...And while I love his Motor, the combination of his lack of Discipline, his deficient Core Power, and his mediocre Field Vision render him a Liability, right now.
And I'm not entirely sure that I would want to bet on a positive Resolution to these issues.
But of course there is considerable Potential, here. If Harold continues to develop his Game and gets good Coaching, he could very well develop into an exceptional Pass Rusher, an exceptional Pass Defender, and even an exceptional Run Defender: He's got Agility, he's got a good Frame to beef up a bit more, and he's definitely got the Motor.
I believe that his Stock has gotten ahead'f'm, due to the relentless Bull Market for Pass Rushers, though. I'd certainly agree that his Potential warrants it, but I would attenuate it to allow for the substantial Risk that he doesn't develop. Considering the lofty Grades that I've assessed to other Pass Rushers, that may well sound ironic, but that's how I see things.
Grateful Thanks, as always, for the crucial Work done by the folks at Draft BreakDown!!
The combination could quite conceivably prove fatal to his Chances of Success.
As a Bandit, whether lined up in the Bandit spot itself, as a Standing Lineman, or deployed elsewhere, Run Defense is of course going to be crucial to Harold's Impact on'is prospective Team...And while I love his Motor, the combination of his lack of Discipline, his deficient Core Power, and his mediocre Field Vision render him a Liability, right now.
And I'm not entirely sure that I would want to bet on a positive Resolution to these issues.
But of course there is considerable Potential, here. If Harold continues to develop his Game and gets good Coaching, he could very well develop into an exceptional Pass Rusher, an exceptional Pass Defender, and even an exceptional Run Defender: He's got Agility, he's got a good Frame to beef up a bit more, and he's definitely got the Motor.
I believe that his Stock has gotten ahead'f'm, due to the relentless Bull Market for Pass Rushers, though. I'd certainly agree that his Potential warrants it, but I would attenuate it to allow for the substantial Risk that he doesn't develop. Considering the lofty Grades that I've assessed to other Pass Rushers, that may well sound ironic, but that's how I see things.
Grateful Thanks, as always, for the crucial Work done by the folks at Draft BreakDown!!
Yank Rank: Warrior ~ OverRated!!
| Market Value 1st/2nd Round | Yankee Grade 2nd/3rd Round |
Please do Note: This and all Evaluations issued by this Site are produced by a ludicrously unqualified Amateur, privy to not even the tiniest fraction of Coach's Tape, Scouting Expertise, Face to Face Interviewing, Experience, or Inside Information enjoyed by the Professionals. As such, anything put forth is certainly misinformed, euphonious, derivative Tripe, and should be rejected out'f hand and indeed shunned by all men and women of Good Will!! I'm trying to discern Power, Agility, Combat Skills, and far more abstract, esoteric Concepts such as Processing Speed and Motor, and I'm trying to do so based almost entirely on a fascinating fusion of Tape, Combine Numbers, and Pro Days, while trying to attenuate my findings based on Allowances for Competition Level, Scheme, Concept, Context, and, above all: Trajectory!!
This is not is even remotely a Complaint, mind you, but rather a Warning: Caveat Emptor!!
This is not is even remotely a Complaint, mind you, but rather a Warning: Caveat Emptor!!
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