Tight End ~ David Morgan ~ San Antonio
RoadRunners ~ 6040/261
The Prototype would be about 6050/260 or so.
The "Tight Ends" whose Frames are better suited to be deployed in running Routes from all over the Formation, and who aren't especially renowned for their Blocking ~ though many are adept Chippers ~ I refer to as Flex Ends.
The Prototype would be about 6030/245 or so.
Those of either type who present legitimate Dual Threats ~ who can make a genuine Impact either as a Blocker or as a Receiver ~ are impossible to predict from Snap to Snap, and this renders them extraordinarily dangerous.
Conceivably even more dangerous and dynamic than either of these two types is one of my pet Positions: The WingBacks. I employ this ancient FootBall Term, one still in active use in many High Schools and Colleges, to refer to a Role so ethereal as to be almost imaginary: an Hybrid FullBack & Flex End ~ a Super Hybrid, if you will.
The Prototype would be about 6000/250 or so.
The WingBack, optimally, would be a guy capable of Lead Blocking in the Run Game, Pass Blocking in the Passing Game, or splitting out and running Pass Patterns from SlotBack, Slot End, Split End, or Flanker. He could line up at any of those spots, or on either Wing, on the Line, or in the BackField. He could even go In Motion or run the Ball!!
Such a versatile, dynamic Player could have an explosive Impact on the Competitive LandScape.
The Game has reached a point in its Tactical History that is perfect for such a Player.
It awaits only for the NFL to realize the Opportunity.
Because Tight Ends, in the particular categorical sense in which I employ the term, are optimally genuine 50/50 Hybrids, I focus equal attention on Attributes both of Linemen and of WideOuts in evaluating their Skill Sets:
Lineman Attributes
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 will still fail if you simply can't dig in your heels. But Core Power enables an Offensive Lineman to project Power in the Running Game and to reject Power in the Passing 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.
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 in the Passing Game. The capacity to Stand one's Ground.
* Drive Power in the Running Game. The capacity to drive your man back.
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
* Frame ~ Arms, Hands, and above all: WingSpan.
* Field Vision ~ Reacting to the Tactical LandScape: It's all about Angles & Leverage.
* Paw Positioning ~ It's all about Angles & Leverage.
* Paw Persistence ~ RPMs: Activity & Persistence.
* FootWork ~ RPMs: Activity & Persistence.
Intangibles
* Processing Speed ~ Field Vision. Reading Defensive Schemes quickly and effectively, and finding 2nd Level Targets.
* Motor ~ Intensity and Duration.
WideOut Attributes
Separation: Getting Open. This encompasses Power, Combat Skills & Fluidity to beat Press, Acceleration out'f the Blocks, Fluidity and Ricochet in navigating Traffic, Route Running Precision, Deception, and Field Vision for timing Seems and Open Zones. All other Aspects of a WideOut's Job Description, I believe, are dwarfed by this one.
Catch Point Capacity: In Transit or Contested: Hands, WingSpan, Vertical Agility, Combat Skills, Tracking & Timing.
Broken down into SubCategories, it'd go something like this:
Separation
* Combat Skills
* Fluidity
* Acceleration
* Ricochet
* Routing
* Deception
* Field Vision
Catch Point Capacity
* Timing
* Combat Skills
* Vertical Agility
* Hands
* WingSpan
Power: Outstanding, and distributed evenly throughout his Frame.
Agility: Impressive. Sluggish Launch Velocity and Acceleration, but outstanding Fluidity.
Combat Skills: Tremendous. Terrific Persistence and outstanding Positioning and Sequencing.
Intangibles: Excellent. Powerful Motor and excellent Field Vision.
WideOut Attributes
Separation: Marginal but with intriguing Potential. His Speed is marginal, and that's gonna put a tight lid on'is Potential, but his Fluidity is outstanding, and while his Ricochet sucks, he has Potential at least as an Outlet Receiver.
Catch Point Capacity: Awesome. Terrific Tracking & Timing, outstanding Combat Skills, and phenomenal Hands.
But don't get me wrong: Any Strategy that wins has my full Attention, whether it's running on every Snap, passing on every Snap, or somewhere in between...And I grade Prospects according to their optimal Scenario.
I like David Morgan, because he oozes real Power ~ Core Power ~ and because he oozes real Agility ~ Fluidity ~ and because he possesses Intelligence, oozes Drive, and quite obviously loves FootBall.
I believe that he's a very strong Bet to become All That He Can Be, which of course means a very high Floor, and I believe that his Ceiling is that of an elite Blocker and...competitive Receiver/ exceptional Outlet Receiver.
And he's the kind of guy that you'll be extremely happy to have on your side...come January.
Grateful Thanks, as always, for the crucial Work done by the folks at Draft BreakDown!!
Market Value #188 | Yankee Grade 4th/5th Round |
This is not is even remotely a Complaint, mind you, but rather a Warning: Caveat Emptor!!