CornerBack ~ Nicholas Nelson ~ Wisconsin Badgers ~ 5106/200
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 in 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:
CornerBacks ~ I find it quite amusing that the very last Skill Set on my list is the only Defensive Skill Set ~ so far!! ~ for whom I haven't adapted or invented a new Term. The Prototype would be about 6000/195.
CornerBacks are of course Pass Defense Specialists, but I will include Run Defense in my Evaluations. But I will note, of course, that as with Blocking as it pertains to WideOuts, it is desirable, yes, but its absence is no Red Flag.
This is how I break down CornerBacks:
Agility: Acceleration, Ricochet, Fluidity, Verticity ~ that's Turn & Burn Acuity, to you Earthlings!! ~ and Speed!!
Processing Speed: How quickly and effectively one Reads & Reacts to the developing Play.
Run Defense: Power, Agility, Combat Skills, Processing Speed, Motor, and Tackling.
Pass Coverage: Agility, Processing Speed, and Field Vision.
CatchPoint Capacity: Tracking, Timing, Combat Skills, and WingSpan.
Broken down into SubCategories, it'd go something like this:
Agility
* Fluidity, above all things: Core Agility & Flexibility makes everything possible.
* Ricochet ~ How crisply and how rapidly one breaks in a new direction.
* Acceleration ~ Short Speed or Quickness. Closing Speed.
* Verticity ~ The Ability ~ or lack thereof ~ to Flips Hips and Turn & Burn in Pass Coverage.
* Speed ~ Corner and WideOut are really the only Roles where 40 Times matter.
Processing Speed
* How quickly and effectively one Reads & Reacts to the developing Play.
Run Defense
* Power
* Agility
* Combat Skills
* Processing Speed
* Motor
* Tackling
Pass Coverage
* Agility ~ Fluidity, Ricochet, Acceleration, and Speed, baby!!
* Processing Speed ~ Reading and Reacting with Speed & Precision to Offensive Tactics.
* Field Vision ~ Processing Speed with an emphasis on the Tactical LandScape.
CatchPoint Capacity
* Tracking
* Timing
* Combat Skills
* WingSpan
* Vertical Agility
Note: Hurt his meniscus this Spring, but shouldn't miss much time.
Agility: 44. Mediocre Fluidity, mediocre Acceleration, and mediocre Speed.
Processing Speed: 90 and improving. Nelson's work as a 1 Year starter for the Badgers was astonishing. He's got a little more work to do, but his Route Reading and read and react speed and efficacy are already extraordinary.
Run Defense: 80. Tremendous Aggression and outstanding Field Vision. His WingSpan is short, and that compromises his Combat Skills, somewhat, to navigate Traffic, as well as his Tackling, otherwise I'd got with 100!!
Pass Coverage: 66. Mediocre Agility, and in Press Coverage his shorter WingSpan is a Liability, but he's so aggressive that his Combat Skills are impressive, and that, combined with his outstanding Route Reading, enables him to consistently stick to'is man far more so than his Athleticism would warrant, in and of itself.
CatchPoint Capacity: 100. I hardly give a damn that he didn't get any Picks. Hell, maybe it's an Advantage, the ostensible lack of stats reducing the Fear Factor, perhaps? With 21 Deflections last Year, QuarterBacks certainly weren't afraid to target'm, were they? But Nelson's Timing & Tracking are phenomenal, and despite a WingSpan short enough to be a genuine Liability, his Combat Skills are impressive. He routinely gets in there and breaks up Passes.
Ceiling? Warrior. 2nd Round. Mediocre Agility and a short WingSpan, but agile enough to compete, and an extraordinary and improving command of Route Reading. And incredibly physical and tough. Despite his Agility and Length, or lack thereof, as they say, I believe that he's got the potential to quickly become a Starter, and a good one.
Floor? Practice Squad. UFA. That's all that his Agility and Length justify!!
Risk/Reward Ratio? Stellar. Nelson absolutely gushes Intelligence and Drive. It is evident on the Field of Battle, it is clear in how rapidly he developed such a tremendous command of Route Running within Wisconsin's structure, and it is attested to by all accounts. The chances of Nelson becoming All That He Can Be are enormous.
And I suspect that his alleged lack of Production have produced a bargain, here.
Thank you so very much, Draft BreakDown, without whom my Work would be virtually impossible.
Market Value #110 | Yankee Grade 2nd/3rd Round |
Please also note, Fellow FootBall Fiends: These CyberScouting Reports are not intended as predictions of success or failure, but as assessments ~ ludicrously amateurish assessments ~ of potential success. FootBall is a rough and often unfair business, and many a worthy Prospect has fallen far short of his potential, sometimes not because of his own failings, but because of those of coaching, scheme, timing...or because huge investments were made on other Prospects.
In other words: If any of my Super Dooper Deeper Sleepers ever fail to fulfill their vast potential, I’m confident that it goes without saying that it wasn’t their fault…or mine!!...Yes, I think that I'm being funny.
In other words: Caveat Emptor, Fellow FootBall Fiends!!
Enter at your own risk!!