Offensive Tackle ~ Ronnie Stanley ~ Notre Dame Fighting Irish ~ 6056/312
The Gutters are riddled with the Corpses of Teams that were built around so-called "skill" Players ~ teams that delighted their Fantasy FootBall Fans every Year, all the way until January...until The Only Games That Really Matter.
It is then, of course, that the Capacity ~ or lack thereof ~ to Move The Chains and protect the QuarterBack against PlayOff Caliber Defenses rears its ugly head. And another Team built for Fantasy FootBall bites the dust.
This is how I break things down, when I'm evaluating Offensive Tackles:
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.
Run Blocking: Power, Agility, Combat Skills, Processing Speed, and Motor.
Pass Blocking: Power, Agility, Combat Skills, Processing Speed, and Motor.
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.
Run Blocking
* Power ~ Drive Power to project Power in the Running Game.
* Agility ~ especially Acceleration DownField or to the Flank.
* Combat Skills
* Processing Speed
* Motor
Pass Blocking
* Power ~ Anchoring Strength to reject Power in the Passing Game.
* Agility ~ especially Fluidity to Mirror the Pass Rusher.
* Combat Skills
* Processing Speed
* Motor
Agility: Tremendous. Outstanding Launch Velocity, tremendous Acceleration, and terrific Fluidity.
Combat Skills: Outstanding: Terrific Arms, tremendous Hands, outstanding WingSpan, and excellent Mechanics.
Intangibles: Exceptional. Impressive Field Vision, impressive Motor, and outstanding Endurance.
Run Blocking: I foresee Stanley becoming an impressive and perhaps exceptional Zone Scheme Run Blocker, where his tremendous Agility and impressive Field Vision can best be deployed to Advantage.
Pass Blocking: And I believe that Stanley has the Potential to develop into an excellent Pass Protector. Power is a Liability, but not an Achilles Heel, and Stanley has the Combat Skills ~ particularly the Mechanics and the Endurance ~ to recover from many an initial Surge. And against Speed and Agility, his Fluidity and WingSpan are beautifully matched.
And while Agility is certainly a big Strength of Stanley, I don't put'm quite at Tunsil's level in that regard.
I believe that while Power isn't a Strength of either, it's more of a concern with Stanley.
And that's pretty much where I'd put'm as a Prospect: an half tick behind.
I'm gonna go with Beast, but a superior brand of Beast, if you will: Not quite SuperBeast, but not a borderline 1st/2nd Rounder, either...and as Stanley is projected Top 10 ~ barely ~ I'm not gonna quibble.
Grateful Thanks, as always, for the crucial Work done by the folks at Draft BreakDown!!
Market Value Top 10 | Yankee Grade 1st Round |
None of this is even remotely a Complaint, mind you, but rather a Warning!! Caveat Emptor!!