Offensive Guard Trai Turner ~ Louisiana
State FightingTigers ~ 6024/312
State FightingTigers ~ 6024/312
Regarding Offensive Guards
I consider Offensive Guards far more crucial to their Teams's Prospects that most consider them to be.
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...when The Only Games That Really Matter are played.
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.
I impart enormous importance upon Offensive Guards in my joyfully twisted World View of FootBall: Right up there with QuarterBacks, Defensive Tackles, and Centers in their potential Impact on The Only Games That Really Matter.
These are the Aspects of their Games that I place greatest emphasis on, when evaluating Offensive Guards:
Power. Above all: Core Power. Upper body Strength 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 Lineman to project Power in the Running Game and to reject Power in the Passing Game. And those Players who invest the time and effort to develop superior Core Power are far likelier to enjoy sustained good Health and stay on the Field.
Agility. Lateral 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. Mechanics. Launch Velocity, Paw Power, and Technique.
Intangibles. Diagnostic Capacity, Processing Speed, and Motor. How effectively he masters Spatial Diagnostics & Angles, how rapidly he recognizes and implements Blocking Schemes based on changing Defensive Tactics, and of course: Drive. How badly he wants it. These are of course difficult things to assess, but it's crucial to at least try to.
My notion of a Dream Guard would be one who combines all these traits but with great emphasis on Agility ~ a truly Athletic Offensive Guard who can run Power Sweeps all day long, as Jerry Kramer and Fuzzy Thurston once did with Vince Lombardi's Packers on their way to no less than 5 Championships in 7 glorious years!!
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...when The Only Games That Really Matter are played.
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.
I impart enormous importance upon Offensive Guards in my joyfully twisted World View of FootBall: Right up there with QuarterBacks, Defensive Tackles, and Centers in their potential Impact on The Only Games That Really Matter.
These are the Aspects of their Games that I place greatest emphasis on, when evaluating Offensive Guards:
Power. Above all: Core Power. Upper body Strength 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 Lineman to project Power in the Running Game and to reject Power in the Passing Game. And those Players who invest the time and effort to develop superior Core Power are far likelier to enjoy sustained good Health and stay on the Field.
Agility. Lateral 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. Mechanics. Launch Velocity, Paw Power, and Technique.
Intangibles. Diagnostic Capacity, Processing Speed, and Motor. How effectively he masters Spatial Diagnostics & Angles, how rapidly he recognizes and implements Blocking Schemes based on changing Defensive Tactics, and of course: Drive. How badly he wants it. These are of course difficult things to assess, but it's crucial to at least try to.
My notion of a Dream Guard would be one who combines all these traits but with great emphasis on Agility ~ a truly Athletic Offensive Guard who can run Power Sweeps all day long, as Jerry Kramer and Fuzzy Thurston once did with Vince Lombardi's Packers on their way to no less than 5 Championships in 7 glorious years!!
Trai Turner Scouting Report
Power. Outstanding. Turner boasts exceptional Core Power and projects Power extraordinarily well in the Running Game, mauling Foes and flashing the Potential to become dominant in a Run Oriented Power Scheme. He is not nearly as impressive in rejecting Power in the Passing Game, however, but exhibits an impressive Anchor.
Agility. Mediocre. Nice Launch Velocity and Acceleration to the Second Level, but I'm not a fan of his Core Agility. I believe that he lacks Fluidity, and that this will limit his Impact in the Running Game on the Second Level, and that it will prove dangerous in the Passing Game against the sprier, more agile Defensive Tackles he comes up against.
Combat Skills. Raw. Much work is needed with his Mechanics. Impressive Paw Power, though.
Intangibles. Mediocre. Great Motor, but deficient Processing Speed and Field Vision.
Agility. Mediocre. Nice Launch Velocity and Acceleration to the Second Level, but I'm not a fan of his Core Agility. I believe that he lacks Fluidity, and that this will limit his Impact in the Running Game on the Second Level, and that it will prove dangerous in the Passing Game against the sprier, more agile Defensive Tackles he comes up against.
Combat Skills. Raw. Much work is needed with his Mechanics. Impressive Paw Power, though.
Intangibles. Mediocre. Great Motor, but deficient Processing Speed and Field Vision.
Trai Turner Prospectus
Trai Turner is an easy guy to like, and I believe that he's got a potentially strong Future in a Run Oriented Power Scheme.
I do have serious concerns about his ability to excel against Speed & Agility, however. He's not very experienced, so maybe the Processing Speed will come in time, but his Fluidity strikes me as being at an insufficient level.
I think he'll have big problems with some Pass Rushers...and probably during The Only Games That Really Matter.
I give him a good chance to start at The Next Level, but that his success is likely to be narrowly defined and moderate.
Thanks, as always, to the extraordinary Work by the men of Draft BreakDown!!
I do have serious concerns about his ability to excel against Speed & Agility, however. He's not very experienced, so maybe the Processing Speed will come in time, but his Fluidity strikes me as being at an insufficient level.
I think he'll have big problems with some Pass Rushers...and probably during The Only Games That Really Matter.
I give him a good chance to start at The Next Level, but that his success is likely to be narrowly defined and moderate.
Thanks, as always, to the extraordinary Work by the men of Draft BreakDown!!
Yank Rank:Starter ~ Par Value!!
| Consensus Market Value 3rd/4th Round | Yankee Grade 3rd/4th Round |
Please 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 of Good Will!!
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