Is Derek Barnett Really That Good?

[Burma]

(04-14-2017, 05:33 PM)SunsetBengal Wrote: That is one of the better arguments for drafting Barnett that I've seen on here.  Nice job, well written.



I'm in the crowd that was high on him, then I cooled a bit.  I watched a good bit of his bowl game this year, and he looked good, not fantastic.  I had trouble rationalizing what all the fuss was about.  Then I watch Demarcus Walker playing against a very good Michigan OL, and I'm just blown away. 

I'm not saying that Barnett isn't as good as his career numbers would imply, or that Walker is somehow better than Barnett.  The conclusion I draw to is that Walker seemed to be one to rise up in the big game, while Barnett seemed to be a bit neutralized.

As Bengal fans, we've seen plenty of "star" players that look great in some games, then seem to "disappear" when it comes to the big stage games, like Steelers games or playoff games.  I'd just prefer to see them draft a player, whoever it is that they choose, who's star shone brightest in the biggest games.

As a Michigan man I can tell you that the Oline was not good. Not even close to very good.  They lost their starting LT, Grant Newsome with a Teddy Bridgewater like knee injury. It was so bad he is already ruled out for this season and his career is in doubt now. The kid who filled in for him was no where close to ready. He was just dominated in the Buckeye game to such an extent that it affected the whole Offensive game plan. Were talking Ced O level badness. And while the rest of the Oline was experienced and highly rated coming out of high school they were not a good unit. Look at the draft grades for the ones who are draftable this year. The OL was probably 3rd worst unit of that team, slightly above the safeties, and clearly better than the poor RB core.

Here is a blurb from the 2016 Orange Bowl analysis 

Quote:Michigan O vs. FSU D


Michigan's O will be Successful If....
Michigan has a solid top 25 O. They have lots of experience and talent, 2 senior WRs who will be drafted and an All-American TE. The weakest unit on the O is the OL. I know that many people are apprehensive or skeptical of placing too much importance in the Adjusted OL Yards metric, but Michigan is barely a top 50 team in OLY