Instead of early Linebacker

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(04-23-2019, 11:01 AM)yang Wrote: They also took WR Arcega Whiteside in the 3rd which I like a lot as well.  We could actually see all three picks contribute early.

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11. JJ ARCEGA-WHITESIDE | Stanford          6020 | 225 lbs. | rJR.          Inman, S.C. (Dorman)         12/31/1996 (age 22.33) #19

BACKGROUND: A three-star wide receiver recruit out of high school, Jose Joaquin “JJ” Arcega-Whiteside was born in Zaragoza, Spain and spent his youth traveling around Europe with his parents, who were both professional basketball players. They moved to the United States when he was 7 years old, relocating to his mother’s hometown of Inman, S.C. Arcega-Whiteside grew up playing soccer, track and basketball, but started to gravitate toward football, playing varsity wide receiver as a freshman at Dorman. As a senior, he was named Gatorade South Carolina Player of the Year with 108 receptions for 1,824 yards and 20 touchdowns. ArcegaWhiteside earned all-state honors in three sports (football, basketball and track) during the 2013-14 season and was considered a McDonald’s All-American nominee in basketball. He was considered a top-75 wide receiver in the 2015 recruiting class and committed to Stanford the summer prior to his senior season. His mother (Valerie) was an All-American at Appalachian State where she set 26 school records before playing overseas. His father (Joaquin) had a long career overseas and two of his uncles (Fernando and Jose) played for Spain in the 1984 Olympics. Arcega-Whiteside speaks three languages (English, Spanish and Portuguese) and still speaks to his father in Spanish. He chose to skip his senior season and enter the 2019 NFL Draft.

YEAR (GP/GS) REC YDS AVG TD NOTES     2015: Redshirted 2016: (12/2) 24 379 15.8 5 2017: (11/11) 48 781 16.3 9 All-Pac 12 Honorable Mention 2018: (12/12) 63 1,059 16.8 14 Second Team All-Pac 12; Led Pac-12 in touchdown receptions; Team Captain Total: (35/25) 135 2,219 16.4 28  

HT WT ARM HAND WING 40-YD 20-YD 10-YD VJ BJ SS 3C BP  COMBINE 6020 225 33 1/4 09 1/2 79 7/8 - - - - - - - - (no workout – right knee) PRO DAY       4.49 2.64 1.58 34 09’11” 4.41 7.23 - (no bench – choice)

STRENGTHS: Good-sized, gangly target with outstanding length…boxes out without pushing off…magnet for defensive penalties due to frame and catch radius…hands catcher and extends with power to stab the ball away from his body…plays above the rim and owns jump balls, contorting his body mid-air…wasn’t asked to run a full route tree but collects his feet to make quick, crisp cuts…powers through arm tackles after the catch, dragging defenders…physically tough and takes a beating…2018 team captain…seven touchdowns on 11 red-zone targets, finishing No. 3 in the FBS with 14 touchdown grabs in 2018.  

WEAKNESSES: Struggles to separate vertically vs. speed…tightly wound in his hips and lower body…upright route runner with little deception, forecasting his path to cornerbacks…lacks diversity or burst in his releases or route setup…inexperienced making reads/adjustments based on coverage…looks to run before securing, leading to drops…missed at least one game each of the last three years due to injury, including a right ankle issue as a junior (November 2018); unable to work out at the scouting combine due to his right knee (February 2019).

SUMMARY: A two-year starter at Stanford, Arcega-Whiteside improved each season in the Cardinal pro-style scheme, finishing second in school history with 28 receiving touchdowns. The best compliment you can give a wideout is when everyone knows where the ball is going, yet it can’t be stopped – and that’s often how it felt studying Arcega-Whiteside in jump-ball situations. His basketball background and bloodlines are evident in the way he boxes out and rebounds the football, especially in the end zone. Arcega-Whiteside doesn’t create consistent separation vs. press or at the top of routes due to upright, rigid movements. However, he has
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a unique ability to body corners and finish contested catches, extending his long arms and high-pointing with focus. Overall, Arcega-Whiteside lacks route savvy but he physically dominates at the catch point and projects as a specialized receiver who can be more with added refinement in his patterns.

GRADE: 2nd-3rd Round (#67 overall)

If our first two picks were a S and a WR, I'd be ready to kill somebody.