Instead of early Linebacker

[yang]

(04-23-2019, 07:33 PM)SunsetBengal Wrote: Oh?  Somehow I missed that part.  If they took Williams at 11, those other two would be good picks in rounds 2 and 3.

Yeah, if they ended up with Williams or Dillard, or even someone like Oliver slipping I'd be really happy with that draft.   I always view myself as a homer that will like whoever but last year I fervently disagreed with the Price pick at all.  

[SunsetBengal]

(04-23-2019, 08:01 PM)yang Wrote: Yeah, if they ended up with Williams or Dillard, or even someone like Oliver slipping I'd be really happy with that draft.   I always view myself as a homer that will like whoever but last year I fervently disagreed with the Price pick at all.  

Hmm, I think you're going to find yourself "shocked and amazed" this season, once you see a healthy Billy Price in action.

[Au165]

Can people please stop pretending you can just take a safety and make him a LB? Safety isn’t LB there are different skills that don’t magically translate. Instead of trying to convert someone and hope they can play LB, we should do what good teams do and actually draft a LB who can play LB well.

[*bengalfan74*]

(04-23-2019, 09:06 PM)Au165 Wrote: Can people please stop pretending you can just take a safety and make him a LB? Safety isn’t LB there are different skills that don’t magically translate. Instead of trying to convert someone and hope they can play LB, we should do what good teams do and actually draft a LB who can play LB well.

For sure !

There are reasons LBers are LBers, CB's are CB's, and S's are S's ! You can't just mix and match these guys and stir them around at leisure. 

We flat out need a top notch LBer ! not a project.

[Benton]

(04-23-2019, 08:34 PM)SunsetBengal Wrote: Hmm, I think you're going to find yourself "shocked and amazed" this season, once you see a healthy Billy Price in action.

I think he's going to be a solid center. The only concern I've got is if he can stay healthy. I'm hoping we make some headway in keeping guys on the field this year.

[SunsetBengal]

(04-24-2019, 01:17 AM)Benton Wrote: I think he's going to be a solid center. The only concern I've got is if he can stay healthy. I'm hoping we make some headway in keeping guys on the field this year.

I don't remember him as being injury prone in college.  I'm thinking the pec tear was just a freak occurrence, and getting his foot stepped on was just plain bad luck.  The biggest thing for him will be gaining confidence and continuity.  (I guess that will be the theme for the entire OL)

[*SHRacerX*]

(04-23-2019, 11:00 AM)yang Wrote: I was listening to the Locked on Podcast yesterday and their mock draft scenarios and thought they came up with an interesting idea, and I like it.  Take Best Player available in the first, and then draft safety Juan Thornhill in the 2nd.   He is a stud who runs insanely fast and hits, projects well.  Move Shawn Williams to Linebacker which is essentially what many teams are doing to counter all the TE's and new offenses.  Draft a second tier LB or even 2 later.  

---
5. JUAN THORNHILL | Virginia            6002 | 205 lbs. | SR.            Altavista, Va. (Altavista)           10/19/1995 (age 23.53) #21

BACKGROUND: A three-star athlete recruit out of high school, Juan Thornhill is one of the best athletes to ever come out of Altavista, leading the high school to five state championships in three seasons (three in basketball, two in football). He played quarterback on offense and posted 1,299 passing yards and 1,562 rushing yards as a senior, adding five interceptions as a safety on defense. On the basketball court, Thornhill recorded over 1,000 career points and made SportsCenter with his high-flying dunks. He received scholarship offers to play collegiate basketball, but he chose football. Ranked as an “athlete” recruit, he was the No. 22 player in the state and committed to Virginia (his first offer) as a safety prior to his junior season, subsequently shutting down his recruitment. He played both cornerback and safety over his collegiate career. Thornhill accepted his invitation to the 2019 Senior Bowl.




[206]

YEAR (GP/GS) TKLS TFL SACK FF PD INT NOTES  2015: (9/0) 2 0.0 0.0 0 0 0 2016: (12/11) 45 3.0 1.0 1 10 3 CB 2017: (12/12) 63 4.5 0.5 0 16 4 11 CB, 1 SS; Third Team All-ACC 2018: (13/13) 98 4.5 0.0 0 13 6 SS; First Team All-ACC Total: (46/36) 208 12.0 1.5 1 39 13 22 CB, 14 SS

HT WT ARM HAND WING 40-YD 20-YD 10-YD VJ BJ SS 3C BP  COMBINE 6002 205 31 1/8 08 3/4 74 3/4 4.42 2.60 1.57 44 11’09” - - 21 (no shuttle or 3-cone – hamstring)  PRO DAY       - - - - - 4.20 6.86 - (stood on Combine runs, jumps, bench)

STRENGTHS: Long, rangy size…smooth shuffle and clean redirection in space…comfortable in man-to-man, using physicality and contact balance to attach and ride patterns…recognizes route concepts and has the diagnosis abilities of a former quarterback…flashes the reaction quickness to drive and undercut routes…aboveaverage tracking, judgement and ball skills (his 13 career interceptions rank sixth-best in school history)…averaged 13.6 yards per interception return (13/177/0)…doesn’t lack for toughness as a tackler and takes proper pursuit angles…graduated with his bachelor’s degree (December 2018)…versatile experience with 36 starts spread between cornerback (22) and safety (14).

WEAKNESSES: Lanky and lacks a prototypical build for an NFL safety…lacks twitchy turn-and-run skills…not a burner…inconsistent take-on skills downhill…doesn’t back down as a tackler, but arrives hot and needs to improve his strike zone…overly patient with his reads and would like to see him take more chances…grabby downfield, attracting holding calls.

SUMMARY: A three-year starter at Virginia, Thornhill arrived in Charlottesville as a safety before moving outside to corner his sophomore and junior seasons. He moved to the “Sabre” strong safety position as a senior and led the team in tackles (98) and interceptions (6), playing everywhere from nickel to single-high to linebacker (showed he can just as easily press as he can play from deep positioning). Thornhill, who wears No. 21 for Sean Taylor, doesn’t play as fast as he timed, but he has a smooth lower body and doesn’t get off-balance in his movements. He has plus anticipation and ball skills, but will take the worst of hits when his tackling technique isn’t perfect. Overall, Thornhill is more smooth than sudden, which causes him to be a beat late at times, but his instincts, field range and roster versatility are strong selling points, projecting as a high alignment safety who can walk down and cover slot receivers.

GRADE: 2nd Round (#49 overall)

I love a safety that can take the ball away and Thornhill, with 13 INTs and 28 PBUs in his three years fits that bill.  I have no idea why he isn't ranked higher and I think you could see him at the end of the first round to the Pats.  

He has versatility to play CB as well.  

The Bengals like him, but they don't feel as though it is wise to spend an early pick on a player that would likely not be active on game day since they typically carry more CBs, and they like Fej as their backup that can play either safety spot and his special teams.

I looked at Thornhill as the guy I wanted to eventually replace Williams.  He is more of a SS to me anyways.  

I loved him, and would love to see him here but I guess it won't be happening unless he had a crazy slide.

[yang]

(04-24-2019, 07:32 AM)SHRacerX Wrote: I love a safety that can take the ball away and Thornhill, with 13 INTs and 28 PBUs in his three years fits that bill.  I have no idea why he isn't ranked higher and I think you could see him at the end of the first round to the Pats.  

He has versatility to play CB as well.  

The Bengals like him, but they don't feel as though it is wise to spend an early pick on a player that would likely not be active on game day since they typically carry more CBs, and they like Fej as their backup that can play either safety spot and his special teams.

I looked at Thornhill as the guy I wanted to eventually replace Williams.  He is more of a SS to me anyways.  

I loved him, and would love to see him here but I guess it won't be happening unless he had a crazy slide.

Yeah, I thought it was a crazy pick until air started researching and apparently a lot of the draft guys who look deeper have him in the top 25/30 in their Big Boards. I just think he would be versatile and will hit. He would be our second fastest DB day one.

And I know people are whining about makings Williams a linebacker so let’s call him a hybrid safety instead since that’s more of what the position entails. Plus they could still draft Cashmen and Burr Kirven.

I just think people need to be prepared if they don't draft a Devin in the first and really want to take BPA.

[3wt]

(04-23-2019, 12:49 PM)Hammerstripes Wrote: We have to come out of this with a Modern NFL LB.  And there's not a lot of them in the draft

I'm with you (and others) on this.   There are some intriguing prospects that may be available in the 3rd round - Cashman, Ben Burr-Kirven, David Long (WV).

Some (draftniks) have stated they would actually prefer one of these three - specifically Long.

But the best odds would be to have one of the Devins - and add another of those three (or Takitaki or Okereke) to the mix


I do also want to see another WR at some point who can both separate and fight successfully for the ball.  But LB and solidifying either the interior OL or the tackle spot just have to be the priorities.

[Yojimbo]

(04-23-2019, 11:33 PM)bengalfan74 Wrote: For sure !

There are reasons LBers are LBers, CB's are CB's, and S's are S's ! You can't just mix and match these guys and stir them around at leisure. 

We flat out need a top notch LBer ! not a project.

Tell that to Derwin James.


I think we need White or Bush because of what happened last draft. Look at the impact of Vander Esch and Leonard has on those defenses. That’s what this team needs to get back to winning.

[*SHRacerX*]

(04-24-2019, 08:03 AM)yang Wrote: Yeah, I thought it was a crazy pick until air started researching and apparently a lot of the draft guys who look deeper have him in the top 25/30 in their Big Boards.   I just think he would be versatile and will hit.  He would be our second fastest DB day one.  

And I know people are whining about makings Williams a linebacker so let’s call him a hybrid safety instead since that’s more of what the position entails.  Plus they could still draft Cashmen and Burr Kirven.  

I just think people need to be prepared if they don't draft a Devin in the first and really want to take BPA.

I think there is no way an OT isn't one of our first two picks, the other one will either be a high-impact DT that slides a bit (Ed Oliver?) or one of the Devin's.  I have a suspicion that Devin White might be there at #11