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In the real world: Don't call Tannehill "a converted wide receiver." He's an extreme rarity: He played QB in high school, but played his first two seasons at Texas A&M at WR (due to injuries A&M had at the position) before moving back to QB in 2010. He was widely considered the consensus #3 QB on the board (after Luck and Griffin) even after breaking his foot while training for the Senior Bowl. Why? His combination of size, arm strength, mobility and toughness has scouts thinking "upside." But there's a risk as well, and that is inexperience. He only started 15 games at QB for A&M, so he's not where he needs to be in terms of development. Todd McShay said in March: "I just think he has everything you look for in a future franchise quarterback if you develop him properly and you're willing to be patient." Another stat that underscores how raw he is: Last season, against four Top 25 teams (Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Arkansas and Texas), he completed 54% of his passes with 6 TD and 10 INT. Even though his completion percentage dropped from 65% in 2010 to 61.6% last year, ESPN's Chris Mortensen says that the main reason was that at least 70 of his passes were dropped by his receivers. |
In the TUFF world: This is a great value pick at the top of Round 2, and the Junglehawgs needed it, especially because they had no first-round pick. They had three NFL starting QB's a year ago in Ryan Fitzpatrick, Jason Campbell and Colt McCoy, but Fitzpatrick had a rough second half in 2011 (allegedly due to cracked ribs), Campbell got hurt (and subsequently lost his job to Carson Palmer) and McCoy had a rough second year (he could lose his job as well). Tannehill's got the "tools" to be an NFL QB, but it will take time to see how his job situation unfolds. The Dolphins went 6-3 in their last nine games with Matt Moore under center, and you never know, Moore vs. Tannehill could morph into Warner vs. Leinart, Part Deux. Mike Scott probably realized this possibility and acquired Moore from the Green Bay Ground Hogs not long after selecting Tannehill. |
Showing posts with label Dallas. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Dallas. Show all posts
2.01 Dallas Junglehawgs — QB Ryan Tannehill
2.07 Dallas Junglehawgs — WR Mohamed Sanu
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In the real world: Sanu has a good shot at becoming the Cincinnati Bengals' #2 WR, behind only phenom A.J. Green. The Bengals are thinking of Sanu as a slightly bigger and faster version of T.J. Houshmandzadeh. Steve Muench wrote of him on February 16: "... he doesn't project as a vertical threat at the next level. On the other hand, he caught a Big East-record 115 passes and has all the tools teams look for in a No. 2 receiver. He's big enough to line up on the outside, knows how to get open underneath and has above-average ball skills." A telling statistic: Out of 210 career receptions at Rutgers, only four went for 20 yards or more. His main competition for receptions in Cincinnati will be Jordan Shipley (who is 26 and has missed three of his last eight seasons with injuries) and fifth-round rookie Marvin Jones. |
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In the TUFF world: Dallas entered the draft needing to improve its depth at wide receiver. On May 6, they acquired Michael Crabtree (along with QB Matt Moore, a Ryan Tannehill handcuff) from Green Bay for two second-rounders. As with the Pittsburgh BIG PAPAS, the Junglehawgs' WR corps is young and developing, headed by Crabtree, Jonathan Baldwin and Denarius Moore. Sanu will be a reliable, albeit unspectacular, reserve in TUFF--in my estimation, a taller Jason Avant with a better NFL job situation. |
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TUFF Trivia: Sanu's agent received a call on the night of April 26 saying Sanu had been drafted in Round 1 by the Bengals. It turned out to be a prank call from a Rutgers student who managed to get Sanu's cell phone number. The following night, he did get drafted in Round 3, by the very same Bengals. |
3.02 Dallas Junglehawgs — RB Cyrus Gray
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In the real world: The Chiefs took him in Round 6; they also have Peyton Hillis and Dexter McCluster in their backfield in addition to starter Jamaal Charles. Durability has been an issue for him; just in the past year:
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In the TUFF world: Mike Scott coaches football down in Texas, so maybe he sees something in Gray. who went to Texas A&M. You could think of it as a "homer pick" that way. But inconsistent play and durability concerns might be why the Houston Tethered Swimmers passed on him as a potential handcuff to Charles and McCluster. |
3.10 Dallas Junglehawgs — QB Kirk Cousins
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In the real world: High completion percentage at Michigan State was due to lots of screen passes. “He doesn't give his receivers a chance to make a big play after the catch,” says Cecil Lammey. The Redskins took him early in Round 4 for two reasons: Even after trading up for Robert Griffin III in Round 1, they still needed depth at the position; also, there's the idea that they could develop him into somebody else's starter (like the Falcons did with Matt Schaub several years ago, and which the Patriots hope to do with one of their third-round picks last year, Ryan Mallett). |
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In the TUFF world: Dallas takes him here, perhaps hoping to work out a deal with Arizona (who took RG3 with the fourth overall pick in this draft) later this year... or a bigger deal further down the road if Cousins becomes another Matt Schaub. |
4.02 Dallas Junglehawgs — PK Greg Zuerlein
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In the real world: The Rams picked Zuerlein in Round 6 to replace Josh Brown, in a salary-slashing move. But Zuerlein is not just any old kicker, no. He kicked plenty of 50+-yard field goals for Western Montana. Check out this video of Zuerlein in action. |
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In the TUFF world: Dallas needed to reinforce its depth at kicker after the New York Jets signed Josh Brown to compete with Nick Folk. |
4.05 Dallas Junglehawgs — WR Marvin McNutt
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In the real world: McNutt went to the Philadelphia Eagles in Round 6. He played QB in high school but converted to wide receiver in his first year at Iowa. Last year, he had 82 catches for 1,315 yards and 12 TDs. |
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In the TUFF world: He may be 5th in the Eagles' pecking order now, but I liked how he often came through for Iowa when you least expected him to. |
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