And with the Seventh pick in the 2021 NFL Draft, the Detroit Lions.....?

[Gulf of Brazil]

 

[Gulf of Brazil]

Good, we're going to need it even though it'll change 300x between now and whenever (April 28th thru April 30th 2022 Las Vegas)

 

[Gulf of Brazil]

No. 8/8 on the list........... Bleacher Report

Detroit Lions WR Jonathan Adams

1. The Detroit Lions receiving corps has undergone a major makeover this offseason. Marvin Jones Jr. and Kenny Golladay are gone, which means the hierarchy is ambiguous at this point.
   There will be plenty of competition among the Lions' additions (they signed four receivers in free agency and drafted Amon-Ra St. Brown) under general manager Brad Holmes, but undrafted free agent Jonathan Adams shouldn't be discounted coming out of Arkansas State. At 6'2" and 210 pounds with a relative athletic score of 7.53, he brings a strong physical profile to the table.
   He isn't the most nuanced receiver at this point. He was a two-sport athlete at Arkansas State who didn't quit basketball to focus on football until his junior year.
   Where Adams excels is at the catch-point where he can use his 39" vertical, large frame and basketball background to bully defensive backs for the ball.
   Early on, he could be a red-zone specialist who becomes a favorite of Jared Goff while teams are focused on defending T.J. Hockenson.

 

[Old Lion]

No. 8/8 on the list........... Bleacher Report

Detroit Lions WR Jonathan Adams

1. The Detroit Lions receiving corps has undergone a major makeover this offseason. Marvin Jones Jr. and Kenny Golladay are gone, which means the hierarchy is ambiguous at this point.
   There will be plenty of competition among the Lions' additions (they signed four receivers in free agency and drafted Amon-Ra St. Brown) under general manager Brad Holmes, but undrafted free agent Jonathan Adams shouldn't be discounted coming out of Arkansas State. At 6'2" and 210 pounds with a relative athletic score of 7.53, he brings a strong physical profile to the table.
   He isn't the most nuanced receiver at this point. He was a two-sport athlete at Arkansas State who didn't quit basketball to focus on football until his junior year.
   Where Adams excels is at the catch-point where he can use his 39" vertical, large frame and basketball background to bully defensive backs for the ball.
   Early on, he could be a red-zone specialist who becomes a favorite of Jared Goff while teams are focused on defending T.J. Hockenson.

Its funny. I actually suggested maybe moving him to TE. Add 15-20 pounds of muscle and he would be big enough (although still smallish for a TE)

 

[Gulf of Brazil]

Notes: Detroit Lions’ 2021 draft class makes PFF’s top 5

Both PFF and Dane Brugler were big fans of the Lions’ draft haul.

www.prideofdetroit.com

The Athletic’s Dane Brugler, who is widely considered one of the most thorough draft experts in the media in part because of his impressive “The Beast” draft guide, named the Lions draft class as the third-best in all of the league. He specifically liked the picks of Oregon offensive tackle Penei Sewell and USC wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown.

But he wasn’t the only one to give the Lions top-five praise. PFF’s Mike Renner listed his top five and bottom five drafts and the Lions slipped in right at four:

 

[Gulf of Brazil]

He is right about McNeil. Hopefully he is more motivated in the NFL. I get an Albert Haynesworth vibe watching him play though.

Got to give the kid a chance.

Lions were "Last Chance U Pro version" during previous regime.

Not anymore

 

[Gulf of Brazil]

5 Qs with NC State writer: Lions could have future All-Pro in Alim McNeill

Get to know the Lions’ new defensive tackle.

www.prideofdetroit.com

You might want to read this. McNeil was a former RB, LB and Baseball player even the latter while at college. He has a lot of athletic qualities.

NC-ST played him as the only DT on their in 2020 after switching from a 4-man front in 2019 to a 3-man front in 2020

taking on two offensive linemen (at least) on every play in 2020

McNeill would not be a bad player to consider using offensively in heavy sets. In an I-formation on the goal line, he would not have many problems clearing a path.”

5. Can McNeil have an immediate impact in the NFL?

“Alim McNeill can have an immediate impact, but he likely will hit his true stride somewhere between year two and three. A good way to gauge his impact will be to see what type of numbers the Detroit edge players put up. If the Lions have quality defensive ends, utilizing them beside McNeill should show it.

If he stays healthy, has competent talent around him, and is coached to his strengths, the Lions have a future All-Pro in Alim McNeill. His work rate and demeanor will resonate with both the city and fan base. He will make Detroit a better team.”

 

[Gulf of Brazil]

Lions 2021 draft class is team’s second-most athletic in past 13 years

Six of the seven Lions draft picks were among the most athletic in the class.

www.prideofdetroit.com

“I believe, early on, that the defense that you’re going to see is going to be different. It’ll look different. The players will look different as far as body types go, and it’s going to be a defense that, when we get there, will be built on speed, just to match what the NFL is today.”

But if the Lions’ 2021 NFL Draft class was any indication, the Lions are sticking to Spielman’s words, because it is chock-full of athletes. Let’s take a closer look at the class, one-by-one, using our friend’s Kent Lee Platte’s RAS metric, which averages each athletic trait against his peers and spits out a 0-10 grade

Penei Sewell: ranked 116/1143 OT from 1987-2021

Levi Onwuzurike: ranked 167/1309 DT from 1987-2021

Alim McNeil: ranked 194/1309 DT from 1987-2021

Ifeati Melifonwu: ranked 56/1790 CB from 1987-2021

Amon-Ra St. Brown: ranked 722/2517 WR from 1987-2021

Derrick Barnes: ranked 342/2155 LB from 1987-2021

Jermar Jefferson: ranked 1151/1490 RB from 1987-2021

 

[Gulf of Brazil]

As Platte points out here, this draft class has five players with elite RAS (8 or higher), which is the most the Lions have drafted in a class in the past 35 years (they also had five in 2019). But to see just how impressively athletic this year’s class is compared to Lions history, let’s look at the collective average RAS per draft class.

2021: 7.68
2020: 6.97
2019: 6.46
2018: 7.98
2017: 7.21
2016: 6.84
2015: 6.04
2014: 6.41
2013: 5.7
2012: 6.48
2011: 7.63
2010: 6.85
2009: 7.28

This year’s draft class is the second-most athletic for the Lions in the past 13 years. But if you take out the Lions’ final draft pick—running back Jermar Jefferson, who had just a 2.28 RAS score—the Lions’ 2021 draft class averaged a whopping 8.58 RAS, which would be the most athletic draft class in Lions history, going back to at least 2004, the last year in which there was significant athleticism data for full draft classes.

 

[Gulf of Brazil]

Dan Campbell made a statement in his radio interview that Jermar Jefferson had the 2nd fastest Game Speed only behind Najee Harris. They even made a last phone call to the local area scout to verify his game film/tape versus pro day numbers.

BB_72: Holmes' GPS game speed at work regarding Jermar Jefferson

 

[Gulf of Brazil]

Relative Athletic Scores of the 2018 Detroit Lions draft class

Now that the draft has concluded, it’s time to see how everyone measured out.

www.prideofdetroit.com

 

[Gulf of Brazil]

Dan Campbell says the Lions will use a 3-man front on defense

It’s the first indication that the Lions will roll with a base 3-4

lionswire.usatoday.com

After talking about the appeal of second-round pick Levi Onwuzurike to the team’s scouting department, Campbell said,

“Just our base defense, you know, we’re going to run a 3-4 style defense.”

Campbell continued, noting the versatility of both Onwuzurike and third-round pick Alim McNeill.

“You can see Onwuzurike playing in a 4i or reduced down to a 3-technique and being able to two-gap at times, control defenders, hit the blocks but also take a side and get up the field as a pass rusher.”

It’s the first real concrete declaration of what style of defense the Lions will play under Campbell and a good idea of how Onwuzurike fits within the scheme.

 

[Mebert]

Dan Campbell made a statement in his radio interview that Jermar Jefferson had the 2nd fastest Game Speed only behind Najee Harris. They even made a last phone call to the local area scout to verify his game film/tape versus pro day numbers.

BB_72: Holmes' GPS game speed at work regarding Jermar Jefferson

This comes with its own concerns. If he is that athletic, then his testing score is all about preparation. He knew the tests would be there, and he did none of the work.

The flip side is he could have spent that time perfecting his craft, I suppose we will see.

 

[Gulf of Brazil]

Dan Campbell: Derrick Barnes will wear No. 55 and play the MIKE LB role

Campbell got very excited in talking about Barnes’ versatility as an inside backer

lionswire.usatoday.com

“(Barnes) wants to play middle linebacker position, he wants to run the show.”

The head coach agreed, and it proved a great segue for Campbell to talk about the fourth-round pick.

“He’s got an old-school mentality about him,” Campbell said with obvious pride. “He’s already reached out to me, he wants to be No. 55. I mean, how throwback is 55 for an inside backer?”

Barnes thrived in the attacking inside backer role in his final season at Purdue and reinforced it by excelling in Senior Bowl practices playing inside. Campbell noted how well Barnes’ 34-inch arms allow him to shed blocks, something he covets from his off-ball backers. But he was also quick to emphasize how well Barnes blitzes, and that figures to be a significant component to his role in Detroit, too.

 

[Gulf of Brazil]

This comes with its own concerns. If he is that athletic, then his testing score is all about preparation. He knew the tests would be there, and he did none of the work.

The flip side is he could have spent that time perfecting his craft, I suppose we will see.

Same could be stated regarding Pitt Panther DT Jaylan Twyman. You see his explosiveness on tape and then he shows up for his Pro Day and runs an 5.4 forty, 3-cone 8.0. That number didn't come close to what you'd see on-field game time. Did Twyman do his work. I brought this up earlier in that draft talk thread and @Stomp thought it might've been due to gaining weight. The kid opted out of 2020 season and therefore had 7 months to prepare.

IDK

Also, Holmes scouted former Ohio State S Jordan Fuller who ran a slow 40 but his game speed was in high 20.0 something m.p.h.. LAR GM Snead drafted Fuller and he became a starter mid-season

 

[Mebert]

Same could be stated regarding Pitt Panther DT Jaylan Twyman. You see his explosiveness on tape and then he shows up for his Pro Day and runs an 8.00 forty. That number didn't come close to what you'd see on-field game time. Did Twyman do his work. I brought this up earlier in that draft talk thread and @Stomp thought it might've been due to gaining weight. The kid opted out of 2020 season and therefore had 7 months to prepare.

IDK

Also, Holmes scouted former Ohio State S Jordan Fuller who ran a slow 40 but his game speed was in high 20.0 something m.p.h.. LAR GM Snead drafted Fuller and he became a starter mid-season

Yeah, I care far more for what is on the field. I am just always curious about guys that clearly are athletic test poorly. At that point it is all about the technique of those skills. Shaving .1 seconds off the 40 time because you practice getting out of the block a lot does not make you faster, but it can make you some money.

 

[Gulf of Brazil]

Did Zack Moss prepare for testing ?

Link

Zack Moss

RB

Utah

3

86

Bills

2.88

 

[Gulf of Brazil]

Yeah, I care far more for what is on the field. I am just always curious about guys that clearly are athletic test poorly. At that point it is all about the technique of those skills. Shaving .1 seconds off the 40 time because you practice getting out of the block a lot does not make you faster, but it can make you some money.

Yep. On-field should be more prevalent.

I too am curious about why some/certain players test so poorly but then their play on-field make it a moot point.

I think this years class having numerous players drafted that opted-out made GM's and Scouts rely more on game film and I like that more than a player scoring extremely high on testing and shooting up boards for that reason only - looking at you Obi Melifonwu - who once again got the waiver

 

[Mebert]

Did Zack Moss prepare for testing ?

Link

Zack Moss

RB

Utah

3

86

Bills

2.88

Moss was never all that athletic, he is good because his contact balance was elite, and he was a powerful back. His number ended lower than I expected, but he at no point was elite. Also he is a heck of a reciever.

 

[Gulf of Brazil]

40's and 3-cones and short shuttles etc., only show so much.

There could be instances where a real football player plays lights out on field and tests poorly or the flip side a player plays good but has skyrocket numbers and doesn't show that on field and GM's/Coaches want to get that athleticism out of those players on-field.