What's with all the Byron Jones love???

[Taz]

The biggest thing you have to remember when drafting is all the prospects are projections and those projections are based upon a lot of factors. Sure Height Weight and speed are important to a point. A 5ft 5 corner who runs a 5 flat might show up on tape as a good player in college but there is about zero chance he will make it as a pro. Too small and no speed. That is why Chip has his measurable by position. That is just one part of the equation.

The biggest thing with Jones is yes he has the measurable, yes he has some inconsistencies on tape. But where does he PROJECT. Is he coachable does he really strive to be the best etc., does he understand how to play defense.

So with Jones, I believe that Chip and company saw some of the things that Wings saw on tape. However, they saw the athleticism, they see things that good coaching can correct, the last piece of the puzzle on Jones and a lot of these guys is are they coachable. That is why Chip, and Billy and Eddie and Tom Donahue were all there. They wanted to find out about this guy mentally.

One other reason why the Eagles could have been checking him out so close could be to see if he would be open to playing safety. Lets face it, this years safety crop might be the worst ever. I would bet there are a lot of corners who teams are looking at to play safety. I think that is where Jones projects to in my opinion. I think he has a chance to be a stud there.

 

[deerpathdave]

The only real question on Jones is a fairly basic one. Can he play football? We know he is a good guy, and a superior athlete, but at the end of the day, is he good at football? Those who study film evidently have questions about that.

 

[Wings]

Perhaps he is a late first or second rd Safety....That I could see viewing tape....at CB I see a 3rd to 4th rd Prospect...so perhaps some are right and the Eagles wanted to see where this kids head is at as far as the possibility of playing safety. ,We have absolutely no idea what Chip is all about as far as the draft goes, because this is Chips first draft in Charge. Mike Mayock is my boy not just because he is from Philly, but I think he is by far the smartest draft analyst in the country...and Mayock ranks him as the 5th best CB not safety prospect in the country. http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap3000000475721/article/mike-mayocks-2015-nfl-draft-position-rankings-20
so clearly Mayock likes him at Cb...a whole lot. Tells me he thinks Jones is extremely coach-able, and he sees a high upside in his game.

 

[Deano]

The combine's purpose is exactly to find guys like Jones. Small college guy, at a position where the performance isn't always measurable or obvious. On paper Jones is very interesting. 4 year starter, team captain. Off the charts athleticsm. And when it comes to DB play, performance is often subjective. You don't know what they were asked to do or what they were taught to do. I think every coach thinks they could take a guy like Jones and turn him into a great player.

Then you have Kelly, who harps on the measurables, and culture, and tends to go against the conventional wisdom. Its not a stretch to think that Kelly would be the sort to develop a conviction about a guy like this and draft him earlier than he is expected.

the problem with small school guy is that they need to absolutely dominate the other small school kids. Jones didn't. Marley did and he would probably go higher if he wasn't an OG.

 

[Birds4life81]

I like Byron Jones at CB or at Safety. He has the prototypical size at 6'1 199lbs with 32inch arms. Yes he's also an athletic FREAK, but the kid can play. He's at his best in press man, he does a good job playing physical at the LOS and he has fluid hips to turn and run with the WR. He's not as good in zone or off man. His technique can get a little sloppy at times and lead to penalties. He's a very fluid and smooth DB who isn't just a combine warrior. He has high a work ethic and character which is also a huge plus. A good coach should be able to polish up his technique and Billy Davis needs to let this guy do what he does best - press man, which is ideal in our scheme any way. In our defense our front 7 needs to get after the QB (which should not be a problem since we're stacked here), and our CBs needs to play physical at the LOS to mess up the rhythm of the offense -- allowing our pass rush to get home or effect the play.

Another versatile DB I like (in the 2nd round) who possesses top notch size/speed is Eric Rowe. I think both Rowe and Jones fit very nicely in our scheme and they're versatile enough to play either CB or Safety.

 

[deerpathdave]

I like Byron Jones at CB or at Safety. He has the prototypical size at 6'1 199lbs with 32inch arms. Yes he's also an athletic FREAK, but the kid can play. He's at his best in press man, he does a good job playing physical at the LOS and he has fluid hips to turn and run with the WR. He's not as good in zone or off man. His technique can get a little sloppy at times and lead to penalties. He's a very fluid and smooth DB who isn't just a combine warrior. He has high a work ethic and character which is also a huge plus. A good coach should be able to polish up his technique and Billy Davis needs to let this guy do what he does best - press man, which is ideal in our scheme any way. In our defense our front 7 needs to get after the QB (which should not be a problem since we're stacked here), and our CBs needs to play physical at the LOS to mess up the rhythm of the offense -- allowing our pass rush to get home or effect the play.

Another versatile DB I like (in the 2nd round) who possesses top notch size/speed is Eric Rowe. I think both Rowe and Jones fit very nicely in our scheme and they're versatile enough to play either CB or Safety.

Would love to see them get both and solve their DB problems for a long...long...time.

 

[Iggloo]

Byron Jones vs East Carolina (2014) | Draft Breakdown

I still don't see it.

I think he actually looks pretty good there in press coverage Wings. Justin Hardy is also a pro prospect in this draft.

 

[Wings]

I think he actually looks pretty good there in press coverage Wings. Justin Hardy is also a pro prospect in this draft.

Justin Hardy is a pro prospect??? Really? I had no idea.

 

[Wings]

I like Byron Jones at CB or at Safety. He has the prototypical size at 6'1 199lbs with 32inch arms. Yes he's also an athletic FREAK, but the kid can play. He's at his best in press man, he does a good job playing physical at the LOS and he has fluid hips to turn and run with the WR. He's not as good in zone or off man. His technique can get a little sloppy at times and lead to penalties. He's a very fluid and smooth DB who isn't just a combine warrior. He has high a work ethic and character which is also a huge plus. A good coach should be able to polish up his technique and Billy Davis needs to let this guy do what he does best - press man, which is ideal in our scheme any way. In our defense our front 7 needs to get after the QB (which should not be a problem since we're stacked here), and our CBs needs to play physical at the LOS to mess up the rhythm of the offense -- allowing our pass rush to get home or effect the play.

Another versatile DB I like (in the 2nd round) who possesses top notch size/speed is Eric Rowe. I think both Rowe and Jones fit very nicely in our scheme and they're versatile enough to play either CB or Safety.

Love Eric Rowe!!!

 

[Northern Eagle]

It could be one of those things where if you believe in your coaching staff enough to get the potential out, then he might be worth the risk. I still don't like him as much as Peters or even Johnson, both obviously don't test as well but are far more savvier football players.

 

[Iggloo]

Justin Hardy is a pro prospect??? Really? I had no idea.

LOL, I forgot you were the head of the Hardy fan club. Just pointing out that one of the players he was matched up against on that video is a good NFL prospect, and he generally did well. The press technique this guy showed there looked great IMO.

 

[eaglesnut]

I like Byron Jones at CB or at Safety....He's not as good in zone or off man.

So, not a safety?

 

[Birds4life81]

So, not a safety?

He's not as good in zone or off man, but doesn't mean he sucks there -- I just really like his press man ability. With proper coaching and more experience he has all the tools and work ethic you'd want from a Corner or Safety. He's far from a polished prospect, but he has a tremendous ceiling.

 

[Clayton]

Has someone seen something with this guy that says superstar? I haven't....I'm trying to understand the love fest for this guy? The tape I have seen on him he looks like a human penalty flag that got dusted all too many times....i must be missing something.....Eric Rowe looks 100 times better than this cat....I am stumped on this one.

This is the exact same thing I saw then I looked at the draft breakdown film and drafted Rowe in the SportsHoopla mock draft. Byron Jones has no NFL ability from the neck up. He is a 1-2 year project. Just based on what Ive seen, Rowe is a early to mid 2nd rounder and Jones should be a 4th rounder.

 

[old duke]

Trade back and get Agholor, and either Jones or Rowe, or maybe even get both. I could see both of them in the near future as our 2 safeties. Jenkins is no spring chicken.

 

[Rey]

From the game film I've seen I'd take Rowe as a Safety and Jones as a Corner. I also see Rowe ending up as a better Safety at the pro level than I see Jones as a Corner. Rowe can potentially become a very good ST's cover guy on top of it ... Bottom line, I'd take Rowe over Jones. Jones is a freak of an athlete, but that doesn't automatically translate to becoming a great football player.

 

[Deano]

One of the kids we already have will be fine at Safety. Either Wolfe or Watkins will look better because he now has better players around him at CB and LB.

Spend the high picks on WR and OL.

 

[GenJac]

I'd put WR order like this: Jordan Matthews 1, Riley Cooper 2, Josh Huff 3, Miles Austin 4, Seji Ajirotutu 5.

 

[old duke]

?

 

[Southieinnc]

I like the guy but not as a safety. He is a project at CB but with the combine, somebody will reach. I still don't think he will be picked in the 1st - even as a reach.....