Bears coaches spending more time analyzing pr

Bears coaches spending more time analyzing prospects

No free agent recruiting or working with veterans leaves staff concentrating on draft


It has been business as usual for Lovie Smith this offseason, save for a few twists.
The Bears coach has yet to make any recruiting trips to lure a top free agent to Chicago. And Smith hasn't had to make any calls to his current players nudging them to join their teammates for voluntary workouts.

Yes, the NFL lockout and the no-contact rules associated with it have altered matters a bit. But the ongoing labor squabble between the players and owners — a battle that goes before a federal judge Wednesday in St. Paul, Minn., to determine if the lockout could be lifted — has had no effect on Smith's pre-draft preparation. If anything, it has helped him get a better feel for the prospects in this year's draft class.
"I know the players a lot better now than I did back when I talked to you last at the combine,'' Smith told the media at Maryville Academy in Des Plaines on Tuesday, where he attended the Ed Block Courage Award ceremony honoring nose tackle Anthony Adams.

"We've been out a few times watching guys work out and having personal workouts. And then just having a lot of time for video to see exactly what they look like on their tape from their season.''

It's no secret the Bears have done extensive homework on some of the top offensive and defensive line prospects in this draft. Smith himself recently was in North Carolina checking out defensive tackle Marvin Austin and others at the Tar Heels pro day, while defensive coordinator Rod Marinelli and offensive line coach Mike Tice have put players through drills at various pro days and during private workouts.
"We have had a little more time, but not more than in past years,'' general manager Jerry Angelo said about dissecting the draft prospects. "Everybody is basically doing what we usually do.''

But there's a big difference in this year's approach. Smith talked Tuesday about how excited he was to have a pick in each of the first two rounds, something the Bears didn't have the previous two seasons after trading for Jay Cutler and the late Gaines Adams and swapping picks with the Seahawks in '09. The key for the Bears will be selecting impact players with those two picks.

If an offensive linemen such as Florida's Mike Pouncey or Wisconsin's Gabe Carimi isn't available, the Bears figure to target a disruptive defensive tackle such as Austin, with Tommie Harris no longer in the picture.
Smith was asked for assessment of the defensive tackle prospects.
"Offensive line class, running backs, quarterbacks, wideouts, linebackers, DBs … it's a good solid draft,'' Smith said. "I can't say one group is a whole lot better than the other.''
vmcclure@tribune.com

Som real good stuff that applies to this draft when looking at certain players and their faults

My biggest misses and how each whiff has made me a better scout.

Wes Bunting

One of the biggest fronts that is often put up by any talent evaluator at any level is the idea that since they are professionals, they’re never wrong — which couldn’t be further from the truth.

I have been evaluating college prospects for the NFL Draft since 2002 and since then I’ve made numerous mistakes in evaluating prospects’ talents to the next level. However, instead of trying to hide them away, hoping no one will ever find them again, I like to embrace them, learn from them and try not to ever make the mistake again. In my view it’s the only way I can personally get better.
Therefore, here is a look at some of my worst evaluations on NFL prospects since 2002, as well as what I took from each and how I apply it to my trade now.


WR Matt Jones: Arkansas (2005)
The Combine effect kicked my butt on this evaluation. Jones was a 6-6, 242-pound kid and could run a sub 4.4. What else was there to know? He made big plays as a quarterback with the ball in his hands at Arkansas and would do the same thing in the NFL, right? Not quite. Looking back on tape of Jones, the guy is the definition of a strider. The further down the field he was asked to run the faster he got. However, when watching him try to change directions and get out of his breaks he was consistently forced to gear down and there was simply no burst whatsoever to his game.

Lesson learned: Don’t fall for striders; need to see a burst/natural explosion when asked to change directions in order to separate. Also, be cautious with conversion players. Don’t just assume they can make the change in positions, look for athletic attributes on tape that physically tell you they can do it.

QB Matt Ryan: Boston College (2008)
I had Ryan ranked as my top quarterback prospect in the 2008 NFL Draft, but he was not listed in my view as a top-15 pick. He possessed a pretty average arm and simply threw too many interceptions for my liking, and I instantly put the blinders on in all other areas of his game. My mistake was that I didn’t give enough credit to how poor the talent was around him and how much he was consistently asked to do. The guy simply made everyone around him better. He was a worker, a grinder and won games for you on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday because of his work ethic and film study. That’s the kind of QB I want on my team now.

Lesson learned: Grading the quarterback position is much more than just grading the talent; take in all the factors throughout their entire college career (injuries, talent around them, coaching changes, etc).

DE Aaron Maybin: Penn State (2009)
I saw the great get off burst from Maybin off the line and was instantly blinded to any other faults. However, looking back on tape of Maybin there was no real counter to his game, no real change of direction skills and he was more of a one-trick pony whose sacks simply came easy in the Big Ten. Therefore, in my mind, since he was a good straight-line athlete, they would obviously come easy to him in the NFL as well. Not quite.

Lesson learned: 1. Be very careful with underclassmen, especially redshirt sophomores. Make sure you know their entire background, work ethic and passion for the game. Evaluating them is much more than just the talent. If they aren’t mentally tough they will struggle with adversity, i.e. Aaron Maybin.
2. You need to be able to get after the quarterback in a variety of ways. NFL pass rushers need more than just a “fastball.” Can they change directions? Can they counter and use their hands to disengage? Can they effectively work the bull rush? They need some kind of “changeup” in order to keep offensive tackles off balance.

OT Tony Ugoh: Arkansas (2007)
I had Ugoh ranked as my 3rd offensive tackle on the board in 2007, behind only Joe Thomas and Levi Brown. Ugoh was athletic, long armed and could bend. However, he was narrow framed and didn’t have much natural functional football strength. I used to just assume offensive linemen could add weight and get stronger, but if they don’t have the lower half to support it, it simply never will happen. And if you have a tackle who struggles with power, he’s going to make every lineman he goes against look like a good pass rusher because they can consistently work the bull and take the shortest path to the quarterback.

Lesson learned: Lower body/anchor strength is key at offensive tackle and make sure the prospect really does have a naturally wide base to grow into if you note that he can improve his functional strength.

CB Stanford Routt: Houston (2005)
I let my own prejudices against taller corners get in the way of Routt’s evaluation in 2005 and just let my eyes believe what my mind wanted it to once he ran his 4.27 at the NFL Combine. In my mind (only) he was a size/speed corner who lacked balance, was stiff hipped and would never be anything more than a journeyman corner at the next level who would keep getting second opportunities because of his size/speed numbers. However, looking back on tape with my eyes this time, Routt displayed good flexibility in his lower half, could turn and run and overall was just raw. And when I look into his background even more as a prospect, I learned he was a good kid, clean off the field and was a hard worker who had the ability to reach his upside, which I will say he has in the NFL.

Lesson learned: Don’t let your prejudices or stereotypes of a player or position get in the way of grading the talent. See what the player can be, not what he is. Try to be farsighted looking long term, not short sighted.

"Always be cautious about conversion players. Don't just assume they can make the change of positions, look for athletic attributes on tape that physically tell you that they can do it".

Hoorah, truer words were never spoken but I've lost count of the number of times around here that someone projects a RT as a Bears prospect for LT. Or a guy whose role throughout his career has been as NT yet someone thinks he can play the UT spot just because the guy had some sacks as a NT. It's like a daily occurence around here not only with draftees but with FA's as well.

Don't draft OG's who may be able to play OT unless you can see the skills to do it already in them. Don't sign someone else's NT or DE and expect him to become a dominating UT in your defense. And don't draft WR's just because their big and we need one like that. It will take 3 years before we'll know if he was a good pick or not. Sign vet WR's in FA but draft for the all important positions like LT and UT.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by soulman

"Always be cautious about conversion players. Don't just assume they can make the change of positions, look for athletic attributes on tape that physically tell you that they can do it".

Hoorah, truer words were never spoken but I've lost count of the number of times around here that someone projects a RT as a Bears prospect for LT. Or a guy whose role throughout his career has been as NT yet someone thinks he can play the UT spot just because the guy had some sacks as a NT. It's like a daily occurence around here not only with draftees but with FA's as well.

Don't draft OG's who may be able to play OT unless you can see the skills to do it already in them. Don't sign someone else's NT or DE and expect him to become a dominating UT in your defense. And don't draft WR's just because their big and we need one like that. It will take 3 years before we'll know if he was a good pick or not. Sign vet WR's in FA but draft for the all important positions like LT and UT.

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yep sould think that point and the one about "better interview and know the maturity of underclassman" the best points that often go overlooked. many players CAN"T make the change and many undrclassman, esp in football where will be phsyically dominated for t least the first r 2 years of their career as they are still growing into bodies and going against bigger men, really can't deal with for the first times in life not "the top dog" and like a maybin just shrink away to nothing and do not rise to the challenge, like the bully that someone finally stands up to( benson had this problem with not being the #1 immediately).. which again many overlook this, but really is important esp with underclassman

This year above all, since we have all of our higher picks, they should be spending more time on the analysis of players on their board. Since the Bears only list those guys who fit the existing sytems at postions of need there's no reason that this shouldn't be a very good draft for JA and his crew. With needs as glaring as LT and UT it shouldn't be too hard to shape your first two rounds.

Plans A, B, and C need to be fully developed and trade partners (if any) sought now. Not on draft day. We need to know the absolute values involved with trading down and the absolute cost of trading up. There's gonna be some real surprises come draft day. I think a lot of guys will go far ahead of their rated spot and some will drop farther back than expected. Especially if a QB runs starts somewhere in the first.

This could actually be one of the more exciting drafts that we've ever had. There's a lot of shifting of picks and major discrepancies between the draft gurus. Just about anything could happen anywhere and JA needs to be uber prepared for this one.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by soulman

This year above all, since we have all of our higher picks, they should be spending more time on the analysis of players on their board. Since the Bears only list those guys who fit the existing sytems at postions of need there's no reason that this shouldn't be a very good draft for JA and his crew. With needs as glaring as LT and UT it shouldn't be too hard to shape your first two rounds.

Plans A, B, and C need to be fully developed and trade partners (if any) sought now. Not on draft day. We need to know the absolute values involved with trading down and the absolute cost of trading up. There's gonna be some real surprises come draft day. I think a lot of guys will go far ahead of their rated spot and some will drop farther back than expected. Especially if a QB runs starts somewhere in the first.

This could actually be one of the more exciting drafts that we've ever had. There's a lot of shifting of picks and major discrepancies between the draft gurus. Just about anything could happen anywhere and JA needs to be uber prepared for this one.

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yep , as keep saying more excited for ths draft than any in recent years, because of all the variables and teams in uncharted waters..And just hope people take into accunt there will be a F/A when the CBA is done.. so if we don't take a Guard early, its most likely not because "ignoring it", but because BETTER OPTIONS latr when do have F/A

I like the fact that the Lovie and his staff are out "kicking the tires" of not only the top guys (Plan A) at postions of need but also the second tier guys (Plan B). Plan A being pretty much stay at #29 or modestly trade up if the guy you just have to have is within easy reach. Plan B is pretty much the trade down strategy where you really have to know who of the remaining OT and DT prospects best fit your needs.

To me the goal is to come away from those rounds with potential starters. Anything less would be really disappointing.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by soulman

I like the fact that the Lovie and his staff are out "kicking the tires" of not only the top guys (Plan A) at postions of need but also the second tier guys (Plan B). Plan A being pretty much stay at #29 or modestly trade up if the guy you just have to have is within easy reach. Plan B is pretty much the trade down strategy where you really have to know who of the remaining OT and DT prospects best fit your needs.

To me the goal is to come away from those rounds with potential starters. Anything less would be really disappointing.

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exactly, in some ways #62 is as important as #29 and we need to ake BOTH pcks count, if you get a nice find in the later picks, great- but think for 2011 we need an impact from these 2 picks