YoHo's Early Draft Thoughts

[YoHoChecko]

Also, loving Yasir Abdullah out of Louisville. YaYa Diaby stole the show at the combine and is a more prototypical edge, but Abdullah was the team's sack leader and team captain. He;s listed and grouped with the LBs because he'ss only 6'0" 240, but his arms are long enough to still play as a situational rusher. He wasn't asked to play in space a ton in college but when he did he looked good.

Basically from a size/positional versatility/leadership and character point of view, he's a 4th round version of Nolan Smith. He's in there with Nick Hampton as my favorites in that EDGE/off ball hybrid speed rusher role

[YoHoChecko]

I took a peek at Zavala because he was frequently one of the top options available when drafting in Round 5 on the PFF Sim before they paywalled it. Heh...

5th round is a pipe dream.

Multiple draftnik types predicted he would be either the first or second guy drafted who didn't go to the combine. Scouts were baffled by his lack of invite. I'd be shocked if he makes it out of Day 2.

Just wanted to chime in to say apparently there may be some medical questions that need to be checked out, so perhaps 5th round is not, in fact, a pipe dream. Touche.

[YoHoChecko]

At 13, I want...

1. JSN
2. Nolan Smith
3. Trade down
4. Trade up for Jalen Carter using the 45th pick
5. Darnell Wright
6. Peter Skoronski
7. Myles Murphy
8. Bryan Bresee
9. Brian Branch
10. ??? Nah I think that's it for guys I want at 13.

[TheSkeptic]

My opinions for what they are worth:
Trade: #13 (1150) for #29 (640) and #40 (500). That is with New Orleans
#29 Brian Branch, Alabama, Safety 6' 190
#40 Luke Musgrave 6'6 253, 4.61 40, Oregon State
#42 Jaelen Duncan OT, 6' 5" 315, Maryland
#45 Keion White OLB 6'4" 260, Georgia Tech
#78 Rashee Rice, Slot Receiver, 6'3" 205, 4.51 40

That is as far as I will go. After the third round it is a crap shoot anyway. But I would like to see a Dlineman and another TE.

[YoHoChecko]

I ereally want JSN and think he's a great fit in our offense.

And I've said multiple times that the idea that the Packers don't draft WRs in round 1 is silly 5 years into a new GM who has attempted to trade up for WRs maybe 3 times in those 5 years and who took a guy at 34 that he tried to take at 32....

...and given that it's been longer since the team took a TE in the first than it has a WR, but everyone is mocking TEs.... but I digress.

Anyway, I really want JSN and like him but a part of me wants Love to succeed without idiot fans saying "well now that they finally drafted a receiver in round one..." like that's the deciding factor.

I won't let idiots determine what I want, but man, it'd be nice not to have that storyline.

[YoHoChecko]

Why aren't more people saying Marvin Mims is better than Jalin Hyatt?

Greg Cosell:

hahaha, uhh, ya know it's actually an interesting question. Um, again, I... Jalin Hyatt to me is a guy that caught a lot of deep balls and there's no question that his tape shows that he can run. Ya know they're probably similar in how they'll be deployed in the NFL, so now you get into 'who do you like better?'

That's a hard question. They're very similar; ya know Mims... I personally think Mims showed--particularly in 2021 because I remember watching his tape last summer--I thought Mims last year really showed competitiveness and mental toughness working in the middle of the field between the numbers and I really like that about him. Now, obviously it was a different offense this year; he didn't do that as much, but that's on tape. Now I don't think he's quite on the level of someone like Jahan Dotson when Dotson came out last year who was just a force for his size working between the numbers and was super competitive and super tough. But I thought Mims showed more of that in 2021 than he was asked to do this year.

I would not have a problem--and again, I don't think of it as I'm doing these guys; I know Dane probably does and I'd like to hear his point of view--I don't really think there's a large difference between these two players and I could understand someone liking Mims more.

Dane Brugler:

Yeah, I think that's fair. I don't know that there's a huge difference between the two--Hyatt you're getting a little more size. I think their speed is probably very very comparable; uhhh, well Hyatt ran a 4.40 and Mims a 4.38, so 40 yard dash is very very similar. Ya know, with Hyatt when you have that type of speed--I was really sold on his ball skills. I was very surprised by his ability to track the ball and then consistently, he caught the ball away from his body. He's not a guy that's gonna try to use his body to trap, he's not going to use his wrists to bring in those throws. He is reaching back and attacking the ball before it got to him.

And I think when you can do those two things; you have that vertical speed element, you have those ball tracking skills... that can be a weapon if deployed in the right way. But I'm with you; I think maybe Hyatt in the 2nd round, Mims in the 3rd round... if you want to make an argument that you'd rather have Mims in the 3rd than Hyatt in the 2nd I completely understand why you'd come away with that perspective.

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*courtesy of Dane Brugler's NFL Draft Beast

[YoHoChecko]

Why aren't more people saying that Yasir Abdullah is better than Nate Herbig?

Dane Brugler:

Say those names again.... hmm, ok. Ummm, I think we've seen Abdullah do more in reverse as an off-ball player than we've seen Herbig do. I think that's... Herbig's is difficult because he was a pass rusher at Wisconsin. And now what's he going to be at the next level? What's the position? When he's undersized as a pass rusher, 6'2" 240, doesn't have the length that you want, but his tape's really good getting after the QB. So can he play off the ball? What type of role are we looking at?

Uh Abdullah... ya know, I.. I... that's fair. Because Abdullah he's not quite as big as Herbig but I think he has more versatile production of playing off the ball, being able to play against the run, but also getting to the QB. So I think it's easy, you could make that argument, Abdullah may be the more versatile player and more.. the easier projection to what he's going to be as opposed to Herbig, who I think he showed more juice as a rusher, but what's he going to be at the next level. What's that role going to look like.

To me, these are 3rd and 4th round players, guys there's not a huge gap between these players.

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[YoHoChecko]

I don't know why the closer the draft gets the more I just feel Bryan Bresee screams Packer

21 years old. Elite recruit. Had a down year which creates a little value. Overcame adversity. Nonstop motor. Need position. 4.86 40 at nearly 300 pounds

The only thing that bugs me is that despite his height, he lacks the arm length of your typical 5-tech. If he had 33.5 inch arms, I'd be all in.

But regardless of how I'd feel about the pick (better than lukewarm but less than enthusiastic joy) it feels like an underrated fit.

[BF004]

[mention]YoHoChecko[/mention]

Where is your list of all good Packers OL fits?

Particularly in those 2-5 rounds.

[Yoop]

I ereally want JSN and think he's a great fit in our offense.

And I've said multiple times that the idea that the Packers don't draft WRs in round 1 is silly 5 years into a new GM who has attempted to trade up for WRs maybe 3 times in those 5 years and who took a guy at 34 that he tried to take at 32....

...and given that it's been longer since the team took a TE in the first than it has a WR, but everyone is mocking TEs.... but I digress.

Anyway, I really want JSN and like him but a part of me wants Love to succeed without idiot fans saying "well now that they finally drafted a receiver in round one..." like that's the deciding factor.

I won't let idiots determine what I want, but man, it'd be nice not to have that storyline.

I don't want Kncaid just to say something like that, or Njigba either and I think you know that, but I'am sure some will say that.

what I don't agree with so much is that Guty tried to trade up in round 1 for a receiver, I remember he said he did in the Jefferson draft class, but there where other good prospects in the 2nd round of that draft and others and he passed on them, I thought most of his comments concerning his att5empts to trade up where just covering for his decisions not to

[Labrev]

Anyway, I really want JSN and like him but a part of me wants Love to succeed without idiot fans saying "well now that they finally drafted a receiver in round one..." like that's the deciding factor.

I won't let idiots determine what I want, but man, it'd be nice not to have that storyline.

This actually makes me want it more lol, I am going to headcanon that Gute's decision to draft JSN or any WR in Round 1 was done purely to spite Rodgers.

Then Gute will defend the pick on its merits to the public, but he will privately think about all the people in the media bemoaning how he never did this for Rodgers, and he will think to himself... "heh heh! Yeah that's right, your boi Rodgers just got OWNED, bitch!!!!" And all the people who actually do bemoan that IRL will help bring my crazy LARP to life!

[BF004]

Anyway, I really want JSN and like him but a part of me wants Love to succeed without idiot fans saying "well now that they finally drafted a receiver in round one..." like that's the deciding factor.

I won't let idiots determine what I want, but man, it'd be nice not to have that storyline.

This actually makes me want it more lol, I am going to headcanon that Gute's decision to draft JSN or any WR in Round 1 was done purely to spite Rodgers.

JSN at 13, trade up for Mayer around 25. Come out in the presser and say 'I just had the chance to have a group facetime with Jordan, Jaxon and Michael'

[YoHoChecko]

It's been a week or several days since I've mentioned just how into the positional 'tweeners on D I am this year.

K. White, A. Adeboware, K. Green

Just weird jumbo edges that will play 4i or 5/3-tech in the league but who can be multi-tools in sub packages as well as fill DLine depth.

[YoHoChecko]

YoHo Said WHAT?

Here's a long post in which I use our simple search function to dig up all my pre-draft process opinions of guys who actually ended up on the team. Always fun to have a little review and accountability.

Let's start at the beginning; a very good place to start:

Lukas Van Ness

I could see LVN being the type of EDGE the team likes, but he won't be ready to contribute fulltime for a while so I'm personally not a huge fan of the value there.

Am I the only one who would prefer Nolan Smith to LVN as our early edge of choice?

He is an athletic freak with the highest football character imaginable. Just a culture changer and enforcer, a ready made run defender, an athletic marvel, and further along in his pass rush development than LVN.

That's why I'm open to the idea of last year's draft picks, like Jermaine Johnson. Johnson would, in my view, be ranked ahead of LVN and Nolan Smith in this year's class,

Yeah EDGE is devoutly a premium position with lots of good draft options this year.

Murphy or Smith would be tough to pass up for me. LVN I could come around on.

Food for thought on LVN

How would you compare him to Gary as a prospect? Physically they have very similar attributes and athletic testing. Both were used in college in ways that limited their production--Gary in more of a read/react pass rusher and run defender, LVN as a rotational pass rusher.

Gary was much more developed, in my view, in terms of how to play the game. Gary seems to move more explosively, which I guess shows up in the vertical and broad? LVN seems to be more of a power rusher but still needs to add some strength and refinement to better utilize that style

Anyway, I tend to feel like Gary is a better prospect, and that 10-15 feels too rich for LVN. But given the similarities, and that the Packers are in a place where an edge who needs some time might make sense, I guess others might feel differently

Which players would you be able to live with going ahead of him on our board (be mildly realistic about who's there at 13, but obviously anything can happen)

For me, I'm definitely with Nolan Smith on the list of guys I'd be ok with.

I think Darnell Wright is marginally there but I'd convince myself he was all the way on the list pretty quickly.

I would not be ok with LVN that early. Or Murphy.

Brian Branch and Bryan Bresee would have me feeling weird and conflicted. Like the players, don't like the value. Would pine for JSN

Luke Musgrave

The class is deeeeeep so if we miss out early, there are a ton of options, and it's hard to know how they'll stack in terms of draft order and draft stock. Luke Musgrave (yes, the coach's son) is a really good all around option as a Tonyan replacement, but after missing most of the year with injury, he could be a 2nd rounder (too rich) or a 5th rounder (outstanding value). Sam LaPorta (Iowa) is kind of similar, but a step down for me
I am all the way out on Dalton Kincaid. He's like 25 and still has major development in terms of blocking and strength

I'm combing the internet for Senior Bowl practice takes and there are tons of different observations from different places, but I like to look out for consensus guys who impress and a few names seem to be popping up from lots of different sources:

Some other positives mentioned multiple places:
- Luke Musgrave maybe meeting the absurd hype, but not mentioned often, so maybe not

I hear mixed things on Musgrave.

Some say that he's a good enough blocker with room to improve. Rick Speilman and his pod co-host from CBS say he can't block anyone. They also say he dropped more balls than about anyone down there this week. The NFL Network guys are ready to take Musgrave in the top 20. Speilman and Wilson sound like he's borderline top 50.

Honestly seems like the kind of elite athlete at a need position that the Packers would roll the dice on, so I'll be watching his process, but I'm more skeptical than "in love" at this point.

I need to know more about Musgrave, but there isn't enough tape to evaluate. So to me he remains highly risky. HUGE upside.

Pick 21: Luke Musgrave, TE, 6'6" 255 pounds
Standing alone, I would hate this pick. I would spend Thursday night and Friday afternoon frustrated that we didn't get a more surefire player with our top pick. Musgrave is traits. He's a coach's son and definitely can play ball, but he only played 2 games last year due to an injury and has very limited film and reps. He's a project. But he's a FUN project. He was recorded over 20 mph by Senior Bowl GPS tracking, showing his game speed is insane for a guy that big. The size/speed/football IQ profile is incredibly tantalizing for the Packers' front office and at a need position. They take the leap.

Honestly, I also don't like Musgrave as a first; I just think he very well might be anyway and he really screams to me the type of prospect we value, for better and for worse. I'm trying to convince myself to be ok with it in the event that it happens. I mean huge men who catch the ball and have incredible athletic testing are sort of our bread and butter (though usually not this early). The thing about TEs in general is that they rarely contribute as rookies, and they always have a lot to learn. These two picks are more for 2024-26 than for 2023 which is a tough pill to swallow, but in Love's first year, it feels to me the right time to sacrifice time for upside.

I agree that none is worth 15 but there’s a *chance* Mayer, Washington, Kincaid, and Musgrave are gone before we pick at 45, though I think one will be there.

But the class is deep. Taking LaPorta or Kraft or Schoonmaker isn’t scrambling.

Jayden Reed

By the way, Jayden Reed is crushing the Senior Bowl at 5'10 1/2" 190, so if you really want a small dynamic slot receiver you can have one without paying a first round price.

Jayden Reed, especially scorched the guys at the Senior Bowl. He looks real, he returns punts, and he's a contested catch guy despite his size? Great!.

I agree about needing more of a quick winner as route runners, which speaks to Tillman, Iosivas, Musgrave, and Washington picks. I think because I went with my preferred guys at each one, I also wound up ignoring some secondary options who might help alleviate that. Like if we had Jayden Reed and Iosivas or Tillman and Tyler Scott or Hutchinson and Parker Washington or something like that, it's probably a better balance. But my thinking is actually that Doubs is that guy and Toure can maybe be that guy. Both are quick and have good releases. I also love Bo Melton as a prospect and wanted him in last year's draft, but I haven't really seen what he can do.

Tucker Kraft

I like Kraft! He’s probably right behind LaPorta for me but he falls into that dead zone between preferred guys and day 3 projects where very few Packers fans that I see wind up mentioning him (including me)

He’s good at everything, great at maybe nothing, which is a really useful kind of guy to develop. Versatile enough not to be pigeon holed into a “type” of TE.

Just sort of missed our normal circles, kind of like Tucker Kraft at TE. Perfectly legitimate prospect/need/draft stock fit that is so often a second or third choice that he doesn’t get mentioned.

Colby Wooden

5 Technique
A few players to watch for this role would be Colby Wooden, Adetomiwa Adebawore, and Byron Young. As mentioned, there’s some player-type overlap with the 3t. Many of the 5t prospects in the draft could also play over the guard."

I don't actually like Wooden for the role. I don't think he has the mass to be any kind of upgrade, at under 275 pounds.

Dontayvian Wicks

Twitter loves this fit for the Packers. He apparently hit all the metrics and is big-ish with long arms

He's feels mediocre to me. Like a guy you take knowing full well his ceiling is a role player. But that can be ok. If we take him, then fine. He can be a STer and our WR4/5 for a few years before moving along and bouncing around the league

1. Dalton Kincaid
2. Jalin Hyatt
3. Dontayvion Wicks
4. Calijah Kancey
5. Tank Dell

I’m not anti Wicks. He’s just meh to me.

He’s slow on tape. He a role player. He’ll be fine.

Davante comparison?

No. James Jones comparison.

More to come tomorrow

[YoHoChecko]

I was just searching some old posts to see what I had said about Enagbare before and when he was drafted, and I happened upon a list of 75 names I was really into before the 2021 draft. About 260 people get drafted every year, so a 75-oerson list is like 30%, so it's not like this is SUUUPER impressive, but I did notice a bunch of familiar names on the list

I feel like I've been a lot more laser-focused on my absolute favorites this year at the expense of putting out more names that I like and I just wanted to list a bunch of guys I like, but who for whatever reason (perceived draft stock/value, positional needs, just obsessed with other favorites) I haven't talked as much about.

So I wanted to go position by position, and just make some lists of guys I like (bolded guys being my oft-mentioned favorites)

Wide Receiver
Christian Watson
Romeo Dubbs
Bo Melton

Offensive Line
Zach Tom

Interior Defensive Line
Devante Wyatt

Edge Defender
Kingsley Enagbare

Off-Ball Linebacker
Quay Walker