Alen Dumonjic

It’s no secret: the quickest way to a quarterback is through the middle of the field.

That means a team should prioritize finding dominant, playmaking athletes in that specific area of the field. The athletes can vary in position, such as defensive tackle, middle linebacker or safety. The most important of those three is a defensive tackle, particularly a three technique.

A dominant three technique is the quickest way to disrupt a quarterback’s comfort level in the pocket and the rhythm of an offense. The position is more important than any of the edge-rushers, which is commonly cited as the one of the NFL’s premier defensive positions, and both DEs and OLBs have become a significant factor with the further expansion of zone blitzes. A defensive tackle who can shoot a gap or even drop into short coverage is a great asset to have, and NFL teams will get the chance to add that kind of player later this month when Missouri defensive tackle Sheldon Richardson is on the board.

Read the rest of this entry »

One of the raging debates circulating in football is how players fit into schemes. Should a team adjust their scheme to fit players more frequently, or should they just bypass talent if it doesn’t fit their requirements? More often than not, players are dropped from public and private team draft boards because they are deemed unfit for a specific scheme. There are plenty of players in this year’s draft — perhaps more than in recent years — who have to go to a specific team to be successful, but one of them is not Utah nose tackle Star Lotulelei.

Read the rest of this entry »

Without a doubt, there’s concern over BYU’s Ezekiel Ansah potentially becoming a bust. However, one can’t help but wonder what kind of player he could be if he spends time honing his craft at only one position.

In college, he didn’t do that. He played everything from nose tackle to outside linebacker. It’s concerning that he was used all over the line because it could be an indicator of his football knowledge or how the coaching staff felt about his ability to produce at one spot. It’s also a positive, though, as playing in the interior helps a defensive linemen become a better pass-rusher.

Read the rest of this entry »

I can remember the debate over why Mario Williams was struggling in his first two years in the NFL. One reason for his inconsistency was playing each end position, which theoretically should be an easy flip of alignments, but in practice it’s not. Left tackles are generally more athletic than right tackles, and right tackles are usually the stronger of the two, while the Y-tight end usually lines up on the right side. Also, more runs are called in that direction, and the footwork and handwork is mirrored too.

Those are the concerns with college pass-rushers making the transition to a different position in the pros. Whether it’s a defensive end moving to outside linebacker in a 3-4 scheme or a defensive end sliding inside to defensive tackle in sub-packages or going from weak-side to strong-side, there’s a reason to be cautious even if it looks like the correct position for a player.

Those are the worries with UCLA’s Datone Jones, who played a variety of techniques in the Bruins’ 3-4 scheme. You name the alignment, and he’s played it. Many will praise him for it because that indicates versatility, and to a degree it does, but there’s a fine line between versatility and stunting development. For all his physical tools, Jones still has learning to do if he wants to play any position he’s assigned in the pros.

Read the rest of this entry »

When a traditional NFL scout rolls the film of Alec Ogletree’s games, he’ll probably become quickly upset. Ogletree, an inside linebacker in Georgia’s 3-4 defense, is somewhat allergic to physicality.

He’s not particularly fond of offensive linemen combination blocking him at the second level, which is evident by his reluctance to use his hands to avoid the blocks. At times, he’ll just stand and get blocked out of the play. Just watch the SEC Championship game against Alabama. On some running downs, it’s like he wasn’t even playing as he’s moved out of middle of the field like a truck cleaning a snowy road.

Read the rest of this entry »

When Bill Walsh was coaching in the 1980s, he used to say that few can coach quarterbacks, and fewer can evaluate them. The wisdom from the old ball coach was true then and still holds true today, with many struggling to identify a proper quarterback.

This year, it’s perhaps even more difficult. With the draft class lacking a truly elite, standout prospect. Instead, it’s filled with players who may not be a fit for all systems, but are for a select few. In the end, that may be enough to determine who will or won’t succeed.

A quarterback that has many split is Southern California’s Matt Barkley. Once considered a top-tier and clear No. 1 prospect, he’s suddenly fallen in evaluator’s eyes and is debated not only as the second best quarterback, but in some cases, third best.

The biggest knock on Barkley has been his arm strength, which is clearly not to be mistaken for Aaron Rodgers’ arm or even Tom Brady’s arm at this point in his career. It’s synonymous with Matt Flynn’s, who throws a beautiful deep ball by putting air underneath it but struggles with velocity in the middle of the field. For some, that sets off a mental alarm. Flynn’s been a backup quarterback all his career and wasn’t exactly a highly-coveted passer coming out of LSU.

It’s true, he wasn’t.

Read the rest of this entry »

When Jesse Williams is selected in this April’s draft, he’ll be only the second non-punter, Australian-born athlete in NFL history. It’s rare to see a football prospect from Australia, but Williams has defied the odds and has the look of a high quality defender in the pros.

He’s built like a tree. His lower body is thinner than his upper, which expands as it goes up and features trunks for arms. One could argue the upper body is constructed with only muscle because he’s inhumanely strong, once claiming to bench press 600 pounds at Alabama’s weight room. He’s also nimble on his feet despite being six-foot-three and 323 pounds.

Read the rest of this entry »