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  1. #25
    Join Date
    Jan 2008
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    Re: Round 4 - Reaches?

    On Iloka from http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/draft/players/1621494

    He is an explosive athlete, but lacks quick change-of-direction that would make him special.
    {and}
    Weaknesses: Has a lean, narrow frame and needs to get stronger -- doesn't have the body type to get too much bigger with limited growth potential. Has tense ankles and hips with choppy footwork when attempting to redirect and doesn't always look natural changing directions. Tends to play leggy and needs to tighten his angles in pursuit. Will slide off tackle attempts at times and needs to show better tackling technique to consistently finish. Wasn't overly productive and never led the team in tackles, putting together an average senior season with 1 pass break-up and zero interceptions in 2011. Has questionable on-field attitude and needs to play more disciplined and calm -- taken out of games in the past by coaching staff for minor scuffles and poor sportsmanship (has also gotten into a few shouting matches with head coach Chris Peterson after being removed from the game).
    Ravens had Thompson rated higher, may not even had Iloka in their 150. Bengals took him at 167? should tell us something that it was the Bengals that took him 37 picks later.
    at one point of my life I was exactly Pi years old





  2. #26

    Re: Round 4 - Reaches?

    Bottom line is the draft didn't go the way the brass wanted and more unsettling to me....expected. They felt forced to draft players earlier than planned. IMO (via presser and audio) they were surprised by the flow of the draft. Streeter is such a project, it's insulting to the word "project". A hole/need that THEY said needed to be addressed is still there.





  3. #27

    Re: Round 4 - Reaches?

    I'll admit that I wasn't happy when both Gradkowski and Thompson was first drafted.

    Looking back on it now, I'm a lot more okay with both picks, and I think I actually like the Gradkowski pick. You have a guy who can start this year if Birk can't stay healthy and also seems capable of starting at OG if we needed him to replace Yanda or KO. My initial irritation with taking him was because guys like Nick Toon and the like were still on the board and I really wanted one of those WRs. Now that the dust has settled, having GG in camp definitely makes us stronger on a short-term basis than a rookie WR (often hit or miss).

    I'm still not sold on the Christian Thompson pick, but the Ravens have done an incredibly good job of drafting Safeties the last decade, so I'm willing to trust their judgement.





  4. #28
    Join Date
    Feb 2009
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    Re: Round 4 - Reaches?

    Quote Originally Posted by LukeDaniel View Post
    I'll admit that I wasn't happy when both Gradkowski and Thompson was first drafted.

    Looking back on it now, I'm a lot more okay with both picks, and I think I actually like the Gradkowski pick. You have a guy who can start this year if Birk can't stay healthy and also seems capable of starting at OG if we needed him to replace Yanda or KO. My initial irritation with taking him was because guys like Nick Toon and the like were still on the board and I really wanted one of those WRs. Now that the dust has settled, having GG in camp definitely makes us stronger on a short-term basis than a rookie WR (often hit or miss).

    I'm still not sold on the Christian Thompson pick, but the Ravens have done an incredibly good job of drafting Safeties the last decade, so I'm willing to trust their judgement.
    I agree with pretty much everything you're saying.

    The Ravens brass did come out and say prior to the draft that this wasn't going to be a sexy draft and a lot of their picks were going to be about depth and the future. So...take that for what it's worth. They certainly weren't lying.
    Disclaimer: The content posted is of my own opinion.





  5. #29
    Join Date
    Jan 2012
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    Re: Round 4 - Reaches?

    Word has it that the 49ers where targeting Gradkowski, and where disappointed when the Ravens took him, accord to Matt Maiocco of CSN Bay Area.

    Sorry someone already posted it.
    Last edited by leachisabeast; 05-05-2012 at 07:49 PM. Reason: Beaten to it.





  6. #30
    Join Date
    Jun 2011
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    The Land of Verdite
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    Re: Round 4 - Reaches?

    Quote Originally Posted by Ravenswintitle View Post
    I keep seeing reference to this but I haven't seen anyone back it up. All I saw was a tweet that said 'some good teams' liked him. Is there anything more?
    I back it up.
    "Please take with you this final sword, The Excellector. I am praying that your journey will be guided by the light", Leon Shore





  7. #31
    Join Date
    Jul 2011
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    The Greater Metropolitan Granite Falls, NC Area
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    Re: Round 4 - Reaches?

    Scally-
    First, IMO the term "reach" has to be defined or else the whole conversation deals with a fan's emotional response to whether he or she "liked" the pick or not v. any kind of analytical assessment. There's another thread (How'd we do, or something similar) where a many-page discussion wages on over whether or not the Ravens administration were "panicked" or not during the draft. The term creates an emotion that is tough to quantify, so the debate becomes almost moot.

    Second, IMHO, while I really respect and enjoy reading the opinions of others on how these guys will turn out, their being a reach can't be certain for a bunch more months.





  8. #32
    Join Date
    Jun 2011
    Location
    New York City
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    Re: Round 4 - Reaches?

    "Reach" is a relative team, depending on the person viewing the draft pick. Just as "steal" is on the opposite side of the coin. "How could we reach for that guy in the 2nd round, but at least we got a steal in the 5th." Keep in mind that none of these picks has played a single down in the NFL yet. It's really all for amusement value, just like mock drafts are... Bc





  9. #33

    Re: Round 4 - Reaches?

    It's a bit absurd for arm-chair GM's to be "grading" a draft and declaring winners and losers before players even play one snap. Sure, do it in a year or two, but if the bloggers and commentators knew more than the GM's, they would be employed by the team, and not talking about what other people are doing. You draft who you think can help your team, not who's rated highest by some arbitrary people.





  10. #34

    Re: Round 4 - Reaches?

    It is hard to say if a pick is a reach or not. People assume that a pick is a reach because the team could have waited to draft the same player. But what we will never know is if another team would have scooped up that player shortly thereafter. Reach is a media term based on their projections. The media does not have scouts that attend Delaware games so they are not going to have an interior Oline guy slated to go high. Nor are they going to have a safety from a small school slated to go high either.

    The only think that really matters is how these guys turn out. Really need Osmele, Gradkowski and Upshaw to become starters this year or next.





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