With the 77th overall pick, the St. Louis Rams select Jon Alston, OLB, Stanford

[Tony Soprano]

He is 6'1" 224lbs and runs a 4.52.

His combine time was 4.40 - the fastest among all linebackers. He's a FREAK !

Source:

http://colts.scout.com/2/521438.html

[RealRam]

What does a 230 pound safety say? "Here Receiver, Receiver" -- TSoprano

LOL Good one, Tony. ...Mercy, he'd be a monster at DB!

Here's a link to a picture of Little Jon without pads: http://eagles.scout.com/2/521774.html

[Tony Soprano]

Quotes on Jon Alston:

"BEST OF THE BEST: If you want a pass rusher, Jon Alston is your guy. He had 21 career sacks at Stanford"
RICK GOSSELIN, The Dallas Morning News
http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercu...s/14390252.htm

"Linehan said he envisions Alston assuming a linebacker/safety hybrid role similar to that of Adam Archuleta, whom the Rams allowed to leave as a free agent after last season. Alston can rush the passer -- he made 16 sacks the past two seasons -- and also can drop into coverage in third-down pass situations. He is also being counted on to bolster the Rams' special-teams units."
Mercury News

"There may not be a more explosive linebacker in the draft. Alston flies around the field with excellent speed and quickness. He uses that speed to be a playmaker in various roles."
Draft analyst Robert Davis

"Remember the name: An interesting name emerging near the top of the second round is linebacker Jon Alston. The Raiders like him. The Broncos are on him heavy, and they have the sixth pick of the second round, one ahead of Oakland. In the first or second round, the Broncos would like to add a pass-rusher either at end or linebacker"
John Clayton, ESPN

`I'm going to do a lot of things for them,'' Alston said. ``I'll do whatever any team asks me to do. Whatever it is, I am a defensive player first, and I play football. You can stick me at cornerback and I will make plays for you.''
Jon Alston on playing for the Rams

"Has an amazing burst and can even stay with wide receivers."
Draft Analysis.com


" Underrated Jon Alston, Stanford. Produced 16.5 sacks the past two seasons. Can play either outside position and explodes to the ball. He doesn't have ideal size, but is a big hitter who closes on the ball quickly."
Clark Judge, CBS sportsline


"In the last two seasons made 40.5 plays behind the line, more than either Parham or Wilkinson. This prospect is the TOP S candidate in this class, Polamalu-esque in his impact potential. As a LB, Tampa 2 type. "
Stillers.com

`He helped himself considerably that (combine) weekend,'' said Gil Brandt, the Dallas Cowboys' vice president of player personnel in 1960-89 and now a senior analyst with NFL.com. ``He is a good player that has all of the numbers that you want.''
Gil Brandt

"Alston is a linebacker, who might play strong safety on Sundays and spends more time in opposing backfields than most ends. In his first year as a starter, he emerged as a one-man force in 2004, collecting 14 tackles for loss and 10 sacks to go along with three forced fumbles. Alston displays great instincts and athleticism from his outside spot and hits with the ferocity of a man much bigger than 6-1 and 220 pounds. Wherever he winds up playing, there’ll be a vacancy for him in the NFL."
Richard Cirminiello, College Football News

"Alston is well sculpted with little body fat - rocked-up with muscle...Compares to Greg Lloyd...has looks and moves of a safety but will hit and strike like a LB...explosive and can play off blocks quickly...very strong for size...can stick his hand on the ground and be very disruptive blitzing off the edge...plays fast and closes on the ball in a hurry...smooth mover, great range, secure tackler...can lock down backs (showed he could cover Reggie Bush)."
Nolan Nawrocki, Pro Football Weekly

"I actually found out that one team worked out Alston as a Tight End. "
Tony Soprano - Ram's Fan


Of Course, Every write-up mentioned that he was undersized.

[DenisSerbia]

Another good pick! Fast and furious!

[Tony Soprano]

Reading the description of Alston playing at Stanford, I thought of former Bear Great, Wilber Marshall. So, I searched for info on Marshall when he came out of college.

I found this where Marshall describes his senior year at Florida:
“Charley (Pell) just lined me up on the weak side every play and I chased them down from behind,” said Marshall. “I was 220 and I could run as fast as their running backs. They made the mistake of thinking they could run that student body right or left any time they wanted and I just caught them from the back side. I was just running free and having fun. When they threw, I just beat their tackles and I finished with a bunch of sacks.”

Marshall was 220 lbs coming out of college and he made plays with his speed in pursuit and by beating tackles around the edge pass rushing.

[tomahawk247]

From what i hear, Alston is an awesome cover linebacker, so it makes sense to switch him to SS

Also, i heard Roanall Smith is absolutely awesome in coverage, and we know Pisa and Spoon are good against the pass also

So i wouldnt be surprised to see a Big OLB taken to help against the run, or maybe a DE to play as a a 3-4 rusher, but who could also play OLB against the run

[RamsFan4ever]

I would change him to SS and he did more benches than AJ Hawk??? WOW!!!!

[RAM-BO]

Perhaps brought in for 3-4 depth.

[rampete]

initially, i thought alston was a workout warrior and a reach at that spot, but having read up on several scouting reports it seems he is an instinctive backer with outstanding tackling skills. the major knock on him is his lack of ideal size, similar to witherspoon when he came out.

upside: shredded physique w/ great strength for his size. explosive hitter. can run around the field and close fast to the ball. puts hand down on the ground in nickel situations and is disruptive coming off the edge, with 16.5 sacks the last two years from both OLB positions. has great lateral quickness and plays fast. good chase speed. will strike and roll his hips on contact. plays with a sense of urgency. has fluid movement skills to run stride for stride with backs and mirror them out of their breaks. adjusts well to the ball in the air. very smart and plays with awareness.

downside: lacks ideal size and is built more like a safety than a linebacker. plays out of control and will miss some tackles going for the kill shot. can get engulfed and struggle to come free. does not have the anchor strength to hold his ground and squeeze running lanes.

lined up at strong side as a senior and was handcuffed playing out of position with few opportunities to make plays. played more on the opne side as a junior and looked like superman going across the tv screen. would be a great fit in a scheme like that of the colts or bucs, where he could see and go. could be a demon on special
teams and dynamite as a nickel linebacker, maybe even as a nickle safety. is rocked up with muscle and has a build similar to that of former steelers OLB greg lloyd when lloyd was coming out of college.

40 time: 4.40
10 time: 1.56
short shuttle: 4.14
3-cone: 6.90
bench: 30 reps
vertical: 40.5"

another report:

strength: is athletic and shows great instincts. takes solid angles to the ball and pursues hard on every play. shows nice body control, quickness, speed and range in run support. doesn't overpursue and fills cutback lanes. hits hard. consistently wraps up ballcarriers in the open field. is an instinctive blitzer; avoids blocks to get to qb. shows improved coverage skills and athleticism to match up with nfl running backs and TEs. has the experience and mind-set to ccontribute on special teams.

weaknesses: is undersized. lacks the ideal bulk and lower-body strength to hold his ground at the point of
attack. must learn to play with better leverage. must improve his recognition skills. tends to get lost in coverage.

[Nick]

If the Rams use a second day draft pick on a more pure linebacker, I'd be fine trying Alston out at safety.

...

I just think if we're going to be moving him into the secondary, we need to draft another linebacker to at least compete with Chillar and/or provide depth.

And since we took McGarigle to add more depth at LB, I'll stick to my word and give a big thumbs up to using Alston in a hybrid safety role.

[Tony Soprano]

Rampete, Nick, all

Yes, I've read a lot on this guy and talked to a couple Stanford fans. Seems they misued him somewhat when they played him on the strong side. On the weak side, like Wilber Marshall in college, he's a one man wrecking crew. Not surprisingly, he has trouble disengaging from blocks (as a DE). Taking on the Run head on is not his strength.

However, I read when he worked out for the Cowboys, he weighed 233. The guy is determined, committed, and dedicated. He likes to practice.

Where he will not fit into a conventional position at this point, I think the coaches could easily find ways to use him to create mismatches and totally disrupt the opposing offense. In this role, he would not be an every down player. He has a HUGE upside.
Many teams were interested but the position conversion moved him back due to the risk associated.

[RAM-BO]

Alston is a great athlete, which is one of the reasons his stock flew up to the first day to begin with. And if Haslett's scheme is designed to feature three smaller but faster linebackers, then he makes more sense. But personally I would have preferred someone with a bit more bulk, maybe a Clint Ingram or a day two guy like Spencer Havner, even if it means sacrificing a couple tenths of a second. Just my $0.02.

Obviously it would if Witherspoon is goina be the MLB.

[Nick]

Obviously it would if Witherspoon is goina be the MLB.

I said, "And if Haslett's scheme is designed to feature three smaller but faster linebackers, then he makes more sense."

But if Alston is moving to a safety role ala Archuleta and Chillar/Smith are competing for the third starting job, then the scheme actually does not feature three smaller but faster linebackers, but rather two small quick guys and one bigger bodied guy.

[RamsFan16]

I actually love the idea of moving Alston to SS. He may be only what you would call a 224lbs but he is nothing but muscle.