MSNBC Draft Grade

[moloch41]

I know we've discussed the "Absurtity of Draft Grades", but here's one from MSNBC anyway...

St. Louis Rams


The Rams got a good player and filled a need with defensive end Chris Long, but went against their draft board to get him. They then reached for Houston Donnie Avery, a raw receiver who may not be ready to do more than return kicks, with the No. 33 overall pick. John Greco of Toledo is a fine tackle pass protection prospect.
Kentucky receiver Keenan Burton is injury prone. Cornerback Justin King is raw and may simply be a workout wonder. Tulsa safety Chris Chamberlain is another “measurables” pick. Idaho linebacker David Vobora is this year’s Mr. Irrelevant.


Grade: D+

[HUbison]

As if MSNBC needed to further prove their lack of credibility.

[rammiser]

I know we've discussed the "Absurtity of Draft Grades", but here's one from MSNBC anyway...

St. Louis Rams


The Rams got a good player and filled a need with defensive end Chris Long, but went against their draft board to get him. They then reached for Houston Donnie Avery, a raw receiver who may not be ready to do more than return kicks, with the No. 33 overall pick. John Greco of Toledo is a fine tackle pass protection prospect.
Kentucky receiver Keenan Burton is injury prone. Cornerback Justin King is raw and may simply be a workout wonder. Tulsa safety Chris Chamberlain is another “measurables” pick. Idaho linebacker David Vobora is this year’s Mr. Irrelevant.


Grade: D+

I need to become a sprots writer. You can just spew things out of your pie hole without any actual facts. Having Dorsey rated higher than Long is not going against the board. No one really knows what the draft board looked like outside of that room right. I dont care what grades we get because it will show on the field. One thing these rediculous writers forget is that Avery is the perfect fit in this offense. If we had picked Sweed a guy who isnt a perfect fit our draft grade would have been higher because we picked who the media thinks was better blah blah blah.

[txramsfan]

I think the grade is somewhat harsh, but they really didn't say anything that isn't logical. Avery is project. He may have been a highly ranked WR in THIS years draft, but all indications were that this was a weak draft for WR's. He is a project. One of his negatives was route running. King is another project. Great speed but raw talent, just like Wade.

Let's face it, after Long this draft really is a long term project for just about everyone we picked.

[HUbison]

they really didn't say anything that isn't logical.

What's logical about it? It's rather specious, if you ask me.

Long - Went against their draft board? Apparently not since it was THEIR draft board, and THEY made the decision. Against "expert" draft boards? Maybe, but why should we give them credence?

Avery - Reached for a raw receiver? Again, how do we define reach? Because Kiper said so? If he was the best receiver on the Rams board, and consensus was that he wouldn't be there in the 3rd, it wasn't a reach at all. And raw? 210 receptions in college. Is Devin Thomas' 86 receptions make him raw too?

Avery was 3rd in receiving yards & the ONLY receiver in the top 35 (74+ receptions) to average 16 yards per reception.

Is Avery raw? No more than any other rookie wideout.

Burton - Injury prone? He's missed 1 game in the past two years. NEXT!

[txramsfan]

Yes, Avery is raw. I don't know much about Burton. However, Avery just happened to be in the right place at the right time. This was a terribly weak WR group and Avery benefited from that. About Long, I don't know. We can all dissect things to the Nth degree.

[moloch41]

I think King was a definate reach and the fact that we used a high pick on Wade last year makes it even more questionable. We don't really need two long term projects in the secondary with Bartell, Hill, and Atogwe still learning thier positions.

[AvengerRam]

Yes, Avery is raw. I don't know much about Burton. However, Avery just happened to be in the right place at the right time. This was a terribly weak WR group and Avery benefited from that. About Long, I don't know. We can all dissect things to the Nth degree.

What makes Avery "raw"? He played a great deal in college and had 91 receptions last year. As for his route running, read these comments from his Senior Bowl performance:

From Scouts, Inc.:
Donnie Avery, WR, Houston: He was one of the three most impressive receivers on the field this week from both squads. Avery seemingly got open on every route and, for the most part, didn't drop a pass that was catchable. His route running was very impressive, as was his speed. In fact, he got to the second level pretty easily, and defensive backs were trailing him for most of the week. Avery had the catch of the week on the first day of practices, when he timed his jump perfectly on an out route and came down with two feet in bounds.

I think your opinion was tainted by watching Avery drop a few balls when he was playing with a dislocated thumb. He is a very good prospect.

[txramsfan]

All I'm saying is this, if he was that good he would have gone Round 1 to the Titans. They needed a WR badly and didn't even draft one. That might, might, be an indication of how weak this WR group was.

[AvengerRam]

All I'm saying is this, if he was that good he would have gone Round 1 to the Titans. They needed a WR badly and didn't even draft one. That might, might, be an indication of how weak this WR group was.

Or, it could merely be an indication that the Titans were foolish.

[txramsfan]

Ok, but can you really say he's polished? Have you even seen him play? He has loads of potential, that much is very true. However, from what I have seen he's a project. I wouldn't call it a SETI project by any means but a project nonetheless.

[HUbison]

However, Avery just happened to be in the right place at the right time. This was a terribly weak WR group and Avery benefited from that.

How do you figure, tx? What if this was a strong class with half a dozen 1st round prospects? With those 6 receivers gone in the first, do you think the Rams would have done something different than take Avery at @ 33. The only difference is Avery becomes the 7th receiver off the board instead of the 1st, but the pick remains the same.

[HUbison]

Yes, Avery is raw.

Any more than any other rookie?

[txramsfan]

How do you figure, tx? What if this was a strong class with half a dozen 1st round prospects? With those 6 receivers gone in the first, do you think the Rams would have done something different than take Avery at @ 33. The only difference is Avery becomes the 7th receiver off the board instead of the 1st, but the pick remains the same.

Yes, I do think the Rams would have selected someone different IF the WR group was stronger.

Ahh, ok. I give. Avery is a great route runner and will catch 10 TD's this season.

[txramsfan]

Any more than any other rookie?

Much more than Long but not as much as King. nuff said.