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DTs Suh, McCoy have ability to go No. 1 in draft

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  • DTs Suh, McCoy have ability to go No. 1 in draft

    DTs Suh, McCoy have ability to go No. 1 in draftFeb. 27, 2010
    By Chad Reuter
    NFLDraftScout.com
    Tell Chad your opinion!

    INDIANAPOLIS -- It's rare that a pair of defensive tackles get as much attention at the combine as the elite quarterbacks. Then again, Nebraska's Ndamukong Suh and Oklahoma's Gerald McCoy are rare talents.

    Suh and McCoy are likely rated higher on many teams' boards than quarterbacks Sam Bradford (Oklahoma) and Jimmy Clausen (Notre Dame), a rarity in today's offense-happy NFL.

    The St. Louis Rams and Detroit Lions have the top two picks, and could use McCoy and Suh on their porous defenses. But two questions remain:

    Who is better? And is either worth taking in the top two selections?

    Neither question is easily answered. Suh said on Saturday that he would be happy for his "good friend" McCoy if he went No. 1. But he added that he'd "definitely be disappointed with myself not getting it. I'm a competitor. I want to be No. 1. So that's what I'm going to strive for."

    That attitude is just one of the reason teams like his game. But despite Suh finishing fourth in the Heisman voting (85 tackles, 24 for loss, 12 sacks) while riding the wave of a dominant performance against Texas in the Big 12 Championship Game, McCoy will be ranked higher on some boards because of his ability to explode into the backfield as a three-technique. His quick first step especially works well in a one-gap system where he is full-go from the snap.

    Because he redshirted, McCoy could have entered the draft after the 2008 season and been a first-round pick. But there was little doubt after an All-American junior year (15.5 tackles for loss, six sacks) that he would take his game to the NFL. After McCoy made his decision to leave school early, Sooners head coach Bob Stoops said: "I've never been associated with a young man who was any more impressive than Gerald." That's pretty high praise, even coming from a head coach.

    Suh can play any position on the line but is not quite as explosive off the snap. His strength and motor allow him to be extremely effective pressuring the passer (he had 26 quarterback hurries along with those 12 sacks), although there is some concern that NFL interior linemen won't give in as easily as college linemen did to his bull rush. Still, his exceptional stamina, manhandling of opponents using strong, quick hands that added to his length and closing speed make him a likely star in the NFL.

    Suh said Oklahoma's scheme allowed McCoy to display his explosiveness more than Bo Pelini's scheme at Nebraska. The hesitation off the snap could very well be indicative of his need to handle multiple responsibilities in the Huskers defense.

    "We played two different defenses, in my opinion. His defense was more or less, he had the freedom to penetrate," Suh said. "Me, I was more or less in the scheme of reading and playing through my man and then getting to the ball and disengaging. If I were to be in that same scheme as him or vice-versa, I think it would be total opposite as it is right now."

    If teams agree, Suh should be the top-rated defensive tackle (and player) on their board.

    As for the idea of taking a defensive tackle high in the draft, Rams general manager Billy Devaney said: "When you need players that you deem difference-makers I don't think it makes any difference what position they play. We may be wrong, but we think these two kids that we're talking about are difference-makers and they impact the game. So them being defensive tackles doesn't bother us at all."

    Rams coach Steve Spagnuolo said he considered a franchise-type defensive tackle as "somebody that changes the game; somebody that changes schemes, changes how you would block it. He gives offensive coordinators in the run game or the pass game a little bit of a headache."

    Quarterback is considered the most important position on the field, with good reason. It's tough to argue that a team should select a defensive tackle over quarterback if they are of equal value. But if the Rams are concerned about Bradford's injury or his ability to handle pressure without a pro-quality offensive line, as he did in 2008, then they may not grade him as highly as Suh or McCoy.

    Do they then forget their board to take Bradford based on need and value of position? That is how mistakes are made in the draft.

    The two players McCoy and Suh are compared to most often are five-time Pro Bowlers Kevin Williams (Minnesota) and Richard Seymour (Oakland). Vikings' opponents have to game-plan for Williams every week, and the Patriots found out how difficult it was to replace Seymour after they traded him to the Raiders. Oakland's designating of Seymour as an exclusive-rights franchise player this week shows they also know the value of a dominant defensive lineman.

    Suh and McCoy will work out on the Lucas Oil Stadium turf in front of scouts Monday. Both are expected to perform very well, but any small discrepancy in athleticism could be the difference in joining the prestigious group of NFL No. 1 overall draft picks.

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  • rob6465
    Monster D-tackles Suh, McCoy could emerge as NFL No. 1 pick
    by rob6465
    No links!!!
    -03-11-2010, 06:34 AM
  • AvengerRam_old
    McCoy continues to annoy
    by AvengerRam_old
    The one comment (which I've read from a handful of fans and a couple of analysts) that I just don't get is the suggestion that Gerald McCoy should be taken before Ndamukong Suh.

    Based on what?

    Go and look up their stats (I've posted them before and I don't have the time of patience to pull them again). Its not even close. Suh's production is essentially double that of McCoy.

    And what's the context of these stats? Two guys who play in the same conference against the same competition level. Two guys who are close to the same size.

    I've heard some try to argue that McCoy has better technique. I don't see it. From what I've seen, Suh has great technique for a college player. But, even if McCoy had better technique, SUH DOUBLED HIS PRODUCTION! Imagine how Suh could produce if his technique develops further.

    If the Rams ultimately decide that they need to take a QB with the first pick, I'll be disappointed, but at least I'd understand the thinking. After all, if that pick were to turn into a franchise QB, nobody would argue with it in the long run. Similarly, if the Rams trade down, I'll have misgivings, but I'd understand the logic.

    I'll tell you this, though. If the Rams stay a pick No. 1 and take McCoy over Suh, you will hear a loud sound coming from the Southeast United States.

    It will be me screaming "NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!"
    -01-26-2010, 06:25 AM
  • r8rh8rmike
    OU's McCoy A Better Fit For Rams
    by r8rh8rmike
    OU’s McCoy a better fit for Rams

    By Michael Silver, Yahoo! Sports
    10 hours, 59 minutes ago


    INDIANAPOLIS – Because he has an exceptionally cool name – and some serious game – Ndamukong Suh would be an outstanding choice as the No. 1 overall pick of the 2010 NFL draft.


    But when Roger Goodell reveals the first pick to a primetime TV audience on April 22, my prediction is that the NFL commissioner will have a much easier name to pronounce. In all likelihood, he’ll be announcing that the St. Louis Rams have selected a different defensive tackle who terrorized the Big 12 conference: Oklahoma’s Gerald McCoy


    There are logical reasons for this, many of which I will detail shortly. But the best and most succinct one was verbalized by an NFC general manager I talked to at Thursday’s NFL scouting combine: “McCoy is the better player.”


    Obviously, this GM’s opinion isn’t absolute. Beauty is in the eye of the potentially creepy beholder, and a lot can happen in the two months between the NFL’s annual meat market and the most hyped employee-allocation meeting in modern American industry.


    But in numerous conversations this week with people who know talent – several of whom are familiar with Rams coach Steve Spagnuolo’s mindset – I’ve gotten the unequivocal impression that the prospect of St. Louis taking McCoy is very real. For all the hype about Suh and McCoy’s Sooners teammate, former Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback Sam Bradford, it’s this big, explosive, high-effort inside pass-rushing threat who stands out as the probable top pick.


    “Think about the situation [Spagnuolo’s] in,” one high-level front-office employee for an AFC team said Wednesday. “He went 1-15 in his first season, and now there’s a new owner coming in. The guy is coaching for his job, possibly his career. He needs to win now or they could all get fired.


    “That means he has to take the player who’ll make the biggest impact right now. You think he’s gonna trust that a quarterback can come in and do that as a rookie? I don’t think so. What he knows is defense, and the scheme he knows is the 4-3. And of the two tackles, the guy who makes the most sense for that scheme is definitely McCoy.”


    A 6-foot-4, 298-pound menace in the middle, McCoy has been said to resemble Kevin Williams, the Minnesota Vikings’ perennial All-Pro defensive tackle. He’s a strong, relentless, athletic player who has a penchant for blasting through and past defenders and terrorizing quarterbacks. One scout I talked to thought the Williams comparison didn’t go far enough.


    “Kevin Williams?” the scout scoffed. “To me, he’s Warren Sapp, only bigger and stronger.” (Sapp’s response, via text message: “LMAO!”)


    The skepticism is understandable: Sapp, a future Hall of Famer, was one...
    -02-26-2010, 07:41 PM
  • TakeSuh
    How does suh even compare with mccoy
    by TakeSuh
    here suh 85 tackles 24 tfl 12 sacks 10 passes blocked 26 qb hurries 3 blocked kicks
    mccoy 34 tackles 11.5 tfl 6 sacks 2 passes blocked 7 qb hurries 0 blocked kicks
    NOW SOME PEOPLE BRING UP THAT MCCOY HAD MORE TALENT AROUND HIM........ lets compare the talent on both teams
    nebraska:Number one in the nation in scoring defense
    1 pass efficency defense 17 in total pass defense 7th in total defense 5th in rush defense
    Oklahoma is all above the 40s in thesw catagories.

    This just makes Suhs stats even better. Lets not forget they played in the same conference and agianst each other (nebraska won 10-3)

    Texas: Mccoy 3 tackles one sack, Suh 12 tackles 7 for loss 23 qb hurries, 4.5 sacks (other d tackle for crick, the other d tackle for nebraska, set the record for 5 sacks in one game agianst baylor)

    kansas st:mccoy 1 tackle no sacks
    suh 9 tackles one sack 4 qb hurries 2 passes defended 3 tackles for loss.

    Now lets get back to this guy crick, he had way better stats than mccoy too and he is only a sophmore:76 tackles 9.5 sacks 18 tfls, 4 blocked passes 16 qb hurries
    now im going to take a bold step here: Its not the scheme mccoy plays,its just he isnt as good as SUH OR CRICK.
    ( NOTE: I DIDNT SEE MCCOY AT ANY OF THE AWARDS CEROMONY)
    Back to Suh. Suh had the way better combine and had a 35.5 inch veritcal, highest for a guy over 300 pounds since 2000, he had 9 more reps on the bench, practically tied with mccoy in the forty (when will a d tackle run 40 yars straight? (oh wait suh made 2 tackles this year like that......) and suh also outpreformed mccoy in the 3 cone drill and the shuffle. Add this up and you get one hell of a defensive tackle who intercepts passes, blocks kicks sacks the quarterback, racks up the tackles, pressures the qb, disrupts screens, can make tackles 10-20 yards down field, and tackle the ball carrier for a loss.

    how could you not want suh?


    YouTube - Ndamukong Suh







    (ps i do not care about spelling on the internet, as long as people get the general idea...)
    -03-04-2010, 08:45 PM
  • 39thebeast
    Spread and the transistion to the NFL
    by 39thebeast
    When you talk about the spread, most people talk about how it hurts a QBs transition to a pro system. That is true, but IMO it hurts defensive lineman just as much. Look at teams like Missouri and Texas Tech. who play with huge splits (space between lineman). Coming to the NFL you are most definately not going to see that. Both McCoy and Suh have taken advantage of this since almost all Big 12 teams. More concerning to me with McCoy because he did not dominate these guys as much as Suh did. In College especially against spread teams they are looking at smaller quicker guys, in the NFL they are looking at bigger stronger guys who are just as quick as those smaller guys. I guess this is a case against McCoy and for Suh. Even though the spread makes it tough to evaluate both the way Suh utterly dominated lower competition and ideal circumstances where McCoy was just Ok is disappointing. Suh literally quadrupled McCoys production against Texas. IMO if your going to play against those teams you better dominate
    -02-17-2010, 09:44 PM
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