Player Profile: Stephen Morris, Miami (FL)

Along with Tajh Boyd and Bryn Renner, Stephen Morris will be representing the ACC in the 2014 NFL Draft. After being listed as a dual-threat QB coming out of high school, Morris has morphed into a pro-style pocket passer. Morris is certainly the best QB to come out of the U in recent memory, but considering it’s compared to Jacory Harris and Kyle Wright, that doesn’t say much.

Physical traits and athleticism: 

Listed at 6’2″ and 214 Lbs., Morris is a bit undersized, but not to the extent in which it will be a problem or affect his draft stock. As previously stated, Morris was recruited as a dual-threat and can run the 40-yard dash in the 4.5 to 4.6 range. While he has the speed to be mobile run the ball, he often doesn’t. He chooses to pass the ball instead of run, which is good for some situations, but it’s a waste of natural talent.

Mechanics:

The most glaring flaw in Morris’ game is footwork. He rarely sets his feet correctly and follows through with his throws. He depends solely on his arm to make the throws. Throwing mechanics such as those won’t fly in the NFL. His throwing motion is essentially a 3/4 motion considering it’s high and wide. With this motion, Morris has a quick release and gets the ball out of his hands faster than most QBs in the nation.

Mental make-up:

Morris tries to “sense” the blitz coming and leave the pocket, but often he just bails the pocket too early and before any serious pass rush is threatening him. He needs to settle down and stand strong in the pocket. Instead of simply bailing the pocket, I’d like to see him move around in the pocket and use it effectively. While he tends not to force short and intermediate passes, he loves to throw the deep ball, even if the WR isn’t open. Morris is also completely fixed on throwing the ball, even if he has a wide open gap in the field to run through. It is a complete waste of his natural ability and often just ends with incomplete passes.

Arm talent:

I can’t decide whether Morris has an arm or a cannon attached to his shoulder. His arm strength is arguably second to none in this draft class. The tight spiral and distance that he can put on his throws is quite impressive. Unfortunately, his accuracy is rather inconsistent on all levels of the field. This is partly due to his footwork, but even on occasions in which he did set his feet, the throw isn’t quite where it needed to be. Even on short 7 yard passes, he’ll throw at his WR’s feet. He needs to tame his wild accuracy a bit more before I can take him seriously as an NFL starter.

Draft grade (as of now):

Well, while the physical tools are there, his mechanics, mental make up, and accuracy need serious work. His potential is frighteningly good, but he is still far from that point. Next year will be make or break for him, in terms of proving he understands and can perform the finer skills of the trade. He isn’t a great QB now, but he certainly has loads of potential. Based on that potential, I’d be willing to take a gamble on him in the 3rd round or later.

Game notes:

Virginia Tech

– deep throw down right hash, overthrown by less than a yard. (Hit WR’s fingertips)

– intermediate ranged post to right side of end-zone. Threw when DB had his back turned. Put ball away from DB, only WR could make play (TD)

– deep throw down left sideline, overthrown by quite a bit

– hit WR on quick streak down left sideline. Placed right over a DB in short zone

– deep throw to TE on right side. Great placement over DB

– scramble right, deep throw to right side into coverage. Swatted away by DB. Incomplete

– deep throw down the middle into tight man coverage. DB swatted it away. (a bit underthrown)

– throw to WR near right hash. Thrown way over WR’s head. (intermediate range)

 

NC State

– scramble right, throw on run to WR on right sideline. Good placement into fairly tight coverage for a completion

– deep ball to left side. Great placement, hit WR in his stride. Complete pass.

– perfect placement on post to left sideline in end-zone. Thrown just over DB. Touchdown

– deep throw down left sideline. Great placement over DB (touchdown)

– deep throw down the middle into heavy coverage. Incomplete

– deep throw down the middle into double coverage. Incomplete

– deep throw down right sideline. Thrown too far right and went out of bounds

– deep throw down the middle, hit WR in stride

– deep throw to the left, a bit underthrown, but WR turned around and caught it

– overthrew screen pass

– hail mary down middle. WR got lucky and got behind DBs. (TD)

 

Duke

– deep ball to left side, slightly underthrown and swatted away

– hit TE well in stride crossing over the middle (intermediate range)

– deep ball down the middle, overthrown by a yard or 2

– scramble right, throw to WR on right sideline. Fit into a tight window. Completed pass

– scramble right, hit WR on right sideline. Solid placement

– Throw to deep comeback to right sideline. Good throw, but WR couldn’t hang on to it

– throw to right sideline on deep post. Put where only WR could catch it and WR caught it

– throw to WR on right sideline in end-zone, overthrown (intermediate line)

 

Player Profile: David Fales of San Jose State

There’s been quite a bit of hype surrounding the Junior College transfer. Fales ended up at SJSU after being at Nevada, Wyoming (only 1 semester), and then Monterey Peninsula College (Junior College). He left Nevada because he wasn’t ideal in their pistol offense. His short stint at Wyoming was quite possibly due to the competition of current QB Brett Smith. After his impressive year on the JuCo level, he made the transfer to SJSU for his Junior year and became the starting QB.

Physical traits and athleticism:

While he’s listed at 6’3″ and 220 Lbs., he doesn’t appear that tall. He looks more like he’s 6’2″ or even 6’1″. Even at 6’3″, his size is nothing more than average. His mobility isn’t anything special. He won’t ever break 20+ yard runs, but he has enough movement to keep a play alive and not stand like a statue in the pocket.

Mechanics:

Fales shows solid footwork and consistently plants his feet and follows through his throws. Doing so allows him to place his throws more precisely and put the ball in the ideal spot for the WR. His throwing motion is just a classic overhead motion. Like his motion, the speed in which he performs the motion is nothing extraordinary. It is neither quick or sluggish, it’s just average, which isn’t bad at all.

Mental make-up:

San Jose State’s offense is designed primarily for quick reads/progressions to get the ball out in a hurry. Fales does so efficiently and effectively to get the ball to an open WR as soon as possible. On occasion, Fales will refuse to look away from the primary WR and he will force a pass that he clearly shouldn’t have. His judgement on throws a bit deeper down the field also raise concern. Fales tends to try to force those passes and fit the ball into the smallest of windows. Against Iowa (see game notes), he threw a pass to a fairly deep WR in which both the DB and the WR turned around and had a fair chance at the ball. Luckily for Fales, the DB didn’t stop the WR from coming down with the ball. He even tried (and somehow succeeded again) to force a pass into triple coverage against Stanford (see game notes).

Arm talent:

Arm strength is Fales’ most notable flaw. On many occasions, he’s had open WRs, but due to lack of zip (timing routes) or pure arm strength (deep throws), he failed to complete the pass.  I wouldn’t even consider his arm strength to be average. This is a huge setback for a future NFL QB. Although, where he lacks in arm strength, he makes up for with elite placement. Few, if any, QBs throw a better back-shoulder pass than that of David Fales. The timing is flawless, as is the placement. Fales often leads WRs well and gets them the ball in their stride.

Draft grade (as of now):

Due to lack in arm strength, but enough mobility and solid progression reading ability, Fales is a great prospect for a West Coast offense. Although, he’d fit rather poorly in any other, largely due to lack in arm strength. Considering he’d be too one dimensional, I wouldn’t consider him a 1st rounder. While I understand how many could argue that he is, it can also be argued that he isn’t, which is what I have done. If Fales improves his arm strength, he could become an elite prospect.

Game notes:

Idaho

– foot on <35, deep throw on right sideline. Too much hang time, DB caught up and broke it up

– tried to force a throw on curl route. Got intercepted.

– foot on <45, pass caught on 25> near left hash. Tight coverage, but WR made the catch

– foot on 47>, throw near right sideline caught by TE around 15>. Perfectly placed.

– foot on 22>, throw to back right corner of end-zone into very tight coverage. Ball was bobbled and WR got lucky and caught it. Should have been easily defended

– Shows solid mechanics and footwork

– overthrew swing pass to left side

– foot on <17, deep throw to left sideline in tight man coverage. Lots of hang-time, but it dropped right over the DB and right into the WR’s hands at 41>

– flashes of decent mobility

– foot on 24> on right hash, ball thrown to left corner of end-zone. Good placement, but WR dropped it

– foot on 43>, threw to WR near right hash. Overthrown by about 5-7 yards

– foot on 43>, deep throw to end-zone, caught by open WR. (TD)

– When he adds velocity, he loses a bit of accuracy

– Shows that he can read progressions

BYU

– foot on <39, deep throw down middle of field. Caught near 15>, WR ran for TD

– foot on <15, throw near right sideline. Beautiful back shoulder throw caught at <45

– foot on <48, throw near left hash caught at 28>. Throw was a bit behind WR. Lost stride, but caught

– foot on 27>, threw 50/50 ball to far right side of end-zone. WR couldn’t make play.

– running through his progressions well

– foot on 26>, throw to right side of end-zone to a comeback route. Perfectly timed. DB couldnt make a play

– foot on <29, throw to WR on post to right sideline. Caught (low) at 42>.

– foot on 49>, throw near left sideline. Too much hang time. DB jumped route and intercepted it

– foot on <12, throw to TE on seam route. Thrown perfectly above defender. Caught at <45

– Rollout right, thrown with foot on <10. Comeback route by WR, caught on <28 on sideline

– Overthrew WR deep down right sideline. (thrown out of bounds. Completely uncatchable)

– threw to left side behind WR. WR wasn’t even ready. Ran right past where ball went.

Stanford

– threw a bit behind WR on slant. Catchable, but was dropped

– rollout right, quick throw to WR near sideline

– threw behind WR again on slant route

– foot on <29, throw to deep WR near right hash. WR had to slow down and turn around to try and catch it, but he dropped it.

– Forced throw into triple coverage, one DB dove too early and missed the swat. Pass complete

– rollout right, throw to WR down sideline. Completed.

– Tried to force throw over middle. LB dove and swatted it down.

– foot on 35>, throw near left sideline. WR made catch on sideline in tight coverage

– throw to WR deep down right side of field. WR failed to position himself correctly. Throw was catchable.

– Threw behind WR over middle. Still caught, but had to adjust drastically

– foot on 29>, throw over middle of end-zone. TD.

– Tried to force pass over middle. Throw was way behind WR. DB jumped route and intercepted it.

 (Also watched games against Colorado State and Louisiana Tech. Notes for those not included.)

2013 College Football Pre-Season “My Guys” List

Being “My Guy” does not mean they are ranked No.1 at their position, although it may be so. It simply means that I believe I see more in them than others do and I feel they deserve more recognition.

QB- Brett Hundley, UCLA

While Manziel stole the show in terms of Freshman QBs, Hundley quietly lead his team to the PAC-12 Championship Game where they were defeated (barely) by Stanford. Hundley is a dual-threat QB that can beat you however he wants to. He dominated as a Freshman and shows no signs of slowing down.

RB- James Wilder Jr., Florida State

After seeing a fairly limited amount of carries in 2012, Wilder is primed to explode in 2013. His running style is violent and relentless, yet graceful and balanced. His legs are constantly driving and he fights with all of his power for even just one more yard. Wilder is essentially a rhino with balance and shoulder pads.

WR- Donte Moncrief, Ole Miss

The body control and physicality seen in Moncrief gets me drooling. His ability to use his body and pluck the ball out of the air at it’s high point is impressive. He is a reliable safety blanket that has a tendency to catch contested throws. Moncrief also flashes a quick and nasty double move.

TE- CJ Fiedorowicz, Iowa

Is he flashy? Nope. Is he an incredible athlete? Not at all. Is he reliable and consistent? Certainly! Fiedorowicz is the definition of a “safety blanket” for QBs. He’s a big, physical target that uses his body well to get last second separation. He will go unrecognized for lack of “flashiness”, but he’s the most reliable receiving threat of this class. The cherry on top? He blocks well too.

DE- Scott Crichton, Oregon State

Explosiveness is the name of the game for Scott Crichton. He pops off the line of scrimmage quickly and uses his power to overwhelm opposing lineman. His bull rush can be nasty and disrupt running lanes or put a lineman right in the QB’s lap. He may be a bit raw, but the potential is off the charts.

DT- Timmy Jernigan, Florida State

Never have I seen a nastier swim move than that of Timmy Jernigan. It’s so violent, powerful, and quick that opposing lineman don’t even stand a chance. He also has a bull rush that disrupts plays before they even begin. Jernigan was behind 3 Senior DTs on the depth chart last season (because Jimbo loves his Seniors), but he will shine in 2013.

Pass Rushing OLB- Jerimiah Attaochu, Georgia Tech

While he can play 4-3 OLB considering his range and coverage ability, Attaochu is best suited for 3-4 OLB or 4-3 DE. He explodes off the snap and flashes quickness in every sense of the term. While he is quick, he does not lack power. Attaochu can get down and dirty with the best of them and run through opposing lineman on occasion. His athleticism really gives him an advantage.

OLB- Justin Jackson, Wake Forest

Jackson would fit perfectly into a role similar to Von Miller. His combo of speed, quickness, and coverage ability fits the bill perfectly for that role. He’s a solid pass rusher when given space and has a knack for finding the right lanes. He’s certainly flying under the radar right now, but his name will be feared soon enough.

ILB/MLB- CJ Mosley, Alabama

He may not be a shocker considering he’s the best LB in the nation, but he really shows that he has all the tools to thrive at the next level. Mosley is physical at the point of attack, handles coverage well, pass rushes, and has incredible range. There really isn’t anything that he can’t do. CJ Mosley is the total package.

CB-  Ifo Ekpre-Olomu

If you are in the market for a shutdown man coverage CB, Ekpre-Olomu is your savior. He shutdown USC’s air attack well, including Marqise Lee. Although, he got a bit scrappy on Lee and was called for pass interference twice. While you don’t want penalties, a little physicality in a CB never hurts.

Safety- Jemea Thomas, Georgia Tech

When he creeps up and flies to the edge on sweeps and other outside running plays, Thomas looks like a human missile. He plays with urgency and tenacity. While he does a great job stuffing the run, his coverage skills are solid as well, even in man coverage. Thomas is a well-rounded safety that should be a nightmare for ACC offensive coordinators in 2013.

Player Profile: AJ McCarron, Alabama

Alabama has been running circles around the rest of the NCAA for the past few years. They’ve been nearly unstoppable and have won 2 straight National Championships. While ‘Bama may rely heavily on their feared run game, no offense is complete without a stable QB.

AJ McCarron doesn’t pop off the screen like Bridgewater or Fales do, but McCarron is efficient and he gets the job done. He isn’t much more than a simple game manager. Although, when you play for Alabama, that’s all you need to be. That elite OL will keep you protected while guys like Yeldon, Cooper, Norwood, and Bell make the big plays.

Few QBs use the sidelines as effectively as McCarron, more specifically, the right sideline.  Considering he’s right handed and has nice touch on short/medium ranged throws, the right sideline (when it’s a short/medium ranged throw) is a lethal weapon in McCarron’s arsenal. Whether his feet are set or he’s rolling out, McCarron simply dominates the right sideline. He flashed this skill against Mississippi State on a roll out pass (see game notes).

As previously stated, McCarron generally possesses impressive touch on short and medium ranged throws. He proved this twice against Western Kentucky (see game notes) with both of them resulting in TDs. Unfortunately, he failed to uphold this skill against Texas A&M. On one specific play, he had a WR open on the slant, but threw it too far behind him and failed to hit him in stride (in game notes).  In the Mississippi State game, McCarron also somehow managed to overthrow and throw behind the intended WR………. on a screen pass.

It’s rather frustrating to see QBs with a great deal of accuracy, but lack the arm strength to make the tougher throws. Just like David Fales, AJ McCarron tragically falls into this category. McCarron had his passes broken up twice on comeback routes due to lack of zip. Once was against Miss State and the other was against WKU (see game notes). His lack of arm strength also robbed his team of multiple TDs against Texas A&M (see game notes), which played a large part in the loss.

McCarron’s arm strength was not the only deciding factor in the loss to A&M. His decision making was rather questionable. He threw 4 noticeably forced passes with 3 of them being interceptions (see game notes). McCarron also appears to hold on to the ball too long at times because with that OL, he is enabled to do so. There is now way that he will get that great of protection on a consistent basis in the NFL and it will be interesting to see how he transitions.

No prospect is perfect, but McCarron is quite far from. At this point, he’s nothing more than a back-up QB. He flashes the potential to be a starting QB in the NFL, but he definitely needs refinement. While he currently ranks as my No.11 QB, that isn’t such a terrible thing. This QB class is very deep and talented, so don’t think that being No.11 makes him a bad QB. Next season will be make or break for the ‘Bama star and could be the difference between Day 1 or Day 3 when the NFL Draft comes around.

Game Notes:                   (“<” implies having ball on own territory, while “>” implies the ball in opposing territory)

Mississippi State

– Jumpy in the pocket when he settles in a position

– perfect pass from <35 to 20> (TD)

– threw screen slow, high, and behind the WR

– overthrew 3 times

– Foot on <47 Right hash. Pass caught on 22, left sideline.

– rollout right, foot on <35 (thrown on run). pass caught (thrown a bit low) on 40>

– Threw near left sideline (foot on 49> thrown to 21>), not enough zip. DB jumped route, dropped INT.

Western Kentucky

– 1st drive: 1st read slant. Gets into red-zone. Next pass play = TD pass to TE over middle of end-zone

– Foot on 42>, hit’s WR perfectly in stride in end-zone for a TD

– threw quick slant a bit behind WR. (dropped)

– foot on 30>, throws just over triple coverage to front right corner of end-zone.

– rollout right, foot on 21>. Throw to right side of end-zone: TD.

– foot on <21, threw to <36 (comeback route). Not enough zip, DB jumped route and broke it up

– seemed to hold on too long twice

– takes the sack (both good and bad)

Texas A&M

– Forces pass over middle. WR gets hit, ball pops out, interception. Had a WR open on an out route.

– foot on <25, thrown to and caught on <48. WR had to slow stride and catch it behind his body.

– tried to force seam throw to TE (first read). If waited 1 more second, WR on right sideline would have been open on comeback route

– foot on <5, threw to wide open (deep) WR on right sideline. WR had to stop and catch ball, as opposed to in stride. Since he had to stop, it allowed DB to catch up, make tackle, and prevent TD

– scrambled left with defenders chasing. McCarron panic threw to WR near sideline, but DB jumped and intercepted. Forced throw.

-foot on <33, thrown deep down the middle. Again, WR had to slow stride and it allowed DB to catch up and prevent TD.

– inside 10>, rollout right. McCarron forces a 1st read pass. Intercepted.

Player Profile: Derek Carr, Fresno State

We all remember the disappointing bust of David Carr, Derek’s brother, but Derek isn’t quite the hyped up prospect that his brother was. While Derek still flashes loads of NFL potential, he also gives us quite a few reasons to believe that he isn’t an NFL starting-caliber QB.

Derek Carr has pure arm strength that ranks among the top  in his class. Carr has arguably the best deep ball and sports a fair amount of velocity on his throws. His “touch” can be quite impressive from time to time as well. Against Oregon, Carr dropped in a pass right over the defender, but his WR simply didn’t catch it. Although, his accuracy has hurt him as well. Against SMU, he threw a pass to his TE in the end-zone, but he threw it behind him. The worst part is that Carr’s back heel was no more than 15 yards from the intended WR, making that (what should have been) an easy throw. Unlike most QBs, Carr actually utilizes his pump-fake well and has fooled many talented defenders with it.

Like I said, there are glaring holes in Carr’s game that desperately need to be fixed if he ever wants to be an NFL play-caller. Carr’s biggest inhibitor is his extreme fear of any form of pass rush pressure. He simply can’t handle it. Carr just throws his mechanics and logical thinking right out the window when he sees an on-coming pass rusher. Also against SMU, Carr had 2 back-to-back plays of a complete loss of any mechanics or logic. The first, Carr sees a lone defender gunning right for him, so Carr, as usual, just jumps backward and frantically throws off of his back foot. On the next, Carr was again feeling the pressure. He simply ducked down and fell straight to the ground. Honestly, it was pathetic to watch. To further add to his awful pocket presence, he doesn’t have elite “senses.” Carr is simply destroyed on occasion because he doesn’t see the defender, so he does nothing to prevent the hit.

In this case, the good outweighs the bad. Carr ranks as my 12th QB out of the 19 that I have looked at. There is certainly room for improvement, but he isn’t “there” yet.

Player Profile: Timmy Jernigan, Florida State

Jimbo Fisher made a huge mistake by having 3 SR. DTs in front of Jernigan on the team’s depth chart in 2012. Florida State started Bjoern Werner and Tank Carradine at DE, although Carradine only started due to the injury suffered by the talented Brandon Jenkins. If Jernigan would have started, that front 4 would have been even more lethal, especially with the talented linebacker corps right behind them.

All too often we see prospects that fail to develop and effectively use pass rushing moves, such as a spin, swim, or bull rush. Jernigan actually excels in this category. Jernigan sports the nastiest swim move in all of college football. He uses play after play and yet he still can not be shut down. The quickness, the power; it’s overwhelming. Even just the simple slapping of the opposing lineman’s arms by Jernigan can be lethal. During Florida State’s game against NC State, Jernigan was violating the starting Offensive Guards all game long. Eventually, a sub came in for a while at Right Guard, but he was defeated by Jernigan as well. The starting Guard came back into the game and Jernigan dominated him as well, if not better, than he had originally. While many of the plays in which he dominated were from the use of his lethal swim move, Jernigan can also get right up in your face and bull rush. Jernigan flashes enough brute strength to even beat up on NFL Guards. He flashed this strength on multiple occasions against Boston College. Jernigan forced the Guard into the RB’s run lane or QB’s lap multiple times.

While Jernigan is clearly one of the more refined prospects of the 2014 draft class, he is also quite the athlete. He possesses raw strength, as previously stated, but he also moves well laterally along the defensive front. He tends to deal with chop blocks well too as he is rarely tripped up by the low block. Jernigan’s only glaring flaw is his lack of explosion from the line of scrimmage. He doesn’t possess the same “get off” that Will Sutton or Louis Nix III do. That being said, Jernigan is still a top 10 prospect.