149 replies to this topic

[MHS831]

A little research is your friend.

Kuechly played OLB his freshman season when Mark Herzlich was injured. He had 158 tackles that year....2nd in the nation in that category. He won all kinds of awards that year.

When Herzlich came back, they shifted him inside...where he has had 183 tackles as a Sophomore and 191 tackles as a Junior (All-American both years adn won EVERY LB award his Junior year).

At the combine, he showed excellent speed with a 4.58 40 and a 1.93 split. That speed and quickness showed that he definitely had the athleticism to play OLB in the NFL.

He is a guy that can play all 3 LB positions at a very high level. With the BIG ? about Davis, having him able to play OLB....and able to slide isnide to back-up Beason would be huge.

So YES....I could see him go in the top half of the 1st round.....and even to thePanthers.

Not only does he have the ability to play all three positions, he is a high-character leader. To suggest that Beason and/or Davis will return to form is a reach. Aside from these points, Kuechly is consistent and proven.

Some of the people bashing Kuechly are the same who were singing workout warrior Poe's praises, even though he was average in college games. They want to bring in Janoris Jenkins, dismissing the repeated drug violations as if they had some inside knowledge that he has reformed and mended his ways. They want Brockers, with his 10 games of a resume and conditioning concerns.

And for the person that said he is always around the plays but never really causing them: What?

[Louie]

I was in the "we must draft a D lineman camp". But the more I read about this guy and the more I think about it, we didn't get gashed up the middle as much as on the edges. The main reason was our linebackers were all backups, except for Anderson. In addition to that, most of our pass protection break downs was due to TE's. There is no guarantee that Beason or Davis comes back to play at a high level. What if one of them gets injured again right away? Then we are truly fugged at LB. Connor, Applewhite, and Senn are all gone (as of right now). With Edwards coming back and Fua and McClain having a year under their belts to develop, I think Kuechly would be the absolute safest pick. What if Beason and Davis are close to 100%? Wouldn't it be possible to put them all on the field at once and run some variation of a 3-4 on some plays? Especially if we acquired a good DT like Antonio Garay.

[DaCityKats]

Strengths:

• Instincts that are truly rare
• Nose for the ball
• Extremely intelligent
• Rock-solid tackler
• Takes good angles
• Very advanced ability to shed blocks
• Strong hands
• Produces good down-and-distance situations
• Gets deep in his pass drops
• Reads quarterback's eyes well
• Surprises with ability to run downfield with pass receivers
• Student of the game
• Proven leader by example; passion for the game
• Durable, experienced starter
• Consistent, reliable producer
• http://walterfootbal...012lkuechly.php
• BTW: When you look at the negatives they mention he isn't super atletic and could use 10 lbs. THis was done before the combine where he had added 5 lbs of muscle and showed he was very athletic and strong even after adding bulk.

The d line will be better this year if we add no one. A full offseason, additions like Shirley were significant and Edwards coming back will all help. Meanwhile linebacker is a much bigger question mark.

A solidly built athlete, but is a little narrow through the waist and doesn't have a ton of girth through his lower half. Doesn't look real muscular through the upper half as well. Regardless, the guy is just a football player. Is one of the best pure tacklers in the country and does a great job breaking down inside, lowering his pad level into contact and wrapping consistently. Showcases "plus" instincts inside vs. the run game. Keys quickly, is consistently getting early jumps on the football and showcases a little burst when attacking downhill. Does a great job extending his arms into contact when asked to avoid blocks and knows how to fend off blockers trying to get into his frame. Uses his inside hand well to keep blockers at bay once he side steps contact. Isn't overly shifty, but consistently is able to beat a blocker to a spot because of instincts, gain leverage and keep himself clean. Showcases the power to take on blocks in the hole as well. But, isn't overly long and opposing lineman will simply wrap him up and engulf on contact. Showcases a willingness to try to shed, however, is only average in this area.
http://www.nationalfootballpost.com/college_player_scouting_report.html&player=39723

again i think he is a decent prospect, but one area i think he should improve on is shedding blocks.

[panthers55]

• Elite size and strength
• Solid timed speed in the 4.6 range
• Very solid production over past three seasons Great instincts;
• does not hesitate or second guess the development of the play
• Playmaker who makes clutch tackles on third down and jars the ball loose
• Is a threat to rush the quarterback
• Works through the trash to get to the ball-carrier
• Aggressive
• Rarely misses tackles
• Textbook usage with his hands
• Strong at the point of attack
• Takes sound, consistent angles to the football
• Will take on a block
• Extreme versatility to play 4-3 SAM and 4-3 or 3-4 ILB,
• Leads by example.

Found this on him as well....maybe not as bad as I thought

Knowing how you think, that was about Curry right??? Still fishing, huh???

[panthers55]

A solidly built athlete, but is a little narrow through the waist and doesn't have a ton of girth through his lower half. Doesn't look real muscular through the upper half as well. Regardless, the guy is just a football player. Is one of the best pure tacklers in the country and does a great job breaking down inside, lowering his pad level into contact and wrapping consistently. Showcases "plus" instincts inside vs. the run game. Keys quickly, is consistently getting early jumps on the football and showcases a little burst when attacking downhill. Does a great job extending his arms into contact when asked to avoid blocks and knows how to fend off blockers trying to get into his frame. Uses his inside hand well to keep blockers at bay once he side steps contact. Isn't overly shifty, but consistently is able to beat a blocker to a spot because of instincts, gain leverage and keep himself clean. Showcases the power to take on blocks in the hole as well. But, isn't overly long and opposing lineman will simply wrap him up and engulf on contact. Showcases a willingness to try to shed, however, is only average in this area.
http://www.nationalf...ml&player=39723

again i think he is a decent prospect, but one area i think he should improve on is shedding blocks.

So one analysis says he is great shedding blocks, the other said average, so lets take the most negative one as gospel!!!

[Panthro]

Knowing how you think, that was about Curry right??? Still fishing, huh???

[DaCityKats]

So one analysis says he is great shedding blocks, the other said average, so lets take the most negative one as gospel!!!

who said it was gospel? you found an analysis, and so did i. i did that to show you that these guys all say different things, so you cant judge a prospect off what a nik says. and what i found wasnt negative, read the entire paragraph.

[panthers55]

who said it was gospel? you found an analysis, and so did i. i did that to show you that these guys all say different things, so you cant judge a prospect off what a nik says. and what i found wasnt negative, read the entire paragraph.

I go by production in college and athletic measurables just like I did last year when I championed Newton in the first round.

[Panthro]

I go by tackles in college and athletic measurables just like I did last year when I championed Newton in the first round.

I fixed it for you

[MadHatter]

I fixed it for you

As opposed to you...who goes by "sacks" in college for a LB....even though the scheme they ran did not require Kuechly to blitz.

I'll take 55's analysis over that crap any day.

[Panthro]

As opposed to you...who goes by "sacks" in college for a LB....even though the scheme they ran did not require Kuechly to blitz.

I'll take 55's analysis over that crap any day.

Find where I just wanted sacks? I'll let you use Forced Fumbles and Tackles for Loss too. See where he ranked in the NCAA for those .

He's a tackling machine. I'm not denying that.

People were funneled to him in college and he tackled them.

P55 emphasized that in our Jim Johnson D we get pressure on the the QB with our LB's (one of his reasons for not going with a Dllineman) who sometimes blitz 50-60% of the time. But I guess someone that never blitzed in college would be a great fit in that D.


Oh and......

[chris999]

Luke has been my guy for the past few weeks. It hasnt been a very popular opinion around here yet, but sitting at number 9 like we are, I think that he will be the BPA for us.

I am pretty certain that he will be a good player, and a good fit for us because of Rivera's usage and love for Linebackers.

If/when Thomas Davis goes down, our LB core will be just as bad off as DT is, and I would rather draft Luke, who I am sure will be a good player over Brokers or Poe who are unproven, and have a higher bust potential.


Of course, It would be nice if we could trade down too, but if we are stuck at 9, take the BPA.

[csx]

People were funneled to him in college and he tackled them.

People weren't "funneled to him"....that doesn't make much sense. If you watched/watch him play he finds the person with the ball and tackles them as that is exactly what a middle linebacker does. He peruses and tackles and is good in coverage as well. He was productive in the stat that matters most for middle linebackers.

I'm not advocating picking him but we could do much worse.

[panthers55]

Find where I just wanted sacks? I'll let you use Forced Fumbles and Tackles for Loss too. See where he ranked in the NCAA for those .

He's a tackling machine. I'm not denying that.

People were funneled to him in college and he tackled them.

P55 emphasized that in our Jim Johnson D we get pressure on the the QB with our LB's (one of his reasons for not going with a Dllineman) who sometimes blitz 50-60% of the time. But I guess someone that never blitzed in college would be a great fit in that D.


Oh and......

He had 12 tackles for a loss in 2011 as a junior. Willis had 11.5 tackles for a loss his senior year by comparison

He had 3 Ints his junior year and 7 for his career, Willis had 0 his senior year ans 1 for his career.

Kuechly had 0 forced funbles in 2011 and 2 for his career, Willis had 2 his senior year and 4 for his career.

So his college stats pretty much exceeds or is in line with arguably the best inside linebacker in the NFL even though he only played 3 years and this is a problem?

As for blitzing, what does it take to be good at it? Speed, great instincts, the ability to shed tacklers, and strength. What does Kuechly have?

All of those skills in spades. So he will have things to learn.


Jon Beason never blitzed in college and only has 5 sacks in his 5 year NFL career.After all, Beason had a total of 1 sack in college while Kuechly had 3.

So Beason by your logic, shouldn't be playing Mike because he can't pressure the quarterback, right??