ESPN Insider: Draft Analysis - Trent Williams

[LaRonDontLikeUgly]

Like any of you have a clue how hard this guy works. I would think Mike Shanahan who is friends with his college coach and Malcom Kelly who went all the way back to high school with him would know alot more about that that any armchair keyboard fans.

Are you implying that The Comb had some type of influence on our draft decision?

[skinsince72]

Williams is going to be fine. I know everyone wanted Okung but it did not happen. Williams is more agile and that is going to make all the difference in this scheme. Let's coach the kid up NFL style and then make a decision.

[Hiro]

Are you implying that The Comb had some type of influence on our draft decision?

I don't think he meant that, but that he meant that since Malcolm has known him for a long time that he would have some insight into his work habits and his behaviors.

I trust Shanahan and Allen on this one.

[Warhead36]

I'd rather have a guy whose only negative is work ethic than a guy who's negatives are all physical and unfixable. You can fix work ethic with good coaching and building a positive, winning environment.

[mistertim]

Williams admitted himself that he didn't always put in 100% effort in college. So...

Yeah, I'm not entirely sure what to make of that. I mean, kudos for being honest about it. But is he willing to put in 100% all the time at the NFL level? He seems like a good guy and he certainly has undeniable natural talent and athleticism. I just hope Shanny can be an influence on him to where he really reaches his potential with the talent he already has.

[Spartacus87]

Yeah, I'm not entirely sure what to make of that. I mean, kudos for being honest about it. But is he willing to put in 100% all the time at the NFL level? He seems like a good guy and he certainly has undeniable natural talent and athleticism. I just hope Shanny can be an influence on him to where he really reaches his potential with the talent he already has.

To be fair, his quote was:

On if he ever felt he needed a stronger work ethic in order to fully develop as a player:

I did. I knew I hadn’t given my 100 percent all in my first couple of years at Oklahoma.

So it seems like he's talking about his freshmen/sophomore years.

The one thing I really like about Williams is that there's a consistent trend in his scouting reports of how nasty a blocker he is, and the mean streak he possesses when he's on his game.

[36HAMMER]

we needed a lest tackle and got one.Only time will tell if he works out.Hope he does,Jamall Brown is being shopped around.we should try and get him and bring Trent along slowly but steadily.Then if they want bring in Faneca and see if he dtill has something and they liek him sign him and there your line.could be interesting.Depends alot on how Trent does and how far along he is in his development and how ready he is to play Lt at this level.They can't go into the season with someone strugglin to learn.i don't think their done with this team.Theres alot of players who are fa and available through trade cheaply that could help this team.pop the corn and sit back.bringing in some of these people for compeition can only help.

[Rudy165]

alex gibbs really wanted trent williams over okung.

And Vinny put okung over williams.

That's all you need.

My opinion of what you look at in a draftee is: What is coachable? And, what is god-given talent?

You can't coach a WR to be taller. You can't coach a FS to be faster. You can't teach a LT footwork and speed. But you can certainly coach a player to try harder. If Shanahan can run as tight a ship as I know he can, I have no worries about him (Williams), at least for this season. You have to have worries about the kid after this season sure, (does well, starts getting full of himself in the off season) but still. If "work ethic" is the kids biggest fault, that's insane.

You don't pay somebody as much money as we pay Shanahan to "make players faster."

[DarrellsMyHero28]

The one thing I really like about Williams is that there's a consistent trend in his scouting reports of how nasty a blocker he is, and the mean streak he possesses when he's on his game.

Really?

I've seen the exact opposite. Seems like his biggest weakness is his lack of a nasty streak.

http://www.hogshaven.com/2010/4/22/1437878/redskins-select-left-tackle-trent

http://walterfootball.com/scoutingreport2010twilliams.php

[Spartacus87]

Really?

I've seen the exact opposite. Seems like his biggest weakness is his lack of a nasty streak.

http://www.hogshaven.com/2010/4/22/1437878/redskins-select-left-tackle-trent

http://walterfootball.com/scoutingreport2010twilliams.php

Damn DMH, couldn't you have just gone with it and not made me search around the internet for a response!

I found a lot of scouting reports that listed him as "tough," "a bulldozer," etc.

Found these 2 in particular though:

http://espn.go.com/blog/nfceast/post/_/id/13365/williams-was-the-right-pick

Here's what the folks from Scouts Inc. had to say on the positive side:

"One of the toughest offensive linemen we evaluated in this year's class. Lacks elite power but is strong and tough enough to matchup effectively in the phone booth with any defender. Clearly plays with a mean streak. Fights to finish and wants to finish his block by burying the defender. Does a great job of getting helping inside initially and then picking up the oncoming wide defender in slide protection. Works hard to finish and isn't satisfied until he has planted his assigned defender in the turf."

And from Daniel Jeremiah, the MoveTheSticks guy on an OU website before the draft:

http://www.blatanthomerism.com/2010-articles/april/nfl-draft-daniel-jeremiah-breaks-down-the-oklahoma-sooners-prospects.html

BH: How concerned should teams be about Trent Williams' discipline? With all the penalties that he racked up in his senior season, has his "nasty streak" crossed over into the realm of being more of a liability than an asset?

Jeremiah: I would much rather try to rein in an offensive lineman's temper than try to instill one.

There are three main reasons why Trent Williams is a lock to go in the top 10: intelligence, excellent feet and a nasty streak. Everything he needs to improve upon can be taught.

Daniel Jeremiah also had this to say a couple weeks ago on his Twitter (not really much to do with his mean streak or toughness, but overall evaluation which is interesting looking back):

Okung is safer than Trent Williams but everyone I talk to believes Williams has a much higher ceiling... Not a done deal Okung is 1st OT

8:22 PM Apr 7th via TweetDeck

Last year, Michael Oher dropped b/c he had lapses vs bad players...Teams don't want to repeat that mistake with Trent Williams

9:10 PM Apr 7th via UberTwitter

Trent Williams is capable of blocking top notch guys at the next level. He needs to improve his focus/consistency. He has excellent Feet.

9:12 PM Apr 7th via UberTwitter

RT @Dan905: where do you see Trent Williams going? > 4, 5, 6 or 9... I know teams that think he's the top OT in the draft

10:56 PM Apr 11th via TweetDeck

[Schoolmaster]

There's no reason to play dumb on this. It's obvious why anyone would be bent about this pick. Okung carries very low bust potential, and a very high ceiling, his only knock is that the ceiling isn't all pro level, and he's not the best match for our system. Williams carries significant bust potential, and a higher ceiling than Okung, is a good match for us, and unlike Okung, appears to potentially be a little bit of a flashy type, which can be irrelevant, or can be very relevant if he gets fat and satisified immediately.

It's quite clear, we took a much riskier direction than Okung, people are worried about that risk. It's a reasonable thing to be worried about so long as you at least appreciate that combined with the risk is a higher ceiling in terms of potential.

Well put.... we could end the post right here with your comment

[Schoolmaster]

Im wondering if you guys even know what you're talking about 90% of the time. Clausen is the most pro ready QB in the draft. He wasn't selected in the 1st due to his attitude issues.

Dude, you can't be 'the most pro ready QB' with attitude issues. A Pro QB isn't playing at a Combine... he's leading world-class atheletes, many of whom have attitude issues of there own. You need a leader at QB that others on the team can emulate.

[rk3025]

Trent will be our Left Tackle and if he can not become strong enough for it then he will be our right tackle for 10 years.

Well put.... we could end the post right here with your comment

[AllAboutTheU]

We just spent a high 1st to draft our 2011 starting RT. Wonderful.

No Trent Williams is going to start at LT from day one that's what happens when your picked in the top 4.

[pvkeeper19]

No Trent Williams is going to start at LT from day one that's what happens when your picked in the top 4.

I think the point was that he may not be able to hack it as the left tackle. He's had his problems in pass protection.

[terpfan]

I agree we seem improved on paper.... Problem is the schedule got much harder. I don't see us any better than 5-11. But my glass isn't half full.

For someone who claims to have seen so much, you should know better than to judge a schedule's difficulty in April.

[AllAboutTheU]

I think the point was that he may not be able to hack it as the left tackle. He's had his problems in pass protection.

Alright I'm just saying that we shouldn't worry about it too much. When people are saying that he seemed to "giddy" when he got picked and that he won't work hard now that he has millions of dollars is ridiculous. IF he didn't have a good work ethic then he wouldn't have been a 4 year starter at one of the most dominant college programs in that nation in Oklahoma.

[36HAMMER]

I like his ability but i am not sure about the rest.I hope as we all do that he comes in and takes over.But i would love for the Skins to work out a trade for Jamall Brown who also came from Oklahoma and has been playing at a high levele for the Saints sense then.If they did that it would settle this line right down.Then you can move ol Silver back over to that right side and he doesn't have as much of a jump to being a dominate tackle.i hope they work it out.i would also like them to take a look a Sharper,He can teach Landry and the others how to be Safties in this league.It would also give us an attitude in the back end and alot of knowledge to go along with Fletcher.Two moves with and from the Saints that i think could really help this team.I hope Allen and Shanahan do it.