B&G Posted December 26, 2003 Share Posted December 26, 2003 Draft Dish: Virginia Tech's Jones could be NFL home-run hitter Virginia Tech running back Kevin Jones' decision to forgo his senior season to enter the 2004 draft was no surprise. In his first season as a full-time starter after splitting carries with Lee Suggs (Browns) the previous two seasons, Jones proved his durability and showed NFL scouts his potential to develop into an elite starter with home-run capabilities. Jones lacks great experience as a receiver, though. He also is a little bit of a finesse back who is much more effective outside than he is inside. Still, he has great strength for his size and has an explosive second gear in the open field. Much like the Vikings' Michael Bennett did as an underclassman three years ago, Jones could be a huge weapon as a rookie if placed in the right system. Jones is a solid first-round prospect in what is shaping up to be a strong running back class. There is a good chance Oregon State's Steven Jackson, Auburn's Carnell "Cadillac" Williams and Texas' Cedric Benson also will leave school early and enter the '04 draft. With those four underclassmen added to the solid group of Day 1 senior prospects -- Michigan's Chris Perry, Florida State's Greg Jones, West Virginia's Quincy Wilson, Northern Illinois' Michael Turner, Notre Dame's Julius Jones and Arkansas' Cedric Cobbs -- running back-needy NFL coaches should be excited. Razorback bolsters FB class Arkansas fullback Mark Pierce, a junior, also announced his intentions to enter the '04 draft. He might be the most talented all-around fullback prospect in this class. Pierce has terrific size, strength, athleticism and hands. He is an excellent open-field blocker and also is a reliable short-yardage receiver. In many ways, Pierce is similar to the 49ers' Fred Beasley. However, there are a lot of questions about Pierce's durability and off-field baggage. Those issues likely will cause him to slip a bit on draft day. As for health, Pierce will not play in Arkansas' bowl game and instead focus on getting ready for workouts with NFL scouts. He might have shoulder surgery, though, but his decision to skip the bowl game would give him enough time to heal before the NFL Combine. As for off-field issues, Pierce lost his father suddenly in the fall of 2002 and took a leave of absence from the team. He rejoined the team this summer and played this season but had two separate run-ins with the police, including a disorderly conduct charge and a third-degree battery charge. OU's Everage in a freefall Oklahoma safety Brandon Everage is the most gifted senior safety prospect (Miami's Sean Taylor is a junior), but Everage's draft value has plummeted because of off-field problems that seem to reflect his inconsistent and sometimes out-of-control play on the field. On film, Everage sometimes looks like a first-round lock with great burst to the ball, explosive power as a tackler and above-average range in coverage. Other times, he takes poor angles to the ball and misses open-field tackles. Everage has adequate, but not great, size and speed. Combine those concerns with the fact he can't seem to keep his nose clean, and it is understandable why Everage could slip to Day 2. He already has a DUI on his record and missed the team's opener against North Texas because of a summertime marijuana possession charge. Then, before his return from suspension, Everage was arrested for several traffic offenses after he ran a stop sign the week before the Alabama game. One of the charges was for driving without a valid license, but the most concerning was his transporting an open alcohol container around 10:30 a.m. Everage reportedly paid $480 in fines before making the trip to the Tuscaloosa and playing in the Alabama game. The War Room, a team of football scouts headed by Gary Horton, analyzes NFL and college players, coaches and teams exclusively for Sporting News. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WVUorFU Posted December 26, 2003 Share Posted December 26, 2003 Its good there is a lot of RBs. That means we should draft defense in rounds 1 and 2. Then by round three a decent RB will still be there. We could pick up Quincy Wilson in the 3rd round and have two top defenders in the early rounds. This would be sweet. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skeletor The Invincible Posted December 26, 2003 Share Posted December 26, 2003 I think Cadillac Williams might be the best back of the bunch, why isn't he getting more press? I've seen him run a lot and he always is effective when given the carries. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Sir Posted December 26, 2003 Share Posted December 26, 2003 Originally posted by Skeletor The Invincible I think Cadillac Williams might be the best back of the bunch, why isn't he getting more press? I've seen him run a lot and he always is effective when given the carries. He's a junior and hasn't declared(not that I know of). Also, He's been on a team with a great offensive line and individually, he's not that great, IMO. He's a pretty good back, but still very raw and undisciplined. Has a tendency to be forced into unneccesary cuts in the backfield. In the games where he line was able to block a play perfectly, he couldnt do much. Except for that nifty spin he does at the end of every single run he had all year long. Its a spin that does work, but looks like a potential fumbling hazard at the NFL level. And against my yellow jackets, which have good LBs that know how to tackle, he did get many extra yards. I believe the whole Auburn team had 39 carries for 40 yards that game. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OURYEAR#56 Posted December 26, 2003 Share Posted December 26, 2003 Jones runs up right. He's going to get killed in the NFL if he doesn't learn how to use his pads. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IowaSkinsFan Posted December 26, 2003 Share Posted December 26, 2003 Originally posted by B&G Draft Dish: Virginia Tech's Jones could be NFL home-run hitter Virginia Tech running back Kevin Jones' decision to forgo his senior season to enter the 2004 draft was no surprise. In his first season as a full-time starter after splitting carries with Lee Suggs (Browns) the previous two seasons, Jones proved his durability and showed NFL scouts his potential to develop into an elite starter with home-run capabilities. Jones lacks great experience as a receiver, though. He also is a little bit of a finesse back who is much more effective outside than he is inside. Still, he has great strength for his size and has an explosive second gear in the open field. A finesse back? Don't we already have Trung Canidate on the roster? If draft a RB, I'd like to see Chris Perry of Michigan in B&G. But since we will be drafting Defense in the first 2 rounds, I know we will not be getting him! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
atloldskin Posted December 26, 2003 Share Posted December 26, 2003 I would love to see Quincey Wilson in the third round. He has nothing but heart and desire. I have seen some draft boards that have us taking Taylor (S from Miami) in the first round and Tubbs (DT from Texas) in the second round. With regard to Winslow, I think he will be a player. However, we do get Royal back. Any thoughts on making McCants a TE??? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ktball74 Posted December 26, 2003 Share Posted December 26, 2003 I would love to see Taylor-Tubbs-Wilson in that order. Erron Kinney is a FA, and played for Spurrier at UF. We don't need to draft a TE. Quincy Wilson is all heart and desire. He's got a great bloodline. His dad was the starting LB along side Singletary for the Bears badass defense. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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