Consider the most highly regarded ends in the 2007 draft class: The average height and weight of the 12 ends cited most often by league scouts to ESPN.com as worthy of being taken in the first two rounds is 6-4 1/8 and 268.3 pounds, according to measurements recorded at the combine. Seven of the 12 are at least 6-foot-4 and four of those are 6-foot-5 or taller. At the same time, six weigh less than 270 pounds and only two, Jamaal Anderson of Arkansas and Nebraska's Adam Carriker weigh more than 285pounds.
Of the eight ends who participated in the bench press segment of the combine, five were able to post 25 or more repetitions of the standard 225-pound weight. More notable, though, was that five of the eight who were timed in the 40-yard dash were clocked at 4.70 seconds or faster, reinforcing the notion that, even at end, it's a sprinter's game.
Little wonder that Carriker, whose huge frame stretches to 6-foot-6, is rapidly moving up the draft boards of teams that deploy in 4-3 and 3-4 fronts. Carriker is a two-way perimeter defender, who is equally effective anchoring against the run or chasing the quarterback. At the combine, where Carriker weighed 296 pounds, he registered a solid 33 repetitions on the bench press but still ran a 4.90 time in the 40.
http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/columns/story?columnist=pasquarelli_len&id=2800846
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Atleast when it comes to measureables, he's better than anything out there in the 2007 Draft and probably anything in any Draft since Peppers came out
in 2002. But this is an interesting artice by ESPNs Pasquarelli about the need to find a big and athletic DE. Still very much one of the premier type players
in the NFL.
But its easy to see how the Texans and other teams got excited about Mario after his Indy combine, if he just shows us some production on the field that's equivalent those measureables.
Of the eight ends who participated in the bench press segment of the combine, five were able to post 25 or more repetitions of the standard 225-pound weight. More notable, though, was that five of the eight who were timed in the 40-yard dash were clocked at 4.70 seconds or faster, reinforcing the notion that, even at end, it's a sprinter's game.
Little wonder that Carriker, whose huge frame stretches to 6-foot-6, is rapidly moving up the draft boards of teams that deploy in 4-3 and 3-4 fronts. Carriker is a two-way perimeter defender, who is equally effective anchoring against the run or chasing the quarterback. At the combine, where Carriker weighed 296 pounds, he registered a solid 33 repetitions on the bench press but still ran a 4.90 time in the 40.
http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/columns/story?columnist=pasquarelli_len&id=2800846
*******************************
Atleast when it comes to measureables, he's better than anything out there in the 2007 Draft and probably anything in any Draft since Peppers came out
in 2002. But this is an interesting artice by ESPNs Pasquarelli about the need to find a big and athletic DE. Still very much one of the premier type players
in the NFL.
But its easy to see how the Texans and other teams got excited about Mario after his Indy combine, if he just shows us some production on the field that's equivalent those measureables.
