Tag: Romeo Doubs

NFL Draft: Thoughts On Packers Day 3 Picks

Finally, my thoughts on the Green Bay Packers day 3 picks from the NFL draft are here! The Packers had two picks in the 4th, one in the 5th (that they traded down), and four in the 7th. Below are my thoughts on every day 3 pick. If you haven’t already, check out my thoughts on the teams day one and day two picks. Now, let’s get to the show!

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Packers NFL Draft Day 3: Picks and Analysis

Romeo Doubs:

Romeo Doubs is a player who I had as a fit for the Packers way back on October. He has the size, physicality, and speed they like. He also showed flashes of the blocker that he could be at Nevada, occasionally burying defenders while blocking. Other times he would look either unsure of his assignment or unengaged. While he ran mostly deep routes at Nevada, when he was given a chance to run other routes he showed that he could and the potential was there for him to get better.

I had Doubs projected as a 3rd round pick, but he wasn’t able to work out at the combine or Nevada’s pro day due to an illness. He did have a private workout later where he reportedly ran in the 4.47-4.52 range. On film he looks closer to 4.47 — maybe even faster. He has speed and he knows how to get deep. An underrated part of his game is his ability to get YAC, or yards after the catch. He may not be a YAC monster, but he can get yards with physicality and his sneaky agility.

As far as a rookie, he projects to be the #4 or #5 receiver. He should also compete for the punt return job and maybe the kick return job, too. He also helps bring speed to the offense that has been lacking. Even Matt LaFleur mentioned this in his pre-draft press conference. Doubs also brings the big, strong body type the Packers like. If he improves his short and intermediate routes, he has #2 receiver potential. You could even consider him more pro-ready today than Watson.

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Zach Tom:

Zach Tom was one of the most Packers offensive linemen in the draft. He brings versatility to the field, having started two seasons at center and two seasons at left tackle — something you rarely see. He doesn’t have the greatest size at 6’4 304 with 33 1/4″ arms, but that has never been something to scare off the Packers.

The most important thing to them is movement skills; especially agility drills. Tom tested out elite in those categories. He does lack a bit of an anchor, and his body looks mostly filled out. That shows up on film where you can see him getting bull rushed at times. However, his feet and his ability to mirror are on another level. He held down Jermaine Johnson, who was destroying every one.

I would expect Tom to get a shot pretty much everywhere, maybe even left tackle. I do expect him to settle in at guard and center. Kind of like Lucas Patrick, but a better athlete on the field and he could back up at tackle as well. He reminds me a little of former Packer center Mike Flanagan.

Flanagan was 6’5″ 295-ish and was long, with a thin frame and not much of an anchor. He would get bull rushed on occasion, but was so quick and technical that he gave defensive linemen fits. He also was able to kick out to left tackle for a few games with Chad Clifton was injured. That is the kind of role Tom could have on the roster.

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Kingsley “JJ” Enagbare:

Kingsley or “JJ” Enagbare is a player who never produced big sacks numbers , but always produced pressures. He had 45 pressures in 2021 alone. Enagbare also had 24 in a shortened eight-game season in 2020.

He has good size at 6’4″ 258 pounds with long 34 3/4″ arms. While his 40 speed is on the slow side, his short area burst or explosion is very good on film. JJ, as he is known, also shows very heavy hands on film. He will knock back blockers with his strong hands. He still has some rawness to him. His pass rush moves and counters need improvement. Kingsley does set a good edge, though.

As as rookie, I would expect him to man the #3 edge rusher spot to give Rashan Gary and Preston Smith a break. He will probably also end up on some special teams. If he can hone his craft and work hard at it, he could develop into a starter down the road. He will probably never be a big sack guy, but should be a good all-around edge defender.

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Tariq Carpenter:

Tariq Carpenter is an interesting study. He played only safety at Georgia Tech, but has the size of a linebacker. He has the speed of a safety, but not the agility. Carpenter is kind of in middle. Even though his agility testing wasn’t great, because his speed and explosion testing were so good he still tested out as a elite athlete. Carpenter did give up 12 touchdown passes and allowed a completion percentage of 71 in his career at Georgia Tech. So it is probably best he moves to linebacker, which LaFleur has seemed to indicate.

This pick was a pure Rich Bisaccia pick. He will be a special teamer, and that’s about it. He is just a big, fast, strong athlete. The former Yellow Jacket may be able to develop into a decent #3 linebacker. If so, that’s just a bonus to what they expect out of him. Carpenter may even be able to develop into a nickel backer.

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Jonathan Ford:

Jonathan Ford is a pure nose tackle. 6’5″ 335 pounds plus with poor athletic testing. He is big and strong, and can clog up the middle. Career wise he was a disappointment at Miami. He started for three seasons but had little impact. He has three sacks in 2019 and none the rest of his career.

There were whispers of him being lazy and unmotivated. His poor testing points to that to an extent, because he doesn’t look sloppy. Maybe going so late in the draft will motivate him to work hard? We will see.

He doesn’t fit on this roster as a rookie. Even if he works his butt off, there is almost no room for him on the roster. The Packers already have three guys who can play nose tackle in Kenny Clark, Jarran Reed, and TJ Slaton. Plus, there’s Dean Lowry, Jack Heflin, and the recently drafted Devante Wyatt. The Packers use a lot of two DL packages, so there is not a need for four nose tackles. Especially not one who offers nothing as a pass rusher.

They usually keep either five or six defensive linemen. If they keep a sixth, it will be someone who can play some 4i or even 5-tech, not a 0-tech/nose tackle. He will be stashed on the practice squad with the hopes he can develop and make the roster in 2023.

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Rasheed Walker:

Early on in the process, Rasheed Walker was looking like a mid-round pick with some developmental potential. However, he didn’t play well in 2021, and also had an injury that hampered him and that didn’t allow him to work out at the combine or Penn State’s pro day.

Walker started three seasons at left tackle for Penn State. He gave up 26 pressures this past season, and seems to really struggle with speedy/bendy edge rushers. But in 2020 he only gave up 14. So, the knee injury probably did affect him some in 2021. He has great size at almost 6’6 313 pounds with 33 5/8″ arms.

The former Nittany Lion seems to have some similarities to Yosh Nijman. He was a multi-season starter at tackle for a major program. He has great size and good athleticism, with a lot of potential — but his technique is a mess. Walker is probably going to need a year or two on the practice squad to clean it up. But, due to Green Bays lack of depth at tackle, he probably makes the roster as a “redshirt”. He could back up right tackle and could be cross-trained for guard. I don’t see him being able to play left tackle long-term or as a starter in the NFL.

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Samori Toure:

Samori Toure was a transfer from Montana where he had 1,400 yards and 12 touchdowns in 2019. His 2020 season was lost due to COVID. He transferred to Nebraska for the 2021 season. Toure put up 896 yards and five touchdowns, which doesn’t sound like a lot but Nebraska is still a very run oriented offense, so the fact that he was able to put up those numbers in that offense — with not a very good quarterback — speaks to his skill level.

Toure also averaged 19.5 yards per catch. 80% of his snaps he lined up in the slot, but he can play outside. He has average size at 6’1″, 191 and looks like he could maybe add a few pounds to his frame. He has struggled some with getting off press coverage. That is something he will have to work on, along with getting stronger in the upper body. Athletically overall, he is average to slightly above average. The former Husker also has some special teams experience, which is a plus.

Toure probably doesn’t make the roster as long as everyone ahead of him can stay relatively healthy. He has kind of a redundant skill set right now, with there already being two slot receivers on the roster and Allen Lazard who sees snaps there as well. Until he can get stronger I don’t think they can trust him outside.

Toure has Sammy Watkins, Lazard, Randall Cobb, Amari Rodgers, Christian Watson, and Doubs ahead of him on the depth chart. LaFleur rarely keeps more than six receivers on the roster. He would need to show he could come in and play special teams and possibly be a returner. Even still, it’s more likely he spends a season on the practice squad. Eventually, though, he could develop into a solid #3/slot receiver.

2022 All Senior Bowl Offense

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With the week of practice and game wrapped up, it’s time to pick out the best players for the Senior Bowl offense. Make sure you go back and check out Around the Block’s winners and losers from Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday of practice. Instead of picking out the winners again, this article will select the All-Senior Bowl team.

This article will echo the format of any all-pro or conference where each position will have a few players that performed the best over the course of the week. Additionally, each player will have a more specific positional designation if necessary. For example, the positions will be broken out on the defensive line by technique/alignment (0T, 1T, etc.). 

QB: Kenny Pickett, Malik Willis

Frankly, none of the quarterbacks dominated at the Senior Bowl on offense. All of them struggled at various points during the week of practice. Therefore, I’ll pick two quarterbacks representing opposite ends of the spectrum. First, Kenny Pickett was perhaps the most positively steady of the quarterbacks in Mobile. He had some issues with maintaining velocity during the monsoon on Wednesday. However, all the other quarterbacks had issues, too.

Once Pickett developed some chemistry with his receivers and the linemen, he started dealing. During the game, none of his passes hit the ground. Furthermore, Pickett crushed his interviews with NFL teams. Pickett is the starter on this team because he is the safer, game manager-type that can keep the offense on schedule. 

On the other side of the coin, Malik Willis put together the most volatile week for the Senior Bowl offense. His issues with mechanics, accuracy, and decision-making were abundant throughout the week. However, he also threw some of the most incredible passes every day. Willis also repeatedly made highlight plays with his feet to buy time and pick up yards if nothing was there.

Additionally, Willis exhibited a unique energetic leadership style that resonated with his teammates. He was continuously dancing and hyping up the other players on the field, somewhat similar to Mac Jones last year. Willis gets the nod for this team because of his potential for incredible plays that no one else in Mobile could make; if the team gets down, Willis’ penchant for highlight-reel plays would be a major asset. 

RB: Dameon Pierce, Tyler Badie, Rachaad White

Similar to the quarterbacks, none of the running backs were dominant at the Senior Bowl. None of them excelled in all three phases of the running back position: rushing, receiving, and pass blocking. We’ll lead off with Dameon Pierce from Florida.

Pierce looked fantastic running the ball; he’s a compact back that runs hard behind his pads with great contact balance. He excelled in pass protection as well, winning the one-on-one to end practice on the second day. Pierce wasn’t fantastic catching the ball, but this was mainly because it seemed like he needed to make difficult catches. 

Tyler Badie was one of my favorite running backs in the group going into this week. Despite his diminutive stature, Badie shone in practice every day. He’s a highly shifty runner with great vision, which helps him catch the ball out of the backfield. Naturally, as a smaller running back, Badie is not the best pass protector.

Finally, Rachaad White was probably the best pure runner of the three, displaying great burst and long speed on outside zone runs. He made some nice catches out of the backfield and wasn’t terrible in pass protection. He still needs work there, but he’s a pretty raw back with light tread on the tires, so teams will be interested. 

FB: Connor Heyward

I expected Jeremiah Hall to be the best fullback in Mobile, but Connor Heyward quickly took that honor. Hall struggled with drops and wasn’t a dominant blocker, whereas Heyward excelled. Hayward is a converted running back/kick returner that moved to fullback/tight end. He’s an impressive athlete with impeccable NFL bloodlines; it would not shock me if he’s the first fullback off the board. 

WR: Christian Watson (X), Calvin Austin III (SL), Romeo Doubs (Z/X), Bo Melton (Z/SL), Tre Turner (Z/X)

Christian Watson had the best week of any skill position player at the Senior Bowl on offense. The argument could be made that he was the best offensive player, and he was undoubtedly among the best overall players. He displayed rare athleticism and route running for a receiver of his size. Calvin Austin III negated concerns about his size by showing that he could not be caught or covered by any defensive back there.

Romeo Doubs had a few issues with drops, but his release package and patience with his routes were special. Bo Melton and Tre Turner had quieter weeks, but both displayed good explosiveness; Melton also adds values as a return specialist, while Turner caught nearly everything thrown his way and was one of the more nuanced route runners. 

TE: Jeremy Ruckert (Y), Greg Dulcich (H), Isaiah Likely (F)

The tight end group was very impressive across the board. One of the things I greatly appreciated was that both coaching staffs asked the tight ends to fill roles they hadn’t in college. For example, Isaiah Likely from Coastal Carolina took most of his snaps at the Y position, aligning attached to the offensive line and on the line of scrimmage. Even though he was an outstanding blocker at Coastal Carolina, it was good to see him doing it more traditionally.

Jeremy Ruckert reminded many people why he was one of the higher-ranked tight ends in last year’s class before returning to school. Unfortunately, he filled the fourth fiddle role behind three elite wide receivers this year. But Ruckert was very solid in both blocking and receiving before going down with an injury. Finally, Greg Dulcich might have had the best week of any tight end in Mobile; he showed excellent route running to all levels of the field. 

OT: Trevor Penning (RT), Max Mitchell (LT), Darian Kinnard (RT), Matt Waletzko (LT)

While the offensive line as a whole looked good in team drills during the week, the tackles were certainly the weaker group. Trevor Penning made multiple “highlight” reps during one-on-one drills, even if he nearly started a fight every day in practice. Max Mitchell lost some reps here and there, but he certainly looked the part of an NFL offensive lineman in terms of his movement skills and strength.

The same goes for Darian Kinnard. He might end up at guard at the next level, but proved he could stick at tackle, if necessary, and be a plus player in a suitable scheme. Finally, Matt Waletzko quietly had one of the best weeks among the smaller school offensive linemen. He still needs some technical work, but has all the physical tools to be a late-round developmental project who could become a starter. 

OG: Zion Johnson (LG), Ed Ingram (RG), Chris Paul (RG), Cole Strange (LG)

Despite the excellent performance of the defensive line, the interior offensive line was among the best position groups in Mobile. Despite spending most of the week at center, Zion Johnson solidified himself as a first-round prospect and arguably the best guard in this draft. Ed Ingram had a terrific week as well; granted, it was probably not good enough to overcome concerns about his off-field history.

Chris Paul took most of his reps at tackle, but his future is probably at guard, where he should be a high-quality player. Like Johnson, Cole Strange took most of his reps at center. At the beginning of the week, Strange looked overmatched, especially in one-on-one drills. But as the week went on, he got better and adjusted to the level of competition pretty well. He’s not ready to be an NFL starter now, but he could develop into one with a few years of professional training and development. 

C: Dylan Parham, Luke Fortner

There was a lot of shuffling of bodies at the center position on offense for the Senior Bowl. Many guards moved in and out of the middle, so I tried to pick two players that should stay there at the next level. Dylan Parham erased any concerns about his size with the initial weigh-ins, coming in almost 40 pounds over his listed college weight. He didn’t look any slower with the added weight, and performed exceptionally well throughout the week. Luke Fortner also impressed at the pivot position. He’s one of the bigger centers in this draft, but is also an excellent athlete that helped his stock this week.