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2026 NFL Draft General Discussion

i think the biggest issue with vorhees was wide hands rather than the leaning

mauigoa does lean a bit when drive blocking but he doesnt lunge in the same way as a pass rusher
i dont see any real similarities tbh lol
I should clarify - I don't think it's the same by any means. He's certainly not dipping his head down and just moving forward blindly like Faalele was for the bulk of the season. But just some bad traits that I see a little too often for my liking for me to feel he's a bonafide stud. But I also think he can get there easily now that we have someone that can actually coach some of those habits out.
 
I should clarify - I don't think it's the same by any means. He's certainly not dipping his head down and just moving forward blindly like Faalele was for the bulk of the season. But just some bad traits that I see a little too often for my liking for me to feel he's a bonafide stud. But I also think he can get there easily now that we have someone that can actually coach some of those habits out.

i mean sure
but he plays with good balance and foot quickness

not saying he's a top 5-10 type prospect but i do think he's easily 1st round worthy and i dont think any of his issues projecting to IOL are particularly worrying
 
i mean sure
but he plays with good balance and foot quickness

not saying he's a top 5-10 type prospect but i do think he's easily 1st round worthy and i dont think any of his issues projecting to IOL are particularly worrying
Yeah agreed. I have him in round 1 easily. That's just why I have Ioane a slight touch above right now, but it's not like it's a large gap.
 
Yeah agreed. I have him in round 1 easily. That's just why I have Ioane a slight touch above right now, but it's not like it's a large gap.

i mean if we're nitpicking i have far more nitpicks about olaivavega ioane
he's more rigid moving laterally both in pass pro and working on zone and reach blocks, not effective in space or working up to level 2
 
So can we risk taking not taking an OL in 1st and a serviceable one being there in the 2nd?

depends on when the run happens and what guys the NFL likes

if i look at my grades:
2025 the last guy available with that same grade was taken at 32 by the Chiefs, and the last guy with a firm 2nd round grade went at 48
2024 was a deep class - the last guy available with that grade was taken at 44, we were lucky it was a deep class because the last guy with a firm 2nd round grade went all the way down at 63 (we got RR at 62)
i don't have my grades for 2023 but looking at it i'm guessing the corresponding numbers at 36 and 59
2022 i had some slightly different grade boundaries but 25 and 77 (albeit there was no one taken in between those numbers based on my board)

right now i've got 12 guys who'd fit the criteria above - id expect a couple of them at least to be available at 45 but 80 is normally pushing it for when the OL run typically ends

if you're looking for a year 1 starter - you probably have to take that guy at 14 or 45 - 80 if you're lucky (but the guy you get at 80 may also not be a year 1 starter either)

it does feel like a deep day 2 class at OL - lots of different flavours and positions except not a ton of LT options which does make me think that guys like Monroe Freeling, Jude Bowry, Caleb Lomu, Austin Barber might get pushed up a bit

lots of RT and IOL options though
 
So can we risk taking not taking an OL in 1st and a serviceable one being there in the 2nd?
Most starting linemen in the league come from the second through 4th rounds. Wouldn't surprise me if some later picks ends up being the best in the class. Should never reach out of desperation.
 
For me Bain clears as a prospect… easily

And the more I watch, the more I don’t think baileys even the 2nd best EDGE in the class
I’m gonna say some wild shit here and most are gonna tell me to get fucked, but if I remove Reese from the edge rankings, I might have R Mason Thomas as my 2nd edge
 
Who’s better out of the guard from penn state or the tackle from miami?
With ioane you’re gonna get a guy who steps in immediately at G with few growing pains. His floor is a stonewall pass protector who struggles in the run game. With Mauigoa moving in to G you might have a lot of growing pains, he’s already not as technically sound in the hands and feet and mirroring portion of pass protection as ioane, and then he’s changing positions, but he moves better in space and has more potential to punish in the run game.

If you’re strictly looking for an immediate guard who’s gonna help prevent your qb getting killed then ioane is the guy, if you’re looking at traits and a higher ceiling in the run game and like the potential to play OT, Mauigoa.

I wanna emphasize here, interior rushers who use lateral movement to rush, really struggle to get around ioane, he mirrors rushers feet so well, and his hands are usually money, and frankly you can’t bullrush him all that well either because he’s great at absorbing impact and resetting his feet. But in the run game, he looks odd, like struggles to find work and struggles to get there, often see him facing the wrong way, not staying on his feet all that well, etc. he’s an elite phone booth blocker.
 
With ioane you’re gonna get a guy who steps in immediately at G with few growing pains. His floor is a stonewall pass protector who struggles in the run game. With Mauigoa moving in to G you might have a lot of growing pains, he’s already not as technically sound in the hands and feet and mirroring portion of pass protection as ioane, and then he’s changing positions, but he moves better in space and has more potential to punish in the run game.

If you’re strictly looking for an immediate guard who’s gonna help prevent your qb getting killed then ioane is the guy, if you’re looking at traits and a higher ceiling in the run game and like the potential to play OT, Mauigoa.

I wanna emphasize here, interior rushers who use lateral movement to rush, really struggle to get around ioane, he mirrors rushers feet so well, and his hands are usually money, and frankly you can’t bullrush him all that well either because he’s great at absorbing impact and resetting his feet. But in the run game, he looks odd, like struggles to find work and struggles to get there, often see him facing the wrong way, not staying on his feet all that well, etc. he’s an elite phone booth blocker.
So ioane it is….. edit… that last sentence, you mean to tell me he be pulling some falalee bs out there?
 
With ioane you’re gonna get a guy who steps in immediately at G with few growing pains. His floor is a stonewall pass protector who struggles in the run game. With Mauigoa moving in to G you might have a lot of growing pains, he’s already not as technically sound in the hands and feet and mirroring portion of pass protection as ioane, and then he’s changing positions, but he moves better in space and has more potential to punish in the run game.

If you’re strictly looking for an immediate guard who’s gonna help prevent your qb getting killed then ioane is the guy, if you’re looking at traits and a higher ceiling in the run game and like the potential to play OT, Mauigoa.

I wanna emphasize here, interior rushers who use lateral movement to rush, really struggle to get around ioane, he mirrors rushers feet so well, and his hands are usually money, and frankly you can’t bullrush him all that well either because he’s great at absorbing impact and resetting his feet. But in the run game, he looks odd, like struggles to find work and struggles to get there, often see him facing the wrong way, not staying on his feet all that well, etc. he’s an elite phone booth blocker.

idk that he's the best fit in the run game
(assuming we're going to be running a lot of zone concepts given who we've hired)

i think pregnon, bisontis and schrauth are all better fits schematically

then again i thought that last year about tyler booker and then apparently he was near the top of our board
 


i'm not being funny
but weren't the only even remotely good OTs he competed against: Fano, Lomu and Iheanachor who he didn't dominate at all

tweeting this out feels a lot like confirmation bias
 
So ioane it is….. edit… that last sentence, you mean to tell me he be pulling some falalee bs out there?
Not even close. I mean maybe a little, He looks like he’s just got some work to do there and get some confidence in the less simple assignments. Nowhere near the extend of faalele
 
i dont think that's crazy at all
i've got him as EDGE 3 behind Bain and Mesidor right now
Oh hell yeah then. I feel like the general consensus is like 3 or 4 ranking spots apart from me when it comes to Thomas, and I always think I’m doing something wrong when I go against consensus like that
 
Oh hell yeah then. I feel like the general consensus is like 3 or 4 ranking spots apart from me when it comes to Thomas, and I always think I’m doing something wrong when I go against consensus like that

i mean i've got a clump of EDGEs in the late 1st/early 2nd who are probably gonna end up in the 16-25 range on my board
R Mason Thomas
David Bailey
Cashius Howell

and then the next tier down (but occasionally fluctuating):
Keldric Faulk and Zion Young

but i've got Bain as a top 10 type prospect - probably going to end up top 3 on my board
and i've got mesidor as a 1st round prospect - who's probably going to end up somewhere top 15 on my board

so i do have a gap from Mesidor down to the next cluster of guys

but yeah i don't think it's ridiculous to have R Mason Thomas ahead of Bailey

remember at this time of year that the consensus boards are often still anchored to summer grading and the big hitters like DJ, Zierlein are only just getting into grading players and as much as a lot of the other guys talk about their grades, every year their boards end up moving to look a lot closer to what the new guys talk about

and it also means that players that have exploded in their final year in college have their position on consensus boards lag a bit as evaluators only just get to them - Mesidor had the benefit of dominating the CFB playoffs so guys got to him a bit earlier but you can already see it starting to happen with Monroe Freeling and i reckon when big names get to Billy Schrauth he's going to move up lists too

it's why at this time of year i worry about what positional experts with track records say vs full board draftnik types

John Owning and Jon Ledyard are great EDGE analysts
Brandon Thorn and Lance Zierlein are great OL analysts
Matt Harmon (normally starts later) is a great WR analyst
Nate Tice is i think one of the best QB analysts in the media - but also in general i think he's great
Dane Brugler is good for day 2 and day 3 guys you don't know much about - but i always have to remember that he always falls in love with tough little guys especially nickel corners
DJ is obviously the guy in general as the all-rounder who backs his own grades
 
I know my knowledge is basic compared to yours, but at 14 I don't like any OLs. I don't think they're that much different from someone we might find in lower tiers.
I don't see that much of a difference in skill level.
At 14, barring any unusual circumstances, a WR or a CB are the most realistic options according to the draft
 
I know my knowledge is basic compared to yours, but at 14 I don't like any OLs. I don't think they're that much different from someone we might find in lower tiers.
I don't see that much of a difference in skill level.
At 14, barring any unusual circumstances, a WR or a CB are the most realistic options according to the draft
If we draft a cb fans gonna want edc fired
 
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