2015-16 NFL ROOKIE CLASS

Bingo_AlphaMan · Post #1 » by **Bingo_AlphaMan** » Thu May 7, 2015 4:55 pm

As usual, a thread catered solely for the purpose of monitoring / tracking the rookies.

Bingo_AlphaMan · Post #2 » by **Bingo_AlphaMan** » Thu May 7, 2015 4:57 pm

Justin Hunter - WR - Titans

Justin Hunter expects to battle second-round WR Dorial Green-Beckham for a starting job.

Kendall Wright is locked into one job and Harry Douglas is lurking as a No. 3/slot candidate. If Green-Beckham has his head on straight, he shouldn't have any problem pushing Hunter into a sub-package role. Despite sizable playmaking talent, Hunter was one of the worst receivers in the league last year as he averaged just 1.32 yards per route run -- 46th of 52 qualifiers in PFF's metric.
Source: Nashville Tennessean

May 7 - 11:34 AM

Dorial Green-Beckham - WR - Titans
One AFC OC said Dorial Green-Beckham was "completely lost" when asked to go over plays during a pre-draft visit.
Source: NFL.com

May 7 - 12:53 PM

ChrisPozz · Post #3 » by **ChrisPozz** » Thu May 7, 2015 6:32 pm

Charean Williams:

Cowboys have signed La'el Collins, according to a source.

3 years, $1.65M.

CrimsonCrew · Post #4 » by **CrimsonCrew** » Thu May 7, 2015 6:50 pm

http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap300000 ... el-collins

Boo. Niners should have used a 6th or 7th round pick on him and called his bluff about entering next year's draft. Odd choice for Collins. Cowboys have fewer openings on the OL than most teams.

ChrisPozz · Post #5 » by **ChrisPozz** » Thu May 7, 2015 7:07 pm

A number of teams already had taken themselves out of the running because they couldn't fit him into the UDFA cap limit. Teams can spend no more than about $88,000 in signing bonuses offered for all their UDFAs combined.

Bingo_AlphaMan · Post #6 » by **Bingo_AlphaMan** » Thu May 7, 2015 7:45 pm

Too bad they didn't draft the RB position in the draft. Joseph Randle is one happy man right now.

La'El Collins - T - Cowboys

Cowboys signed LSU G/T La'El Collins to a three-year, $1.65 million contract.

The Cowboys' rich offensive line gets even richer. Speaking to Collins' unusual status as an undrafted free agent, his deal is fully guaranteed. It can be renegotiated after only two seasons. Collins (6'5/305) earned the 2014 Jacobs Trophy as the SEC's top offensive lineman, finishing his career with 38 starts. He played left guard as a sophomore before protecting the blind side as a junior and senior. Collins was flagged for just one penalty in 2014. Although he was an excellent edge protector in college football's toughest conference, athletic limitations and 33 1/4-inch arms figure to push Collins inside to guard. In terms of pure playing ability, however, there may not have been five better prospects in the 2015 draft. Collins is a brawler with pro-ready drive-blocking ability and will make an immediate impact in the run game. His signing is probably bad news for LG Ronald Leary.
Source: Charean Williams on Twitter

May 7 - 1:31 PM

NinerSickness · Post #7 » by **NinerSickness** » Fri May 8, 2015 3:16 am

CrimsonCrew wrote:http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap300000 ... el-collins

Boo. Niners should have used a 6th or 7th round pick on him and called his bluff about entering next year's draft. Odd choice for Collins. Cowboys have fewer openings on the OL than most teams.

Aren't you glad they drafted a tight end who won't make the team instead? :banghead:

Hangman_52 · Post #8 » by **Hangman_52** » Fri May 8, 2015 4:20 am

NinerSickness wrote:
CrimsonCrew wrote:http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap300000 ... el-collins

Boo. Niners should have used a 6th or 7th round pick on him and called his bluff about entering next year's draft. Odd choice for Collins. Cowboys have fewer openings on the OL than most teams.

Aren't you glad they drafted a tight end who won't make the team instead?

You mean WR. The 49ers said on draft day he would play wr for them.

CrimsonCrew · Post #9 » by **CrimsonCrew** » Fri May 8, 2015 4:25 am

Hangman_52 wrote:
NinerSickness wrote:
CrimsonCrew wrote:http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap300000 ... el-collins

Boo. Niners should have used a 6th or 7th round pick on him and called his bluff about entering next year's draft. Odd choice for Collins. Cowboys have fewer openings on the OL than most teams.

Aren't you glad they drafted a tight end who won't make the team instead?

You mean WR. The 49ers said on draft day he would play wr for them.

Anderson was added to play TE? He's 6'5", 245.

Hangman_52 · Post #10 » by **Hangman_52** » Fri May 8, 2015 4:47 am

CrimsonCrew wrote:
Hangman_52 wrote:
NinerSickness wrote:
Aren't you glad they drafted a tight end who won't make the team instead?

You mean WR. The 49ers said on draft day he would play wr for them.

Anderson was added to play TE? He's 6'5", 245.

No, he was added to play wr. They said that they want his weight at 225lbs and that he is a lot like Jefferies.

CrimsonCrew · Post #11 » by **CrimsonCrew** » Fri May 8, 2015 4:53 am

I meant to say WR. I hadn't heard that, but it's an interesting thought. We'll see. Likely he goes to the PUP or IR, anyway.

NinerSickness · Post #12 » by **NinerSickness** » Fri May 8, 2015 5:58 am

Hangman_52 wrote:You mean WR. The 49ers said on draft day he would play wr for them.

Either way, I would take a chance of signing Collins over a 7th-round TE / WR who won't even make the team. :noway:

Bingo_AlphaMan · Post #13 » by **Bingo_AlphaMan** » Fri May 8, 2015 6:43 pm

Tevin Coleman - RB - Falcons

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution projects Tevin Coleman as 1A on the depth chart and Devonta Freeman as 1B.

Coleman, the third-round rookie out of Indiana, brings superior physical skills to the table. The diminutive Freeman will remain in the mix as a change-of-pace option and potential third-down back. Homerun hitter Antone Smith also figures to get some chances. But as long as Coleman keeps his nose in front of this committee, he'll have serious upside thanks in large part to the presence of run-game guru Kyle Shanahan.
Related: Devonta Freeman
Source: Atlanta Journal-Constitution

May 5 - 9:21 AM

Bingo_AlphaMan · Post #14 » by **Bingo_AlphaMan** » Fri May 8, 2015 6:49 pm

David Johnson - RB - Cardinals

ESPN Cardinals reporter Josh Weinfuss says third-round RB David Johnson has a good shot at red-zone work.

Johnson doesn't play as big as his 6'1/224 frame would suggest, but he's still a better option in short yardage than featherweight Andre Ellington. Johnson is also far more talented than Stepfan Taylor and Kerwynn Williams. So even though Ellington is fully expected to retain his starting gig and remain a focal point of the offense, Johnson will have value as a backup to an injury-prone player and a candidate for both inside running and goal-line work.
Source: ESPN.com

May 5 - 8:52 AM

Bingo_AlphaMan · Post #15 » by **Bingo_AlphaMan** » Fri May 8, 2015 6:51 pm

Marcus Mariota - QB - Titans

Titans GM Ruston Webster said the coaching staff began tailoring their offense to fit Marcus Mariota's strengths a while ago.

This should be obvious, but coach Ken Whisenhunt has earned a reputation as a vanilla schemer that forces his offense on players. That won't fly with Mariota and Whiz appears to know it. "Our coaches have been working on a plan for quite some time now for Marcus," Webster said. "Really to adapting our offense to his skill set." If Whisenhunt uses Mariota correctly, he'll easily get on the QB2 map thanks to the rushing stats that will inevitably come.
Source: NFL.com

May 5 - 8:41 AM

Bingo_AlphaMan · Post #16 » by **Bingo_AlphaMan** » Fri May 8, 2015 6:57 pm

Maxx Williams - TE - Ravens

ESPN's Mel Kiper Jr. believes second-round TE Maxx Williams could be the Offensive Rookie of the Year.

"He could be everything that Dennis Pitta was when he was healthy," Kiper said. It's silly to suggest Rookie of the Year honors as first-year tight ends almost always struggle and Maxx won't see a ton of volume -- Pitta's best season was 61-669-7. But Kiper's point on the highly athletic and skilled Williams as a nice fit for Joe Flacco and the Marc Trestman scheme is well taken. He'll be a low-end TE2 candidate if Pitta (hip) can't return.
Source: Baltimore Sun

May 5 - 10:00 AM

Bingo_AlphaMan · Post #17 » by **Bingo_AlphaMan** » Fri May 8, 2015 7:12 pm

Sammie Coates - WR - Steelers

Steelers GM Kevin Colbert insisted third-round WR Sammie Coates has good hands.

The tape says otherwise as Coates dropped 8-of-75 targets for Auburn in 2014 and showed poor ball skills. "What I will tell you is, they didn’t play him every down," Steelers WRs coach Richard Mann said. "What happens is he disappears. A lot of times, in my opinion, players have a tendency to lose concentration simply because they weren’t involved and then you bring them back in the heat of the battle." Coates will start his NFL career battling Markus Wheaton for the No. 3 job. The Steelers are willing to roll the dice thanks to unique physical talent.
Source: Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

May 5 - 8:23 AM

Bingo_AlphaMan · Post #18 » by **Bingo_AlphaMan** » Fri May 8, 2015 7:15 pm

Jameis Winston - QB - Buccaneers

Buccaneers GM Jason Licht conceded Jameis Winston is likely to start Week 1.

You don't take a quarterback No. 1 overall to sit behind Mike Glennon. "It’s pretty difficult to say with a straight face that we’re not going to give Jameis that opportunity to win it right away," Licht said. "We think he’s very advanced in terms of his ability to play and pick up schemes and concepts and learn the playbook relative to most rookies, or any rookie we’ve scouted in recent history." Winston will match up with No. 2 overall pick Marcus Mariota and the Titans on Sept. 13.
Related: Mike Glennon
Source: Profootballtalk on NBC Sports

May 5 - 8:07 AM

Bingo_AlphaMan · Post #19 » by **Bingo_AlphaMan** » Fri May 8, 2015 7:18 pm

Javorius Allen - RB - Ravens

Ravens fourth-round RB Buck Allen could be a factor on third downs "right away."

Allen admits he'll likely be a backup "for a while," but that doesn't mean he won't see the field behind Justin Forsett. Allen is big at 6'1/221, but is a noted pass protector with plus hands. New OC Marc Trestman loves to target his running back out of the backfield, so Allen is a name to watch in deep PPR.
Source: ESPN.com

May 4 - 8:02 PM

Bingo_AlphaMan · Post #20 » by **Bingo_AlphaMan** » Fri May 8, 2015 7:36 pm

Vic Beasley - DL - Falcons

No. 8 overall pick Vic Beasley will be the Falcons' "Leo" outside pass rusher at weak-side defensive end.

It was Cliff Avril's position in new Atlanta coach Dan Quinn's defense. Beasley is a suspect run defender and doesn't play with overwhelming physicality, but possesses the best get-off in this year's draft and will literally be able to run by or around slower-footed left tackles. We like Beasley as an eight-sack threat right away and double-digit producer down the line.
Source: D. Orlando Ledbetter on Twitter

May 4 - 6:00 PM