2008 Scouting Report - Scouts Inc.
Grade: 59 | Key
Alert: None
Comment: Earl did not play last season after spending the year on injured reserve. He is an aggressive, young safety who has yet to play a full 16 game season over his career. He is a tough, competitive football player. He has good size and strength for the position. He has above-average instincts to diagnose. He is better versus the run than pass. He is a downhill box type player who can be effective versus the run. He has good physical traits as a tackler. He has the speed to run the alleys and does an effective job of maintaining leverage on the ball carrier. However, he does have a tendency to get out of position based on his overaggressive style as a player. He is more comfortable in short zones than deep zones. He has above-average zone awareness and reacts well to underneath throws. He has some functional play speed, but lacks the good top-end speed downfield in deep zones. He struggles to match up in man-to-man situations by allowing too much separation at break points with limited recovery speed. Overall, Earl is best suited to play strong safety, which means he is not suited to cover the deep middle or make plays on the ball.
Of course we all remember his last play...
This might turn out to be another good signing by JA. Two years is a long time to sit out, but the guy was having a good start to a career before being pummeled into submission by the great Cedric Benson
