Hunter measurable: 6'5" 252#'s, yep 252 lbs. More info: The scoop: "If he walked into your living room, your eyes would pop out of your head. He looks that good on the hoof. He's going to blow up the combine, and then ace all of the interviews and NFL teams are going to fall in love with him. He still needs someone to unlock all that talent, though." -- Former LSU coach on Tigers DE Danielle Hunter Dates: Feb. 17-23 The skinny: At 6-foot-6, 240 pounds, Hunter has a freakish combination of size, athleticism and explosiveness, with long arms and jarring power behind his hands. When his technique is right, he can overpower tackles at the point of attack. He isn't as heavy as the New York Giants' Jason Pierre-Paul, but has that level of explosiveness and potential. However, he still relies heavily on his athleticism and motor over skill and instincts. Hunter has a high floor because of his overwhelming physical traits, but his ceiling will only go as high as the level of coaching he incorporates in the NFL. Strengths Freakish combination of size, athleticism and explosiveness. Has long arms with jarring power behind his hands. When technique is right, he can stack and overpower tackles at point of attack. Fluid and agile in space. Uses length to bat down passes and disrupt the passing lane. Flashes winning spin move in pass rush, but needs to learn to set it up better. Uses arm-over inside move to set up tackles for loss. High-end tackle production for his position. Secondary motor to pursue and speed to chase leads to more tackle opportunities. Lead all SEC defensive linemen in "stuffs" (tackles for no gain or loss of yards) with 17. Active and energetic at all times. Continues to work to improve position vs. run and pass. Off-field character considered "squeaky clean" by NFL scouts. Has speed and agility to become special-teams star early in his career. Weaknesses Relies heavily on his athleticism and motor over skill and instincts. Pass-rush production doesn't match the traits. Played 80 percent of the defensive snaps in 2014, managing just 1.5 sacks. Doesn't have the upfield burst and bend to turn the corner. Considered a "thinker" as a pass rusher rather than a naturally instinctive reactor. Must show he can effectively counter as a pass rusher. Has winning power in hands, but inconsistent with how he uses them against run and pass. Scouts want to see more competitive nastiness from him.
What the national media are saying about LSU's La'el Collins at the NFL Scouting Combine INDIANAPOLIS - LSU offensive tackle La'el Collins is getting major props after a sterling performance in individual drills at the 2015 NFL Scouting Combine here Friday. Collins, a three-year starter for the Tigers, played left tackle the last two seasons but was thought by analysts to be better suited to offensive guard or right tackle in the NFL. But he has reopened the discussion on whether or not he's athletic enough to handle left tackle. Collins was No. 1 on the list of Day 1's top performers, according to the NFL.com broadcast crew. ESPN.com called Collins "one of the stars" of Friday's workouts. Seattle Seahawks.com featured an article about Collins' confidence at the Combine. The hometown Colts writer Josh Wilson of Stampedeblue.com likes Collins as a possible pick for Indianapolis at No. 29 in the first round of the NFL Draft. Troy Renck of the Denver Post said Collins met with the Broncos, who pick at No. 28. Collins works out well: LSU's La'el Collins was one of the stars of workouts for offensive linemen and his impressive showing may have moved him out of range for the Kansas City Chiefs, if they were so inclined. The Chiefs have the 18th pick in the first round. Collins could wind up as a guard or tackle in the NFL and both Chiefs general manager John Dorsey and coach Andy Reid prefer offensive linemen who can play more than one position. Whether or not they select Collins or another lineman in the first round, the Chiefs will likely choose at least one somewhere in the draft. They lost three regulars in free agency last year and four players who started at least one game in 2014 could leave as free agents this year. -- Adam Teicher :
INDIANAPOLIS — Mock drafts remain delicious guess work. Dots get connected based on needs, schemes. As such, some mocks project the Broncos to take an offensive lineman with the 28th pick in the first round. Their line could feature as many as three new starters. Though Michael Schofield, last year’s third-rounder, is expected to receive a chance to compete for the right tackle spot, Denver enters the combine with eyes wide open. The Broncos will meet with LSU’s La’el Collins, the tackle said Wednesday. Minnesota tight end Maxx Williams, a 20-year-old with eye-opening athleticism, will meet with Denver as well this week. Collins, in the video above, is a forceful run blocker and capable of playing tackle or guard. If the Broncos look for a guard only, South Carolina’s A.J. Cann could fit, but Cann said as of now he’s not scheduled to meet with Denver. LSU tackle La’el Collins said he will meet with the Broncos during the NFL scouting combine. (Troy E. Renck, The Denver Post). “I have talked to them. I talked to them at the Senior Bowl. And I will be talking to them this week as well. I think the system they are going to run is great. I feel like I can fit in any system. That’s just the type of player I am,” Collins said. For Collins, the NFL looks a lot like his former practices. He sees former teammates everywhere, including a crew that starred last season. “(Cincinnati’s) Jeremy Hill, (New York Giants’) Odell Beckham (the NFL Rookie of the Year), (Miami’s) Jarvis Landry all made big impacts on their team, I feel like I am the next guy to make an impact,” Collins said.
La'el Collins Brings Confidence To NFL Combine LSU offensive lineman La'el Collins has meetings with 22 different teams set up this week at the NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis, Ind. He's one of the top offensive linemen entering this year's draft and could become the first LSU Tiger at his position to be taken in the first round in the past 17 years. At 6-foot-5 and 321 pounds, he specialized at the left tackle spot the past two seasons. But Collins noted he's fully capable of stepping in at guard or tackle on either side of the line. He said his confidence has him ready for whatever challenges a jump to the pros might pose. "A lot of teams told me that I'm their favorite offensive lineman," Collins said during a Wednesday press conference inside Lucas Oil Stadium. "A lot of teams asked me if I could slide to the right side and in two years maybe come over to the left, or could I come in right now and play left. "I feel very confident in what I do, so for me it wouldn't be a problem." Collins started playing football in the third grade, but most of his action came on the defensive side of the football. He didn't make the switch to offensive line until his prep career at Redemptorist in Baton Rouge, La. "When I started playing football I started playing defense more than offense," he said. "I kind of made the transition to playing offense in high school. I've always had the mentality of a defensive lineman, of a defensive guy. I was able to bring that over on the offensive side, but also bring the intelligence over as well to be able to play the offensive line position. "For me, just being able to go out there with a mentality to really get after it is something that I feel I bring to the table.
Brian Billick ✔ @CoachBillick Follow LSU OT La'el Collins winning the day so far in early drills. Impressive feet...looked really good in exaggerated pass set drill. RTRC @RoadToRadioCity Follow OL day rankings from Group 1: 1. La'el Collins 2. Cameron Erving 3. Jake Fisher 4. T.J. Clemmings 5. Ereck Flowers (6.) Trenton Brown Daniel Jeremiah ✔ @MoveTheSticks Follow Really impressed by LSU OT La El Collins...moving with ease. Collins, whose favorite spot is tackle because he loves "being out there on the island," said this week that he doesn't have a preference about which side of the line. Furthermore, he added that he can play either tackle or guard depending on what teams want. "[Teams have] asked me if I could slide to the right side and then in two years, go to the left.I feel very confident in what I do, so it wouldn't be a problem. They've asked me about playing guard and I could play either spot, right or left side. I love the one-on-one matchups. Being out there, one-on-one with a guy and having my way with him." If he were to end up in Indianapolis, it's likely he would start off at right guard and then, with the contract of Gosder Cherilus escalating greatly in future years, perhaps sliding over to right tackle after a year. Either way, he has that versatility that Ryan Grigson likes in offensive linemen, and Collins has really been impressing recently. He might not be available when the Colts pick 29th overall, but it's pretty certain that the team at least has their eyes on the lineman from LSU.
Buzzworthy La'el Collins, OL, LSU: It's hard to find a big, athletic blocker with a nasty temperament and polished game, but Collins checks all the boxes. He showed exceptional agility, athleticism and explosiveness during the "Olympic drills" on Friday. Collins clocked 5.12 in the 40-yard dash, which is certainly impressive for a 6-foot-4, 305-pounder with a chiseled frame. In positional drills, Collins flashed exceptional balance, body control and agility. He is surprisingly light on his feet, yet powerful when making contact with defenders at the point of attack. Collins routinely jolted foes with his short punches in blocking drills. Although practice drills aren't a true simulation of game action, the fact that Collins displayed the strength, power and agility of a blue-chip prospect could make him one of the first offensive linemen to come off the board on draft day.
this is from the draft on QB's Bruce Arians criticizes college's spread offenses Shortly after the NFL's read-option craze crested two years ago, Bruce Arians disparaged the dual-threat attack as merely a "great college offense." Now Arians is taking aim at the spread offense, as young quarterbacks such as Colin Kaepernick and Robert Griffin III have stalled in their development as NFL passers. "So many times, you're evaluating a quarterback who has never called a play in the huddle, never used a snap count. They hold up a card on the sideline, he kicks his foot and throws the ball," Arians said Thursday at the NFL Scouting Combine. "That ain't playing quarterback. There's no leadership involved there. There might be leadership on the bench, but when you get them and they have to use verbiage and they have to spit the verbiage out and change the snap count, they are light years behind." It's a hot-button issue leading up to the 2015 NFL Draft because Florida State's Jameis Winston is viewed as a pro-ready quarterback while Oregon's Marcus Mariota has been denounced as a spread-protected passer tasked with little beyond quick bubble screens. Spread quarterbacks have not only been slow to master the difference between "college open" versus "NFL open" receivers, but have also struggled to process information before and instantaneously after the snap. What separates the best NFL signal-callers is the capacity to pick up on subtle patterns in the defense as well as their receivers' routes. It's what analysts in all sports refer to as a "feel" for the game or "seeing" the field. As former Bears quarterback Jim Miller recently explained, quarterback at the NFL level is about making the correct situational decisions and attacking the right defensive players depending on down and distance. Arians' point is that spread quarterbacks haven't developed that feel for the game because they aren't asked to calls plays, master the opponent's changing personnel and nuanced tendencies and, perhaps most importantly, use field intelligence to perceive exactly where each defensive back and wide receiver is on every play. Playing quarterback is about taking the theory of the playbook and putting it into action on the field. That takes repetition, single-minded pursuit of incremental improvement. When the spread-offense quarterback enters the NFL, the complexity of that improvement increases against a steep learning curve.
LSU CB Jalen Collins turns the tables on Draft Advisory Board rating LSU cornerback Jalen Collins 1, NFL Draft Advisory Board 0. Given a grade to return to the Tigers for his senior season, Collins called his own shot to enter the 2015 NFL Draft. The result was that he quickly shot up the charts and when the smoke cleared on the early mock draft, found himself sitting in the first round. The old rule of thumb college coaches would tell players is that if you are going to be picked in the first round, you should go. What was the DAB thinking? "I have no idea; who knows?" was Collins response at his media session at the 2015 NFL Scouting Combine. To be fair, the Board is not a predictor of where a player is drafted. It gives grades without considering the depth of the position in the draft or needs of teams. Its grades are based on NFL readiness. Starting this season, gave out only grades of first round, second round or return to school. Once Collins declared his intentions, he became as high as the No. 3 cornerback available. It's a position where few of the 32 NFL teams don't have a need, and just based on his measurables (6-feet-1, 203 pounds and 78-inch wingspan) Collins has the look of an NFL cornerback. He's coming off a year of improved play in which he won back the starting job he'd lost the previous season and played well in big games. He's hoping to show even more improvement at the Combine. He certainly showed some confidence by passing on outside advice. "I felt like this was the best opportunity for me to maximize on the draft," Collins said. "I didn't want to risk getting hurt coming back for another year." And the unassuming Collins offered a refreshing take on his newfound fame. Rather than display the hackneyed false indifference toward praise drilled into players when talking to the media. He admitted it made him feel happy to be considered among the first 32 in the draft still two months away. "I was really excited," said the Olive Branch, Miss. native. "I never really had a lot of hype or exposure on the big stage. It's pretty exciting." The excitement has died down and the work is beginning this week with up-close-and personal interviews with team scouts, coaches and officials. There's two days of that before Collins gets onto the field Monday to run the 40-yard dash, long and vertical jumps, and participate in the 3-cone drill and 20 and 60-yard shuttle runs, all of which he's planning to do. He said he will do everything but the bench press, which is not considered a significant indicator for defensive backs. He is generally considered the third best corner out there behind Michigan State's Trae Waynes and Washington's Marcus Peters, with Wake Forest's Kevin Johnson also in the mix. That order could be reshuffled after the Combine. Collins isn't coming into the draft like former Tiger Patrick Peterson, the No. 5 overall pick by Arizona in 2011. He's got work to do because of some inconsistency in this play. But his height and weight make him a good matchup for big NFL receivers. He also has good press cover skills, a willingness to tackle, according to his NFL.com analysis profile. Among his negatives are a dependence on talent rather than technique and a lack of playmaking (three interceptions and 17 pass break ups in three season). But few college players can step right in like Peterson did. Collins has been working in Orlando, Fla. with speed coach Tom Shaw and pro players Ike Taylor of Pittsburgh and the New York Jets' Kyle Wilson. "I'm just trying to get knowledge from guys that have had experience at the position and success as well," he said. "Just trying to take everything in, every little detail to help me get better. "I want to take my game to another level, become a student of the game. Put extra time in in the film room, learn everything I can from the other guys and work hard like I've been doing." His hard work allowed him to overcome losing his starting job to Rashard Robinson during the 2013 season. He won it back last year. "It was just kind of refocusing myself to the task at hand, which was getting back on the field," he said. "Sticking to it, working hard every day, listening to the coach, being a team player, being selfless and working hard every day."
He looked fast enough against Wiskey this year. Dalton never was fast, Gary James had the speed, but who did more. Last year was it Jarvis Landry that had the slow time at the combine? Ran again at Pto day with better numbers. Maybe the LSU track is 38 yards. Speed didn't seem to hurt him. Then again, didn't see many people catch Hilliard from behind. When people start watching the NFL to see guys run the 40, then I'd worry about his time. Then again, not many 40 yd runs... Some teams will look at his 40 time, I'd say, look at this film........
