Charting the Bengals 2010 NFL Draft

larry asante
darryl stuckey

those are the top 3 left.

The new Bengals GM

Hernandez is Coffman v2.0. He’s never played inline, can’t block, was used as a slot guy. He’s a developmental project. Gresham is a complete package that will contribute right away.

As for Shipley, I’d say he’s far more polished than Gilyard. He’s a better route runner. He has better hands. He’s probably better suited for the slot.

Mays, as we saw, tumbled deep into the second round. He would have been a terrible reach at 21.

Ghee has good size and excellent speed for the position. He has the quickness and burst to be a solid coverage defender but lacks the foot agility, pad level and body positioning to be consistent in this area. Ghee has long arms and flashes the ability to jam and re-route receivers off the line of scrimmage but lets receivers get too much separation downfield too often. He is a willing run support defender but isn’t physical enough to make plays on larger ball carriers and receivers. Ghee needs to be more physical warding off blockers as well as wrapping up when tackling. Ghee has been a durable productive cornerback that has the size and athleticism to be a contributor at the next level but isn’t talented enough to impact a club as a rookie.

Hobson like him:

With the selection of Wake Forest cornerback Brandon Ghee with the 96th pick near the end of Thursday night’s third round, the Bengals got one of the most athletic and fastest corners on the board."There are safeties still out there," Coyle said

Blessed with the prototypical blend of size and straight-line speed, Ghee looks the part of a high-round selection despite having never earned all-conference honors in three seasons as a starting cornerback for the Demon Deacons.

The athletically gifted Ghee has been impressive in high profile matchups with big receivers, but struggled against smaller, quicker wideouts. More interested in applying the big hit than the interception, some scouts feel his pro best position will be safety. There is merit there, considering his production as a tackler (154 tackles, 12.5 tackles for loss) and lack of big plays generated when in coverage (one interception out of 26 passes defensed).
Read & React: Marginal read-and-react skills. Aggressive making plays on the ball, but too often doesn’t make the play when it appears he should. Better hitter than pass defender to this point.

Man Coverage: Looks the part and has good straight-line speed. Good agility and balance in coverage. Can flip his hips and run with receivers, though his long legs are not conducive to his breaking quickly and truly mirroring receivers. Has the speed to recover, but can be beaten by sharp routes. Not yet the sum of his parts. Faster than he is quick and will give up too much cushion, too often allowing the reception rather than going for the pass breakup.

Zone Coverage: Has the IQ, speed and reliable tackling ability to be a fine zone coverage defender. Too late reacting to the play. Prefers to go for the big hit rather than making an attempt on the ball for the interception. Physical defender who is aggressive in his hand punch at the line of scrimmage and isn’t afraid to battle with receivers throughout the route.

Closing/Recovery: Good lateral agility and has an explosive burst to close when needed. Competes as the ball arrives and has the long arms and quick hands to knock passes away before a receiver can secure it. Times his leaps well to compete against bigger receivers. True defensive back hands but has only one interception in 34 starts (25 passes broken up).

Run Support: Aggressive in run support. Quickly gets through receiver blocks and is willing to stick his head into the action with the big boys on his way to the runner. Good open-field hitter who flashes heavy-hitting ability.

Tackling: Big hitter who times his hits well. Lowers his shoulder into the ballcarrier and can jar the ball loose. Can improve wrapping up as a tackler, as NFL receivers will be better able to absorb hits and keep their feet.

Intangibles: Struggled amid high expectations as a senior. Missed the 2007 season serving an academic suspension. Missed the 2009 spring practice after suffering a sprained knee on the first day. Missed two games in ’09 due to a sprained ankle.

NFL Comparison: Vontae Davis, Dolphins

Entering 2009: Ghee is expected to fill a leadership and playmaking void with 2008 stars Aaron Curry and Alphonso Smith in the NFL. He suffered a sprained knee during the first spring practice session and missed the remainder of the spring season.

Ghee finished third on the team in total tackles with 56, with 2.5 tackles for loss, 8 pass breakups and 0 interceptions in 2009.

After a couple of years on the sidelines — one as a redshirt and the other for academic reasons — Brandon Ghee quickly turned into an important part of the Wake Forest secondary. During his sophomore campaign he started the final ten games of the season and totaled 56 tackles, ranking fourth on the team. He got better as the season went on, which set the table for a great junior campaign in 2008. Ghee got tested a lot as the opposition tried to avoid fellow Demon Deacon corner Alphonso Smith and he really made the most of his opportunities. His tackle numbers were not that great, but Ghee did get an interception and forced four fumbles.
Ghee is getting more involved in the tackling during the 2009 campaign, despite missing the entire spring with a sprained knee. Through nine games, he ranks third on the team with 40 tackles. He has yet to record an interception this season, but he has broken up six pass attempts and is emerging as a solid cover corner.

Ghee will not be one of the first corners off the board, but he could turn into a solid cornerback in the NFL in time. Unless he has a great senior week and a nice showing at the NFL Combine, Ghee will likely be a mid-round selection.

2/1 Update: Ghee was moving down draft boards, but he had a decent week in practice during Senior Week. He was not too involved during the Senior Bowl Game itself, but it is at practice where coaches and scouts get to really know the players. Ghee probably played himself up into the third round and could end up being one of the better corners in this class behind Joe Haden, Patrick Robinson and Devin McCourty (which would easily put him in the second round).

4/5 Update: Ghee’s game tape still does not live up to his impressive performances in the workouts. He was one of the best corners at the NFL Combine and he followed that up with a great pro day at Wake Forest. His workouts have moved him up to a solid second round selection, but he struggles more than he should when the pads are on. That will slide him down some draft boards, but a team that likes his speed and agility will take him in the second round.

Summary: Ghee has some fixable attributes to his game, but he is a high upside player, and will likely be a better pro than college player. If he is impressive at the Senior Bowl and in workouts, it wouldn’t shock me if he is a first-round draft pick. Ghee has some intriguing physical tools to work with and can match up against the bigger receivers in the league. I love athletic, confident corners, but there is no doubt Ghee needs to be more polished at the next level.

Player Comparison: Jonathan Joseph. Joseph, like Ghee, has the same size and athleticism coming out of college, but he was also a little raw. Now, he is one of the better corners in the AFC.

He’ll need to be coached, but Jones and Trent are on the roster for a reason. He can cover decently well even if he can’t catch. IMO best case projection is something around Ike Taylor.

I think Frostee might be done. On the same token, Dunlap, like Fanene, can play DT/DE on pass rushing downs.

If they kept everyone, that’d be 6 DE and 3 DT.

There will be a competition. This is how I see it shaking out in week 1.

Ocho, Bryant, Caldwell, Shipley, Simpson, Cosby

DB Coach Coyle says they’re gonna look at a few safeties.

I think they have to address DT and may want to take a flyer on a RG that can pass block.

At least he was picked today.

See you bright and early tomorrow. Just finished the post. I think I lost some of my ideas along the way.