Whitney Mercilus

[Kemp17]

Originally Posted by Mifune

Trade down to #22 spot, swap 2nd round picks with Browns.

Draft Mercilus at #22
Draft Smith at #5 (2nd round)

I’d prefer Mercilus’ high motor, raw athleticism over Perry’s more well-rounded play. Unpopular opinion?

Split 49/49. I'm part of the 2% who likes Chandle Jones and Andre Branch better than either of them.

[Jimr1428]

Originally Posted by Mifune

Trade down to #22 spot, swap 2nd round picks with Browns.

Draft Mercilus at #22
Draft Smith at #5 (2nd round)

I’d prefer Mercilus’ high motor, raw athleticism over Perry’s more well-rounded play. Unpopular opinion?

I've seen some mocks having Smith going to the Pats (they have picks #27 and #31)

[Mifune]

Originally Posted by Jimr1428

I've seen some mocks having Smith going to the Pats (they have picks #27 and #31)

Right, and others have him dropping. You never know, but at any rate, that 5th pick comes in handy for many many others.

[Thunderstruck]

Originally Posted by Mifune

Trade down to #22 spot, swap 2nd round picks with Browns.

Draft Mercilus at #22
Draft Smith at #5 (2nd round)

I’d prefer Mercilus’ high motor, raw athleticism over Perry’s more well-rounded play. Unpopular opinion?

I have a very slight (and I do mean extremely slight) preference for Mercilus, and he seems to fit the kind of profile AJ likes-- guys who flashed great production in college along with very solid measureables. Perry had solid but not great production, as did Upshaw. I also think the fact that Mercilus forced so many fumbles won't go without notice for a team desperately trying to right a negative turnover differential.

That being said, if I was an oddsmaker, I'd place the chances of drafting Mercilus at around 25%, with everyone else being at 20%, and AJ will probably actually pick some guy I have at 0%. In other words, I have no earthly idea who they'll actually take.

[Thunderstruck]

Originally Posted by Kemp17

Split 49/49. I'm part of the 2% who likes Chandle Jones and Andre Branch better than either of them.

I can kinda, sorta understand why you like Branch, but I don't get Chandler Jones at all. Compare him to Perry (who I sort of like but I'm not sure if he'll be good in a 3-4) and Jones falls short across the board in production and in combine numbers. So you'd need to make a purely qualitative analysis to imagine him being better. Not to menation, Chandler has an injury history which, of course, we really don't need.

I'd take McLellin in a heartbeat over Jones. My list would go:

Mercilus
Perry
McLellin
Branch

[andocug]

Mercilus and Perry will be intersting to watch on draft day. Liuget played with Mercilus in college while our LB coach (Joe Barry) coached Perry in college. The dark horse pass rusher for us at #18 is Shea McClellin.

It would be a typical AJ pick in that few expect it but the reality is that no one really knows how AJ and the other 31 GMs rank the 4-3 DE/3-4 OLB prospects in this draft. Players rising and falling on draft day is part of what makes the draft so great.

Two years ago, Ryan Mathews and Tyson Alualu were viewed as late 1st rounder while Dan Williams and Dez Bryant were viewed as a top 15-20 pick. Go figure that Mathews and Alualu were taken 10 spots earlier than anticipated while WIlliams and Bryant fell to #24 and #26. It wouldn't shock me if Mercilus and/or Branch get taken ahead of Ingram and Upshaw on draft day.

[chargernut]

Originally Posted by andocug

Mercilus and Perry will be intersting to watch on draft day. Liuget played with Mercilus in college while our LB coach (Joe Barry) coached Perry in college. The dark horse pass rusher for us at #18 is Shea McClellin.

It would be a typical AJ pick in that few expect it but the reality is that no one really knows how AJ and the other 31 GMs rank the 4-3 DE/3-4 OLB prospects in this draft. Players rising and falling on draft day is part of what makes the draft so great.

Two years ago, Ryan Mathews and Tyson Alualu were viewed as late 1st rounder while Dan Williams and Dez Bryant were viewed as a top 15-20 pick. Go figure that Mathews and Alualu were taken 10 spots earlier than anticipated while WIlliams and Bryant fell to #24 and #26. It wouldn't shock me if Mercilus and/or Branch get taken ahead of Ingram and Upshaw on draft day.

Good point - you never know. It has everything to do with how GM's and their scouts perceive a player. AJ tends to zero in on their consensus "guy" and ignore the ranking trends. Ah, to be a Chargers fan - always in for a shock on draft day (exception Mathews).

[Kemp17]

Originally Posted by Thunderstruck

I can kinda, sorta understand why you like Branch, but I don't get Chandler Jones at all. Compare him to Perry (who I sort of like but I'm not sure if he'll be good in a 3-4) and Jones falls short across the board in production and in combine numbers. So you'd need to make a purely qualitative analysis to imagine him being better. Not to menation, Chandler has an injury history which, of course, we really don't need.

I'd take McLellin in a heartbeat over Jones. My list would go:

Mercilus
Perry
McLellin
Branch

Not true actually. First thing is that Jones is 6'5" with 35.5" arms. Height and arm length are important for pass rushers, so he's got Perry on the weigh in.

As for the drills, Perry is clearly more explosive with a 38.5" vert and a 124" broad, compared to Jones' 35" vert and 120" broad. But those are still good number on Jones' part, just not as good.

Then you go to the agility drills and see where Jones shined. 7.07 3 cone and a 4.38 short shuttle, which are very good numbers for his size. Compare to Perry's 7.25 and 4.66. So the drills that are good indicators for ability to play linebacker favor Jones.

As for production, no argument. For anyone looking for an area to criticize Jones, that's where it is. I happen to think that if he hadn't missed those 5 games, that would an entirely different story, but that's just conjecture.

I can sum up my liking for Jones as such: He's a long armed, athletically gifted, powerful, and explosive player who is underrated because he came out early after missing 5 games of his best season. I believe he would shine in a situational pass rusher role as a rookie and that he has the physical gifts to develop into the best pass rusher in this class.

[Chargerfn909]

I might come around on Jones, JUST because pedigree lol

[Kemp17]

Even with my high opinion of him, he's at the bottom of my cluster. I recognize the risk. But when I mock out the 1st round, he's the best option left IMO.