NFL Draft 2009: It's a Big Man's Game

by briandean on Apr 20, 2009 7:30 AM PDT in Draft Comment 25 comments

When trying to really get down to it and get in the mind of Scot McCloughan, there's one underlying phrase that continues to come up, "It's a big man's game." It might have been one of the first things I ever heard him say as personnel man of the 49ers. He brings it up again every offseason. McCloughan has continuously practiced what he preaches through both free agency and the draft.

"The one thing about the NFL that is not going to change is, it's a big man's game. Over a 16-game schedule, the bigger team, the more physical team is going to pan out most of the time, especially in the cold-weather games."

-Scot McCloughan, 2006

"The “big back” would be someone who, if Frank were to get hurt, could come in and carry the load for two, four or six weeks. I don’t see a smaller back being that type of guy. We’re going to be a good team this year because we’re able to establish the run and come downhill between the tackles. With a smaller back, that is tough to do, especially for a longer period of time. We always look for good football players and that’s what we’ll continue to do, but you have to understand that this is a big man’s game. The big backs are going to survive in this league."

-Scot McCloughan, 2009

It's not that McCloughan has completely avoided assets like speed, as we've seen with players such as Vernon Davis, Manny Lawson, Patrick Willis, Josh Morgan, and Nate Clements. Size, however, did acompany speed in those cases. On the other hand, Kentwan Balmer, Chilo Rachal, Reggie Smith, Michael Lewis, Justin Smith and Tully Banta-Cain were never considered among the best athletes at their positions. What the later group did posses is, you guessed it, size. When Scot McCloughan must spend resources on a player, you can bet he'll err on the side of the big man.

Off the top of my head it's hard to come up many names drafted during the McCloughan era who did not matchup closely with the positional size prototype. Frank Gore was short, but certainly not undersized with his powerful frame. Brandon Williams, a 3rd round wide reciever out of Wisconsin in 2006, was listed as 5-11, 183. And there's my list. Yet I spent hours last April wondering how the 49ers could pass on DeSean Jackson, not once, but twice in favor of big uglies. I won't make that mistake again.

So, that should narrow down the shopping list a bit. You can throw away that mock with Jeremy Maclin or Percy Harvin penciled in. Who does that leave us with?

Big Man Mock Draft:
1. BJ Raji, DT (6-1, 337) ... Andre Smith, OT (6-4, 332) or Brian Orakpo, OLB (6-3, 263)
2. Sean Smith, CB (6-4, 214) ... Ron Brace, DT (6-3, 330) or Phil Loadholt, OT (6-8, 332)
3. Ramses Barden, WR (6-6, 229) ... Andre Brown, RB (6-0, 224) or Rashad Jennings, RB (6-1, 231)
4. Fenuki Tupou, OT (6-6, 314) ... Jasper Brinkley, MLB (6-2, 252) or Sebastian Vollmer, OT (6-8, 312)
5. Matt Shaughnessy, OLB (6-5, 266) ... Patrick Turner, WR (6-5, 223) or Jason Watkins, OT (6-6, 318)
6. Arian Foster, RB (6-1, 226) ... Alex Boone, OT (6-7, 328) or Javarris Williams, RB (5-10, 223)
7. Jamarko Simmons, WR (6-2, 231) ... Gartrell Johnson, RB (5-10, 219) or Marko Mitchell, WR (6-4, 218)

And that doesn't even include the future 1st rounder traded away to get Kansas State QB Josh Freeman (6-6, 248).

Poll

What do you think of Scot McCloughan's "big man" strategy?

Love it. We must physically dominate the opposition.

43 votes

Enough already. We need explosive playmakers, regardless of size.

66 votes

109 votes | Poll has closed

0 recs | Comment 25 comments | Share

Story-email Email Printer Print

Comments

Big Men

I’m a big fan of Andre Brown in the 3rd. His size is prototypical, and his performance on the Combine’s ‘slow track’ . Why? Google “Football Outsiders” “Andre Brown” and “Speed Score” and read the article you find.
-Or just click this link:
http://views.washingtonpost.com/theleague/predraft/2009/04/in-the-cattle-call-that.html
Interesting stuff.
I’m surprised that you don’t have neither a single TE nor FB listed on your mock, though, especially because Billy Bajema is officially out of SFO (he signed with the Jets). I’d be all over Richard Quinn TE from UNC (Go Heels!) and Quinn Johnson FB from LSU. They could likely be had for a 5th-rounder or lower. These are the kinds of guys who make a difference on the line-they’re the reason you have 2 and 3 TE sets, and why teams consistently gain more on the ground in an I-Formation backfield. And nothing says “Smashmouth!” like having 5 big uglies, 3 TE’s a QB, a FB and an RB lined up on the field all at once.

Throwback unis? Yes. Throwback afros? YES!

by grantmp on Apr 20, 2009 7:31 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs

strike-through fail

Or just click this link:
http://views.washingtonpost.com/theleague/predraft/2009/04/in-the-cattle-call-that.html
Interesting stuff.
I’m surprised that you don’t have neither a single TE nor FB listed on your mock, though, especially because Billy Bajema is officially out of SFO (he signed with the Jets). I’d be all over Richard Quinn TE from UNC (Go Heels!) and Quinn Johnson FB from LSU. They could likely be had for a 5th-rounder or lower. These are the kinds of guys who make a difference on the line-they’re the reason you have 2 and 3 TE sets, and why teams consistently gain more on the ground in an I-Formation backfield. And nothing says "Smashmouth!" like having 5 big uglies, 3 TE’s a QB, a FB and an RB lined up on the field all at once.

Throwback unis? Yes. Throwback afros? YES!

by grantmp on Apr 20, 2009 7:32 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

alright! some love for the heels

Richard Quinn (did you notice you named two quinns?) is a decent tight end. He’s not going to be a game breaker but I would be very surprised if he didn’t turn out to have a long career as a 2nd TE in the NFL. If I wasn’t so high on Delanie Walker I’d be interested. I don’t think we need to go TE before the 7th though.

Andre Brown is a name that’s being talked up in a lot of circles but to be perfectly honest, he’s not a guy who impressed me in college. I watched my fair share of State games and he never jumped off the page. He has the measurables and he had the production for a mediocre team with a poor offense and no throwing game. I don’t think he’s going to pan out very well in the NFL, I’d steer clear…

by foosball4949 on Apr 20, 2009 8:11 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Not sure I get the Walker/Quinn comparison

Clearly Walker and Quinn (TE) don’t play the same position. I mean the guy caught all of 8 passes (a career high!) in his senior season. But hey, that’s 1 more than Bajema has caught in his whole NFL career, so…Anyway, this is why I see them picking up him or a guy like him in the late rounds. Who knows, he could have more pass-catching skill than he displayed, especially given the talent the Heels had at Wide Receiver this past season.
The word on Brown (the word I’ve consistently heard) is that he’s the kind of prospect that will likely be better in the pro ranks than he was in college. I think that’s based on the way he measured out against other pro prospects in the post-season All-Star games. Do check on that speed score article, though—it’s pretty convincing.

Throwback unis? Yes. Throwback afros? YES!

by grantmp on Apr 20, 2009 8:47 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

It wasn't meant to be a comparison

My thinking was that Walker is a good #2 TE

and Quinn will be a good #2 TE

and given that Quinn will probably go somewhere in the 5th round, we should address something else there.

And for the record, I do think he has more pass-catching potential than he was given an opportunity to flash. Not game-breaking, but solid possession skills.

by foosball4949 on Apr 20, 2009 10:27 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Oh, and about the speed score

I think it’s interesting, but still is too much of a correlation to being a good running back and not a cause. It’s a better stat than a straight 40 time though.

I would much rather have Cedric Peerman than Brown

In fact I would be ecstatic to have Peerman, he’s a fantastic running back, and would be a good complement back in the NFL. (and yes, I know he’s “only” 216 lbs)

by foosball4949 on Apr 20, 2009 10:34 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Doesn't he have fumblitis?

Isn’t the knock on Peerman that he has tiny hands and a tendency to fumble? Small hands don’t make for good receivers either, so I’d be very wary of a RB like that.

by MontanaPass on Apr 20, 2009 12:50 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Speed score is not a very good indicator of being a great running back. A tool? Sure, why not? Besides the bad RBs in that article who have ranked high in speed score… in 2007 Joe Staley would have ranked above every 2009 RB in speed score with 117.2.

by briandean on Apr 20, 2009 1:35 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Sean Smith

I’ve heard somewhere, I think, that he’s overtaken Davis and Jenkins as the #1 pure corner in the draft. If that’s true he’ll be unlikely to make it out of the mid-1st round.

I am a fan of you’re late round OT picks.

Don't sweat it. I'm illiterate.

by methodrampage on Apr 20, 2009 8:26 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs

Jovorski Lane Texas A&M

Sometimes- ya gotta find a nugget late in the draft. We’ve done it with folks like Michael Carter, Haley etc….Javorski Lane of Texas A&M can be a force in the league. Yeah- he’s gotta be willing to work. But his coach his Senior year was a complete idiot. Demotivated the guy. Look at his highlights and tell me you don’t think he can be a factor in the 4th quarter…….

by sawzall on Apr 20, 2009 9:15 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs

Size is great for NFL guys, but too often athleticism and speed is forgotten

and next thing you know the big dudes are too slow and can’t keep up. If having simply a big O-line was a virtue, why couldn’t we punch in Michael Robinson from two yards out for the TD????

Size is overrated if it doesn’t have speed and/or athleticism in my opinion. This is the one weaknesses for McCheeses philosophy….

by jviet on Apr 20, 2009 9:48 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs

Speed can be overrated just as easily as size

Don't sweat it. I'm illiterate.

by methodrampage on Apr 20, 2009 9:54 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

What?

Who said we have a big OL when that play happened. I don’t believe we rank out of the 20’s in terms of size, compared to the biggest OL in Buffalo at average 332 were quite small.

by Mullester on Apr 20, 2009 10:04 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Added a poll

Forgot to do this origianlly, but it is a good question…athleticism vs. size.

by briandean on Apr 20, 2009 1:06 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

here

is a link to an NFL.com article where McC is quoted. about draft philosophy

http://www.nfl.com/draft/story?id=09000d5d80fdcd71&template=without-video-with-comments&confirm=true

by save10 on Apr 20, 2009 10:46 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs

I have a similar approach when drafting for my Madden team

I look for big guys with speed at almost every position. But that’s Madden. I really hope McCloughan looks more deeply at it than that!

I'm thinking but nothing's happening.

by JRPhillips on Apr 20, 2009 11:12 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs

Scratch Vollmer as an OT - he's 25 already.

And is still a project player who will need a year of coaching before he can step in. If all you’re looking for is a backup, fine – he’s good for one contract then he’s gone. But I think a younger player who can be developed and then play for 4-8 years is a better option.

But otherwise, I like the list. I would add WR Aaron Kelly(6-5,213) in the 5th, blocking TE Bear Pascoe in the 7th, ILB-TED Antonio Appleby in the 6th, FB Frank Summers in the 7th, and NT Terrance Knighton in the 7th. All big guys the team could use.

by MontanaPass on Apr 20, 2009 11:16 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs

Bear Pascoe is a great fit.

by briandean on Apr 20, 2009 1:31 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Ramses Barden

Did anyone see Barden at the pre-draft Skills competition?

That guy has incredible hands and the size of a TE. He’s a top 5 WR in this draft and I’m sure some team will be taking him late in the 2nd or early in the 3rd.

Rays in '08.... Desmond Jennings - the breakout continues.....

by youALREADYknow on Apr 20, 2009 11:34 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs

Yes

I’ll work on getting the video up on youtube. But at the end the competition he snatched a ball out of the air with one hand and then dunked it through the goal posts in one motion and made it look so easy. I’d expect a guy 6-6 to be able to dunk it through th eposts, but the one-handed catch part looked too easy. Like there was no doubt he could just pluck a football out of the air and any time.

by briandean on Apr 20, 2009 12:20 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

He might go to the Raiders in the early 2nd.

The rumor is that Barden was told by someone in the organization to expect a call in the early 2nd round. For what it’s worth, and take with a large grain of NaCl. But he’s just the kind of player Crazy Al goes for, so it could be true.

The problem with Barden is that he hasn’t played against good competition(Cal Ploy – SLO), which means top CBs and safeties, and he isn’t that fast. He looks like more of a possession or redzone receiver to me, similar to Aaron Kelly who is a 5th round pick. I suspect he can get jammed up at the LOS by a physical CB, nullifying his presence. But who knows, he could turn out to be better than Calvin Johnson.

by MontanaPass on Apr 20, 2009 12:25 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs