100 in 100: Earl Thomas (15 of 100)
by Drew Kerr on Jan 26, 2010 1:00 PM PST
in 100 in 100 (2010)
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PrintEarl Thomas is a highly rated safety entering the draft this season. His coverage skills are extremely good but his help in stopping the run hasn't been the best all year. Thomas may be the second safety to be selected in this years Draft come April. His stellar coverage may let the Niners take a good long look at the Texas Junior. On most plays you will see Thomas trying to strip the ball.
In this segment, we will take a look at some of Thomas' highlights. I will list his stats and give some of my thoughts of where he could possibly go in the 2010 Draft.
The video displays Thomas' great coverage skills. But just as I said above, he sometimes has problems making the necessary tackles in front of him. When he does tackle, he goes either extremely low and on the ground before he meets the back which gives the backs or receivers an opportunity to hurdle him. He also goes extremely high in his tackles often allowing the back to bulldog him backwards.
AWARDS AND HONORS:
- 2008 Freshman All-American
- 2009 Defensive Back Trophy
- 2009 First Team All-American
CAREER STATS:
| Stats Overview | Tackles | Misc | Interceptions | |||||||||||
| YEAR | TOT | SOLO | AST | SACK | STF | STFY | FF | BK | INT | YDS | AVG | LNG | TD | PD |
| 2008 | 71 | 52 | 19 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2009 | 63 | 44 | 19 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 8 | 149 | 18.6 | 92 | 2 | 0 |
| 2009 Regular Season Game Log | Tackles | Misc | Interceptions | |||||||||||||
| DATE | OPP | RESULT | TOT | SOLO | AST | SACK | STF | STFY | FF | BK | INT | YDS | AVG | LNG | TD | PD |
| 9/5 | Louisiana-Monroe | W 59-20 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| 9/12 | @Wyoming | W 41-10 | Did Not Play or did not accumulate any stats. | |||||||||||||
| 9/19 | Texas Tech | W 34-24 | 8 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 9/26 | UTEP | W 64-7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 2.0 | 4 | 0 | 0 |
| 10/10 | Colorado | W 38-14 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 92 | 92.0 | 92 | 1 | 0 |
| 10/17 | Oklahoma | W 16-13 | 7 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 10/24 | @Missouri | W 41-7 | 6 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 10/31 | @Oklahoma State | W 41-14 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 31 | 31.0 | 31 | 1 | 2 |
| 11/7 | UCF | W 35-3 | 5 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 11/14 | @Baylor | W 47-14 | 5 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 11/21 | Kansas | W 51-20 | 9 | 8 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 22 | 22.0 | 22 | 0 | 1 |
| 11/26 | @Texas A&M | W 49-39 | 9 | 6 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 12/5 | @Nebraska | W 13-12 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 2009 Postseason Game Log | Tackles | Misc | Interceptions | |||||||||||||
| BOWL | OPP | RESULT | TOT | SOLO | AST | SACK | STF | STFY | FF | BK | INT | YDS | AVG | LNG | TD | PD |
| CITI BCS NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP GAME | @Alabama | L 37-21 | 6 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
SUMMARY AND PROJECTIONS:
Scout's Inc has Earl Thomas ranked at the number two safety behind only Tennessee's Eric Berry. He will have his work cut out for him if he is drafted with a team that doesn't have the best front seven. He benefited tremendously from a great front seven at Texas. He will need to work on his tackling if he wants to be elite at the next level.
Possibilities -- 49ers, Giants, Broncos, Titans, Seahawks, Texans, Falcons. 1st Round.
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LOL
49ers Al Grito De Guerra!!! hahaha
by 49erSalvatrucha on Jan 26, 2010 2:24 PM PST up reply actions
I wasn't kidding
You don’t think the 49ers front 7 is great?
What we've got here is a failure to communicate.
by SportsChicken on Jan 26, 2010 2:36 PM PST up reply actions
I didn’t mean it like that lol laughing at the fact about texas having a great front 7 and us having one since he has a hard time tackling. Sorry lol
49ers Al Grito De Guerra!!! hahaha
by 49erSalvatrucha on Jan 26, 2010 10:51 PM PST up reply actions
Our front 7 are great
We’ll be top 5 next year in QB pressures and sacks, just watch.
Yes Drew K, Tim Tebow will get picked in the first round.
yeah
thats definitely not a stretch of the imagination
Here's hoping 2010 is the end of our drought.
Some of those tackles were HORRIBLE
His coverage skills are phenomenal though. I’d take him at 13 if Spiller is gone and there are still a number of quality tackles on the board for 17.
Yeah
Seems like some of these safeties are missing out on tackling drills and going for the big hit instead.
He does a great job of watching the QB to make the play on the ball.
Yes Drew K, Tim Tebow will get picked in the first round.
Not mentioned in the stats above
He had like 18 deflected passes this year too. He’s a very instinctive playmaker when he gets a QB thats rushing or thinks he has something he doesn’t. His tackling isn’t so much a wrap up problem but if you get him against a power back he’s just not packing enough beef to make a solid tackle and not get drug right now so he has to go low. I do like how he when he goes low he does so extremely aggressively.
Gimme 1 round!
by ItBurnzWhenIP on Jan 26, 2010 4:08 PM PST up reply actions
Sometimes he bounces off the ground before he even touches the RB though. And when he tries to go high (which you’re not supposed to do as a DB) He get’s run over hard. He need to work on his tackling pretty bad, it’s definitely not where it needs to be for the NFL.
Tim Tebow = 1,432,219 season tickets next year. Who wouldn't pick him in the 1st round with those projections?
It is a wrap up problem
Half the tackles he wasn’t even facing the runner. He would fly into guys feet and hit the RB with his back not even looking. Listen, I’ve been run over before playing football, that doesn’t matter, but if you wrap up, you can make the tackle on your back. Trust me ;-)
His problem is he isn’t a very good fundamental tackler. He lays the big hit, but isn’t packing the force behind it. He needs to focus on wrapping up, that can be taught. Why I like him a lot is his instincts. Those can’t be taught.
I'd NEVER take him at 13, especially if he can't tackle, which he can't.
Crabtree posterized this kid. Now he does have exceptional range which could be great for us. He could be the trade down player for some teams. He isn’t worth 13 IMO. I would rather trade both first rounders for Berry, since he can hit.
Tribute to #44...............The Elmira Express!!
As I just said above, you can teach someone to keep their head up when tackling and wrapping up
You can’t teach instincts, and that he has. Tackling is football 101, he has been able to succeed without those skills because of his immense talent, but in NFL, he will be taught the fundamentals and will be ok.
I remember football practice being taught to keep my head up, squat, and drive through the tackler. If I could progress from just running into people, to wrapping up and making the tackle, then Earl Thomas, who has more talent than I do (I know Capt Obvious) can definitely learn how to tackle.
I agree 100 percent, but wouldn't take him at 13, however you can bet your sweet -expletive- that Scot Mc leaves the draft with either him or Eric Berry
Tribute to #44...............The Elmira Express!!
I hope so.
What we've got here is a failure to communicate.
by SportsChicken on Jan 26, 2010 9:10 PM PST up reply actions
Dude he was a freshman when Crabtree posterized him
Gimme 1 round!
by ItBurnzWhenIP on Jan 26, 2010 9:42 PM PST up reply actions
I didn’t find too many issues with his tackling. He failed to wrap up those hits on the sideline but he did take the right pursuit angle to cut those outside runs off. You could say he tackles low in traffic but he seemed to have the ball carrier targeted. He never gave anyone the opportunity to hurdle over him.
I’m curious to see if the 49ers draft this guy. According to Maiocco the 49ers are desperate to target a safety with great ball skills. Thomas has those skills but he doesn’t appear to measure up to the 49ers prototypical size, we all know they are particular about size.
I’m also going to throw the Mark Sanchez caution on this guy. Last year it appeared the 49ers would have to decide on Mark Sanchez as a possible QB option. Come draft day his stock had shot up so high that the 49ers had absolutely no shot at landing Mark Sanchez. I can see the same situation with Earl Thomas this season.
On Sundays he'll be playing CB
1.Trent Williams 1.Brandon Graham 2. Syd Thompson 3.Andrew Quarless 4.Torell Troup 5.Mike Kafka 6.Quinton Andrews 7.Preston Parker
Pretty much every scout has said he covers well enough to be a corner
and if his size limits him he will move to corner. But his ball skills are so good at safety he will at least play safety until its shown that he’s too small.
Gimme 1 round!
by ItBurnzWhenIP on Jan 26, 2010 9:46 PM PST up reply actions
Earl Thomas is not undersized for a safety.
Yes Drew K, Tim Tebow will get picked in the first round.
Not greatly undersized
But he’s not a particularly stout guy. He’s got a frame I think he can put another healthy 10-15 lbs on which would hopefully help him stay healthy through the pounding of a full season.
Gimme 1 round!
by ItBurnzWhenIP on Jan 27, 2010 4:28 PM PST up reply actions
Explain
What we've got here is a failure to communicate.
by SportsChicken on Jan 26, 2010 9:11 PM PST up reply actions
Unless he is
Ed Reed
WE ARE NOT DRAFTING HIM
And if we do, i CRY, AND DONT barrack for anyone. This isnt like Mitch Kupchek drafting and saying oh, noone knows about him, I guess he knows what he did, And if we do get Tebow, I may have to not follow NFL anymore.
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