2012 Draft Discussion

[awfullyquiet]

Originally Posted by Monomach

Round 1- Shea McClellin (theoretically a LE)
Good motor, good pad level. Undersized for a 4-3 DE, especially on the left where we'll be playing him.

I'm only going to say this once, and then I'm outsies.

260lbs (which is what he was at the Combine) is exactly the size you want out of a pass rushing 4-3 DE that the bears want. Ogunleye was that size. Dwight Freeney is smaller. Robert Mathis is smaller. Alex Brown was that size. Jared Allen is between 265-270. Not everyone is ineffective at 260. It's a big mans league, but more than that, it's a leverage league. He plays with good leverage and balance, and that is more important than whatever number is on the scale.

He's probably not going to get much bigger than 265, and that's OK. Not everyone has to have a speed/height ratio like Peppers to be uber productive. They have to control their gaps and let the play flow to the LBs to rack up plenty of tackles. They don't have to be dominant in the run game, but they do have to play smart. That's everything that Emery says about McClellin in a nutshell.

I also think that Emery gifted this to Smith in order for him to cover the screen.

[D-Unit]

Originally Posted by awfullyquiet

I'm only going to say this once, and then I'm outsies.

260lbs (which is what he was at the Combine) is exactly the size you want out of a pass rushing 4-3 DE that the bears want. Ogunleye was that size. Dwight Freeney is smaller. Robert Mathis is smaller. Alex Brown was that size. Jared Allen is between 265-270. Not everyone is ineffective at 260. It's a big mans league, but more than that, it's a leverage league. He plays with good leverage and balance, and that is more important than whatever number is on the scale.

He's probably not going to get much bigger than 265, and that's OK. Not everyone has to have a speed/height ratio like Peppers to be uber productive. They have to control their gaps and let the play flow to the LBs to rack up plenty of tackles. They don't have to be dominant in the run game, but they do have to play smart. That's everything that Emery says about McClellin in a nutshell.

I also think that Emery gifted this to Smith in order for him to cover the screen.

Powerfully said.

[bearsfan_51]

Girl power.

[regoob2]

Originally Posted by awfullyquiet

I'm only going to say this once, and then I'm outsies.

260lbs (which is what he was at the Combine) is exactly the size you want out of a pass rushing 4-3 DE that the bears want. Ogunleye was that size. Dwight Freeney is smaller. Robert Mathis is smaller. Alex Brown was that size. Jared Allen is between 265-270. Not everyone is ineffective at 260. It's a big mans league, but more than that, it's a leverage league. He plays with good leverage and balance, and that is more important than whatever number is on the scale.

He's probably not going to get much bigger than 265, and that's OK. Not everyone has to have a speed/height ratio like Peppers to be uber productive. They have to control their gaps and let the play flow to the LBs to rack up plenty of tackles. They don't have to be dominant in the run game, but they do have to play smart. That's everything that Emery says about McClellin in a nutshell.

I also think that Emery gifted this to Smith in order for him to cover the screen.

I agree he doesnt need to get bigger. I think if he gets stronger it will only help. He needs a bit of time in the weight room but his size isnt an issue.

[Monomach]

Originally Posted by awfullyquiet

I'm only going to say this once, and then I'm outsies.

260lbs (which is what he was at the Combine) is exactly the size you want out of a pass rushing 4-3 DE that the bears want. Ogunleye was that size. Dwight Freeney is smaller. Robert Mathis is smaller. Alex Brown was that size. Jared Allen is between 265-270. Not everyone is ineffective at 260. It's a big mans league, but more than that, it's a leverage league. He plays with good leverage and balance, and that is more important than whatever number is on the scale.

260lbs is ok if you're strong. Shea just isn't. He's got the upper body strength of Alshon Jeffery. It shows both on tape and in his workout. Dwight Freeney and Jared Allen are both complete ends...but they're 270 and stronger than Shea while being just as fast.

Ogunleye was always inconsistent against the run. Alex Brown was the opposite, strong against the run but not great at rushing the passer. It took 6 years for Robert Mathis to stop being a detriment to the defense on running plays. Dumervil is a smaller guy you didn't mention that popped right into my head, and he was a liability against the run when the Broncos were 4-3. That's a lot of one-dimensional guys at that size.

He's probably not going to get much bigger than 265, and that's OK. Not everyone has to have a speed/height ratio like Peppers to be uber productive.

No, they don't have to be like Peppers, but nearly all of the effective 4-down players at 4-3 DE are in the area of 6-5 and 270 lbs. The ones that aren't are the minority. In the top 20, you need to get people who are going to be on the field all of the time.

They have to control their gaps and let the play flow to the LBs to rack up plenty of tackles. They don't have to be dominant in the run game, but they do have to play smart. That's everything that Emery says about McClellin in a nutshell.

Emery can say what he wants, but this doesn't show up on tape. In college, he was used in a variety of positions. Emery says we're just using him at LE, and that looked to be about where he was the worst on tape. He was ok against tackles when he had a running start and some space to maneuver and was ok head-on against slow guards, but when he lined up right on tackles for a one-on-one matchup, he was just swallowed up. He has no strength to move them and the straight-line speed he looked to rely on is largely negated when you're starting off inches from him.

I also think that Emery gifted this to Smith in order for him to cover the screen.

I can see that, but we were good against the screen as we were.

Side note: It's almost shocking that the guy manages to be 260lbs with such short arms and not destroy the bench press. That kind of weight on his frame with short arms is usually the blueprint for success at that. My first thought was that he must have amazing leg muscles, but that doesn't show in the workout numbers that usually show lower-body explosion. It all comes together to scream "soft body" and "overachieving low-ceiling player."

Like I said, if he manages to put on 10lbs of muscle in his upper body and keep his speed, I'll see it differently, but right now he looks like a one-trick pony situational pass rusher a la Mark Anderson/Dumervil/Ogunleye/early Mathis.

[MidwayMonster31]

Fortunately McClellin is a pretty hard worker, so he can be a solid player. I think right now, he might get looks at SLB or 3rd down edge rusher, with the ability to go down to every down player next year, once he gains the proper amount of strength. He is more of a pursuit player, which suits us pretty well since he can get after short passes and screens better.