ROUND 3 (#73): Eagles select Milton Williams (Louisiana Tech DT)

[vaff]

1 hour ago, time2rock said:

Especially since a later report suggested our "real" (note: use the term loosely) target was DT Alim McNeill.

https://sports.yahoo.com/lions-gm-brad-holmes-looks-123147092.html

I don't know who the intended target really was, but judging by the reaction of Donahue, it is likely easy to surmise that they weren't all on the same page (yet again).  I do hope Williams turns into a solid player for us, but my concerns are more about Howie doing his own thing and going against the board the scouts set up as has been reported.  

Dude, that happens on almost every pick in every draft. You really think an entire draft room wants to pick the same player at all times? This looks bad given the recent report(Which Howie even confirmed), but I think in this case it’s a non-issue. So far all reports indicate that the Eagles stayed true to their board. Which seems likely given that they didn’t reach for "need”. I think we should be encouraged by the change in process the Eagles showed in this draft.

[time2rock]

5 minutes ago, vaff said:

Dude, that happens on almost every pick in every draft. You really think an entire draft room wants to pick the same player at all times? This looks bad given the recent report(Which Howie even confirmed), but I think in this case it’s a non-issue. So far all reports indicate that the Eagles stayed true to their board. Which seems likely given that they didn’t reach for "need”. I think we should be encouraged by the change in process the Eagles showed in this draft.

You are likely right.  I guess I’ve been so down on Howie for so long that I am just looking for excuses to continue to dislike him.  

[Utebird]

3 hours ago, vaff said:

But he doesn’t suck at football. Whether it translates to the NFL, who knows? But it’s not like he didn’t prove himself on the field in college.

Yup, he was good in college, so was Mike Mamula,

I like Milton I like the pick I hope he does well I wish his arms were longer 

[vaff]

18 minutes ago, Utebird said:

Yup, he was good in college, so was Mike Mamula,

I like Milton I like the pick I hope he does well I wish his arms were longer 

Agreed about the arm length. That’s a bit of a concern, especially with how mobile QB’s are these days, and how hard it is to wrap them up.

I wasn’t a fan when Mike Mamula played. I get that guy didn’t live up to his draft position, but I don’t quite get why people always take shots at him.  He finished his career with 31.5 sacks in only five seasons. That’s a decent career, just not 7th overall pick worthy.

[Utebird]

26 minutes ago, vaff said:

Agreed about the arm length. That’s a bit of a concern, especially with how mobile QB’s are these days, and how hard it is to wrap them up.

I wasn’t a fan when Mike Mamula played. I get that guy didn’t live up to his draft position, but I don’t quite get why people always take shots at him.  He finished his career with 31.5 sacks in only five seasons. That’s a decent career, just not 7th overall pick worthy.

Yup, Mamula wasn't horrible, if he had been drafted 2nd 3rd round he wouldn't get as much hate as is not only did they trade up for him but also warren sapp was drafted a few picks later☹️

[matchew88]

17 hours ago, TEW said:

Yup. Athletically his two best comps are Aaron Donald and Geno Atkins. If he’s anything close to them, we are talking about a HOF caliber player. Such a better pick than some low upside slot corner.

Right but only at 65%. I look 65% like Leo DiCaprio.

[Utebird]

29 minutes ago, matchew88 said:

Right but only at 65%. I look 65% like Leo DiCaprio.

Donald had a better 10 yard split 1.59 to 1.65

For Milton and donald had one more bench rep.

Other than that milton had better athletic testing numbers than donald in every other category. 

Donald's arms are a little over an inch longer, Williams is taller by about an inch 

 

[matchew88]

Just now, Utebird said:

Donald had a better 10 yard split 1.59 to 1.65

For Milton and donald had one more bench rep.

Other than that milton had better athletic testing numbers than donald in every other category. 

Donald's arms are a little over an inch longer, Williams is taller by about an inch 

 

Height and weight combo for Geno Atkins, Donald has long arms

We will see which dimensional differences mean more

[toolg]

A lot of these grades compare him to DT, when he's really more EDGE. My guess is Williams plays more DE, but can slide over to DT on passing downs. He's not a big run-stuffer, but can pass rush and create pressure.

[UK_EaglesFan89]

7 minutes ago, toolg said:

A lot of these grades compare him to DT, when he's really more EDGE. My guess is Williams plays more DE, but can slide over to DT on passing downs. He's not a big run-stuffer, but can pass rush and create pressure.

I think he's going to move around yeah. I think he'll be an edge mostly. 

[Utebird]

5 minutes ago, matchew88 said:

Height and weight combo for Geno Atkins, Donald has long arms

We will see which dimensional differences mean more

Yup donald having as long of arms as he does really helps him.

Having said that a player comp doesn't mean that player is going to have the same career.

For Instance a good comp for Devonta Smith is Todd Pinkston, paul richardson does that mean smith is destined to be those guys?

No just means smith has similar measurables and athletic traits, frame, body type.

Same goes for Milton and donald.

[ToastJenkins]

I think he will be a 3T almost exclusively

[matchew88]

2 hours ago, Utebird said:

Yup donald having as long of arms as he does really helps him.

Having said that a player comp doesn't mean that player is going to have the same career.

For Instance a good comp for Devonta Smith is Todd Pinkston, paul richardson does that mean smith is destined to be those guys?

No just means smith has similar measurables and athletic traits, frame, body type.

Same goes for Milton and donald.

Well the other differences make sense- being more compact for Geno Atkins and having more reach for Aaron Donald.

What's the use of being taller, lighter, and having shorter arms like a T-Rex? I guess if he's taller and lighter, he could per on more weight..

[Utebird]

2 hours ago, matchew88 said:

Well the other differences make sense- being more compact for Geno Atkins and having more reach for Aaron Donald.

What's the use of being taller, lighter, and having shorter arms like a T-Rex? I guess if he's taller and lighter, he could per on more weight..

Yup, I think if he could put dave infamous 10-15 lbs of muscle he could be more effective inside 

I'm going to assume the eagles training staff is a little better than LA tech.😉

[T-1000]

I want to deconstruct some potential myths surrounding this pick, as well as ask some questions. This is based on hearing beat writers make comments over the last couple of days.

Myth number 1 - The Eagles would have definitely drafted Aaron Robinson had they stayed at 70, or had he been there at 73.

Let's approach this from a common sense perspective. If they wanted him that badly, and had him rated that much higher than everyone else on their board, they wouldn't have traded down for a 6th round pick. Maybe they would have taken him at 70 without the trade down, or at 73 had he been there, however they could have just as easily taken Milton Williams over him anyway. People seem to be adding a while lot of narrative to this situation other than the speculation that Tom Donahoe wanted. For all anyone knows it could have been McNeil that he wanted.

Myth number 2 - This was ''just an analytics pick.''

While his workout numbers were good, it's not look he had no production in college. I realize he was facing lesser competition, but 10 sacks and 104 tackles over his last two season isn't bad. Obviously the athletic ability was a big reason why they liked him, but there was some production and also positional versatility to like about him.

Now, I just want to ask some questions.

1. With the Eagles needing outside corners far more than a slot corner, why are people so convinced that Robinson would have been the better pick

2. Why have I heard two or three beat/talk radio guys say something like ''If Robinson ends up being a really good player and Williams isn't the Eagles are going to look really bad,'' but on the flip side I don't hear them also saying ''If Williams ends up being a really good player and Robinson doesn't the Eagles are going to look really smart.

To me, this pick is, in a nutshell a prime example of how the majority of people who cover the Eagles as well as fans simply choose to take the negative side of something without considering something from every angle. On Friday night all I heard was what a reach this guy was. Then when people actually took the time to get some information and realized that wasn't the case, the narrative changed to how Aaron Robinson is the greatest corner prospect since Sanders and Williams is destined to fail. It's absolutely infuriating. 

[Philthy Jawn]

34 minutes ago, T-1000 said:

Now, I just want to ask some questions.

1. With the Eagles needing outside corners far more than a slot corner, why are people so convinced that Robinson would have been the better pick

2. Why have I heard two or three beat/talk radio guys say something like ''If Robinson ends up being a really good player and Williams isn't the Eagles are going to look really bad,'' but on the flip side I don't hear them also saying ''If Williams ends up being a really good player and Robinson doesn't the Eagles are going to look really smart.

To me, this pick is, in a nutshell a prime example of how the majority of people who cover the Eagles as well as fans simply choose to take the negative side of something without considering something from every angle. On Friday night all I heard was what a reach this guy was. Then when people actually took the time to get some information and realized that wasn't the case, the narrative changed to how Aaron Robinson is the greatest corner prospect since Sanders and Williams is destined to fail. It's absolutely infuriating. 

Thank you, thank you, thank you.

[mr_irie1]

I'm not expecting this guy to be Aaron Donald or Geno Atkins. If he winds up being comparable to Broderick Bunkley I'd be more than happy. Only time will tell

[PoconoDon]

17 hours ago, ToastJenkins said:

I think he will be a 3T almost exclusively

If I had to bet today TJ, I'm with you on this.

[Talonblood]

On 4/30/2021 at 9:56 PM, Moderator6 said:

Eagles traded back from #70 to #73, picked up the Panthers 6th.

Because a 6th round pick.... is worthless. Go, Hoooooowwwwwiiiiieeeeeee

[Talonblood]

On 4/30/2021 at 10:02 PM, Seventy_Yard_FG said:

I like that name, milton, very 80s

[Philthy Jawn]

Howie was on WIP earlier today, and said the choice was between Williams and Alim McNeil, who projects more as a run-stopping nose tackle. 

After hearing this, I'm with Roseman and Gannon on this one.  In today's NFL, you need quick, penetrating d-tackles.  

The story:

https://www.nbcsports.com/philadelphia/eagles/howie-roseman-tom-donahoe-nfl-draft-awkward-moment-milton-williams-alim-mcneill

[UK_EaglesFan89]

1 minute ago, Philthy Jawn said:

Howie was on WIP earlier today, and said the choice was between Williams and Alim McNeil, who projects more as a run-stopping nose tackle. 

After hearing this, I'm with Roseman and Gannon on this one.  In today's NFL, you need quick, penetrating d-tackles.  

The story:

https://www.nbcsports.com/philadelphia/eagles/howie-roseman-tom-donahoe-nfl-draft-awkward-moment-milton-williams-alim-mcneill

If that's true then yeah Williams was the better pick in my opinion. That may not be how their careers play out of course but on that basis I prefer the Williams pick.

[T-1000]

Lol, all of that negative bullshut from fans and beat guys over Aaron Robinson and that wasn't even the guy Donahoe wanted. Glad they got Williams over a NT type.

[Traveler Vic]

5 hours ago, T-1000 said:

Lol, all of that negative bullshut from fans and beat guys over Aaron Robinson and that wasn't even the guy Donahoe wanted. Glad they got Williams over a NT type.

IF you trust Howie. But Did anyone say who Donahoe did want? I suspect Donahoe wanted a CB in the 3rd. All the CBs started coming off the board in the third round and at the time There were excellent choices. Eagles on the other hand waited until round 4 to pick a CB, a clear pre draft necessity. 8 CBs were taken between Eagles third and fourth round picks when Eagles selected Zech. Zech was the ninth. I like Zech...but in round 3 there was much better selection.

[T-1000]

4 minutes ago, Traveler Vic said:

IF you trust Howie. But Did anyone say who Donahoe did want? I suspect Donahoe wanted a CB in the 3rd. All the CBs started coming off the board in the third round and at the time There were excellent choices. Eagles on the other hand waited until round 4 to pick a CB, a clear pre draft necessity. 8 CBs were taken between Eagles third and fourth round picks when Eagles selected Zech. Zech was the ninth. I like Zech...but in round 3 there was much better selection.

Dude, he's not going to go on the radio and lie about who Donahoe wanted. Use your brains. He prefered McNeil to Williams who went at 72 after they traded down. Whether you want to use common sense and admit that is a different story. Also, Andrew Dicecco disagrees with you. He said McPhearson was great value at 123 and as good or better than the corners that went in the third round. As I keep telling people like you, we won't know crap about this draft for 2-3 years so everything else is speculation.