The moment Stoutland started believing in Dillard

[time2rock]

The moment Stoutland started believing in Dillard

 

It was August of last summer, and Jeff Stoutland gathered his players together for another team meeting.

He looked out in the meeting room and saw the usual suspects: Jason Kelce, Lane Johnson, Isaac Seumalo and everybody else who was getting ready for the season.

And there — in the front row — was Andre Dillard.

Who had just suffered a torn biceps injury at practice and was out for the year.

"This guy stayed here,” Stoutland says now. "He never left. Andre Dillard was in every single position meeting. Andre Dillard sat in the front of the room with a notebook and took notes on every single thing I said.”

Dillard was coming off an up-and-down rookie season, and his three solid starts in place of Jason Peters at left tackle were pretty much forgotten after a nightmarish late-season emergency start against the Seahawks at right tackle in place of Johnson.

The 2020 season was the former 1st-round pick’s chance to bounce back. But he never got the chance.

His season was over before the season began.

But Dillard was determined to make the most of his idle time. If he couldn’t be out on the field at practice and he couldn’t play in games, he was going to learn as much as he could in meetings.

"As a matter of fact, I didn’t even know if that was legal,” Stoutland said. “(I wondered) are you allowed to be (here)?’”

He was allowed to be there, and early on Stoutland decided that if Dillard was going to be in the front row for every meeting, Stoutland was going to treat him like every lineman on the active roster.

"I would hit him with questions during the meeting,” he said. "Game planning questions. I said, ‘Andre, if you’re going to be here, I’m going to make it like you’re playing. Let’s play with our magical friend. Let’s pretend that you’re going to go play in the game and then maybe we won’t develop the rust and the barnacles … and your mind will stay sharp. And that’s kind of how we played it out all year with Andre.”

So every week, Stoutland prepared both Dillard and Jordan Mailata to play left tackle on Sunday afternoon.

Then Dillard would sit and watch and Mailata would go out and play.

Dillard is healthy now and girding for a training camp battle with Mailata for the starting left tackle position.

Stoutland said neither player has an advantage going into camp. They’re dead even.

Which tells you how far Dillard has come. Or at least how far Stoutland believes he’s come.

And it all started 10 months ago in the o-line meeting room at the NovaCare Complex, where Dillard began the process of reinventing himself as a football player.

"I think that’s kind of how it really started with him because I do see a hungrier guy, I see a guy who is more serious,” Stoutland said. "I’m just being honest with you. This is going through the meetings, going through the position (meetings), out there on the field, watching him move. Him and Isaac (Seumalo), they move like they’re identical. The way they move together. They’re pretty quick, those guys. And he’s thicker and he’s stronger. …

"He’s thicker up top, he’s bigger, he’s heavier. I really do like what he’s done in the offseason.”

https://www.nbcsports.com/philadelphia/eagles/eagles-training-camp-moment-jeff-stoutland-started-believing-andre-dillard

[PoconoDon]

The 1st round supposed steal of a prospect with years of experience at OT vs. the 7th round longshot who never played American football before...and there's no clear favorite... 

Wow.

[pallidrone]

5 hours ago, PoconoDon said:

The 1st round supposed steal of a prospect with years of experience at OT vs. the 7th round longshot who never played American football before...and there's no clear favorite... 

Wow.

Exactly why the draft is a complete crap shoot.

[PoconoDon]

37 minutes ago, pallidrone said:

Exactly why the draft is a complete crap shoot.

Or that the person(s) deciding how good a prospect is, and give out a 1st round grade, stink at his/their job.

[brkmsn]

13 hours ago, PoconoDon said:

Or that the person(s) deciding how good a prospect is, and give out a 1st round grade, stink at his/their job.

Or that Mailata's work ethic and Stoutland's coaching are combining to make Mailata into a very special player. 

[pallidrone]

20 hours ago, PoconoDon said:

Or that the person(s) deciding how good a prospect is, and give out a 1st round grade, stink at his/their job.

That probably means a lot of people as almost every team had a 1st round grade on Dillard.

[UK_EaglesFan89]

So the moment Stoutland realised Dillard was someone to believe in was after he got hurt? And not based on his on field performances during his rookie year...

[PoconoDon]

42 minutes ago, pallidrone said:

That probably means a lot of people as almost every team had a 1st round grade on Dillard.

Yeah that's probably true. The knock on the kid was he wasn't a developed run blocker and the Eagles reportedly were initially surprised that he wasn't bad at it. I guess they didn't look into his mental toughness that much. 

[brkmsn]

8 hours ago, UK_EaglesFan89 said:

So the moment Stoutland realised Dillard was someone to believe in was after he got hurt? And not based on his on field performances during his rookie year...

I don't think his potential was ever questioned. I'm just not so sure he, as a rookie, convinced them he was dedicated to becoming better. 

8 hours ago, PoconoDon said:

Yeah that's probably true. The knock on the kid was he wasn't a developed run blocker and the Eagles reportedly were initially surprised that he wasn't bad at it. I guess they didn't look into his mental toughness that much. 

I know last year the "fan talk" circulating was mostly about questioning  his mental toughness, but the issue was probably more accurately about his work ethic and maturity as far as the coaches were concerned. I believe that's what this article is about. He didn't pack it in or sulk just because of a physical setback. He put in the work to improve his understanding of the position, and rehabbing the injury. He also changed his diet and workout in an attempt to improve physically as a player. Those aren't signs of mental weakness. If you want to see mentally weak, just revisit the Shawn Andrews era. Shawn could have been one of the best OGs in the NFL for a decade if she just wasn't so afraid of playing football.

[mr_irie1]

The biggest surprise I take out of this is that in all of Stout's years of coaching he didn't even know that players were allowed to still attend the meetings after getting hurt. Meaning that not a single guy after getting injured felt the need to still show up to work for the knowledge implementation or classroom learning that goes on week to week. As many injuries to the Oline that there's been, every other player just did their physical rehab then called it a day? That seems like valuable time wasted to me.

[PoconoDon]

6 hours ago, brkmsn said:

I don't think his potential was ever questioned. I'm just not so sure he, as a rookie, convinced them he was dedicated to becoming better. 

I know last year the "fan talk" circulating was mostly about questioning  his mental toughness, but the issue was probably more accurately about his work ethic and maturity as far as the coaches were concerned. I believe that's what this article is about. He didn't pack it in or sulk just because of a physical setback. He put in the work to improve his understanding of the position, and rehabbing the injury. He also changed his diet and workout in an attempt to improve physically as a player. Those aren't signs of mental weakness. If you want to see mentally weak, just revisit the Shawn Andrews era. Shawn could have been one of the best OGs in the NFL for a decade if she just wasn't so afraid of playing football.

Didn't he have a crying breakdown? Didn't he get destroyed trying to play RT? What he apparently lacked was strength, physicality, and the mindset to dominate. Those things raise red flags. Now, can he overcome them? Yes, he can. Will he overcome them? We don't know, but we're going to find out pretty soon as he competes with Jordan. I wish him nothing but success. If he turns into a complete and great young OT who forces Jordan into a RT or swing OT role, I'll be thrilled for him and the team. If he ends up as a backup, then selecting him for the team with a 1st round pick will have been a mistake. Then again, selecting players who require great physicality from the PAC-12 is usually a mistake. JMO.

[time2rock]

1 hour ago, PoconoDon said:

Didn't he have a crying breakdown? Didn't he get destroyed trying to play RT? What he apparently lacked was strength, physicality, and the mindset to dominate. Those things raise red flags. Now, can he overcome them? Yes, he can. Will he overcome them? We don't know, but we're going to find out pretty soon as he competes with Jordan. I wish him nothing but success. If he turns into a complete and great young OT who forces Jordan into a RT or swing OT role, I'll be thrilled for him and the team. If he ends up as a backup, then selecting him for the team with a 1st round pick will have been a mistake. Then again, selecting players who require great physicality from the PAC-12 is usually a mistake. JMO.

Not completely related to Dillard here, but I’d honestly be thrilled if we never draft another player from the PAC-12, I don’t care how highly rated they may be.

[PoconoDon]

2 hours ago, time2rock said:

Not completely related to Dillard here, but I’d honestly be thrilled if we never draft another player from the PAC-12, I don’t care how highly rated they may be.

Preach it brother!

I'm not sure I've figured out the whole problem out there. What I think it is so far is that the college football programs on the left coast and even into the rocky mountains are a reflection of the communities within which they are placed. They are communities that discourage aggressiveness in all aspects of life, including sports. It's a tofu world they'd like to soften into a Nerf world in which no one ever gets even a minor boo-boo from anything. Unrealistic, but now apparent in so many ways out there culturally.

How that translates into football is that they prioritize the finesse skills greatly and shy away from nasty streak physically dominant play. In fact they'll happily prefer a player with great agility and finesse skills even if his physicality is sub-par over every other kind of player. Those are the players they enjoy watching and make contributions for, so that's who they recruit.

To me, it's a losing strategy, and my conclusion seems to play out just about every time a PAC-12 team meets an SEC, Big 10, ACC, Big-12, etc. team. The Eastern team tends to dominate them physically and win the game easily. 

I think Dillard is a prime example of the PAC-12 mindset, and I don't blame him. He's just a product of their way of building teams out there. I do blame Howie and Co. for even considering trying to sift through the whole PAC-12 for one of the very few complete prospects when you know you've got a miniscule chance of succeeding. In this day and age, I think it's best to just stay in the SEC, Big-10, ACC, Big-12 and other points east of the Rockies. No PAC-12 and no Mountain West. Will they miss out on a guy here or there like a D-JAX? Yes, eventually. They'll also  miss out on all of the Pumphries, JJAW's, etc., of the world. A fine trade off IMO.

[brkmsn]

4 hours ago, PoconoDon said:

Didn't he have a crying breakdown? Didn't he get destroyed trying to play RT? What he apparently lacked was strength, physicality, and the mindset to dominate.  

I just want to address this part of your post.

Did he cry? It looks like it in the picture they posted. That's not all that unusual these days for guys that age. It's hard for me to come up with a list of players that haven't cried about football at some point in their careers. Lots of different emotions can lead to crying --- it really doesn't make you mentally weak to have emotions. Crying isn't very "manly," but that's about it. I saw McCown play more than half a playoff game with his hamstring severely torn and after the loss, he broke down crying by himself in the tunnel because he felt he let everybody down. You don't stay in the game with that severe an injury if you are mentally weak. Jerry Rice struggled with drops as a rookie to the point he broke down in tears in the locker room after the game because he knew he could play better and was hurting his team. That isn't mental weakness.

The guy played his entire career at LT and he had a couple days to prepare for the switch to RT and it was a disaster. Was he destroyed? Sure. Was it because of mental weakness or just a lack of preparation?

Lacking Strength, physicality, and a dominant mindset --- The entire incident that led to the emotional scene was because he was too physical on a block vs one of the defenders and Barnett took exception. He had a separate altercation with Miller as well. Fighting may not be desirable in practice, but it happens and is a product of physicality. As a professional, he did need to add strength (which it sounds like he has done while rehabbing). 

IMO, I think you're jumping to conclusions a bit and misrepresenting him because of your PAC-12 bigotry. 

[PoconoDon]

13 minutes ago, brkmsn said:

I just want to address this part of your post.

Did he cry? It looks like it in the picture they posted. That's not all that unusual these days for guys that age. It's hard for me to come up with a list of players that haven't cried about football at some point in their careers. Lots of different emotions can lead to crying --- it really doesn't make you mentally weak to have emotions. Crying isn't very "manly," but that's about it. I saw McCown play more than half a playoff game with his hamstring severely torn and after the loss, he broke down crying by himself in the tunnel because he felt he let everybody down. You don't stay in the game with that severe an injury if you are mentally weak. Jerry Rice struggled with drops as a rookie to the point he broke down in tears in the locker room after the game because he knew he could play better and was hurting his team. That isn't mental weakness.

The guy played his entire career at LT and he had a couple days to prepare for the switch to RT and it was a disaster. Was he destroyed? Sure. Was it because of mental weakness or just a lack of preparation?

Lacking Strength, physicality, and a dominant mindset --- The entire incident that led to the emotional scene was because he was too physical on a block vs one of the defenders and Barnett took exception. He had a separate altercation with Miller as well. Fighting may not be desirable in practice, but it happens and is a product of physicality. As a professional, he did need to add strength (which it sounds like he has done while rehabbing). 

IMO, I think you're jumping to conclusions a bit and misrepresenting him because of your PAC-12 bigotry. 

A worthy opinion. I have always admitted my PAC-12 bias. Time will prove if it is justified or not regarding Dillard. 

I will offer this one little olive branch. USC produces good pro players on an OK basis. I do think the rest of the conference is a big pile of fail.

[brkmsn]

2 hours ago, PoconoDon said:

A worthy opinion. I have always admitted my PAC-12 bias. Time will prove if it is justified or not regarding Dillard. 

I will offer this one little olive branch. USC produces good pro players on an OK basis. I do think the rest of the conference is a big pile of fail.

I'm no fan of the PAC-12 or any of its teams. I definitely think that there are stronger conferences and better teams. What I don't believe is just because a player comes out of a PAC-12 teams, it means he's mentally weak or less likely to be successful. Surely there are good players all over the country. College is a chance to showcase yourself and hone your skills. It's not the end all of what you will become as a pro. Our notable PAC-12 contributors are JJAW, Dillard, Ertz. Herbig, Seumalo, and Rodgers (there are a couple others that haven't actually made the final 53 here before).  JJAW has been disappointing overall as a WR thus far, but he isn't afraid of contact and is probably our best, most physical and willing blocking WR. Dillard, to be fair, is still a big unknown. Herbig is extremely physical (I'm a fan). Ertz isn't  super physical, but he has demonstrated a willingness to play through injuries and pain. Rodgers does everything you want a TE2 to do. Seumalo has been getting better, and is versatile and a legitimate NFL starter. 

There's a very real chance that JJAW doesn't make this team. Personally, I expect him to, but most fans don't think much of him. If Mailata holds off Dillard for the LT gig, people will continue to question that pick as well --- especially if we get very little in return through a trade or whatnot. Either of these guys might still have a career on another team if they don't pan out here early. Only time will tell. I think we would all agree that Ertz was worthy of the investment for what we got in return from him. Seumalo is actually pretty underrated, IMO. The other two guys didn't cost us anything so they are good additions. 

[PoconoDon]

56 minutes ago, brkmsn said:

I'm no fan of the PAC-12 or any of its teams. I definitely think that there are stronger conferences and better teams. What I don't believe is just because a player comes out of a PAC-12 teams, it means he's mentally weak or less likely to be successful. Surely there are good players all over the country. College is a chance to showcase yourself and hone your skills. It's not the end all of what you will become as a pro. Our notable PAC-12 contributors are JJAW, Dillard, Ertz. Herbig, Seumalo, and Rodgers (there are a couple others that haven't actually made the final 53 here before).  JJAW has been disappointing overall as a WR thus far, but he isn't afraid of contact and is probably our best, most physical and willing blocking WR. Dillard, to be fair, is still a big unknown. Herbig is extremely physical (I'm a fan). Ertz isn't  super physical, but he has demonstrated a willingness to play through injuries and pain. Rodgers does everything you want a TE2 to do. Seumalo has been getting better, and is versatile and a legitimate NFL starter. 

There's a very real chance that JJAW doesn't make this team. Personally, I expect him to, but most fans don't think much of him. If Mailata holds off Dillard for the LT gig, people will continue to question that pick as well --- especially if we get very little in return through a trade or whatnot. Either of these guys might still have a career on another team if they don't pan out here early. Only time will tell. I think we would all agree that Ertz was worthy of the investment for what we got in return from him. Seumalo is actually pretty underrated, IMO. The other two guys didn't cost us anything so they are good additions. 

I'm not saying there aren't any good players from the PAC-12. Heck, Foles came out of the PAC-12 and we all like how he performed under pressure, right? All I'm saying is that there is a distinctly less physical brand of football being played out there, and it tends to show up in less physical than expected prospects. Sure, all rookies have to gain strength, that's a given.

Something is off out there and the lack of physicality may only be a symptom. Like I originally said, I suspect certain things, but I haven't figured it all out yet for sure. Foles, Ertz, Agholor, Jones, Wheaton, Ngata, Seumalo, Qualls, Walker, Treggs, Hart, Barkley, Rodgers, Huff, Reynolds, Toohill, Perkins, Vaeao, Dillard, Pumphrey, JJAW, and Shittu were all from the PAC-12. Most approve of Foles, Ertz, Seumalo, and Rodgers as players for the Eagles in their roles.

How many were absolute dominators? Foles had his moments to be sure (SB52 was the best) but never week in and week out for several years in a row. Ertz as a pass catcher? OK, he's in. Ngata? For a stretch in Baltimore, not here though. Yeah, Ertz is the only one and only as a pass catcher. The rest? No. I probably missed some but I listed 22 PAC-12 Eagles of recent years and only 1 could be considered dominant and in only one aspect of his game. That's a pretty low rate of success from the PAC-12 in finding a top prospect.

 

[brkmsn]

47 minutes ago, PoconoDon said:

I'm not saying there aren't any good players from the PAC-12. Heck, Foles came out of the PAC-12 and we all like how he performed under pressure, right? All I'm saying is that there is a distinctly less physical brand of football being played out there, and it tends to show up in less physical than expected prospects. Sure, all rookies have to gain strength, that's a given.

Something is off out there and the lack of physicality may only be a symptom. Like I originally said, I suspect certain things, but I haven't figured it all out yet for sure. Foles, Ertz, Agholor, Jones, Wheaton, Ngata, Seumalo, Qualls, Walker, Treggs, Hart, Barkley, Rodgers, Huff, Reynolds, Toohill, Perkins, Vaeao, Dillard, Pumphrey, JJAW, and Shittu were all from the PAC-12. Most approve of Foles, Ertz, Seumalo, and Rodgers as players for the Eagles in their roles.

How many were absolute dominators? Foles had his moments to be sure (SB52 was the best) but never week in and week out for several years in a row. Ertz as a pass catcher? OK, he's in. Ngata? For a stretch in Baltimore, not here though. Yeah, Ertz is the only one and only as a pass catcher. The rest? No. I probably missed some but I listed 21 PAC-12 Eagles of recent years and only 1 could be considered dominant and in only one aspect of his game. That's a pretty low rate of success from the PAC-12 in finding a top prospect.

 

If you look at the recent Eagles and factor in "years of dominance," the list is fairly short anyway:

Kelce --- Big East / AAC

Ertz --- Pac-12

JP --- SEC

Cox --- SEC

Just missing the list:

BG --- Big 10

Brooks --- MAC

Other notables:

DJAX --- Pac 12

McCoy --- ACC

I think you can take the stronger conferences like the SEC, Big 10 and ACC and still find plenty of examples of disappointments. Heck, Shawn Andrews, who IMO was the biggest example of "quit" we've had in the last 2 decades was out of the SEC. Guys like Agholor and Blount were never super special players by themselves, but they were extremely valuable to the overall "team" that won it all. 

I know I won't change your mind. I just think it's all relative (all conferences produce great talents, solid contributors, and disappointments.  As Eagles fans we're a bit starved for a day-1 superstar to cling to. It only makes sense to look to the most successful football programs of today to find those types of players. Those programs are not in the Pac-12.

[PoconoDon]

10 minutes ago, brkmsn said:

If you look at the recent Eagles and factor in "years of dominance," the list is fairly short anyway:

Kelce --- Big East / AAC

Ertz --- Pac-12

JP --- SEC

Cox --- SEC

Just missing the list:

BG --- Big 10

Brooks --- MAC

Other notables:

DJAX --- Pac 12

McCoy --- ACC

I think you can take the stronger conferences like the SEC, Big 10 and ACC and still find plenty of examples of disappointments. Heck, Shawn Andrews, who IMO was the biggest example of "quit" we've had in the last 2 decades was out of the SEC. Guys like Agholor and Blount were never super special players by themselves, but they were extremely valuable to the overall "team" that won it all. 

I know I won't change your mind. I just think it's all relative (all conferences produce great talents, solid contributors, and disappointments.  As Eagles fans we're a bit starved for a day-1 superstar to cling to. It only makes sense to look to the most successful football programs of today to find those types of players. Those programs are not in the Pac-12.

I agree with that statement. I think where we part ways, is that I think the PAC-12 consistently overproduces disappointments.

[pallidrone]

On 6/20/2021 at 8:56 AM, PoconoDon said:

Didn't he have a crying breakdown? Didn't he get destroyed trying to play RT? What he apparently lacked was strength, physicality, and the mindset to dominate. Those things raise red flags. Now, can he overcome them? Yes, he can. Will he overcome them? We don't know, but we're going to find out pretty soon as he competes with Jordan. I wish him nothing but success. If he turns into a complete and great young OT who forces Jordan into a RT or swing OT role, I'll be thrilled for him and the team. If he ends up as a backup, then selecting him for the team with a 1st round pick will have been a mistake. Then again, selecting players who require great physicality from the PAC-12 is usually a mistake. JMO.

So is the bias football players in general or just offensive/defensive linemen?

[PoconoDon]

1 hour ago, pallidrone said:

So is the bias football players in general or just offensive/defensive linemen?

In general I suppose.

The tl;dr explanation is below:

Spoiler

Nothing is 100% but I've come to think that the PAC-12 doesn't produce enough top prospects to warrant picking from there unless you are 100% convinced you're looking at a future HOF player. I know there have been/are a few big time prospects to come out of the conference but they are few and far between. The NFL knows this too as the SEC once again has set a draft record with 65 players being picked in April. People like to counter with anecdotal players who are great from the PAC-12 like Chad Johnson, Steve Smith, Aaron Rodgers, and Gronk. I say fine, but Gronk is the most recent and he was 2010. That's a12 year drought from the PAC-12. I can't name any more since 2000.

In that span the Eagles have drafted around 21 PAC-12 players with little success finding a year in, year out difference maker beyond Ertz. Foles is an anomaly who only plays well in Philly,  and Agholor had 1 good year (thankfully it was 2017.) I try to figure out why there is such a difference between conferences and i look at crossover games where they meet for answers. To my eye, right or wrong, the PAC-12 seems to play a finesse style of football that falls to the more physical brand from other conferences. It seems consistent so, they must be recruiting a different type of player. That suggests they have different criteria for recruiting and are apparently prioritizing different skills and abilities than other conferences. They prioritize finesse, recruit finesse, and produce finesse. Physical dominance within the sport is apparently not on their punch list. Sidney jones is the poster child for my bias. To think he actually refused to lift weights as directed by the strength and conditioning coaches. He said no, he was going to work on his quickness and agility (finesse skills) instead IIRC.

there are fertile fields from which to harvest, yet Howie, for some unknown reason, wanders the desert in search of a cactus bloom out of season. It's been maddening to watch. Now, this past draft he didn't go on that fruitless journey like he usually does until the 6th round. Maybe that's a sign of his growth, or maybe he'll be right back at it in April of 2022. I hope it's the former but I'm not holding my breath.

The upcoming draft will have a slew of extra prospects due to COVID related delays in declaring. It should be one of the most abundant classes in a long time from all conferences. Will Howie and co. enjoy that by staying in the dominant conferences longer to get more top shelf prospects...or...will he use it as an excuse to go PAC-12 crazy with finesse selections? Again, I hope it's the former, but I'm not betting on it.

 

[pallidrone]

1 hour ago, PoconoDon said:

In general I suppose.

The tl;dr explanation is below:

  Reveal hidden contents

Nothing is 100% but I've come to think that the PAC-12 doesn't produce enough top prospects to warrant picking from there unless you are 100% convinced you're looking at a future HOF player. I know there have been/are a few big time prospects to come out of the conference but they are few and far between. The NFL knows this too as the SEC once again has set a draft record with 65 players being picked in April. People like to counter with anecdotal players who are great from the PAC-12 like Chad Johnson, Steve Smith, Aaron Rodgers, and Gronk. I say fine, but Gronk is the most recent and he was 2010. That's a12 year drought from the PAC-12. I can't name any more since 2000.

In that span the Eagles have drafted around 21 PAC-12 players with little success finding a year in, year out difference maker beyond Ertz. Foles is an anomaly who only plays well in Philly,  and Agholor had 1 good year (thankfully it was 2017.) I try to figure out why there is such a difference between conferences and i look at crossover games where they meet for answers. To my eye, right or wrong, the PAC-12 seems to play a finesse style of football that falls to the more physical brand from other conferences. It seems consistent so, they must be recruiting a different type of player. That suggests they have different criteria for recruiting and are apparently prioritizing different skills and abilities than other conferences. They prioritize finesse, recruit finesse, and produce finesse. Physical dominance within the sport is apparently not on their punch list. Sidney jones is the poster child for my bias. To think he actually refused to lift weights as directed by the strength and conditioning coaches. He said no, he was going to work on his quickness and agility (finesse skills) instead IIRC.

there are fertile fields from which to harvest, yet Howie, for some unknown reason, wanders the desert in search of a cactus bloom out of season. It's been maddening to watch. Now, this past draft he didn't go on that fruitless journey like he usually does until the 6th round. Maybe that's a sign of his growth, or maybe he'll be right back at it in April of 2022. I hope it's the former but I'm not holding my breath.

The upcoming draft will have a slew of extra prospects due to COVID related delays in declaring. It should be one of the most abundant classes in a long time from all conferences. Will Howie and co. enjoy that by staying in the dominant conferences longer to get more top shelf prospects...or...will he use it as an excuse to go PAC-12 crazy with finesse selections? Again, I hope it's the former, but I'm not betting on it.

 

Fair enough and very well explained. TY.