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Who to Watch on Saturday -- Wes Bunting Highlights Some Possible Cowboys Prospects
Posted by Rafael at Friday, September 16, 2011
Alfonzo Dennard
The National Football Post's draft expert Wes Bunting presents a short list of Cowboys players of interest in tomorrow's games.
Cowboys Nation: Can you give us some names to watch in tomorrow's TV games who play at positions of need for the Cowboys, at cornerback, defensive end, safety, receiver and fullback?
Wes Bunting: There's a nice match-up at 3:30 Eastern time. Washington is playing Nebraska. There's this misconception the last couple of years that Washington has no talent anywhere, except for Jake Locker. That's bogus. Jermaine Kearse is a really talented receiver. He's 6'2'', he's 210 lbs. He can play in the slot. He's got enough talent to play on the outside in the NFL. I don't know if he's put it all together yet. He seems to lose interest at times, and that will cause him to fall in the draft, but he can play.
He's facing Alfonzo Dennard, who's been nursing a leg injury. If he plays this weekend, which is a bit up in the air, that's a great matchup, because Dennard is as physical a corner as you'll find. I think he would be a good target for the Cowboys. Kearse really doesn't like physicality, so that would be an intriguing matchup to watch, to see if Kearse can step up and handle physical cornerbacks. That's a matchup I would watch if I were a Cowboys fan,.
CN: Are any other corners jumping out at you these first few weeks of the college season?
WB: I really like Arizona's corner/safety Robert Golden, who we've talked about. They play at Stanford at 10 pm ET, so he's gonna face Andrew Luck and the most precise passing attack in the nation. I think they're using him more as safety, but Arizona will drop him down and put him over the slot receiver, so he's got some corner skills. This is a great game for evaluating this defensive back. Does he have some coverage skills in certain situations? Can he tackle, going against one of the best offenses in the college game? That's definitely a game I would watch if I were a Cowboys fan. [Note: Golden has been banged up in Arizona's first two games. Check this game early, or you might miss him this week.]
CN: Is Luck playing as well as expected thus far?
WB: Yeah. He had four touchdown passes last week and you almost don't get excited about it anymore. He completes 82% of his passes and gets four touchdowns and you say, "okay.'' He's already the number one pick in the draft. There's not much more he can do that affects that.
CN; You mentioned a lot of west coast defensive linemen in our last chat. Has anyone out there or anywhere else stood out in the early games, who can play a 5-technique. Who's this year's Cam Jordan or J.J. Watt?
WB: Penn State plays Temple this week, and Temple is really good, for Temple. They have a good offensive line. I've watched Devin Still. He's a 6'5'', 310 lb. defensive lineman and he plays a bit upright inside. That will probably keep him from being a dominant NFL defensive lineman, but if you play him on the outside, where he can play a bit more upright and use his athleticism, and his powerful hands I think he would be much more effective.
He's one potential 5-technique. He's a bit of a boom-or-bust guy, but I like him. He's going against a good o-line, and that would be a good matchup to watch.
CN: The big game most folks will watch tomorrow is Oklahoma against Florida State. Any players of interest for Cowboys fans in that one?
WB: If you're still looking for offensive line, both of the offensive tackles at Florida State, Andrew Zatko and Zebrie Sanders are both very good players. Sanders is about 6'4'', 305. In body type he reminds me a little of Tyron Smith, a player you can kick inside. He plays the right tackle for them and he's a borderline left tackle prospect but I really like him.
Datko reminds me a lot of Anthony Castonzo off the edge. He's gonna struggle with base strength players but he's a great athlete. He can bend. He really moves well laterally. He's good on the run, so if you're looking for another athletic offensive lineman, Zatko and Sanders are two guys I can't wait to watch.
CN: You did say Oklahoma had an intriguing defensive back prospect...
WB: Jamell Fleming
CN: What has he shown thus far?
WB: I think the light is starting to go on, and he's realizing he needs to grow up. He got himself in some trouble and was kicked off the team. He came back in the summer and when he's on the field, he's got great ball skills. He locates passes quickly. He's really fluid when he has to turn and run. He's another guy I'm looking forward to seeing, against a Florida State offense which has some talented wide receivers.
I think he'll outclass them from a technical standpoint, but you want to see him match up against some gifted athletes one-on-one.
Posted by Rafael at Friday, September 16, 2011
Alfonzo Dennard
The National Football Post's draft expert Wes Bunting presents a short list of Cowboys players of interest in tomorrow's games.
Cowboys Nation: Can you give us some names to watch in tomorrow's TV games who play at positions of need for the Cowboys, at cornerback, defensive end, safety, receiver and fullback?
Wes Bunting: There's a nice match-up at 3:30 Eastern time. Washington is playing Nebraska. There's this misconception the last couple of years that Washington has no talent anywhere, except for Jake Locker. That's bogus. Jermaine Kearse is a really talented receiver. He's 6'2'', he's 210 lbs. He can play in the slot. He's got enough talent to play on the outside in the NFL. I don't know if he's put it all together yet. He seems to lose interest at times, and that will cause him to fall in the draft, but he can play.
He's facing Alfonzo Dennard, who's been nursing a leg injury. If he plays this weekend, which is a bit up in the air, that's a great matchup, because Dennard is as physical a corner as you'll find. I think he would be a good target for the Cowboys. Kearse really doesn't like physicality, so that would be an intriguing matchup to watch, to see if Kearse can step up and handle physical cornerbacks. That's a matchup I would watch if I were a Cowboys fan,.
CN: Are any other corners jumping out at you these first few weeks of the college season?
WB: I really like Arizona's corner/safety Robert Golden, who we've talked about. They play at Stanford at 10 pm ET, so he's gonna face Andrew Luck and the most precise passing attack in the nation. I think they're using him more as safety, but Arizona will drop him down and put him over the slot receiver, so he's got some corner skills. This is a great game for evaluating this defensive back. Does he have some coverage skills in certain situations? Can he tackle, going against one of the best offenses in the college game? That's definitely a game I would watch if I were a Cowboys fan. [Note: Golden has been banged up in Arizona's first two games. Check this game early, or you might miss him this week.]
CN: Is Luck playing as well as expected thus far?
WB: Yeah. He had four touchdown passes last week and you almost don't get excited about it anymore. He completes 82% of his passes and gets four touchdowns and you say, "okay.'' He's already the number one pick in the draft. There's not much more he can do that affects that.
CN; You mentioned a lot of west coast defensive linemen in our last chat. Has anyone out there or anywhere else stood out in the early games, who can play a 5-technique. Who's this year's Cam Jordan or J.J. Watt?
WB: Penn State plays Temple this week, and Temple is really good, for Temple. They have a good offensive line. I've watched Devin Still. He's a 6'5'', 310 lb. defensive lineman and he plays a bit upright inside. That will probably keep him from being a dominant NFL defensive lineman, but if you play him on the outside, where he can play a bit more upright and use his athleticism, and his powerful hands I think he would be much more effective.
He's one potential 5-technique. He's a bit of a boom-or-bust guy, but I like him. He's going against a good o-line, and that would be a good matchup to watch.
CN: The big game most folks will watch tomorrow is Oklahoma against Florida State. Any players of interest for Cowboys fans in that one?
WB: If you're still looking for offensive line, both of the offensive tackles at Florida State, Andrew Zatko and Zebrie Sanders are both very good players. Sanders is about 6'4'', 305. In body type he reminds me a little of Tyron Smith, a player you can kick inside. He plays the right tackle for them and he's a borderline left tackle prospect but I really like him.
Datko reminds me a lot of Anthony Castonzo off the edge. He's gonna struggle with base strength players but he's a great athlete. He can bend. He really moves well laterally. He's good on the run, so if you're looking for another athletic offensive lineman, Zatko and Sanders are two guys I can't wait to watch.
CN: You did say Oklahoma had an intriguing defensive back prospect...
WB: Jamell Fleming
CN: What has he shown thus far?
WB: I think the light is starting to go on, and he's realizing he needs to grow up. He got himself in some trouble and was kicked off the team. He came back in the summer and when he's on the field, he's got great ball skills. He locates passes quickly. He's really fluid when he has to turn and run. He's another guy I'm looking forward to seeing, against a Florida State offense which has some talented wide receivers.
I think he'll outclass them from a technical standpoint, but you want to see him match up against some gifted athletes one-on-one.