Big Blue Huddle

If Brock Bowers is the pick at 6, how would you feel? Especially if Nabers or Odunze were still on the draft board. Daniel Jeremiah has Bowers as the 7th best player in the draft, even PFF has Bowers as the 7th best player in the draft, but I would be very against the pick. Daniel says Bowers will have a George Kittle type career, but at 6 for me, feels like the Barkley pick all over again? Am I wrong?


A George Kittle type player would be a great type of player to have, but Kittle was drafted in round 5 with the 146th pick. And what ever happened to Kyle Pitts? 4th overall pick?


If I had to choose between Bowers or Terrion Arnold with the 6th overall pick, I rather have Arnold. Draft an early TE is probably almost dead last for the team need right now IMO.




According to Daniel Jeremiah:


Bowers is an undersized tight end with elite speed, strength and playmaking ability. He lined up all over the field at Georgia -- in-line, on the wing, split out and even at running back. He is very sudden in his release, and he uses his upper-body strength to chuck defenders when pressed at the line of scrimmage. He catches a lot of quick-hitters in the flat and he's a maniac on screens. He attacks the ball in the air and is quick to transition up the field. He has the speed to pull away, but his greatest asset is his tackle-breaking power. He runs through contact without gearing down. He is an effective run blocker when he can get his hands on opponents, but he will get pressed out by longer-armed edge rushers. Overall, Bowers reminds me a lot of George Kittle, and I see him having a similar impact in the NFL.



https://www.nfl.com/news/daniel-jeremiah-s-top-50-2024-nfl-draft-prospect-rankings-3-0


and PFF



https://www.pff.com/news/draft-2024-nfl-draft-profiles-top-200-draft-prospects

He's not really a TE...more like a ruggedly built WR. He's a ball magnet and can get to any part of the field and muscles every ball away in tight situations, and has really soft hands that doesn't drop balls thrown at him or even in his general direction as he tracks a ball as good as any receiver in the NFL. He has 4.4 speed (almost identical to Nabors) to take it to the house whenever he touches the ball and is a son of a bitch to tackle. Even used as a decoy, he can wreak havoc on the defense, because he draws double coverage. Regardless, it's a mistake to think of him as a TE. He's a muscular receiver and an offensive juggernaut that doesn't really fit neatly into any traditional position. Doesn't have a lanky build like a traditional WR, and too small to fit into the mold of a traditional TE. He can line up anywhere, play fullback, take short passes, mid-field passes, and can even play the X receiver...not a one-trick pony. Call him whatever you want, he's a receiver with a winner's mindset, who runs great routes and catches the ball in or out of traffic

Personally, I'd take Harrison first and foremost, then Odunze, then flip a coin between Nabors and Bowers, with a slight nod to Nabors. I suspect the coaches and scouts are much more informed as to what he can do compared to the other receivers on the board and how he'd fit into the overall scheme for which the team is building. I won't be disappointed if the Giants draft him and will be curious what their plans are for him. Some team will take him and I hope it's not in our division

If we don't go QB, and Nabers/Harrison Jr/Odunze is on the board, we take one of them.  Anything else is a head scratcher.  I'd want Nabers but Odunze is far from being a consolation prize; I see him like a Mike Evans type.

I'd take Bowers over Nabers but no Odunze.

Nauseous, answering the question succinctly.

If you want detail, well it will mean we do not understand the history of supposed unicorn TEs taken high R1, positional value/resource allocation or roster construction.

Quote from: Jclayton92 on April 06, 2024, 06:06:59 PMI'd take Bowers over Nabers but no Odunze.

Jclay am I understanding correctly you would take

Odunze first

Bowers 2nd

Nabers 3rd

I would not take Bowers over any one of the top-3 WRs each of whom provides better value in meeting a major need.

Cheers!

Terrible.  Awful.  With the talent that is available at 6, guaranteed- that matches up with critical team needs - picking a TE would be ridiculous.   

What does our existing pass attack need?  A huge threat down the middle or at outside the hashmarks?  Which will help Hyatt and Robinson the most?  That's the Bowers versus X debate to me.

I'd break my TV.

Bad.  The draft is about more than just picking players.  If you take, eg, Odunze you get a bargain receiver for up to 5 years.  If you take Bowers you get a mid to high priced TE for up to 5 years.  One of the ways smart teams manage their CAP is not taking low value positions with high draft picks.  Which is why no matter how excellent Barkley was (and he was nowhere near as excellent as we hoped he'd be, but that's hindsight and not relevant to my point) it was colossally stupid to use a #2 pick on him.  I've said before, I wouldn't take Jim Brown with the #2 pick under the current rookie scale rules.  Precisely because the rookie scale doesn't take into account positional value, and positional value is real.

This teams need top shelf talent producing at a high level.  Our shelves are empty.

If Bowers gets us 100 receptions for 1,000 yards and 7 TDs, he was worth it at 6.

I am not saying draft him but this pick has to be highly productive.  I'm f yea, I won't care who it is.

Quote from: AZGiantFan on April 07, 2024, 03:31:50 AMBad.  The draft is about more than just picking players.  If you take, eg, Odunze you get a bargain receiver for up to 5 years.  If you take Bowers you get a mid to high priced TE for up to 5 years.  One of the ways smart teams manage their CAP is not taking low value positions with high draft picks.  Which is why no matter how excellent Barkley was (and he was nowhere near as excellent as we hoped he'd be, but that's hindsight and not relevant to my point) it was colossally stupid to use a #2 pick on him.  I've said before, I wouldn't take Jim Brown with the #2 pick under the current rookie scale rules.  Precisely because the rookie scale doesn't take into account positional value, and positional value is real.

My main question here is how good you view Bowers to be. If he's just a really, really good tight end then he's probably not worth such a high pick. But if you view him as somebody who can give you even Travis Kelce level production then the WR vs. TE concept just becomes a label. At the end of the day, the only relevant question is who will provide you the most production between the players available to you.

Basically, the TE vs. WR distinction matters for things like fantasy football, franchise tags and pro bowl voting and the franchise tag part probably provides financial benefit to the team. On the field, whether you're a tight end or wide receiver is largely irrelevant.

Quote from: jgrangers2 on April 07, 2024, 11:02:27 AMMy main question here is how good you view Bowers to be. If he's just a really, really good tight end then he's probably not worth such a high pick. But if you view him as somebody who can give you even Travis Kelce level production then the WR vs. TE concept just becomes a label. At the end of the day, the only relevant question is who will provide you the most production between the players available to you.

I agree. You take the best player (with some mindfulness to positional value). If your assessment of this guy is that he can be the next Gronk/Kelce, then it may not be an unreasonable pick depending on your precise assessment of the alternatives. If it's very close, then I would lean on positional value and need, and that points to receiver. But I agree that it should not be automatic.

Hard to know what is going through the minds of Schoen and his insiders, but I suspect they are deep diving into character traits on all of them. They might pass on one of the top guys because they know he smokes weed and tends to party too much...or simply doesn't have the right type of personality that fits neatly with the team they are trying to build. They've all got tremendous athletic skills, but what kind of person are they going to be once they're millionaires and having cameras and mikes shoved in their face wherever they go? Are they "football first and foremost", or will they be "soaking up the glamour and non-football activities that have become available"?

Interestingly, the Giants have shown zero interest in Bowers...according to media reports and player visits. That could be telling in itself as the clandestine nature of Schoen is highly secretive, and he doesn't give away any clues as to what he's thinking