Here We Go!!

This post is dedicated to actual confirmed Miami draft targets. Some of them you know, some of them you don't, but all of them maybe getting a lot of attention in the next several weeks.

First up, Connor Barwin. This guy has the motor of Matt Roth but sleeker, faster, taller, leaner and with the ability to break the heart of your average USF fan by not only sacking your QB but then scoring an offensive touchdown as well. He was the star of the NFL Combine a couple of weeks ago, and Miami, along with pretty much every other team, is interested.

Oh, man, you guys are going to hate me for this one but I have to do this: WILLIAM FREAKIN' MOORE, BIATCHES!!

That's right. It's been confirmed that Mr. Moore himself is a Dolphins prospect. You know what this guy did yesterday in front of a certain Miami coach? He ran a 4.39, had a 37 inch vertical, did the 3 cone drill in 6.92 seconds, and had an amazing 10'6" broad jump. If these numbers stand up, He would have to be at least a high 2nd round grade. According to several sources, "one player who performed really well was Safety William Moore. He looked really good in his positional drills and was impressive overall."

I hate to say I told you so, but I will as soon as he is being a stand-out player in the NFL. ;)

p.s. this is an actual photo of Moore running super fast ON GRASS today. That's right, he put up those times on grass, people.

Jason Williams is a name most people associate with basketball (I remember being confused because there were two of them at one point, both basketball players, both in the league at the same time). But there's another Jason Williams, and he plays football. Where you ask? Western Illinois University. Say what?

You ever notice during opening drives of NFL games they'll have the players introduce themselves by saying their names and colleges, and half the time you think to yourself, "I've never even heard of that school!"

Well that's because it's a myth that only the big schools are pro factories. While it's true that schools like Miami and FSU and USC have had their runs, most NFL players come from all over the place. I don't know what town Western Illinois is in, but I do know that it is cold there during football season and that during their Senior game, there were about 40 die-hard fans in attendance. I know this because I was actually able to find recorded games! Here's what I can tell you about Jason Williams. He's a linebacker, listed as WLB, but he was used in a very special way. Instead of lining up on the outside when rushing the QB, he would line up on the inside and rush the Guard. In fact, he would line up inside on most plays, in a standing position on the line of scrimmage (think middle blitzer minus the DT in front of him, they play a 3-4). It was very unusual, but it allowed him to use his speed to get by the Guard and to the QB. It also allowed him to drop back in coverage from an underneath position. His numbers, 6'1", 241lbs, and he forced 14 fumbles. Very good in coverage, very good on the line. He will undoubtedly be an ILB in a 3-4. And the Dolphins are watching him.

On a side note, Western illinois had the top rusher in the country last year, Herb Donaldson. They needed him - their QB was awful in the game I watched.

Another linebacker on Miami's radar is Daniel Holtzclaw. I'm still trying to find tape on this kid but here's what I do know about him: He played for Eastern Michigan (they actually have one of the top Guards in the draft in TJ Lang), was a four year starter, 6'1", 246lbs, finished with 437 career tackles, 8 INTs, 4 FF, and had 12 games with at least 12 tackles.

In the photo to the right, Chad Henne winds up for a pass whilst #44, Holtzclaw reads him every step of the way.

Sherrod Martin is a Troy cornerback, 6'1", 198lbs, and he ran a respectable 4.48 at the Combine and despite converting from Safety to CB, he is praised for his low backpedal and movement.

So what do you guys think? The starting up of the pro days are bittersweet because on the one hand they are not televised or even covered in detail by the press, but the one good thing that we can take from it is we find out who attended (example: if a position coach is there, they're very interested in that player) and sometimes info slips out about private workouts or dinners. So these guys are being followed by the Dolphins. Most of them are likely to be 5th to 7th round, with the exception of Moore and Barwin.