Utah's pro-day was attended by Dolphins' Assistant Head Coach, Todd Bowles. He was there to check out heralded cornerback, Sean Smith, who measured in at 6'4", 209 lbs. He was timed at 4.43 in the 40. His Utah teammate, Brice McCain (who?) ran a 4.33 40, and was 1/100th of a second faster (1.47) than Missouri's William Moore in the 10 (1.48).
Speaking of Moore, he is getting major interest from the Eagles, as they look to replace Brian Dawkins.
So far it looks like the Dolphins have short-listed Sean Smith and Troy CB, Sherrod Martin. They're definitely going for a big CB. While David Carrao attended Troy's pro day, and he's no chopped liver, the fact that Bowles went personally to Utah speaks volumes. Both of these guys actually work on the field during practices and thus probably went for some one-on-one drills with the aformentioned corners.
Dolphins scout, Dwayne Joseph, was at the Georgia Tech pro-day on Monday along with 29 other scouts/coaches. Not all were from the NFL, however, as the CFL and now the UFL (I still don't know what that is) will be picking up the table scraps.
Video Courtesy of KSL.com
Speaking of Moore, he is getting major interest from the Eagles, as they look to replace Brian Dawkins.
So far it looks like the Dolphins have short-listed Sean Smith and Troy CB, Sherrod Martin. They're definitely going for a big CB. While David Carrao attended Troy's pro day, and he's no chopped liver, the fact that Bowles went personally to Utah speaks volumes. Both of these guys actually work on the field during practices and thus probably went for some one-on-one drills with the aformentioned corners.
Dolphins scout, Dwayne Joseph, was at the Georgia Tech pro-day on Monday along with 29 other scouts/coaches. Not all were from the NFL, however, as the CFL and now the UFL (I still don't know what that is) will be picking up the table scraps.
While Joseph was seen at the indoor activities (weighing in and lifting), it cannot be confirmed at this time that he watched the outdoor drills. Obviously the main attraction in Atlanta was Michael Johnson, the DE-cum-OLB.
And Miami is at the forefront. Dolphins defensive line coach, Kacy Rodgers, had dinner with Johnson on Sunday. The Jets coaches were on him like flies on Monday. Could this be an AFC East battle-a-brewing?
Johnson ran a 4.59, and was timed as fast as 4.49. He even went out as a receiver during the QB drills.
Here's my take on Johnson, he is VERY similar to Jason Taylor. Slightly bigger but very similar playing styles.
UPDATE: I have photographic evidence that Kacy Rodgers worked out one-on-one with Michael Johnson. This is potentially HUGE because Johnson has been rated as high to mid first round for about 7 months now, and the more attention that a coach (and a confirmed scout) pay to him could mean something.
Wow, Sean Smith is 6-4?
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Michael Johnson is an impressive specimen at 6-6 260 with that speed. His biggest knock is that he has not produced at the level expected of him and his motor has been questioned. Then again he's a young college guy and I've read that about many prospects over the years that ended up being very productive in the NFL.
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Why would the Jets be high on Johnson after drafting Gholston last year and signing Pace? Are they already giving up on Gholston? You could make the argument that Johnson is another Gholston, great physical attributes but not the most instinctive football player who needs time to develop, especially at OLB after playing 4-3 DE in college.
Smith is actually 6036 which equates to somewhere between 6'4" and 6'7" on 'team documents'.s But yeah, he is tall.
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I would expect with Rex Ryan in town, that he will bring in his own guys (he's already doing that through free agency) so no one ffrom 2008 is safe.s Even though they were one game away from the playoffs, it's essentially a re-building year for the Jets now.s They gambled it all to make the push last year and failed, and now they are screwed, or at least they were until Ryan came in.s They have been very active since then.s Sounds like they are forming a new young defense.s Gholston couldn't get in the field last year and they have two very good OLB starters but no depth.
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Whatever their reason, they reportedly spent alot of time with Johnson, and not just one coach/rep, but several.s Could be a smokescreen and they might've been there to see the GT cornerback as they are pretty thin at that position.
That's very interesting.s Johnson was on track to be a very high pick before his senior season.s If the men in charge know something about why this kid'ssconsistency fell off last year that no one else knows he could be a HUGE steal.
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BTW--Great job with your site.s It's very well done.s Screw what "the fan" has to say.
WHP, thanks for the support.s
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You're right about MJ.s The very first ESPN mock draft for 2009 (released in October 2008) had Johnson being a top 5 pick.s But it's all about production - think if George Selvie, a similar player, had been able to come out after the 2007 season, he might've been the top pick or at least top 3.s Then he had a down year in 2008 and the NFL graded him as a 3rd rounder.s It's all what have you done for me lately.s That's why I worry about some of the players who ONLY produced in 2008.s [cough hakeem nicks cough]
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I prefer to draft players that have been productive on a consistent basis over 3 or 4 years.
Great stuff Tin, I credit you for the effort it takes to uncover this stuff....regarding the height, he's 6'3 and 3/4":
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""All heights are expressed in the format used at the combine. The first digit in the number represents the number of feet; the next two digits represent the inches; and the fourth digit represents the number of eighth-inches. So in the height 6047, the player is 6 feet, 4 and 7/8ths inches tall.""
Cool, I always thought it was inches, but it makes sense now...duh!
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