Fullback? You heard correctly - he said Alfred Morris would need to make the conversion from running back to fullback to be a successful pro. Looking back on this video, we say, "This guy's insane, Alfred Morris had a great year at running back!" But this is the beauty of the draft! Talent can slip through the cracks simply because of bad forty times or low bench press reps at a combine. While combine testing is an effective way of measuring athletic ability, it does not tell you whether a prospect is a good football player or not. That is why the number 1 most effective tool in evaluating talent is game tape. Take a look at some of Alfred Morris's college film:
Clearly the analyst in the first video allowed combine numbers to cloud his judgement of how Alfred's game would translate at the next level. What do you see? I see the same Alfred Morris that myself and all the other Redskins fans saw all year! He's a powerful runner who explodes through contact and keeps his feet moving while maintaining great balance. It was clear in this second video that Morris has great running vision, as he was quickly able to locate running lanes and cutback lanes. If there was nothing there, he followed the BYOB principle (Be Your Own Blocker). So the tape tells us that Alfred Morris is a strong runner with good vision and balance who does not get tackled by only 1 defender - which ultimately translated to the NFL to look like this:
The tape tells the tale! It is obvious that the same elements we saw from Alfred's college tape showed up on the big stage. In the end, the Redskins used a 6th round draft pick to select the running back who was 2nd in the NFL in rushing (1613 yards) behind only Adrian Peterson. He became the single season rushing yards record record holder for the Redskins... as a rookie. So while you're sitting there looking over the combine numbers, gawking at the 4.3 forties (which I will admit I do as well), remember that the NFL Draft is about finding FOOTBALL PLAYERS. The performance that truly counts is their performance on the football field.
As most Redskins fans know, we do not have a first round pick in the 2013 NFL Draft because we traded it for RG3 - who was well worth the cost because he helped reshape the mindset of the team into that of a champion. It is not a big deal, the Redskins still have 7 selections in the draft and have proven that talent can be found outside of the first round. Thankfully, the Redskins have the benefit of deep safety and corner classes - which are major areas of concern on the roster at the moment. Don't be suprised if the 'Skins end up with 2 starters or more next year from this draft class. The scouts will need to evaluate talent like they did with Alfred Morris, but I remain optimistic the draft will prove to be a successful one for the Redskins.
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