Brandon Graham predicts he will run a 4.5 second 40-yard dash

[Tribal Warfare]

A quickie chat with Brandon Graham

Maybe the Dolphins draft Rolando McClain because everyone loves the guy and everyone says he's going to be a star. Maybe they take Eric Berry (if he's there) because they need a playmaking free safety. Maybe they reach for a nose tackle or a wide receiver.

I still love Michigan's Brandon Graham.

Have I made that point to you guys enough this week? Even as the adoption papers are being drawn up, I wanted to share with you yet more reasons I think this star DE-OLB from Michigan is the real deal and should be considered at No. 12 overall -- contrary opinions from Mel Kiper and Todd McShay and all the other draft pundits notwithstanding.

I direct you to this interview Graham did with Scout.com during Senior Bowl week -- before he went off and won the game MVP award with five tackles and two sacks.

In the interview Graham says a couple of things that caught my attention:

He expects to run in the 4.5s at the Indianapolis Combine next week. And he loves the idea of playing 3-4 outside linebacker.

"Oh yeah, I feel real good," Graham says about dropping in coverage. "I've been working on my hips, working on my drops every day in practice for Michigan ... With a little coaching from the NFL guys, I believe I can get it done."

Graham has no shortage of confidence. And he couples that with something of a chip that dares naysayers to disbelieve he can do whatever he sets out to do. That's why he says he wants to run in the 4.5s at the Combine.

"I'm excited because I like it when people doubt me," he says. "That's just a challenge and I like challenges and I'm going to try to fulfill it. And if I don't, then I gave it my all and that's all I can say."

One thing Graham has shown in all his games and all the practices at the Senior Bowl was a seemingly infinite desire. He wants to be good. He wants to improve. He wants to get to the quarterback. He wants to be an NFL star.

"[I'm] just trying to show that my motor's always going," he says, "I love football and I want to make plays and sack the quarterback."

You combine want-to and talent and you know what you have?

A very good NFL player.

[milkman]

Here, a couple of posts from last year.

Originally Posted by milkman

Anyone at camp seen Colin Brown working?

Has he been moved inside to guard yet?

Originally Posted by milkman

And there he is, at guard, just as I expected.

I fully expected him to be moved to guard, and actually was neg repped by someone because of that belief.

[RustShack]

Originally Posted by milkman

Here, a couple of posts from last year.





I fully expected him to be moved to guard, and actually was neg repped by someone because of that belief.

Well then.. I must have you confused with a mizzou homer. But there were very very very few of us who thought he would be a guard.

[milkman]

Originally Posted by RustShack

Well then.. I must have you confused with a mizzou homer. But there were very very very few of us who thought he would be a guard.

Here's another one for you.

Originally Posted by milkman

There are a couple of things to consider when talking about the best player available, including need.

If you think that a guy can be a starter at his position for the next 10 years, while another player may never be anymore than a second teamer at his position, then the best player available at that pick is the guy that can start for the nest 10 years.

In the fourth round, Donald Washington is a player selected that may never crack the startig lineup, while Johnathan Luigs would be the starter on opening day, and could very well be a guy that mans that position for a decade.

In the fifth round, Jamon Meredith was a better player than Colin Brown at RT.
It wasn't even close.

The Washington pick is debatable, cause Washington has the athletic ability to possibly be a stud at corner.

The Brown pick isn't.
That guy is never going to take a snap at RT.
He looks like he might eventually be a pretty damn solid guard, but that wasn't the position they were addressing with that pick.

Best player available is the one that has the potential to help your team both now, and over the course of his career.

[B_Ambuehl]

The whole parcells/belichik/peeholi school of scouting favors longer armed taller defenders at DE and OLB. One thing you won't here from any Parcells prospect is, "He might be undersized". Not that Graham is small weightwise, but at 6'1 he does have a fairly squatty build and short arms. I personally think he'd be great but would be surprised to see Parcells draft him. Hell, he didn't even want to draft Demarcus Ware.

[CoMoChief]

Why not OLB Norwood with the 2b pick?

[Tylerthigpen!1!]

Originally Posted by milkman

I think, in watching him play last preseason, they hit on a keeper just by random chance in Colin Brown.

They screwed up by drafting him, thinking he was a RT prospect, but he appears to be a solid guard prospect.

Of course, they had to wait till TC to figure out he didn't have the tools to play RT before moving him.

I dont think you are giving Pioli and Co enough credit. EVERYONE was dogging on that pick at the time. We don't know what they drafted him for.

[Mr. Laz]

Originally Posted by CoMoChief

Why not OLB Norwood with the 2b pick?

i don't like Norwood nearly as much as Graham and Hughes but we may end up going that direction.




i just cross my fingers and hope that one of them slips into the 2nd

[philfree]

If we draft Berry that's great but I'd kinda like to see Pioli do what he did last year and reach with the pick and pick Graham. If Graham aces the combine there's a good chance he'll go 10 or better anyway so why the hell not?

PhilFree

[milkman]

Originally Posted by Tylerthigpen!1!

I dont think you are giving Pioli and Co enough credit. EVERYONE was dogging on that pick at the time. We don't know what they drafted him for.

We do know that Brown worked exclusively at RT through OTAs, mini camps, and for the first couple of weeks of TC, so if they were planning to move him to guard all along, that was a pretty stupid way to go about doing it.

No, the fact that he did all that work at RT serves as strong evidence they had every intention of playing him at RT, but the work through camp showed them they made a draft error.

[Sfeihc]

Brown, Morgan and Cottam have got to show me something this year. Just some sign that management knew WTF they were doing when they took them.

[philfree]

Originally Posted by milkman

We do know that Brown worked exclusively at RT through OTAs, mini camps, and for the first couple of weeks of TC, so if they were planning to move him to guard all along, that was a pretty stupid way to go about doing it.

No, the fact that he did all that work at RT serves as strong evidence they had every intention of playing him at RT, but the work through camp showed them they made a draft error.

I'm not 100% sure about you thoughts on Brown. Why couldn't they have had the thought process that this guy probably transpires to G in the NFL but let's work him at RT first to see if there's a chance he can play there. If he can't we'll move him to guard? It's not like it was a high draft pick. Why couldn't they have drafted a guy to play o line instead of RT or G specificly?

PhilFree

[milkman]

Originally Posted by philfree

I'm not 100% sure about you thoughts on Brown. Why couldn't they have had the thought process that this guy probably transpires to G in the NFL but let's work him at RT first to see if there's a chance he can play there. If he can't we'll move him to guard? It's not like it was a high draft pick. Why couldn't they have drafted a guy to play o line instead of RT or G specificly?

PhilFree

[BossChief]

phil, the way you worded that killed the premise.

I agree that we value versatility very highly and that the Colin Brown pick was made with that in mind.

[philfree]

Originally Posted by milkman

Oh c'mon man you've got a better response then that. You're the one who is making assumptions about the thought process involved in Browns drafting. Was he a 5th round pick I don't remember exactly. IMO to think they drafted a guy in the 5th round as specificly a RT is nothing more then an assumption. Now if you have some real infor of Haley or Pioli stating that Brown was drafted as a RT only prospect then I'll respect that. Alot of RTs in college end up guards in the NFL don't they? That being the case I would think that the thought process was two fold in regards to Brown. I don't know that 100% though. Stands to reason in my mind none the less.


PhilFree

[philfree]

Originally Posted by BossChief

phil, the way you worded that killed the premise.

I agree that we value versatility very highly and that the Colin Brown pick was made with that in mind.

I'm not sure I know what premise you mean? Elaborate please.

PhilFree