- Joined:
- Sep 28, 2014
- Posts:
- 8,618
- Liked Posts:
- 10,236
- Location:
- Chicago, IL
So this assessment is going to be a little bit different. And that is because I was very skeptical of this pick when it was made. I will go over the reasons why and what changed my mind.
I wrote this awhile ago:
I don't know if you guys are familiar with SPARQ and SLAYTICS. They are very accurate formulas that can predict whether a player can thrive in the NFL or if they are just not cut out for the NFL based on several physical and athletic factors. It is very accurate.
Basically, if the player falls into the blue group, they will most likely thrive in the NFL based off of the formula. If you fall into the green group threshold, you at least have the physical and athletic features to make it in the NFL. And then you have the players in the red group, who may have been great in college, but are not cut out to play in the NFL. Our new TE fell into the red group.
A TE in the blue threshold has a 78% success rate based on MAVPY. A TE in the red group has a 7% success rate based on MAVPY. The MAVPY is a tool that measures a players productivity in the NFL. A score of 4+ is starter level and a score of 8+ is all pro level. Odds are against Shaheen to make it in the NFL.
https://d3d2maoophos6y.cloudfront.net/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/22230743/Slaytics-2017-Final1.pdf
Now, I concede to the fact that Adam Shaheen's unusual size at the position has really clouded his data as far as this statistic. The fact is that there really have not been many successful TE's of his size to reference. But from what I have seen, Shaheen definitely looks like an NFL level player. Not only is he athletic as a TE, he's athletic in general.
***In the gif above, Shaheen is lined up wide opposite a cornerback. Ashland lined him up all over the field, which is extraordinary for such a big man.
***The play above is incredibly impressive. Shaheen uses his quick feet to turn the defensive back three times. A 280 lb TE just clowned a DB with his quickness.
Ok, so another concern I had about Shaheen was that for being drafted in the 2nd round out of a division II school, I expect you to absolutely dominate man vs child style. Especially since Shaheen was bigger and stronger than pretty much anyone on the field. The one thing that I didn't take into account was that Shaheen also had a division II QB throwing him the football.
***In the above gif, Shaheen gets behind the defense in the end zone, yet the QB egregiously overthrows the pass.
***In the play above, Shaheen navigates through the traffic wonderfully and finds himself wide open down the middle of the field, but the QB decides to chuck it to the cheerleaders down the sideline.
***This play really showcases Shaheen's athleticism. Notice his remarkable explosiveness coming off the line of scrimmage. Shaheen actually blows by the entire defense here. Unfortunately, the QB throws an abysmal pass that Shaheen has to try to go back for.
During the draft process, I've written a lot about my love for David Njoku. In fact, I thought he could be a top 10 pick. When comparing Shaheen to Njoku, I was very surprised to learn that Shaheen appears to be the better route runner at this stage in time. This really threw me off, as I've read a lot about how it will take him a while to adjust to the NFL. I see a guy that looks like he can step in and play rather quickly.
***In the play above, Shaheen disappears off the screen right before he makes a quick and precise cut up the field. Notice how much separation he gets off of the safety, it's quite remarkable.
***Shaheen is great at finding space. Here, Shaheen runs across the field and finds the pocket between two defenders.
Now, all of this size and athleticism doesn't really mean much if the guy can't catch. Well, don't worry, Shaheen can catch.
***Shaheen uses his size and hands well. He shows great hand eye coordination and body position against defenders.
***Here is an extremely poorly thrown pass that turns Shaheen around, yet he adjusts and recovers.
As far as blocking is concerned, Shaheen looks to be solid. Obviously, NFL defenders will be stronger and faster, but Shaheen has held his own from what I've seen. The one thing I did notice was that even with his size and strength, Shaheen looks kinda weak out there at times. This is evident when he is run blocking, as he cannot get much push on defenders.
***Here, Shaheen blocks his guy initially, but he recovers and gets around him. Against the pass, Shaheen is a competent blocker. But against the run where he has to use some power to actually move defenders, Shaheen falls short.
Bottom line is that Shaheen looks very impressive. Yes, this is division II, but it looks like his game will translate. What really stood out to me with Adam Shaheen was that the dude was the biggest guy on the field and yet he was consistently getting behind the defense.
I wrote this awhile ago:
I don't know if you guys are familiar with SPARQ and SLAYTICS. They are very accurate formulas that can predict whether a player can thrive in the NFL or if they are just not cut out for the NFL based on several physical and athletic factors. It is very accurate.
Basically, if the player falls into the blue group, they will most likely thrive in the NFL based off of the formula. If you fall into the green group threshold, you at least have the physical and athletic features to make it in the NFL. And then you have the players in the red group, who may have been great in college, but are not cut out to play in the NFL. Our new TE fell into the red group.
A TE in the blue threshold has a 78% success rate based on MAVPY. A TE in the red group has a 7% success rate based on MAVPY. The MAVPY is a tool that measures a players productivity in the NFL. A score of 4+ is starter level and a score of 8+ is all pro level. Odds are against Shaheen to make it in the NFL.
https://d3d2maoophos6y.cloudfront.net/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/22230743/Slaytics-2017-Final1.pdf
Now, I concede to the fact that Adam Shaheen's unusual size at the position has really clouded his data as far as this statistic. The fact is that there really have not been many successful TE's of his size to reference. But from what I have seen, Shaheen definitely looks like an NFL level player. Not only is he athletic as a TE, he's athletic in general.
***In the gif above, Shaheen is lined up wide opposite a cornerback. Ashland lined him up all over the field, which is extraordinary for such a big man.
***The play above is incredibly impressive. Shaheen uses his quick feet to turn the defensive back three times. A 280 lb TE just clowned a DB with his quickness.
Ok, so another concern I had about Shaheen was that for being drafted in the 2nd round out of a division II school, I expect you to absolutely dominate man vs child style. Especially since Shaheen was bigger and stronger than pretty much anyone on the field. The one thing that I didn't take into account was that Shaheen also had a division II QB throwing him the football.
***In the above gif, Shaheen gets behind the defense in the end zone, yet the QB egregiously overthrows the pass.
***In the play above, Shaheen navigates through the traffic wonderfully and finds himself wide open down the middle of the field, but the QB decides to chuck it to the cheerleaders down the sideline.
***This play really showcases Shaheen's athleticism. Notice his remarkable explosiveness coming off the line of scrimmage. Shaheen actually blows by the entire defense here. Unfortunately, the QB throws an abysmal pass that Shaheen has to try to go back for.
During the draft process, I've written a lot about my love for David Njoku. In fact, I thought he could be a top 10 pick. When comparing Shaheen to Njoku, I was very surprised to learn that Shaheen appears to be the better route runner at this stage in time. This really threw me off, as I've read a lot about how it will take him a while to adjust to the NFL. I see a guy that looks like he can step in and play rather quickly.
***In the play above, Shaheen disappears off the screen right before he makes a quick and precise cut up the field. Notice how much separation he gets off of the safety, it's quite remarkable.
***Shaheen is great at finding space. Here, Shaheen runs across the field and finds the pocket between two defenders.
Now, all of this size and athleticism doesn't really mean much if the guy can't catch. Well, don't worry, Shaheen can catch.
***Shaheen uses his size and hands well. He shows great hand eye coordination and body position against defenders.
***Here is an extremely poorly thrown pass that turns Shaheen around, yet he adjusts and recovers.
As far as blocking is concerned, Shaheen looks to be solid. Obviously, NFL defenders will be stronger and faster, but Shaheen has held his own from what I've seen. The one thing I did notice was that even with his size and strength, Shaheen looks kinda weak out there at times. This is evident when he is run blocking, as he cannot get much push on defenders.
***Here, Shaheen blocks his guy initially, but he recovers and gets around him. Against the pass, Shaheen is a competent blocker. But against the run where he has to use some power to actually move defenders, Shaheen falls short.
Bottom line is that Shaheen looks very impressive. Yes, this is division II, but it looks like his game will translate. What really stood out to me with Adam Shaheen was that the dude was the biggest guy on the field and yet he was consistently getting behind the defense.
