How in the world...

[Runruffshod75]

....Are some Bears fans & many of the media draft "experts" rating Reggie Ragland as a first round talent, & have been doing so for months? Holy shit, I didn't want to bring it up but after a few months of seeing a 2 down plugger from 'Bama being WAY WAY over rated, & plenty of game footage, the urge to let it go was like trying to resist an aggressive ass itch in public. Don't get me wrong he is a good player in his capacity as a gap clogger & run stopper by splitting the bill with another 3-4 ILB, but I can't believe that no one is calling out why "the experts" have Ragland anywhere higher than an early 4th round pick where many of the 2 down run defending SAM LB's tend to be valued.

Reggie Ragland is a slow two down run stopping plugger with size, & is not anywhere near a first round talent, or even early round talent just based on the fact that he will not be an every down LB at the pro level. Holy shit I can't believe that some would welcome burning a first round pick on a 2 down chase & scrape run defender. He clearly lacks the even sufficient speed & athleticism needed to cover ground on the field or play any effective coverage at all. At the college level he has just enough tweak in his step to maintain, but in the pros he won't be able to do much outside of being a 3-4 ILB in a base defense.

Now as some of you know of me, I love the idea of drafting D-linemen & LB's, & would draft 53 LB's, DT's, NT's, & DE's if I could get away with it, but Ragland is not a first round talent, second or even third. If Pace wastes a first round pick on a slow 2 down SAM LB like Ragland I don't even think & can get mad about it, instead I will slide into a state of hopelessness. I never really wanted to buy into the suspicions that Alabama prospects are over rated by the beatniks but with the way they greatly over rate Ragland as the 2 down plugger he is, I'm starting to really wonder.

Now all this said there is a MIKE LB projected to go in the mid late rounds of this draft, with Raglands ability, size & power, but unlike Ragland, he also has excellent athleticism, agility, & excellent speed to cover ground & play coverage, & play EVERY defensive down. His name is Cassanova McKinzy from Auburn, & not only is he criminally overlooked by media draft "experts" who think 2 down run defenders are first round talents, I haven't heard anyone on here mention him either. I think McKinzy is a draft steal waiting to happen. McKinzy is a big physical LB who can play downhill to contact or play in coverage, & can play all three standard LB positions, & the edge rushing JACK & LEO LB positions too at times, very well, every down. McKinzy has that prototype size, athleticism, power & speed that we Bears fans tend to want in the heart of a Bears defense, who can shut down the run just as well as Ragland, but also drop into zone coverage & man up in coverage with receiving Tight Ends & receiving H-Backs on every down. Cassanova should be a mid round steal & is one player from this draft class that I really want to see in Chicago as much as any prospect from this class.

Don't get me too wrong here, I don't dislike Ragland as a player, & do thinks he's a solid LB, I just don't like him anywhere before the top of the fourth round, late third at best. He's basically the equivalent of a good SAM LB. People can't possibly want to burn the first on a 2 down SAM. Or do they? Right now there's a good chance that a marijuana violation could have an elite blue chip talent like Robert Nkemdiche or Vernon Hargreaves(no off field issues) fall right into the Bears lap out of nowhere & either would be an excellent pick for the Bears. If the Bears end up having a flat out opportunity to pick either of Nkemdiche or Hargreaves, & pass for Ragland we should all retire from being Bears fans for a while

Cassanova in the mid rounds, not Ragland in the first would be a nice steal to me. This clip below can give one an idea of Cassanova but it's from 2014, & he wasn't as skilled as a player as he is now in 2016 as an every down defensive starter.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VChtEjpSe6A

 

[Wild_x_Card]

Nkemdiche will likely never slip past Jerry Jones. Ragland has actually been called out several times on this board. I'm not worried about Pace reaching for a need with the first pick. He's not the type.

 

[playthrough2001]

I can't imagine Pace picking him. If you look at last years' draft class, every pick involved a player that moves well for his size and position. Langford was the fastest RB, White posted a 4.35 and Amos can burn for a safety. Goldman, Grasu and Tayo have excellent movement and agility skills for men their size. I don't see Ragland fitting that mold. People on this board may like him but I doubt Pace has the same evaluation. I really like the CB Alexander from Clemson. I wish he was 3 inches taller.

 

[rawdawg]

Uh, well I think the OP is flat out wrong. Ragland is definitely the better athlete between he and McKinzy. I bet you he runs at least a 1/10 of a second faster in the 40 and outperforms him in most of the agility drills at the combine. Ragland is also a 3-down player. He played nearly every snap of the game last night, though on most passing downs, they put him on the edge to rush. But still, there is documented examples of Ragland's performance in coverage.

http://https://twitter.com/movethesticks/status/660240070155313152

And if you need more proof.

http://withthefirstpick.com/2015/09/11/2016-nfl-draft-early-look-at-alabamas-reggie-ragland/

That being said, I don't necessarily want to draft Ragland where the Bears are going to pick (12-17 most likely). He's never going to be great in coverage and defend the deep middle like Urlacher. He's not going to shutdown Gronk running down the seam. But he's not going to kill you out there in coverage by any means. But he's one of the top 25 players in this draft, and 100% worth a 1st round pick starting at pick 20. He's also very capable of playing the MIKE LB position, while guys like Jaylon Smith, Myles Jack, and even the established Trevathan are JACK LBs not necessarily built to stand in there on the strong side and take on blockers.

https://www.profootballfocus.com/bl...-foster-ragland-key-to-crimson-tides-defense/

 

[Omeletpants]

Good teams and coaches could really utilize a situational, 2 down LB like Ragland. Bad teams need LBs that can play 3 downs. The Bears are in the bad team category

 

[bamainatlanta]

Hopefully, the bears can get a QB or Jaylen Smith

 

[BearDen]

Hopefully, the bears can get a QB or Jaylen Smith

Goff and Lynch will be gone well before the Bears pick, are you hoping for Connor Cook in the 1st?

 

[bamainatlanta]

Goff and Lynch will be gone well before the Bears pick, are you hoping for Connor Cook in the 1st?

No. Hoping one of those 2 fall to bears. Can't afford to trade up

 

[BearsFan51]

Ruff old boy, sometimes we disagree on things but more often than not we see eye to eye. On this one we are in near perfect alignment.

Reggie Ragland is becoming this year's version of Anthony Barr in my book. Ragland is the most overrated player in this draft as it currently stands. He is a decent physical specimen at 6-2 252-pounds but he loafs on the field he's not physical or powerful at the point of attack for a guy his size and his build. He's not a downhill attacker he's a see it react to it and then go get it player. Alabama constantly took him off the field in passing situations except for the occasional pass rush which he has zero pass rush ability anyway. Ragland is usually the last one to the pile which says everything I need to know about him.

Now let's take a guy like Scooby Wright into consideration at 6-1 247-pounds. Wright is faster, is far more aggressive and is essentially one of those guys that likes to simply run around and tackle people because that's all he knows how to do. Wright if his measurements are legit is one inch and five pounds lighter than Ragland, it his play is in a different dimension in comparison. Wright reminds me of Borland he makes a lot of plays just by his willingness to attack the ball carrier with reckless abandon and be around the action.

I don't know if Wright is a first round draft pick or not, but I do know I like him more than Ragland, and it's not even close.

http://www.chicitysports.com/forum/...Big-Board-(12-18-15)?highlight=Reggie+Ragland

 

[DMelt36]

How in the world does someone have the energy to type all of that at 3:30 in the morning?

 

[BearsFan51]

How in the world does someone have the energy to type all of that at 3:30 in the morning?

You don't know anyone that woks the night shift?

 

[ijustposthere]

You don't know anyone that woks the night shift?

Like Chinatown?

 

[WindyCity]

Anthony Barr is a really good player.

 

[Hbkrusso]

How in the world does someone have the energy to type all of that at 3:30 in the morning?

 

[didshereallysaythat]

I did see Ragland make a great play on 4th down on a Connor Cook pass.

 

[WindyCity]

I did see Ragland make a great play on 4th down on a Connor Cook pass.

Ragland can play.

He is a good athlete and will be a 1st round pick. He might look less athletic because Jack/Smith are super fast players, but he isn't a 2 down player.

Ragland is like David Harris, Donte Hightower, but guys who can cover, but are elite run defenders. A more recent prospect would be Stephone Anthony with better instincts and vision.

 

[BearsFan51]

Ragland can play.

He is a good athlete and will be a 1st round pick. He might look less athletic because Jack/Smith are super fast players, but he isn't a 2 down player.

Ragland is like David Harris, Donte Hightower, but guys who can cover, but are elite run defenders. A more recent prospect would be Stephone Anthony with better instincts and vision.

Watch his games. Do you have the SEC network? A DVR? Set Alabama games to record on replay and watch how often he comes off the field on third down. Watch how often he rushes the passer and how ineffective he is as a rusher. Nick Saban doesn't trust him as a three down player. If he can't do it in college he won't be doing it in the NFL.

I'm not making this two down comment as a prediction, this is what watching the game replays have shown. He's a two down player now who can't rush the passer who isn't fast who isn't a downhill attacking player.

 

[rawdawg]

Watch his games. Do you have the SEC network? A DVR? Set Alabama games to record on replay and watch how often he comes off the field on third down. Watch how often he rushes the passer and how ineffective he is as a rusher. Nick Saban doesn't trust him as a three down player. If he can't do it in college he won't be doing it in the NFL.

I'm not making this two down comment as a prediction, this is what watching the game replays have shown. He's a two down player now who can't rush the passer who isn't fast who isn't a downhill attacking player.

Everyone on Alabama is a 2-down player. Nobody on the team played more than 75% of the snaps this year on D. Ragland played 39 of 61 snaps on D a couple days ago, but he played at least 10 more than every other player on the team. And he played several plays on 3rd down. I attached 3 links above of people that agree with me that he's a 3-down LB, and 2 of the links include video of him making plays in the pass game, which he did several times on Thursday night also.