If I had to draft an ILB this year...

[X-Era]

I'm a huge fan of Te'o. He's aplaymaker and it's just that easy. His picks tell you he can cover too. He's an emotional leader. Love the kids story, he's probably the player I'd most like to see as a Bill right now.

These are the guys I like so far:

1. Manti Te'o, ND- Gifted play-maker against the run and pass. I can just picture him roving all over the field for us. He seems like the type or player we need and an instant solid starter.
2. Shane Skov, Stan- Productive thumper
3. Kevin Reddick, UNC- Quicker LB who can cover some ground.
4. Johnathan Bostic, Fla.- This guy really impresses me and can likely be had with a day two or three pick. Big, strong, makes smart moves to the ball. Tackles well. Decent speed.
5. Michael Mauti, Penn St- Just an overachiever who doesn;t really seem to be great at any one thing but gets the job done.

Guys I'm not as high on:

1. Arthur Brown, K St
2. Alec Ogletree, Geo

[YardRat]

Re: If I had to draft an ILB this year...

I hate ND, but I'd take Te'o in a heartbeat.

[DraftBoy]

Re: If I had to draft an ILB this year...

Te'o is the easy choice though after him Im not high on any of the other top guys. I see Arthur Brown needing to kick inside in all honesty. Jonathan Bostic from UF is an under the radar guy with explosive athleticism.

[X-Era]

Re: If I had to draft an ILB this year...

Agree on all. I'm watching Bostic closely. Not a lot of wasted steps, built like a brick **** house, and a sure tackler... Every time I watch him I like him more

[IlluminatusUIUC]

Re: If I had to draft an ILB this year...

Does T'eo project inside or outside in the 4-3?

[DraftBoy]

Re: If I had to draft an ILB this year...

Does T'eo project inside or outside in the 4-3?

Inside, he played it early in his career at ND.

[IlluminatusUIUC]

Re: If I had to draft an ILB this year...

Inside, he played it early in his career at ND.

Excellent. I personally don't know how we'd wind up with T'eo, because I think our #1 pick has to be used on a QB either in trade or otherwise. But he would be an awesome player to have.

[YardRat]

Re: If I had to draft an ILB this year...

Excellent. I personally don't know how we'd wind up with T'eo, because I think our #1 pick has to be used on a QB either in trade or otherwise. But he would be an awesome player to have.

If Te'o is there, you take him and worry about moving around for a QB after that.

[IlluminatusUIUC]

Re: If I had to draft an ILB this year...

If Te'o is there, you take him and worry about moving around for a QB after that.

I would not take Te'o over Smith or Barkley. As good of a MLB as he is, he's still a MLB.

[DraftBoy]

Re: If I had to draft an ILB this year...

I would not take Te'o over Smith or Barkley. As good of a MLB as he is, he's still a MLB.

Well its looking more and more like Barkley will be there.

[YardRat]

Re: If I had to draft an ILB this year...

I would not take Te'o over Smith or Barkley. As good of a MLB as he is, he's still a MLB.

MLB is probably the biggest weakness on the defense as it stands right now. Unless they completely tank the rest of the season, there is no shot at Smith anyway, and I'm not really too fond of Barkley.

If you get a shot at your Willis or Urlacher, you have to take him.

[IlluminatusUIUC]

Re: If I had to draft an ILB this year...

MLB is probably the biggest weakness on the defense as it stands right now. Unless they completely tank the rest of the season, there is no shot at Smith anyway, and I'm not really too fond of Barkley.

If you get a shot at your Willis or Urlacher, you have to take him.

Willis and Urlacher are excellent players and multiple all-pros and yet their teams have been constantly held back by their QBs. This is a QB driven league. Constantly kicking the can down the road while we wait for that perfect season when we go 2-14 while Andrew Luck Jr. graduates hasn't gotten us anywhere. It's time to invest big, whether that be in Smith or Barkley (I have a higher opinion of him than you do, I'm gathering) or someone else who plays their way into the conversation.

[YardRat]

Re: If I had to draft an ILB this year...

Willis and Urlacher are excellent players and multiple all-pros and yet their teams have been constantly held back by their QBs. This is a QB driven league. Constantly kicking the can down the road while we wait for that perfect season when we go 2-14 while Andrew Luck Jr. graduates hasn't gotten us anywhere. It's time to invest big, whether that be in Smith or Barkley (I have a higher opinion of him than you do, I'm gathering) or someone else who plays their way into the conversation.

Let's use DB's mock as a hypothetical... http://www.buffalobillsdraft.com/2013-nfl-mock-draft/ ...

Smith and Barkley are gone, one and two. Do you go all-in to move into the top 2, take Wilson or Manuel at 15, or take Te'o and try to grab a QB in the second round?

[DraftBoy]

Re: If I had to draft an ILB this year...

Let's use DB's mock as a hypothetical... http://www.buffalobillsdraft.com/2013-nfl-mock-draft/ ...

Smith and Barkley are gone, one and two. Do you go all-in to move into the top 2, take Wilson or Manuel at 15, or take Te'o and try to grab a QB in the second round?

For me Im taking Te'o and then going QB in Round 2 with Manuel, or Dysert. Also new mock tomorrow!

[IlluminatusUIUC]

Re: If I had to draft an ILB this year...

Let's use DB's mock as a hypothetical... http://www.buffalobillsdraft.com/2013-nfl-mock-draft/ ...

Smith and Barkley are gone, one and two. Do you go all-in to move into the top 2, take Wilson or Manuel at 15, or take Te'o and try to grab a QB in the second round?

That would depend on whether we retained Gailey, IMO. I'm assuming that if we climbed to the middle of the pack, then we would. Looking at that mock, I don't think Cleveland would pull the plug on Weeden immediately, but if they would I think we can snag Weeden or McCoy for cheap (4th + 5th for the former possibly) and I think they have potential as a short-term starter or a long-term backup in Gailey's system. I would go for Manuel at #15.

IMO the three most important stats for a college QB are # of starts, completion %, and YPA. Manuel is looking excellent on all of those.