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this is a discussion within the Saints Community Forum; TE Kolomona Kapanui, West Texas A&M, 6032, 271lbs, 4.64 Kapanui was a member of USC's 2001 recruiting class but decided to transfer due to the academic work load, lack of playing time, and a hip injury. He came to West ...

 
 
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Old 04-27-2008, 07:39 PM   #11
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Join Date: Dec 2005
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Re: Udfa > Tightends

TE

Kolomona Kapanui, West Texas A&M, 6032, 271lbs, 4.64

Kapanui was a member of USC's 2001 recruiting class but decided to transfer due to the academic work load, lack of playing time, and a hip injury. He came to West Texas A&M and showed the Hawaiian-born tight end could light it up. The two-time All-Lone Star selection also earned AP and d2football.com All-America honors in 2007 with 39 catches for 481 yards and seven touchdowns. He will have to show he can be durable and take below average size for the position and use it in the NFL. If he can stay healthy and learn the system he will have a chance to be a solid steal on day two. He will be at the NFL Scouting Combine later this month and should land in the late rounds with a good workout.

Drew Atchison, William & Mary, 6056, 247lbs, 4.74 40

Atchison spent most of '05 on the travel squad and then caught 12 passes in '06 and caught 34 balls for 475 yards and six touchdowns in '07. He earned honorable mention All-America honors by The Sports Network and VASID All-State honors this year, respectively. He also played baseball in college with three appearances in '04. He catches most balls with his hands and has great size for the position. He struggles to block linebackers and safeties in space and lacks straight-line speed. He played in the 2008 East-West Shrine Game but does not have an invite to the NFL Scouting Combine. He will be a 7th-PFA type project for a team wiling to take the time to develop this raw prospect. He should end up as a priority free agent signing after the draft.

Strengths: Atchison is an intriguing tight end with great physical tools. He has great size, good speed and is a threat in the redzone. He displays the ability to stretch the field and be a big play with his leaping ability. He makes tough catches over the middle and adjusts well to errant throws. He runs good routes and finds openings over the middle. He's still developing and is a developmental player with upside.

Weaknesses: He's not a great blocker and has to develop strength in his upper body. He has to move better laterally and get out in the flat quicker. He only has two years experience playing at the collegiate level and didn't face top competition.

Overview: A former baseball player at William & Mary, Atchison decided to give up baseball in the middle of his sophomore season to play football. Atchison is a very intriguing player with great size and athleticism. At 6-foot-6, 245 pounds, Atchison had 34 receptions for 475 yards and six touchdowns this past season. He was invited to the East-West Shrine game and displayed nice hands, but has to get stronger and develop better technique blocking the opposition. He's a developmental prospect who reminds me of Kevin Boss when he came out of Western Oregon last year.

Darrell Strong Pittsburgh 6-5 265 4.80

An intriguing athlete with NFL size and speed, Strong struggled until his senior season to make a positive impact for the Panthers. Developed into a legitimate receiving threat and an improved blocker after being known more in the past for his untapped potential and off-field indiscretions. Strong's improved maturity and production as a senior, however, as well as his obvious physical tools should earn him consideration in the middle rounds.

Positives: Rare combination of size and overall athleticism. ... Good foot quickness and downfield speed for the position. ... Flashes explosiveness out of his breaks to generate separation from the defender. ... Soft hands for the reception. ... Improved maturity on and off the field as a senior.

Considered an under-achiever until his senior season. ... Off-field issues, including being cited for harassment and criminal mischief. ... Not the blocker his size and athleticism would lead you to believe. ... Inconsistent effort, marginal explosion at the point of attack and too often doesn't sustain. ... Has shown a tendency to add weight in the off-season.

Joey Haynos Maryland 6073 259, 4.80

Overview
Another product of the Terrapins' renowned training room, Joey Haynos, a former walk-on at Maryland, spurned basketball scholarship offers from other universities to join the Terps' football program in 2003.
Positives: Has a rare-sized frame, with long, lean limbs, very large hands and room to add at least another 15 pounds of bulk without having the additional weight impact his quickness...Has decent upper-body muscle development, showing a fluid running stride to get into his patterns cleanly...Has the straight-ahead speed, arm extension and power to defeat the jam and prevent the defender from impeding his route...Flashes the initial quickness needed to get off the snap to gain advantage...Has the leg drive to generate additional yardage breaking arm tackles after the catch...Physical route-runner with the power to dominate larger defensive linemen and the has the short-area burst to separate from linebackers on underneath routes...Despite his tall frame, he does a good job of sinking his weight and keeping a good pad level to make proper body adjustments going for the ball in flight...High-intensity player who seals the corner with authority and has the range to get out and lead on sweeps...Uses his size well to shield the ball from defenders and shows no flinch going up for the ball in a crowd...Very tough and assertive going for the ball in traffic...Has a nice feel for the short area, adjusts to uncover and uses his arms to prevent the defenders from mirroring his moves...Smart, instinctive route-runner who runs crisp patterns, showing the body control to time his moves in the open...Very alert of the sideline and has enough acceleration to separate from the second-level defenders after the catch...Quick breaking off his routes when the quarterback is flushed out of the pocket...Uses his long running stride to gain advantage over the slower linebackers in the open field...Has the strength to fight through press coverage and makes sharp cuts out of his routes in the short area...Uses his hands efficiently to gain separation from the defender, fighting aggressively to stay open...Has a great work ethic and is a product of the Terps' weight room, adding more than 50 pounds to his frame since arriving on campus...Comes out of his stance with a fluid motion and has shown much better hand punch to shock and jolt the initial defender when releasing off the line...Has also improved his plant-and-drive agility, demonstrating sharper cuts out of his breaks as a senior than he did earlier in his career...Runs good crossing patterns, seams and short, inside routes with functional playing speed...Has the soft hands to catch outside his body's frame...Maintains good body control tracking the ball in flight and makes defenders fight for the ball as he uses his impressive reach to haul down the pass at its highest point...Uses his size to his advantage when going over the middle, doing a nice job of shielding the defenders from the ball...Bends his knees and keeps his feet moving shuffling back in pass protection, as he also shows alertness to the defender's position when dropping back in pass protection...Position-type blocker with a wide leg base and good balance...Shows the vision at the second level to be effective as a cut blocker, as he can position, change direction and sustain with good body flexibility...Will consistenly uproot the defender while firing low off the snap as a drive blocker...Shows the ability to reach and shield the opponents downfield.

Negatives: Has a rare-sized frame, but shows just adequate lower-body muscle development and strength...Does a good job of sinking his hips, but due to his tall frame, he looks a bit stiff when changing direction and will sometimes lose leverage as a blocker...Is good when he keeps his pads down, but when he gets too tall in his stance, his base narrows...Has improved his hand punch to counter the press, but needs to continue adding upper-body strength in order to defeat the jam at the pro level (needs better power to post up on the pro defender)...Has also shown marked improvement with his hand placement when blocking as a senior, but earlier in his career, he struggled some keeping those hands inside his framework and, when he got his hands too wide and narrowed his base, he was susceptible to the bull rush due to leverage issues.

Compares To: BEN UTECHT-Indianapolis...Haynos is a better position blocker than Utecht, but like the Colts' tight end, he has the long reach, large hands and body control to secure a catch in a crowd. Haynos uses his size to shield the ball from defenders and with his long running stride, he creates a mismatch for safeties attempting to cover him when running up the seam. He struggles some to gain leverage blocking in-line due to his size, but compensates with a strong hand punch and good hand placement. He works the sideline better than most college tight ends, showing urgency getting to the off-target throws and the reach and field awareness to make sideline catches seem routine

"We may have lost the game, but you'll be hurting tomorrow." Doug Atkins
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