Andersen in PFF NFL Draft Top 100 Draft Prospects

[coochorama42]

https://www.pff.com/news/draft-2022-nfl ... -big-board

I'm behind the PFF paywall, so I'll keep everyone informed as they continue their draft preparation. IMHO, PFF is the best site for the NFL draft. It's pretty clear that their analytics think he can play in coverage in the NFL as they rarely have LB that high who are primarily good at stopping the run.

[TomCat88]

https://www.pff.com/news/draft-2022-nfl ... -big-board

I'm behind the PFF paywall, so I'll keep everyone informed as they continue their draft preparation. IMHO, PFF is the best site for the NFL draft. It's pretty clear that their analytics think he can play in coverage in the NFL as they rarely have LB that high who are primarily good at stopping the run.

Yeah, he definitely checks all the boxes. Size, speed, athleticism. Like you noted he can cover.

[wbtfg]

With regard to the draft, would Jabril Cox be a good comp for Troy? Cox obviously transferred to LSU and had a good season there, but played a majority of his career at NDSU. Cox was drafted in the 4th by the cowboys. Unfortunately it looks like he had a torn ACL mid-season this year.

[gtapp]

https://www.pff.com/news/draft-2022-nfl ... -big-board

I'm behind the PFF paywall, so I'll keep everyone informed as they continue their draft preparation. IMHO, PFF is the best site for the NFL draft. It's pretty clear that their analytics think he can play in coverage in the NFL as they rarely have LB that high who are primarily good at stopping the run.

Yeah, he definitely checks all the boxes. Size, speed, athleticism. Like you noted he can cover.

Not to mention smart and you will NEVER have any character issues with Troy!

[TomCat88]

With regard to the draft, would Jabril Cox be a good comp for Troy? Cox obviously transferred to LSU and had a good season there, but played a majority of his career at NDSU. Cox was drafted in the 4th by the cowboys. Unfortunately it looks like he had a torn ACL mid-season this year.

https://www.nfl.com/prospects/jabril-co ... f18e12b912

You can see Cox's strengths/weaknesses at this link.

[BleedingBLue]

I read the 406 article on TA and it said his 40 time is 4.56 to 4.76. Did he run that 4.76 on a broken leg?

[rivercat]

https://www.pff.com/news/draft-2022-nfl ... -big-board

I'm behind the PFF paywall, so I'll keep everyone informed as they continue their draft preparation. IMHO, PFF is the best site for the NFL draft. It's pretty clear that their analytics think he can play in coverage in the NFL as they rarely have LB that high who are primarily good at stopping the run.

Yeah, he definitely checks all the boxes. Size, speed, athleticism. Like you noted he can cover.

Not to mention smart and you will NEVER have any character issues with Troy!

These are huge pluses for a team that is going to invest millions in a player.

[coochorama42]

https://www.pff.com/news/draft-2022-nfl ... -big-board

I'm behind the PFF paywall, so I'll keep everyone informed as they continue their draft preparation. IMHO, PFF is the best site for the NFL draft. It's pretty clear that their analytics think he can play in coverage in the NFL as they rarely have LB that high who are primarily good at stopping the run.

Yeah, he definitely checks all the boxes. Size, speed, athleticism. Like you noted he can cover.

His coverage grade this year is 2nd of the top LB prospects (Nakobe Dean from Georgia is 1st). His "overall" grade on PFF is an 86.8. His pass rush grade a 74.6, his run defense an 80.7, and his coverage grade an 86.5. His missed tackle rate is 10.8%. For those of you that do not know, PFF grades every player they are tracking on every play they had all season long. All of these grades are above average and the "overall" and "coverage" grades are elite.

Depending on how well he does in the combine, Andersen may soar up the draft board. His HS 100 yard dash times translate to a 40 yard dash time in the range of 4.5-4.6. That would put him in the 75-85% of LB draft prospects. Chazz Surratt was a LB prospect from UNC that started out as a QB. His grades were not nearly as good as Andersen's, but he had a fantastic pro day and was drafted in the 3rd round. From what I'm seeing so far, Andersen should be drafted before that.

[coochorama42]

Andersen is a better overall prospect than Cox. He is certainly better against the run. He is closer to Jamin Davis and Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah than he is Cox in terms of his overall profile. Do not get me wrong, he does not grade out as well as JOK (and Koramoah did so against top FBS competition) nor is he likely to hit the 99-100% percentile in the 40 yard dash, shuttle, and vertical like Jamin Davis. It's just that he doesn't (on tape) have a weak spot in his game. You can count on him to stop the run even when his primary responsibility is in coverage. This is the modern NFL (and this is why EWU had such a difficult time against MSU).

With regard to the draft, would Jabril Cox be a good comp for Troy? Cox obviously transferred to LSU and had a good season there, but played a majority of his career at NDSU. Cox was drafted in the 4th by the cowboys. Unfortunately it looks like he had a torn ACL mid-season this year.

[coloradocat]

Troy is an interesting athlete to scout/project. After winning BSC Freshman of the Year he was a three year starter. However, he never played the same position for more than one year. However, he was 1st team All-Conference, and on All-American teams, at each of those positions and he's likely not done winning awards. Imagine how high he'd be on draft boards if he played any of his positions for more than one year, much less his whole career. He seems like the definition of an elite prospect.

[onceacat]

Troy is an interesting athlete to scout/project. After winning BSC Freshman of the Year he was a three year starter. However, he never played the same position for more than one year. However, he was 1st team All-Conference, and on All-American teams, at each of those positions and he's likely not done winning awards. Imagine how high he'd be on draft boards if he played any of his positions for more than one year, much less his whole career. He seems like the definition of an elite prospect.

Just wondering out loud: But as an elite player that's only had a few rare opportunities to compete against elite competition over 4 years. I wonder if there isn't some benefit to TA from playing so many positions. Intangibles like leadership, high football IQ, coachablitly, etc are notoriously hard for NFL scouts to predict. I can't imagine there's any LB at any level that's proven those thinks like Troy has.

[coloradocat]

Troy is an interesting athlete to scout/project. After winning BSC Freshman of the Year he was a three year starter. However, he never played the same position for more than one year. However, he was 1st team All-Conference, and on All-American teams, at each of those positions and he's likely not done winning awards. Imagine how high he'd be on draft boards if he played any of his positions for more than one year, much less his whole career. He seems like the definition of an elite prospect.

Just wondering out loud: But as an elite player that's only had a few rare opportunities to compete against elite competition over 4 years. I wonder if there isn't some benefit to TA from playing so many positions. Intangibles like leadership, high football IQ, coachablitly, etc are notoriously hard for NFL scouts to predict. I can't imagine there's any LB at any level that's proven those thinks like Troy has.

Troy would definitely be in the 99th percentile on intangibles. The fact that he's probably so hard to project onto an NFL roster because of limited snaps at any one position is what probably pushes him down draft boards. The counter to that is that he's been the best in the conference and/or country at all the positions he's played so far so he's bound to succeed in the NFL if they just keep him in the same position for any significant length of time. His range is probably anywhere between the 2nd and 5th rounds based on what different staffs think they can do with him.

[coachouert]

Troy was invited to the East-West Shrine Bowl which could help his draft status.

[TomCat88]

Troy was invited to the East-West Shrine Bowl which could help his draft status.

Definitely. The Senior Bowl propelled Bill Kollar into a first round pick. Seems like the Shrine is now the more elite game. Anyone know?

[Cledus]

Question for the draft wonks out there. If Troy's predicted as a late 3rd round pick right now, how high do you think he could go with more visibility and press?

[kennethnoisewater]

Troy was invited to the East-West Shrine Bowl which could help his draft status.

Definitely. The Senior Bowl propelled Bill Kollar into a first round pick. Seems like the Shrine is now the more elite game. Anyone know?

Tom you might know this story so I'm going to quote your post. Do you remember Wayne Baker from Plains? I heard he finished his senior year at BYU and went home and was logging up in the hills outside of town when there was a message that he'd been invited to play in the senior bowl but it was only a day or two later. He hadn't played in months but he ended up being the MVP of the game (defensive MVP maybe?). He was the AD in Libby for years and when he retired the guy who replaced him was cleaning out Wayne's office. There was a silver bowl full of change, paper clips, and other random junk, and when he emptied it out he realized it was the MVP trophy from that game. He called Wayne and told him he'd bring it to him and Wayne said "oh I don't care, you can keep it". I know Wayne a little bit and not one part of this story surprises me. He grew up in a logging family and he'd joke that he'd pull the trees out of the ground and his dad would cut them up.

Anyway, I say all that to say I heard that helped his draft prospects and he went in the 3rd round to San Francisco. Hoping some of that good ol' Montana tough works in Troy's favor too!

[coochorama42]

It really depends on his pro day and his combine performance. If he hits certain strength and quickness benchmarks while posting a good 40 time...early 2nd round is viable. Unlike most prospects that change position, he has had really good tape at LB. This is a testament to his work ethic. Moreover, as Coach Banks said, even if he is a project, he can earn his roster spot on special teams. I think a rebuilding team would love to have him if they think he can be a legit coverage LB. 1st round is really tough for any LB (last year was the exception).

Let me put it this way. I'm a Jets fan (don't ask). He'd be the best coverage LB on the team today. This is the Jets and they put off their rebuild on the defensive side of the football until this upcoming draft, but it gives you the idea of his talent.

Question for the draft wonks out there. If Troy's predicted as a late 3rd round pick right now, how high do you think he could go with more visibility and press?

[coochorama42]

And for reference, a 3rd round pick is a starter or rotation player in the modern NFL. A 2nd rounder better be on the field a lot or have an insane ceiling.

Question for the draft wonks out there. If Troy's predicted as a late 3rd round pick right now, how high do you think he could go with more visibility and press?

[Prodigal Cat]

And for reference, a 3rd round pick is a starter or rotation player in the modern NFL. A 2nd rounder better be on the field a lot or have an insane ceiling.

Question for the draft wonks out there. If Troy's predicted as a late 3rd round pick right now, how high do you think he could go with more visibility and press?

That's what is cool about seeing him on this list and now seeing him invited to the Shrine game. 1st and 2nd day (1-3rd) picks are high value. If you are picked in these days you will be given plenty of chances to succeed. Later round guys and free agents just don't get the reps and have to really impress just to get a roster spot. The coaches really want to be proven correct in using a high value pick to get you.

Here a couple of LB examples.
Jaylon Smith was a top 10 pick before suffering a near catastrophic knee injury in his last college game. He fell to the 2nd round because of that and the Cowboys took him and were willing to wait out the 2 years of rehab just to see if he could return to something close to his former self.
Alex Singleton was signed to Philly's practice squad and got promoted to the active team due to a few injuries. He then proved to be an asset in Special Teams and when more injuries happened promoted him to playing as a LB. Since the time he was named a started A.S. has been the Eagles best graded LB.

If the starting points were reversed Alex would have won the starter job in camp and Jaylon would have been given his injury check and released. Its just the way the NFL works. Coaches want their high picks and $$ free agents to live up to the equity they gave for them. 1st rounders are given 2nd and 3rd chances all the time. It's not very common for a 2nd or 3rd rounder to get cut. If TA gets selected on day 2 he will get plenty of opportunity and we here all know that Troy will cash it in. It wouldn't shock me if he ended up being a significant contributor as a rookie to what ever team he ends up on.

[catatac]

Here's a crazy question for everyone. Are there any interviews, quotes, etc. out there where TA said he absolutely wants to play in the NFL? I remember hearing awhile back that it wasn't a 100% given.