The Fumblerooski Podcast - Underrated and Undervalued -Ep 352 The Fumblerooski Podcast

Episode Date: April 8, 2025

The NFL Draft is now 16 days away! That means more Draft coverage as Chris Costich and CJ Medeiros take a look at the top prospects for Linebackers and Defensive Backs. Who’s underrated? Who’s overrated? Who catches CJ’s eye? Which teams are needy for these positions? Chris and CJ talk all this and more!

16 days till draft day. Today, we're gonna look at the best linebackers in defensive backs. Who's overrated? Who's underrated? Who's gonna be the biggest shocker of the draft? This is the Fulmerovski Podcast. It may not have always showed it in the staff sheet, but you can see him making throws when he needs to make the throws. Back to back games where he has three touchdowns. Someone's got to get that six or seven spot. He's an elite wide receiver as a rookie. Truly a lose-lose scenario for both sides. This is the Fumbarusky podcast. Happy Tuesday. Even though Tuesdays kind of suck sometimes. Still early in the week. Many such days.

sucks sometimes still early in the week. Bright side of things 16 days till the NFL draft. Man, we are almost there. Almost there. We're almost at almost at the point where all these draft stories these smoke screens all of them will end and we'll see which teams finally make certain picks. Where's Cam Ward going? Probably Tennessee. Where's Travis Hunter going? Where's Will Campbell going? Where are all these guys going?

But today we're going to look at the top linebacker and defensive backs prospects coming up in the draft. In terms of quarterbacks, we already there's already one defensive back that we all know that's going top five. That's Travis Hunter, or I should say defensive back slash wide receiver. But right now we're going to take a quick look at the linebackers. the Swish swishing swishing. Help me. You're you're the draft. Wessinger, Schwestinger, Adam misspelt it, but that's OK. I'm going to change it, but we're all big Adam fans here. Some would describe us as radical members of the Adam caucus, but I

guess Schwestinger, Schwestinger for all y'all at home. You're not. I'm not. I The last year or so at least that I've been around two years or the This is my second year surprisingly. I'm thinking of it, but It's crazy, um CJ mr. Draft guy, so I feel like I've heard some of these names kind of consistently out of you Whether it be good whether it be bad you mr. Draft guy Tell me a little bit of something about these guys whether it be your who you like the most Who do you like the least who could be the most overrated of the bunch that we have here or you know Adam?

Obviously only put these guys names up because they're the top guys, but maybe there's someone that's in that top 10 prospect range that could turn some heads a little bit. Tell me tell me what you're thinking when you see this list. So when it comes to linebackers, even though he's the second highest rated, the headliner of this group is Jaylen Walker out of Georgia. This man, oh that's a bad man right there. Let me tell you something kids, listen up real good. He, when I think of player comps for him, especially like at the early goings. I view him kind

of as like an oversized Hassan Reddick because he could do it all. Sure, we know Reddick now as an edge rusher, but remember when he was first drafted, he could literally do anything, drop back into coverage, edge rush, that's the thing with Jaylen Walker. That's what he does. Now the only downside that immediately comes to me, right, is that he, it's his height. He's six foot one, but he's a respectable 243 pounds, pretty solid for an off-ball linebacker. That's all well and good in the metaphorical hood. But he's kind of a Swiss Army knife, and that's a double-edged sword, or in this case a double-edged knife.

I'm sorry, I had to say it, please forgive me. Or don't, it's really up to you. So here's my stance. Swiss Army knife players, the reason they're dangerous both on the field but to also draft is they have to go to a team that knows what they're doing. One example of such a versatile player is Isaiah Simmons, former linebacker out of Clemson. He could be safety. He could, this kid could literally line up in the slot. He could be there on design blitz packages. He could shadow the running back. He could do it all. He was very good. I remember. I remember him out of Clemson. That man was different. Yeah, he was. He was. He was the anchor of that defense. That's for sure.

Yeah however He went to the Arizona Cardinals a team that has been coached by bungler after bungler and Cliff Kingsbury literally just could not figure him out and as a result he became a bust So when you can do a little bit of everything really bad coaches could kind of screw you over But as a prospect alone, ooh, Jalen Walker's great In fact folks you may notice that the name of this episode is underrated and undervalued Because that's how defense is in this draft outside of pass rushers. There are some great defensive back prospects There are some great linebacker prospects and when you get to that whole

Sanders versus ward thing what position is tra Travis Hunter gonna play which don't worry we're gonna touch on that in a bit and You know and You know and oh Ashton Gentry and always will Campbell's arms these linebackers in DBs They get just completely swept under the rug They fall off the radar and it's not right Jaylen Walker is a dog and a half, and anyone will tell you that. So, so like I said, the big weakness

is just that he's undersized, and he can be raw specifically in man coverage, and he hasn't starred as much as you'd like. He's always been a rotational piece for Georgia, but last season he finally broke out and started 11 games outright. But oh my God, the strengths. He's really scary in zone coverage.

And when they do put him on the edge, he has one of the quickest first steps that you could put right up there with guys like Abdul Carter. He's fast, right? He runs a four, five, but it's not that he's fast. It's that he's quick, he's agile. He has this weird bend where he can just contour himself

in space to knock down these balls and even get under the arms of offensive linemen. And he plays, and look, don't get me wrong, he's no speed rusher either. This guy plays with power. You can tell, man, whenever he plays, just one word for me shows up, and that's weight room. This guy can easily, despite being being undersized he can throw at least college linemen off their blocks and his closing speed is great and not to mention its effort, its character, he's a high-motor guy. Not to mention there is this game against Kentucky I believe where every play this is one of those games where they decide hey today rushing the passer instead of dropping back and and he was like in their quarterback

Is it Vander Graaff? Is that his name? I forgot He was like in his phase like every play. That is what I am seeing from Jalen Walker He's gonna be he's gonna be a great player and honestly, there's a real shot He goes top 10 or at least that's what I've seen in a few mock drafts. I mean, he could very well be. And he is very, very, very deserving. So the thing with PFF, right, is we need to talk about Gihard Campbell next.

Who is their highest rated, And you can see right there, 117 combined tackles and 12 tackles for loss with the Alabama Crimson Tide. Now he is 6'3", right? He's also undersized, but not in that way. He's 6'3", but he's 2'35". So one guy's undersized in height, he's undersized with weight, but that is a quick fix.

He runs a four, five, 240, and so he's also fast, right? And the way he's evolved as a defender is just insane, which is weird because, do you know that when he was in high school, he played wide receiver and defensive end? the way that he plays receiver is just insane which is weird because you know that when he was in high school, he played wide receiver and defensive

end. Yeah, truth is stranger than fiction but but yeah, so I guess now that's that's probably a high school where you know you're tall as **** so you kind of have to do everything both. Yeah. like that's what happened when I was in high school. We had a there was one of my buddies was an edge rusher and he was an outside guy as well. He lined up more like in the slot sometimes, but he was a more sizable receiver.

It was about like my height, which is about 6'1", 6'2". I think he was like 6'2", but he did both receiver and edge rusher, but he wasn't like the main edge rusher. Yeah, it happens. Yeah. So what I like about Campbell is also I like about Walker. It's just versatility. That's the name of the game here.

Another one with an explosive first step. I would actually argue he's a little better in man coverage than Walker. And you see, here's the thing, he used to play almost exclusively on the edge, but he kind of converted to being an off ball linebacker. And I think a lot of that is, it's not so much the speed, which is there,

but it's just instincts, is that he has this advanced route recognition that makes him really dangerous in coverage. And he's got this good closing speed where if you're a running back and you're just about to get past the line as you turn that corner on those out running plays, he's gonna come in, he's gonna drop the hammer

and you as a running back are going to hurt as a result. He's a really young guy, but ever since his freshman season at Alabama, he has continued to improve. However, there are some weaknesses, and this could be considered a strength and a weakness, since it's kind of a double-edged sword. He has a really high motor. However, is that good? Oh, it's great. But this makes him become over-aggressive.

He's known to, how do I put this? He over commits to plays. He'll overrun his target. He'll get that tunnel vision where sometimes it can become really easy to fake him out. And the amount of times I have watched him fall for a play action or even a simple juke move like he always bites on the hesitation and That's something where sometimes just got to take a step back really diagnose a play. Those are things that can be coached out of them

and One issue that Walker doesn't have that Campbell does is tackling in space Kind of goes hand-in-hand like I said with that whole how easily he gets faked out. But yeah, he has missed some and missed pretty bad in space. But overall, these aren't like damning issues, they can be coached out of them. And he used to be, at least, these mock drafts first started coming out at the end of the NFL season, he was considered kind of like a fringe first rounder. But now there is no doubt in my mind that he is going round one.

In fact, I would not be shocked if he went top 20. So with Campbell and Walker, those are the two big guys. Now there's another one who has been shooting up draft boards and that is Carson Schlesinger. He kind of came out of nowhere. I can't lie to you. I originally had him pegged as a early to mid fourth round pick because there's nothing where he stands out. He runs a four 740 which is pretty solid

for a linebacker. He's six to 242. Uh but here's the thing, right? His vertical jump is like 39 and a half inches. That's like the percentile of linebackers. That's like the Remember the interception that Fred Warner had against the Pats? Yeah, or he just like what two or three or something week three? Yeah, yeah, like he just fucking climbed the ladder and got up there and got like that was insane Like that that'd be something that you would

Love to see Yeah Really it is So the thing is he? He's a little with a high motor. And it's like, he's not the fastest, but he's one of the quickest. The lateral movement, the change in direction, just that sideline to sideline range

that maybe not north-south fast, but he's east-west fast. And that is good. However, sometimes he can play too fast. And he's another one where like Jahog Campbell, which really more so with Schwestinger, he will overrun plays. But, you know, once again, that can be coached out of him. And he's not really a pass rusher, like at all.

and he's not really a pass rusher at all. He's very raw when it comes to block shedding and once bigger guys, not really problem with tight ends, but mostly with linemen, when they can pick up the blitz and he gets stopped, he gets nullified pretty fast. But he's a good angry like downhill runner and tackler. He's really fluid. Also I like about him is the football IQ. I would say in terms of football IQ and these linebackers, he's second only to Jaylen

Walker who is obviously the best linebacker in this class. And he's another one that can just recognize plays outright before they happen and Even though he can be neutralized if the blitz is picked up that doesn't mean it's not for lack of trying He's a nasty tackle or two just and the body control is top-notch. He's my third I know he's not with the top three highest rated, but that is my third linebacker right there. I Also have to talk about Demetrius Knight Jr. He's one that I'm not as bullish on. He's a six year collegiate player,

who played with three programs. I remember, fun fact, he was a dual threat quarterback, I believe, in high school. Then he started with Georgia Tech, he transferred to Charlotte, and then of course he ends at the University of South Carolina. He's really good, he really came into his own this year, but I'm not gonna lie, in a day where linebackers, He's really good. He really came

You know, we're just the agility and change of direction is just not what you want to see. And he's more content to lay out hit sticks and play with his pads high, which you know, that's not great. And also he's just not that good at man coverage. And even though a straight line speed is solid, don't get me wrong. Like wrong I said the agility is not there and he can be caught flat-footed But oh my god this guy hits and he hits hard

but another one like swessinger this violent angry just like Downhill tackler where he would just lay into you and also he's dangerous on a blitz, right? If this guy is part of your blitz package, he can make a QB's life a living hell okay, and he's also saw a blockshedder too and Well, his man coverage isn't great he can stick to a zone and that's definitely something that I think he can expand upon in the NFL and That's pretty much I mean Chris Paul, Jr. Is okay, but the one that I'm really not crazy about is Jeffrey Bossa from Oregon So Chris Paul, Jr. Is fine

And there are other guys do that like like Barrett Carter and Danny Stutzman and even smell Monden jr. To an extent But bassa for me is probably my ninth or tenth linebacker. See look he's another one's undersized. 6'1", 232. He's got a 7.3 second three cone drill. His vertical jump is 38.5. That's nuts and he runs a four, six 40, but just the agility is not there for this guy. And also this might sound weird, but and Chris, you played football, you know, and there's that there's a difference

between strength and play strength, right? You'd say that? Yeah, it's a strong dude, but the play strength can Disappear sometimes especially against Lyman where you've had at times. He's been pancakes That's not ideal. But but there's other things too like I think when you say play strength I think that just is more of a technique thing at that point though. Yeah He can get swallowed up entirely by Horses yeah, I know no diddy no diddy

by Certain kinds of linemen especially like the taller ones where the technique just and though like I said overall play strength just don't Exactly work, but then again When you talk about that he's just he's got good timing But I think that more correlates to coverage another one He's got good coverage instincts and a lot of that's because his background is safety,

and he can play the run effectively, but he's better on like designed blitzes, like disguises, right? Because if you have him blitzed on the jump, like a rush six then usually he can be neutralized pretty fast also he's a good leader too like you know because he was there I believe Oregon's Mike linebacker and they have him barking out plays as well you know like that that tends to happen but yeah

Sorry, I dropped my phone Okay, but yeah, cuz you know something news pops up and stuff So there's that And also he's another one where I think he's a dog You know just another one who's just not afraid to get dirty his technique needs some serious refinement but the motor is there and that's what you like so Overall those linebackers that's basically my two cents on them And there are some other ones too that I definitely think could be steals and later rounds like Kobe King from Penn State

Cody Simon from the national champion the Ohio State University Notre-Dames Jack Kaiser as well, our ones, Jalen Dumas Johnson from Kentucky, is, or Teddy Buchanan from Cal. Those are like some good, just remember that, those could be some good late round pickups, but overall, there's one more prospect that we didn't get to that I want to talk about.

Oklahoma's Danny Stutzman. Six three, two 33, four five 40. Oh my God, this man. Sounds like specimen. Yeah, he's a specimen and a half, my man. So I'm not gonna lie to you. He's not a coverage guy. The upside is there, I think, but it's limited.

But let me tell you something. He is an elite run stuffer. When you have a guy on the goal line and you need a linebacker, or I mean, if it's like a the goal line and you need a linebacker Or I mean if it's like a goal line situation and you need a linebacker going to stop the run Stutzman's your guy He has this great what we call, you know, the downhill trigger He's just got a natural feel for navigating traffic at the line. He's kind of another one I said with a night junior who's kind of like from that bygone era

But make no mistake, Danny Stutzman has a place in the NFL. And what I like about him is just it's the football IQ, the leadership who has earned praise from all manner of college coaches for his practice habits and that pre-snap communication and adjustment. So yeah, he's one that I'm also saying like whatever team gets him the third round could very well get a jam.

Nice. That's a good way to wrap it up. Yeah, that's really all I got. I'm ready to move on to DBs when you are. Cool. We're gonna take a quick break before we do that. This is the Full Marushka Podcast. Well, we're gonna take a quick break before we do that. This is the Full Marushka Podcast. It may not have always showed it in the staff sheet, but you can see him making throws when he needs to make the throws.

Back to back games where he has three touchdowns. Someone's gotta get that six or seven spot. He's an elite wide receiver as a rookie. Truly a lose-l lose scenario for both sides. This is the Bulbarisky Podcast. I'm Chris Gost. This is CJ Medeiros. This is powered by Powerade18 Radio and Secret Weapon Consulting. Sorry for the little little hiccup there. Mr. Adam Wright, our executive producer and I were fighting over the the brakes, the brake board. So we're gonna we're gonna take a look at the cornerbacks now. PFF has the

top rated cornerbacks. Of course, Travis Hunter, we talked about we briefly briefly briefly mentioned that at the top of the show. Today, Baron Will Johnson, Siobhan Ravel and Trey Amos. So, as much Travis Underbane at the top, he's consensus certainly going to the Titans through reports including the fact that Tennessee cancelled all their visits with all their prospects that isn't named Cam Ward out of respect for everyone not to waste anyone's time. I respect that. I respect that very much.

Just make it clear. You have the number one pick. The cards are on. You respect that very much. Just make it clear. You have the number one pick. The cards are on you hold all the chips. So good move on them. The one thing about Will Johnson is that he missed most of this past year with Turf Toe. That's probably one of the bigger things to think about is that you've Probably saw him for like not like a quarter of the season really um, so it's not Not the best situation for will johnson have cj. Do you know what turf toe is because i've had turf toe Uh, i'm not well versed in it. Why don't you explain for our viewers? Yeah

Basically, it's when you jam the shit out of your toe like think about jamming your finger or like say jam your thumb Like that's what turf toe is but it's to a greater extent and like I've had turf toe before but to a much minor extent where like and I was just a quarterback too, I can play on turf toe. And like, it's hard to walk, but I was able to get over it like by the next game. So it was very minor, but it still hurt like a bitch. So I can only imagine having turf toe so bad that you miss the majority of a season and there's guys that miss like multiple just multiple games at a time in general from turf toe.

It's insane. But what do you what do you think of Will Johnson though? Because obviously you have this kind of looming over his head could hurt his stock a little bit. It's kind of like It's kind of like like a Rob Gronkowski type situation he ended up missing what most of the 2009 2000 2009 season at Arizona because of the back issues or Nick issue the Rupture disc I forget what it was exactly

But he had a lot of issues with that Didn't hurt his draft stock too much, but in this case it could for Will Johnson Yeah, I mean The thing is will Johnson I I Do How do I put this? I'm a fan, I am. And I know the injury concerns suck,

but as a prospect, he runs a 439.40, he's 6'2", which is really good for a corner, a 194 for weight, I mean, that's good enough. I mean, it keeps you fast. But yeah, the injury, for me, that is the big weakness, right? The fact that he missed that much time with turf toe, which honestly, yeah, turf toe, from what you've described, sucks.

And if it's that bad, especially when it's a position you can run around, I mean, where you can't run around, that's, ugh, yeah, I shudder to think about it, I really do. But overall, there are some like minor things that I think you can work out. Like he has a nasty habit of when he gets beaten off the line, he can get really grabby, you know.

And some of the stuff that flies in college, you and I both know will not fly in the NFL. And he's known to miss tackles sometimes, especially like as a junior. He will drop his head and lunge, rather than like actually break a player down in space. And there's one thing, this is easily coachable, but there are times where he peeks,

you know what I mean? Whereas if you're a DB, you don't wanna peek in the backfield with a QB because that's good, but if you do it too often, it becomes blatantly obvious that you're looking for interceptions, right? And he does that. And sometimes when you keep your eyes fixed

on the quarterback, the wide receiver can run right by, which can lead to a flag, as I recently mentioned. But the thing is, these can all be coached out of him, right? These are really minor issues. I mean, for being a six to corner, the fluidity is insane. His football IQ is great, especially in zone coverage, just the anticipation where he, you know, with these players making their breaks, we just diagnosis routes and come to the punch.

Now, that is really what you want in a corner. He's a great competitor. He's got these really good ball skills too. Like I remember that interception against USC. Ah, just insane. And he's patient too. I mean, sure he can be a little overeager when it comes to just looking at the quarterback. But when that's not

the case, he's able to just stick with the receivers and break on the ball when he needs to. So but the thing is, like I said, but when he gets beaten, it's a different story. But just in a vacuum, the skills are there. And not to mention what I like about him is sometimes players get passed on, right? Because of scheming. Most notable example is the 2023 NFL draft, the Washington commanders passed on Christian Gonzalez

and instead took Emmanuel Forbes from Mississippi State. Because even though Gonzalez was the superior prospect, Forbes was the scheme fit, right? That's something you always got to consider in the draft, who fits the scheme. Will Johnson is scheme versatile, all right? He can be a press man, he can be zoned and he can start day one.

There's that. Word, word. Tell me about some of these other guys that we listed and kind of same deal with the linebackers, right? And we'll take Will Johnson off the list unless you wanna bring him up again as maybe like a overrated or underrated guy amongst this list. Travis Hunter today, Baron, Will Johnson,

Siobhan Ravel, Trey Amos, or if there's someone on the list that you wanna throw in there to, by all means, Mr. Draftman. So I wanna start with the elephant in the room. That is one Travis Hunter from the Colorado Golden Buffaloes. I don't really know if it's much to mention though,

because I feel like that he's gonna just be used as a receiver depending on the system. That's what's worth mentioning. The big question on everyone's mind, is he gonna be a corner or a receiver? Because I remember I was once talking about it with Adam you all know Adam. We've all seen him before We were talking about this and apparently the Titans view him as a corner The Giants I believe view him as a corner the Patriots view him as a receiver

And I believe the Browns do as well if I'm wrong. Let me know if nothing whatever he Like I said, it's just Regardless of whether you're looking for a corner receiver you don't want to draft him one way and Then be a surprise. I'm gonna be the opposite of what you expected So for the love of god, ifl teams do your due diligence looking at you, cleveland Because I feel like that's where he's gonna go spoiler alert, but whatever

But yeah, so we already know what he is he's the best corner of all of them he's a known commodity Let's just keep this train rolling There's one guy who I don't think gets enough love. That is Jaday Baron from the University of Texas. I like this dude. I do, pause. Chris is gonna get on me if I don't say nice today Baron

Runs a 439 40. The only issue is he's undersized a tat, you know, he's uh, I think he's 511 Which is still fine for a corner his wingspan his arm. Like by the way is 29 and 5-s inches. It's not great. So especially when you gotta go up there, that could be concerning. But I don't let that bother me. I don't. Cause let me tell you something.

He's got elite processing. You know, when working with head coach, Steve Sartezian down in Texas, you're gonna pick up some stuff and just the switch release, the back pedal, just the processing where he uses to just knock the ball out and get picks. That. Oh man, that makes all the difference in the world. And even though he's small, he's got that dog in him. Let me tell you, the way he tackles,

like where he just throws his whole body at you, and actually it's not just about getting the big hit, the way he actually takes proper angles, that is instinct, and you can't teach instinct. And let me tell you, he's got instinct in drugs. And for me, I see him more as a zone guy, because that's really where the majority of instincts are. Don't get me wrong.

But his press man technique is there, despite the fact he doesn't have the best size to be a press man corner, it's still there, but oh my God, the zone, that's what you want. Just the spatial awareness and just the lurk, right? If you're, most good corners know, or all of them I would say know, that you gotta be able to lurk, right?

You know, just shadow the receiver, sit in your zone and then make the play. And this guy does it game after game after game, and it's going to the point where it's simply second nature to him. And that's the kind of processing that can and will translate in the NFL. And the only, like I said, the weakness, once again, just like he's a little undersized, but overall, I kinda can liken him to Jehag Campbell, where that aggressive mentality can really work against him. And he will bite on play action

or just simple misdirections like jukes and spin moves. And sometimes he takes false steps that will show his hand, right? I mean, Chris, you are a QB, you know all about how to get the, you know, how you can fool the corner again to show his hand early, you know, so you can get the body of receiver.

But once again, these are things that can be clean up. I'm a huge Today Baron fan. I'm a big fan. You got a uh what was that? I say, no, feel free to weigh in. I got nothing else to really add on. I, hey, man, this is this is your time to just spew

on pause but yeah, I appreciate it but you know what I mean? Like this, I'm letting this be the CJ show really. I'm just, I appreciate it. I'm not gonna watch it but you know what I mean like this I'm letting this be the CJ show really. I'm just I appreciate it. I'm just here to watch but uh there is one guy though who's uh interesting to me. That is Siobhan Ravel Jr. or I

think it's Revel actually. Siobhan Revel from the from Eastern Carolina University. He is a good corner. The measurables are all there. 6'2", 194, a 4'4", 40, got a solid wingspan in the 73rd percentile, 77th percentile in arm length. So that's good. He's got what you want. He has even drawn comparisons. If you go to nfldraftbuzz.com,

super reliable draft website, he's getting similarity comparisons to guys like Sauce Gardner and Christian Gonzalez. website. He's getting similarity comparisons to guys like Sauce Gardner and Christian Gonzalez. That's great. I think one of those is great. One of those isn't so

great. but you know, but the comp is good. The issue. Yeah. Yeah. I like the Christian Gonzalez comp. It's maybe see him sliding out of the top 20. Because the highlight reel, honestly, I think it speaks for itself, but usually these major injuries like ACL tears in college, that's something that you really

have to do your research on, obviously. Because the athleticism is there. He's an elite athlete. He's a smooth runner. His recovery speed is great. He plays physical and his ball skills have improved every year. But the question now is,

will that ACL tear negatively impact him down the road? And even before the ACL injury, he really only had one season of elite production. The obvious physical tools are there, but obviously the ACL thing, that is what scares you. Forget turf toe, right? That could be bad, but an ACL tear, maybe that might make you as a scout pump the brakes.

Yeah. It's much different, much different than turf tow. That's for sure. That's correct. And while we're talking about corners, or just DBs in general, I wanna take a quick second before we wrap up to talk about safeties.

Two in particular, these are 1A and 1B. Georgia's Malachi Starks and South Carolina's Nick Emanwory. Malachi Starks from the University of Georgia. Look, Georgia's a defense factory. Just ask the Philadelphia Eagles, all right? Oh my God. Malachi-Starks, 6'1", 197. I'm not going to lie, the physicals outside of his 40,

where he runs a 4.5, aren't the best. You know, sub-20th percentiles in the shuttle, vertical, and three-cone, but he's 87th in the 10 yard in the 10 yard there. So that's good. That's good. That's good. But, oh man, his effectiveness against the run. He's your Swiss army knife, right? He can, he's good against the run. He's got track speed. That's good He's got that he's not the most agile in the world, but he's got that good straight line speed and for me It's all about technique. It's about the hand usage It's about change of direction and it's about how you cover and zone

especially as a safety and he checks every box and and he checks every box and He also did run a 435 that is pro day I believe so maybe take that four or five with a grain of salt but He's another one where You could debate is he a football player or is he an athlete? And when I say athlete, I mean, you heard me talk about all the physicals maybe aren't the best, but the speed is there.

That's what I mean. He does have track speed because I believe he has a track background, obviously. But he trusts his speed too much sometimes. But he trusts his speed too much sometimes. Sometimes he's like, oh, hey, if I get beat, it's no big deal, I just got the good recovery speed or I can make that tackle. When sometimes he just can't.

The amount of questionable angles I've seen him take is just not good. And sometimes him diagnosing on the fly leads to just a bunch of missed tackles as there was an uptick last season. But overall he's good. But for me the really intriguing prospect is Nick Emanwory from the University of South Carolina. from the University of South Carolina. This man, all right, listen to this. He's 6'3", 220 pounds, runs a 4'3", 8'40", and a 43 inch vertical and a 138 inch broad jump.

That's the 99th percentile for verticals, the 100th percentile for broad jumps, and the 96th for 40, at least for his position. This guy kind of reminds me of Kyle Hamilton and Derwin James, those are my comps for him. Okay. He has that real, you know,

he has a 438 speed at 6.3, that just scary size speed combo. Just a nasty tackler and run support. Great tackle radius. And on top of that, good ball skills, good route recognition, quick, quick, quick mental processing and just natural hands, good body control, no wasted motion.

However, he's another one like Starks that just relies too heavily on his physical gift, where sometimes he'll try to just overwhelm receivers at the catch rather than playing with proper technique. He's another one who bets on himself. And while that's good, you gotta know there's a time and a place because sometimes you just try to out physical receivers especially in the NFL nine out of ten times that flags coming out and

He could be overly Aggressive and like I said sometimes He can draw some pretty unfortunate Flags and the straight line speed is good But the one thing I will say is his change of direction unfortunate flags and the straight line speed is good, but The one thing I will say is his change of direction He's just very stiff in that regard. He's not as fluid as you'd like but once again a straight line speed is there so for me Evan worry and

Starks for me are 1A a tad bit more than Starks. But I do think they're both locks to go in the first round. Nice. I mean, I would be shocked if both of them fell. For example, in Pete Prisco's mock draft, he has them both going in the first round. He has Starks going 24th and Eman Worry going 32nd. But either way, I do think they're both worthy of going in the first round at barest of minimums. Word.

But my one takeaway for this episode that I want you all home to remember is, next time you hear about, oh, hey, Travis Hunter, or Cam Ward, or Abdul Carter, or any of these other storylines like, oh, can Ashton Gentry, is he worth the top 10 pick? Will Campbell's arms, ooh, Shiver Me Timbers, ooh, short arms like that means anything.

Or oh, Chaudhry Sanders is a bum, which he's not. Take a step back and remember, there's a lot of good DBs and a lot of good linebackers. This is actually a really good DB class and it's also a fair linebacker class, the the the the the the the

the the the kids. I like it. We're going to step aside for a quick break when we come back. We're going to get into uh teams who need these draft groups that is linebackers in defensive backs. This is the the Fumble Ruski podcast. It may not have always

showed it in the staff sheet, but you can see him making throws when he needs to make the throws back to back games where he has three touchdowns. Someone's gotta get that six or seven spot. He's an elite wide receiver as a rookie truly a lose-lose scenario for both sides Welcome back. This is full mercy podcast. He's CJ. Medeiros. I'm Chris Kostich so When we talk about linebackers and defensive backs, obviously got to talk about the teams that need said position groups that teams need.

In terms of needing both, it's Buffalo, Carolina, Tampa Bay. Feel like Buffalo is pretty straightforward, especially when you have so many injury concerns on defense and they just need a full cleansing on defense. I think is probably the safest way to say that. We can touch on the linebackers first though, since that is what we started the show with. In terms of linebackers, according to Pro Football Focus, pretty short list, Atlanta,

Cincinnati, Detroit. Indianapolis, Tennessee. Um Indiana. Atlanta, Sensei, Detroit, Indianapolis, Tennessee. Yeah, they're missing one. I think Chris, that's not your fault. Of course. Yeah, the Panthers. No, no, no. Someone else. Oh yeah.

because Carolina's both II get please no, no, no, no. I the I'm looking at. Yo, my picks I'm not a future Hall of Famer. But he's old, old man. And okay, football, football. No offense, Levante. I'm sure you're a wonderful guy. Probably is, but I mean, can you imagine Jayla Walker, Jihad Campbell in Tampa just learning under somebody as great as Levante dated?

Because look, you don't have Devin White anymore. He was great and then he just fell off So you're gonna have to take another swing and also they could go safety too, you know Get another guy to pair up with Antoine Winfield Yeah, but as far as the Panthers go I Don't think that they're, they could go Jalen Walker, because I feel like he would go first before Campbell. They could go at Walker, you know, but I don't, I don't know how to feel about that, I mean, at least in the top 10. You know? But I think he's worth it.

But I don't know, some of those linebackers go in top 10. It's kind of like, you know, going running back. No matter how great they are, it's like, you know, really. Like you got to hit on like a Luke Keighley type ordeal to. Yeah, that's the thing. Yeah. But you need like a shirt thing. And honestly, and like I said, it's not a Walker thing.

It's more of a Panthers thing. And I said, when you have these guys, these Swiss army knife type of players, you need a coach that can maximize that because there are so many coaches. I said like Cliff Kingsbury did with Isaiah Simmons where they could just absolutely kill someone and I don't want that for Jaylen Walker for real Yeah

Especially when no team that Wanted to touch on was Indianapolis and Tennessee because those defenses weren't good Especially in the run and when you look because those defenses weren't good, especially in the run. And when you look at the linebackers as well, at least on Indy's side, they still have Zaire Franklin, who had a pretty solid year. He was third in the league in terms of solo tackles,

had five forced fumbles. But he's also 28, he's not getting any younger. But Indianapolis needs a whole regroup in terms of linebacker. If we look at the current weak side linebacker, it's Jalen Carlies who had- Who? Exactly. 24 total tackles last season. If he played in he played in One two three four five six seven eight nine ten games

Ten games only 24 tackles solo 36 total So you need to help on that side Tennessee I felt Tennessee wasn't a terrible defense, but it was kind of like the same thing. Their run game was not or the run defense wasn't all that great. And right now for linebackers, they have Dromond Jones, Cody Baran, Otis Reese. Could be better. Could be better. Yeah, I feel like whether it's Walker or Campbell because those are the only two linebackers that I think are worthy of going in the first round. Yeah, I definitely think they're immediately going to boost wherever they go, be it Carolina, be it Indy, be it. Oh it Even the Titans. Yeah Cincinnati just needs a full wipe down as well kind of the same thing that I said with Buffalo

Detroit Detroit's an interesting one Did they lose anyone? Some oh Carlton Davis, that's right. That's about it. Um Oh Carlton Davis, that's right. That's about it. Um Just quickly looking at their defense right now or they lost or they didn't lose Anzaloni No, the biggest loss for Detroit. I do believe is Carlton Davis Yeah, and it's for the Titans, like it says on the screen, like they just need all the help they can get

and I fully expect them to go defense like in the draft, be it Walker or DB. Yeah. I guess the main concern when you have, when you look at Detroit's defense, just the injury concerns, especially from last year, that's probably the main thing when you look at Detroit's defense just the injury concerns, especially from last year That's probably the main thing that you look at but besides Anzaloni in terms of linebackers Jack Campbell and Malcolm Rodriguez. They didn't have the most spectacular

By the way, Chris, I want to clarify something about the Titans. I'm aware they have the first overall pick. I'm just saying I've heard some rumors that they might trade back into the first round. And if they do, then I definitely think they're gonna do that. Because they have the ability to, they have really high picks in every round. So they could definitely, I believe they more than have the ability

to manage a trade up. I am in no way suggesting they would do that with the first overall. Yeah Look at the DB side It's a more comprehensive list. I'm not gonna name all of them I'm just gonna go we will just go through a couple that I find interesting or more obvious Baltimore being one of them they had one of the worst past defenses in the league or they did have the worst Or second worst in terms of passing yards allowed for the viewers that are watching on YouTube for listeners 4,150 passing yards allowed last season which was second most in the NFL

Did not do good at all last season in terms of that And that I think that was a very big vocal point throughout the season was how bad the past defense was. Um, the run defense was great. They like, that was the one thing about the Ravens defense though. They had one of the best run defenses, but they also had one of the worst past defenses. So, yeah, fix that. Carolina, as we said, both Cleveland. Yeah, that's Cleveland's one that they need to really figure it out over there. Green Bay, I think as well, especially when you got Jair Alexander

himself as an injury concern. He's a good corner, but he's got injury concerns over there. That is for certain. Philly. I think Philly's interesting one as well because they got rid of Slay, they got rid of Bradbury. I think there was a third. It's leaving me right now, though. Oh, Slay, Bradbury. Wait. Oh, for losses? Yeah.

Yeah. Oh, they traded CJ Garner Johnson. That's right. So lost three corners in that, right? You still have Quinian Mitchell and Cooper Dejean who had spectacular rookie seasons, but you don't know what the hell's gonna happen in year two. And once you go past those two, there's not a lot of depth.

So there's not really a lot of depth. So they need to really uh Get going on secondary for this next season washington Kind of the same ordeal They've missed on secondary pieces a lot. They do have marshall and latimore now, so that helps a lot But you know, they they've missed a couple times on corners via draft or free agency One in particular that comes to mind is their

2023 first round pick I can't think of his name though And pretty sure he just he got released some point last season or as the end of the season Wilkerson or Farley I forget it cuz I don't know if that was 2023 but I know they whipped on a guy. Yeah I can't think of his name but that's one. Then you look at the top five passing yards allowed there. Jacksonville was the number one. Baltimore two. Detroit three 3 Tampa Bay for Minnesota 5 we talked about Tampa Bay a little bit already Minnesota CJ who did Minnesota lose? Well, if any honestly Minnesota never had anyone to begin with yeah as far as I mean there

For a while their past defense has not been great. Yeah It's usually yeah, it's always it's usually been the defense that's been a little weird but they still they have Harrison Smith But kind of same ordeal. He's not getting any younger Byron Murphy Jr. Jr. Is all right, but then you also got the O Jackson I see a Rogers and Nagy Thompson Yeah, they added Isaiah Rogers. That was good. I just feel like they need more. Yeah I'm not sure if you can see that on the right but then you also got Theo Jackson, Isaiah Rogers, and Najee Thompson. Yeah, they added Isaiah Rogers. That was good but I just feel like

they need more. Yeah, they do have Ohio State legend Jeff Okuda as their third corner or one of their third corners but it you definitely need some help. That is that's for sure. Um yeah. Commanders, Emmanuel I'm Yeah commanders Emanuel Forbes, that's who it was Man, you know, I'm snake you out. Oh, yeah, he'll be fine. Oh, yeah

Yeah Giants is another one that's they have a great front. They got a great front seven But other than that, it's nothing great front seven But other than that, it's nothing Giants, uh, I mean depending what the Browns do I guess they could go Travis Hunter if they see him or as a corner Or both. I mean kind of I Mean, I'll cut the same thing

that I've felt is that he could potentially play both ways or like play more Oh one or the other and then Play more so one or the other and then play less. So the other That makes sense yeah, I like like 60 40 70 30 type of ordeal You have a point we should but yeah, I know where we're approaching an hour. We should probably Yeah, I got I honestly got nothing left. I think To really say in terms of that. I think we kind of covered these teams pretty well Or at least the teams that I think are more eye-catching in terms of yeah, they're gonna be looking to do

This upcoming draft. You got anything? But that is all of our scheduled content for today, CJ. Got anything else you wanted to throw out there? No. No, I don't. Cool. That'll do it for us today. Thank you for tuning in, of course. New episode coming out on Friday at 5. New episodes also available on YouTube, Spotify, Spreaker, Apple Podcasts, I Heart Radio, you name it. Be sure to follow our Instagram, Fulmarovski underscore podcast,

keep up with the pod and the latest coverage on the NFL. I'm Chris Kostich, it's C.J. Medeiros. Thank you for tuning in for another Tuesday edition of the Fumblerusky podcast and we'll see you on Friday. Over and out.