May 24, 2013

NFL Mock Draft: Dion Jordan is the latest pass-rusher du jour

March 14, 2013 by 24 Comments

Mel Kiper Jr, and Todd McShay, the pair of ESPN draft experts who will grace televisions across the country for the next several weeks, not only agree on the position of need for the Cleveland Browns, they have agreed on what player would be best if the team decides to stick with the sixth-overall selection in the upcoming draft: Oregon pass-rusher Dion Jordan.

While the two have largely wavered between edge rushing components for the Browns (Kiper recently pegged the Browns with BC’s Bjoer Werner; McShay was a fan of LSU’s Barkevious Mingo), Jordan is the player who both experts feel will add the most impact for a team in the midst of a change of scheme.

Per Kiper:

The Browns had one of the worst pass rushes in the league last year, even with Jabaal Sheard around. Jordan is a long, explosive pass-rusher with freakish athleticism and an ability to work in space. This is a guy you want to unleash in a 3-4.

Free-agency factor: The Browns could be looking for some pass-rush help, but they won’t find a player with better value than Jordan for their system. Yes, the Browns could still make a move for a quarterback, but I’m quite certain they won’t use this pick for one if they can’t add one via free agency or trade.

Per McShay:

Under new coordinator Ray Horton, the Browns could feature multiple fronts with an eye on transitioning to more of a base 3-4 defense. Jordan is a phenomenal athlete who fits best working out of a two-point stance.

He has the length, speed and athleticism to immediately make a significant contribution as a pass-rusher and pursuit run-defender. Jordan also has good awareness in coverage and unusually fluid hips for his 6-foot-6 frame. The combination of Jordan opposite Jabaal Sheard would cause problems for opposing offenses.

Jordan is an extremely athletic 6-feet-6-inches, 250 pounds. Where the recently-added Paul Kruger has been shrouded with concerns over his ability to play on all three downs, Jordan provides the upside and skill set to cause havoc after every snap of the ball.

Both Kiper and McShay have West Virginia quarterback Geno Smith going seventh-overall to the Arizona Cardinals. Both also have Georgia’s Jarvis Jones and LSU’s Mingo going later in the first round.

[Related: Brendan Leister talks Browns pickups – WFNY Podcast]

Related Posts

Zemanta
Filed Under: Headlines Tagged With: , , , , ,
  • saggy

    Jordan needs to hit the weight room.

  • MSkog

    I love the idea of drafting Jordan. Well, not Jordan per say but an elite pass rusher. I haven’t scouted any of these guys & have no intention to so I cannot pretend to say it should be Jordan over Mingo or anyone else. But I’m completely buying the pressure defense that Banner is selling. A top flight pass rusher is a necessity.

  • JHop

    With the signings of Kruger and Groves, why would the Browns draft another OLB? We already have three when Sheard is thrown in the mix. Assuming the Browns sign CB help through free agency as well, I’m not sure there’s anyone for the Browns to draft at #6 overall. Unless they’re willing to gamble on Geno Smith, of course.

  • TSR3000

    McShay is describing exactly what we need. The Q is: do we believe him?

  • mgbode

    first, if the OLB is the BPA, then you take him. you can always use another way to get after the QB. Groves is for depth, Sheard is an unknown, and Kruger had a great 1/2 season. getting another option isn’t a bad thing. i’d take Milliner at this point, but I don’t think he’ll be there.

  • JHop

    I’d bet that they’d be more willing to trade down at this point than take another OLB at 6. Trade down into the teens and take Warmack or a WR

  • porkchop

    Excuse me, who’s the Pass Rusher Du Jour?

    He’s the Pass rusher of the Day.

    Sounds Great! I’ll take him.

    Whenever I hear the word “freakish athlete” now I tune out whoever is talking. Its like when morons stole the word diva to describe any snotty female singer. There was a time when diva meant Aretha, Diana, or Babs, and that was it. There was a time when freakish meant Bo Jackson. Now everytime a 250 lb man jumps verticals 40 inches he becomes a “freak”. These kids today, I tell ya… Hold on a second

    (opens door) “No, you’re not getting your frisbee back, you shouldn’t have thrown it over my wrought iron fence! Now it belongs to my 15 cats.

  • mgbode

    okay, i’ve been relatively quiet on the draft prospects this year, and there is a reason. i’m baffled by them. the pass rushers are all jumbled up and there is no clear distinction. they all have HUGE red flags and all have HUGE upside. there are likely multiple guys here who will be great and multiple who will bust. i really hope our scouts are better than the other teams.

    no particular order:

    Jarvis Jones – spinal stenosis (or not). he was incredibly productive and disruptive for UGa last year. spent his career in opposing teams backfields and is quick, fast, and instinctive. but, he’s also a bit smaller and teams can (and did) run right at him and he struggled with it.

    Damonte Moore – great film. he dominated SEC OL’s and made a huge impact. But, he failed the combine and only made modest improvements at A&M’s pro-day (and left injured). he’s the type of guy that goes late 1st and provides an impact after a season or two.

    Dion Jordan – great in coverage and very shifty. only really had one move to the QB. he’s the fastest and has some big upside, but again is sort of thin and can be run at.

    Mingo – best name. great upside. terrible film. i mean, he’d disappear for halves, quarters, games. he has all the physical attributes, but hasn’t put it together yet. if you could put Moore’s instincts in Mingo’s body, then you’d have DeMarcus Ware.

    Ansah – only played football a few years and he’s not nearly as fast as these other guys. might be the best against the run, but he’s not going to be the guy who is in the QBs face the whole game. great motor and work ethic according to all. interesting project.

    Alex Okafor – someone is going to have to explain to me why Okafor is a late 1st round pick compared to these other guys. he is right there with them and is incredibly disruptive. he’s even played some 3-4 OLB as that is one of the formations the Horns use to throw teams off balance. I think he’s going to be incredible and he is one of the guys I would target if we trade down (heck, I’d consider him at #6 with the other guys – not sure how to separate but he’d be in the conversation).

    Ogletree – he’s not as good as Jarvis Jones. I think that is simple enough on him.

    Werner – just say no to the 3-4. he’s a 4-3 guy with a questionable motor. he’s the one guy on the list I have seen that I am confident to pass on.

  • G. Wesley

    While I’ll admit Jordan is a freak talent(ala Javon Kearse) his height and lanky frame may be a disadvatage at the next level and may ultimately lead to injuries! I believe it would be a huge mistake for cleveland to talk themselves out of drafting Ezekiel Ansah, who has upside and the versitility to dominate all over the D-line (unlike Kruger, Jordan, Groves, Mingo, etc)! Mark my words, “A Mistake”!!!!

  • mgbode

    transire ruunt specialitas diei

  • porkchop

    How can you not believe McShay? The guys butts on the line with these mock drafts. If 95% of the players on his big board don’t pan out the way he says they will he’s fired. ESPN has a zero tolerance policy for bluster and space filling. If he’s wrong he’s out of a job, to me that means McShay’s word is bond.

  • mgbode

    or an OLB, CB, or S. all are options and a trade-down seems ideal. Miami makes the most sense:

    Jake Long to the Rams. Miami is
    pushing it’s chips to the middle of the table and would desperately need
    an OT. there is a good chance (with AZ and at least 1 team ahead of
    us picking an OT) that they are the prime trade-down candidate for us as
    there are only 3 elite OT prospects in this draft.

    because of our position 1 slot ahead of Arizona, here are the situations:

    (1) no OTs gone,
    no pressure for Miami to take our slot. Not likely to happen.

    (2) 1 OT gone,
    Miami knows AZ is taking 1 of them, they trade up to get their preferred guy of the 2 remaining. Most likely to happen.

    (3) 2 OTs gone,
    Miami knows AZ wants the last one, bidding war and we get a bounty. Best scenario for us, but I don’t think it’ll come to pass.

    (4) 3 OTs gone,
    Miami doesn’t want to trade up, but we don’t want to trade down because it also means that there will be alot more of the talent we want falling to us. Also, not very likely.

  • mgbode

    also, McShay got the job for agreeing to always disagree with Kiper. And, disagreeing with Kiper is a good way at being right 95% of the time.

  • RGB

    Milliner has got to be the pick, if available.

  • Natedawg86

    I can see Joeckel to KC and the Eagles also taking a OT (Fisher). I could see AZ taking Smith…but they did just pick up Stanton from DET

  • mgbode

    yes, our odds of KC drafting an OT went down when they kept Albert, but you never know (they might want a longer term solution and Reid likes drafting for the lines).

  • Chucky Brown

    Im intrigued by X.Rhodes, whats the general consensus in these parts?

  • mgbode

    as an overall prospect, I like him a bunch. but, he is a big CB that relies on bumping on the LOS and having safety help. the more I think about it, the more I think he might not fit our scheme with Horton though we could use a bigger CB to pair with Haden.

    he will get drafted early though as teams try to replicate the Seahawks defense (big, strong CBs and S’s covering ground over the top).

  • The_Real_Shamrock

    If available, if Detroit somehow doesn’t take him and if the Browns don’t sign a FA CB.

  • The_Real_Shamrock

    This is sort of why I prefer the Browns to use free agency to improve the pass rush much like what they already have done. You have a better opportunity to know what you are getting rather then to hope guys out of college can fulfill whatever promise they may possess. I agree seems like it’s take your pick with any number of these players.

  • Jay

    The only thing that would have made this rant better is if it began with the phrase “You know what really grinds my gears…”

  • Vindictive_Pat

    So 95% of the time, it works every time? I like those odds! (mixing my movie quotes and taking some liberties here… well excuuuuuuse me!).

  • mgbode

    speaking of which, Anchorman 2 starts filming next week!

  • Kildawg

    I love scotch, scotchy scotch scotch. Scotch!