play2win
11 years ago

I know what you are saying but let's see Rodgers catch a few balls that Aaron zips into him while a linebacker is barreling in on him and see if his drop % is the same as it was in college. You can't compare him to Finley yet.

Originally Posted by: wpr 



Of course, we'll have to see what happens when the games go live.

But, I think it is fair to compare some of these other attributes. You are right that there may be a difference in drop rates college to pros. I can't find anything on Finley's drop rate at Texas. Their college stats are remarkably similar. Finley came out as a sophomore. They had about the same (F947-R876) total yds. Rodgers had a better average (F12.4-R15.2), but Finley had a more receptions (F76-R59) and 3 more TDs.

http://www.sports-reference.com/cfb/players/richard-rodgers-1.html 
http://espn.go.com/nfl/player/stats/_/id/11325/type/college/jermichael-finley 

Finley was rated the #6 TE out of 84 players by draft scout.
Rodgers rated #11 out of 95 TEs by the same outlet.

Finley was projected R3-4, Rodgers R6 by this outlet.

http://www.nfldraftscout.com/ratings/dsprofile.php?pyid=57217&draftyear=2008&genpos=TE 

http://www.nfldraftscout.com/ratings/profilexnews.php?pyid=119820&draftyear=2014&genpos=TE 

Some interesting stuff.
steveishere
11 years ago
It's hard to get a feel for Rodgers as a TE prospect because Cal made him play WR last year. I would love to be able to see some of his 2012 games to get a feel for his blocking. The team must have felt he could be good in that area to take him so high.
play2win
11 years ago

It's hard to get a feel for Rodgers as a TE prospect because Cal made him play WR last year. I would love to be able to see some of his 2012 games to get a feel for his blocking. The team must have felt he could be good in that area to take him so high.

Originally Posted by: steveishere 



Word is that he is an excellent cut blocker, and that he needs work on in-line blocking.

Steve, you know I'm not a huge fan of the hybrid TE, but, figuring McCarthy has had that as such an integral part of his play calling, I can see him having a good career here. He is essentially the same as Finley from a physical standpoint. Remarkably so. Only .05 slower than Finley for 40 time coming out of college, and everything else is nearly clone-like. Except, Rodgers has better hands, comes off as being a bit smarter and more sure. Should have better route running with his experience at WR. Better blocker coming out.

Here's what one AFC Scout said,

AFC scout: "I like him. I'm trying to hide him. If you go to 2012 film you can watch him block. He's got the best hands of the tight ends."

http://www.jsonline.com/sports/packers/what-scouts-say-about-the-packers-picks-b99265741z1-258580651.html#ixzz31bY8a5Uv 
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Of course, other scouts said he is nothing... FWIW.

I think Richard Rodgers will have a good career in GB.
all_about_da_packers
11 years ago

He is essentially the same as Finley from a physical standpoint. Remarkably so. Only .05 slower than Finley for 40 time coming out of college, and everything else is nearly clone-like. Except, Rodgers has better hands, comes off as being a bit smarter and more sure. Should have better route running with his experience at WR. Better blocker coming out.

Originally Posted by: play2win 



The thing is, Finley's playing speed is more like a 4.40 40 according to Aaron Rodgers. That'll be a huge test of how Richard Rodgers compares to Finley.

The similarities are piling up though. I read somewhere that GB will likely spend the year developing Rodgers at TE because he is raw and has not played TE in over a year. Just the 1-year development thing, again, parallels Finley's time in GB after he got drafted.

Also, what strikes me as interesting is that Richard Rodgers seems intent on playing at 265-270 lbs based on his interview with reporters after he was drafted. There were issues the past few years with Finley apparently slimming down while coaches wanted him to carry more weight. I wonder how much that played into the Packers coaches / scouts thinking.
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play2win
11 years ago

Take a look at the article Mucky Tundra posted a few posts above. Richard Rodgers combine numbers seem pedestrian (albeit very similar to Finley's, as someone above mentioned). However, some of his stats are scary good. Rodgers YAC are just a hair less than Sammy Watkins and Mike Evans, and amongst the best at the TE position (Rodgers averaged more than 8 YAC). That stat is made even more impressive by the fact that most of Rodgers catches were 1-5 yards from the LOS - which means he was making catches with traffic around him. Additionally, whenever Rodgers caught the ball, he advanced the ball an average of +8 yards from the line of scrimmage - that's better than Sammy Watkins and Ebron. Again, this is made more impressive by the fact that the majority of Rodgers catches came within the first 10 yards of the line of scrimmage - where you will have multiple defenders around.

The one knock might be his 40 speed, but our TE coach said Rodgers plays faster than his 40 time. Again, I point out that Finley clocked in at almost the same 40 time as Rodgers, and no one will suggest Finley is too slow at TE.

The more video I see of Rodgers, the more I like him. He seems to be VERY smart for his position. I saw a play on the page you linked, uffda udfa (it's the first video), that shows Rodgers running a crossing route, realizing as he approaches the left hashmark that his QB wants to run the ball himself, then Rodgers extends his route so the defender follows Rodgers and opens space for his QB to run. You can see as he is running the route, Rodgers is constantly moving his head back and forth between his QB and the defender to assess the situation. That is pretty damn impressive, especially for someone who was spending his first year as a pure receiver.

Originally Posted by: all_about_da_packers 



I just wanted to quote your post all_about_da_packers just so people could see it again.

I would applaud this 1000 times over. Great post. I think you are right on.
DarkaneRules
11 years ago
Love it ( that post ) because it echoes what I was liking about this pick: A big talented pass catching tight end with upside. We want a dude that can knock around with the linebackers. Purely based on his size, this guy has an advantage to take there. If he works out, we could finally match up better against the more talented and imposing linebackers in the league.
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steveishere
11 years ago




Cal offensive coordinator interview on Rodgers. I recommend listening he gives some good information on Rodgers. Seems like a great kid whose going to go 100% at whatever the teams asks of him. I'm excited to see how they plan to use him. As with the rest of the TEs we've drafted though we may not see much of him 1st year.
nerdmann
11 years ago
They could run that reverse with an option pass. lol

Sounds like the dude has skills. Hopefully that translates.
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Zero2Cool
11 years ago

Need to go back to this again. Richard Rodgers is pretty much a Finley clone with respect to size, speed. I believe he is a complete improvement in terms of attitude, intelligence and demeanor and route running, not to mention hands... Rodgers has great hands, and solid YAC (only ASJ had better hands and only Ebron had better YAC - but Rodgers typically caught the ball further downfield than Ebron).

Let's consider the hands.

Richard Rodgers' last full season at Cal drop % = 7.69 (2013)

Jermichael Finley's last full season at GB drop % = 20.0 (2012) [17.91% (2011)]

That is pretty significant, as an upgrade with Richard Rodgers in GB.

Originally Posted by: play2win 



You compare college vs professional? Did you factor in the percentage of defenders Richard Rodgers faced that will be playing in the NFL? It's probably close to 15% where as Finley was going against 100% NFL defenders.

If you feel this foolish, you need to go play ball with some college kids, then go play ball against some middle schoolers. That will give you an idea of how unrealistic it is to compare professional and collegiate athletes statistics.

I can tell you right now my numbers vs professionals would be 0, but you put me up against high schoolers, I will have dominant numbers.


Throw us Finley's drop percentage while at Texas. That would a difference actually worth comparing.
UserPostedImage
play2win
11 years ago

You compare college vs professional? Did you factor in the percentage of defenders Richard Rodgers faced that will be playing in the NFL? It's probably close to 15% where as Finley was going against 100% NFL defenders.

If you feel this foolish, you need to go play ball with some college kids, then go play ball against some middle schoolers. That will give you an idea of how unrealistic it is to compare professional and collegiate athletes statistics.

I can tell you right now my numbers vs professionals would be 0, but you put me up against high schoolers, I will have dominant numbers.


Throw us Finley's drop percentage while at Texas. That would a difference actually worth comparing.

Originally Posted by: Zero2Cool 



No. Find it yourself. 😢

And, when you find it, let me know where you found it. Because I looked everywhere.

Whatever dude. Go ahead and ignore the bigger point that 20% and 17% drop rates are completely unacceptable.

Meanwhile, top TEs for SEA, Zach Miller throws down at less than 3%, Gronkwoski for NE at less than 5% and Thomas for DEN less than 6%....

The very worst percentage for TEs in 2013 was still less than 17% (Dickson for BAL at 16.88%).

So, please, do tell me your point...

MY point is that we may be able to expect some better play from our TE position with Richard Rodgers there instead of Jermichael Finley. Very simple. And I offered all of the college data I could find to support that.

"Foolish?"
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