Jump to content

1st Round: Leon Hall


ArmyBengal

Recommended Posts

  • Replies 127
  • Created
  • Last Reply

Top Posters In This Topic

Top Posters In This Topic

http://www.nfl.com/draft/profiles/2007/hall_leon

Positives: Has a solid frame with good chest thickness, broad shoulders, defined upper body with muscular arms, tight hips and waist, well-developed thighs and calves with room on his frame to carry at least another 10 pounds of bulk … Hard worker who plays until the whistle … Smart, instinctive defender with very good field vision and quick reactions, especially attacking the ball in flight (43 pass deflections, 12 interceptions in 50 games) … Has natural hands and very good ball skills, timing his leaps to get to the ball at its high point … Shows good flexibility coming out of his breaks and has the ability to slip a block and make the tackle in the backfield … Well-respected team leader who plays with aggression and never takes a play off … Has good plant-and-drive agility, attacking the ball at full speed and showing crispness when having to redirect … Explosive hitter who keeps his pads low and shows good arm extension to wrap and secure … Never gets lost in coverage and is quick to locate the ball in a crowd … Takes good angles to close on the play … Has the speed to stay tight on the receiver throughout the route and is very good at anticipating the route's progression … Very fluid turning on the ball and has the vision to track the ball in flight … Very fluid and quick in his backpedal, never taking false steps in transition … Will run stride for stride with the receiver, thanks to his hip snap … Shows the good hip sink, feet and balance in his pedal, along with the loose hips to turn and run without having to throttle down … Very efficient at reading the patterns as they develop and is quick to react to plays in front of him … Rare to see him caught out of position, as he shows no hesitation breaking on the ball … Has the range to make cross-field tackles and has the catch-up speed to recover when beaten … Excels at competing for jump balls, doing a nice job of adjusting his body to get to the pass at its high point … Has a high ceiling level in his leaps (27-inch vertical) … Has the natural hands to extend and catch away from his frame and also is very effective at fielding the ball as a punt returner … Has the long arms and reach to make fingertip catches seem routine … Recognizes the run quickly and does a good job of working down hill to get off blocks, slip through the crowd, avoid linemen and get into position to shut down the cutback lanes … Sees the play develop quickly, doing a nice job of lowering his head to generate more force behind his hits … Steady wrap-up tackler who has a good concept for taking proper angles when closing … Reliable punt returner who is a deceptive runner with the second gear needed to elude … Excels at anticipating the quarterback's moves and it is rare to see him bite on play action or pump fakes … Is an effective tackler working in space and has the long arms to reach around the opponent in attempts to deflect or strip the receiver of the ball.

Negatives: Has good timed speed, but lacks explosion coming out of his breaks and needs to mirror the receiver closer rather than allow a big cushion in order to prevent the receiver from getting behind him on deep routes … ard tackler, but must use his hands better in attempts to jam and reroute at the line of scrimmage … Sometimes relies too much on his recovery skills and this lets receivers to make the underneath catches … Might be a better fit for free safety due to his range and preference for playing the ball rather than operating in man coverage … Physical hitter, but will sometimes take a side and swing his arms wildly, resulting in missed tackles.

Compares To: Ronde Barber, Tampa Bay Buccaneers … Hall is a sound field technician who might not be the biggest or fastest defender on the field, but like Barber, he is good at getting into position to make the play … He is a solid zone coverage defender, but with his field vision and natural hands (along with a lack of blazing speed) he could be a better fit at free safety down the road.

http://www.nfldraftcountdown.com/scoutingr...b/leonhall.html

Strengths:

Very good size...A smooth athlete with fluid hips and great quickness...Physical, tough and aggressive...Does an outstanding job in run support and is a reliable tackler...A playmaker with great hands and ball skills...Very smart with excellent instincts and awareness...Is technically and fundamentally sound...Versatile and has also seen some action at safety...Hard worker with premier intangibles...Has a lot of experience against Big Ten competition...Answered questions regarding his timed speed at the Combine...Also offers some potential as a punt returner.

Weaknesses:

Struggled against some top opponents...Gives a big cushion in coverage...Lacks a burst and struggles to recover from mistakes...There is some concern that he's a bit of a CB / S 'tweener...Is not a lock-down guy and will allow receivers to make some catches against him...May profile as more of a zone coverage type...#2 CB?

Notes:

Terrific all-around cover guy but is not quite in the same class as guys like Deion Sanders and Champ Bailey...The Wolverines have a strong tradition of producing pro defensive backs in recent years (such as Ty Law, Charles Woodson & Marlin Jackson) and this guy will try and help carry on that legacy...Should easily be the first cornerback selected and he'll more than likely come off the board very early.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

dont think he will be stuck covering 1's and 2's he will be on 3rd receivers for a year or two or until we dump deltha so by then he will either be a good choice or a bust , we shall see. i like the pick seeing as how the draft was going ahead of them i still would rather have branch upfront

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Solid safe pick at a position of need. Hall at the very least should get on the field right away wide in the nickel with Joseph kicking into the slot and could be an immediate starter, especially if who knows? Deltha gets dealt soon.

But Reggie Nelson is a killah. He could've given them some different options but Marv was true to his word about Madieu being the free safety.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I like the domino effect of this pick. Now it means Ratliff and Brooks are the 4th and 5th corners instead of them having to be our nickelback. I'll take Ratliff as a #4 or #5, but he's shaky as #3.

The one thing nobody talks about is what an upgrade our two young CBs are against the run. They really support the run on the edge. James had no interest in defending the run, and I don't know about deltha.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

i disagree this guy can't cover there better wideout's college has to offer and he is supposed to stop nfl caliber receivers. i think there where better players still on the board a lot of them. o'well welcome leon.

If Revis was thrown against and had face the WR's hall did i'm sure he'd give up plays too.

PS,Bring back Odell like the NFL crew kinda pointed out we need him.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

It is hard to fault the pick since he was not expected to drop to the Bengals pick at 18... but I still just do not feel confident with him.

Oh well... good pick. No real complaints, just not jumping out of my seat.

Sorry baby, but I love this pick. Top program, CB who can play S too, top corner on the board before the hype machine sent Revis flying...I couldn't ask for the draft to have fallen better for Cincy.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Well I would have rather had Nelson as our pick but some sites had Hall rated as a top 10 talent.

I just think that we could have gotten a good CB in the second round.

Most top CBs are taken in the 1st round. If a guy is really good, he doesn't last until the 2nd. You have a much better chance of getting a safety in round 2.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I like the domino effect of this pick. Now it means Ratliff and Brooks are the 4th and 5th corners instead of them having to be our nickelback. I'll take Ratliff as a #4 or #5, but he's shaky as #3.

The one thing nobody talks about is what an upgrade our two young CBs are against the run. They really support the run on the edge. James had no interest in defending the run, and I don't know about deltha.

As Lapham said earlier, Deltha was pissed that they didn't offer to renegotiate after 2005. Then him and Tory became the two poisoned pups and began to spoil Joseph. Anyway hopefully this pick will motivate Deltha a little but it is also an insurance policy in case Deltha tanks it again this year.

I hope this guy can tackle like they say he can.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.


×
×
  • Create New...