theENGLISHseahawk":1cyuoie0 said:
Hill's 4.51 short shuttle is very good for 300lbs -- and his 3.09 is only 0.09 off Jonathan Bullard. I think it's very harsh to call him an average athlete. Not sure either why we would question the improvement on his combine numbers at his pro day. Didn't Vernon Butler just do exactly the same thing (average combine, much better pro day)?
I don't think the Seahawks will ever take an average athlete as early as round three again, certainly not after what happened to Moffitt.
Butler had a smaller pro-day jump in results than Hill did. And Butler did it while being 21 pounds heavier. If Butler was also 303 pounds I would concede this point and admit that both are average athletes.
I actually liked Hill a lot circa January 2013 and wrote some glowing articles on him. Then his combine happened which left me feeling disillusioned. Butler is actually a bit similar in that I was pretty high on him in February only to be let down by his combine. The difference is that Butler had a very good pro-day for a person of his size, which made me feel less insane for thinking he was a special athlete on tape.
Another key difference are Butler's 35 inch arms and exceptional upper body strength.
If I am the GM of the Seattle Seahawks I'm NOT drafting Vernon Butler at #26. That said, if you put a gun to my head and forced me to draft a DT there, I'd probably go for Butler on account of his upside.
My preferences are meaningless though, all that really matters is what JS thinks. Based on the evidence I would theorize that JS is going to have both Bullard and Butler really high on his board.
Rankins is a decent player and intellectually I can't discount him, but my instincts tell me Seattle isn't as interested as the fans are. I get high floor / low-ceiling vibes from Rankins, almost like a Tim Ruskell 1st rounder. Which isn't to say that he sucks, but it feels like a different direction for PC/JS who tend to worship untapped potential and love going off the grid early. Just my gut feel on that.