bigdaddydave":2xg0g24w said:
You think he could get open when Russell is scramblin' around?! =)
I was really high on Patterson, and I still am, I think he could be a great player in the national football league, but I think there's another receiver in this draft that would give us a bigger instant impact. I think Patterson's raw, and hasn't got the football smarts of a guy like DeAndre Hopkins.
Hopkins doesn't have the size or pace of Patterson but I watch his tape and he knows how to find space, and that's huge, think Largent!
Watch the tapes of Allen and Patterson and you'll see they make a lot of their catches (albeit spectacular ones) in traffic, of course there are the exceptions, especially with Patterson (though it's largely due to his pace, not his route running).
Now watch Hopkins. He too, without offering the height of Allen or Patterson, can make some great catches in traffic. But also notice how often he is open, I lost count of how often I heard "Wide open, DeAndre Hopkins" watching his tape.
[youtube]bVWm9pNiXYY[/youtube]
He displays a greater ability to consistently get open, and that's something that would be very valuable to a QB who's taught to take care of the ball; and as a result of the receivers' struggles to get open this year, has either scrambled, thrown it away or taken sacks.
It would make much more sense to take Hopkins than Patterson, imo. I'm not saying Patterson's necessarily a project, I just don't think he's as ready as Hopkins, and although he's the kind of guy you'd look to supersede Sidney, I'd rather we drafted for immediate impact, especially in the first/early second.