Greg Cosell on Colts' 2022 Draft Class(On the Dan Dakich Show)

[stitches]

Love Greg Cosell's analysis on players. IMO the best publicly available resource on the draft.

 

(starts at about 2:00:20)

 

 

 

On Alec Pierce:

- Love Alec Pierce. Not much difference between Alec Pierce and Drake London,

- Over 6'3" 211, he can run, he's big, he's long, he's fast, he's got stride length

- he's got great body control and hands

- he makes contested catches, he's a red zone weapon.

- pretty refined feel for separation quickness at the top of his route stem 

- some would say lack of a full route tree is a weakness, but we've seen that that's not necessarily the case - that' what he was asked to do in college. So is it a projection - yes, but it doesn't mean he can't do it. 

- I don't think he's necessarily stiff, but he's certainly not fluid in the way you think of smaller receivers 

- he will play year 1

 

Jelani Woods

- this guy is a little bit of a freak. 

- over 6'7", transferred to Virginia from Oklahoma State, because he wasn't used as a receiver much. Was high school state champion as a QB in the state of Georgia. 

- he's just scratching the surface of what he can become as a receiving TE, another one of my favorite guys. 

- rare size, movement, hands, body control, run after catch, competitiveness 

- guys that are over 6'7" at TE are usually not purely explosive, but he has very appealing combination of stride length, build up speed, incredibly wide catch radius 

- one of the most intriguing overall prospects in this draft class. 

- the more I watched him the more I liked his transitiona and projection 

 

Bernhard Raimann 

- some people thought he'd be a 1st round pick

- interesting guy... made the transition from TE to OT in 2020

- he's got a long lean built, probably leftover from when he played TE. Gained 70 pounds in 4 years

- he's got some natural power, strong core... that allowed him to be effective in pass protection - he could stay anchored on his inside post leg, he could minimize inside counters 

- tends to play a little too upright, and looks a bit too mechanical... his lateral range in vertical pass sets would get a little too narrow, that opens the outside... at times he looked stiff legged ... these are technique things that can be taught. 

- he probably has got work to do simply because he's played OT only for 2 years and he didn't grow up playing football in the US

- when I got finished watching him, I thought he would be a starting LT in the NFL ... at some point , just don't know when... 

 

Nick Cross

- I really like his tape.

- outstanding size-speed profile you do not often see in safeties

- ran the fastest 40 at the combine for any safety... for whatever that's worth 

- predominantly played on the back end in college, but there were some snaps in the box as well matched man-to-man with the TE

- big hitter when he came down from the back end in the run game 

- executed his run game gap responsibilities really well 

- he's got the size, the play strength to match up man to man with TEs, which is absolutely critical in today's NFL if you are a safety and in today's game a lot of TEs detach from the formation and I think he can do that, he can match with a detached TE. 

- some issues in zone with his eye discipline ... that can be coached - understanding receiver splits, understanding route combinations, etc.

- I think he's got the skill set, the traits, the physical and competitive toughness to develop into a quality starting safety with interchangable traits meaning he can play in the box and in the back end

 

Additional nugget - he doesn't think Matt Pryor is good enough to be a 17 game LT starter. 

[richard pallo]

Cosell really knows his stuff.  Great analysis of our players.  Really feeling good about these picks.  Looks like Raimann could be starting at LT by the end of the year. 

[TheShadow]

17 hours ago, richard pallo said:

Cosell really knows his stuff.  Great analysis of our players.  Really feeling good about these picks.  Looks like Raimann could be starting at LT by the end of the year. 

Cosell also said that Raimann needed some improvement in certain areas, We might need an OT FA till he is ready.

[BProland85]

Great listen! I feel a lot better about the Alec Pierce pick, as I thought it was a bit of a slight reach at the time. I really have high hopes for Woods and Raimann. If Cross can improve his instincts and eyes, he could be a special roaming safety in this defense that already has good depth with Blackmon, Willis, and McLeod. 

[Stephen]

37 minutes ago, BProland85 said:

Great listen! I feel a lot better about the Alec Pierce pick, as I thought it was a bit of a slight reach at the time. I really have high hopes for Woods and Raimann. If Cross can improve his instincts and eyes, he could be a special roaming safety in this defense that already has good depth with Blackmon, Willis, and McLeod. 

I agree with the pierce london comparison  when you watch the tape they are alot alike but I think piercecis faster and had worse  qb play. Time will tell who is better between  him and sky moore

[sb41champs]

Greg Cosell is a LOT more knowledgeable about NFL football than Dan Dakich could ever dream of being.

 

Lots of great comments and compliments on our draft picks.

 

I'm thinking "don't sleep on the Colts this season".

[Dark Superman]

On 5/4/2022 at 5:41 PM, stitches said:

Love Greg Cosell's analysis on players. IMO the best publicly available resource on the draft.

 

(starts at about 2:00:20)

 

 

 

On Alec Pierce:

- Love Alec Pierce. Not much difference between Alec Pierce and Drake London,

- Over 6'3" 211, he can run, he's big, he's long, he's fast, he's got stride length

- he's got great body control and hands

- he makes contested catches, he's a red zone weapon.

- pretty refined feel for separation quickness at the top of his route stem 

- some would say lack of a full route tree is a weakness, but we've seen that that's not necessarily the case - that' what he was asked to do in college. So is it a projection - yes, but it doesn't mean he can't do it. 

- I don't think he's necessarily stiff, but he's certainly not fluid in the way you think of smaller receivers 

- he will play year 1

 

Jelani Woods

- this guy is a little bit of a freak. 

- over 6'7", transferred to Virginia from Oklahoma State, because he wasn't used as a receiver much. Was high school state champion as a QB in the state of Georgia. 

- he's just scratching the surface of what he can become as a receiving TE, another one of my favorite guys. 

- rare size, movement, hands, body control, run after catch, competitiveness 

- guys that are over 6'7" at TE are usually not purely explosive, but he has very appealing combination of stride length, build up speed, incredibly wide catch radius 

- one of the most intriguing overall prospects in this draft class. 

- the more I watched him the more I liked his transitiona and projection 

 

Bernhard Raimann 

- some people thought he'd be a 1st round pick

- interesting guy... made the transition from TE to OT in 2020

- he's got a long lean built, probably leftover from when he played TE. Gained 70 pounds in 4 years

- he's got some natural power, strong core... that allowed him to be effective in pass protection - he could stay anchored on his inside post leg, he could minimize inside counters 

- tends to play a little too upright, and looks a bit too mechanical... his lateral range in vertical pass sets would get a little too narrow, that opens the outside... at times he looked stiff legged ... these are technique things that can be taught. 

- he probably has got work to do simply because he's played OT only for 2 years and he didn't grow up playing football in the US

- when I got finished watching him, I thought he would be a starting LT in the NFL ... at some point , just don't know when... 

 

Nick Cross

- I really like his tape.

- outstanding size-speed profile you do not often see in safeties

- ran the fastest 40 at the combine for any safety... for whatever that's worth 

- predominantly played on the back end in college, but there were some snaps in the box as well matched man-to-man with the TE

- big hitter when he came down from the back end in the run game 

- executed his run game gap responsibilities really well 

- he's got the size, the play strength to match up man to man with TEs, which is absolutely critical in today's NFL if you are a safety and in today's game a lot of TEs detach from the formation and I think he can do that, he can match with a detached TE. 

- some issues in zone with his eye discipline ... that can be coached - understanding receiver splits, understanding route combinations, etc.

- I think he's got the skill set, the traits, the physical and competitive toughness to develop into a quality starting safety with interchangable traits meaning he can play in the box and in the back end

 

Additional nugget - he doesn't think Matt Pryor is good enough to be a 17 game LT starter. 

Additional nugget - he doesn't think Matt Pryor is good enough to be a 17 game LT starter. 

 

Not even Matt Pryor thinks he's good enough to play as the full time starter.

[Moosejawcolt]

On 5/5/2022 at 9:19 AM, TheShadow said:

Cosell also said that Raimann needed some improvement in certain areas, We might need an OT FA till he is ready.

Pryor will be the starting LT till he becomes a turnstile. That could be after game 1 or never.

[throwing BBZ]

 

 Pryor earned some gratitude because he was adequate in pass pro.

 But, for those that watched him closely, he had a very limited area that he could cover while dragging his 330+ lbs around. Getting out into space or to the 2nd level was a big problem. IMO
  I  have no doubt he was guided by CB to come back in the best shape of his life, so i hope that means he plays at about 315 because he needs more quickness and agility.   

      Put down the  Matt and shock the world!!   

[coltsfeva]

17 hours ago, sb41champs said:

Greg Cosell is a LOT more knowledgeable about NFL football than Dan Dakich could ever dream of being.

 

Lots of great comments and compliments on our draft picks.

 

I'm thinking "don't sleep on the Colts this season".

What’s the deal with Dakich? Does he have problems with Ballard? Hard to listen to his negativity.

[Fluke_33]

51 minutes ago, coltsfeva said:

What’s the deal with Dakich? Does he have problems with Ballard? Hard to listen to his negativity.

It’s just marketing.  Negativity sells on the radio

[Nate!]

Dakich on the radio is grating.  If he’s like that in real life, ooof.  His butt is still very sore over Grigson the couple times I’ve heard him talk Colts.  Grigson must’ve fathered some of his grandkids or something.  

[sb41champs]

On 5/8/2022 at 11:10 AM, Fluke_33 said:

It’s just marketing.  Negativity sells on the radio

That's the trend in ALL media nowadays.

[stitches]

On 5/8/2022 at 5:18 PM, coltsfeva said:

What’s the deal with Dakich? Does he have problems with Ballard? Hard to listen to his negativity.

Dakich is a blowhard know-nothing, who sells ignorance as knowledge and arrogance as certainty. For the life of me I cannot figure out how people like him get any sort of following in the public sphere. 

[Four2itus]

55 minutes ago, stitches said:

Dakich is a blowhard know-nothing, who sells ignorance as knowledge and arrogance as certainty. For the life of me I cannot figure out how people like him get any sort of following in the public sphere. 

But how do you really feel about him?

 

Lol. He makes Howard Stern appear smart. 

[jonjon]

On 5/8/2022 at 11:20 AM, Nate! said:

  His butt is still very sore over Grigson 

Wow I can't imagine why, Grigson did such a bang-up job as Colts' GM. So what if he ruined Luck's career? 

[NewColtsFan]

1 hour ago, jonjon said:

Wow I can't imagine why, Grigson did such a bang-up job as Colts' GM. So what if he ruined Luck's career? 

Grigson and Dakich had a very friendly relationship.   Perhaps no member of the media was more supportive of Grigson.  And, oddly enough, Dakich has continued over the years to make the occasional pro-Grigson remark.   He’s very passive-aggressive in his relationship with Ballard, in part most believe, because he’s still so friendly with Grigson.  
 

[EastStreet]

I like Cosell, but he completely missed the boat when he said there was not much difference between Pierce and London.

 

London has a much more diverse route tree and played a good deal out of the slot and X. He's much more fluid than Pierce at this stage.

 

Pierce was almost exclusively outside with a very very limited route tree. Several question his agility/fluidity and some mention stiffness. 

 

And while Cosell is correct in that Pierce "might be able to do that", it's not something you pick up in a summer camp. It's just something we didn't see at Cinci. 

[Four2itus]

15 hours ago, EastStreet said:

I like Cosell, but he completely missed the boat when he said there was not much difference between Pierce and London.

 

London has a much more diverse route tree and played a good deal out of the slot and X. He's much more fluid than Pierce at this stage.

 

Pierce was almost exclusively outside with a very very limited route tree. Several question his agility/fluidity and some mention stiffness. 

 

And while Cosell is correct in that Pierce "might be able to do that", it's not something you pick up in a summer camp. It's just something we didn't see at Cinci. 

I agree that he is incorrect about the comparison. I don't agree that AP's usage is a factor of his limited experience, as much it is a factor of a coach who needed AP to stretch defenses to help a QB who has some limitations. We shall see. 

[Boondoggle]

I have always respected Cosell but more for his overall takes and connections around the league.  Not sure I'd hang on his evaluations of players.  Woods for example seems a bit off to me in talking up his run after catch ability.  I'll say again he reminds me of a giraffe running around out there, he's faster than he looks but long and gangly and not a guy who is nimble of foot or who runs with great contact balance.

 

Granted I did not watch a ton of his games.  But either way I don't think that is accurate.

 

I do think he is correct that the Colts and Ballard had another good draft.  And if Raimann can be the LT of the future it will be a great draft.

[EastStreet]

6 hours ago, Four2itus said:

I agree that he is incorrect about the comparison. I don't agree that AP's usage is a factor of his limited experience, as much it is a factor of a coach who needed AP to stretch defenses to help a QB who has some limitations. We shall see. 

For the most part, I think APs usage was a product of what Cinci had. He was fastest WR Cinci had IIRC, and likely the best hands. They also had a QB that extended plays. Some say AP is a bit stiff, but is excellent against the press. So given his positives, the roster, and his QB, probably 9s were simply the best use of him. 

 

But yes, we'll see. I hope he gets plenty of 9s this season. It would be a departure from what we've seen from Reich, but sign me up. I just want us to use his existing strengths while trying to develop him in other areas. 

[EastStreet]

34 minutes ago, Boondoggle said:

I have always respected Cosell but more for his overall takes and connections around the league.  Not sure I'd hang on his evaluations of players.  Woods for example seems a bit off to me in talking up his run after catch ability.  I'll say again he reminds me of a giraffe running around out there, he's faster than he looks but long and gangly and not a guy who is nimble of foot or who runs with great contact balance.

 

Granted I did not watch a ton of his games.  But either way I don't think that is accurate.

 

I do think he is correct that the Colts and Ballard had another good draft.  And if Raimann can be the LT of the future it will be a great draft.

 

Yup. If you watch his film, he reminds me a lot of MAC. Folks complained that MAC lumbered. Woods lumbers more IMO. MAC had a really good YAC though, so I'd say Woods has a chance to be good in that area too. 

[NewColtsFan]

I think what throws people about woods is this….    He played at +265 in the season.  But dropped 12-15 pounds during the run up to the draft.   That tremendously helped his movement skills.   He was at one of the all-star bowl games where two of our coaches were on the staff, Brady and another coach.  They saw Woods first hand.  They loved him. 
 

Then he tested through the roof at the combine.   All this while weighing in the low 250’s.   The Colts were hugely impressed.  
 

So just looking at his game tapes don’t tell the whole story.  You need to know his work from January thru April.   That’s the player the Colts drafted. 

[EastStreet]

36 minutes ago, NewColtsFan said:

I think what throws people about woods is this….    He played at +265 in the season.  But dropped 12-15 pounds during the run up to the draft.   That tremendously helped his movement skills.   He was at one of the all-star bowl games where two of our coaches were on the staff, Brady and another coach.  They saw Woods first hand.  They loved him. 
 

Then he tested through the roof at the combine.   All this while weighing in the low 250’s.   The Colts were hugely impressed.  
 

So just looking at his game tapes don’t tell the whole story.  You need to know his work from January thru April.   That’s the player the Colts drafted. 

 

Great point. But it's a bit of a dice roll discounting game tape for combine and all star games. We all know all star type games are often offensive show cases. That said, hope the trajectory continues upward. 

 

Overall I do love his upside though. And too your point, dropping the weight may unlock a lot of things long term. Getting your body right can totally change things for the right guy. Matt Pryor is a great example. His first couple years he struggled with weight. He dropped some pounds, focused on S&C, and ended up being incredibly solid for us last season in spot duty (great grades too). Not saying Pryor will be the next big thing at LT, but I think his future is promising if he continues to focus on his body. 

[jonjon]

On 5/10/2022 at 8:33 PM, Boondoggle said:

I have always respected Cosell but more for his overall takes and connections around the league.  Not sure I'd hang on his evaluations of players.  Woods for example seems a bit off to me in talking up his run after catch ability.  I'll say again he reminds me of a giraffe running around out there, he's faster than he looks but long and gangly and not a guy who is nimble of foot or who runs with great contact balance.

 

Agreed. I can't believe he passed on McBride, who was easily the best TE in the draft. I guess Ballard was shooting for upside based on his numbers, but that IMO was a mistake.

 

Quote

I do think he is correct that the Colts and Ballard had another good draft.  And if Raimann can be the LT of the future it will be a great draft.

I thought it was "pretty good" - he wisely addressed areas of need but I question who he took in some cases. Course nobody is offering me a GM job  We'll see. 

 

  

On 5/9/2022 at 11:06 PM, EastStreet said:

I like Cosell, but he completely missed the boat when he said there was not much difference between Pierce and London.

Yeah I literally laughed out loud at that and pretty much stopped reading there. Frankly he sounds like the kind of guy who was going to talk up every pick we made no matter who it was. Nothing personal against the guy but I can't get behind that. Call out the good and the bad. 

 

[jonjon]

23 hours ago, NewColtsFan said:

So just looking at his game tapes don’t tell the whole story.  

I think it does or awfully close to it. tbh I don't give a flip about 40 times and how well a player can dance around orange cones. I care how they play in actual games. 

[EastStreet]

11 minutes ago, jonjon said:

Yeah I literally laughed out loud at that and pretty much stopped reading there. Frankly he sounds like the kind of guy who was going to talk up every pick we made no matter who it was. Nothing personal against the guy but I can't get behind that. Call out the good and the bad. 

 

 

All the grading from various sources are a joke these days. NFL.com gave at least grades of B to 25+ teams (they gave Indy a C+ or C IIRC). It's like everyone gets a trophy! lol... And most of the local team guys over-hype almost every pick. 

 

I'm high on AP, but he's not a no-brainer well rounded guy out of the gate. He'll need time. He's got some great upside, but he's got big holes in his game. Call it simply inexperience in areas, or just plain areas he's not great at. I hope it's just experience/development he needs. 

[jonjon]

2 minutes ago, EastStreet said:

 

All the grading from various sources are a joke these days. NFL.com gave at least grades of B to 25+ teams (they gave Indy a C+ or C IIRC). It's like everyone gets a trophy! lol... And most of the local team guys over-hype almost every pick. 

 

Yeah exactly. Although I will say I think this is one of the best years I can remember in terms of teams drafting smartly (at least it seems on paper), so good grades are more justified in general. The only "what the hell" pick I recall offhand was the Pats taking the OL Strange over various other guys more highly rated. I also was surprised that QB Strong went undrafted, bad knee or no...IMO we should have at least fried a 7th rounder on him or jumped all over him right after the draft, geez. 

[EastStreet]

6 minutes ago, jonjon said:

Yeah exactly. Although I will say I think this is one of the best years I can remember in terms of teams drafting smartly (at least it seems on paper), so good grades are more justified in general. The only "what the hell" pick I recall offhand was the Pats taking the OL Strange over various other guys more highly rated. I also was surprised that QB Strong went undrafted, bad knee or no...IMO we should have at least fried a 7th rounder on him or jumped all over him right after the draft, geez. 

 

Yup, I would have spent a 7th on Strong. The biggest bag on him was that he wasn't driving the ball well in pre-draft showings. The knee was a concern too a bit, but it was the arm that most flagged. All reports out of Philly though say he's driving the ball fine now. I was high on him early, but my interest dwindled as reports came out. Regardless, still worth a 7th IMO. 

 

I'm not going to question BB's picks. He's not perfect, but I learned long ago he's more right that wrong lol. I would have gone another way too, but I wouldn't be shocked if he turned out to be spot on. 

[NewColtsFan]

1 hour ago, jonjon said:

I think it does or awfully close to it. tbh I don't give a flip about 40 times and how well a player can dance around orange cones. I care how they play in actual games. 

 

Well then, you disagree with the Colts front office and coaching staff.   
 

Im not sure what part you didn’t understand? He’s no longer the player he was from Sept thru Dec of ‘21.   He’s lost 12-15 pounds and from Jan thru April.   He’s an entirely new player.    He showed that in a post-season all-star game, the combine and his original day.  
 

You say, you want to see it in real games.   Fine.   But the Colts trust he’s going to be better than he’s shown in college games once he gets into the NFL.   It may not come in his rookie year, but the Colts believe it will come soon enough. 
 

The Colts think differently than you do. 

[jonjon]

1 hour ago, NewColtsFan said:

Well then, you disagree with the Colts front office and coaching staff.   

Obviously.

 

 

Quote

Im not sure what part you didn’t understand? He’s no longer the player he was from Sept thru Dec of ‘21.   He’s lost 12-15 pounds and from Jan thru April.   He’s an entirely new player.    He showed that in a post-season all-star game, the combine and his original day.  

Losing weight doesn't equate to "entirely new player." 
 

[NewColtsFan]

39 minutes ago, jonjon said:

Obviously.

 

 

Losing weight doesn't equate to "entirely new player." 
 

He’s moving in ways he didn’t move before.  That’s why he tested thru the roof.  I think his RAS score was a perfect 10 out of 10.   Incredibly rare. 
 

That may not be good enough for you, but it’s good enough for this front office.  

[EastStreet]

15 minutes ago, NewColtsFan said:

He’s moving in ways he didn’t move before.  That’s why he tested thru the roof.  I think his RAS score was a perfect 10 out of 10.   Incredibly rare. 
 

That may not be good enough for you, but it’s good enough for this front office.  

 

I'd still be cautious. Even if he has gotten his body right weight wise, and is moving much better, that does not really impact some of the digs on him. Keep in mind his blocking and hands were flagged, as well as his skinny frame (legs mostly). Still great upside. 

[NewColtsFan]

10 minutes ago, EastStreet said:

 

I'd still be cautious. Even if he has gotten his body right weight wise, and is moving much better, that does not really impact some of the digs on him. Keep in mind his blocking and hands were flagged, as well as his skinny frame (legs mostly). Still great upside. 

Agreed….   My expectations for Woods are only modestly higher than what I expected from  Granson last year.    I’m conservative that way.   I’d rather be surprised to the upside than have higher expectations only to be let down when reality sets in.   And for the vast majority of rookies, the NFL game is shockingly fast and complicated for them.   That’s why, as you know,  most make their big jumps in their 2nd and 3rd year. 
 

[EastStreet]

12 minutes ago, NewColtsFan said:

Agreed….   My expectations for Woods are only modestly higher than what I expected from  Granson last year.    I’m conservative that way.   I’d rather be surprised to the upside than have higher expectations only to be let down when reality sets in.   And for the vast majority of rookies, the NFL game is shockingly fast and complicated for them.   That’s why, as you know,  most make their big jumps in their 2nd and 3rd year. 
 

 

Yup. I really didn't expect a lot from Granson last season. I'm still not really high on him. We're asking him to totally change his college game. Hope it works out. But my expectations of Woods is higher than that of Granson.

 

Woods will have to learn to block if we wants to be a regular part of the rotation early on. I'm not all that worried about his skinny legs though, as S&C can easily fix that. Some of the comments on him being an "unnatural" pass catcher are my biggest concern. Hopefully he's had access to a good trainer this off season to work on all of that. He wasn't used a lot at OKSt, but got a lot more PT in VA. I have a business associate that's a big UVA fan, but keep forgetting to ask him. I've watched his highlights, but only one game (ND).