Official DE Datone Jones thread

[FrankRizzo]

Come to think of it aren't we starting the season with 4 first rounders we didn't have at the end of last season? That's Perry, Bulaga, Sherrod and now Jones.

3 probably.
Sherrod won't ever start a game for us. I hope I'm wrong but I'd bet he's a total washout with that gruesome injury.

 

[Terre Haute Cheesehead]

His highlights have me excited

Ohhhhh yeah! Me too! Good pick indeed.....NOW if we can FOR JUST ONCE in a season avoid a slew of injuries, things will be looking good. Anxious to hear our future picks. GO PACK GO!

 

[Terre Haute Cheesehead]

Our first pick in the 2013 draft.
I will update with more stuff of him as I find it.
Scouts analysis - ranked #24 overall
What he brings: Jones blew up at the Senior Bowl and has risen quickly since then. He is a little light, but he plays with leverage and has very active hands. He can win with first-step quickness in the run game and disrupt in the backfield, but Jones must play with better pad level as a pass-rusher. However, he flashes the quickness to win inside and outside as a pass-rusher. How he fits:The Packers really need physical defense ends in this base 3-4 front to set the edge against the run. It seems as if they are playing more nickel and dime schemes with four-man fronts. That requires a player with versatility. Jones is a natural fit at defensive end in the 3-4 and would probably move inside in the four-man front as that one-gap penetrator that they really like. With defensive linemen Ryan Pickett and B.J. Raji in the last year of their contracts, and inconsistency and injury concerns behind them, this unit needs that depth and versatility that Jones brings.4

Height-Weight-Speed 3 Adequate height and good bulk for a versatile DE. Has a strong, muscular build. Ran a fast 10-yard split (1.56) but below average 40-yard dash (4.80) at the combine. Has good-sized hands (10') but shorter-than-ideal arms (32.6).
Durability 3 Took a medical redshirt year in 2010 due to a broken right foot injury suffered in summer camp. Had surgery to insert a screw that now holds together his fifth metatarsal. Returned in 2011 and started all 28 games during last two seasons at UCLA.
Intangibles 1
High marks in regards to football character and work ethic. No significant off the field issues to our knowledge. Has a good working knowledge of NFL teams and their schemes. Shows great passion for the game. Gives great effort in the weight room and studying tape. Parents are Shondra Hall and Anthony Jones. Has four sisters and one brother. Grew up in Compton, CA.

Pass Rush Skills 2 Good snap anticipation and initial quickness. Shows ability to consistently penetrate as an inside pass rusher. Also very effective speed-to-power moves as an outside rusher. Relentless in pursuit. Shows good closing burst and explodes through the quarterback when he has a clean shot. Only average lateral agility and athletic ability for LDE. Has a little bit of tightness in torso when bending the edge. Can struggle to be effective when reached. Has quick hands and flashes some violence, but has shorter arms and will struggle to get off of blocks if he doesn't win with initial move.
Versus the run 3 Has a thick trunk. Can set the edge. Quick first step. Quick and violent hands. Does a very good job of locating the ball, disengaging and pursuing. Will make a lot of plays when working down the line and pursuing from behind. Strong upper body (29 reps on bench). However, anchoring versus the run is not his strength when playing inside (as a five-technique in 3-4 scheme).
Versatility 2 Played 5-technique and shade NT in UCLA's three-man front in 2012. Needs to be used properly because he does have some tweener traits. Most effective rushing the QB from the inside but can provide pressure from the edge, as well. As a run defender, his best fit is LDE in 4-3 scheme. Would need to add bulk to frame in order to play three-technique in the NFL and don't think he fits very well as a two-gapping five-technique, so would only fit as a 3-4 DE if scheme calls for one-gapping five-technique.
Instincts/Motor 2 Above average motor. Chases plays all over the field. Rarely 'dogs' it. But see too many times on tape where he elects to become a shot blocker when OL get in position and lock out. Shows good overall toughness.

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Thanks much for the info, Wood Chipper! Great insight!

 

[Oshkoshpackfan]

I knew of jones before the draft, but some of his highlight clips have me jazzed up. This kid looks to be downright mean, and that is what I like. Not dirty, but just plain mean on the field. He has really good quick feet and a great first step, and looks like a he views the QB or ball carrier as a slab of meat and he is the hungry pittbull.....he pursues and finishes......gruden: "gem of the 1st round", I really hope so.......chris berman: " after he hits you, he should be called dial tone jones", that had me laughing hard...... let's hope he can make the transition to our scheme.

 

[paulska]

I don't know much about the guy, but as HRE opined a little earlier he appears to be well suited to a 4 DL front. On paper, you don't know whether he's a great based 34 option right off, but I don't know if he needs to be right away.

Given that we play nickel at least half the time, one of the things we're lacking at present is the interior push that we used to get out of Cullen Jenkins. We got snippets of that in spurts last year, but not consistently.

I know Neal didn't light it up like an all-pro last season, but he showed progress. Daniels is never going to be a base 34 guy, but he does have some disruptive chops in pass rush scenarios, and Jerel Worthy, if he can get healthy and put some beef on, is a guy who is worth being excited about in terms of collapsing the pocket and penetrating the backfield.

If you add Jones to this mix of interior push/pocket collapser types, what we're building here is a collection of guys that can get results by committee. I think where we've really run into trouble is where we've had to ride certain ponies more than is productive to do because of injury.

By no means is our collection of DL talent NYG west-ish, but we'll find out whether Umenyiora, Canty, Tollefson and other recent NYG ex-pats are really premier or above average talents on their own, or whether they benefitted from playing fresh on a limited pitch count where they played in down and distance situations that fit their skillset, much like Atlanta learned to do with an aging but still effective John Abraham the past few seasons.

I think that TT is banking on a stable of guys to produce no matter who they roll in to the more than 50% of the snaps where the pass is the obvious play call for our opponent. Sure, would I love to have one mega dominant, game changing talent along the DL like JJ Watt? Yep, but how many 34 ends are out there that have anything CLOSE to the impact on the game Watt does? If you say Justin Smith, I'll say that it took him almost 8 years to become that player, and the 8 years that it took for him to get there were fairly unremarkable.

I think you have to give TT and staff some credit for not drafting many jerks, guys who can't or won't be taught (see: Cletidus Hunt, etc). If Datone Jones is willing to train, add some muscular bulk to the long frame we're sorely lacking along our DL, and become a student of the game under Capers and Trgovac, he has the potential to be our version of a Brett Keisel given time to develop. And some Brett Keisel-esque play out of the 34 DE position is SORELY needed up in here...

 

[tynimiller]

Honestly, the beauty of this pick is need met up with TT draft board at the pick's value. He's like many have said a hardnosed, student of the game type of player. Some have said he at least hit 289lbs and if that's true the dude must be chiseled. I agree maybe 10 more pounds would serve him well but man the beauty of this pick coming to TT with the need involved is awesome. Looking forward to our next 4 picks though the most...the middle of this draft is loaded....and some say the tail end rounds have more talent than any draft some experts remember. These are the drafts guys like TT dream of.

 

[easyk83]

I knew of jones before the draft, but some of his highlight clips have me jazzed up. This kid looks to be downright mean, and that is what I like. Not dirty, but just plain mean on the field. He has really good quick feet and a great first step, and looks like a he views the QB or ball carrier as a slab of meat and he is the hungry pittbull.....he pursues and finishes......gruden: "gem of the 1st round", I really hope so.......chris berman: " after he hits you, he should be called dial tone jones", that had me laughing hard...... let's hope he can make the transition to our scheme.

I have two things to add to this statement

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Opposing OCs might wanna just start the clipboard holder against this trio.

 

[AmishMafia]

Love the pick.

Not sure how TT does this, but Jones was on my radar, but I thought there were slightly better options available. I dismissed him as a potential pick because I thought he was too light to play DE for us. Then after the pick, I read what the experts think, and I realize he was much better than I thought, and perhaps the perfect pick for us. Maybe I have learned my opinions are good, but TT is far superior. My brain quickly adapts to the 'truth' and my perception of the player he picks increases because of the sole fact that TT picked him.

Anyway, here is a smattering of thoughts:

- TT takes guys who love football; are dedicated; and are students of the game.
- I think there is a shift in our defensive strategy. Daniels, DE we drafted last year, seemed to be on the small side also. I wonder if we are looking at a philosophical shift in our defensive scheme.
- Jones is the 'anti-Kapernick' this team needed. What a perfect way to shut down a very active mobile option style QB. A relentless, tall, and quick DE.
- I wonder if Minny offered the same deal to TT that they did to the Pats. Chances are - No - or TT thinks EXTREMELY highly of Jones.
- Jones, btw, may be able to add another 20 lbs and appear more prototypical/traditional 5T.
- I wonder if the NYGs SB year had an impact on TTs thought process. Their success was mostly because of their DL. They were deep and talented and had fresh legs late in the game - they took over the game because of it.

 

[easyk83]

The 34 defense does not call for 3 starting squatty 0 and 3 techs to be your starters. If you look at the 34 defenses around the league over the last ten years and they consistenly have a prototype SSDE type pass rusher. Case in point

Ty Warren -6'5 300
Brett Keisel-6'5 285
Justin Smith(when SF ran 34)- 6'5 290
JJ Watt 6'5 295
Datone Jones- 6''4 283

Jones is at the prototype size, he maybe needs another 5 pounds if that.

 

[El Guapo]

I like the pick of Jones. Any time your GM can select a quality player, showing value based upon draft position, that fills one of your biggest needs....you've done alright. Of course, every player down to the 7th round has college highlight films so I don't put much stock in those. I just hope that Jones pans out for us.

As for the Vikings, that's a lot of pressure to put on first round players. Rick Spielman will look so much worse if he only hits on 1 out of the 3 players selected - because they are 1st rounders. I especially think that they wasted a great opportunity by trading back into the 1st round for Patterson. He's a great talent, but MN has a lot of holes and should have focused a bit more on quantity versus perceived quality. Time will tell, but I think that they just conjured up the ghost of the Herschel Walker trade

 

[texaspackerbacker]

This was my first choice. It had to be a D Lineman, preferably a DE. I was thinking/fearing they would take one of those big bulky NT types based on media, etc. leading up to the draft, but I'm very happy that TT went the direction he did. Rotate Raji and Pickett at NT; Start Jones and hopefully an improved Neal, and we should see a better pass rush AND better D against the run.

 

[rodell330]

This Rodell statement should surprise no one. 3 first-rounders means they must be great!

In all seriousness, I love what they did, minus the last pick. Not only is Patterson a suspect WR prospect in that he's purely an athlete that hasn't mastered his craft of running routes and being a professional, but they also gave up 4 picks for him!!! Way too much value to give up for him, or any player right there, in my opinion.

Omg seriously?? I just think they added three players they NEEDED who should help them where they needed the most help.

 

[BorderRivals.com]

For what it's worth, here's the history of Vikings selecting WR's in the draft:

1. Nate Burleson
2. Keenan Howry
3. Troy Williamson
4. Sidney Rice
5. Aundrae Allison
6. Chandler Williams
7. Jaymar Johnson
8. Percy Harvin
9. Stephen Burton
10. Jarius Wright
11. Greg Childs

Only Harvin was worth much. So, I'll withhold judgment on how good Patterson is for the Vikings until he plays a few years. Given this track record though, I'm not overly concerned about the Vikes drafting a WR that can't run routes.

 

[Oshkoshpackfan]

For what it's worth, here's the history of Vikings selecting WR's in the draft:

1. Nate Burleson
2. Keenan Howry
3. Troy Williamson
4. Sidney Rice
5. Aundrae Allison
6. Chandler Williams
7. Jaymar Johnson
8. Percy Harvin
9. Stephen Burton
10. Jarius Wright
11. Greg Childs

Only Harvin was worth much. So, I'll withhold judgment on how good Patterson is for the Vikings until he plays a few years. Given this track record though, I'm not overly concerned about the Vikes drafting a WR that can't run routes.

No matter how good you are at route running, ponder will throw the ball in the turf. What they need to be looking for are guys you can stop, reverse, dive and catch the ball off the ground, then ponder may actually look good.

 

[easyk83]

Omg seriously?? I just think they added three players they NEEDED who should help them where they needed the most help.

Relax it's the Vikings.

They picked up an overhyped DT, a project wide reciever and Chris Cooks 2.0.

 

[rodell330]

Relax it's the Vikings.

They picked up an overhyped DT, a project wide reciever and Chris Cooks 2.0.

What makes him a project??

 

[FrankRizzo]

I have two things to add to this statement

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The ref who threw that flag for the hit on Luck by Perry should have been suspended, fined, and perhaps fired.
That call, horrible as it was, basically cost us that ball game. We were up 14-0 there and rolling... and that took away a huge play. BS zebra.

 

[PikeBadger]

The queens are going to be tough. All 3 pics should start

I hope all three start. They all have question marks about their game. Anybody starting these three rookies out of the gate has very serious roster depth problems. Rhodes especially is going to be targeted by Aaron Rodgers if he's a starting CB.

 

[PikeBadger]

Floyd - Media Creation
Rhodes - 2nd Round Talent
Patterson - potential bust, raw receiver which they gave up 4 picks for.

They hit on their needs, but I'm not worried.

4 picks for Patterson........ The Vikings front office is stupid. Is Mike Lynn back in town running that clown & circus show?

 

[Jordyruns]

After watching the highlights video's again I think he will need to put on 5-10 lbs of muscle and fix some minor technique work in order to perform like a first round 3-4 end. There's no doubt in my mind he could do it but I'm not expecting much of him this year while he works on this.

 

[HyponGrey]

While I question Jones' ability to play 34 end, I have high hopes.

 

[TheGiftedApe]

I love the pick I think he is, like has been hyped, the new age 3-4 end. He still has the size and weight for a rookie 280+ 6'3''-6'4'' DE, but he is more than just a run stopping guy who can provide some inside push, he has a couple moves, good arm extension and hands to provide some pass rush outside of just the OLB position, and enough athletic ability to play against the new pistol option style offenses. On top of all that it would appear he is an A++ character and motor player which is hard to find, and a great asset in a first round pick, I think TT has done it again.

 

[Wood Chipper]

I like what I see

 

[ivo610]

The vikes won't be a serious challenge to us until they get a QB.

 

[ivo610]

Jones won't start week 1 but I bet he starts week 17