Margus Hunt, DE SMU

[Keyplay1]

There are a whole bunch of these types being mentioned as possible future Steelers. Here is how they look on paper.

Ziggy Ansah BYU
6'5 1/4 271 35 1/8 10 1/4 4.63 1.56 21 34.5 4.26 7.11 9'10

Datone Jones UCLA
6'3 7/8 283 32 3/4 10 4.80 1.63 29 31.5 4.32 7.32 9'4

Dion Jordan Oregon
6'6 1/4 248 33 7/8 10 4.60 1.57 NA 32.5 4.35 7.02 10'2

Corey Lemonier Auburn
6'3 3/8 255 34 1/2 10 1/8 4.60 1.57 27 33 4.40 7.14 9'11

Barkevious Mingo LSU
6'4 1/4 241 33 3/4 9 5/8 4.58 1.55 - 37 4.39 6.84 10'8

Sam Montgomery LSU
6'3 1/4 262 33 7/8 9 1/4 4.81 1.64 - 34.5 4.51 7.18 9'6

Damontre Moore Texas A&M
6'4 1/2 250 34 3/4 10 1/4 4.95 1.69 12 35.5 - - 10'2

Alec Okafor Texas--had bad bruise only did the reps.
6040 264 33 7/8 9 5/8 - - 21 - - - -

Bjoern Werner Florida St-- Top 5 guy but said to be dropping for some reason
6'3 1/4 266 33 1/4 9 5/8 4.83 1.66 25 31 4.40 7.30 9'3

There are a couple other good ones but they are not ranked 1, 1/2.

First thing though, I have to figgerout which one is the BAA/BPA and then do the same for a half dozen or so WR's, 3 or 4 DL, a couple TE's, OL, ILB and a few DB's. Then I have to figgerout which one of those 7 is the best.

Then, I am planning on releasing who TS are going to draft in RD 1. Release? Isn't that what those guys picking NFL and College winners do on Saturday and Sunday mornings. Isn't that nice of them. Really very generous of them to release those winners. Probably end up doing a RuthlessBurgher and sell the pick.

[Keyplay1]

Hmm! I seemed to have missed putting Hunt's combine #'s in the post. The idea was to compare him to the other possibles.

Margus Hunt SMU
6'8 1/8 277 33 3/4 10 4.60 1.62 38 34.5 4.51 7.07 10'1

At or near he top in every category Wonder how this group compares to groups from the past several years? Sure seems to be a lot of real super athletes in this group. 38 rep 34.5 vert 10'1 jump ---70 is considered very good. 82??

How some draft scout sites rank him

draftcountdown 9/75 overall cbs/nflds 8/64 draftace 9/46 draftdaddy moved him up to #5/ No big board greatbluenorth 8/60 updated Mar3

where he goes in some mocks

Draftek 74 Draftcountdown and Draftace had 2 rd mocks and no Margus. But, Walter Football had the 49's taking him at #34 updated Feb28. This site had TS taking this player a week ago. This pick was from the pending trade SF made with KC. Disgusting isn't it. Probably a decent move by KC but many fans think KC gave up way too much. Is this freaking league trying to create another dynasty type team? Oh well, that deal is not finalized is it? Maybe when those clowns sober up they will back off.

I have no opinion on this player. He looks about the same as quite a few of the other somewhat undersized DE's that are so highly rated. As far as I am concerned this is just another reason for selling the 1st rd pick and load up on rd 2 and 3 prospects.

btw: I think this post was supposed to go in the other Margus thread. Also someone mentioned about the Keisel experiment at OLB. It was okay for a play or two but it generally did not work. It is really hard to imagine this player as an OLB.

[steelblood]

Keyplay, thanks. Good stuff. In the STeelers' scheme, I'd say that Hunt and Datone Jones are both 3-4 DEs only. Hunt has the speed to play OLB, but he is a little slow when redirecting that big body. I don't believe it would translate to OLB. The rest of those guys would be looked at as OLBs, I believe. Perhaps Ansah could play both.

[SteelAbility]

Margus Hunt is from Estonia. He is a 6'8 285 pounds athletic freak and 25 years old. He runs a 4.6-4.7 forty, jumps 36 inches, benches 225 36 times. He was a track and field star as a junior, and he understands leverage. I've seen Margus Hunt play three games (including SMU's bowl game last season against Pitt and SMU's bowl game this year against Fresno State). In those games, Hunt dropped into coverage fluidly and chased down ball carriers with alacrity. But, Hunt is most impressive as a pass rusher. He is a 3-4 DE in SMU's base defense, but he rushes from both the inside and outside well. He has great quickness and an 82 inch wingspan to keep linemen away from his body. He can stay very low and displays very good pass rushing lean to beat OT's from the outside. He can also bullrush OTs once he gets them off balance. Even though Hunt is still raw and learning the game (only played football since 2009), he is NOT a project player. Hunt is junkyard tough and already successful. He was the MVP of the Hawai'i Bowl (multiple sacks and pressures, 2 FF, and a safety). He is also very good on special teams and has blocked seventeen kicks in his career.

Hunt could play DE and even OLB in the Steelers system. He would be capable of rushing from the DT or DE position in our nickel defense. Hunt is a Steeler type and a very hard worker. This sort of size and athleticism is extremely rare. Hunt could become the next J.J. Watt if he continues to develop. Right now Hunt is a fringe first rounder. But, after his workouts, he could rise to the middle of the first.

Hunt may not be a target for the Steelers even if they trade back especially considering our depth at DE, but he is a special player and much more than just a 3-4 DE. However, Keisel is getting old and becoming very injury prone. A rotation of 3 capable DEs is certainly not overkill especially if they excel at different things. Besides, we play nickel defense almost half the time any way. This kid is built for the nickel defense and the new NFL. This team needs pass rushers.

I am big time high on Margus Hunt. With that size, speed and athletic ability he can make an impact instantly. At 6'8" he can, at the very least, make QBs think twice about throwing anywhere near his direction. Batted balls, snared balls, tipped balls, strained passes that give other defenders more time to come up and make plays all add up over time. There are a whole pile of passes coming his way that are made ineffective just by his height and wingspan alone. Not to mention the arm-reach advantage in making tackles. Contact a guy near the edge and knock him out of bounds and he gains 2-3 yards instead of 8-12 yards, all because of the extra reach. In other words, his height makes a 4.6 40-time more like a 4.5 40-time. Plus if he can learn to catch lob passes, he becomes an offensive option on the goal line.