underclassmen declaring for NFL

[jwinslow]

Both. Not sure how comfortable I am with pushing out guys before they have a chance to graduate though. That seems wrong to me.

I agree you shouldn't be comfortable with it, but it's done before they graduate... or sign their LOIs. Their fans are slowly coming to terms with it (like we have been doing) as the cost of doing business in the current marketplace.

 

[jwinslow]

I agree with what you're saying. The team is probably better off next year if guys who want to be in the NFL take their chance rather than coming back concerned about injury. Roby comes to mind as someone who probably didn't want to be here his last year.

But I do think some of these guys can benefit from another year in a way that improves their longevity at the next level. Lee and Marshall come to mind. Two guys who were learning a new position and who do not possess great physical strength or size. But if their mind is with the NFL, then Ohio State is definitely better off with them chasing their dreams.

Agreed. Marshall stands to lose the most, as he is a questionable prospect, but OSU also stands to struggle if he continues to be unhappy with his role.

Lee is very interesting. You could make a case that he was a better prospect last offseason, before tapering off quite a bit and struggling at times. In some ways, instead of being an intriguing raw prospect with loads of potential, now there is more tape on him to make them question whether he is a good enough all around player or whether they can use that to counter his rare blend of speed and size.

To me, Powell makes a lot of sense. He's a mid to late pick regardless of when he goes, and the defense was always going to be gutted.

Marshall comes down to comfort in the offense and unfortunately I think a lot of fans can understand that one. It would be different if they could bring in a true offensive coach (whether or not Urban trusts him is another story), but it seems likely that Ed remains integral to the offense, limiting the upside of the passing game and souring the overtures given to Jalin about featuring him next year.

 

[AuTX Buckeye]

I get both sides of the story with a lot of these 50/50 guys. As long as they are getting good info and there isn't a mass exodus because the locker room is worse than Berea I'm ok with it, price of being at the top

 

[buckeyesin07]

Lee is very interesting. You could make a case that he was a better prospect last offseason, before tapering off quite a bit and struggling at times. In some ways, instead of being an intriguing raw prospect with loads of potential, now there is more tape on him to make them question whether he is a good enough all around player or whether they can use that to counter his rare blend of speed and size.

Kiper or McShay (can't remember which) has Lee as the #22 prospect in the entire draft, making it kind of hard to think there's any real "question whether he is a good enough all around player."

 

[buckeyesin07]

As much as I'd love for Vonn to stick around, anyone who thinks he isn't declaring hasn't been paying attention. Powell (before he declared), along with Marshall and Apple, are the ones on the fence, in my view. As good as gone are Bosa, Elliott, Thomas, Lee, Bell, and Jones.

 

[jwinslow]

Kiper or McShay (can't remember which) has Lee as the #22 prospect in the entire draft, making it kind of hard to think there's any real "question whether he is a good enough all around player."

Lee absolutely has that potential but there are question marks. I tend to think his potential and athleticism are too dramatic for scouts to pass upon, but there are concerns. And neither McShay or Kiper risk their livelihood by overestimating the upside of a player.

 

[GoBucks1014]

So while discussing the departing (potential or otherwise declared) underclassmen earlier today, I raised the following with my wife and daughter. The team is brought out to mid-court at the Schott next Wed. during the Rutgers v. tOSU game for a curtain call. After Urban imparts his wisdom to the screaming 20,000 basketball fanatics (ok, I admit that is the hardest part to believe about this fantasy), Zeke steps to the front, pulls up the crop-top...JBbigbear slides up with a ...ultimate jokester Tyvis takes the mic and says, "Y'all didn't think we were really leaving, did you?" (Paraphrasing)

 

[Onebuckfan]

They are gone they completed the mission last year ..they had their curtain call..now its time to move on to the NEXT GENERATION.

 

[TampaBuckeyes]

I feel like some guys are going to be making bad decisions just because other guys are leaving. I don't think it hurts Ohio State. I do think it hurts a player's chance to have a long NFL career. Only 53 guys make an NFL roster. Very few players comeback after getting cut.

I've seen a lot of guys every year that leave early and get drafted in the 6th/7th round or not at all and are jobless and nearly broke 2 years later with no degree. Please leave if you project to the first 2 rounds, which will mean you get picked up by the third. Frankly I'm with a lot of you in the guys that project as a second rounder and come back don't perform any better than a young gun trying to make a name. Yes, it's safer but not usually better by the end of the year.
If you project as a 3rd or later, remember that a ton of guys get drafted later then projected. I think a lot of the talking heads that do projections are highlight watchers and don't see a lot of the smaller teams guys play and their projections get thrown off when the guy from the southeastern state university of west Louisiana goes in the second round. The nfl scouts get paid a lot to find these diamonds buried in small schools, and a lot of directional schools get a guy drafted in the first two rounds that most of ESPN announcers have never heard of.

 

[TampaBuckeyes]

As much as I'd love for Vonn to stick around, anyone who thinks he isn't declaring hasn't been paying attention. Powell (before he declared), along with Marshall and Apple, are the ones on the fence, in my view. As good as gone are Bosa, Elliott, Thomas, Lee, Bell, and Jones.

Apparently people think lee is more nfl ready than I. Good thing I don't get paid for it. Good luck to him. I think Powell is taking a risk but if he wants to be gone then he's better off making his run. I don't think Marshall is at all nfl ready. He's doing great but needs to learn how to be a true wr. Next year he will learn a lot staying and will be our primary target, he should double his yardage and go in the first two rounds. He is just too raw at the position due to depth in 2014 and getting moved round to different positions. As far is Apple, he was picked on a lot this year. The first quarter of most of the games he was getting lost and committed a lot of PI just to keep up. Mid way through the second he would hit his groove and play great. That won't fly in the nfl. Rosters are too small to keep guys that have potential and need to learn to be consistent. That is what college is for, and IMO you do yourself a disservice if you leave before being ready.

 

[buckeyesin07]

Apparently people think lee is more nfl ready than I. Good thing I don't get paid for it. Good luck to him. I think Powell is taking a risk but if he wants to be gone then he's better off making his run. I don't think Marshall is at all nfl ready. He's doing great but needs to learn how to be a true wr. Next year he will learn a lot staying and will be our primary target, he should double his yardage and go in the first two rounds. He is just too raw at the position due to depth in 2014 and getting moved round to different positions. As far is Apple, he was picked on a lot this year. The first quarter of most of the games he was getting lost and committed a lot of PI just to keep up. Mid way through the second he would hit his groove and play great. That won't fly in the nfl. Rosters are too small to keep guys that have potential and need to learn to be consistent. That is what college is for, and IMO you do yourself a disservice if you leave before being ready.

Some good points here. I understand Powell is a RS junior and may want to leave with the guys he came in with. That said, I saw him take bad angles on a number of plays this year, and I'm (at best) a casual observer; in other words, I am not breaking down tape to see all the instances of his mistakes. NFL scouts are going to look at all the tape, and I'm fairly confident that they are not looking to draft safeties that miss pursuit angles. I think Tyvis may have been well-served to return for his RS senior season to try to shore up that and some other fundamentals.

Apple is an interesting case. I think we'd all agree that he got better as the season went on. Still, there were issues here and there, where he could improve. I think he'll go in the late second or in the third round, but I think he has first-round potential if he were to return and work on some of his weaknesses.

Marshall I think could simply benefit from being "the guy" and showcasing more what he can do. As it stands, he has two years under his belt in which he had 400+ yards receiving, as well as showing flashes in the return game. I'm not sure that gets him more than a fifth round grade, at best.

In my (limited) view, Bosa, Elliott, Lee, Thomas, Jones, and Bell should all go pro, and Apple, Marshall and Powell should return. But I suspect they'll all go.

 

[Buckeye86]

I agree that Powell is the least NFL ready of the players leaving- or at least has the most limited ceiling (with a nod to Jalin Marshall), the problem for Powell is that he's pretty much maxed as a player and an additional year is very unlikely to improve his draft stock.

On the other hand, he has a degree and his generation of teammates are all leaving... might as well take a shot.

 

[AuTX Buckeye]

This is the latest breakdown I could find on NFL rosters by draft pick (2012):
1st - 277
2nd - 214
3rd - 191
4th - 193
5th - 144
6th - 123
7th - 140
undrafted - 412

That's 25% of NFL rosters are made up of undrafted free agents.

One thing yall are not considering in this debate for the 50/50 guys is this. They go pro, all they are going to do is eat, sleep, breath football 24/7 - it will be their JOB. If they come back, they still have to go to class, take test, get good grades etc. The reason there are so many late/undrafted guys on teams is because their sole focus is football, and maybe for those guys, playing school gets in the way.

 

[zincfinger]

Should Marshall feel optimistic about playing in a passing game that struggled badly before losing most of the line and both starting wideouts besides him ?

I would be surprised if opposing recruiters haven't replaced "Meyer's system doesn't produce 1,000 yard running backs" with "Meyer's system doesn't produce 1,00 yard receivers". I wouldn't be shocked if Marshall feels there's some merit to that argument.

 

[jwinslow]

The problem for eli is that he is going to run a slower time next year, limiting his upside. Can he climb higher ? Maybe, but perhaps not when considering the thin class of cornerbacks in this draft. Will he climb enough to offset a year of lost revenue ?

Unlike Marshall or Powell, I think eli is developed enough to feel fairly confident about sticking on a roster. If that happens, he's one year closer to a proper payday in his second contract.