link, anyone?
I think it’s this one…
He’s gonna be the next Chris Spielman
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agreed… and if his 4.52 speed and excellent agility results in him covering much better than the typical Lion LBs over the years… I’ll be very happy!!!
thanks but didn’t see MRod mentioned in that one, except him saying he couldn’t wait to see MRod in pads.
3rd round
Yep - London Fletcher was 5 ft 10. He had 29.25 arm length. He was heavier at 240 but probably slower. He never missed a game in his career and made 4 pro-bowls. Came into the league as and UDFA. He had great instincts which helped him overcome some of his size limitations. Rodriguez plays the same way. I have high hopes for him.
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Hmmm I don’t have time to go through the vids now but I’ll look later. I listened to it earlier this week.
Great stuff, how can you not like MCDC………
Not sure a link exists to him saying that
On one of the Lions podcasts they said that he had said this. I do not believe it was part of a presser.
He was productive in HS in several sports. State champ in wrestling.
He was productive in college. Led the country in forced fumbles, ninth in solo tackles.
He is showing up in training camp, especially when the pads came on.
You can knock him for his short arms and his height.
You can say he has to be perfect (which he won’t be).
I’m sticking to what i said a couple months ago – starter by the bye week.
I’ll take a short-armed short guy who makes football plays over a physical specimen who has all the right measurables, but can’t see it on the field. He doesn’t have to be perfect, yeah I know Dan said it, but its wrong. He has to be better than who we have out there now. Its a low bar, fellas.
Here’s Dan’s excerpt for those asking. I guess he said this on Tuesday before he saw him on pads Tuesday and pads Thursday.
Rodriguez seemed to turn a corner this week, making countless splash plays once the pads came on. While the promotion is certainly warranted, he is still in the developmental process, and as Campbell mentioned on Tuesday, at his size Rodriguez needs to be mistake-free in order to keep himself in plays.
“So, I think the big thing is he can do it, and the size is not an issue as long as everything is perfect every play,” Campbell said. “I mean, that’s the reality of it. As long as you do that and you’re consistent and you’re on top of your – I mean, there’s a number of guys in this league that have played that position and been able to do it that were undersized. So, he’s explosive and he’s fast, and he can key and diagnose, I know that. And we’re early in camp, so we’ll see what happens.”
Consistency is key, and so far, Rodriguez has been incredibly consistent. But asking a rookie to be perfect on every play is a daunting, and honestly, maybe unrealistic task. And because that is such a tall order, needing to be consistently perfect, Rodriguez will probably remain out of the starting lineup for the time being, as he stacks day and gains experience.
But don’t expect him to drop too far down the depth chart. When the Lions moved into team drills, the Lions opted to go back to a starting combination of Alex Anzalone and Chris Board, but Rodriguez still stuck around with the second team, this time switching to the WILL, lining up opposite Derrick Barnes.
It’s still early in camp, but Rodriguez is flirting with the lofty expectations many thought he might reach by the end of training camp. With uncertainty at the position, there will be days Rodriguez drops back to the third team, but if he continues to stack perfect days, it’s going to be hard to not keep him at the top of the group.
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I think that the “perfect” comment a little extreme… and it may have been a little hyperbole to temper expectations.
I mentioned this once before…. but his 4.52 in the 40 plus elite quickness & agility (4.13 in SS and 7.02 in 3-cone) combined with good instincts will have him in better position than most LBs to make plays with his short arms.
He can be just a bit quicker to get in a passing for a PBU, just a little closer to a RB to make the tackle without giving up much YAC, and just fast enough to chase down a RB before he turns the corner.
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If your team ethos is gonna be “we’ll grind you into the ground” then you probably want as many ex-wrestlers out there as possible.
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He’s ready
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LOVE Dan. Listen to all of his pressers on my way to the shop. He’s not the meathead the media makes him out to be.
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I find the “short arm” thing to be comical in this situation.
He was a 6th round pick…. If he makes the team it’s a win… if he contributes regularly on STs it’s a HUGE win, and if he’s even solid depth or a functional rotational player at LB then it’s a GRAND SLAM!
Go back and look at the 6-7 rounds for 20’ and 21’- Elijah Mitchell, Jordan Fuller, J Runyan are the only real impact players out of the 175 or so guys picked…. In fact Penisini, Cornell, and Jefferson have all beaten the averages for sticking around and playing time.
The beautiful thing about this current roster is that J Davis was our starter for 3 years and he’s not likely to make the team. Anzalone was our best LB last year and I doubt he’s starting beyond week 3-4 with Board, Rod, and Barnes all offering higher upside.
We had Bryant and JO finish 2nd and 3rd in sacks last year, and they are fighting to make the team….
Raymond finished 2nd in yards and he’s gonna be 5 or 6 on the depth chart….
I love that our 4-6th round players have to be able to play STs now as they likely won’t get on the field otherwise.
I love that Houston might make the squad and soley function in our NASCAR package- having a guy who is used specifically to get to the QB and gets 3-5 sacks with 10% snap share would be amazing.
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Fine. Doesn’t change the fact that he will struggle with wrapping up bigger guys and that has been on display in camp….doesn’t mean he can’t be a huge win for us….but it helps to explain why he was there in the 6th.
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Are his arms long enough to get a hold of kneecaps? GRIT
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Of course it does.
But not anymore than 4.7 speed will hurt a WR, or a poor vertical could hurt a CB…
I expect him to be a missile on kick coverage. I expect him to to play meaningful snaps at LBs at times.
His athletic prowess to play QB, win championships, play baseball, wrestle etc indicates he’s an athletic freak and a sports NUT!
I doubt he was getting stoned and playing video games while relying on god given talent to make millions playing a game. The kids life has been decimated to competition and year round practices of every sport.
The dog in the fight will overcome arm length. If Tulloch, Fletcher, and others have… he can, and I am betting on his mental makeup to allow it.
If he didn’t crush 36 reps on bench, or run a 4.52 I’d be less enthusiastic, but he’s crazy athletic and strong
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I would think his arm length will be a bigger issue disengaging from oline in the wash vs wrapping up on a tackle…
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