Finally received Nawrocki's draft guide preview and in it he reviewed two KU players. Not including the history section of each player as that is long, here is what Nawrocki wrote about Ben Heeney and JaCorey Shepherd:
Ben Heeney
Strengths: Good functional football-playing instincts. Posted the best short shuttle time (4.00 seconds), 60 yard shuttle (11.06 seconds) and 3-cone drill time (6.68 seconds) of any linebacker at the Combine and among the best at the event, demonstrating very good lateral agility and burst.
Weaknesses: Smallish frame with very short arms and small hands. Struggles to wrap and to step out of grasp. Tight-skinned with a nearly maxed-out frame and does not have much room to get bigger. Lacks functional play strength and gets hung up on blocks a lot. Limited coverage skills.
Future: A try-hard overachiever with size and tackling deficiencies. Best chance will come with a fast-flowing Cover-2 scheme such as Dallas' or Tampa Bay's that places greater premium on speed than size. Will have to make a mark on special teams to stick.
Draft projection: Late draftable pick
JaCorey Shepherd
Strengths: Very good size. Maintains good positioning and stays in phase. Fluid hips. Smooth transitioning out of his pedal and shows very good awareness to stay on top of routes. Terrific hand use. Superb pattern recognition and ball skills, as evidenced in career production on the ball. Plays the ball like a receiver and makes some acrobatic interceptions (see Iowa State). Very good football intelligence. Outstanding work habits. Is a student of the game and it shows.
Weaknesses: Short arms and small hands. Lacks ideal foot speed and is not a blazer. Below-average recovery speed on double-moves. Not explosive out of his breaks. Could struggle keeping stride with receivers down the field in man coverage.
Future: An underrated, natural cover man with the ball skills, anticipation and instincts to contribute readily as a No. 3 corner and make a living in the slot. Has enough length and physicality to play outside. Has been very well technically refined by Kansas defensive coordinator and defensive backs coach Dave Campo and made big strides.
Draft projection: Third- to fourth-round pick.
Scout's take: "Shepherd is a converted receiver. Has only played the position a few years and keeps getting better and better. If you start from the back and watch every game from the end of the season, you'll notice it. ...He had a bunch of flash plays vs. TCU. He leads the team in PBUs and not because he can't catch. He reads playing indicators and times up the ball really naturally. You can be taught to read indicators. They coached him up very nicely."
This post was edited on 4/10 4:47 PM by esuStorm4Hawks
Ben Heeney
Strengths: Good functional football-playing instincts. Posted the best short shuttle time (4.00 seconds), 60 yard shuttle (11.06 seconds) and 3-cone drill time (6.68 seconds) of any linebacker at the Combine and among the best at the event, demonstrating very good lateral agility and burst.
Weaknesses: Smallish frame with very short arms and small hands. Struggles to wrap and to step out of grasp. Tight-skinned with a nearly maxed-out frame and does not have much room to get bigger. Lacks functional play strength and gets hung up on blocks a lot. Limited coverage skills.
Future: A try-hard overachiever with size and tackling deficiencies. Best chance will come with a fast-flowing Cover-2 scheme such as Dallas' or Tampa Bay's that places greater premium on speed than size. Will have to make a mark on special teams to stick.
Draft projection: Late draftable pick
JaCorey Shepherd
Strengths: Very good size. Maintains good positioning and stays in phase. Fluid hips. Smooth transitioning out of his pedal and shows very good awareness to stay on top of routes. Terrific hand use. Superb pattern recognition and ball skills, as evidenced in career production on the ball. Plays the ball like a receiver and makes some acrobatic interceptions (see Iowa State). Very good football intelligence. Outstanding work habits. Is a student of the game and it shows.
Weaknesses: Short arms and small hands. Lacks ideal foot speed and is not a blazer. Below-average recovery speed on double-moves. Not explosive out of his breaks. Could struggle keeping stride with receivers down the field in man coverage.
Future: An underrated, natural cover man with the ball skills, anticipation and instincts to contribute readily as a No. 3 corner and make a living in the slot. Has enough length and physicality to play outside. Has been very well technically refined by Kansas defensive coordinator and defensive backs coach Dave Campo and made big strides.
Draft projection: Third- to fourth-round pick.
Scout's take: "Shepherd is a converted receiver. Has only played the position a few years and keeps getting better and better. If you start from the back and watch every game from the end of the season, you'll notice it. ...He had a bunch of flash plays vs. TCU. He leads the team in PBUs and not because he can't catch. He reads playing indicators and times up the ball really naturally. You can be taught to read indicators. They coached him up very nicely."
This post was edited on 4/10 4:47 PM by esuStorm4Hawks
