Three overlooked guys that are set to make BIG impact in 2025...

[Pkrjones]

I’m hesitantly there as well as we’ve been there before, most recently Stokes looked rookie year to be a guy that with growth would be incredible…now sure different cuz injuries stole his ability IMO but still…Cooper looked incredible as a rookie and like he already belonged.

With his new, bulked up (10-15 lbs of muscle) build he really can't go anywhere but up in production. If he's not a Pro-Bowl level stud in years 2 & 3 I'll be very disappointed in Cooper.

 

[gopkrs]

I think a good GM always plays to win now but also has an eye to the future. Unless the team is pathetic. Which is not our case.

 

[tynimiller]

With his new, bulked up (10-15 lbs of muscle) build he really can't go anywhere but up in production. If he's not a Pro-Bowl level stud in years 2 & 3 I'll be very disappointed in Cooper.

I could care less about Pro Bowl votes - just give me a starter, one that would likely start anywhere and I’ll be golden.

 

[OldSchool101]

Drilling closer on Marshawn. Most everyone outside of GB has forgotten about. Daniel Jerimiah listed him as the Top RB of the 2024 Class. Now if that’s true or not idk, what I do know is Matt Nagy said he wouldn’t be surprised to see Lloyd go Day 1 Draft. Yet I think Lloyd’s injury history puts him squarely as the best COMPLIMENTARY RB in the 2024 draft.

Marshawn ranked #1 in College football in missed Tackle Rate .41 (Rushing) He edged out Tyrone Tracy at .40 missed tackles rate.

In USC program history, only 1 RB (100+ carries min) exceeded Marshawn 7.1 per carry in 2023. Reggie Bush (2003-05) finished out at 7.3 per carry. Marshawn ranked from #1 to # 5 area in “most elusive” RB across various boards. Including Receptions, 43% of every touch Lloyd had across 2023 resulted in a missed tackle.

2023 Collegiate Missed Tackle Leader:
#1 Marshawn Lloyd.

The other aspect of Lloyd is this. IF he can overcome his injury history, he has very low mileage on him. He only has 291 Rushing attempts across 3 seasons. Marshawn also showed a great deal of promise in the Passing game. He logged 13 receptions at 17.8 yards per reception in his Junior Year.

 

[Voyageur]

IMO Cooper is already that guy.

I'm hoping you're right but I'm somewhat pessimistic when it comes to giving guys credit for what they might do until they do it. Cooper shows all the signs of being the man but at this point I'm looking at him and saying "Prove it!"

 

[OldSchool101]

pessimistic when it comes to giving guys credit for what they might do until they do it. Cooper shows all the signs of being the man but at this point I'm looking at him and saying "Prove it!"

I will say this about Coop. This is in no way trying to dismiss anyone wanting to see his full potential because he’s likely to shock some of us.

With 491 (55%) snaps he performed at a very high level in 2024. Enough to finish 6th in Rookie of the Year votes. If we pumped Edgerrins’ snaps to match Warner? Here’s a simulated result of Edgerrin playing at Warners 997 snaps. It’s easy match because he played exactly half of Warner’s’ snap count.
Edgerrin pace at 997 snaps.
2 INT; 46 yards
8 Pass Defensed
64.9% Pass Comp 78.8% Passer rating
2 Forced Fumbles
6 Fumbles Recovered
7 Sacks
174 Tackles (114 Solo)
26 Tackles for Loss
14 QB hits
16 QB pressures
6 QB knockdowns.
2 Batted Passes

Now that’s Cooper at double snaps or exactly Warner time on field. Let’s look at All Pro-1 Fred Warner with 94% or his actuality 998 snaps in 2024.

Fred Warner (All Pro-1 Probowl)
2 INT; 70 yards
7 Pass D
79.3% comp; 97.5% Pass rate allow
4 FF
0 Fumbles Recovered
1 Sack
131 Tackles (76 Solo)
5 Tackles for Loss
2 QB hits
5 QB pressures
1 QB knockdowns.
O batted Passes

Now both players are used in different capacities and obviously double snaps does not = double production. That said Cooper is just an absolute Specimen. Probably should’ve went back half of Rd1 imo.

 

[Voyageur]

I will say this about Coop. This is in no way trying to dismiss anyone wanting to see his full potential because he’s likely to shock some of us.

With 491 (55%) snaps he performed at a very high level in 2024. Enough to finish 6th in Rookie of the Year votes. If we pumped Edgerrins’ snaps to match Warner? Here’s a simulated result of Edgerrin playing at Warners 997 snaps. It’s easy match because he played exactly half of Warner’s’ snap count.
Edgerrin pace at 997 snaps.
2 INT; 46 yards
8 Pass Defensed
64.9% Pass Comp 78.8% Passer rating
2 Forced Fumbles
6 Fumbles Recovered
7 Sacks
174 Tackles (114 Solo)
26 Tackles for Loss
14 QB hits
16 QB pressures
6 QB knockdowns.
2 Batted Passes

Now that’s Cooper at double snaps or exactly Warner time on field. Let’s look at All Pro-1 Fred Warner with 94% or his actuality 998 snaps in 2024.

Fred Warner (All Pro-1 Probowl)
2 INT; 70 yards
7 Pass D
79.3% comp; 97.5% Pass rate allow
4 FF
0 Fumbles Recovered
1 Sack
131 Tackles (76 Solo)
5 Tackles for Loss
2 QB hits
5 QB pressures
1 QB knockdowns.
O batted Passes

Now both players are used in different capacities and obviously double snaps does not = double production. That said Cooper is just an absolute Specimen. Probably should’ve went back half of Rd1 imo.

My concerns with Cooper are along the lines of blown assignments. Making plays is important but not making plays you should have are also. They just never show up in stats.

 

[tynimiller]

My concerns with Cooper are along the lines of blown assignments. Making plays is important but not making plays you should have are also. They just never show up in stats.

Precisely why I despise Nixon…he lives off of one or two splash plays a game but at times to me looks undisciplined

 

[OldSchool101]

My concerns with Cooper are along the lines of blown assignments. Making plays is important but not making plays you should have are also. They just never show up in stats.

He did have some of that mixed in. During the Chicago game mid season both Edgerrin and Quay got abused. We seemed to use more 2 LB sets and Chicago actually abused us on the quick perimeter plays in the flat. We were fortunate to Win that game on a blocked FG.
So I agree as to your point Edg needs a little more consistency mixed in also and maybe Haf adjusting to that outside zone stuff could’ve been employed faster. Edg was seen running sideline to sideline a yard too late but his effort even in those plays was 100% he was just out of position to begin with.
Cooper sure looks the part though.
2 recent favorite draft selections were Kraft in RD3 and Cooper in RD2. I was hopping up and down both players (partly because they were popular players on our Draft contest) really should’ve been gone. Those guys should’ve went at the back of the previous round imo.

 

[Voyageur]

He did have some of that mixed in. During the Chicago game mid season both Edgerrin and Quay got abused. We seemed to use more 2 LB sets and Chicago actually abused us on the quick perimeter plays in the flat. We were fortunate to Win that game on a blocked FG.
So I agree as to your point Edg needs a little more consistency mixed in also and maybe Haf adjusting to that outside zone stuff could’ve been employed faster. Edg was seen running sideline to sideline a yard too late but his effort even in those plays was 100% he was just out of position to begin with.
Cooper sure looks the part though.
2 recent favorite draft selections were Kraft in RD3 and Cooper in RD2. I was hopping up and down both players (partly because they were popular players on our Draft contest) really should’ve been gone. Those guys should’ve went at the back of the previous round imo.

You're absolutely right by saying that there's no lack of effort on Cooper's part. All that's lacking is the ability to read an offense quick enough to get into position to make plays. This is essential to play inside because your range of coverage can vary so much depending on what is happening at the snap across from you and what your own defense has as intent.

In Cooper's case, he's slow to react to the outside because he's not seeing the plays well enough at this point to make the immediate adjustments and that leaves him 1/4 to 1/2 step behind where he's supposed to be and that often ends up the difference between making and not making a play.

Then there's the question of his speed. He's close to a 4.6. If he was .1 faster, it would make the job even easier because that translates into about half a step.

Can he develop? Yes, he can. We'll know a lot more as this season progresses. It could go either way at this point. Hopefully he can get his reaction times down and be more effective.

Kraft was a smart pick. In my opinion, he should have been drafted earlier. In fact, I think he's a better TE than Musgrave and was more draft ready than Musgrave. I think they let too much of the publicity surrounding Musgrave help them make that decision. It happens at times, but the Packers did the right thing drafting Kraft when they did. Over the years, I've gone from being skeptical about Gute's drafting to fully on board with the assessments being delivered by our scouts. They've made it a point to give the front office solid information to work with and that translates into good options for drafting.

 

[Voyageur]

Precisely why I despise Nixon…he lives off of one or two splash plays a game but at times to me looks undisciplined

Exactly. It's more pronounced with Nixon because he plays a more visible position on plays where he gets highlighted.

 

[Sanguine camper]

With his new, bulked up (10-15 lbs of muscle) build he really can't go anywhere but up in production. If he's not a Pro-Bowl level stud in years 2 & 3 I'll be very disappointed in Cooper.

I'm not convinced the extra muscle will help Cooper. His game is about speed and the extra weight may slow him down enough where his game really suffers. Hope I'm wrong but he's in a position where tenths of a second matter.

 

[milani]

Exactly. It's more pronounced with Nixon because he plays a more visible position on plays where he gets highlighted.

Well, whether we like it or not he is the heir to Jaire. And for some unknown reason he seems to be on the field every Sunday.

 

[milani]

I'm not convinced the extra muscle will help Cooper. His game is about speed and the extra weight may slow him down enough where his game really suffers. Hope I'm wrong but he's in a position where tenths of a second matter.

I think he still needed it. Hitting these 250 LB. bulldozer backs busting through needs more than technique. And when we get on defensive goal line stands he is going to get hit with some big bulk just as in scrums.

 

[OldSchool101]

I'm not convinced the extra muscle will help Cooper. His game is about speed and the extra weight may slow him down enough where his game really suffers. Hope I'm wrong but he's in a position where tenths of a second matter.

It depends on where that muscle is added. He was 230lb coming in last year which is light for a 4-3 Off-Ball LB. Cooper was also in the 98%tile in the 10yd and 97%tile at the 40yd. If added muscle is spread out over his 6’2+ frame? It could even promote speed in pads. Not to mention, we don’t even know if that was an accurate remark about his weight. For all we know he’s 8lbs heavier in actuality.
I’d prefer his position be no lighter than 235lb area so if he’s up from 230lb to 238-240lb that’s actually a + for me anyway.

 

[gopkrs]

If Cooler isn't a dam good player right from the start; I'll eat my hat.

 

[OldSchool101]

If Cooler isn't a dam good player right from the start; I'll eat my hat.

I think Coop is one of the primary reasons they let Eric Wilson walk.