Why not right? Terrell Owens is not as bad as Buffalo made him look last year and he’s certainly not so bad that he should have been available in late July. If you take his stats playing with Ryan Fitzpatrick last year, a quarterback who actually has the arm strength to hit him deep unlike Trent Edwards, and stretch them out over 16 games, you get pretty close to 1000 yards. I think Owens has matured from the type of player he was a few years ago. He kept his mouth shut on one of the worst offenses in the league last year in Buffalo, because he wanted to prove to contenders that he was worth a shot. That may still be selfish, but it’s the good kind of selfish. It’s the, “I want to win” kind of selfish. Cincinnati is a playoff contender and Owens is an upgrade over Antonio Bryant. Speaking of Bryant, this move pretty much is Cincinnati admitting that the 28 million they gave to Bryant was a mistake. Bryant is lazy and apparently hasn’t recovered from his knee injury as fast they would like. Bryant is a solid #4 receiver, behind Ocho, Owens, and Shipley, that is assuming he keeps his mouth shut and doesn’t get in the coach’s face. The Bengals already have a bunch of receivers on the roster and even with Bryant going to the bench, this move for Owens was the smart one. He’s the legit field stretching deep threat that they didn’t have last year and he’s only commanding 2 million. That’s 26 less than Bryant and he’s better than anyone on the roster not named Ochocinco.

Grade: A

 

 

 

Defensive End

The Titans’ 28 sacks were one of the fewest totals in the NFL. Karl Klug led the way with 7 at defensive tackle, while Derrick Morgan hardly proved to be worth the 16^th overall pick in 2010 in his first full season in the NFL with 3.5 sacks. Rotational ends Jason Jones and Dave Ball were not much better and both are them are free agents. They’ll take a long look at someone like Nick Perry 20^th overall.

Center

Chris Johnson struggled last season for a number of reasons. For one, he wasn’t in shape out of the lockout and off his holdout. Meanwhile, their interior blocking was once again terrible. The worst was Eugene Amano, arguably the worst starting center in the league last year. Running to either side of the center, Titans running backs averaged just 2.4 yards per carry and 2.5 yards per carry last season.

Guard

Center isn’t the only problem position on the interior of their offensive line. Left guard LeRoy Harris was solid in pass protection, but the Titans averaged just 3.2 yards per carry running behind left guard last season. Right guard Jake Scott was actually pretty good, but he’s a free agent. Head Coach Mike Munchak criticized their offensive line play this season so it’s very possible their 20^th overall pick will be used on a guard like David DeCastro or Cordy Glenn or a center like Peter Konz.

Wide Receiver

The Titans were so desperate for a wide receiver opposite Kenny Britt that they signed Randy Moss in 2010. This year, their lack of depth at the position was proven when Kenny Britt went on IR after week 3. Nate Washington was solid, but Damian Williams and Lavelle Hawkins were far from it. They could really use a 3^rd receiver in the mix to go with Washington and a hopefully healthy Kenny Britt.

 

Safety

Michael Griffin is a free agent and could go to St. Louis to reunite with Jeff Fisher. Chris Hope is a 31 year old marginal player coming off an injury plagued season in which he lost his starting job to Jordan Babineaux, another marginal player who the Titans are in talks with about a long term extension.

Outside Linebacker

The Titans have two solid young linebackers in Akeem Ayers and Colin McCarthy, but they need one more. Barrett Ruud was a disaster in his one season in Tennessee. He won’t be back. Meanwhile, Will Witherspoon is a soon to be 32 year old declining player. He could be a one year stopgap at outside linebacker, but they’ll need to develop someone behind him.

Cornerback

The Titans had the luxury of having 3 great cornerbacks last season in Cortland Finnegan, Jason McCourty, and Alterraun Verner. Finnegan is a free agent and could also follow Fisher to St. Louis. McCourty and Verner are more than capable of being the starters, but they need one more cornerback for depth purposes.

Defensive Tackle

Jurrell Casey and Karl Klug were both great at defensive tackle as a rookies, but they love rotation on the defensive line. Sen’Derrick Marks was not very good in a rotational role last year so they could take another defensive tackle through the draft if the value fits.

 

 

Offensive Tackle

USC

6-6 310

Draft board overall prospect rank: #11

Draft board overall offensive tackle rank: #1

Overall rating: 89 (1^st round)

40 time: 4.93

4/12/10: Tyron Smith is an athletic freak. He bulked up from the 280-285 he was listed at last year as a Junior at USC in 2010 to 310 pounds for his Pro Day. He isn’t just bigger, but he carries it well. He ran a 4.93 at his Pro Day and he lifted 31 reps of 225 despite having freakishly long 36 3/8 inch arms. His long arms suggest room to bulk. He also just looks like a beast. He’s in amazing physical shape with very little body fat. I think he’s more athletic than Trent Williams was coming out last year and Williams’ athleticism got him drafted at #4 by the Redskins.

The big difference between him and Williams and is that Williams struggled at left tackle his senior season at Oklahoma. He had an impressive college career, but most of that was on the right side. He couldn’t handle the left side in college, but was drafted so high because of his athleticism. I frequently described Williams as a fast right tackle and nothing more last season.

Smith, meanwhile, has never played on the left side, with the exception of a few snaps here and there, so left tackle is a complete projection for him. However, given how well he played at right tackle, I think he could play the left side in the pros. He is a better technician than Williams was and he’s only 20 years old. The only reason he didn’t play left tackle as a sophomore or a junior was because USC had Charles Brown, a 2010 2^nd round pick, at left tackle in 2009 and Matt Kalil, a projected 2012 top 5 pick, at left tackle in 2010. He wasn’t forced to play right tackle for lack of talent. He has plenty of that.

The only thing that prevents me from giving him an elite grade is his lack of experience on the left side. There’s a chance he just won’t be able to play the position in the pros. We don’t know because it’s an absolute projection. Teams can have him line up on the left side in drills in individual workouts, which they have been doing and the results have been very good, but that’s no substitute for playing the left side in game action.

Other than that, this is a very good prospect. He’s athletic with room to grow and a superb work ethic. He has very good technique for his age and dominated on the right side in college, most notably dominating fellow potential top 10 pick Cameron Jordan in their matchup this season. He’s a mauler against the run and he’s athletic enough to be an elite pass protector, although he’s still somewhat raw in his pass protection. His range starts at 9 to Dallas and I doubt he falls past New England at 17.

NFL Comparison: Jason Smith

 

Wilfork had been slapped with the franchise tag, which he didn’t like, but the Pats stayed true to their word by resigning Wilfork after slapping him with the tag, giving him a 40 million dollar contract over 5 years. The Patriots had been letting too much talent leave through free agency after the past few years so I’m glad they decided to actually resign their guys this year, not just Wilfork, but also top rush linebacker Tully Banta Cain and guard Stephen Neal. Wilfork is one of the most dominant defensive linemen in the NFL and is a perfect fit for the Patriots 3-4 defense. He can play both nose tackle and end.

Grade: A

Injury report for Thursday’s game

TE Owen Daniels- Houston

Out.

Injury report for Sunday/Monday’s games

Coming Saturday

Listed in order they should be picked up

RB Brandon Jackson- Green Bay

Percent Owned (ESPN): 1.0%

Update: Grant to be placed on IR, needing season ending surgery. Jackson should be owned in every league. 

With Ryan Grant’s status out for the Packers week 2 game and backup James Starks on the PUP for 6 weeks, Jackson, who rushed for 63 yards on 18 carries after Grant went down week 1, will get the start week 2 against Buffalo. Jackson has been a fairly unspectacular runner his entire career, but against Buffalo’s weak ground defense he could approach 100 yards next week.

RB Peyton Hillis- Cleveland

Percent Owned (ESPN): 3.4%

The former fullback split carries evenly with Jerome Harrison rushing for 41 yards on 9 touches. He also chipped in with 4 catches for 24 yards and got most of the short yardage carries, scoring a touchdown. He should be owned in most leagues as I expect him to split with Harrison, or at least get 40% of the carries, as well as the goal line looks.

WR Mark Clayton- St. Louis

Percent Owned (ESPN): 2.3%

The former first round pick was 2010 1^st overall pick Sam Bradford’s favorite target in the Rams week 1 game catching 10 balls for 119 yards on an amazing 16 targets. Clayton is not much better than average at this stage in his career, but the Rams are really thin  at receiver and Clayton looks like the favorite for yards on this team going forward.

WR Nate Washington- Tennessee

Percent Owned (ESPN):  2.4%

Washington looks like the Titans #1 receiver right now with Kenny Britt having conditioning problems. Washington led the team in receptions and receiving yards against Oakland with 3 catches for 88 yards and should do that for most of the season. He also scored this week as well. The only issue, Tennessee doesn’t throw much so he’s not going to be a weekly 80+ yard guy, but he’s worth a fantasy roster spot nonetheless as a #1 receiver.

 

QB David Garrard- Jacksonville

Percent Owned (ESPN): 20.6%

The chronically underrated Garrard tore apart the Broncos in a week 1 win throwing for 170 yards and 3 scores with 0 picks on only 21 attempts. He should definitely be owned in most leagues as a backup.

RB Fred Taylor- New England

Percent Owned (ESPN): 20.4%

Laurence Maroney is hurt and has seemingly fallen out of favor with the coaching staff anyway so Taylor is going to be the starter from this point on. He had 77 yards on 16 touches week 1. Unfortunately he’s a New England running back which means his carries could be pretty inconsistent because Bill Belicheck hates fantasy football. Sammy Morris, Kevin Faulk, and even Maroney could steal carries from him, but with the way he ran last week and the way he ran in the preseason, BB would be best served to get Taylor 15+ touches every week.

WR Brandon Lloyd- Denver

Percent Owned (ESPN): 0.2%

Lloyd matched his 2009 receiving totals in one week this year with 117 yards week one against the Jaguars. He, not Jabar Gaffney, appears to have won Brandon Marshall’s old role in Denver and should be a solid source of yards going forward.

WR Mike Thomas- Jacksonville

Percent Owned (ESPN): 2.6%

Thomas was clearly the best Jacksonville receiver on the field week 1, over Mike Sims Walker, 2009 Fantasy Breakout Stud. The former 4^th round pick and accomplished college receiver caught 6 passes for 89 yards, leading the team, in a win over Denver week 1.

TE Todd Heap- Baltimore

Percent Owned (ESPN): 15.7%

Heap caught 6 balls for 72 yards in the Ravens week one game against the Jets. When healthy, he’s a very underrated solid performer at tight end and should put up TE1 numbers for you week in and week out, unless his history of injuries flares up again. He’s worth the risk if you need tight end help.He

QB Josh Freeman- Tampa Bay

Percent Owned (ESPN): 3.2%

Josh Freeman was bad last year with 18 picks in 290 attempts, but in his first game this year against Cleveland, Freeman showed himself to be a much improved quarterback going 17 for 28 for 182 yards 2 scores and a pick. He’s an interesting pickup as a high upside QB2 after all the work he put in this offseason.

TE Evan Moore- Cleveland

Percent Owned (ESPN): 0.1%

Moore was on the practice squad at this time last year, but Moore, who caught 12 passes for 158 yards in 5 games last year, picked up where he left off with 3 catches for 87 yards against Tampa Bay and could be an interesting tight end option in deep leagues going forward. He’s clearly more talented than the overpaid Ben Watson.

 

 

10/6/11 9 PM ET

California at Oregon

CB Cliff Harris (Oregon) #13

Cliff Harris has top 15 talent, but got into some of the field trouble in the offseason. He was pulled over for going 118 MPH when the cops smelled weed. He also failed an intelligence test. When asked who had the weed, he said “we smoked it all.” He was suspended for the opener, but will be back for this game. He’s still got a chance to go in the first round, but last year Christian Ballard and Justin Houston each fell about 2 rounds from where they were projected to go after failing drug tests at the Combine. At the same time, Aqib Talib went 20^th in 2008 despite a drug arrest so we’ll see. He’s definitely got talent.

RB LaMichael James (Oregon) #21

If this were 2006, LaMichael James might be being talked about as a top 3 pick. James’ 2010 season (1939 total yards and 24 total touchdowns) mirrors Reggie Bush’s 2005 season (2218 total yards, 18 total touchdowns) and both have similar games. However, small running backs are not popular in the NFL right now and neither is taking running backs with premium picks (no one told the Bills this however). Plus, having the tag of “the next Reggie Bush” attached to him is not exactly a good thing. He should still be a 2^nd round pick with another good season and he’s at 613 yards and 7 score on 65 carries with 11 catches through 4 games, but he’s hurt by his frame (5-9 185).

10/7/11 9 PM ET

Boise State at Fresno State

RB Doug Martin (Boise State) #22

Martin put himself into day 2 consideration with 201 carries for 1260 yards and 12 touchdowns in 2010, with 28 receptions for another 338 yards and another 2 scores. He’s gotten off to a rocky start this season, but he looked good against Toledo, better than his stats would suggest, when I spotlighted Kellen Moore in that game. He’s got 325 yards and 4 scores on 85 carries this season, with 13 catches for 158 and another score. He had 126 rushing yards and 2 scores in his last game against Nevada so there’s definitely hope. He’s a physical runner, who refuses to go down on first contact, and he’s got decent speed, athleticism, and pass catching ability to boot. I’m excited to watch a Boise game, spotlighting him this time.

DT Billy Winn (Boise State) #90

Winn is having a disappointing year with just 11 tackles, .5 tackles for loss, and .5 sacks and it appears the once potential day 2 pick is falling more into day 3 range. However, in his past two seasons, he has a combined 24 tackles for loss and 11.5 sacks so he’s been better. At 6-4 290, he’s best suited to be a 3-4 end, but he can also play the 4-3 as an under tackle.

10/8/11 12 PM ET

QB Landry Jones (Oklahoma) #12

Following in the footsteps of Sam Bradford, Jones has put up really nice numbers over 2 years as a starter (remember, Bradford missed most of his final year with injuries). In 2009, he completed 58.1% of his passes for an average of 7.1 per attempt and 26 touchdowns to 14 picks as a redshirt freshman. In 2010, he completed 65.6% of his passes for an average of 7.6 per attempt and 38 touchdowns to 12 picks. This year, he leads the undefeated Oklahoma Sooners and completing 71.6% of his passes for an average of 9.3 yards per attempt with 10 touchdowns to 5 picks, including a tough road win against Florida State. He and Matt Barkley are currently the best two quarterbacks after Andrew Luck.

OLB Travis Lewis (Oklahoma) #28

A stat sheet filler since he became a starter in 2008 as a redshirt freshman, Lewis had 343 career tackles, 5.5 career sacks, and 8 career picks coming into this season. He amazingly only missed 1 game after breaking his foot before the season and he already has 25 tackles in 3 games this season. He’s a fringe first round prospect. 

 

10/8/11 3:30 PM ET

Florida at LSU

CB Morris Claiborne (LSU) #17

A rapidly rising prospect, Morris Claiborne has shined in the absence of Patrick Peterson, the 5th overall pick in last year’s draft, and with Dre Kirkpatrick and Stephon Gilmore both slipping a bit early this season, Claiborne has a chance to become the top cornerback in this class if he keeps this up. He has 22 tackles, 2 picks, and a kick return touchdown on the year and will be matched up with the same speed receivers that gave Dre Kirkpatrick trouble last week. 

DT Jaye Howard (Florida) #6

Howard had 2.5 tackles for loss and 1.5 sacks this year, but the projected mid rounder is the type of player who has value beyond the stat sheet. At 6-3 305, Howard is the nose tackle in Florida’s 4-3 defense and frequently takes on multiple blockers, opening things up for his teammates.

Georgia at Tennessee

10/8/11 7 PM ET

CB Brandon Boykin (Georgia) #2

After 3 picks in each of the last 2 years, Boykin, a mid rounder, has 1 so far this season, along with 3 pass break ups. A former stud return man as well, Boykin showed his amazing athleticism and speed on a 80 yard run from scrimmage in their week 1 loss to Boise State. 

G Cordy Glenn (Georgia) #71

Glenn, a former guard, is lining up at left tackle for Georgia this year. The big 330 pounder is doing an excellent job and is gaining momentum as a potential first round either at guard, right tackle, or even staying at left tackle. With his size and lack of foot speed, right tackle or guard makes the most sense for him long term. 

10/8/11 10:30 PM ET

TCU at San Diego State

QB Ryan Lindley (San Diego State) #14

One of the highest rated small school quarterbacks, Lindley has all the tools you like in a quarterback, but he seems to be regressing this season. After completing 57.7% of his passes for an average of 9.1 yards per attempt and 28 touchdowns to 14 interceptions last year, he’s completed just 51.5% of his passes for an average of 6.7 yards per attempt this season and 8 touchdowns to 1 pick. He struggled mightily against Michigan and doesn’t get a lot of chances to prove himself against highly ranked defenses. He’ll get one here against TCU.

OLB Miles Burris (San Diego State) #9

Miles Burris plays the outside linebacker in SDSU’s 3-3-5 defense, so he essentially is a rush linebacker. However, at 6-3 235, there are questions about his ability to play that position in the NFL. He might be just a situational player in a 4-3. He had 79 tackles, 18 for loss, and 7.5 sacks last year, and he has 26 tackles, 5 for a loss, and 2 sacks this season, but his level of competition and his size make him a day 3 prospect.

ESPN3 Replays

10/8/11 12 PM ET

Louisville at North Carolina

DE Quinton Coples (North Carolina) #90

Robert Quinn was a candidate for the #1 overall pick in 2011, before a season long suspension. He eventually went 14th. Quinn’s replacement at end at North Carolina was Quinton Coples. Coples, who had 5 sacks as a rotational player in 2009, burst onto the scene with 10 sacks in his first year as a starter in 2010. At 6-6 280 with 4.7 speed, Coples figures to be the first defensive player off the board in this April’s NFL draft and could challenge Matt Kalil to be the first non-quarterback taken if he keeps this up. He has 2.5 sacks in 4 games so far this season, all while providing a huge force against the run.

WR Dwight Jones (North Carolina) #83

The massive Dwight Jones has not yet become a popular projected first round pick, but after 62 catches for 946 yards and 4 scores in 2010, the 6-5 Jones already has 33 catches for 514 yards and 6 scores in 3 games this season. Even more impressive, he’s doing this with inconsistent play at the quarterback position. He has 6 of his school’s 11 receiving touchdowns and almost half of their receiving yards. If he keeps this up, he’ll be a first rounder.

Florida State at Wake Forest 

10/8/11 12:30 PM ET 

DE Brandon Jenkins (Florida State) #49

Jenkins burst onto the scene with 13.5 sacks and 21.5 tackles for loss last season and has bulked up to 6-3 265 for the 2011 season, in an effort to remain a 4-3 player as he heads to the NFL after this season. Jenkins will need to pick up it if he wants to remain a first rounder. he has just 2 sacks and 4 tackles for loss in his first 4 this year. 

OT Andrew Datko (Florida State) #67

After Matt Kalil, Jonathan Martin, and Riley Reiff, this is a very thin offensive tackle class. For this reason, the athletic 320 pound Datko has a good chance to move into the mid-to-late first round range and go to a tackle needy team. He plays on Florida State’s left side.

10/8/11 3 PM ET

Boston College at Clemson

OLB Luke Kuechly (Boston College) #40

Luke Kuechly’s a statistician’s wet dream. He had 325 combined tackles in his first 2 seasons at BC and now he already has 83 this season through 5 games. He’s had 10+ tackles in 24 of his last 25 games (the other game he had 9) and if he were 10 pounds bigger and a little faster, he’d be a sure top 10 pick. Still, the 6-2 235 pounder is a top 15 pick at this point.

DE Andre Branch (Clemson) #40

Branch, a day 2 pick coming into this year as a 3-4 linebacker/4-3 end type, burst onto the scene last week with a huge 3 sack day against Virginia Tech in a win. Now he’s getting first round consideration. At 6-5 265 with good speed, he’s a fit for either scheme and has potential to move up if he can keep having good games. Through 5, he has 4 sacks, 7 tackles for loss, and 33 total tackles. Last year, he had 54 tackles, 8.5 for a loss, and 6 sacks.

 

 

RB LeGarrette Blount- Tampa Bay

Percent owned (ESPN): 1.0%

This week, Kareem Huggins went down for the season and coach Raheem Morris finally stopped using the incompetent Cadillac Williams on anything other than passing downs and Blount led the team in carries and rushing yards in a win over St. Louis. He rushed 11 times for 72 yards and should be the lead back for the rest of the season.

WR Steve Johnson- Buffalo

Percent owned (ESPN): 14.1%

Johnson has become the #1 receiver in Buffalo and with a decent QB in yan Fitzpatrick at the helm, he has fantasy potential. He caught 8 passes for 158 yards and a score last week and has 5 scores in his last 4 games. He’s caught 25 passes for 372 yards and 5 scores this season.

 

WR Davone Bess- Miami

Percent owned (ESPN): 19.1%

I mention him a lot but he needs to be owned in more leagues, especially PPR where he should be owned almost universally. He has 32 catches on the year in 6 games and has only once gone under 5 catches in a game. He has 4 games of 6 or more catches and has 348 yards on the season. He also has a score in his last 3 games.

TE Tony Moeaki- Kansas City

Percent owned (ESPN): 28.6%

Not the most amazing tight end, but with 21 catches for 236 yards and 2 scores in 6 games he’s decent and he’s consistent, with only one game under 3 catches. He’s worth a pickup in most deep leagues and should only get better as the season goes on as a rookie receiver learning the nuances of the game. 

 

Quarterbacks 

Running Backs

Fullbacks

Wide Receivers

Tight Ends

Offensive Tackles

Centers

Defensive Tackles

Defensive Ends

Linebackers

Cornerbacks

Safeties

Spotlight #1: Oklahoma State WR Justin Blackmon 

Spotlight #2: Texas A&M WR Jeff Fuller 

1st quarter

14:11: Jeff Fuller is targeted for the first time tonight. Ryan Tannehill’s pass sails on him. No chance for Fuller. Fuller is tall, but not that tall.

11:30: Blackmon drops a pass on the sideline. He needs to make that catch.

11:23: Blackmon holds on to this one. Catch short in coverage. Blanketed and can’t make the first. 3^rd and 1.

11:02: Blackmon catches the ball on the flat and runs for the first down.

4:55: Blackmon is getting pissed at his quarterback for not getting him the ball.

3:03: Not Jeff Fuller, but Ryan Swope is another junior receiver for Texas A&M. The slot receiver had as many catches as Fuller did last year, 72, and he leads the team this year with 14 in 2 games. He’s got 2 catches tonight, both out of the slot, and shows nice moves in the open field. He could be someone to watch in the future.

2:49: Fuller drops a pass now. This one was bad.

0:50: Blackmon gets the target this time, but quarterback Brandon Weeden makes a bad decision throwing to him. Blackmon is double covered and completely blanketed. No chance and almost picked. Bad on Blackmon for not being able to get separation here. The cornerback ran with him the whole time.

2^nd quarter

13:06: Ryan Swope again with the catch. Jeff Fuller isn’t doing anything, but Swope is.

12:45: Fuller targeted, unable to come up with the catch. It would have been a tough catch, but he should have made that, even with a guy breathing down his neck.

11:11: Swope with his 4^th catch of the game.  He’s been Texas A&M’s best receiver tonight, by far, over Jeff Fuller. He’s been getting open underneath and showing soft hands.

10:34: Fuller finally does something. He goes over the middle and makes a big touchdown catch. He attacks the football with a defender on him and snatches the ball out of there. Excellent catch. 17 yard touchdown.

10:22: Blackmon does something. Weeden with perfect timing with Blackmon on a slant. Weeden threads the ball between two defenders perfectly and Blackmon shows his speed on the run after catch. 20 yard catch for Blackmon.

7:15: Fuller catches the ball on a curl route, but accidentally steps out of bounds before he can go anywhere with the ball.

6:20: Tannehill looking for Fuller, but the ball is inaccurate out of bounds. No chance for him.

1:08: Weeden finds Justin Blackmon down field matched up with a safety over the middle of the field for a pretty big gain.

 

3^rd quarter

14:52: Blackmon with the poor effort on an outside run block, just lets his man get free to tackle the ball carrier on a sweep play.

14:27: Blackmon targeted, but unable to come up with the ball. He wasn’t open against double coverage. He did give it his best effort, but it was a very tough ball to catch.

13:37: Blackmon much better on this outside run block, keeps his man sealed off inside to open an outside seam for the runner.

11:13: Jeff Fuller catches a first down dump off for 6 yards.

9:15: Blackmon catches the ball over the middle of the field against loose man-to-man coverage. When he’s been single covered tonight, he’s burned them. However, Texas A&M’s defensive coordinator has done an amazing job of making Blackmon a relative non-factor with double coverages. He has 5 catches for 69 yards.

7:33: Justin Blackmon catches a touchdown in the front corner of the end zone. Nice job catching it and staying in bounds, but he doesn’t bring the ball to his chest after catching it. He leaves it out and it gets knocked out, out of bounds when he’s hit. Poor fundamentals there. Still a nice touchdown grab.

6:09: Blackmon cuts across the field and gets open for a short catch followed by a nice run for a first down. He’s a very physical runner.

5:12: Blackmon catches it in the flat, avoids a couple tackles, and almost gets the first on 1^st and 10. The ball was thrown high by Weeden and Blackmon had to go up and get it.

3:12: Jeff Fuller and a defensive back both catch the ball and the defensive back rips the ball out of his hands for the interception. If you’re the receiver there, you have to come up with that ball. You don’t let the defensive back steal it out of your hands.

2:59: Blackmon catches it over the middle of the field and then runs backwards for a few yards trying to break the back one, but almost loses first down yardage. He went way too far back there. He needs to know when to give up and head up field on a play like that.

1:51: Blackmon catches the ball in space and has an easy touchdown, but loses the ball untouched before he gets a touchdown. He needs to take the ball and tuck it away. He keeps running with the ball out like a loaf of bread. Very poor fundamentals. He should have had 7. Instead A&M gets the ball back. Absolutely inexcusable.

4^th quarter

14:11: Weeden looking for Blackmon in the end zone, but Blackmon is blanketed and Weeden is inaccurate on the pass. Blackmon had position and could have made the catch, but Weeden didn’t put it in the right spot.

10:43: Oklahoma State wide receiver Josh Cooper with his 11^th catch of the night, 1 more than Blackmon. He’s been impressive tonight as their #2 receiver. He’s more of an underneath guy, but with now 25 catches on the season and 68 last season, he could be a late round pick.

7:13: Blackmon catches the high ball in the flat on 3^rd and goal and has blockers in front of him, but a big hit keeps him out of the end zone.

6:16: Jeff Fuller with just his 4^th catch of the today, short of the first down and goes nowhere after the catch. He’s been a relative non-factor. Maybe his hamstring problem is slowing him down.

6:03: Fuller targeted, but unable to come up with the low ball in the flat.

5:58: Fuller targeted again, but it’s on a throw just tipped at the line that falls very short.

5:21: Fuller has his 5^th catch on a short catch on 2^nd and 5 for the 1^st. Oklahoma State is playing a zone prevent defense right now so they’re just giving him short gain.

5:03: Jeff Fuller unable to make the deep catch with Broderick Brown blanketing him once again. The hamstring might be part of the problem, but Brodrick Brown isn’t helping. The 5-8 cornerback is somehow outplaying the 6-4 receiver. Brown is a mere junior and given his size, I doubt he leaves early. He’s having a right game, but the demand for 5-8 cornerbacks in the NFL is pretty small.

2:43: Fuller having a nice drive and is able to get his 2^nd touchdown of the night on a short 4 yard score.

0:00: This was supposed to be a matchup between stud wide receivers. I came away disappointed with both of them. Jeff Fuller was battling a hamstring injury, which could have explained his 6 catch, 55 yards, 2 touchdown performance. He dropped a pass and just couldn’t get a lot of separation. Slot receiver Ryan Swope looked better than him as he has for the entire season. Swope leads the team in receptions and could be a late round pick.

Justin Blackmon had better stats, with 11 catches for 123 yards and a score, but he fumbled in the red zone which cost them 7 points and he dropped a pass. Texas A&M clearly frustrated him with double coverage and he became very frustrated with his quarterback for not getting him the ball, which led to quarterback Brandon Weeden trying to force things to him when he wasn’t open on several occasions. He also almost dropped a 2^nd touchdown. He needs to improve his fundamentals and carry the ball in a safer way and avoid mental lapses. Also, unwarranted frustration with your quarterback is never a good thing. He’s obviously very talented, but this wasn’t his best game. 11 catches isn’t that impressive when you consider that Oklahoma State threw 60 times and had 47 completions.

This game also had mid round prospects at quarterback in Brandon Weeden and Ryan Tannehill. I wasn’t particularly impressed with either of them, but I thought Brandon Weeden had the better game. Tannehill had a very poor 2^nd half. However, Weeden is 27 years old and a former minor league baseball pitcher. That’s definitely going to hurt his stock.