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We draft Jimmy Williams but we move him Safety.

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It's really hard to tell whether he would be better at a CB or Safety...He would surely have to learn A LOT about the SS position, but with enough dedication he could do it

Judging by the fact that VaTech says he runs a 4.38, I doubt he will really have the speed to be a corner in the NFL. He could end up being a Sean Taylor impact type of Safety though.

Thats what I was thinking Imcomparable. And mickvick he played safety in college so he is familar with the position (even though I believe VT used him as a rover?)

Williams definitely has safety size (6-3/215) and only 2 years of experience at CB, but I think his upside at CB is much higher than at safety.

Most of what I'm hearing about Williams is that he sounds a lot like a bigger version of DeAngelo. A guy that relied mostly off athleticism rather than technique in college, that is brazen and cocky.

IMO, although DeAngelo's mental discipline has a lot to be desired, and it would be easy to say the same thing about Williams, I think these factors make him a much stronger candidate to be a CB on this team.

Williams brings to this team a bit more of the swagger that we need to get back. Will his swagger cause headaches? Probably, a lot. But a player of his athletic potential and size will probably more than make up for them.

What I think made Taylor an oustanding S prospect even though he possessed the ability to play and start at CB in the NFL was his abilities in run support. He hit like a truck and had he been a LB, he would have been a 2nd or 3rd round pick. You can't say the same about WIlliams, and although he could be a fine safety in the NFL, because he's not as strong as Taylor or many other safeties in this draft are in run support, I'd look at him as a corner first.

But the key to Williams success will be a team allowing him to play in mostly press coverage. This lining up 15 yards off the WR stuff that Donatell employed a bit too much this past year isn't going to work with him. I'd love to see both Williams and Hall lining up in press coverage more often than not, talking trash and making plays.

IMO, Williams is a guy that if I'm McKay, I'd be willing to move up 2 or 3 picks to get him if available.

What makes Taylor a great Safety is the fact he is 230 pounds and excellent in coverage. Williams could be a terrific Safety if he puts on a little muscle, or a very good corner if he actually runs a 4.38

I definately like him in the first round follwed by Watkins in the second, that would give us a nice corner and Saftey combo for a few years to come with Deangelo + Williams, backed up by Watkins and hopefully Chris Hope

Just say no to Chris Hope. I'm telling you. He's not an upgrade over Carpenter, Scott, or Edwards. He only is OK in Pittsburgh because he has a great group of guys around him that cover up his mistakes. I'm telling you, signing him is the equivalent of signing Cory Hall. Just another body. He misses tackles, blows assignments. Frankly, Hope has plenty of opportunity to show that he can get the job done in Pittsburgh over the years.

This is how I slice it:

In 2002, Hope was a 3rd round pick.
In 2003, the Steelers drafted Polamalu in the 1st round.

Both Polamalu and Hope struggled in 2003 as starters. Polamalu has since made leaps and bounds in improvement, and now is arguably the best safety in the NFL. Hope, is an average starter if you can call him that. That should be a major red flag for anybody. Sure, you could say that Polamalu's improvement was on the part of better talent. And I'd agree, but fact is that the talent difference between your typical 1st and 3rd rounder isn't that huge at the safety position. Which is one of the reasons why safeties don't go in large numbers in Round 1, because most NFL teams/scouts agree that you can wait until Round 3 or so and still get a good player. usually the difference being a 1st round safety is a bit more polished all-around and a 3rd rounder tends to excel in 1 area and struggle in the other. Fact is, nothing in 2003, whether it was leading up to the draft or during the season would have indicated to many that Polamalu would be within 3 years the best safety in the NFL.

Another red flag should be the fact that the Steelers will let him go without batting an eye. Teams that are signing free agents should take notice to how their current teams feel about a player. It's one thing if the cap prevents the team from making a serious offer, or injuries are involved, or the player didn't fit the scheme. But the Steelers are ready to move on and will take their chances in the draft probably with the mindset that they could wait until Round 4 or 5 and still upgrade over Hope, or they can just plug the hole with Tyrone Carter (a career dime back) until they find someone better. Now don't get me wrong, Tyrone Carter IMO has been underappreciated, underrated, and overlooked during his entire 6-year NFL career, but to pretend he's anything more than Keion Carpenter pre-injuries would be foolish. And frankly, I don't think we need another Keion Carpenter circa 2002 at the safety position.

Will Demps coming off a torn ACL is a better option than Hope. Dexter Jackson is a better option. Marlon McCree = better option. Signing Chris Hope to be anything more than a #3 safety is going to set yourself up for failure. He'll be another name in a long string of names of marginal safeties we've had in Atlanta. Sure, maybe DEmps, Jackson, and McCree would be too, but at least with those 3 (among others) we have a much better shot of reversing history.

I have to wonder how many times do we want to go back to VaTech? At our current rate the 2025 Falcons will really just be a recycled VaTech squad. Eventually we are going to pull a stinker out of that talent pool.