FalcFans Forums

Tapp is a fella I still haven't heard to many people talk about....I did get to see something on NFL network last night about him and Mike Mayock has him as the 2nd best end in the draft...according to Mayock (whose opinion I actually respect after hearing him talk about the players during NFL Network's coverage of the combine last year....he seems to be pretty knowledgeable) Tapp strengths include being strong at the point of attack, being able to play the run, and a good first step.....his downside was his size (6'1 260ish)....if this kid runs a decent 40 and works out well in Indy next week then he's a name we might be hearing more often....

Tapp measured at 6-1/257 at the Senior Bowl, so he's much smaller than Tamba Hali who already has very marginal NFL DE size at 6-2/267.

But everything I've seen from Tapp, I've liked. I'm no expert on him, but he has the makings of a good NFL player. Several sources cited him as the premier edge rusher during the Senior Bowl week.

He'd be a good fit on this team, and because of his going to VT, you know McKay & Co. have him scouted pretty well. I firmly believe that Hali, Tapp, and probably Parys Haralson and Mark Anderson are the sort of ideal DEs the Falcons will be targetting on the 1st day of the draft.

When you look at McKay's history with the draft at the DE position, besides picking up Simeon Rice, he has avoided the "classic" DE profile by going after the 6-5/270 athlete with the 35-inch arms and 38-inch vertical leap.

THe Falcons had Chauncey Davis rated as a 4th rounder, when most "experts" considered him a 7th or undrafted prospect. Why? Because the Falcons loved his motor, his speed in pursuit, and although he didn't have quite the great size or strength, they liked his ability to play with leverage.

In '03, his final draft with the Bucs, they took Dewayne White. A poor prospect in terms of size and speed (6-2/275 with a 4.75 40), but White's production on the college level was outstanding, and when you watched him play you knew he was an elite prospect, although he lacked the Combine numbers to back it up. I might even add Elvis Dumervil to the list of possible Falcon draft picks since he and White are similar (same college, similar production, same "limitations")

Between 1998 and 2002, he took 3 late round prospects that weren't quite classic DE types:

Chance McCarty (1998) - 6-3/250, 4.95 40
Joe Tafoya (2001) - 6-4/269, 4.88 40
John Stamper (2002) - 6-4/265, 4.98 40

So in my mind, any of the smaller guys that show some upside to be able to stop the run, and whether they run a fast 40 time or not, if they play fast on the field, then the Falcons will target them. Guys like Mario Williams, Ray Edwards, Mathias Kiwanuka may not be on our radar screen, if you simply consider McKay's recent history when it comes to DEs.

How does an inch & 10 pounds make Hali much bigger than Tapp? lol I wouldn't take either one at 15th overall and, quite frankly, neither is what the Falcons need. Ray Edwards, Chris Gocong, and Victor Adeyanju are our best bets to finding a long term replacement for Smith at RDE.

If we get CB or S in the first round, then this is the guy to shoot for in the 2nd. He been 10x more productive than a lot of the guys rated higher like Kiwi. The absolute only reason he's not rated higher, is b/c they think he's a little undersized. His motor in non-stop all game long and he's probably got the best attitude of any player to ever come through VT. If you're familiar with the VT lunchpail, he's had it for about 2-3 years straight, which is quite an accomplishment. Another thing, he'd be the definition of a Falcon filter type guy.

since VT played on Thursday nights a lot this last season I got to see many of thier games and D Tapp stood out more to me than any other defensive player on that team....he was constantly in the back field and he even anchored against the run pretty well...I didn't know about him having the lunch pail for so long, but that makes me like him even more.

I'd be very pleased if we drafted Tapp....but if he runs under 4.6 in Indy or his pro day then he won't be there in the second...

The times I have seen Tapp play he usually does something good in the game.I don't think Hali is much better so to get Tapp in the second and the Falcon's pick another player in the first may be the best we can hope for.I wish I would have seen more penn state games since I keep wondering what all the fuss is about Hali.

Of course when weighing players to draft them in certain rounds for me a few things you have to consider

1.is the player head and sholders above the others at his position?
2.is the player better than the other positions of need and who will be the better player
3.the depth of the position

example

If Hali is ranked slightly ahead of Tapp, Tapp ahead of Harylson,Anderson

you have to weigh that against a Darnell Bing who may be available at safety,Daniel Bullocks

which player has the higher upside.Bing,Bullocks,Tapp? Can we wait to draft a parys harylson or mark anderson.Alot of things to think about.We need someone at right def end more than Chauncey davis and someone who isn't going to cost an arm and leg in free agency.

Upside is a very interesting factor when weighing prospects. Most often people usually consider what a player's natural talents are as his upside.

But I think there are several factors that you should also consider when gauging upside is:

1) How well prospect fits into your system
2) Does your current personnel lend an opportunity for a player to start or getting significant minutes
3) Work ethic

The last one might be the most important one. A player may have a higher ceiling, but if he has a questionable work ethic, then it's highly doubtful they will ever reach it. Case example: Nathan Davis.

Also, a player's upside might be great, but if he doesn't fit your scheme, then there's no point drafting him. Example is if you run a Cover-2 defense, and there is a big corner that has all kinds of speed and looks like Chris McAlister, but if he is an average tackler and is not good in run support, his upside in terms of how he fits in your scheme is marginal, because that defense uses a lot of zone and basically their cornerbacks can play safety in most other defenses.

Also, a player may have a lot of upside, but if he plays a position that is already well-stocked it means absolutely nothing. Like the Chargers, don't really need to consider a pass-receiving tight end if they are looking a late round TE as a backup to Gates, because Gates likely will be in San Diego for several years and the team doesn't need another receiving threat at TE. So a player may have upside as a receiver, but they'll only need him to really function as a blocker, so his upside as a receiver is not necessarily when he may only get 10-20 passes thrown his way all year.