Barrett Breaks Out
by Doc Bear on Aug 2, 2008 5:44 PM MDT
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PrintJosh Barrett S Pick 220 Round 7
(6'1 ", 223, 4.349) | ARIZONA STATE
Regarded by the ASU staff as one of the finest safeties to ever play at the university. Has good range and can cover the deep half of the field. Reads quarterback's eyes, shows adequate ball skills and flashes big-play ability. Big enough to line up in the box, aggressive and can make plays at the line of scrimmage. Flashes the ability to shed blocks quickly. Always seems to be around the ball at the end of the play. Is a reliable open field tackler that flashes the ability to deliver the big hit. Times the blitz well. Is a ball hawk and tries to strip the ball when in a trail position. Very good intangibles. Plays the game hard and shows good football intelligence. Quarterback of the secondary and leader of the defense.
NFL.com said: It is fitting that he hopes to one day become a dentist, as he spent his last four years drilling any receiver that dared to come into his area. With his 4.35 clocking in the 40-yard dash, he is the Sun Devils' fastest player to ever wear a defensive uniform.
On July 31, Guru commented from camp: "Just how awesome does Josh Barrett look in person? People have been raving about him throughout camp and I want to lay eyes on him for myself. Well, it’s fun to see…"
Barrett has shown several excellent tendencies throughout camp. By Day 2 he had nailed an interception, his first of several. On Day 4 he lined up a couple times at corner, then played safety during every snap of the three-on-threes. Day 5 found him getting cheers from his teammates and fans when he burst through the line on a blitz and took down Anthony Alridge in the backfield. Later that day, he and Marquand Manuel showed a desire to learn, staying after afternoon practice to get some additional tutelage from coaches Ronnie Bradford and Ryan Slowik.
On Day 6 Tony Scheffler made a great grab in traffic and starting running up the sidelines, but Barrett ran at him and stripped away the ball. Not only did he cause the fumble but he recovered it as well and ran to the opposite sideline before the entire offense chased him out of bounds. The next day, Guru noted, "There were several passes that appeared to be easy completions that Barrett was able to get to and break up. That is what playing safety in today's NFL is all about. This kid has a solid future."
With Lynch’s exit, Barrett has continued to shine. On Day 8 of TC Hamza Abdullah sat out with a groin pull and Barrett nabbed a sack during eleven-on-elevens. The next day, a blog-site commented, "Having broken passes up, thumping running backs in the backfield and blitzing the quarterback, he's kind of making it look easy." Although expected to get some reps this year, most believe that Barrett will have to season and fully learn the pro game before stepping into a starting position.
But Barrett, along with classmates including Hillis, Royal and Clady, represents the noticeable upswing in Broncos draft skills that the Goodman’s have helped to create. If Alridge, Woodyard, Erickson and Polumbus are added to the list, most fans will agree that the Broncos future looks brighter by the day.
This is a Fan-Created Comment on MileHighReport.com. The opinion here is not necessarily shared by the editorial staff of MHR
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Great Post Bear. Thanks
I just finished HT’s “Areas of Concern” post and this was a nice pic-me-up. I feel better about safety all ready! I wish Carlton Powell was on your list.
What lies behind us and what lies before us are small matters compared to what lies within us. - Emerson
Powell would indeed be a darkhorse!
He’s out for the season!
I’m sorry to bring you down. It wasn’t my intent. My hope is that people take a moment from the excitement of the upcoming season to take a look at a few concerns, and to come to grips with them (either by seeing the solutions, or by just taking them into account). Remember, I still see improvement this year (at least 3 games), and a major push for the big game next year.
"Greater is an army of sheep led by a lion, than an army of lions led by a sheep" Defoe
by Steve Nichols on Aug 2, 2008 6:37 PM MDT up reply actions
I know, I know
I was just showing appreciation for Bear’s post. And I was meaning I wished Powell were on his list instead of IR! And your “Areas of Concern” post only brings me down because I think you are so comprehensive and accurate in your evaluations. DT and LB are indeed “areas of concern”.
What lies behind us and what lies before us are small matters compared to what lies within us. - Emerson
Question
Why did he fall all the way to the seventh round?
What lies behind us and what lies before us are small matters compared to what lies within us. - Emerson
Three reasons, first
1. He played himself into it. He lost his motivation and focus and was benched his senior year. To his credit, he came back later that year and played with focus and strength, but the damage to his reputation was done.
2. On a similar note, this was one draft analysis: “Barrett is a workout warrior who will greatly impress a team with his athletic ability, fall(s) under the “looks like Tarzan, plays like Jane” category. He has the size that the football gods would wish for all safeties, yet needs to be prodded to play up to that level at a consistent pace. ” I don’t see that in this camp at all.
3. Another draft analysis that found itself amusing: “He has a litany of injuries throughout his career that makes you wonder if Alan Alda and the MA*SH unit is going to be needed on the sideline.”
My own thought is that he was a young man who lost his way, emotionally, while in college. Certainly that’s not uncommon, and in this case he didn’t hurt anyone else by it. He saw, when he was benched, that his actions had consequences that he didn’t desire. He fought back, which showed me courage. He is playing his heart out, so that area doesn’t concern me.
The injury issue will or won’t be a problem – we’ll see when we get there. By the way – this is the ‘endless litany’ of his injuries:
2003: Suffered a right shoulder separation vs. Northern Arizona (9/06) in the season opener, missing the rest of the year. ... Did not play vs. California (10/30) and Stanford (11/06) games with a right shoulder contusion.
2007: Suffered a pectoral muscle strain vs. San Diego State (9/15)...Suffered a quad contusion vs. Oregon State (9/22)...Left the Southern California contest (11/22) and sat out the final two games vs. Arizona (12/01) and Texas (12/27) with a right knee sprain.
Doesn’t seem so bad to me. People exaggerate, and they are sometimes cruel. Happily, we seem to have a heck of a bargain.
Atwater for the Hall!
This is a really nice analysis
It seems the Broncos have been doing a much better job in recent years of identifying players whose draft stock has suffered, for one reason or another, but who are worth taking a risk on. Thomas last year and B-Marsh the year before could be considered sleepers, and we may have found several more this year. Finding solid players in later rounds is how you build a winner.
"In the empty spaces - lacunae, vacuums, pauses, voids, black holes - new things begin. We are born anew from the unexplored space, the badlands, the outlaw territory." - Sam Keen
Good stuff Doc!
Safety being my favorite position (and Barrett looking great), I’m tempted to go with “Barrett” for my vote. On the other hand, I was certain that Royal would be a back-up at slot behind Stokley and be our returner on STs, but he is kicking some rear end too. I guess Royal is less a darkhorse, being a second round pick, but he wasn’t supposed to be a starter (he was drafte to return punts), and folks are talking him up as a potential starter (including Shanahan).
Of course, this could be to motivate other receivers too, right?
It’s a tough call. With Barrett’s speed, I would love to see the man get the start at FS. I’d rather see McCree and Hamza fight for SS. Hamza has proven himself in run support, and has more pro level experience than Barrett. But with his speed, I’d like to see Barrett start learning the FS position this year (as I see us making our major push next year). McCree is an experienced player, and can tutor either player in whatever role he gets. While he sometimes takes poor angles (according to some SD fans on the site), I think we’re lucky to have a player of his caliber that was fighting for a position in a deep SD SAF depth chart.
Either way, it’s a close call between Royal and Barrett. Royal might make a major impact as the next great receiver for Denver, but a speedy Barrett could allow Bailey and Bly to do much more (Barrett wouldn’t get the glory for what he does, except for the ocassional INT).
My bias for SAF shows out, and I’ll vote Barrett.
"Greater is an army of sheep led by a lion, than an army of lions led by a sheep" Defoe
I went out on a limb
and voted for Aldridge. What I’ve heard out of camp is great. It sounds like he heads for the edge on pretty much every run, but more importantly, has the speed and skills to make it. While I don’t think he will be a primary back, ever, he seems like he could find a niche making BIG plays. Sorta like a more electric Tatum Bell while he was backing up Mike Anderson, except with hands instead of bricks. I see him being used in two back sets and maybe lining up in the slot sometimes, taking reverses and dump-off passes, and screens.
Here are a few ifs: If Royal proves to be the deep threat he seems to be turning into, and we can get our power run game going, the defense will be stretched vertically and forced to secure the middle of the field. That should leave the edges wide open to Aldridge.
A lot of our pass plays are to the sides of the field...
...to support (set up) the one cut runs (although they can stretch verticaly on the side line). A one cut always starts to the side, and cuts back towards the center.
On the other hand, your point still stands because we can set up runs and screens for Aldridge because opposing teams (particularly zone heavy teams) are going to be guarding the power, one-cut runs in the middle. You make an excellent point. With a verticle threat on one side (Royal?) and possession threats everywhere else (Marshall, Stokley, Scheffler), and varied run attacks (power center, speed edge), we almost (not quite) look like a spread offense. We’re going to have a lot of fun on offense. Let’s hope our defense keeps up!
"Greater is an army of sheep led by a lion, than an army of lions led by a sheep" Defoe
by Steve Nichols on Aug 2, 2008 6:55 PM MDT up reply actions
I was going to say Alridge as well, but
with Selvin, Train, Pittman and Hall, I just don’t know if there’s room for him.
It sounds like he has great speed and can get to the edge, but does he have the strength or ability to run up the middle? If we use him just to run to the edge, other teams would be able to key on that pretty easily, I would think.
"It's all over Fat Man"
- Tom Jackson to John Madden 1977 AFC Championship Game
by DesertBroncoFan on Aug 4, 2008 10:07 AM MDT up reply actions
If he is still
listed as third string when the first cuts come at the end of august, I would expect him to be going to the practice squad. The nice thing about the one cut system is it isn’t predicated on the backs strength or toughness. If the oline is in shambles, obviously, everybody is gonna take some licks they wouldn’t otherwise. At 4-5 carries a game he would be effective running up the middle and taking it outside when warranted. One thing Turner will teach him though, which is why going to the practice squad is probably good, is that the cut back, when executed properly should have him running away from heavy hitting MLBs, and that the majority of the time the biggest hitters he will have to deal with are WLBs and FSs. If he doesn’t trust the cutback, he may be tempted to bounce things outside that don’t need to go there, making him the achilles heel that you point out, with defenses keying on him.
Assuming Hall is the change-of-pace speed back, Alridge makes the perfect backup to that position. As such, it is little use to have him active on gameday, or even available for activation. PS makes the most sense, unless Hall tanks or gets injured, or if Alridge comes on strong in preseason, which is a possibility. He seems like the kind of player that would thrive under the lights…
Mountains, forest, sea: these render man fierce, but yet do not destroy the man.
by Jeremy Bolander on Aug 4, 2008 12:55 PM MDT up reply actions
I picked Alrige too
Just a gut feeling based at least partly on the fact that his college numbers are off the charts.
"In the empty spaces - lacunae, vacuums, pauses, voids, black holes - new things begin. We are born anew from the unexplored space, the badlands, the outlaw territory." - Sam Keen
Another great post Bear! I voted for...
Alridge as the dark horse. It wouldn’t surprise me to see him returning kick-offs very early in the season.
This is very true
and would actually be ideal, allowing Royal to focus on punts and contributing to the offense. In the past, punt/kick returners who are asked to be in on a regular basis in the offense have severe drops in their return game productivity. Splitting the return game up should allow both players a chance to active on game day, and thus be available options in the running and passing games.
I too voted alridge, but if I could I would vote for both Royal and alridge. In many ways the success of the one will benefit the other.
Mountains, forest, sea: these render man fierce, but yet do not destroy the man.
by Jeremy Bolander on Aug 2, 2008 8:38 PM MDT up reply actions
Styg
Not since Upchurch have I been so excited about our return posibilities. This has been one great influx of players.
I voted for Barrett
but if Hillis had been on the list ( I might still be pondering that one -lol). It is good to see these young guys step up and bring it at TC trying to win a spot on the roster, helping this Team in so many different areas and ways . During the draft we were trying to build the Team with ” Character Players ” (even though some of the guys at first were total surprises) I for one am really happy for now with what our veteran and rookie players are showing this TC. It WILL be an exciting year. GO BRONCOS!
I voted for Alridge!
I just don’t think any of those other guys sees significant playing time this season. I think Barrett has great potential…just not this season.
However, as several people mentioned, Alridge has a significant opportunity to contribute on special teams as a returner. Barrett could be a big special teams coverage guy.
Mea Culpa
I don’t see Royal or Hillis as dark horse candidates, although I should have explained that. Jack Williams, Clady, Torain, even Steiger strike me as having strong reasons to be on the 53 man roster. The five I listed have reasons to argue against them, whether I agree with those reasons or not. Lynch’s release has stacked the odds for Barrett, but he came into camp a 7th rounder fighting just to have a shot. Now, I suspect that he will be on the roster and contribute some, with a greater role next year. But that’s just MHO.
Atwater for the Hall!
I am still laughing
at the "looks like Tarzan, plays like Jane" remark.
What lies behind us and what lies before us are small matters compared to what lies within us. - Emerson
Agreed Bear............
I didn’t consider Royal, Clady, or Hillis as darkhorses. I chose Barrett just because we haven’t had that complete safety for awhile now. Lynch has been good but he never was that great at coverage, I miss the days when we had an Atwater AND Dennis Smith laying the wood in the secondary. They might not have been the greatest cover guys either but they were always around the ball and you knew you were going to get hit when you came into their turf, whether it was a reception or a run. I’m glad to hear Barrett is a hitter, we need some intimidation on defense in my humble opinion. Lynch has been providing it to a certain degree, but now that he’s gone, someone needs to step up. Hopefully the entire defense will step into that role of intimidator.
The player who thinks he can and the player who knows he can are two different players, which one are you???
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