Mack Alexander With Red Flags?
April 20th, 2016
Too confident?
It seems just about every mocker has the Bucs drafting Florida cornerback Vernon Hargreaves with the ninth overall pick in next week’s draft.
Joe has nothing against Hargreaves at all and he may very well be the pick, but Joe isn’t totally sold.
For some reason, Joe was charmed at the NFL Scouting Combine by the confidence if not arrogance of Clemson cornerback Mackensie Alexander. He just seemed more of a Jason Licht kind of a guy than Hargreaves, nothing more.
Alexander said he studied tape of Laquon Treadwell of Ole Miss, a receiver he never faced in college. But Alexander admitted he would have to face him some time in the NFL so why not be prepared? Who does that, spend hours studying guys who are not on their schedule?
That kind of dedication and passion seems to be in lockstep to what Licht describes as “Bucs mentality.”
Alexander may be a Bucs draft pick… in the second round. Tony Pauline of WalterFootball.com writes Alexander’s personality has rubbed so many folks the wrong way, he may totally slip out of the first round.
Despite his on-the-field talent, numerous sources have told me the junior cornerback is a very difficult person to deal with off the field. He was difficult at Clemson, and some of his coaches are giving Alexander less than rave reviews to NFL teams – and I’m being kind. This is something originally brought to my attention during Clemson’s pro day on March 10, and something I took with a grain of salt. But since last Friday, I’ve spoken with multiple sources, and it seems Alexander’s off-the-field personality has been spoken about at length in war rooms around the league. In my opinion, the junior cornerback has the best ball skills of any defensive back in the draft, but if he starts to drop deep into Round 1, or even out of the first frame altogether, it’ll be due to his off-the-field persona.
Joe just cannot imagine a cornerback-needy team passing on a guy because of his arrogance. That just doesn’t add up. Alexander can’t be that much of a cancer. If he hadn’t gotten hurt, Clemson likely would have won the national title.
If Alexander’s head really got too big for his helmet, guess who would quickly put him in his place? Kwon Alexander and America’s Quarterback, Pro Bowler Jameis Winston.
If a guy has skills to match his ego, what exactly is the issue here? Sounds like some insecure coaches are reading too much between the lines.
Or putting up a massive smokescreen?
April 20th, 2016 at 9:37 am
no thanks…to any Clemson players…we’ve been burnt with that scenario too much…
April 20th, 2016 at 9:40 am
Can’t wait to see jameis and kwon with those captain’s
patches this year
April 20th, 2016 at 9:41 am
Hargreaves is the pick, and we’re very happy to have him. Don’t over think this pick. He’s basically a clone of Grimes, who better to learn from than a guy that is basically an older version of yourself.
April 20th, 2016 at 9:50 am
Clone of Grimes. Excellent point Supersam!!! It does almost appear the Bucs might have had that on their mind when they signed Grimes.
April 20th, 2016 at 9:53 am
This guy next got a interception in his collegiate career. #Pass
April 20th, 2016 at 9:53 am
This guy never***
April 20th, 2016 at 9:57 am
Superasm- he may be a clone of Brent grimes, but Brent grimes never was and never will be able to cover Julio jones. Jalen Ramsey is from the same breed as Sean Taylor and Ed reed. We’re picking 9 with this dude on the board at 3. I think we are trading up for Ramsey I really do. Vernon doesn’t have the size to compete in our division. Plus all of our corners are already so small besides Jonathan banks who is in a contract year.. Trade glennon for a 3rd and offer two thirds to trade up to 3 and get jalen Ramsey. The drop off is huge from jalen to Vernon. Plus sprinkle in the fact Ramsey is the alpha of this litter and from the same batch as Jameis, it makes to much sense. And Ramsey can play Saftey this year and corner in nickel.. The dots are perfectly lined up and Jason is being super silent about who he likes. Remember he never talked about mike Evans before drafting him. Didn’t even bring him in on a visit.
April 20th, 2016 at 10:01 am
“Joe just cannot imagine a cornerback-needy team passing on a guy because of his arrogance. That just doesn’t add up. Alexander can’t be that much of a cancer.
If a guy has skills to match his ego, what exactly is the issue here?”
Joe you must have never played serious team sports. If you don’t understand how a player’s bad attitude/toxic personality can negatively affect team chemistry and moral, then you JUST DON’T GET IT!!!!! It only takes one cancer in the group to disrupt growth and success. Who knows if that’s the case with Alexander, but to say talent automatically trumps a big ego and an arrogant attitude??!! Seriously??
Joe’s only saying in terms of Alexander specifically, it doesn’t add up. And Joe’s played loads of team sports with plenty of A-hole teammates.–Joe
April 20th, 2016 at 10:11 am
Whatever JW wants, JW gets. Time will tell! I do hope they go after JR, I don’t think we will ever regret that decision once he’s on the field in a BUCS uniform shredding opponents with Kwon and company. He’s the differance maker that we need…why settle for less? He will do for the defense what JW has done for the offense. Go get him!
April 20th, 2016 at 10:13 am
JL = Jalan Ramsey of course
April 20th, 2016 at 10:13 am
@supersam…I agree…I believe m.smith drafted grimes and is seeing a more advanced player in vhg than grimes coming out of college….@joe…ball skills…vhg has the most career ints of any cb prospect in the draft with 10 and 4this year….if that aint ball skills I don’t know what is…vhg has already studied, played against and shut down Treadwell…vhg covered him 34% of the time that game with q.wilson covering him 32% and j.tabor covering him another 34% of the time he was on the field….the main reason why scouts are turned off by him is because he bashes players like vhg, ramsey and k.fuller while trying to make himself seem better…that’s the wrong way to go about things in the pros….he should’ve taking a note from vhg…whenever scouts asked vhg about ramsey he admitted he’s a great player and a freak athletic but never bashed him….alexander still shows signs of immaturity…imo William Jackson is a better cb…he played better than ramsey in their bowl game…GO BUCS!!!!
April 20th, 2016 at 10:16 am
Dylan- I don’t think that’s enough to go up to 2-3. I think it would cost 2 #1 picks to get there, or maybe a 1,2 next year’s 2 also. If we have to give up our 2nd, it’s not worth it imo. I love Ramsey, but we need too may other quality guys, and it looks like rounds 2-3 are where the quality is.
As for Alexander and Hargreaves, I don’t think they are worth the #9 pick, too many questions. I’d like to see eli apple before both of these guys.
And in the 2nd, I am 100% sold on Karl Joseph. This kid is unreal. He was always around the ball and very disruptive, lots of picks and forced fumbles. Huge hitter too.
April 20th, 2016 at 10:28 am
@Dylan….ramsey couldn’t even stand next to sean taylor and ed reed let alone be cut from the same cloth…his ball skills aren’t anywhere close to those 2 former players and may never be…reed had 21 career ints in college….taylor had 14 career ints in college….that’s quite disrespectful to even try to compare ramsey to those two….Julio jones is one of if not the best wr in the league…name a cb that can cover him not named revis or Sherman and even they will have a hard time…we all know what he did to pat p and Peterson is a top 3 cb in the league…the height thing is a unissued imo…he will have vjax, m.evan and asj to go up against everyday in practice…vhg will be well prepared to cover Julio and kb…GO BUCS!!!
April 20th, 2016 at 10:39 am
Joe go to sleep! Clemson over Florida lol! Hargreaves!!!
April 20th, 2016 at 10:51 am
Didn’t Hargreaves do poorly against lb when they played? I didn’t see it so not sure, just have heard ppl say he has a hard time with bigger receivers.
April 20th, 2016 at 11:11 am
Just a thought….ALL DB’s have trouble with bigger receivers…this is why ME and Julio Jones and the rest are so valuable.
Nobody can cover a great receiver every play…not even Revis or Sherman…but they can cover them long enough that perhaps the d can make a play with a sack or a tip.
I’ve heard but you Gators and Noles can correct me that VHG is a good tackler.
April 20th, 2016 at 11:17 am
Odd. Joe didn’t see Florida in the national title game last year.
How the hell did Clemson ever get to the title game with such inferior players?
April 20th, 2016 at 11:20 am
@mojiska…that a misconception…im a gator fan and I watched every signal uf game since 1996…vhg has only faced 2 wrs that gave him trouble…1 being kb when vhg was a true freshman and the coaching staff saw kb was having his way with Roberson and purifoy…that’s when vhg covered kb for about a quarter and a half…after purifoy had gotten benched…the second wr that gave vhg trouble was amari cooper who cooked everyone that year and went on to become a top 5 pick….1 tall wr that he handled very well was Jordan Matthews from vandy who was drafted by the eagles…vhg will have no problem adjusting to the likes of Julio and kb after practice with vjax and evan and learning some tricks of the trade from grimes…GO BUCS!!!
April 20th, 2016 at 11:20 am
@813 lmao you clearly never played football. Deion sanders even said it. Teams don’t throw at him how is that his fault. He was jimbos ace in that defense. Just wait clown.
April 20th, 2016 at 11:21 am
And use the NFL point scale and do the math. That’s about how much
April 20th, 2016 at 11:22 am
@Supersam
If you’re a team drafting a “clone of Brent Grimes” with the 9th overall pick, that’s a major issue.
April 20th, 2016 at 11:24 am
@stpete…yes he’s a good tackler…
How the hell did Clemson ever get to the title game with such inferior players?….EASY!!!!!
@joe…they play in the acc….GO BUCS!!!
April 20th, 2016 at 11:27 am
813 thinks VHG can hang with Julio from lining up against Evans and Jackson in practice. Come on man do you know skill gaps. Julio is 10x stronger and 3x faster then our guys. Evans will admit Julio is a alien
April 20th, 2016 at 11:29 am
arrogant but coachable is okay. arrogant and uncoachable usually ends badly for both player and team.
April 20th, 2016 at 11:30 am
I don’t know what it is about Clemson players but the lot of them makes me not a big fan of fishing in their lake.
Look at all the DE busts!
All one needs to do is recall the arrogance one Johnny Football had to know such behavior is a cancer in a lockeroom.
Often “Me, Myself and I” is the underlying foundation of arrogance, not supreme confidence.
April 20th, 2016 at 11:31 am
a very talented player whose coaches are giving tepid reviews about him as about as big a red flag as you can get.
April 20th, 2016 at 11:38 am
@Dylan…I played hs and college football….obviously you never played…speaking of deion…rule #1…when the ball is in the air it mine…when the ball was in the air ramsey never had a big play…zero ints this year…so ask yourself, if ramsey was such a shutdown cb why are scout moving him to safety when teams would kill for a 6’1 4.4 cb…BALL SKILLS…the last game he played in he got beat twice by a Houston wr and dropped an int that hit him square in the hands…I didn’t think any of those guys are nfl bound…GO BUCS!!!
April 20th, 2016 at 11:42 am
Julio is faster than evans but I doubt he’s stronger than either one of them…I cant wait to hear evans admit that…I wouldn’t hold my breath if I were you….by your definition no one in the league can hang with julio so it doesn’t really matter right?…GO BUCS!!!
April 20th, 2016 at 11:43 am
Lmao clearly not cause Ramsey has been a top recruit since highschool and all ACC first team. You want the Bucs to select a under sized slow short armed corner. You wanna get game specific? Vernon Hargreaves got destroyed by Alabama and destroyed the second half of the season allowing multiple 100+ yard receiving games. And he Isent alpha like Ramsey. Ramsey shuts downs screen, controls the line of scrimmage and makes Windows 10x smaller. He may have gotten beat twice (when the Saftey was supposed to be over the top). Look up how many deep passes VHG allowed last year. It’s actually comical. GO BUCS. Myles jack > VHG if there both on the board and Bucs don’t trade up.
April 20th, 2016 at 11:45 am
Ramsey made all ACC first team at corner and Saftey… And that’s a bad thing right? Having s hybrid tall player in a modern day era where it’s pass first and nickel packages are being used over 60% of the time. GO BUCS
April 20th, 2016 at 11:49 am
First grimes was undrafted vs a #9 overall pick. Yuuge difference.
Sec, Tyron Lannister over here gets out jumped and out muscled by big receivers like KB and A. Cooper all the time.
April 20th, 2016 at 12:01 pm
Hopefully some of the mocks I read yesterday are true and Myles falls all the way to us at 9. We would have an amazing LB core that is young.
I just wish the Bucs didn’t have so many needs. With less needs we could trade up for Ramsey but needing to address OLB, CB/S, DL, WR and T there is no way to cover all the positions with studs.
Looking forward to see what magic Licht pulls off.
April 20th, 2016 at 12:33 pm
@Dylan…don’t make me laugh…vhg was a higher hs prospect coming out of hs than ramsey….vhg has been all sec since his freshman year…he allowed multiple 100+ games by who?…that is very hard to believe when uf was ranked top 10 in pass defense…he never gave up a 100+ yard game to a wr that he covered the game…what makes you think he’s not and alpha dog…he’s every bit of alpha as ramsey if not more…he played in the toughest conference in cfb…vhg can come up and defend the run just as good as ramsey…ramsey got beat a lot more than twice, while in man coverage at that…will fuller cooked him repeatedly…ramsey cant stay with smaller quick fast wrs even with his height and speed…ramsey may be able to alter a throwing window but he wont make a play on the ball”0″ints…”0″ ball skills…against 6’5 wrs but who doesn’t struggle…revis does…instead of looking up deep passes, try looking up td allows, passes defended and ints…you’ll find he tops ramsey in each category…GO BUCS!!!!
April 20th, 2016 at 12:37 pm
db55…vhg has a ’39 inch vert…he wont get out jumped very often…GO BUCS!!!
April 20th, 2016 at 12:40 pm
If the guy is a turd and a bad teammate, you pass on him. If his behavior is correctable, you wait on him until the reward outweighs the risk, like round 3. Maybe he won’t last that long, but he’ll just be somebody else’s headache.
I don’t think jackasses will be tolerated, and the Bucs are not gonna bring in cancerous sh!tbirds that can wreck the locker room. Not with a team still trying to establish a winning culture. But this is all speculation. I trust in Jason Licht and his staff to properly evaluate when or if he’s draftable.
April 20th, 2016 at 12:46 pm
I know not having an interception is a knock on Alexander, but a lot of that was the decision to stay away from him. I wouldnt mind him in the 2nd after we get a DE.
April 20th, 2016 at 1:09 pm
BOSA > Myles Jack….GO BUCS!!!
April 20th, 2016 at 1:54 pm
I agree on the Alexander Call, but we got to get over this Anti-Clemson crap. We can not measure every player out of Clemson with the few stupid picks we’ve made in the past. Hell every team has provided it;s share of NFL Bust. What’s Tim Tebow dong now days? We sure not running away from Hargreaves.
April 20th, 2016 at 2:29 pm
@Dylan
“The drop off is huge from jalen to Vernon. ‘
……………………
Said Nobody Ever that wasn’t an FSU homer
April 20th, 2016 at 3:50 pm
813
Idk I saw a couple of plays against Cooper and Benjamin were he got manhandled. If we didn’t have 6’4″ WRs throughout our division it would be a different story. i just think #9 overall is pretty steep for this kid. But then again, what do I know?
April 20th, 2016 at 3:51 pm
Touché’ SB touché
April 20th, 2016 at 4:53 pm
@db55…yeah maybe a couple plays…i’ll take that…but that’s such a small sample size to suggest he couldn’t hold his own…out of all the games he played people can only remember a couple of plays that 2 current 1st round wrs made on him while he was an underclassman….sounds pretty good to me…GO BUCS!!!
April 20th, 2016 at 5:52 pm
I’d draft him and make him sit in a corner until he’s wiling to kneel at Jameis’ feet and kiss his ring.
April 21st, 2016 at 12:49 am
Sign Norman! Then draft a S in Rd 2 instead, and a DE in rd 1