The Tennessee Titans land a couple of boom or bust guys in Day 2.
Monty Rice, linebacker, Georgia (Round 3)
Biggest Problem: An inability to make big plays and do so consistently
Despite playing football at one of the SEC’s traditional powers, Monty Rice isn’t really a slam dunk at the linebacker position. Some have even gone so far as to state that the Tennessee Titans reached when they drafted him at the 92-overall selection during Round 3 of the most recent NFL Draft.
Rice wasn’t much of a playmaker at the collegiate level (zero interceptions, two sacks, and three forced fumbles in 40 career games), and that’s actually what the Titans need at the second level. So, the question is how do they expect him to be a playmaker at the highest level of football? Pay very close attention to how he progresses as we move through camp.
Elijah Molden, cornerback, Washington (Round 3)
Biggest Problem: Size, speed
According to NFL.com’s draft wiz, Lance Zierlein, “evaluators will love Elijah Molden‘s instincts, pedigree, and elite football character”, but he’s also raised a few red flags. Two of which are as follows. He isn’t very big. He isn’t very fast.
The Washington Huskies have produced their fair share of cornerbacks throughout history, but there’s one thing that even the most die-hard Husky fan has to admit to. If you line the five-foot-nine, 192-pound Molden across from Julio Jones or A.J. Brown in practice, there are going to be issues, and that’s just a practice session that we’re talking about folks!
So, to make long stories short here’s a question. Where on Planet Earth do you line Molden up? Is he shifty enough to cover guys in the slot? Is he big enough to play the safety position? Does he have the deep speed or strength to cover guys on the outside? There’s a lot to be figured out at camp.