The challenge with ranking these guys based on grades is that run support/pursuit is more critical for a box safety than a FS. I’m not trying to undersell the importance but coverage is more important for a deep safety. For Xavier Watts, how do you give him a B+ when he led CFB in INTs? Dudes a ballhawk. A B in zone really??? He’s a great athlete and you gave him a C-. I think you should ground your grades off something a little more concrete because maybe your eyes are deceiving you.
I respect the counter but I also think you misunderstand my grading scale- C is adequate and A+ is among the greatest of all time So yes there are better DBs in many categories over time
@@HailMarySports I understand the grade scale, it just seems unevenly applied. What he’s been able to do as a cover safety is very impressive. He is a very good athlete. His success at the next level will be most reliant on his coverage skills. Even if you think about James Pearce, whoever drafts him top 10 is doing it for his pass rush, not his run defense. I think it’s hard to weigh each grading category when you have different position variants, but it’s possible and makes your scale seem a little off. Turnovers help win games, and I believe Watts led the NCAA. And what’s special is he wasn’t just a gambler who gave up a lot of yards and had INTs. He didn’t give up much at all while still have elite turnover production. Final notes: He got voted as the best defensive player in college last year. So sometimes when you’re evaluating, you can see that a player has been very successful and your model will say he’s say #10 at just safety. But I recommend asking yourself, was the player just lucky, or is it just due to the competition. More often than not, the player has abilities that your grading system is not valuing at the proper amount.
I see your points, and I do have separate scheme specific grades. The ones displayed are overall for their respective position (ie box vs deep vs slot vs overall) I actually will be doing videos featuring the scheme specific grades so guys who are more role specific can get their time to shine
@@Alex-gw9id (Mainly in response to the James Pearce Jr thing) While I understand your sentiment I think we have to remember he isn't scouting for 1 specific team but moreso the player's talent as a whole. At least for me, and I imagine everyone, depending on where a player goes come draft time and what type of scheme they land in will be crucial in how everyone views them when it comes to doing draft pick grades and other types of predictions preseason. Grading players based on their ideal situation before they get into that situation oftentimes overlooks their weaknesses as a player.
@@costasgeorgiou5048 That wasn’t the point I was trying to make. I was trying to explain that doing player grades in a way that prioritizes how well rounded they are is more helpful to well rounded builds and less helpful for specialists. It’s less about the team they land on and more about the play style of the player. Some safeties are box players, others are deep cover guys. They both need to tackle but the grade weight for tackling should be more important for the box safety. My other point was that everyone knows Watts isn’t a run defense specialist, he’s a ball hawk cover safety and he did that great last year. Same with Pearce who isn’t a good run defender, he will likely go top 10 because he’s a great pass rusher even if he isn’t good at run defense.
