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I think getting more speed on the field has been the goal for the last few years. That's why Brad Jones was moved to ILB and it's why Nate Palmer moved to ILB. Those guys are on the more athletic end of the ILB spectrum, what they lack are instincts and vision to put their athleticism to any good use. The great ILBs in this league are fast (most are 4.6/4.7 range), but above all they have to have the instincts and the vision. If you can shed OLinemen and locate the football in a split second then it doesn't matter if you run a 4.4 or a 4.8, you will get there on time. Luke Kuechly isn't great because of his 4.6 speed, he's a natural ILB who lives near the ball. Thinking you can bring in athletes and teach them to play ILB is why we don't have any legit ILBs right now although I have some hope for Ryan.

I agree that instincts to the ball are most important. However this is exactly why players should not be discounted as being "too small" to play ILBer if they are only in the 225 range. How much does 10 more pounds matter when you are being blocked by a 300+ olineman? If you are 230 or 240, you are still at a great disadvantage. The key is to not get blocked. You are correct, we don't know if Lee & Cravens have those great instincts(or maybe you do?) , but I think we've dismissed too many guys in the past because the concern was that they weren't big enough. Guys like Shaq Thompson, Ryan Shazier, & Eric Kendricks were feared to be too light to be LBers but have all played pretty well. 

I definitely agree with you, discounting guys because of their size is a big mistake in a lot of cases. Guys can bulk up to 230 or 240 and be effective, that's not an issue in my mind. It can be a problem when you're 220 and have to constantly battle 300 lb linemen and hit 220+ RBs. There's a reason many true ILBs or MLBs are in that 240/250 range, that 20 lbs of muscle can help you withstand the pounding. 

In the case of Lee and Cravens, although they are very different players, I don't see them posses those great ILB instincts. A better position for Cravens would be an "in the box" Safety or as a SLB in a 43. Lee belongs in the 43 as an OLB, again in the same vein as Julian Peterson. I think he could play ILB in a 34, but I don't think we would see him fare much better than Brad Jones (i.e. Very miscast and not as effective as he could be). I don't think he's the same as Shazier or Thompson, those guys are very natural LBs.

IL_Pack_Fan posted:

Anyone have an armchair scouting report on Jake McGee, TE from Florida? At 6-6, 252 with a projected 4.69, he's likely to be among the biggest and fastest TEs in the class. Decent production in the SEC, too.

But I'm seeing him "graded" anywhere from a 3rd to a 6th/7th. What gives?

I think one thing may be the problem and that is how horrible at times the Florida offense was last year.  It could be a tough sell to get a UF offensive player ranked high but I think if he is talented the scouts will figure that out quickly.

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