Mile High Posted March 18, 2007 Share Posted March 18, 2007 From USA Today: "My real-life experience has taught me how to compete through adversity, no matter what the situation was," Willis says. ESPN draft expert Mel Kiper Jr. calls Willis, 22, "a tackling machine who is always around the ball." NFLDraftScout.com senior analyst Rob Rang ranks Willis as the top linebacker in this year's draft. He believes Willis has a chance to go as high as No. 11 to the 49ers. And with the free agent loss of linebacker London Fletcher, Rang believes the Bills might take Willis with the 12th pick if he's available. Adds NFL Network draft analyst Mike Mayock, "He could go anywhere from No. 11 to No. 20. Whatever team drafts him will expect him to play immediately. He could step in and have 100 tackles." Willis proved to everyone at the scouting combine that he's big (6-1, 242 pounds), fast (4.51 in the 40-yard dash) and explosive (39-inch vertical leap). Linky This kid is Buffalo material. Wow. "But in the second game of the year, against Vanderbilt, a guy hit me inside my knee. The first thing that popped in my head was, 'I hope it's not my ACL (anterior cruciate ligament).' I didn't even know there was such a thing as an MCL. My knee kept wobbling. I asked, 'What can we do?' Other than surgery, there wasn't much you could do. So I told them to wrap it up. I wanted to go back out and play." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Koufax Posted March 18, 2007 Share Posted March 18, 2007 Interesting article. Hard to figure out what is best right now, but I'm starting to head more strongly into the Willis camp counting on McCargo, Youboty, and a 2nd round running back (along with additional help with our third round picks). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mile High Posted March 18, 2007 Author Share Posted March 18, 2007 Interesting article. Hard to figure out what is best right now, but I'm starting to head more strongly into the Willis camp counting on McCargo, Youboty, and a 2nd round running back (along with additional help with our third round picks). That's exactly what I'm thinking. Gotta have a strong young mlb in the starting line up. Marv preaches character and Willis defietly doesn't lack any. I don't think anyone would be disappointed with the pick. A good rb can be found in the second. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MartyBall4Buffalo Posted March 18, 2007 Share Posted March 18, 2007 For all intents and purposes I still hope we somehow get adrian peterson, but I would not in the least be dissapointed with patrick willis at 12 and michael bush in the 2nd Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
generaLee83 Posted March 18, 2007 Share Posted March 18, 2007 Interesting article. Hard to figure out what is best right now, but I'm starting to head more strongly into the Willis camp counting on McCargo, Youboty, and a 2nd round running back (along with additional help with our third round picks). This would be a very wise pick I think, going with a RB in the 2nd and a CB in the 3rd would be my choice. Who knows though, Marv is unpredictable but I do have faith in his drafting ability. I think Willis will be a good pick just so long as he has the personality that Marv likes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Oneonta Buffalo Fan Posted March 18, 2007 Share Posted March 18, 2007 Haven't I been saying for the past month to draft him. HE'S GOOD! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pyrite Gal Posted March 18, 2007 Share Posted March 18, 2007 As long as we move Crowell to MLB and play Willis at an OLB position which some folks feel he can play this looks like a goo move for the Bills, If we however use him at his natural MLB position, then I fear it is a sign that the Bills are playing to go for the playoffs in 08 as it likely will be a sometimes painful learning experience for any rookie learning to read plays like a vet in a Cover 2 which demands that you not only are a tackling machine on runs but that you cover passes like a safety. Between the struggles he had covering passes in the Senior Bowl and the likelihood that every OC he faces will be salivating at the chance to try to fool a rookie who has not seen a lot of NFL plays take a step back on running plays and take a step up on passing plays, his first year will almost certainly have some very painful moments if he starts at MLB even though he sounds good enough to solidify the position for the forseeable future for us. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nanker Posted March 18, 2007 Share Posted March 18, 2007 As long as we move Crowell to MLB and play Willis at an OLB position which some folks feel he can play this looks like a goo move for the Bills, If we however use him at his natural MLB position, then I fear it is a sign that the Bills are playing to go for the playoffs in 08 as it likely will be a sometimes painful learning experience for any rookie learning to read plays like a vet in a Cover 2 which demands that you not only are a tackling machine on runs but that you cover passes like a safety. Between the struggles he had covering passes in the Senior Bowl and the likelihood that every OC he faces will be salivating at the chance to try to fool a rookie who has not seen a lot of NFL plays take a step back on running plays and take a step up on passing plays, his first year will almost certainly have some very painful moments if he starts at MLB even though he sounds good enough to solidify the position for the forseeable future for us. I won't quibble with what you said, but every starting rookie comes with a downside. I too think Willis is better suited as an OLB than a MLB. He's extremely fast and can cover a huge amount of ground quickly, but I am not convinced he'll hold up as a long-term banger in the middle. Mike Singletary was his position coach at the Senior Bowl. We just might see how that little connection plays out on Draft day when San Fran picks right ahead of us. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JM57 Posted March 18, 2007 Share Posted March 18, 2007 But his speed shows he has the wheels to do it, and he's an instinctive player. … Because of his speed and instincts for the game, he should flourish in any Cover 2 scheme." If he's there, I think there's no doubt that we pick him. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bob in STL Posted March 18, 2007 Share Posted March 18, 2007 That's exactly what I'm thinking. Gotta have a strong young mlb in the starting line up. Marv preaches character and Willis defietly doesn't lack any. I don't think anyone would be disappointed with the pick. A good rb can be found in the second. Agree Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tombstone56 Posted March 18, 2007 Share Posted March 18, 2007 welcome on board ,i ve been talking about patrick willis since november ,,he is the the guy we need in the middle ..he has more heart than you can imagine,, played with broken hand because he "felt he owed it to his teammates and school"..when was the last time you heard a kid say that??.. marv talks character this kids epitomises the word.. ,,WILLIS AT 12/// HOPEFULLY Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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