Branden Albert

Well, from what I've seen around the Redskins community the support for Albert has grown exponentially over the past couple of weeks. I think part that might be that DRC might go before 21 and the praise the guy has recieved from Mike Mayock as possibly one of the 15 best players in the draft, though I could have sworn that Mayock pushed him into the top 10 as of late. Anyway heres Alberts scouting report, courtsy of Scouts Inc.

So with that said, no more jacking the Jordy Nelson thread (lol, note to self). If you want to talk Brandon Albert then use this thread.

Branden Albert
OG (http://insider.espn.go.com/nfldraft/draft/tracker/position?id=47) | (6'7http://assets.espn.go.com/i/nfl/trans/1_4.gif", 317, 5.35) | VIRGINIA (http://insider.espn.go.com/nfldraft/draft/tracker/school?id=2457)

Scouts Grade: 89View by: Player (http://insider.espn.go.com/nfldraft/draft/tracker/players?draftyear=2008) | NCAA School (http://insider.espn.go.com/nfldraft/draft/tracker/school?draftyear=2008) | Position (http://insider.espn.go.com/nfldraft/draft/tracker/position?draftyear=2008) | NFL Team (http://insider.espn.go.com/nfldraft/draft/tracker/team?draftyear=2008) | Flag (http://insider.espn.go.com/nfldraft/draft/tracker/alert?draftyear=2008)http://assets.espn.go.com/i/in.gif | All Ranked Players (http://insider.espn.go.com/nfldraft/draft/tracker/rankedPlayers?draftyear=2008)http://assets.espn.go.com/i/in.gif | NFL Draft History (http://insider.espn.go.com/nfldraft/draft/tracker/histround?year=2006&draftyear=2008) You are signed into Insider http://espn.starwave.com/i/in.gif and have access to the exclusive draft content below.
Strengths: Is tall and thickly built. Also has long arms and big hands. Shows a quick first, takes proper angles to assignments and gets into position quickly. Plays with a mean streak and drives legs once locked onto the defender. Has very good initial quickness for his size. Shows above-average range and can pull around the edge. Shows smooth footwork getting into pass sets and shuffles feet to stay in front of defenders. Gets adequate hand placement and extends arms once in position. Keeps head up, shows good awareness and can adjust to line stunts as well as blitzes. Never missed a game because of an injury and is durable.

Weaknesses: Does not have overwhelming power and doesn't knock many defenders back with initial punch. Plays too high at times and is going to have problems driving two-gap defenders off the ball. Runs well on a straight line but has some trouble hitting the moving target. Doesn't get great knee bend in pass sets and can get pushed back into the pocket. Appears to take plays off at times and may lack ideal endurance at this point.

Overall: Albert started all 37 of Virginia's games during his three-year career (2005-07), including two at offensive tackle in 2007. He allowed just one sack and received an All-ACC honorable mention in 2006. He was a first-team All-ACC selection in '07. Bottom line: Albert needs to improve his power at the point of attack and learn to get under defenders' pads. He also is a bit inconsistent when it comes to hitting the moving target as a second level run blocker. However, he is a massive guard with very good short-area quickness and tenacity. He could possibly move to ROT in the NFL but we think he fits best inside at guard, where he should quickly develop into an upper-echelon starter. He could be the top interior offensive lineman selected in 2008 draft  no later than the second round.

Footballs Future
Branden Albert OL 6'7 315 Virginia

By: Robert Davis

Albert earned a starting nod at left guard as a freshman in 2005, and has held down the job since.

Albert has a great frame for an offensive lineman. He almost looks like a tackle on the field. He is a solid athlete for a guard, and shows solid lateral agility in a short area. Where Albert sets himself apart is in the running game though. He is very strong and has the power to simply drive defenders out of the play. He opens up running lanes on a consistent basis and can dominate even the biggest lineman at the point of attack.

Albert is still a work in progress. He didn’t start playing football until his junior year in high school, and is still refining his technique. His size can work against him at times. He is so tall that he has a tendency to not set up low enough, allowing the defender to gain leverage on him.
Albert could have used another year in college to be more consistent and round of his skills. In a weak class for guards though, he still appears to be a guy who will be taken early. His upside is tremendous and he could hear his name called in the top 50 picks.

There is nothing despearte about drafting my BOY in the first round(sorry I like saying that PTI style). For the sake of putting my feelings aside Albert is one of the 10 best players according to Mayock and the 20th best according to Kiper. Most mock drafts also have him going in the late first where the latest he goes in some mock drafts is early in the second. On top of that his grade on ESPN shot up 9 points in the last week, which currently gives him a scout grade of 90. in their scouting report they say:

"He could possibly move to ROT in the NFL but we think he fits best inside at guard, where he should quickly develop into an upper-echelon starter."

However I have my own reasons for wanting him outside of possibly being a future tackle. See Joe Gibb's employed a power running game, and a while ago I was surprised to see that Joe Gibbs best backs YPC usually went from 3.8 to 4.0 ypc. Earnest Byner had 3.9 YPC during the last Super Bowl year. Riggins averaged 3.6 YPC back in 1983. Last year Portis average 3.9.

Zorn on the other hand I see calling more outside runs, and thats where Albert comes in. Now from what I've seen and heard Albert has enough power to play smash mouth football, but the special thing about him is his quickness. The guy has the ability to get to the second level and hit guys in space. On top of that he's as good of a pass blocking Guard as your going to find this year so Jason Campbell will be able to sleep well at night.

Albert also has the ability to pull which is great because teams knew when Thomas was healthy that most of the pulling and trap plays were going to involve him. With Albert we'll have more room to run traps and sweeps to either side since Albert has proven more then capable in terms of being a pulling Guard.

Keep in mind I'm not Albert or bust, I think theres a lot of guys that we can draft that will become quality starters. However the best player available at 21 in my opinion is Albert and granted you've read this far you can see that I have my reasons. I realize he's not the sexiest pick, and I know a guy with 4.28 speed or a guy with 1,200+ recieving yards looks better then drafting a guard, but I still believe in this guy. Trust me whoever gets him will be happy they did.

With a name like dirtbag everyone should have figured you prefer the skins to take Albert, but I agree 100% with you. I posted some similair comments about picking him under another thread. I am fearful that if the skins don't get atl east one O-line starter out of this draft they could be in trouble down the road. All you have to do is look at KC and you can see what happens to a team when their O-line breaks down.

i could def pull with a guard like brandon albert. solidify that line boys!

With a name like dirtbag everyone should have figured you prefer the skins to take Albert, but I agree 100% with you. I posted some similair comments about picking him under another thread. I am fearful that if the skins don't get atl east one O-line starter out of this draft they could be in trouble down the road. All you have to do is look at KC and you can see what happens to a team when their O-line breaks down.

You can see what happens to a team when thier O-line breaks down, by looking at our last season. Agreed, dude is a beast on paper. Endurance, and mobility can be worked on. But, if our O-line stays healthy this year, how big of a pick would he be for us? We need to somehow find that "One Guy" that will make an impact.

I think Albert is the best possible use of the first round pick, barring a slide by a more highly rated defensive player. I don't like Merling, Balmer, or Calais Campbell enough to advocate picking any of them with the 21st pick, and I would hope that one of them, or Trevor Laws, would be available when we select in the second round, and we can upgrade both our lines.

My mind is now made up, I want us to select Albert at No. 21.

I like the pick but I think he may be gone by then. I see a lot of mocks that are starting to hype Albert.

If the Skins have the chance, we should continue our non-sexy offseason and build the core of our team with Albert.

We need to come away with some young offensive lineman in the first three rounds.

With a name like dirtbag everyone should have figured you prefer the skins to take Albert, but I agree 100% with you. I posted some similair comments about picking him under another thread. I am fearful that if the skins don't get atl east one O-line starter out of this draft they could be in trouble down the road. All you have to do is look at KC and you can see what happens to a team when their O-line breaks down.

Lol, I actually never thought of that. Thank you though, for bringing up KC. I personally think they're the ultimate example of two extremes. At one point they had what I think was the best Offensive Line in the league. It was so good that they made guys like Priest Holmes and LJ comprable to LT. Derrick Blaylock averaged 4.6 YPC on 118 carries in 2004. Trent Green had time to find guys who were part of a no better then decent recieving core (save T. Gonzalez and maybe Eddie Kennison).

Now I'd say they're Offensive Line is one of the worst in the league. LJ averages 3.5 YPC, though in all honesty they started to improve a few games before the guy got injured. Brodie Coryle and Damon Huard were sacked 53 times last year. Jason Campbell and Todd Collins were only sacked 28 times.

And of course a lot of people will say, "ok that settles it, see only 28 sacks all year. We're 1337 baby." However I say thats not it. Our offensive line is getting old, and we lucked out last year with the development of Stephon Heyer. However last time I checked we need 5 OL and all 5 of our current starters are over 30.

Drafting a guy like Brandon Albert with the floor and ceiling that he has is a safe bet in my eyes. Plus we'd be getting the best interior lineman in the draft. With DE we'd be getting the 4th or 5th best prospect. WR maybe the 2nd or 3rd best. DT the 3rd best prospect.

However todays main point in the draft Brandon Albert propaganda that I'm putting out is the fact that we play in the NFC East. A division with defenses that know how to get after the passer. The Giants go without saying, the Eagles like to bring the house, and the Cowboys have Demarcus Ware and Gregg Ellis coming after QB's with reckless abandon not to mention Anthony Spencer waiting in the wings.

One of the reason Albert is considered a potential LT is his pass protection ability and in a division that knows how to get after the passer, this will prove invaluable. He would be lined up next year on Justin Tuck when they move him to the 3 technique and he's quick enough to get outside and stop a LB coming around the edge while Samuels is distracted by his guy going inside.

I know it's tempting to try and copy the Giants, but finding dominant D-Lineman is easier said then done. And theres a lot of guys along the D-Line that are either bust or just turn out to be decent starters. Of course that depends on the coach but I don't think our pass rush is lacking nearly as much as people says it is. If we played pure Tampa-2 then I might agree, but this is a blitzing team that likes to use Tampa-2.

Anyway I'm glad that people are starting to come around to liking Brandon Albert, even if he's not peoples 1st or 2nd choice, its still nice to see that people appreciate the guys upfront.

Todays Dirtbag359 Propoganda is brought to you by Alizee:
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You can see what happens to a team when thier O-line breaks down, by looking at our last season. Agreed, dude is a beast on paper. Endurance, and mobility can be worked on. But, if our O-line stays healthy this year, how big of a pick would he be for us? We need to somehow find that "One Guy" that will make an impact.

Statistically, we roughly have a 50-50 chance of drafting a bust at 21. We have about a 1 in 5 chance of drafting an immediate impact player. We have even worse odds of drafting an immediate impact player at a position of need (WR, CB, DT). In any event, it makes the most sense to draft a guy who is most likely to have a long-term impact, not a guy who is just going to fill an immediate need.

Statistically, we roughly have a 50-50 chance of drafting a bust at 21. We have about a 1 in 5 chance of drafting an immediate impact player. We have even worse odds of drafting an immediate impact player at a position of need (WR, CB, DT). In any event, it makes the most sense to draft a guy who is most likely to have a long-term impact, not a guy who is just going to fill an immediate need.


With that said, whats the point of drafting for need if the player you draft is going to be off the team in a few years? (Taylor Jacob's anyone?) I say draft for need when it makes sense. I know it sounds obvious but it seems that lots of teams ignore common sense when it comes to the draft. Kind of like how the Chargers took LSU's slot reciever, Craig Davis, in the first round. Ironically they had to give up a 2008 2nd round pick midway through the season to acquire Chris Chambers.

Every NFL team has holes, and our's are realtively small. We can deal with not having a possible Superman at Reciever. Hell we've done it in the past and so have many other teams that did it went on to win the Super Bowl (Buc's, Ravens, Steelers, Giants (Plax isn't Randy Moss), Patriots) . With that said I want to stick to doing what we do best, identifying talented guys up front.

On a side note, lots of teams have systems, coaching, and personell set ups where they could virtually take any guy at a certain position and turn him into a quality starter. Like for example the Steelers know how to find LB's, the Colts can plug in virtually anyone at WR, LB, and CB, and the Patriots specialize in finding D-Lineman and DB's. The Redskins are best IMO at finding Offensive Lineman and Linebackers.