Welcome our 3rd Round Pick: Trey Pipkins, OT, Sioux Falls

[Topcat]

So I got to see our second round pick and then went out to dinner with the family and I come home to see we spent a 3rd round pick on Pipkins? WTF? This seems like a massive, massive reach. I'm as willing as anyone to give the guy the benefit of the doubt and hope he succeeds but jeez, I really find it hard to believe that we gambled a 3rd round pick on such a project.

When we were picking in round 3, the OT's who were available, including Cajuste, all had some big question marks, either in pass pro, run blocking, injuries or other issues. Pipkins has nothing but positive grades and just needs experience. He got some very positive reviews from the Shrine Game practices. He has the upside to become a solid OT...

[Xenos]

Who said anything about Nwosu?? I dont remember any compliants on here during the draft. I remember people saying we drafted hin cuz tt loved him. Nwosu showed up and played tho, he proved he wasnt a reach. Jones is still kinda raw. I like jones, hes the future, but hes not what people made him out to be before the draft. People were talking like he was gonna be unblockable

On the other board (the CMB).

[FoutsFan]

Sioux Falls? D-II. He has the resume of a 6th or 7th rounder. Being described as a huge reach by TT. We'll see

Sioux Falls is only slightly less of a football powerhouse than the iconic UC Santa Cruz Fighting Banana Slugs that bring 1-3 first round draft picks per draft.

[charger1993]

On the other board (the CMB).

Cmb?? Never been on there.

[Steve]

LT arm length is still a key measurable by scouts debunked or not. They liked Mcneil because he was 6'7 and had long arms (36" ?) etc.

You should go look up DEBUNKED.

Then ask Joe Thomas what a load of bullshit it is.

[richpjr]

When we were picking in round 3, the OT's who were available, including Cajuste, all had some big question marks, either in pass pro, run blocking, injuries or other issues. Pipkins has nothing but positive grades and just needs experience. He got some very positive reviews from the Shrine Game practices. He has the upside to become a solid OT...

I would not have reached for a tackle, I'd have taken the BPA as in the long run that is a much better strategy than drafting for position. I am quite confident that Pipkins was not the highest rated player by just about everyone at that spot.

[Cdn Bolt]

You should go look up DEBUNKED.

Then ask Joe Thomas what a load of bullshit it is.

Whether you like it or not it used to be a criteria they look for. Likely still is and Joe Thomas maybe an exception

[Steve]

Whether you like it or not it used to be a criteria they look for. Likely still is and Joe Thomas maybe an exception

Idiots may look at it, it just is the least important quality. Plenty of guys with really long arms are horrible fucking turnstiles.

[blueman]

Curious what the norm is? What is the average arm length of quality OLTs? Include Thomas, but what do all the other really good OLTs of the past decade look like?

[Xenos]

Cmb?? Never been on there.

And you never will. It shut down a couple months ago. That's why there's an influx of new posters to this site.

[charger1993]

And you never will. It shut down a couple months ago. That's why there's an influx of new posters to this site.

That makes 100 times more sense i was wondering why i kept seeing new people come in so fast. Only site i knew before this one was bolttalk

[Steve]

Curious what the norm is? What is the average arm length of quality OLTs? Include Thomas, but what do all the other really good OLTs of the past decade look like?

http://www.thepowderblues.com/forum/forum/los-angeles-chargers-forum-nfl-forum-padres-forum/the-los-angeles-chargers-forum/737526-arm-length-tackle
http://www.thepowderblues.com/forum/forum/los-angeles-chargers-forum-nfl-forum-padres-forum/the-los-angeles-chargers-forum/737526-arm-length-tackle?p=737531#post737531

https://www.profootballfocus.com/news/does-arm-length-affect-ot-play

The top link is to a thread that covers it.
The 2nd link is to a table in the thread, which has a list with players and their arm length.
The 3rd link is the original article from pro football focus.

A lot of pro bowl OL are at the bottom of the list, fewer with the long-armed guys at the top.

Back when Ingram got drafted there was a school of thought that both OL and DL had certain thresholds that were just set in stone. Arm length was one of the big ones, that edge players absolutely, positively could not be good if they did not have arm over a certain length. This is where the T-rex thing with Ingram came from.

Old pro football scouting wisdom said, based on history, since there had never been an edge rusher with arms shorter than 33" (I think it was 33") to get 10 sacks in a season, that it was impossible. The idiot scout was right that no 33" or shorter arm, but forgot
1). There are not many players big enough to be an NFL OL or DL who are going to have arms that are not going to be around about 33". You have a pretty biased sample right there.
2). It takes a lot of different skills to be a good OL or DL, so even if you do have 33" or longer arms, you still probably haven't got what it takes. Most won't get drafted, and even those that do are probably not going to do it anyway.
3). Sacks have only been an official sack since like 1980, so you are excluding a whole lot of NFL history from those stats.

As soon as some people started to take it seriously, Indy got Freeney and Mathis, and Pitt got Woodley and Harrison, and a few other guys, and all of a sudden the no one can do it overnight the list got to be a pretty long. Hell, even Antwan Barnes got 11 sacks for us with 31-inch arms, as well an Ingram. Now the list is getting pretty long and the list of pro bowl OL who are below or at 33" is there.

The PFF article points out there is no correlation between arm length and performance. That is probably an oversimplification, but it is generally correct. There are so many other characteristics that are more important, that the arm length thing just doesn't matter.