Quote:
Originally Posted by O.city
Ford doesn't seem to have very good football instincts. Could be from being in a new system or whatever I suppose.
He needs to be more Hali than houston
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Funny because I think just the opposite.
Ford has the skills to be a poor man's Houston. He has the quickness and the lateral agility. He has the frame to get Houston's power (Houston wasn't Houston when he came into the league, if you'll recall). He shows flashes with elite body lean.
The guy has every physical tool you could want, enough to smoke Hali across the board.
Why target being Grant Wistrom; a high motor energy guy who techniques himself into 10-12 sacks a year? Ford's ceiling is higher than that.
I get back to the hockey prospect grading system I've always been such a fan of. It assigns a number and a letter grade; your top end and chance of hitting it.
Coming out, Hali would've probably been considered something like an 7(B); a guy with high end starter upside with a pretty good chance of reaching it. Meanwhile Houston would've been a 10(C); hall of fame upside but flags around him that suggest he's more likely than not to not hit it.
Ford's closer to Houston than he is Hali in that system. I'd say he's more like an 8(D). Higher ceiling than Hali but more risk of not amounting to much at all. Not the 10 ceiling that Houston has, but he definitely has the tools of an impact player and that's absolutely how he should conduct himself. If he resigns himself to trench warfare like Hali has, he'll never have a chance to capitalize on all the tools he has at his disposal.