Cedric Griffin

I haven't heard much about how the weekend went for Cedric Griffin, other than the fact that he was excused for the last couple of practices for "personal reasons". Anyone know much about him? I was certainly expecting either Youboty or Marshall to be called if we went cornerback in the second round, but the coaches obviously saw something in him that they didn't see in the others. For a corner going in the second round, I just thought we might be hearing a little more about him, that's all. I guess with Greenway and Jackson taking all the spotlight, it makes sense. I hope he turns out to be a solid nikel anyway.

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Though he missed the final two practices, cornerback Cedric Griffin said he felt minicamp was a personal success.

"I'm just getting used to my role, since I was a starter in college," Griffin said. "But I feel comfortable learning from Antoine (Winfield) and Fred (Smoot)."

Griffin said he wasn't nervous defending players such as Koren Robinson and Travis Taylor.

"I'm full of confidence," said Griffin, who will compete with Dovonte Edwards, Ronyell Whitaker and others for the nickel cornerback position. "I feel well competing with these guys."

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from this article. Also, already posted in this thread.

he has a couple of great corners to learn from

Yeah prophet, I read that article the day it came out too, but it doesn't tell much about him. Did anyone see him play in college other than the national championship game? His interceptions numbers weren't the greatest in college, where a superior athlete should stand out, so I was wondering why we drafted him ahead of a couple of corners that were supposedly rated above him.

"Webbigale2002" wrote:

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Yeah prophet, I read that article the day it came out too, but it doesn't tell much about him. Did anyone see him play in college other than the national championship game? His interceptions numbers weren't the greatest in college, where a superior athlete should stand out, so I was wondering why we drafted him ahead of a couple of corners that were supposedly rated above him.

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Based on what I've read about him he has the ability to play any position in the backfield but he is raw. I only saw him play in one game last season, but wasn't keying in on him so I don't remember the specifics (my annoying friend is a big LH fan and thinks he's a great pick...which means nothing). Maybe they wanted a versatile player that they could mold into the person they need to fill the gaps in the secondary. I haven't seen any of the boys at Winter Park justifying their pick, I'll just have to assume they knew what they're doing for the time being.

I think Griffin will be a solid pick up for us. I am doing graduate work at UT, and although I am not a big UT fan (my undergrad allegiance still holds true) I got to see him play a lot, and was impressed with him. He is a fast, physical guy who can tackle well. Probably versatile enough to play safety as well. It's true that his interception totals weren't that high, but most of the games I saw he played pretty decently overall. I was happy when we picked him.

i like the pick. from the highlight film i've seen of him he's a solid hitter, who looks like he'd be a force even as a safety, who can also cover not bad too. with proper coaching and guidance from smooty and winny he should be great in no time.

i havnt read to much personally on him, just know that its good we have a couple young backs now in him and edwards

I've seen him play throughout his career at UT. He had a very solid career at UT and stands out more to me as a physical corner vs a pure speedy coverage guy. I think Cedric will fit in well with Tomlin's defense as the cover2 typically asks for physical play from the corners, if you ask him to sit on an island against the premier receivers, than his coverage abilities will probably hinder him. He reminds me a lot of Brian Williams and should compete well for the nickel spot this year as long as his head doesn't get in the way.

Between Winfield's intensity, Smoot's new beefy body and Cedric we should have a good cast of corners that can hold up the receivers and let the safeties do their job. Sharper for the picks and Tank to keep their heads on a swivel.

"i_bleed_purple" wrote:

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i like the pick. from the highlight film i've seen of him he's a solid hitter, who looks like he'd be a force even as a safety, who can also cover not bad too. with proper coaching and guidance from smooty and winny he should be great in no time.

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Sharper is no spring chicken!!

If he can play Safety, maybe he is a safety valve for the future???