Scott Wright's Draft Report- Joe McKnight

[Kentucky Jet]

Joe McKnight

Height: 5-11⅜ | Weight: 198 | 40-Time: 4.47

Official Bio

Strengths:

Amazing athlete --- Explosive with terrific speed and a burst --- Great quickness and agility --- Excellent vision --- Patient runner --- Very elusive and a terror in space --- Can start and stop / change directions on a dime --- Able to get outside and turn the corner --- Soft hands and runs superb routes --- Offers value as a return man --- Still has upside.

Weaknesses:

Underachiever --- Doesn't have the size you look for --- Not very strong or powerful --- Is not much of a threat between the tackles --- Will dance around too much --- Some issues with ball security --- A sub par blocker --- Probably not an every-down player --- Durability's a concern.

Notes:

Just a one-year starter for the Trojans --- Garnered Honorable Mention Pac-10 notice in 2008 and 2009 --- Brother, Jonathan, is committed to play football at Arizona in 2010 --- Sister, Johanna, was on the basketball and track teams at Richmond --- Averaged 7.9 yards on 32 punt returns and 25.0 yards on 2 kick returns during his career --- A very highly-touted, sought after recruit and was even one of the key figures in a book (Meat Market by Bruce Feldman) on the subject --- Also a state champion track star in high school --- Was hampered by an assortment of maladies to his knee, toes, fingers, elbow, ankle, thigh and illness the past few years --- Held out of the 2009 Emerald Bowl because he was being investigated for a possible NCAA rules (extra benefits) violation --- Hailed as "The Next Reggie Bush" before ever playing a down but never really lived up to the hype --- A very talented prospect with a lot of potential who could turn out to be a better pro than college player --- Versatile playmaker whose best fit at the next level will likely come as a complimentary weapon and return specialist.

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Career Statistics

Year GP ATT YDS AVG TD REC YDS TD

2007 13 94 540 5.7 3 23 203 1

2008 11 89 659 7.4 2 21 193 1

2009 12 164 1,014 6.2 8 22 146 0

Totals 36 347 2,213 6.4 13 66 542 2

[Kentucky Jet]

Getting to Know RB Joe McKnight

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http://media.scout.com/Media/Image/54/547017.jpg

http://www.sportingnews.com/nfl/arti...cknight-rb-usc

Strengths: Is an elite athlete with top-level explosiveness and playing speed. Can stop and start in a flash, which helps him make quick, sharp cuts and make tacklers miss. Has the explosive cutting ability to get to and through holes fast. Combines good balance, agility and coordination to make tacklers miss; is a legit TD threat any time he gets the ball in the open field. Has foot quickness to accelerate to full speed in a flash; outruns some players with angles on him and gets the corner when he bounces runs outside. Has natural, soft hands. Catches the ball well out of the backfield and is a dangerous runner after the catch. Has shown the ability to be a dangerous returner.

Weaknesses: Has a slight frame and struggled in college to avoid injuries, including many minor dings; must prove he is tough enough for the NFL. Is not an aggressive runner and has a tendency to dance to avoid contact while searching for a hole. Tries to bounce almost all rushing attempts outside if he does not see a hole initially; will not lower shoulder and attack line of scrimmage to gain tough yardage. Is not good in short-yardage situations. Runs upright, leading to hard hits and limiting his ability to run after contact. Does not gain nearly as many yards after contact as you would expect for someone with his elusiveness. Uses bad technique as a pass blocker; often lunges at rusher's feet rather than stepping up and blocking aggressively. Does not seem like an instinctive runner; often fails to follow blockers like the play calls for. Had ball-security issues in college; needs to do a better job of wrapping up ball with both hands.

Bottom line: McKnight left school early for the draft and definitely could have helped his stock by staying in school for another season. He lacks the thickness to be a durable NFL starter and will have to prove he is tough enough to be a major contributor at the next level. There is little doubt that he has the elite athleticism, top-end playing speed and explosiveness to make big plays when he gets the ball in the open field, but he is not a tough or aggressive runner, and he struggles to gain yards after contact. While many want to compare McKnight to Reggie Bush, who has been a disappointment in the NFL, McKnight was not close to being the player Bush was at USC. We have a feeling McKnight will be over-drafted because of the athleticism he will show at the Combine and in his personal workout. We would not use a first or second-round pick on him because we have not seen enough to be confident he will become a productive NFL player. He is best suited to be a mid-round pick who can be tried as a third-down back. To succeed in that role, he must greatly improve his pass blocking and protect the ball much better.

JOE McKNIGHT ON: Being compared to Reggie Bush: "When I first came in to USC, I felt like I had to live up to the hype. But after a while, I came to my senses...It's not the fans' fault, they just want success for their team. It took me a while to get that out of my head...I mean, it's a lot of pressure. I tried to live up to the expectations."

His up-and-down 2007 freshman season: "I had some problems with the playbook and I had some trouble with fumbles. But it started to get more comfortable as the season went along. Now, it's at the stage where I just react. I know the plays."

WHAT OTHERS SAY:

USC head coach Pete Carroll: "He's so fast, he's so quick, he's so elusive...Joe is the real deal. He's a fantastic football player. He's tough and fast and all the rest. He's really a difference-maker."

USC tailback Allen Bradford: "When Joe gets the ball, you know that something's going to happen. You're just waiting to see what it is."

Bruce Feldman, ESPN The Magazine: "Let Jan. 1, 2008 (USC's Rose Bowl win over lllinois), go down as the day Joe McKnight officially stopped coping with being The Next Reggie Bush and arrived as the Trojans' latest star. McKnight proved to the whole college football world that he does in fact have it...For years, recruiters have whispered about McKnight's skills, his effortless change of direction, his burst of speed, his preternatural vision."

Billy Turner, New Orleans Times-Picayune: "Call it speed. Call it a burst. A wiggle. On punts, he has the ability to make the first guy miss. Then he accelerates in a step. Call it a balance most people do not possess. Or call it an indescribable something."

[Darrellegivesmeaboner#24]

I don't know about you guys, but I am warming up to this pick more and more as the day has gone on. For one thing, we really haven't traded up and swung and missed in a while. Second, I like this guy as a back in a rotation like we should have. Third, I like this guy's special teams ability, we have lost a bunch of guy on special teams the past couple of years, this guy should help in coverage and maybe even returning punts/kicks.

[aec4]

Basically, we got a healthy Leon Washington. Probably about the same player. So basically, we we swapped a 4th and a 7th to get a 5th and a gauranteed healthy "Leon"

[PS17]

Basically, we got a healthy Leon Washington. Probably about the same player. So basically, we we swapped a 4th and a 7th to get a 5th and a gauranteed healthy "Leon"

Five years younger, too

[Darrellegivesmeaboner#24]

Basically, we got a healthy Leon Washington. Probably about the same player. So basically, we we swapped a 4th and a 7th to get a 5th and a gauranteed healthy "Leon"

I like McKnight, but he and Leon aren't exactly mirror images of each other. Leon had better straight line explosive speed, whereas McKnight's change of direction skills are probably the best in this draft, with Jahvid Best serving as the only real comparison I can think of.

[THE ILK]

I like McKnight, but he and Leon aren't exactly mirror images of each other. Leon had better straight line explosive speed, whereas McKnight's change of direction skills are probably the best in this draft, with Jahvid Best serving as the only real comparison I can think of.

He's slower but bigger, younger and healthy.

You make the call.

[DMaynard]

2008 Leon? Probably not even close. Leon today coming off that injury? Good move.

[Darrellegivesmeaboner#24]

He's slower but bigger, younger and healthy.

You make the call.

Assuming that the Jets felt that Leon's injury last year would prevent him from returning to his pre-injury performance level, I love this pick. There is clear upside here. The kid came into USC with the expectations of replacing one of the top 10-15 college RB of all-time. He never lived up to those expectations, but there were also other mitigating factors. For one thing, he was never really healthy for a full season. For another, he never really played behind an offensive line as talented as his predecessor did. Now he comes here with very limited expectations and a very solid offensive line, I'd say that for once McKnight is in a good situation to succeed.

[PS17]

Get used to seeing a lot more of that!

[Obrien2Toon]

Joe Mcknight > Reggie Bush

[spjets]

Get used to seeing a lot more of that!

i hope not.....it looks like a 3 yard pass.....

[Maxman]

Basically, we got a healthy Leon Washington. Probably about the same player. So basically, we we swapped a 4th and a 7th to get a 5th and a gauranteed healthy "Leon"

Yeah but we lost Leon's wife as a poster along the way...

[StraightCash]

Yeah but we lost Leon's wife as a poster along the way...

Was she actually a poster?

Edit: I see now

[Columbia Jet Fan]

Considering that Carroll had a bunch of chances to pick him and then decided ot trade for leon washington by giving up a pick prob says all you wanna know....don't like it.

[Bruce Banner]

McKnight is the perfect RB for a zone blocking scheme. He's smart on the field and likes to improvise and make things happen. Perfect for the ZBS. And he is a threat to go the distance every time he gets the ball. His hands are awesome, I once saw a video of him practicing one handed catches at USC, just mind boggling how athletic these guys are. He might be injury prone. But you can't expect a late round pick to be perfect.

He's not as strongly built as Freeman McNeil was but I think his open field running will bring back memories for a lot of us old guys. He can zig zag his way to the end zone.

[#27TheDominator]

Basically, we got a healthy Leon Washington. Probably about the same player. So basically, we we swapped a 4th and a 7th to get a 5th and a gauranteed healthy "Leon"

Joe McKnight and guaranteed healthy probably shouldn't be used in the same sentence.

[gang_green03]

Considering that Carroll had a bunch of chances to pick him and then decided ot trade for leon washington by giving up a pick prob says all you wanna know....don't like it.

By that definition every USC player Carroll passed on won't succeed in the NFL. You know that doen't make sense. I think this kid should be able to approximate what Leon gave us. Probably not quite as good but his skills translate favorably to the situations he'll be put in.

[Integrity28]

Most teams #3 RBs never see the field. McKnight with have very specific roles in our offense, roles I am sure he will be happy to fill... as opposed to Leon whose wife and agent had him convinced he was deserving of a #1 RB job and salary.

Leon was electric... and single-handedly won games for us in the Brett Favre season, but he was a role-player asking for starters money.

It is the nature of the NFL for players like that to be moved along to the next suitor, and in this case it went as it typically does... playoff team dumps problem player and agent on a rebuilding team.