Quote:
Originally Posted by Balto
I don't agree and believe that Simmons would have actually been the top LT of this draft. Go look at how he was doing before getting injured. He was ELITE.
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He played Akron, Western Michigan, Marshall, a god-awful Michigan State team and Iowa - the same forgettable lunchpail Iowa they always are.
Murderer's freakin' row, right there.
Then he got hurt against Oregon (after first not playing very well) in a game they lost.
THAT'S your amazing tape that's supposed to prove that this guy was going to be the best OT in the class?
Nah -- it isn't.
You read it somewhere. And now you're repeating it.
There is nothing resembling enough tape out there to say he'd have been the best LT in this class. It's nothing more than the mystery of the unknown. It's the draft season equivalent of "To an Athlete Dying Young".
Smart lad, to slip betimes away, from fields where glory does not stay...
There is not the volume or quality of competition to come to that conclusion. At ALL. The guy got hurt before that could be established so folks just up and projected a clean Big 10 season for him.
Meanwhile Kelvin Banks and Armand Membou, with better competition by FAR and a full season of reps, simply looked better than him. Conerly was on par and isn't hurt. Anthony Belton DOMINATED the same kind of competition that Simmons played before he got hurt.
I mean hell, the team got no worse at all without him. Donovan Jackson stepped in for Simmons after he got hurt and was almost as good against substantially better quality of competition. Why should I believe that Ohio State just happened to have a guy almost as good as the best LT in the country just bopping around at guard?
The kids a quality prospect. Maybe he gets back to 100% and is a coaches dream and eventually becomes a premier LT in the league.
But YOUR argument is complete nonsense that is wholly unsupportable by any record you can possibly produce.