cmd34(work)

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Article from ESPN
ESPN NFL NRL's Hayne aims to fulfill NFL dream

6-2/220, 26 years old, and supposedly very fast. 2-time MVP of his Rugby league left his team to focus on making it in the NFL. Some are saying return man and then maybe running back, but I'd like to see him as a special teamer and potentially at safety.

640757-jarryd-hayne.jpg
 

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Jarryd Hayne at cornerback? Let’s see what an NFL draft scout has to say | The Roar

Jarryd Hayne at cornerback? Let’s see what an NFL draft scout has to say

By Cameron Larkin, 17 Oct 2014

I applaud NRL superstar Jarryd Hayne on departing the league and his beloved Parramatta Eels in pursuit of his dream despite vast riches on the table. Although Hayne was about to become the highest paid player in the NRL, the dual Dally M Player of the Year winner told a packed press conference that it was the challenge of breaking into America’s game he valued more. With no contract – despite rumours Hayne had joined reining Super Bowl Champions Seattle Seahawks – Hayne will head to the US as a free agent.

If Hayne realises his dream, what position will he play? Hayne could slot into multiple positions on an NFL roster – including running back, wide receiver and punt/kick returner. However, I see Hayne being a member of a team’s defensive unit, as a cornerback. NFL cornerbacks need to be agile and quick, have great instincts for the game, specifically how to cover, read and adjust. They also need to be able to tackle and be physical. The cornerback’s effectiveness greatly influence the success of the overall defence. At 6’2” and 100 kilograms, Jarryd Hayne has the size. He is one of the NRL’s most talented and intelligent players. The Bleacher Report’s NFL writer Matt Miller, broke down how scouts analyse NFL cornerback prospects. I have broken down Hayne’s skill set into a range of different areas: speed and burst, instincts, agility and technique, size and tackling.

Speed and burst
“The job of a cornerback depends on numerous traits and characteristics, but in my book, no one trait is as important as speed.”
“The wide receiver explodes off the line of scrimmage into his route, and the cornerback must be quick enough to turn and run with the receiver.” “That leaves our cornerback tasked with changing direction and accelerating to catch up to the receiver. Having elite speed makes the difference between allowing a catch, breaking up a pass and getting to the ball before the receiver for an interception.”

Instincts
“Richard Sherman excels at reading and reacting to the wide receiver and the quarterback. Throughout the regular season, he was thrown at 87 times but allowed just 41 catches thanks to his ability to see the route and respond without delay. That ability to go from seeing it to processing it to reacting is what makes Sherman an elite NFL cornerback.”

Agility and Technique
“A pro-level cornerback must be agile enough to turn his hips and run with receivers when they make cuts in their routes. You’ll hear this called “flipping his hips,” and it’s genuinely a player’s ability to go from a backpedal to a run at an angle.” “Outside of agility for flipping your hips, being a great cornerback means having the quick feet to change direction. That can mean transitioning from a backpedal and coming up to stop the run or being asked to run through a double move in a route. Quick feet are in my top five most important traits for any cornerback – along with speed, instincts, change-of-direction skills and tackling.”
“It is always important to remember that technique can be taught, and for almost every player, there will be refinements made by NFL coaches after the draft. A big, strong, fast cornerback can be coached up in terms of technique and hand use.”

Size
“At 6’3″ and 88 kgs, Sherman is part of a new breed of cornerback being valued in the NFL.” “A look around the NFL today shows that the best cornerbacks are often the biggest ones, as they are better equipped to take on the Calvin Johnson’s and Julio Joneses of the NFL.
“To combat a 6’5″ wide receiver, you need a cornerback bigger than 5’10.”

Tackling
“Tackling in the NFL has become a lost art form, but there are still those cornerbacks who aren’t afraid to come up and take on the run or single-handedly pull down a wide receiver in the open field.” “Tackling will never be a top-of-the-list trait for cornerbacks, but you can bet that I’m taking the better tackler every time two players ground out close to one another.”

That’s what a true expert had to say, anyway. Good luck Jarryd. The biggest challenge for Hayne isn’t just understanding the game and adapting. His biggest hurdle will be winning a position on the roster ahead of the highly talented Americans that have grown up playing the game.
 
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Sorry if this seems like a dumb question. Would he have to go through the NFL Draft process just like any college prospect?
 

cmd34

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Not a bad question. 2 years ago the Jets signed a rugby player as a Tight End.
 

cmd34(work)

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Free agent. Not sure how it works with International players that did not play college football. There used to be an International Player Practice Squad but I don't believe the NFL uses it anymore.

Last year, the Colts signed Daniel Adongo, a rugby player, and two years ago, the Jets signed Hayden Smith. At the same time, British shot putter Lawrence Eneh actually waited through the draft process and then signed with the 49ers as an UDFA.

Okay, found the rules...

PLAYER NOT ATTENDING COLLEGE. Any player who does not attend college is
automatically eligible for selection in the next principal draft that is conducted after four
NFL regular seasons have begun and ended following either his graduation from high
school or graduation of the class with which he entered high school, whichever is earlier. If
four football seasons have not elapsed, he is ineligible for selection, but may apply to the
Commissioner for Special Eligibility pursuant to the conditions in the section below entitled
“Special Eligibility.” If said player is not selected in the draft for which he is eligible, he is
eligible to be signed as a free agent, unless he subsequently attends college and participates
in college football. In such event, he shall become subject to the rules that are applicable to
players who attend college.


https://www.nflregionalcombines.com/Docs/Eligibility rules.pdf
 

ThoughtExperiment

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I wonder why they picked cornerback. Seriously doubt he would have the agility or quickness to do that at 220 lbs.

Like you say, safety or probably just special teamer is where he might have a chance. Wonder how he'd feel about being a grunt special teamer after being a star in his sport.
 

cmd34(work)

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I actually looked into his college eligibility to see if he could have come played a year of Junior College.
 

Manster7588

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I'll pass. Jerry has failed with too many projects already, and those projects at least played U.S. football in school.
 
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