Originally posted by GhostofFredDean74:
I honestly struggled with the Joyner pick, but realized the only reason I struggled was because of his height. When you realize that's actually not a good enough reason to pass on such a dynamic playmaker, the choice is simple. This guy is the closest thing to Earl Thomas that I've seen who also has the ability to start day one at nickel corner...eventually taking over at SS alongside Reid. That's very, very rare.
No joke OTC, the guy plays like he's 6'2", 215 and makes a ton of plays. He's the kind of safety that allows your CBs to play press coverage, which I believe this team would play more of if we had the right personnel in our secondary.
This. Joyner is an AMAZING playmaker. People focus in on his height without acknowledging that he's a stunning player in his own right. I don't buy that 2 inches of height will somehow restrict him from being an outstanding player at the NFL level. Earl Thomas is 5'10", Mathieu is 5'9", yes Joyner being 5'8" will somehow stop him from being a good player?
As a slot corner alone he's worth the pick, he can be physical with smaller receivers, stick to them closely, attack the ball in the air, has terrific technique when it comes to tackling and is a high quality blitzer. Replace Rogers with him as the slot corner and you'd see instant improvement on just that basis alone.
The thing that Joyner has, which you simply can't teach, are top-notch natural football instincts. He reads the offense very well, see's routes developing, see's plays coming together before they even happen. On top of that, he hits like a Mack truck, really goes after receivers with bad intentions,