Margus Hunt-DE-SMU

Originally posted by Phoenix49ers:
Oh look, its a replay of the same game that people continually post, against a Fresno State team whose offensive line arguably had about 2 solid starters with one of them out against SMU, leading Hunt to be matched up with a guy who is the Bulldogs equivalent of Chilo Rachal but ignore the majority of games where he simply disappeared and was non-existent. The reason why so many people are critical of Hunt is because he doesn't "play to his speed", watch him in an average game situation and he doesn't look like a guy that runs a 4.6, his motor simply disappears as well.

Physically he was superior to anyone else that stepped out on the field, he was stronger, he was faster, he played against a low level of competition for the most part, so talking about this guy like a first rounder, where was the dominance???? Where was the ability to consistently destroy offensive linemen, where was the motor and the explosiveness, game in and game out?


Why people push players like Jesse Williams, Hankins and so on, is not because those guys don't have their flaws as well,its because those guys got it done against higher levels of competition and were simply much more consistent.


With Hunt, you've got arguably the biggest boom/bust factor in the draft, you're basically swinging for the fences and hoping that it'll be a homerun when you can easily strike out. I'm far more confident of someone like Jesse Williams being a consistent, maybe not spectacular player, but a consistent and steady player who is ready to contribute starting next year, exactly what you want from your 1st round pick. If you take Hunt and he fails to make an impact next year, along with Jenkins, that's back to back first rounders who should be at least somewhat regular contributors who simply leave this team with big holes.


As far as being a 3-4 DE, having a guy who if anything was consistent at being unable to hold the edge, isn't necessarily the best proposition. Yes, he's great on special teams, but you don't draft a guy in the 1st round because he's tall and can block kicks. I see him as a long-term project that will need 2-3 seasons to develop when the 49ers need someone who can contribute on a rotational basis starting next year. One of the biggest problems that this team had was that they didn't have quality backups to give Justin Smith and Ray McDonald a breather, you don't go out and get a guy that is raw as hell and think that will alleviate that situation.


What I can say safely is that someone like Jesse Williams, Datone Jones, Jonathan Jenkins, are all guys who can contribute starting next year and become a regular part of the DL rotation. I can't and won't say the same about Hunt. The last thing IMO the 49ers need is another 1st round draft pick to redshirt.

DEs in the 3-4 don't hold the edge. OLBs generally have edge responsibility. Justin Smith and Ray McDonald aren't in contain a whole lot for us. They play the 5-technique in base sets. When we go nickel they knock down to the 3-technique the majority of the time.

My concern on Hunt is his ability to anchor and play in a two-gap scheme. He's only 277. Very light for a 3-4 DE, especially at 6'8". To borrow from Mayock, he needs "more sand in the pants".

Originally posted by MadDog49er:
Hunt is still a 43 exclusive player right now. Simply not stout enough at the point of attack to play the 34 DE role, and not fleet enough to play the 34 OLB. I know that some feel he is a sexy pick, but he would be a bad fit on this team, in this system.

Anyone who watched him during Senior Bowl week saw a really raw guy who is not going to contribute for a couple of years, if at all.

Hes obviously stout enough. He just plays to timid and doesn't want to make mistakes. Hes reacting instead of forcing the issue. This can be coached.

Originally posted by eonblue:
Hes obviously stout enough. He just plays to timid and doesn't want to make mistakes. Hes reacting instead of forcing the issue. This can be coached.

He's very tall and lean for 3-4 DE. Contrary to Phoenix's opinion, I think he's plenty athletic, which is why he'd be better suited for 4-3 DE. I think he has more potential as an edge rusher than he does as a stout two-gap anchor type.


I disagree with most here in that I think Hunt could be solid at the next level. That said, he's a bad fit for us.

Originally posted by JamesGatz83:
He's very tall and lean for 3-4 DE. Contrary to Phoenix's opinion, I think he's plenty athletic, which is why he'd be better suited for 4-3 DE. I think he has more potential as an edge rusher than he does as a stout two-gap anchor type.

When have I said that he's not "athletic enough." I'm questioning his skills and instincts as a football player, not his athleticism. Regarding his athleticism, I've simply said that based on watching his tape, you would never guess that his actual numbers are as exemplary. Whether its because he hesitates, second-guesses himself and "thinks" too much, the explosion he's highly regarded for rarely shows up in games.

As far as his size goes, he's closer to being a 3-4 OLB than a 3-4 DE.

Originally posted by Phoenix49ers:
When have I said that he's not "athletic enough." I'm questioning his skills and instincts as a football player, not his athleticism. Regarding his athleticism, I've simply said that based on watching his tape, you would never guess that his actual numbers are as exemplary. Whether its because he hesitates, second-guesses himself and "thinks" too much, the explosion he's highly regarded for rarely shows up in games.

As far as his size goes, he's closer to being a 3-4 OLB than a 3-4 DE.

I think you can differentiate instincts and athleticism. You see the freakish athleticism in bursts when you watch his clips, and then you see the lack of instincts on other plays where he clearly struggles to diagnose and react. Does the lack of instincts interfere with his ability to use the athleticism consistently? Of course, but you can still tell the athleticism is there. If you couldn't see the athleticism on his film, we'd never have heard of him--given that he looks like a random dude from Estonia who just wandered onto the field 90% of the time.

still want

Originally posted by ParkingLotPimpin:
still want

Yep same here. We have plenty of picks and if we didn't role the dice we wouldn't have guys like Kaep and Gore and Miller and Brooks, etc...
The whole draft isn't ruined if we take a guy like Hunt. There's only so many holes to fill on this team and FA will cover some of those.

Hunt is an oddity with his size and athleticism, and could be just the type of weapon we need. It's not like we need him to step in from day one and dominate. He would be the perfect pet project, imo.

Originally posted by 24plus25er:
Hunt is an oddity with his size and athleticism, and could be just the type of weapon we need. It's not like we need him to step in from day one and dominate. He would be the perfect pet project, imo.

1st rounder....pet project.....does not compute.

The market will show itself with Hunt. If he lasts too long he may not be worth the risk.

It's pointless to argue with Phoenix. MadDog has a similar response, albeit less condescending than Phoenix, and because his response is similar, Phoenix feels the need to celebrate and joke. Oh yay, MD agrees with you somewhat, you MUST be right. Whatever...the reason I've given up on you is NOT because I haven't gotten you to agree, but it's because we haven't gotten you to open your mind to the possibility that he might be the selection.

I don't know you personally, but you mention seeing Hunt in every game and his motor, blah blah. Do you actually have access to all his games? Really, though. Honest question. Cuz if you do, I applaud you because you possibly have more insight. I live in Cali so I don't get much SMU games, but when it's available, he looks like a guy, raw for sure (and I've admitted that), but flashed. When he flashed, he showed some great quickness getting out of his stance. I think about how Tomsula can really coach him up.

Contributing on the field at the DE position is much easier than AJ Jenkins trying to contribute in our very complex offense. So thinking that Hunt would redshirt just doesn't make sense to me just because he doesn't have as much experience. I'll take a pass on Jesse Williams and John Jenkins, mainly because I see a lot more value in taking Brandon Williams in the 2nd to play NT for us. John Jenkins disappeared a lot, as well.

Booo wooo woo hooo hooo!



He's 26 and that means if he needs a year or two of coaching he'll only be an unstoppable man stallion for 6 huge years.

Booo hooooooo.....

Originally posted by JamesGatz83:
He's very tall and lean for 3-4 DE. Contrary to Phoenix's opinion, I think he's plenty athletic, which is why he'd be better suited for 4-3 DE. I think he has more potential as an edge rusher than he does as a stout two-gap anchor type.

I disagree with most here in that I think Hunt could be solid at the next level. That said, he's a bad fit for us.

I agree. I like Hunt but I don't like him for our D. There will be prospects that are better fits (and just as much talent) when we pick.

Originally posted by SF69ers:
I live in Cali so I don't get much SMU games, but when it's available, he looks like a guy, raw for sure (and I've admitted that), but flashed. When he flashed, he showed some great quickness getting out of his stance. I think about how Tomsula can really coach him up.

So you are arguing with people over a player you haven't watched much at all? Interesting.


As I've been saying, you are in the minority in regards to Hunt, there is a lot of doubt about his abilities and football instincts. He has tremendous athleticism, yes, but so have a lot of famous NFL busts. I'm not ready to jump on a guy who is ill-fitting in this system and incredibly raw at age 26. Sorry if that offends you.

The people clamoring for Hunt because of his measurables should really be focusing instead on Datone who is twice the player that Hunt is right now and yet still has upside. Datone could start and produce from day 1, and that's what you need for a Super Bowl contending team.