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**YourPalChrisMal** · 04-29-2011, 10:40 PM

http://www.bleedinggreennation.com/2...s-curtis-marsh

Eagles Draft Picks: What You Need To Know About Curtis Marsh

The Eagles were set to pick at #85 overall, but traded that selection to the Ravens for their #90 overall pick and an additional sixth rounder. With the 26th overall pick in the third, the Eagles selected Curtis Marsh, cornerback from Utah State.

Marsh has good size at 6-1, ran a solid 4.46 40 at the combine and is known for long arms that he uses to break up passes. Big, fast and long... all good stuff to hear about a corner prospect. The main knock against him appears to be the impossible to see, but apparently important "stiff hips."

Marsh actually went to Utah State initially as a running back, but his height and athleticism led coaches to move him to corner, where he's only been for two years.

"He has a lot of upside," Utes coach Gary Andersen said. "He’s only been playing the position for two years. His best football is ahead of him, and as he gets more comfortable with the position, he’s only going to get better."

Marsh earned All-WAC honors last season and was sixth in the country in passes defensed per game. As we said earlier, his long arms gives him a knack for that. Marsh started to grab the attention of scouts last season, when he shut down highly touted Boise State WRs Titus Young and Austin Pettis last season. Those players went the second and third round respectively this year.

He did in fact have a visit with the Eagles earlier this month and was projected to go anywhere from the second to third round. Solid value, great physical tools and still with plenty of room to improve. There's a lot to like about this pick.

**QuitoPhan** · 04-30-2011, 08:53 AM

General consensus seems to be that this is a guy who would only do well in the right system and that system involves press coverage, man-to-man and lots of blitzing. So it sounds like he's a guy who fit in well with us, but if he ever leaves, might not catch on elsewhere.

**andrewaters** · 04-30-2011, 08:58 AM

This was a guy I liked actually and they like him too. They seem to get it fairly right with DBs most of the time... guys like Sheldon Brown, Nate Allen, Trevard Lindley, and Dmitri Patterson (who wasn't terrible but shouldn't be a starter). So they have looked at a lot ot tape, talked to him, and think he fits their system. So I'm OK with him.

**eagles2000** · 04-30-2011, 10:08 AM

The reports I had read said he is extremely fast but not great in coverage. With only 2 years experience at CB he is a project. But at least they traded back and got an extra pick. I like both the first 2 picks but they should have traded down there as well as these guys were drafted higher than anyone thought. Half of drafting is to get additional picks when you are looking at stretch pickups. I can't tell you whether or not any of these guys will be great, good or busts, but I can say that if they had traded back and gotten 2 extra picks we would have had 2 more chances for additional starters.

**Leonard Tose** · 04-30-2011, 10:49 AM

Guys like the two they picked yesterday are what we get now that we've had the same head coach for 12 years, IMO.

They know the type of player they can work with and they'd just as soon take that player as the higher-ceilinged guy.

**stocknowledge** · 04-30-2011, 11:03 AM

Originally posted by eagles2000 View Post

The reports I had read said he is extremely fast but not great in coverage. With only 2 years experience at CB he is a project. But at least they traded back and got an extra pick. I like both the first 2 picks but they should have traded down there as well as these guys were drafted higher than anyone thought. Half of drafting is to get additional picks when you are looking at stretch pickups. I can't tell you whether or not any of these guys will be great, good or busts, but I can say that if they had traded back and gotten 2 extra picks we would have had 2 more chances for additional starters.

We did trade down on the Marsh pick - from #84 to #90 - and we picked up a 6th round selection.

**FairOaks** · 04-30-2011, 11:12 AM

Originally posted by stocknowledge View Post

We did trade down on the Marsh pick - from #84 to #90 - and we picked up a 6th round selection.

I think he was talking about the first two picks. I disagree on Watkins -- I think he was going to go off the board in the next couple of picks if the Eagles didn't take him -- but the second round pick was a possibility, provided there was a willing trade partner, which there may not have been. I also saw the Eagles had their eye on Paea, who Chicago jumped in and took one slot before, so they may have not had time to set up a trade.

**YourPalChrisMal** · 04-30-2011, 11:49 AM

Tommy Lawlor on Marsh...

In round number three the Eagles went for Utah State cornerback Curtis Marsh. I liked this pick quite a bit. This draft has quite a few big corners who can run. The top guys went in the first 33 picks. There were still other players to get, Marsh being one of them. Big, fast corners don't come around every year. Heck, just look at the Eagles roster. There are no big corners. That changes with the arrival of Marsh.

He began his career at running back. Marsh moved to corner in 2009 and made four starts. He then started all of 2010. Put on the tape and the first thing that strikes you is simply that he looks the part. Marsh doesn't look at all like a running back. He looks like a corner. Kudos to the coach who figured that out and moved him. Marsh plays like a gifted athlete. He's still learning how to play corner, but had the size and speed to excel at his level. Marsh can press or play off. He's comfortable doing both. He tends to mirror press rather than jam receivers. That's something that will change in the NFL. Marsh has the size and physicality to learn to jam. He just didn't do much of it.

Marsh doesn't have great hips. He's a bit stiff as he turns. He makes up for that by having really good feet. When corners go to turn and run with receivers they must be able to open their hips or they must have very nimble feet. Fluid hips are ideal because you can swivel back and forth should the receiver go back to the other side on you. With feet, you've got to physically turn your whole body and you lose a step.

Marsh played all over. He was on the left and right sides. Sometimes he was in the slot. Utah State would put him on the best receiver occasionally. Other times they put him to the other side and just had the safeties shade away from him. Marsh didn't need help over the top. He has the ability to cover well on short, intermediate, and deep routes. Marsh gets a quick break on the ball when he does play off. I saw him pick off one pass, but it was a poor throw and didn't show much in the way of ball skills. Marsh is a solid tackler. He needs to learn to wrap up more often, but he will attack his targets.

Marsh was good value in the third. I had him rated there on my pre-draft Eagles value board. He is a bit of a project, but don't think he's completely raw and needs years of work. Marsh played in the pass happy WAC. He picked off two passes in 2010 and broke up 13 more. He learned on the fly. And as I said, corner is his natural position. I think he's going to be a starter eventually. I like him more than I did Trevard Lindley from a year ago. Good pick.

**YourPalChrisMal** · 04-30-2011, 11:55 AM

Curtis Marsh videos...

At the combine...

ProFootball Draft Profile...

Vs. Boise State...

40 Yard TD...

**YourPalChrisMal** · 04-30-2011, 12:12 PM

Listening to Didinger on the radio right now. He doesn't think they would've gotten Jarrett if they had waited until the 3rd round because his stock has been rising very quickly in the eyes of a number of teams.

He was not nearly as glowing about Marsh, saying that he's a project that they could have probably gotten in the 4th round, possibly even the 5th. He feels there were a number of other DB's that were a better selection than Marsh.

**YourPalChrisMal** · 05-02-2011, 06:17 PM

http://phillysportsdaily.com/eagles/...d-for-success/

Eagles Draft Confidential: Final Analysis
by Greg Cosell, NFL Films

Greg Cosell has been with NFL Films for 31 years and is the Executive Producer of NFL Matchup on ESPN. His expertise is film study. He spends countless hours breaking down tape, dissecting schemes and of course, critiquing players on the NFL and collegiate level.
__________________________________________________ _______

...I really like the potential of third-round pick Curtis Marsh. He’s a work in progress, with little chance to contribute significantly in 2011, but he has a strong upside due to his size and natural athleticism, and very importantly, his extensive experience at Utah State playing press man coverage...

**YourPalChrisMal** · 05-02-2011, 07:37 PM

http://www.csnphilly.com/05/01/11/bF...487&feedID=692

Frank: Post-draft Q & A with Eagles GM Roseman

Q: You did draft a cornerback in the third round, Curtis Marsh from Utah State, but he’s only been a corner for two years and it’s hard to imagine him being ready to start right away. Why not draft a starting corner?

Roseman: “We’re aware that you’re not going to fill every need in the draft, and if you come out of the draft filling every need you probably didn’t have a very good draft. We’re going to explore all avenues to improve our team and we’re aggressive by nature, and I think that we’re going to try to make sure we’re going to have the best possible team when we line up. We’re fortunate that right now it doesn’t end. At some point here, there will be ways here to address some of these needs -- some perceived, some really obvious that you have.”

Q: How much of a project is Marsh?

Roseman: “Really, to get a 6-foot corner, 200 pounds, 4.4 (speed), productive in his conference and as you talk to people who know him and are around him, really it’s a blank canvas with him, and that’s exciting. It’s really hard to find cover corners with that skill set -- 30 (Wonderlic) test score, bloodlines, long arms, great athlete, and he can play. So we were excited to get that guy. It’s hard really to put a third-round pick in and count on him as a starter anyway, so we’re looking at him as someone who’s an addition to our team and hopefully in the future come in and have the opportunity to compete for a job.”

Q: But if you lined up tomorrow, who would your starting cornerback be opposite Asante Samuel?

Roseman: “You know what, we’re not lining up tomorrow and we’re going to have competition on this team, and Andy always says we’ll go with what we see, and there’s a lot of time before the first game. It’s going to be exciting to be a Philadelphia Eagles fan here, and we’re excited about where we are now and we know we have a lot of room to grow and improve. And we’re going to do whatever it takes to make sure we put a championship-caliber team out there.”

**YourPalChrisMal** · 05-02-2011, 10:31 PM

http://www.bleedinggreennation.com/2...lass#storyjump

Andy Reid Assesses The 2011 Eagles Draft Class

Finally, he was asked about taking a corner that many see as a guy that still needs to develop and may not be ready to start right away.

"Well I didn't make it that cut and dry, but what I was saying is that this was obviously a kid that was good enough to play in the Senior Bowl. You're looking at a kid that is really only two years at that position, so he doesn't have a lot of cornerback miles on him. I think what he'll do is he'll continue to get better. I think you'll see him progress even throughout the season, but he's a pretty good football player and he'll compete in there to start. He's got to present a lot of competition there, but what I think you'll see with him is a lot of continued process. We'll see how he does here. We drafted a pretty good corner last year, who made a couple starts for us, so we'll see how he does. We'll see how things work here."

**YourPalChrisMal** · 05-02-2011, 10:40 PM

Per RotoWorld...

Eagles coach Andy Reid believes third-round CB Curtis Marsh will develop quickly with enough upside to be a starter in Philly.

"What you're getting is a guy who is big, strong, physical, fast and very, very intelligent," said Reid. Marsh just moved to corner two years ago, but he was already showing vast improvement is press man coverage by the end of last season. He has prototypical size and length for an NFL starter.

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3rd Round (Pick #90), Utah State CB Curtis Marsh

3rd Round (Pick #90), Utah State CB Curtis Marsh

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