How Good Was Jalen Thompson

sinsay

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I have a pretty good feel for the Cards players on D.

All except Jalen Thompson.

Understanding he was a rookie that got drafted in the supplemental draft and had a late start.

How good was his rookie season and how does he project going forward?
 

BritCard

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For a rookie he did well.

In the grand scheme of how he performed vs the rest of the league Id say he was average to below average.

Hard to say how he projects. The other Thompson has been working hard and we drafted Simmons.

Alford is back so Murphy will look to get more snaps inside. Lots of people fighting to take snaps from him that probably will. Jalen might only get a % of snaps in base or particular sub packages.
 

BACH

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Jalen had a 64.9 pff grade last season and had a clearly better ending to the season. Based on this and my personal evaluation, I would say that he's was a slightly below average starter that developed over the season as a rookie and has a very clear upward trend.

I'm very positive about him as a starter.
 

juza76

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I really like him. He's aggressive in run support and a good tackler. It's hard to evaluate his coverage ability because TV doesn't show him in coverage much.

Mmm, I guess he was pretty mediocre in coverage
I don't know if he was just his fault or the schemes didn't help either, but that was a concern for almost everyone
The only one I saw beside Patrick Peterson being able to stick with his own player was Chris Jones in the last 2 games
We don't have a true ballhawk and I think is the reason why we were in the bottom in the nfl forcing turnovers
 
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Harry

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He flashed occasionally but not often enough to assure success. He’ll likely be entering a year when expectations will be higher. He’s got a chance to be a solid player but he needs to show better coverage support. He’s got to be in the right place at the right time to service in this defense.
 

Cardsfaninlouky

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I think he performed admirably for a rookie, enough that I don't think we need to worry about the position for a while assuming we re-sign Baker.

We have versatility in the secondary.
I'm with you on this, especially the last 4 games or so. Seemed to be making or in on most tackles in those games, running plays mainly. Hard to say a whole lot about his coverage skills considering we had a rookie playing the #2 CB position mostly. I'm thinking he has a bright future on this team. Having Alford back in 2020 should make his job in the secondary easier.
 

BACH

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I'm with you on this, especially the last 4 games or so. Seemed to be making or in on most tackles in those games, running plays mainly. Hard to say a whole lot about his coverage skills considering we had a rookie playing the #2 CB position mostly. I'm thinking he has a bright future on this team. Having Alford back in 2020 should make his job in the secondary easier.
Not saying he is going to be a star player, but with BB, PP, Simmons, Murphy and Alford around him, he could shine on the field. I think he will develop into a better than average starter in the NFL
 

cardsfanmd

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I really like the kid. Decent in coverage and probably the second best open field tackler on the team behind baker.
 

Cbus cardsfan

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Too early to tell. He showed promise and that’s about all you can ask from a rookie.

He’s probably going to be a good player and solid starter.
 
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sinsay

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So looks like the Cards are set at both Safety spots.

A sure tackler with 4.4 speed sounds like a player to keep an eye on.
 

Cardsfaninlouky

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Not saying he is going to be a star player, but with BB, PP, Simmons, Murphy and Alford around him, he could shine on the field. I think he will develop into a better than average starter in the NFL
He was always around the ball the last 4 games or so, I think things in the VJ system finally started to click for him at that point. Our defense played better in those games after VJ said in an interview that he had simplified the calls & assignments for the defense. I hope he stays with that plan in 2020. If our defense can be top 15, I think this team could surprise a lot of teams?
 

Chopper0080

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When you consider his late start to the team and scheme being a supp draft pick, I thought he learned very quickly and did very well on the fly. He took a spot on the defense from DJ Swearinger and Dionte Thompson. Swearinger didn't set the bar high, but still was a vet. Thompson was a starter at Alabama, had the entire offseason to prepare, and was given an earlier look prior to Swearinger being cut.

We don't know what JT will be, but I am actually pretty confident in the willingness he showed to work and take a role on the defense. That is the competitive attitude which tends to lead to players sticking in the league.
 
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