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Watt v. Hunt

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Bengals1181 Hall Of Fame

Bengals1181

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With the 53rd-overall pick in the 2013 NFL draft, the Cincinnati Bengals selectedMargus Hunt, the 6'8" defensive end out of Southern Methodist University.

Many fans believed that the addition of Hunt brought with it the writing on the wall for the franchise-tagged Michael Johnson. With Johnson demanding a large salary in the upcoming season, the Bengals are looking to groom their defensive end of the future now.

The Estonian-born Hunt shares similar physical attributes to Johnson—height, weight and arm length are almost identical. Both players were also described as raw, freak athletes when they came out of college. In fact, Hunt earned the No. 1 spot on Bruce Feldman's 2013 Freak List.

However, it wasn't Johnson that the Bengals coaching staff compared Hunt to during the second episode of HBO's Hard Knocks. Rather, it was Houston Texans All-Pro defensive end J.J. Watt.

You can watch the episode here on YouTube.

During the episode, Bengals defensive coordinator Mike Zimmer compared the two athletes:

I hate to say this, but [Hunt] kind of looks like J.J. Watt...I'm not saying he's that good, but he's a big, good athlete.

Zimmer is often hailed as one of the best defensive coordinators in the modern NFL. He has earned the respect of his colleagues after serving at his position for the past 14 NFL seasons.

For Zimmer to make such a bold statement about a rookie is highly unheard of. So why would he make that comparison in front of a national audience?

Looking at the attributes of the two players, it is easy to see what Zimmer means.

 

 

When Watt entered the NFL out of Wisconsin, his athletic 6'5", 290-pound frame with 34" arms was absolutely ideal for an NFL defensive end. Hunt's 6'8", 277-pound frame with 34" arms is equally as ideal.

The physical attributes are there.

The players even shared similar numbers at the NFL Scouting Combine.

Watt ran a 4.84 second 40-yard dash, ripped 34 reps on the bench press and recorded a 37" vertical jump and a 120" broad jump.

Hunt ran a 4.60 second 40-yard dash, ripped 38 reps on the bench press and recorded a 34.5" vertical jump and a 121" broad jump.

The main difference between these two players right now is that Watt was NFL-ready when he was drafted in 2011. Hunt, on the other hand, will need a year under his belt to work on his fundamentals.

Keep in mind, Hunt has only been playing football for four years.

His inexperience shows when watching his film during training camp and in the Bengals first preseason game against the Atlanta Falcons. Hunt needs to get his pad level lower and his hands up higher to improve his bull rush and take advantage of his natural strength.

If he can get those fundamentals down, Zimmer's comparison of Hunt to Watt may not be so far-fetched.

After all, head coach Marvin Lewis had some interesting comments about Hunt on last week's Hard Knocks as well:

If you built a prototype and put together a left defensive end in the National Football League, it would be a guy that looked like Margus Hunt.

Apparently Lewis agrees with Zimmer on the physical attributes of Hunt. Now, it's just a matter if Hunt can continue to work on his fundamentals and put it all together.

If he does, we could be watching another J.J. Watt in the making.

 

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/1739315-cincinnati-bengals-is-margus-hunt-the-next-jj-watt


There's a video in the link of Hunt benching nearly 500lbs.

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turningpoint Hall Of Fame

turningpoint

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We don't have to rush hunt.

 

Geathers and Gilberry will both probably still be around, along with Thompson.

 

I don't like these comparisons though.

 

Hunt is more lanky, while Watt is beefy.

 

Watt reminds me of a WWE wrestler.

 

Hunt reminds me of Jared Allen. 

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Jason Hall Of Fame

Jason

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MJ is the most dependable, Dunlap is the most talented....by a pretty good margin.

 

Maybe.  Last year was the first MJ played at a DE weight.  Prior to that there was always talk of him playing OLB so he played lighter.  I want to see what MJ does this year at DE weight and compare then.  MJ's best year is 11.5 sacks, Dunlap's is 9.5, and MJ usually factes the better lineman in the LT where Dunlap is usually on the RT.

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alleycat Hall Of Fame

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Maybe.  Last year was the first MJ played at a DE weight.  Prior to that there was always talk of him playing OLB so he played lighter.  I want to see what MJ does this year at DE weight and compare then.  MJ's best year is 11.5 sacks, Dunlap's is 9.5, and MJ usually factes the better lineman in the LT where Dunlap is usually on the RT.

 

Comparing apples to oranges.

 

Just listen to Marvin.  He called Hunt a "prototypical" Left End.  Dunlap has been called the same by both the coaches and many of us.  These guys are rushing into the QB's face.  In other words, the QB can see them coming.  So power is an essential part of their game, and smashing the RT (usually the stronger of the two tackles) into the QB's face with a bull-rush to rush him and make him panic is a critical skill.

 

The Right End, meanwhile, is typically coming from the QB's blind side, and so crushing the pocket isn't nearly as important as getting to the QB as fast as possible.  Again, LT's are usually nimbler for this reason, and the Right DE's who rush them usually rely on a game of speed and agility-based moves.

 

Reducing the game to simple sack numbers overlooks the chess-match that's really going on, and the much subtler realities of the position.  It's why those of us who think Dunlap makes a bigger impact don't think you use MJ's sack totals and some kind of measure of comparison.  The fact is, he owes a handsome portion of his sacks to Dunlap, and (of course) Geno Atkins.  

 

Don't believe me?  Just ask Wallace Gilberry, who's anything but a prototypical Right End - and who collected himself a handsome 6.5 in limited duty at MJ's spot.

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Lucid Hall Of Fame

|Lucid|

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Like was said earlier.. Aside from physicality there is no comparison. Watt is a hell of a football player, Hunt is an incredible athlete who we hope turns into a fantastic football player.  It's easy to see why they coveted him enough to spend a 2nd pick on him even with how raw he is. I really hope he turns out. Zimmer said it best when he pointed out how the Palmer pick allowed us to "swing for the fences a little".  They saw it as a luxury pick to take a chance that Zimmer and his assistants can make something special out of this guy.

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Bengals1181 Hall Of Fame

Bengals1181

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Like was said earlier.. Aside from physicality there is no comparison. Watt is a hell of a football player, Hunt is an incredible athlete who we hope turns into a fantastic football player.  It's easy to see why they coveted him enough to spend a 2nd pick on him even with how raw he is. I really hope he turns out. Zimmer said it best when he pointed out how the Palmer pick allowed us to "swing for the fences a little".  They saw it as a luxury pick to take a chance that Zimmer and his assistants can make something special out of this guy.

 

yea the OP was mainly about physical traits, but left it up to the thread to go in any direction it may.

 

 

 

Not saying he doesn't have it, but I think the main driving force will be Hunt's passion for the game.  He's unlike most other players who have been playing and dreaming about this since they were a kid.  If Hunt has a passion for the game and to be elite, look out.

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Lucid Hall Of Fame

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yea the OP was mainly about physical traits, but left it up to the thread to go in any direction it may.

 

Yeah.

 

Also, if he can get his technique down some I think you could see him on either side of the line, or even on the inside in long passing situations. I also think he could put on more bulk and still keep his speed. Part of what is so intriguing about this guy is he has the strength/speed/agility combination to play anywhere in the front 7 depending on the package/situation (I mean assignment wise, not base alignment).

 

I am definitely stoked about this guy's potential.  Just tempering it some with the knowledge of how far he has to go yet.

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Bengals1181 Hall Of Fame

Bengals1181

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Yeah.

 

Also, if he can get his technique down some I think you could see him on either side of the line, or even on the inside in long passing situations. I also think he could put on more bulk and still keep his speed. Part of what is so intriguing about this guy is he has the strength/speed/agility combination to play anywhere in the front 7 depending on the package/situation (I mean assignment wise, not base alignment).

 

I am definitely stoked about this guy's potential.  Just tempering it some with the knowledge of how far he has to go yet.

 

 

pretty sure I read he played some DT against the Falcons in sub packages.

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