Keith Rivers, Outside Linebacker |
| Matt's Notes on Keith Rivers |
| Was injured for a lot of the 2007 season and didn't look the same as the speedy linebacker I saw as a sophomore and a junior. Having a month to get healthy before the Rose Bowl really made a big difference however and Rivers was back to true form.
Rivers looks to possess great speed and plays well from sideline to sideline. He closes well, is a wrap-up tackler and makes open field tackles. Rivers looks to have very good hips and can cover well. He has good instincts and seems to have a knack for sniffing out the screen. I also think Rivers has the frame to add another 10-15 pounds when he hits the NFL. One thing that does trouble me about Keith is his lack of production. He only had three sacks over his career, had only 17 tackles for loss and was more of a pursuit linebacker. If you compare him to Xavier Adibi statistically you'll see a large difference, however much of that comes from scheme. Rivers has too much physical ability to be anything but a 1st round pick in my opinion. |
| Tommy's Notes on Keith Rivers |
| Excellent speed, range. Makes plays from sideline to sideline. Fumble recovery vs ARZ (hustle). Blitzed up middle vs ARZ and just missed sack. Good burst on the play. Had hustle TFL vs ARZ. RB was bottled up initially, then Keith looped around from the outside to make the tackle. Strong, physical tackle. Gets off blocks. Can be physical. Staggered a pulling Cal OL with a forearm as he was running to the ball. Will attack lead blockers or pulling OL. Does a good job of avoiding cut blocks. Good blitzer. Rushes from DE at times. One knock on Keith is that he didn't make a ton of plays despite being a top flight athlete.
SUMMARY Played OLB at SoCal, but could easily shift to MLB. Has a reputation as a finesse, athletic LB. That isn't true. Keith is a good hitter, tackler. He will battle OL. Played some MLB at the Senior Bowl and looked very good. |