Perrion Winfrey A Perfect Todd Bowles Prospect Or A Project?
April 13th, 2022
Oklahoma defensive tackle Perrion Winfrey.
Joe thinks most Bucs fans would be able to sum up new Bucs coach Todd Bowles’ defensive philosophy in three words. Go ahead, take a stab.
“Stop the run.”
If a defender cannot stop the run, Bowles doesn’t seem to have much use for the guy. This bears out when you study how well Bucs defenses under Bowles have suffocated the run game. That’s why Oklahoma defensive tackle Perrion Winfrey has caught Joe’s eye. This guy lives in the opponent’s backfield.
For example, in his comprehensive draft guide known as “The Beast,” Dane Brugler of The Athletic noted that with the Sooners, 40 percent of Winfrey’s tackles came in the backfield. That is just sick.
Brugler likes how Winfrey is a strong tackler and, like a bear, he doesn’t let loose when his paws are on a ballcarrier.
SUMMARY: A two-year starter at Oklahoma, Winfrey lined up at nose guard in former defensive coordinator Alex Grinch’s 3-3-5 base scheme. It was tough to get an accurate read on him in the Sooners’ slanting front, however, his skills were unleashed at the Senior Bowl and allowed him to show scouts his flashes of dominance. Winfrey has an imposing frame and length that no blocker wants to deal with, playing with the shock in his hands to jar blockers or toss bodies from his path. His tendency to play tall and inability to break down and be flexible leads to missed plays in the backfield. Overall, Winfrey needs to improve his pad level and play discipline, but his size, energy and the power in his hands help him to terrorize blockers. He has NFL starting-level traits.
Even though Brugler has Winfrey listed as his fourth-best defensive tackle, overall Brugler lists Winfrey as his No. 53 prospect. Is Winfrey the kind of guy who might slip far enough in the second round where the Bucs would trade up to get him?
Perhaps what has spooked NFL evaluators is that Winfrey was an OK player for Oklahoma, but he totally blew up when he got to the Senior Bowl and in his Pro Day. Did Oklahoma coaches not use him right?
Interestingly, Emory Hunt of CBS, the czar of the playbook, is really down on Winfrey. Hunt likes his speed and his burst off the ball but thinks his technique is terrible and is a project. Hunt ranks Winfrey as his No. 26 defensive tackle.
Areas of Improvement:
– Technique is non-existent and needs a ton of work. Right now he has a decent bull rush; it could be a great one if he had better hand usage. Same with a lot of things you’d want
your DT to do, he can, but it’s very raw.
– Going back to the hand usage, he doesn’t use them once he’s engaged with the OL, or when he’s approaching contact with them. Not having that gets him blocked way more than he should.
– He’s a bit stiff athletically; doesn’t naturally run the hoop in live action.
The difference between Brugler’s eval and Hunt’s? Notice earlier that Joe mentioned Winfrey wasn’t anything really special at Oklahoma and blew up at the Senior Bowl and his Pro Day? Hunt heavily weights his evals on gametape. The fact Winfrey was just so-so at Oklahoma is probably a big reason Hunt’s grade for Winfrey is so poor.
So either this Winfrey is a steal of a player or he’s a project. Joe doesn’t know which.
April 13th, 2022 at 9:19 am
There’s a lot I could say about his game but I’ll keep it simple. HARD PASS!
April 13th, 2022 at 9:20 am
He’s got the burst you’d like to see from a 3 technique. But he’s not a premium DT. I wouldn’t move up in the second to draft him. A rotational player at best his first three years. I like Jones in the second also. If we can get Wyatt in the first and have him play the hybrid 5 technique that Gohlston plays and Jones or Winfrey in the second and resign Suh we’d have formidable line
April 13th, 2022 at 9:29 am
Ice cream man, version 2…burst and disappear.
April 13th, 2022 at 9:33 am
Bring on The Beef. Like The Seawall at Port Royal. Prime Beef.
April 13th, 2022 at 9:44 am
“If a defender cannot stop the run, Bowles doesn’t seem to have much use for the guy. This bears out when you study how well Bucs defenses under Bowles have suffocated the run game. That’s why Oklahoma defensive tackle Perrion Winfrey has caught Joe’s eye. This guy lives in the opponent’s backfield.”
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So Tryon has one more year Joe?
Asking for a friend.
April 13th, 2022 at 9:52 am
Ranked as the #26 DT in this draft? ‘Technique is non-existent’?
Gee what’s not to like.
I like projects, just not in the Top-3 Rnds. We need Dlinemen who can rotate in this year, not down the road. Gotta get one in Rnd 1 or Rnd 2 to either rotate in with Suh or (heaven forbid) replace him.
April 13th, 2022 at 9:59 am
Tell your friend until Tryon improves his run game defense he will likely be a part-time player just like last year.
April 13th, 2022 at 10:03 am
Im seeing a mock with DT Travis Jones….havent checked him out yet….but no on Winfrey with our first.
We need Olave! We’ll probably have to get Mr. Licht to work his magic with the Patriots in a trade up before KC trades up for him outside of the top 20.
April 13th, 2022 at 10:12 am
@defense
We’re not getting a DT who can replace Suh out of the draft will be lucky if they can rotate. DTs suck their first year. Warren Sapp only started 8 games, 27 tackles and 3 sacks in his first year. There’s no HOF DTs this year.
April 13th, 2022 at 10:23 am
So interesting that before I read this article, I was a big Dane Brugler fan and had a big dislike for Emory Hunts evaluations.
But I really only read Hunts evaluations when he was writing for The Athletic.
I will bookmark this article and see how accurate Emory Hunt is on Perrion Winfrey. My guess is that he will be as about as accurate as ONeilbucs was on Tom Brady.
April 13th, 2022 at 10:32 am
Yah. I got travis jones, logan hall, jordan davis and devonte wyatt higher.
I guess if he is there at 2nd round pick then sure.
April 13th, 2022 at 10:34 am
If JL and crew like him then I like him.
April 13th, 2022 at 10:50 am
As Joe wrote earlier, Hunt weights gametape *heavily* for his analysis. Hunt even notes what games he watched for each prospect.
Winfrey had a so-so season for the Sooners. But he blew up in Senior Bowl practices which opened eyes. Mike Tanier of Football Outsiders thought Winfrey was the best DT in Senior Bowl practices. Clearly the Senior Bowl is influencing Brugler’s Winfrey breakdown a great deal.
It is a fair question: Where was the Winfrey who showed up in Mobile all season in Norman?
April 13th, 2022 at 11:53 am
I like Logan Hall out of Houston quite a bit.
April 13th, 2022 at 11:58 am
“40 percent of his tackles come in the backfield”. So 60 percent of his tackles got past him? Maybe decent coaching can fix that. Take a shot at him, just not in the first. Plug the hole at LG first.
April 13th, 2022 at 12:11 pm
Agree on the McCoy comparisons. Dude often puts his head down and bull rushes with no awareness. He’s projected in the second round at best.
April 13th, 2022 at 1:02 pm
Perrion Winfrey has me thoroughly confused what to think of him. Did OU misuse him or not and can he stop the run first. This is one of the more confusing prospects to judge in recent memory…..especially after his Senior Bowl performance and Combine. The Drafts only days away and I still haven’t made up my mind about what I think of the guy.
Title of the article brings up a great question
April 13th, 2022 at 1:09 pm
Buyer beware!
April 13th, 2022 at 1:13 pm
No more DTs from Oklahoma or CBS from Florida…..or WR from Central Mich.
April 13th, 2022 at 1:25 pm
rather resign N. Suh and take a wideout that is gamechanging
April 13th, 2022 at 3:57 pm
@Commander SUH barley plays 50% of snaps and VEA even less.
And Bucs still have to sign SUH…
They need solid subs so the line doesn’t become soft as baby poop every time they’re on the sidelines.
Also, kind of a problem that Benning Potato and Anthony Nelson are starting in the front-7.
If SHAQ gets hurt, the season is over.
The front 7 is by far the #1 concern for this team.
April 13th, 2022 at 4:39 pm
I’d prefer Wyatt or Jones at DT.
I like Arnold Ebiketie. Penn State edge rusher.
April 13th, 2022 at 8:21 pm
Winfrey is a 2nd round possibly. He can absolutely rush the passer. He’s not great against the run yet but he would be good situationally as a pass rusher. There are a hundred run stuffing DTs. There are very few that can rush the passer. Winfrey is not a complete player but he would be a decent option if the Bucs miss out on DT in the 1st.
I also would like Arnold Ebiketie in the 1st if Wyatt and Davis are gone. He won’t last until 60.
April 13th, 2022 at 8:38 pm
@RPK
I agree with your premise but you’re not getting those players out of this draft at #27 and #60. DTs and edge rushers are not contributors their first year. Sapp only had 27 tackles his rooky year. It’s an abnormality if they produce.
Fill our holes through free agency and draft best available. If we pick a DT or Edge in the first that’s not worthy of the selection we’ll be not much better next year and need to do it again. It’s spinning our wheels. We should be able to find a few more role players closer to training camp.
April 13th, 2022 at 8:48 pm
Winfrey is a good project if given a window to develop. Wouldn’t be a bad pick at all. But the Brady window is shorter, therefore they should target more technically adept NFL-ready options across the roster.