Diamond in the Rough Part 2: Giants Sign UDFA Greg Milhouse Jr
GM Jerry Reese has completed his UDFA frenzy by signing 17 undrafted prospects and 13 others for tryouts to compete for a roster spot or possibly a spot on the practice squad. That’s a total of 20 prospects with invitations in hopes of becoming a diamond in the rough.
There are only 3 players that have peaked my interests among this group and they are DE Romeo Okwara out of Notre Dame, DE Greg Milhouse out of Campbell, and final DT Melvin Lewis out of Kentucky. Below are scouting reports for each player (courtesy of CBS Sports).
Greg Milhouse Jr (DT) Campbell 6’1/295: Thickly put together with compact muscle tone…excellent contact balance through the line of scrimmage…nimble quickness to work laterally around bodies, using leverage and active limbs to swim past blockers…stout at the point of attack and a tough guy to move with his low center of gravity…hip flexibility to operate in tight spaces.
Stacks at the point of attack with power in his hands to grab, pull or slug while driving his feet to generate movement…doesn’t wear down and brings similar intensity each snap…certified tough guy and plays through pain…well-versed at multiple defensive line techniques…good starting production the past two seasons with 16.5 tackles for loss and 7.5 sacks over 21 starts at Campbell.
Lack of secondary quickness limits his range and radius of impact, not doing much outside the hashes…narrow shoulders and average-at-best arm length…needs to continue and develop his frame and body armor…pass rush stalls once engaged, struggling to un-glue himself from blocks…doesn’t show a consistent plan and gets out of control…improved recognition skills, but his ball awareness is still a work-in-progress – relies more on motor than instincts…gets himself in trouble when he leans into blocks, ending up on the ground…needs to protect his edge and late to counter angle blocks…all of his experience has come against FCS-level competition.
A two-year starter at Campbell, Greg Milhouse Jr. started his collegiate career at Appalachian State before staring for Fighting Camel head coach Mike Minter the past two seasons, earning All-Pioneer Football League honors both years. He lined up mostly as a three-technique, also logging time as a nose tackle and one-technique. Milhouse has cat-like quickness for his size and uses his initial momentum to drive interior blockers backwards towards the quarterback. He needs to develop his hand technique and ball awareness, but his skill-set is draftable – faces a steep learning curve, but can provide quality depth to a three-technique rotation in a four-man front.