RaiderNation
10-04-2011, 01:17 PM
Questions and comments are welcomed as always. I hope this can help you with your evaluation of the draft eligible prospects this year....
1 Andrew Luck QB Stanford*- 1 of the 3 elite prospects in the draft, Luck has everything you look for in a franchise QB. He might be the best QB prospect since Peyton Manning.
2 Matt Kalil OT USC*- Kalil has the measurables, technique and genes to be a franchise LT. At 6’7 300lbs, Kalil was the reason last years top 10 pick Tyron Smith played RT while at USC.
3 Matt Barkley QB USC*- I wasn’t a big believer before this season that Barkley was a franchise type QB, but I have seen huge improvement into his Junior season. He has great intangibles and is a great consolation prize to Luck.
4 Quinton Coples DE UNC-The top DE and Senior, Coples may not be an elite pass rusher but has shown he can be an effective player on vs. the run and pass. He can play all 3 downs and is the type of DE you can build your defense with.
5 Justin Blackmon WR Oklahoma State*- Justin Blackmon has overtaken Jeffery as the #1 WR in the draft. Blackmon has outstanding production and can be a go-to WR in the NFL.
6 Alshon Jeffery WR South Carolina*- Jeffery has elite size similar to Calvin Johnson, but questions about his speed will keep him behind Blackmon. If he can run a sub 4.5 in the combine he should be a top 10 pick.
7 Jonathan Martin OT Stanford*- Martin has shown he can be an Pro Bowl blindside protector the last 2 years for Stanford. He will need to get bigger to be a good run blocker, but he isn’t far behind Kalil as a pass protector.
8 Morris Claiborne CB LSU*- At 6’0 190lbs, Claiborne is one of the main reasons why LSU has such a dominant defense in the SEC. He may not be the prospect Patrick Peterson was, but he can be a Pro Bowler at CB in the NFL.
9 Trent Richardson RB Alabama*- Richardson isn’t the type of prospect like Adrian Peterson or Darren McFadden, but be has the talent to be a top 10 pick in the NFL. He has shown he can take over for Heisman winner Mark Ingram.
10 Dre Kirkpatrick CB Alabama*- He got beat a few times last week, but Kirkpatrick is still a good CB prospect for the draft. At 6’3 195lbs, he has the speed and potential to be a lockdown CB.
11 Jerel Worthy DT Michigan State*- Some may not view Worthy as this high of a rankings, but I believe he has the skills to be a impact DT. He has nice size at 6’3 310lbs, and is an explosive enough of an athlete to be a productive pass rusher.
12 Riley Reiff OT Iowa*- He may not be the caliber of Kalil or Martin, but drafting Reiff to play LT or RT in the NFL could be a smart pick. He is a mauler in the run game, and has a nice size at 6’6 300lbs.
13 Vontaze Burfict LB Arizona State*- Burfict is a nasty LB that can be a huge intimidator inside similar to Ray Lewis. He still has room for improvement, but a team will fall in love with his physical attributes.
14 Jared Crick DT Nebraska- I feel Crick is a very underrated prospect, and might be the best 3-4 DE prospect in the draft. He has constantly shown the ability to get the QB and make plays in the back field.
15 David DeCastro OL Stanford*- Not many interior linemen are every ranked this high, but DeCastro has the talent to be a All Pro. Some argue he is a better prospect than teammate Jonathan Martin, but his position isn’t a high need for most teams.
16 Landry Jones QB Oklahoma*- Jones may not be the franchise QB like some claim, but he has the ability and prototypical size to be a starting QB in the NFL. Jones has put up similar stats to Sam Bradford while at Oklahoma.
17 Alfonzo Dennard CB Nebraska- CB is becoming one of the biggest needs in the pass happy NFL, and Dennard will likely a hot commodity when at the draft. He has proven to be a starting caliber CB similarly to his former teammate Prince Amukamara.
18 Michael Floyd WR Notre Dame- Floyd has proven this year he can be a potential go-to WR, but his character issues will come up when evaluating him as a pro prospect. At 6’3 220lbs, he can be similar WR to Hakeem Nicks.
19 Robert Griffin III QB Baylor*- RG3 has shown this year he has the ability to be a starting QB. At a legit 6’2 220lbs, Griffin is a similar QB and athlete to Donovan McNabb.
20 Luke Kuechly LB Boston College*-At 6’3 240lbs, Kuechly needs to add 5-10lbs but is still worth a top 20 pick in the draft. He is a tackling machine and has top intangibles for a pro prospect.
21 Devin Taylor DE South Carolina*- Similarly to Aldon Smith, Taylor might be the high rising DE in this years draft. At 6’7 260lbs, he projects as both a 4-3 DE and 3-4 OLB.
22 Jayron Hosley CB Virginia Tech*- Hosley is the type of ball hawk CB that teams fear to throw at. He could project to FS in the NFL as well, and has a similar game to DeAngelo Hall.
23 DJ Fluker OT Alabama**- Even though he is a Redshirt Sophomore, Fluker could be lured by the possibility to be a top 15 pick and enter the draft. At 6’6 340lbs, he could develop into a LT in the NFL if given the time.
24 Manti Te’o LB Notre Dame*- Similarly to Kuechly, Te’o has been a tacking machine at ILB while in college. At 6’2 255lbs, he is NFL ready and has the look of a impact ILB.
25 Janoris Jenkins CB Northern Alabama- Going into the 2010 college season, Jenkins was regarded as a challenger to Prince Amukamara for the #2 CB prospect. He has character problems which teams will likely be afraid of though.
26 TJ McDonald SS USC*- McDonald may not be the freak athlete Taylor Mays was coming out, but he definitely has better game tape. At 6’3 205lbs, McDonald has been the only bright spot in a bad USC secondary.
27 Brandon Jenkins DE Florida State*- At 6’3 260lbs, Jenkins had an outstanding Sophomore season with 13.5 sacks. With 2 already this year, Jenkins has the pass rushing skills to be a 4-3 DE and 3-4 OLB prospect.
28 Zach Brown LB UNC- Brown is one of my favorite prospect in the this draft for many reasons. He is a do it all player, being an impact player against the run, pass and even an effective blitzer as a OLB.
29 Courtney Upshaw OLB Alabama- As more and more teams start using the 3-4 defense, the need for a pass rusher at OLB will increase. Upshaw comes from Alabama’s 3-4 system and will join the many other successful players to come from the Crimson Tide.
30 Michael Brewster C Ohio State- Brewster may not be the Center prospect like Nick Mangold, but he has the look of an effective player on the interior line. At 6’5 300lbs he has elite size to handle the 3-4 NT’s of the NFL.
31 Robert Lester DB Alabama*- A talented defensive back, Lester has the ability to potentially play FS or SS in the NFL. He hasn’t gotten at INT this year, but put up a outstanding 8 INT’s as a Sophomore.
32 Alameda Ta‘amu NT Washington- As 3-4 defense’s become more used in the NFL, the need for big starting NT’s will become big needs. Ta’amu has surprising athleticism for a man his size and plugs running holes inside.
1 Andrew Luck QB Stanford*- 1 of the 3 elite prospects in the draft, Luck has everything you look for in a franchise QB. He might be the best QB prospect since Peyton Manning.
2 Matt Kalil OT USC*- Kalil has the measurables, technique and genes to be a franchise LT. At 6’7 300lbs, Kalil was the reason last years top 10 pick Tyron Smith played RT while at USC.
3 Matt Barkley QB USC*- I wasn’t a big believer before this season that Barkley was a franchise type QB, but I have seen huge improvement into his Junior season. He has great intangibles and is a great consolation prize to Luck.
4 Quinton Coples DE UNC-The top DE and Senior, Coples may not be an elite pass rusher but has shown he can be an effective player on vs. the run and pass. He can play all 3 downs and is the type of DE you can build your defense with.
5 Justin Blackmon WR Oklahoma State*- Justin Blackmon has overtaken Jeffery as the #1 WR in the draft. Blackmon has outstanding production and can be a go-to WR in the NFL.
6 Alshon Jeffery WR South Carolina*- Jeffery has elite size similar to Calvin Johnson, but questions about his speed will keep him behind Blackmon. If he can run a sub 4.5 in the combine he should be a top 10 pick.
7 Jonathan Martin OT Stanford*- Martin has shown he can be an Pro Bowl blindside protector the last 2 years for Stanford. He will need to get bigger to be a good run blocker, but he isn’t far behind Kalil as a pass protector.
8 Morris Claiborne CB LSU*- At 6’0 190lbs, Claiborne is one of the main reasons why LSU has such a dominant defense in the SEC. He may not be the prospect Patrick Peterson was, but he can be a Pro Bowler at CB in the NFL.
9 Trent Richardson RB Alabama*- Richardson isn’t the type of prospect like Adrian Peterson or Darren McFadden, but be has the talent to be a top 10 pick in the NFL. He has shown he can take over for Heisman winner Mark Ingram.
10 Dre Kirkpatrick CB Alabama*- He got beat a few times last week, but Kirkpatrick is still a good CB prospect for the draft. At 6’3 195lbs, he has the speed and potential to be a lockdown CB.
11 Jerel Worthy DT Michigan State*- Some may not view Worthy as this high of a rankings, but I believe he has the skills to be a impact DT. He has nice size at 6’3 310lbs, and is an explosive enough of an athlete to be a productive pass rusher.
12 Riley Reiff OT Iowa*- He may not be the caliber of Kalil or Martin, but drafting Reiff to play LT or RT in the NFL could be a smart pick. He is a mauler in the run game, and has a nice size at 6’6 300lbs.
13 Vontaze Burfict LB Arizona State*- Burfict is a nasty LB that can be a huge intimidator inside similar to Ray Lewis. He still has room for improvement, but a team will fall in love with his physical attributes.
14 Jared Crick DT Nebraska- I feel Crick is a very underrated prospect, and might be the best 3-4 DE prospect in the draft. He has constantly shown the ability to get the QB and make plays in the back field.
15 David DeCastro OL Stanford*- Not many interior linemen are every ranked this high, but DeCastro has the talent to be a All Pro. Some argue he is a better prospect than teammate Jonathan Martin, but his position isn’t a high need for most teams.
16 Landry Jones QB Oklahoma*- Jones may not be the franchise QB like some claim, but he has the ability and prototypical size to be a starting QB in the NFL. Jones has put up similar stats to Sam Bradford while at Oklahoma.
17 Alfonzo Dennard CB Nebraska- CB is becoming one of the biggest needs in the pass happy NFL, and Dennard will likely a hot commodity when at the draft. He has proven to be a starting caliber CB similarly to his former teammate Prince Amukamara.
18 Michael Floyd WR Notre Dame- Floyd has proven this year he can be a potential go-to WR, but his character issues will come up when evaluating him as a pro prospect. At 6’3 220lbs, he can be similar WR to Hakeem Nicks.
19 Robert Griffin III QB Baylor*- RG3 has shown this year he has the ability to be a starting QB. At a legit 6’2 220lbs, Griffin is a similar QB and athlete to Donovan McNabb.
20 Luke Kuechly LB Boston College*-At 6’3 240lbs, Kuechly needs to add 5-10lbs but is still worth a top 20 pick in the draft. He is a tackling machine and has top intangibles for a pro prospect.
21 Devin Taylor DE South Carolina*- Similarly to Aldon Smith, Taylor might be the high rising DE in this years draft. At 6’7 260lbs, he projects as both a 4-3 DE and 3-4 OLB.
22 Jayron Hosley CB Virginia Tech*- Hosley is the type of ball hawk CB that teams fear to throw at. He could project to FS in the NFL as well, and has a similar game to DeAngelo Hall.
23 DJ Fluker OT Alabama**- Even though he is a Redshirt Sophomore, Fluker could be lured by the possibility to be a top 15 pick and enter the draft. At 6’6 340lbs, he could develop into a LT in the NFL if given the time.
24 Manti Te’o LB Notre Dame*- Similarly to Kuechly, Te’o has been a tacking machine at ILB while in college. At 6’2 255lbs, he is NFL ready and has the look of a impact ILB.
25 Janoris Jenkins CB Northern Alabama- Going into the 2010 college season, Jenkins was regarded as a challenger to Prince Amukamara for the #2 CB prospect. He has character problems which teams will likely be afraid of though.
26 TJ McDonald SS USC*- McDonald may not be the freak athlete Taylor Mays was coming out, but he definitely has better game tape. At 6’3 205lbs, McDonald has been the only bright spot in a bad USC secondary.
27 Brandon Jenkins DE Florida State*- At 6’3 260lbs, Jenkins had an outstanding Sophomore season with 13.5 sacks. With 2 already this year, Jenkins has the pass rushing skills to be a 4-3 DE and 3-4 OLB prospect.
28 Zach Brown LB UNC- Brown is one of my favorite prospect in the this draft for many reasons. He is a do it all player, being an impact player against the run, pass and even an effective blitzer as a OLB.
29 Courtney Upshaw OLB Alabama- As more and more teams start using the 3-4 defense, the need for a pass rusher at OLB will increase. Upshaw comes from Alabama’s 3-4 system and will join the many other successful players to come from the Crimson Tide.
30 Michael Brewster C Ohio State- Brewster may not be the Center prospect like Nick Mangold, but he has the look of an effective player on the interior line. At 6’5 300lbs he has elite size to handle the 3-4 NT’s of the NFL.
31 Robert Lester DB Alabama*- A talented defensive back, Lester has the ability to potentially play FS or SS in the NFL. He hasn’t gotten at INT this year, but put up a outstanding 8 INT’s as a Sophomore.
32 Alameda Ta‘amu NT Washington- As 3-4 defense’s become more used in the NFL, the need for big starting NT’s will become big needs. Ta’amu has surprising athleticism for a man his size and plugs running holes inside.