MDBs 2012 Draft Big Board

[mdb17]

Hey everyone,

This is my own draft big board. Everyone on the board I've seen play at least one game. In the case of the top guys, I'd looked at between 3-7 games but since there is limited footage available and my DVR could only hold so many games I've only seen a little of some people. There's a chance there's a few guys where the limited footage I did see of them didn't paint a true picture then if you have more footage I'll re-look at them. Also, if people suddenly are thinking "I can't believe you haven't ranked X or Y" the answer to this is I haven't seen them so therefore I'm not commenting on them. If there is guys you feel should be on the board then I'll try to get them watched between now and the draft but I make no promises in this regards. Without further ado here is my Big Board:

1 Andrew Luck QB (1)
2 Robert Griffin QB (2)
3 Matt Kalil OT (3)
4 David DeCastro OG (4)
5 Trent Richardson RB (5)
6 Luke Kuechly LB (8)
7 Quinton Coples DE (9)
8 Justin Blackmon WR (7)
9 Morris Claiborne CB (6)
10 Janorris Jenkins CB (17)

11 Michael Floyd WR (11)
12 Dre Kirkpatrick CB (12)
13 Fletcher Cox DT (13)
14 Coby Fleener TE (14)
15 Riley Reiff OT (10)
16 Michael Brockers DT (15)
17 Cordy Glenn OG (16)
18 Nick Perry DE (18)
19 Harrison Smith S (19)
20 Zach Brown LB (20)

21 Mark Barron S (21)
22 Doug Martin RB (24)
23 Shea McClellin OLB (26)
24 Chandler Jones DE (59)
25 Lavonte David LB (27)
26 Rueben Randle WR (43)
27 Whitney Mercilus DE (22)
28 Peter Konz C (28)
29 Amini Silatolu OG (50)
30 Stephen Hill WR (39)

31 Brandon Weedon QB (29)
32 Ryan Tannehill QB (34)
33 Kendall Wright WR (30)
34 Lamar Miller RB (31)
35 Bobby Massie OT (44)
36 Dontari Poe DT (32)
37 Jonathon Martin OT (33)
38 Courtney Upshaw LB (23)
39 Josh Robinson CB (68)
40 David Wilson RB (36)

41 Melvin Ingram DE (37)
42 Devon Still DT (35)
43 Dwayne Allen TE (41)
44 Stephon Gilmore CB (38)
45 Alfonzo Dennard CB (25)
46 Brock Osweiler QB (65)
47 Andre Branch DE (40)
48 Jayron Hosley CB (42)
49 Ronnell Lewis OLB (45)
50 Vinny Curry DE (47)

51 Kendall Reyes DT (52)
52 Alameda Ta’amu DT (53)
53 Marvin Jones WR (61)
54 Jared Crick DE (49)
55 Kevin Zeitler OG (51)
56 Antonio Allen SS (Unranked)
57 Dont’a Hightower LB (48)
58 Brandon Boykin CB (54)
59 Derek Wolfe DT (64)
60 Mike Adams OT (46)

61 Ryan Broyles WR (55)
62 Cam Johnson DE (56)
63 Michael Brewster C (57)
64 Greg Childs WR (58)
65 Trumaine Johnson CB (60)
66 A.J. Jenkins WR (80)
67 Josh Norman CB (62)
68 Jerel Worthy DT (63)
69 Chris Givens WR (Unranked)
70 Brandon Thompson DT (66)

71 Demario Davis LB (67)
72 Alshon Jeffrey WR (69)
73 Brandon Taylor FS (83)
74 Bobby Wagner LB (70)
75 Kelechi Osemele OG (71)
76 Marcus Forston DT (84)
77 Orson Charles TE (72)
78 Tony Dye SS (Unranked)
79 Mychal Kendricks LB (73)
80 Chase Minnifield CB (74)

81 Chris Polk RB (75)
82 T.Y. Hilton WR (76)
83 Philip Thomas S (102)
84 Brian Quick WR (77)
85 Isaiah Pead RB (Unranked)
86 Juron Criner WR (85)
87 Mohamed Sanu WR (78)
88 Robert Turbin RB (79)
89 Casey Heyward CB (81)
90 Marvin McNutt WR (82)

91 Devon Wylie WR (86)
92 Leonard Johnson CB (87)
93 Andrew Datko OT (98)
94 LaMichael James RB (88)
95 Kirk Cousins QB (89)
96 Dwight Bentley CB (90)
97 Mike Martin DT (91)
98 Jeff Allen OT (92)
99 Mitchell Schwartz OT (93)
100 Ladarius Green TE (95)

101 Bernard Pierce RB (96)
102 Dwight Jones WR (97)
103 Sean Spence OLB (99)
104 DeQuan Menzie CB (100)
105 Travis Lewis LB (101)
106 Vick Ballard RB (103)
107 Markelle Martin FS (104)
108 Omar Bolden CB (105)
109 Jeff Fuller WR (106)
110 Tommy Streeter WR (94)

111 Cliff Harris CB (107)
112 Zebrie Sanders OT (108)
113 Vontaze Burfict MLB (109)
114 Bruce Irvin OLB (110)
115 Jake Bequette DE (111)
116 Nick Foles QB (112)

[Nasmatic]

Is this purely based on tape or taking into account the Combine, Senior Bowl, injury concerns, etc.?

Really nice work though. I'm just getting started on my own board and it's tough but fun. I'm curious about the following rankings:

Fleener
Zach Brown
Harrison Smith: Why over Barron?
Jonathan Martin:
Ingram and Gilmore
Hightower
Broyles: And I thought I was high on him. This one makes more sense if it's just based on tape, but if you're taking his injuries into account, you must really love him.
Josh Robinson
Sanu
Dwight Bentley

Thanks a lot.

[mdb17]

Is this purely based on tape or taking into account the Combine, Senior Bowl, injury concerns, etc.?

Really nice work though. I'm just getting started on my own board and it's tough but fun. I'm curious about the following rankings:

Fleener
Zach Brown
Harrison Smith: Why over Barron?
Jonathan Martin:
Ingram and Gilmore
Hightower
Broyles: And I thought I was high on him. This one makes more sense if it's just based on tape, but if you're taking his injuries into account, you must really love him.
Josh Robinson
Sanu
Dwight Bentley

Thanks a lot.

It is based on everything. I'd take into account some of tht media stuff about character and injuries but I don't know these guys personally or a doctor.

Fleener - elite in terms of size and speed. Great catching ability, stronger than he looks (2010 VT he carries a DB 10 yards into TE endzone). The only part of his game that isn't elite is his blocking where he's a solid willing blocker. Basically Jimmy Graham size and speed and a better blocker.

Brown - great speed, very comfortable in coverage, can blitz. An extreme athlete with solid instincts. His tackling is average though. His athleticism is so off the charts combined with his versatility that he'll be a weapon on defense.

Smith over Barron comes down to coverage. I think Barron looks tight with Harrison Smith looking far more fluid. Smith is a reliable tackler too with very good instincts. Most important part of a safety's game is coverage for me. Smith has the edge there.

Martin - very good run blockers and a solid athlete. However, he had real issues with speed and benefitted greatly from Luck at QB. Watch the USC game and you'll see 4/5 pressures and a hit from Perry, who's the kind of pass rusher he'll face every week in the NFL.

Ingram - burst off the line is so slow. He's also regularly the slowest player off the snap. His best pressure came when he was at DT working quickly under guards. That limits his value for me. Also I don't believe he's 3-4 compatible because rushing standing up he's at his worst.

Gilmore - inconsistent. Watch the ECU game where he gives up a couple of TDs and looking lost doing it. Against Nebraska he has a PI call because he doesn't know the coverage scheme. Too many instances like that for me for him to be in the first round.

Hightower - looks like a 2-down player to me. Looked lost in zone at Alabama. A player that can't play 3rd is useless for half the defensive snaps.

Broyles - An ACL has a much better recovery %age than it used to. Look at Welker who's got his explosiveness back. Also if he's already having a Pro Day then rehab is going very well. Broyles dominated at Oklahoma. Ther offence was bad after he got injured. He catches everything, runs great routes and had good speed.

Robinson - I didn't see much of him which didn't help. I'll rewatch him and get back to you.

Sanu - is slow and will find it tough to separate in the NFL. He can't keep relying on his size and hands.

Bentley - physical player for his size and looks fluid. I liked what I saw vs SDSU.

[whatdoyouwant711]

is slow and will find it tough to separate in the NFL. He can't keep relying on his size and hands.

http://espn.go.com/nfl/player/stats/...86/jon-baldwin

[mdb17]

http://espn.go.com/nfl/player/stats/...86/jon-baldwin

You came in here just to make fun of Baldwin? I thought we were past this. I kinda disappointed that you have a sore loser attitude to something that is meant to be a bit of fun. I like you as a poster so I'm surprised you are doing this.

However, if you're going to go down this road 4.49 isn't slow. It's probably above average for the positiona and very impressive for his size. A.J. Green is down for 4.48 at the combine. I didn't know he was slow.

[whatdoyouwant711]

You came in here just to make fun of Baldwin? I thought we were past this. I kinda disappointed that you have a sore loser attitude to something that is meant to be a bit of fun. I like you as a poster so I'm surprised you are doing this.

However, if you're going to go down this road 4.49 isn't slow. It's probably above average for the positiona and very impressive for his size. A.J. Green is down for 4.48 at the combine. I didn't know he was slow.

I'm not really that butthurt. I thought you guys made a great team (that benefited from some unbearable homering from a certain Raider fan, but whatevz). I meant everything I said about Baldwin, though, and hated him coming out of Pittsburgh. Awful out of his breaks and incapable of separating down the field against undrafted caliber talent. He's just big. Alshon Jeffrey ran an unofficial 4.38, why's he a 3rd round talent on your board?

I haven't studied anyone that hasn't been linked to Dallas, so I don't really have much to say here. Glad to see someone else likes Coples, he's a monster and I'd be stoked to get him at 14. These character/effort concerns are bullshit, of course a 21 year old will get frustrated and produce less when he's double teamed every down.

[Nasmatic]

It is based on everything. I'd take into account some of tht media stuff about character and injuries but I don't know these guys personally or a doctor.

Fleener - elite in terms of size and speed. Great catching ability, stronger than he looks (2010 VT he carries a DB 10 yards into TE endzone). The only part of his game that isn't elite is his blocking where he's a solid willing blocker. Basically Jimmy Graham size and speed and a better blocker.

Brown - great speed, very comfortable in coverage, can blitz. An extreme athlete with solid instincts. His tackling is average though. His athleticism is so off the charts combined with his versatility that he'll be a weapon on defense.

Smith over Barron comes down to coverage. I think Barron looks tight with Harrison Smith looking far more fluid. Smith is a reliable tackler too with very good instincts. Most important part of a safety's game is coverage for me. Smith has the edge there.

Martin - very good run blockers and a solid athlete. However, he had real issues with speed and benefitted greatly from Luck at QB. Watch the USC game and you'll see 4/5 pressures and a hit from Perry, who's the kind of pass rusher he'll face every week in the NFL.

Ingram - burst off the line is so slow. He's also regularly the slowest player off the snap. His best pressure came when he was at DT working quickly under guards. That limits his value for me. Also I don't believe he's 3-4 compatible because rushing standing up he's at his worst.

Gilmore - inconsistent. Watch the ECU game where he gives up a couple of TDs and looking lost doing it. Against Nebraska he has a PI call because he doesn't know the coverage scheme. Too many instances like that for me for him to be in the first round.

Hightower - looks like a 2-down player to me. Looked lost in zone at Alabama. A player that can't play 3rd is useless for half the defensive snaps.

Broyles - An ACL has a much better recovery %age than it used to. Look at Welker who's got his explosiveness back. Also if he's already having a Pro Day then rehab is going very well. Broyles dominated at Oklahoma. Ther offence was bad after he got injured. He catches everything, runs great routes and had good speed.

Robinson - I didn't see much of him which didn't help. I'll rewatch him and get back to you.

Sanu - is slow and will find it tough to separate in the NFL. He can't keep relying on his size and hands.

Bentley - physical player for his size and looks fluid. I liked what I saw vs SDSU.

Thanks a lot man. I disagree on some, but of course everyone will disagree on some. Great work.

[Blue]

Someone else with a big board!

1. How much of Luck and Griffin being the top two players has to do with them being QBs? I mean, obviously if I'm the Colts or Skins I'm taking them over Kalil/DeCastro/Richardson, but I personally don't think they're better players at their position than those three guys. Not a criticism, just curious.
2. Janoris Jenkins worries me, and apparently that's a feeling shared by the league. At this point, what's the difference between him and Cliff Harris?
3. Definitely saw the softness people talk about while watching Zach Brown against Mizzou-didn't want to go up and hit people. Of course, "soft" was the reason a lot of people were down on Akeem Ayers last year, too.
4. Really that high on Weedon? I honestly didn't bother ranking him because by the time he figures out NFL coverage schemes, he'll be on the downside of his prime and his physical tools will be declining. Not worth a Day 2 pick IMO.
5. Not a Stephen Hill fan, horribly misleading numbers and wasn't as fluid an athlete as his Combine numbers. One-year wonder, gimmick offense...can't deny the size/speed is enticing, but I don't think he'd be a Day 2 pick if he went to Navy instead of GT.
6. Why so low on Vinny Curry?
7. Haven't seen Silatolu yet-what do you think of him?
8. Similar question on Robinson and Bentley-have seen very little of them, came away unimpressed and thinking they were both 1-2 year projects.

[EL Guapo]

Just from the occasional college football I saw the game looked easiest to Blackmon. He looked like a natural

[mdb17]

I'm not really that butthurt. I thought you guys made a great team (that benefited from some unbearable homering from a certain Raider fan, but whatevz). I meant everything I said about Baldwin, though, and hated him coming out of Pittsburgh. Awful out of his breaks and incapable of separating down the field against undrafted caliber talent. He's just big. Alshon Jeffrey ran an unofficial 4.38, why's he a 3rd round talent on your board?

I haven't studied anyone that hasn't been linked to Dallas, so I don't really have much to say here. Glad to see someone else likes Coples, he's a monster and I'd be stoked to get him at 14. These character/effort concerns are bullshit, of course a 21 year old will get frustrated and produce less when he's double teamed every down.

I guess I got the wrong impression then overreacted to it. No harm on my side anyway. First of all Jeffrey's time seemed to have ranged from a high of 4.48 but most scouts had him in the 4.5s from what I read on Rotoworld. However, that was at about 215 pounds but I don't think that was his playing weight in 2011 (235-240lbs) or 2010 (225lbs-230lbs). To me, he looks like a 4.6 guy on tape. When I watched 2010 I felt like anytime he went deep he never ran past his man and when he did make plays deep they were on balls thrown up to him. He shows great body control and hands on these plays but they were mostly against non-NFL talent. Coaches can't rely on plays like the one vs Kilpatrick every week. I'm also concerned that he gets paid in the NFL he'll go into sloth mode. Too many worries for me to draft him in the first 2 rounds.

Love Coples. He's got great size, good speed and great strength. He plays the run great and is flexible and agile to be a great pass rusher. I can see why he'd get frustrated. Also, I don't want to speculate but the whole situation at UNC must be tough to take as well.

Someone else with a big board!

1. How much of Luck and Griffin being the top two players has to do with them being QBs? I mean, obviously if I'm the Colts or Skins I'm taking them over Kalil/DeCastro/Richardson, but I personally don't think they're better players at their position than those three guys. Not a criticism, just curious.
2. Janoris Jenkins worries me, and apparently that's a feeling shared by the league. At this point, what's the difference between him and Cliff Harris?
3. Definitely saw the softness people talk about while watching Zach Brown against Mizzou-didn't want to go up and hit people. Of course, "soft" was the reason a lot of people were down on Akeem Ayers last year, too.
4. Really that high on Weedon? I honestly didn't bother ranking him because by the time he figures out NFL coverage schemes, he'll be on the downside of his prime and his physical tools will be declining. Not worth a Day 2 pick IMO.
5. Not a Stephen Hill fan, horribly misleading numbers and wasn't as fluid an athlete as his Combine numbers. One-year wonder, gimmick offense...can't deny the size/speed is enticing, but I don't think he'd be a Day 2 pick if he went to Navy instead of GT.
6. Why so low on Vinny Curry?
7. Haven't seen Silatolu yet-what do you think of him?
8. Similar question on Robinson and Bentley-have seen very little of them, came away unimpressed and thinking they were both 1-2 year projects.

1. QBs by their nature will always be pushed to the top of the board. However, in Luck's case I think he's the best player in the draft. If he had Jay Cutler's or Stafford's arm we'd be talking about a QB God. He arm is still very good. I'm a massive Griffin fan. I watched 6-7 games this year of him and he took that team on his back and killed it every week. He's very accurate and can make reads. His arm is great and he comes up big when his team really needs him - last plays vs Oklahoma for both.
2. Jenkins is a far superior corner to Harris. He's quicker, more fluid and has far better instincts. However I think I've overlooked his character concerns too much and should slide him accordingly.
3. I was down on Ayers for that reason. I didn't see it in Brown.
4. I think he can come in and play Day 1. If Dalton can coming from a similar offense then why can't Weedon. He throws a great ball and is pretty accurate.
5. I couldn't find much footage on him. However, athletes that size and speed just don't have his fluidity. I think early 2nd round is a great place to take inconsistent, potential stud type guys. People compare him with Streeter. I'm honestly not sure if Streeter can play football at this level. He looks soft and looks like a big slot man. He concerns me a lot more when talking about big, fast receivers.
6. I don't think mid-2nd round is low for Curry but about where he's likely to be drafted. I don't see star potential. I think he'll be productive but won't ever be a guy who puts up 10+ sacks. That puts the guys with star potential ahead of him when overall they are similar talents at this stage of the process.
7. I only managed to find a highlights video on youtube which isn't ideal. He's huge, very athletic, mean lineman. He blows people off the line of scrimmage and enjoys finishing his blocks.
8. Gotta watch Robinson and I'll do the same with Bentley.

Just from the occasional college football I saw the game looked easiest to Blackmon. He looked like a natural

Yeah I really like him too. Even though nothing about him is elite he's very good in every phase of the game which is just as important.

Nas, fun stat on Sanu - only 4 catches 20+ yards in college. That really concerns me about his usefulness in the NFL. It makes him a possession receiver only which always leaves his field usage to be limited.