Talking Draft With Mocking Dan: Robert Griffin or Landry Jones? What is Zach Brown?

To facilitate discussion Dan Kadar of Mocking the Draft and I have agreed to a weekly chat to discuss all things draft. This week it was my turn to ask Dan some questions I had on my mind. Hope you enjoy. Be sure to swing over to Mocking the Draft after you stop here to get your draft fill.

1) In a lot of mock drafts I’ve read I’ve seen Zach Brown mocked to 34 teams as both an ILB and OLB? Is he that versatile? Which positions in the 43 and 34 do you think he could play effectively?

 Any time a linebacker has as much athleticism as Brown does, it tends to allow the player to be versatile. His best spot looks to be as a weakside linebacker in a 4-3 scheme. This week I made the comparison on him to Lance Briggs. Like Briggs, Brown is just such a fluid athlete who can work sideline-to-sideline. Brown isn’t as good in coverage as Briggs, but that should come with coaching. I think the people who characterize Brown as a 3-4 prospect probably look at what Lawrence Timmons does for the Steelers. He’s certainly not the biggest player, but he plays with better leverage than Brown does. Brown could play weakside middle in a 3-4, but he’d be better outside.

2)  My co-editor Sayre loves Montee Ball, the Running back for Wisconsin. What are your thoughts on Ball. Is he that good, or is he going to be overrated because of the Wisconsin line?

Ball is worlds better as a draft prospect compared to John Clay, or some of the other Wisconsin running backs of late. But it’s hard not to consider him a product of the system, to an extent. The Wisconsin line is just that good. Ball is probably a little faster than some of the guys they had. He’s also a much better receiver. He just doesn’t have great speed or cutting ability to be considered a top-tier runner

 
3). Let’s play a little game, I call “take your pick”. I’ll throw out two guys at a position and you tell me which prospect you like more and a little bit why.
Safety: Robert Lester or Markelle Martin?

Right now, Martin because he is more pro-ready. At this time next year, probably Lester. When you see Lester, he’s just bigger, faster, stronger. Martin will probably always have the advantage in coverage, but Lester is better against the run attacking the ball carrier. Lester just needs more experience. Once he has it, I expect he’ll be a great player. On that defense his skills get overshadowed. 

Wide Reciever: Mohamed Sanu or Dwight Jones?

Easily Dwight Jones. Sanu has better hands, but he can’t do as much as Jones. Sanu, at least the way he’s used at Rutgers, is kind of like a possession receiver. Jones has the ability to be a solid No. 1 or a very good No. 2 receiver at the next level. He’s shown he can work vertically or underneath. It will be interesting to hear some scout buzz on both players the next few months considering the quarterbacks throwing them the ball
Quarterback: Robert Griffin III or Landry Jones?

At this point, Griffin. As goofy as it sounds, he may be more pro-ready than Jones. Both have issues with poise in the pocket, but it’s what they do when things break down around them. Griffin seems to be more in control rolling out and throwing on the move or taking off on a run. Jones gets so flustered under pressure. Jones has good pure talent, but is in a class below Griffin in that regard.