Melina Vastola-USA TODAY Sports

+Lots of physical tools
+Nice frame for a 210 player
+Ideal size for a corner
+Incredible length
+Solid quickness
+Good strength
+Good athlete
+Flashes potential in press man coverage

Negatives:

-Inconsistent
-Mediocre instincts
-Mediocre balance
-Not too fluid

I think Florida State’s Xavier Rhodes has the most potential of any corner in this draft class, but he also could fail. He definitely needs to become more consistent, but, given his lack of experience at corner, I have some faith in him progressing as a player.

Rhodes has terrific measurables. He has ideal height at 6’2, good bulk at 210lbs, and very good speed with a 4.43 40 yard dash at the combine. He also had an outstanding 40.5 vertical and astounding 33 6/8 in, among the longest I’ve ever seen from a corner, and, in spite of those long arms, he did a respectable 14 bench reps at 225lbs at the combine. Quite impressive.

Rhodes has solid stats. He’s a 3 year starter. In 2010, as a redshirt freshman, he had 58 tackles, and 4 interceptions in 14 games. In 2011, he had 43 tackles and 1 interception in 13 games. In 2012, he 39 tackles and 3 interceptions in 14 games.

Rhodes has average ball skills. He has insanely long arms and he knows how to use them to deflect tons of passes. That being said, he’s not a terrific leaper on film, his awareness of the ball is mediocre, and his instincts in zone coverage are far from elite, so he doesn’t get tons of interceptions. Potential is great here is he can learn to jump more routes, but he already has value as long as he is breaking up passes.

Rhodes is average in man coverage. I don’t know if I could design a guy who, at least in theory, should be better than Xavier Rhodes in press coverage. A coach isn’t scared to leave him on an island since he’s fast enough to stay with almost anyone and when you factor in his long arms and great strength you have tremendous potential. However, Rhodes is incredibly inconsistent in press coverage. If you want to see how good he can be, watch him dominate Michael Floyd in the 2011 Champs Sports Bowl. Truly spectacular. He jams Floyd’s release seemingly at will and flashes great route recognition skills. That being said, if you watch some of his other games, you’ll see that he can get knocked off balance when trying to press and, if he is knocked off balance, he pretty much never recovers. He could improve his technique, learn how to use his incredibly long arms, and get better leverage, but, given that he’s only played corner for 3 years (former wide receiver), I feel like there is reason for optimism with regard to his growth. With good coaching, he should improve in press coverage. His instincts in man coverage are actually decent (he can recognize the routes he used to run), but he can be too aggressive at times, especially given the fact he isn’t a very fluid athlete for a corner. But, for what he lacks in fluidity, he has in quickness, surprising quickness for a guy his size. He hasn’t shown me the ability to read the eyes of the receiver when covering the 9 route, which is critical, because the receiver’s eyes are the only thing that tells the corner the ball is in the air when his back is to hit. He should improve in this area under proper coaching, but he really does need to learn how to read the eyes of receivers.

Rhodes is average in zone coverage. He’s very quick for a 6’2 corner, but he only has slightly above average quickness for a normal corner, and he hasn’t really shown the instincts needed to jump routes. He does know how to use his incredibly long arms to deflect passes, and he occasionally flashes the ability to read the quarterbacks eyes, though he is fooled fairly easily at this point. His instincts in zone are probably worse than his instincts in man, which isn’t really a major surprise, because his days as a wide receiver help him out at corner in terms of his familiarity with certain routes but aren’t a major help in terms of his ability to read the eyes of quarterbacks. However, his instincts in zone have improved every season since his freshman season and should continue to do so in the NFL. He has surprisingly good lateral range, which really helps in zone.

Rhodes is average against the run. First off, on the bright side, he pretty much never misses tackles and has tremendous strength. He knows how to use his exceptional size and strength to really dominate as a tackler, not only against the run, but against the pass as well. However, he is merely average as a run stopper because his instincts against the run are quite poor and he has yet learned how to use his long arms to shed blocks, at least not with any consistency. His lack of instincts against the run worry me because, in that respect, he has made very little progress since his freshman season (unlike his instincts in zone and man coverage), but his fundamentals should be cleaned up soon and, if they are, he should be pretty good against the run because with his length and strength he could be as unblockable as any corner in the NFL.

In the end, I like Rhodes. His toughness and physical skills give me optimism with regard to his future NFL success, plus, given his lack of experience, I expect his instincts and fundamentals to improve as his career goes on. He could be a very good player.

NFL Comparison: Not an easy one, but I’d say a less athletic, tougher Antonio Cromartie. Cromartie’s instincts gradually improved in the NFL, and I expect the same of Rhodes.

Grade: 96 (worthy of an mid, maybe early first round pick, in part because this is a weak draft class)

Projection: 92 (will be a late first round pick)

Russ Isabella-USA TODAY Sports

+Strong as an ox
+Leverage master
+Great tackler
+Great against the run
+Tough as nails
+Solid athlete on film
+Good size

Negatives:

-Blind penetrator at times
-Health issues
-Below average stamina (heart?)
-Not much long speed

I’m going to start off by saying one thing: I am not a doctor. Nor do I pretend to be one. I tend to have an ego about many of my opinions, but, when it comes to Star Lotulelei, I can’t offer an opinion regarding the health of his heart. I know nothing. The only thing I will say is that he doesn’t have much stamina (on the field for about 65% of snaps), which could be a result of his heart problems. However, I don’t feel comfortable praising or criticizing a team for drafting Lotulelei, because the team doctor probably knows much more than me about the long term effects of his heart problems. All I know is that he is an excellent football player.

Lotulelei has average measurables. He has solid height at 6’3, solid bulk at 311lbs, and below average speed with a 5.41 40 yard dash, according to NFLDraftScout.com. He doesn’t look fast on film, but he definitely looks faster than that time suggests. He has solid arm length at 33 5/8 inches, and great strength with 38 bench reps at 225lbs at the Utah pro day, according to NFLDraftScout.com.

Lotulelei has average stats. Keep in mind, Lotulelei has low stamina, which hurts his stats. Although that does affect his overall value, what’s more important than quantity of plays is quality of play. Even if Lotulelei is only on the field 2 of every 3 plays, he makes a tremendous impact on those plays. But back to the stats: 42 tackles, 10 TFL’s, and 5 sacks in 12 games in 2012, and 44 tackles, 9 TFL’s, 1.5 sacks in 2011.

Lotulelei is very good against the run. If I had one quibble, it’s that at times, he appears to be a blind penetrator, my term for a guy who gets into the backfield at all costs but may have no idea where the ball is once he gets there. This is to be expected from a guy like Lotulelei, because he penetrates with leverage. I’ve always liked guys who can penetrate with good hand usage, because you can penetrate with your head up and you can see the play as it is happening in front of you while you are shedding the block (Kawann Short). It gives you better awareness of the play. There are times in which you’ll see Lotulelei get into the backfield only to find out that the ball has already crossed the line of scrimmage. It’s not unexpected, because, if you rely on leverage to penetrate, you have to get as low as possible and your head will normally be angled toward the ground, so you might not see what’s happening in front of you. Other than that, he’s perfect against the run. First off, I see him as a nose tackle at the NFL level because of his low stamina and incredible strength. Most teams only use their nose tackles on first and second down because guys that big don’t have the stamina to be on the field all the time (except Johnathan Hankins), plus they don’t really offer much against the pass anyway. That’s going to be Lotulelei’s role in the NFL. His strength is outstanding, he never misses tackles, he controls his gap with ease, he does a really good job of using leverage to penetrate, his flexibility is just ideal, he’s very tough, and he uses excellent fundamentals. However, his range is average, as is his quickness, and he could add a rip move to his arsenal. Still, as good against the run as you could expect.

Lotulelei is solid against the pass. First off, he’s so strong that he is about as good at using a simple bull rush to create penetration as a pass rusher as any nose tackle I’ve ever seen, and he can beat the double team. He also flashes some nice hand usage that I wish I would see a little bit more often from him against the run. The problem? When he gets into the pocket, he’s usually slower than the quarterback he’s chasing. A lot slower. Alas, he’s good for QB hits, but not many sacks, since his lack of straight line athleticism makes it tough for him to get tackles. Still, any pressure he creates is valuable, even if it doesn’t lead to a sack, because it can lead to quarterbacks getting rid of the ball before they want to. Still, I don’t think he’s going to rush the quarterback much in the NFL, since he doesn’t have the stamina to play on all downs, and, given that he offers more against the run than he does the pass, NFL teams won’t keep him on passing downs to often. But, if the opposing team passes one first or second down, Lotulelei isn’t totally worthless, and that’s not something you can always say about your nose tackle (Casey Hampton).

In the end, I love Lotulelei as a player. If it weren’t for medical issues, Jarvis Jones and Lotulelei would be my number 1 and number 2 prospects, respectively, but I must knock both of them down due to those concerns. Great players if healthy.

NFL Comparison: Sione Pouha. A dominant, run stopping nose tackle that isn’t terrible against the pass and lacks stamina

Grade: 97 (worthy of a top 10 pick)

Projection: 96 (will be an early to mid 1st round pick)

Rich Barnes-USA TODAY Sports

+Solid throw power
+Solid stats
+Solid decision maker
+Usually accurate
+Times his throws
+Good arm strength
+Good sense of the blitz

Negatives:

-Am I the only one that sees ridiculous mechanics?
-Can’t repeat his mechanics
-Doesn’t throw a great deep ball
-Amazingly stiff in his entire body
-Slightly slow release
-Not athletic
-Bit short

I don’t get it. I really don’t. How am I the only one who sees very worrisome mechanics from Ryan Nassib? Why am I the only one who thinks he has the worst mechanics of any notable quarterback prospect since Tim Tebow? Am I the only one who sees things like, oh, I don’t know, his front foot come off the ground when he makes this pass? That’s a jump pass right there. And this guy is touted as a first round pick? I don’t know. There are times when I think to myself “I can’t argue with the results.” But you could have said the same thing about Tebow (not that Nassib’s mechanics are that bad), and I see very inconsistent accuracy from him. Plus, at least with Tebow, he could repeat his mechanics. He developed a muscle memory with his poor mechanics and learned, to a small extent, how to make a few accurate throws with those horrible mechanics. They were bad, but they were the same type of bad every time, and Tebow somewhat figured out how to adjust his body and eye level to make his throws a little bit accurate. Ryan Nassib’s mechanics look different every throw. Occasionally, I’ll see him make a bad throw (usually low) with good mechanics just because he’s putting an appropriate amount of power on the ball for the pass to be accurate with his more typical mechanics. I’m scared for the team that drafts him.

Nassib has poor measurables. He has below average height at 6’2 (I don’t care much about height), average bulk at 227lbs, and below average speed with a 5.06 40 yard dash. On the bright side, he does have somewhat large hands.

Nassib has good stats. In 2012, he had 3749 yards with 26 touchdowns and 10 interceptions in 13 games, with an above average 62.4 completion percentage and a fairly high yards per attempt. He wasn’t sacked much (16 times) in part because of a good offensive line but also in part of his own awareness of the blitz.

Let’s cut to the chase; I hate Nassib’s mechanics. He has a strong arm, but is inconsistent with his deep ball, and he always throws a nice spiral. I see one quirk in his mechanics in particular that I believe lead to the other flaws in his mechanics. It’s a bit funny, but, if you watch Nassib’s arm and the rest of his body separately in slow motion, usually, the mechanics look fine. Little to no wasted motion in the arm, good ball position, an occasional issue with his feet but nothing to worry about, good initial position of the feet, no wasted motion in the hips, usually solid target step, etc. However, if you look at both at the same time, if you look closely enough, you’ll notice (I can’t make this up) that his arm is much quicker than the rest of his body. His arm is very fast and fluid, but he has one of the stiffest lower bodies (especially in the hips) I have ever seen. As a result, when his mechanics seem perfect, at the release, his arm is ahead of where his body needs to be, even if only by a half second. A quarterback is supposed to have his hips square to the target by the time he releases the ball. If Nassib’s feet are in good initial position, and his motion is fundamentally sound, his hips aren’t square to the target when the ball leaves his hand because his hips don’t rotate fast enough to keep up with how fast he rotates his arm. To get his hips and feet in the right position, he has to compensate by changing the rest of his motion. Sometimes, he slows down his arm so his lower body can keep up. This usually results in a weakly thrown pass. Other times, he’ll align his hips in a position in which they won’t have to rotate as far to be perpendicular to the target. His hips and feet must start at an unusual angle to each other, but this is probably his most successful technique, resulting in a noticeable but not fatal loss of throw power but decent accuracy. And there are times in which he does nothing to compensate. This results in an inaccurate pass that stings the hand of anyone who touches it. To be frank, I’ve never seen a quarterback with this issue and I don’t know how to fix it.

There is one other problem with Nassib’s mechanics, but it isn’t as significant: his shoulder level. It has a huge effect on his accuracy, but it’s not too difficult to fix. Nassib isn’t known for a nice deep ball, and his shoulder level is the reason. In order to get any air under the pass, the back shoulder must be below the front shoulder when the quarterback is bringing the ball back. This will result in much more air under the pass and a nice spiral. Nassib is simply inconsistent with his shoulder level. Sometimes they are level, sometimes they are pointed. The frustrating thing is that that fact is unchanged on shorter passes. On short passes, you need your shoulders to be level, or the pass will sail high. In Nassib’s case, sometimes his shoulders are level, and sometimes they aren’t. If he adds a front shoulder dip to the end of his dropback he should stop having the problem on his shorter passes, and a little bit of good coaching will help him with the longer ones.

Nassib is a good decision maker. He’s fairly good at reading zone defense and he usually looks off the safety. He occasionally locks onto receivers but it’s not a constant mistake. He has a very good sense of the blitz and knows when to get rid of the football. That being said, he’s not the most mobile guy in the world and he will force some deep throws. Still, pretty good football IQ all things considered.

In the end, I’m not a Nassib fan. I don’t like his mechanics and I don’t think they will be easily fixed in the NFL, unless he suddenly adds a ton of flexibility. It’s quite frustrating.

NFL Comparison: I don’t have one. I haven’t been scouting long enough to see a quarterback whose arm moves so much faster than his lower body in his throwing motion. I can’t compare it to anything I’ve seen.

Grade: 79 (worthy of an early 3rd, maybe late 2nd round pick)

Projection: 90 (will be a late 1st or early second round pick)

Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports

+Plays with a block on his shoulder
+Strong
+Elite athleticism for guard
+Great pass blocker
+Great run blocker
+Good on field awareness, especially as a run blocker
+Gets phenomenal leverage
+Very consistent
+Unbelievably good with guard traps and pulls
+Great balance
+Uses ideal fundamentals
+Gets a good initial punch

Negatives:

-Guards are less important than tackles? Does that count as a negative?

A beast is defined in the Urban Dictionary as “When referring to a person, beast status is achieved when the aforementioned person is so good at a certain skill that they have exceeded human comprehension, thus making them non-human.” Jonathan Cooper matches this description with regard to his ability to play football. But The Free Dictionary defines beast as “an animal, especially a large or dangerous four-footed one.” Jonathan Cooper is a beast by both definitions. He is a bear wearing football pads. A truly spectacular football player.

Cooper has good measurables. He’s a bit short at 6’2, he has solid bulk at 311lbs, and very good speed for a guard with a 5.07 40 yard dash at the combine. I might as well say now, the reason why he isn’t a tackle at the next level is because he has very short arms (33 inches flat, a bit short even for a guard) and players with long arms will be able to control his hands at the NFL level. So guard is pretty much a lock. Beyond that, he has large hands and showed very good strength at the combine, doing 35 bench reps at 225lbs, good for second among all offensive linemen.

Cooper is a terrific run blocker. First off, some people don’t realize just how hard he plays. By all accounts, he’s tough, he never takes a play off, and he plays to the end of the whistle, but many players match that description. Jonathan Cooper is vicious. His on field intensity is absolutely ridiculous. I have so much respect for the way he plays the game. If you watch North Carolina film, every once and a while, you’ll see number 64 running upfield like a tight end following his running back and making some great blocks downfield. Seeing him hustling 20 or 30 yards past the line of scrimmage is always fun, even if you don’t get to see it that often. In addition, it’s tough for me to make a comparison for Cooper because I have never seen a guard as brilliant as Cooper when it comes to guard traps and pulls. He’s got the agility of an above average NFL left tackle, his body control is absolutely remarkable, he gets a great initial punch, his on field awareness as a run blocker is amazing, he takes ideal angles to the ball, and he’s very quick. He does absolutely nothing wrong on guard traps and pulls and would be an excellent fit in a zone blocking scheme. Beyond that, as a run blocker, he is very strong and gets extremely good leverage. He’s a fighter that really knows how to sustain blocks and is incredible when engaging in blocks. His fundamentals and hand placement are also excellent. If I had to think of a problem with his run blocking, it’s that he doesn’t have the widest frame and will occasionally allow opponents to make an arm tackle in heavy traffic. Still, a great run blocker.

Cooper is a phenomenal pass blocker. He has terrific athleticism and he uses very good technique in pass protection. His strength is very good and he gets ideal leverage. His quickness is elite for a guard and he plays very hard. He’s definitely the kind of guy I would trust to block Geno Atkins, because he is one of very few interior linemen who can match Atkins’ quickness as well as maintain very good, consistent leverage against him. On the downside, his on field awareness is not as good as a pass blocker as it is a run blocker, though still above average. Every once and a while, he doesn’t have his head on a swivel as a pass blocker, and he struggles to react to defensive line stunts, sometimes looking out of sync when passing his man off to a teammate. However, his athleticism, technique, and leverage still make him a really good pass blocker.

This is the greatest guard class I’ve ever seen. Given that this is only the 4th draft class I’ve ever scouted, that’s not really saying much, but I’ve never scouted guards as good as Chance Warmack and Cooper. 2 future Pro Bowlers undoubtedly, unless the NFL gets rid of the Pro Bowl.

NFL Comparison: Jahri Evans with more a bit more strength, but a bit less length.

Grade: 99 (worthy of a top 3 pick, in large part because this is a weak draft class)

Projection: 97 (will be a top 10 pick)

Mike Carter-USA TODAY Sports

Negatives:

-Not an elite route runner
-Phenomenal athlete for a tight end with his size, but he’s oversized and mediocre overall
-Not incredibly fluid
-Bit raw
-Character issues

The blocking tight end has fallen out of favor in today’s NFL. I get that. A guy who can catch passes and stretch the defense is a real matchup problem. That being said, if your position involves you starting most plays less than 10 yards from your running back,  you need to be a passable blocker. The NFL may be a passing league, but about 42% of all NFL plays are run plays. As long as tight ends don’t line up out wide, they have to be decent blockers. However, in this league, guys like Michigan State’s Dion Sims have been forgotten in favor of guys like Zach Ertz because of the NFL’s love for pass catching tight ends. Don’t get me wrong; I’m not saying many of the NFL’s most statistically productive tight ends are bad. The fact is, Rob Gronkowski is a very good blocker. Jimmy Graham is neither good nor bad as a blocker, and his pass catching makes him a pro bowler. Same goes for Vernon Davis (nowadays). But a guy who can block still has value. Not too mention, he’s an underrated pass catcher.

Sims has very good measurables. He’s a solid 6’5, he has great bulk at 262lbs, and good speed with a 4.75 40 yard dash at the combine, good for 8th among tight ends, in spite of the fact that he was the 3rd heaviest tight end at the combine. He was average on the bench press with 22 reps at 225lbs, but had a terrific 35 inch vertical, good for 4th among tight ends, and a good indicator of his great strength in his legs. His hands are like baseball gloves: 10 1/2 inches, second at the combine.

One of the most confusing things I see as a scout is a guy make a huge improvement from one season to the next and see no change in his draft stock. Dion Sims had that experience. He broke out as Michigan State’s best pass catcher this season, finishing with 475 receiving yards this season (3rd on the team) in spite of the fact he missed parts of 4 games with an injury, and he played on a team that could not pass.

Sims is a good blocker with the potential to be great. He’s a tad raw, but he shows great ability to drive defenders off the ball with his strong legs, plus he has an extremely wide frame. He also gets an excellent initial punch as a run blocker and has very good quickness. He even blocks on pass plays every once and a while, and he’s pretty good at it, but he probably won’t get the opportunity to do much of that in the NFL. He also fights to sustain blocks. On the downside, he occasionally leans on his hands as a run blocker, he doesn’t have great length, and, most importantly, has below average on field awareness as a run blocker. Tight ends are very mobile blockers who have to be able to read a defense and find a guy who needs to block. Sims sometimes looks lost in the second level, which can limit his production. Still, with his raw physical ability and wide frame, he’s an above average run blocker.

Sims is simply a better pass catcher than people realize. First off, he may not be the most fluid guy out there, but he flashes spectacular burst for a guy his size. The balance in his release is inconsistent, but when he gets it right, he absolutely explodes off the snap. His 40 time may have been 8th among tight ends, but his 1.60 10 yard split was number 3rd best. It’s quite unusual given his size, but it’s fun to watch him when he does get a good release. In addition, his vertical speed is much better on film than in shorts, flashing shocking speed at times. However, he’s not too fluid. His fluidity is average for his size, but mediocre by most standards. He isn’t very quick or deceptive in and out of breaks. Plus, he’s a fairly raw route runner who has shown little to no ability to read zone coverage. On the bright side, he’s a good leaper with very reliable baseball gloves that he calls hands. He rarely drops passes and he doesn’t trap passes against his frame, plus he’s pretty coordinated with the ball in the air, but he doesn’t have great body control. He’s surprisingly good after the catch. He’s not the most athletic guy with the ball in his hands, but he’ll be one of the largest guys that regularly has the ball in his hands in the NFL immediately and is simply to big to be tackled by corners. He also is very good about lowering his shoulder and getting lots of yards after contact.

I like Sims. He’s a very good athlete with solid hands and above average blocking ability. I think he’s one of the more underrated prospects in this draft. A bit raw, but potential is there.

NFL Comparison: Marcedes Lewis. Might be a bit more raw.

Grade: 82 (worthy of a late 2nd round pick)

Projection: 65 (will be a mid 4th round pick)

Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports

+Quick
+Decent pass rusher
+Wide frame

Negatives:

-Old for a rookie
-Looks out of shape on film
-Plays with mediocre on field intensity
-No strength in the low body
-No stamina
-Poor instincts

I don’t understand what everybody sees in North Carolina defensive tackle Sylvester Williams. I didn’t have much film on him his junior season, in which he was statistically more productive and supposedly a better player, but the Sylvester Williams I know just isn’t a good prospect.

Williams has solid measurables. He has solid height at 6’3, solid bulk at 313lbs, and above average speed for his size with a 5.03 40 at the combine. He has average length for his size (33 1/2 inch arms), and average strength (27 bench reps), but he had below average leg strength with a pathetic 26.5 inch vertical. Measurables aside, I think the guy has a terrible build. He looked extremely fat for a guy who supposedly lost weight in the off-season, at least in the Duke game, and he lacks stamina.

Williams had below average stats as a senior, but he wasn’t terrible as a junior. In 2012, he had 42 tackles, 13.5 TFL’s, and 6 sacks in 12 games. That doesn’t seem to bad at first glance, but, like former teammate Robert Quinn (looking back, I was bad writer back then), he inflated his stats against bad competition. 5.5 of his 6 sacks came against Elon, Idaho, East Carolina, Wake Forest, and Virginia, the other half sack coming against Virginia Tech. As a junior, however, he had 54 tackles, 7.5 TFL’s, and 2.5 sacks, and he wasn’t inflating his stats against bad competition. Also, his playing weight was 325lbs, and normally the lack of stamina that comes from being that big makes your stats worse, since you are on the field less often, but it didn’t affect Williams. Again, I hardly scouted Williams during his junior season, and I wonder what I was missing.

Williams is below average against the run. First of all, I don’t know why he slimmed down last off-season, because it did nothing to help him as a player. He has the worst stamina of any sub 315lbs player I have ever seen. He’s only on the field for about 60% of North Carolina’s defensive plays, which kind of puts him in Louis Nix III territory, the difference being Nix is 340lbs, so he’s easily winded for good reasons. Williams was just out of shape. He has decent strength in the upper body but he lacks strength in the lower body. His quickness is good but his instincts are poor, and he can be a bit of a blind penetrator, my term for a guy who gets into the backfield at all costs but has no idea where the ball is once he gets there. His effort comes and goes against the run and he doesn’t make many tackles in traffic. He often tries to rush the passer and opens up a huge hole trying to get outside his man. He also isn’t very good at anticipating the snap. His fundamentals are average. I’m not fan of his ability against the run.

Williams is decent against the pass. He has elite first step quickness, reaching top speed very quickly, but he doesn’t make much of this quickness simply because he doesn’t do a great job of anticipating the snap. If his reaction to the snap of the football was quicker, he could flash Sheldon Richardson’s pass rushing potential, but, as of now, he’s mediocre. He doesn’t have much strength and could do a better job of using his hands to shed blocks. His lack of stamina often results in a lack of production of passing downs. He gets winded very easily. Not a ton to like here, but if he anticipated the snap better and cleaned up his hand usage, he could be decent.

In the end, I’m not a fan of Williams. He simply looked really out of shape this season. I doubt he will succeed in the NFL.

NFL Comparison: Not easy to find someone anyone has ever heard, but I’ll say Corey Peters

Grade: 76 (worthy of a mid, maybe early 3rd round pick)

Projection: 91 (will be a late 1st round pick)

Jim Brown-USA TODAY Sports

+Great height
+Pretty fluid for his size
+Elite flexibility
+Better after the catch than you would expect
+Good athlete
+Runs solid routes
+Plays hard

Negatives:

-Ballerina’s figure
-No strength
-Tentative over the middle
-Hands are average
-Not a terrible jump ball receiver, but doesn’t inspire much fear for a guy with his size and athleticism
-Injury prone

My 10 second scouting report on Hunter: Sidney Rice is the best case scenario unless he adds 20lbs. You don’t see a lot of guys out there who are 6’4 and 196lbs playing at the NFL level. The fact is, you need some strength to create separation if you aren’t incredibly quick (aka, all 6’4 wide receivers), and you need some strength to fight for good position to win jump balls. Hunter has no strength, so, in the meantime, he’s masquerading as a possession receiver. This guy is a 6’4 receiver with a 39.5 inch vertical and 33 1/4 inch arms that has the lowest yards per catch of anyone on his team with 30 or more receptions, and, shockingly enough, has a yards per catch even lower than that of teammate Mychal Rivera, a 6’3 tight end who is no one’s idea of a threat on the deep ball. Like most tight ends, he pretty much can’t jump, and he’s not better than a receiver at getting yards after the catch. Yet, somehow, he has a 15.6 yards per catch compared to Hunter’s 14.8. Just absorb that fact for a moment. Hunter in theory should be the ultimate deep ball receiver with his height and leaping ability, but he’s the worst deep threat on his team because he lacks the strength to make catches in traffic. Hunter has some potential, but, until he adds some strength, I am not a huge fan.

Hunter has very good measurables. I pretty much said it all in that last paragraph, but I didn’t mention that he ran a 4.44 40 at the combine, a very impressive number for a guy his size. He has durability problems (season ending knee surgery as a sophomore) and will continue to have them until he adds bulk onto his frame.

Hunter has good stats. He got off to a great start in 2011 before a knee injury, and he had a solid season in 2012, with 73 catches, 1083 yards, and 9 touchdowns in 12 games.

Hunter is a solid route runner. He has pretty good change of direction skills for a guy with his size, in large part because of his skinny frame, and he has above average quickness and speed. His focus is fairly consistent as a route runner and he’s fundamentally sound, using above average technique and flashing the ability to read zone coverage. Like I said, he’s pretending to be a possession receiver at this point in his career, and he isn’t terrible at it thanks to his above average quickness as a route runner and impressive catching radius. Frankly, his arms are longer than those of almost every corner he faces, so he gets his hands on the ball first. Still, I think it’s really a waste of what sets him apart from other receivers: his A.J. Green like combination of height and leaping ability. It’s not made useful on curl routes. Still, there is nothing wrong with Hunter being a good route runner.

Hunter is pretty good at creating yards after the catch for a 6’4 receiver. His flexibility is elite, to the point that I’ve wondered if he could touch his toes in football pads, and he has a surprising knack for getting under defender. He too often tries to impersonate teammate Cordarrelle Patterson by reversing his field and trying to make some amazing play, but his deceptive quickness and fluidity make him a pretty shifty guy in the open field.

Hunter is mediocre with the ball in the air. His hands are pretty much average. I wouldn’t say his effort his sub-par, but he does look a little scared of getting hit when running routes over the middle. He’s only average at tracking the ball. He really can’t make catches in traffic and doesn’t have a great feel for the physicality of the game. He struggles to fight for good position and it isn’t difficult to knock the ball out of his hands if he does go high into the air. He’s not strong enough to create any separation with physicality and he can’t bully his way into position leaping for the ball. Basically, the slightest contact throws him off with the ball in the air. He needs a very open field, a clear path, to make a play. On the bright side, he doesn’t trap many passes against his frame. Again, if he added bulk, he’d have a lot of potential here. He’s a great leaper with length and height who could be terrific if he had the power and the strength to simply high point and grab the ball in traffic, taking no prisoners on the way down and not letting contact throw him off on the way up. But he has a long way to go.

In the end, Hunter’s lack of bulk concerns me. He lacks strength and he isn’t the threat down field you would expect him to be. It’s frustrating.

NFL Comparison: Sidney Rice. Rice is an average receiver. At 202lbs, he’s a bit bulkier than Hunter, but he’s the closest there is, and, like Hunter, he has never been a huge threat on the deep ball. He’s also pretty injury prone. Rice probably has slightly better hands, but, other than that, they are pretty similar.

Grade: 82 (worthy of a late second round pick)

Projection: 86 (will be a mid, possible early second round pick)

Spruce Derden-USA TODAY Sports

+Rare combination of size and yards after the catch ability
+Freak athlete
+Raw, but his lack of experience is a valid excuse
+Does remarkable things on end arounds and reverses
+Fluid athlete

Negatives:

-Raw
-Mediocre route runner, though he has potential here
-Average hands
-Not very physical as a route runner
-Could add strength

He’ll be a high risk selection, but, overall, I like Tennessee wide receiver Cordarrelle Patterson. His biggest detractors say he is raw. I’m not going to disagree with that for a second. But, whenever I scout a raw player, I always ask myself the same question: does he have an excuse? Are there any good reasons for the fact that he doesn’t really know how to play football at this point in his career? The answer is yes. He’s only had 1 year of access to FBS coaching. Like Ezekiel Ansah, it’s no surprise that a guy with Patterson’s experience doesn’t know how to play the game. Think about it: a raw physically talented junior who played couple of years at a junior college before playing one year of FBS football and entering the NFL draft. That’s the exact same career path of Jason Pierre-Paul, and is a bit similar to Jimmy Graham. So, unlike Dion Jordan, I am willing to cut Patterson some slack when it comes to his mediocre fundamentals and feel. Jordan has had access to 5 years of the Oregon coaching staff, and even his most staunch supporters, like Mike Mayock, say he is a “raw Aldon Smith.” A “raw Aldon Smith” is a nice way of saying “Jarvis Moss.” He shouldn’t be raw at this point. But Patterson has an excuse, and, for that reason, I’m not too harsh on him for his less than stellar fundamentals and I’m optimistic for his future.

Patterson has incredible measurables. At the combine, he had solid height at 6’2, above average bulk at 216lbs, and very good speed with a 4.42 40 yard dash. He also had an above average 37 inch vertical, but his hands were on the smallish side at 9 inches, and his arm length was average at 31 3/4 in. Some of the best measurables of any receiver at this year’s combine.

Patterson has solid stats. He had 25 kick returns for 671 yards (26.8 yards per return, 21st in the FBS), 4 punt returns for 101 yards and a touchdown, and, shockingly, had 25 carries for 308 yards (12.3 YPC!) for 3 touchdowns on plays that were usually just end-arounds. On the downside, he had as many touchdowns on his rushes and returns as receptions, 5 apiece. In a pass first offense, he had 46 catches for 778 yards, good for a 16.9 yards per catch. His receiving numbers aren’t great, but, from an all purpose perspective, he was a pretty good player.

Patterson is absolutely incredible with the ball in his hands. His change of direction skills are amazing for his size, his vision is phenomenal, he uses impossibly deceptive head fakes to fool defenders and create separation, his balance is amazing, he has some strength in his core, and his quickness is elite. He also has excellent flexibility and can get under potential tacklers. I have never seen a wide receiver with his size make defenders miss in the open field as often as Patterson does. He’s impossible to tackle. The great thing about wide receivers that create yards after the catch is that they epitomize efficiency; high percentage passes that go for long gains. Obviously, short passes are completed more often than long passes but don’t tend to go for very long gains. Conversely, long passes get lots of yards but aren’t completed at a high percentage. With guys like Patterson, you get the best of both worlds: high percentage passes that tend to go for lots of yards. What more could you ask for?

Patterson has mediocre hands. He is prone to trapping some passes against his frame, and his hands are on the smallish side. He’s also not good at tracking the ball in the air and winning jump balls. However, he doesn’t drop tons of passes, and he does have some range for inaccurate passes.

Patterson is a mediocre route runner but I think projection for improvement is close to ideal. I’ve always said that guys who create yards after the catch have the most potential as route runners, because creating yards after the catch is actually quite similar to running routes.  Obviously, wide receivers aren’t the most powerful guys in the world, so, when they are trying to create yards after the catch, they are simply trying to create separation between themselves and defenders. When they are running a route, they are basically doing the same thing: trying to create separation between themselves and corners. The only difference is that a lot of practice is needed to become a good route runner but creating yards after the catch is a bit more instinctive. There are many great things Patterson does with the ball in his hands that, if he learned to incorporate into his route running, would make him a more complete player. For example, head fakes. With the ball in his hands, Patterson consistently shows the ability to be remarkable deceptive with his eyes, getting defenders off balance and breaking free. If Patterson was half as deceptive with his eyes in his route running as he is with the ball in his hands, he would have gotten 1200 receiving yards last year. Same goes for his cuts. Patterson flashes remarkable quickness and change of direction skills with the ball in his hands, but he doesn’t make those same, sharp cuts as a route runner as consistently as a runner. His routes are pretty sloppy, but, if he tried to blend some of the outstanding footwork he uses to juke out defenders into his routes, he would create a lot more separation. The only part of route running in which he has shown no ability at all is against zone coverage, because, at this point in his career, he has absolutely no idea how to read a defense. He also has no idea how to beat press coverage, a real surprise given the strength and power he shows that he has with the ball in his hands. However, given his lack of experience, I feel like there is no reason to believe he can’t improve in those areas. NFL coaching will fix those problems.

Patterson is the best receiver of this draft class. He may be raw, but he has good reason to be. He’s just inexperienced. He is taking the same career path of Jason Pierre-Paul. The guy has only had 1 year of access to great coaching. His fundamentals should improve with experience.

NFL Comparison: Dez Bryant. Ton of resemblance, though Bryant is probably a bit stronger.

Grade: 97 (worthy of a top ten pick)

Projection: 94 (will be a mid, maybe late first round pick)

Marvin Gentry-USA TODAY Sports

+Incapable of doing wrong on a football field
+Plays with great on field intensity
+Excellent strength
+Incredible on field awareness (why does Barrett Jones play center?)
+Gets great leverage
+Terrific run blocker
+Long arms
+Terrific pass blocker
+Played tough competition
+Used great fundamentals
+Good body control
+Great blocker on screen passes
+Great awareness in the second level

Negative(s):

-Not a good athlete

If you ignore positional value (obviously, guards aren’t as important as quarterbacks), Alabama guard Chance Warmack is the second most impressive player I’ve ever scouted, right behind Ndamukong Suh (he deserved that Heisman). The guy is just incredible. He will make no less than 3 Pro Bowls barring a series of catastrophic injuries or the cancellation of the Pro Bowl, and I expect him to make about 6. He is a complete package. Just an amazing player.

Warmack has below average measurables. At the combine, he was 6’2, 317lbs, and he ran a 5.49 40 yard dash. The 40 is a small concern, and he’s not the best guy in the world when it comes to guard pulls for that reason (he’s still above average). 6’2 sounds short, but, the fact is, a lack of height is actually a good thing for linemen since they can stay low and get really good leverage. The reason why height is perceived as a valuable asset is because there is a correlation between height and arm length, and the advantage of long arms is more significant than the leverage disadvantage of height. But Warmack has freakishly long arms for his size at 34 3/4 in. To put that into perspective, that’s longer than the arms of 6’8 Azusa Pacific tackle Luke Marquardt, 6’8 SMU defensive end Margus Hunt, and, in spite of being the shortest offensive lineman at the combine, he was top 10 in terms of arm length, so it won’t be an issue in the NFL.

Warmack is a perfect run blocker. I don’t even know where to start. I’ve never seen an offensive lineman with his on field awareness at the college level. His knowledge of the game is absolutely incredible, he does an amazing job of reading defenses and finding guys to block on run plays, he takes magnificent angles to defenders, he’s always in good position, and he’s always in sync with his teammates blocking the run. A true on field coach. On top of that, his lack of height results in him getting phenomenal leverage as a run blocker, and he also has excellent strength. He has phenomenal balance, he never leans on his hands as a run blocker, his fundamentals and hand placement are perfect, and his excellent body control combined with his knowledge of the game leads to phenomenal success blocking on the run, so, even with poor speed, he’s still above average on guard pulls. He gets a great initial punch, he has phenomenal strength, and he always keeps his head on a swivel. He’s extremely consistent and he always creates a wide base. A true game changer as a run blocker.

Warmack is a dominant pass blocker. Let’s start of with the negatives: he lacks lateral mobility and, once in a blue moon, he’ll play  too high and get less than ideal leverage. Other than that he is perfect. He gets an excellent initial punch, his on field awareness is downright incredible, he always keeps his head on a swivel, he does a really good job of picking up blitzes, and he plays with great on field intensity. His fundamentals are pretty much flawless and he does an excellent job of reading defenses. His knowledge of the game is superb and he makes those around him much better players. He’s always in sync with his teammates and does a great job of passing guys off if he sees a blitz. He’s got a little quickness and does an outstanding job of blocking on screens, thanks to his excellent body control, the terrific angles he takes to defenders, the wide base he creates and the great initial punch he gets. He’s truly dominant as a screen blocker and is never intimidated by any strength matchups. He knows how to use his length and he gets great hand placement. He has shown that he can dominate the athletic 4-3 tackles in the SEC like Bennie Logan as well as enormous 3-4 nose tackles in the SEC like Daniel McCullers. Warmack is as good as it gets as a pass blocker.

In the end, you’ve got to love Warmack. I know he’s a guard, but he’s probably the next Steve Hutchinson, and you can build a running attack around a guy like him for years to come. A truly great player.

NFL Comparison: Marshal Yanda

Grade: 99 (worthy of a top 3 pick)

Projection: 98 (will be a top 6 pick)

Jeff Blake-USA TODAY Sports

+Terrific quickness
+Good athlete
+Incredible length
+Lots of potential
+Plays to the end of the whistle
+Solid instincts
+Versatile

Negatives:

-Could add strength
-No strength in the lower body
-Needs to clean up hands usage
-Doesn’t get great leverage
-I don’t think I’ve ever seen a form tackle from him
-Character issues
-Doesn’t relish physical play
-Maddeningly inconsistent
-Some stamina problems

Missouri’s Sheldon Richardson probably has the highest ceiling of any defensive tackle in this draft class. But he also has among the lowest floors, with lots of holes in his game and mediocre feel overall. But I’d still use a first round pick on him.

Richardson has incredible measurables. He has solid height at 6’3, mediocre bulk at 294lbs, and above average speed with a 5.02 40 yard dash (he’s faster on film). What really stands out is his incredible length. His arms were measured at 34 1/2 at the combine, good for fifth among interior defensive linemen, and, despite that length, he did an impressive 30 bench reps at the combine. That’s pretty incredible, because guys with long arms have to lift that bar up even further, but it didn’t matter for Richardson.

Richardson has good stats. In 2013, he had 75 tackles, 10.5 TFL’s, and 4 sacks in 11 games. 75 tackles in 11 games is ridiculous for a defensive tackle, but it’s a bit misleading in Richardson’s case, because he gets a fair amount of garbage tackles (more on that later). Still, his stats are impressive.

Richardson is a net average against the run, but he has the potential to be very good. The most maddening aspect of his game against the run is that he seems to hate form tackles, usually opting to dive at a guys legs rather than using his long arms to wrap up and bring down the ball carrier. As a result, he yields tons of yards after contact and misses tackles. On the bright side, he’s probably the rangiest 3 technique I’ve ever seen, and he knows how to sniff out screens. His instincts are very inconsistent but overall he has decent on field awareness. He has a lot of work to do from a technique perspective. He doesn’t have a variety of ways to create penetration against the run, and his strength isn’t always apparent on film. He plays very high with his feet in a position where his cleats create almost no friction between his feet and the ground to the point it looks like he is on roller skates. He doesn’t get good leverage and he doesn’t know how to use his hands against the run. If he cleaned up his fundamentals from a hand usage perspective, he’d have the potential to dominate given his length advantage over everyone who blocks him. What’s really troubling, though, is that he doesn’t have much strength on film. However, he really knows how to disengage from blocks and has awesome athleticism in pursuit, which gives him some value, but he’s never been much of a TFL guy.

Richardson is solid against the pass, and his potential is unlimited here. His quickness off the ball is off the charts, and, given his length, whenever he uses a pass rush move, some amazing things happen. What’s frustrating is that he doesn’t try to use pass rush moves such as the swim move often enough. His arms are incredibly long and he knows how to use them to keep linemen from really even touching him. That being said, he doesn’t do a good job of using his length to control the arms of offensive linemen and get them off balance, or at least he doesn’t do it consistently enough, not that he doesn’t flash the ability to do so (see: his sack against South Carolina. Why doesn’t he do that more?). However, he flashes unlimited quickness gives him the potential to be the next Geno Atkins, at least if he got better leverage (see: pressure Connor Shaw in the first quarter of that game). He could get better leverage, and he’s very inconsistent in this area.

Character isn’t something easy to evaluate from my perspective, since I’ve never actually met Richardson, but I can give some information. If you watch his film, in most games, he consistently plays to the end of the whistle. He gets more tackles downfield on wide receivers who have made catches past the line of scrimmage than any other lineman I have ever seen simply because his speed is ridiculous and he never stops running. That being said, many of these tackles aren’t that useful. Often, a receiver may make a catch on a crossing route or some other short route, and the receiver will be surrounded by defenders, but, in the time it takes the receiver to create some yards after the catch, Richardson arrives and makes some sort of nearly meaningless assisted tackle, even though his teammates are more than capable without him. Normally, you love the effort, but the problem is that Richardson, like basically all interior linemen, doesn’t have the stamina to play like that all the time. He doesn’t pace himself. As a result, he’ll be all over the field for one drive and disappear the next. By his own fault, he gets pretty winded. This sometimes makes him a remarkably inconsistent player. Also regarding his character, although he always plays to the end of the whistle, he doesn’t really relish physical play. He himself has compared the SEC to “old man football.” I would expect those comments from a wide receiver, but, as a defensive tackle, you need to love physical play. You can’t be a finesse player in the trenches. But Richardson tries to be, relying on quickness as opposed to strength and avoiding contact when making tackles. I swear, he never even attempts form tackles. It’s pretty frustrating.

Richardson is an interesting prospect. He’s got lots of tools, but his inconsistency is frustrating and it’s hard to accept his lack of strength on film. Still, his quickness is tantalizing and you’ve got to love the potential.

NFL Comparison: Henry Melton. Melton had a strange career path, coming out of college as a 270lbs defensive end but then bulking up and moving to defensive tackle, where he has been solid. Given his size, length, quickness, and his tendency to disappear, there is a lot of resemblance here.

Grade: 93 (worthy of a late to mid first round pick)

Projection: 95 (will be a mid first round pick)