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Five 2019 NFL Draft prospects you shouldn’t sleep on

By Dillon Appleman

PASADENA, CA - JANUARY 01: Running back Rodney Anderson #24 of the Oklahoma Sooners celebrates after scoring on a nine-yard touchdown run in the first quarter against the Georgia Bulldogs in the 2018 College Football Playoff Semifinal at the Rose Bowl Game presented by Northwestern Mutual at the Rose Bowl on January 1, 2018 in Pasadena, California. (Photo by Harry How/Getty Images)
PASADENA, CA - JANUARY 01: Running back Rodney Anderson #24 of the Oklahoma Sooners celebrates after scoring on a nine-yard touchdown run in the first quarter against the Georgia Bulldogs in the 2018 College Football Playoff Semifinal at the Rose Bowl Game presented by Northwestern Mutual at the Rose Bowl on January 1, 2018 in Pasadena, California. (Photo by Harry How/Getty Images) /
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CHAPEL HILL, NC – OCTOBER 17: Phil Haynes #74 of the Wake Forest Demon Deacons blocks Jessie Rogers #43 of the North Carolina Tar Heels during their game at Kenan Stadium on October 17, 2015 in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. North Carolina won 50-14. (Photo by Grant Halverson/Getty Images)
CHAPEL HILL, NC – OCTOBER 17: Phil Haynes #74 of the Wake Forest Demon Deacons blocks Jessie Rogers #43 of the North Carolina Tar Heels during their game at Kenan Stadium on October 17, 2015 in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. North Carolina won 50-14. (Photo by Grant Halverson/Getty Images) /

Phil Haynes – G – Wake Forest

The problem with the social media age we live in is that constantly calling guys a “sleeper” or “under-the-radar” starts to become a popular trend, thus starting their hype machine and taking them out of those categories. That is starting to become the case with Phil Haynes, although, I do think he is still relatively unknown.

Haynes, a fifth-year senior, was an offensive captain and four year starter at Wake Forest but is still new to the game. He grew up playing basketball and didn’t start playing football until his senior year of high school, where he actually played on the defensive line. After being moved to the O-line upon arriving at Wake and redshirting his freshman year, it was all uphill from there.

Haynes began his career at right tackle but really found his niche when they kicked him inside to play guard where he would excel in his final three seasons. Taking home third team All-ACC honors in 2017 and 2nd team honors in 2018, Haynes continues to trend upwards as we near the 2019 NFL draft.

In such a limited time at the position, Haynes has proven to be a force in a power run scheme and is truly violent at the point of attack. He looks to have a solid anchor in pass-protection but his inexperience shows in his footwork at times.

He certainly already looks the part  and he gave a glimpse of his impressive power at the combine when he proved to be one of the strongest players in the 2019 NFL draft putting up 33 reps on the bench.

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While he is a popular “sleeper” pick for a lot of Twitter draft analysts, Haynes is still pretty raw, so don’t expect the buzz to launch him up draft boards too much. He is projected to be a late round selection but his solid performance in Indianapolis could have just helped him out a lot.

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