Draft Digest 2015

Top 10 rankings at every position • Team needs • Free agency impact • Two-round mock

$7.95

By ALAIN POUPARTEditor

When the NFL decided to move thedraft a couple of weeks later into thespring, the idea was to keep football inthe news for as much of the calendaryear as possible.

For draft pundits everywhere, it’smore time and more opportunities todiscuss and dissect the prospects whosenames will be called on one of the threedays of the 2014 event officially knownas the annual selection meeting, May 8-10.

Fortunately for everyone, there is noshortage of conversation topics amongthis year’s prospects.

You can start by analyzing — in manycases overanalyzing — Jadeveon Clowney’srelatively disappointing 2013 season andwhether he’ll be willing to put in the timeand effort to maximize his immense phys-ical ability.

There’s the case of Johnny Manzieland whether his improvisational style,however entertaining it might be, canwork in the NFL.

Of course, some time was spent onthe question of whether defensive endMichael Sam hurt his draft standing byrevealing he was gay.

From this vantage point, Clowney istoo good to pass up; Manziel could suc-ceed but the odds aren’t very good; andSam’s sexual orientation ideally shouldn’timpact his draft status although the real-ity is that any number of teams couldwind up steering away from him in acase where they’re debating between Samand another prospect they view as hav-ing the same kind of potential.

For the second consecutive year,there will be intrigue at the top of thedraft because the group of prospectsavailable — however impressive — onceagain lacks a quarterback carrying thecan’t-miss label the way Andrew Luckdid two years ago.

Truth is, there isn’t even a slam-dunkNo. 1 prospect at quarterback betweenManziel, Louisville’s Teddy Bridgewaterand Blake Bortles from the University ofCentral Florida.

In terms of ability and NFL potential,the top four prospects this year areClowney, Auburn tackle Greg Robinson,Clemson wide receiver Sammy Watkinsand University of Buffalo linebackerKhalil Mack. Any of them could be thefirst overall selection if the Houston Tex-ans, who held that pick as of March 28,don’t choose a quarterback.

Clowney, Robinson and Watkins wereamong the 98 underclassmen who madethemselves eligible for the 2014 draft.That total obliterated the previous recordof 73, set last year.

Because of the high number of under-classmen, the talent pool increased andthat led Pittsburgh Steelers general man-ager Kevin Colbert, among others, tolabel this the best draft class in as manyas 30 years.

“You can look across the board,” Col-bert told reporters at the scouting com-bine, “I can’t see a position where thereisn’t more depth than there has everbeen.”

Not surprisingly, national championFlorida State leads the way when itcomes to high-end prospects in thisyear’s draft. FSU has six players in theDraft Digest Top 100 (page 21), led bydefensive tackle Timmy Jernigan andwide receiver Kelvin Benjamin.

Texas A&M, meanwhile, has threeprospects considered likely first-roundpicks in tackle Jake Matthews, wide re-ceiver Mike Evans and Manziel.

The NFL teams best equipped to takeadvantage of the talent pool in the draft,as of March 28, were the St. Louis Rams,Cleveland Browns and San Francisco49ers.

The Rams have the second and 13thpicks in the first round as they enjoy thefinal returns from the 2012 draft-day

trade that enabled the Washington Red-skins to move from No. 6 to No. 2 to se-lect Robert Griffin III.

Cleveland also has two first-roundpicks as the result of the 2013 trade thatsent running back Trent Richardson tothe Indianapolis Colts. The Browns alsohave an extra third-round pick, the resultof a draft-day trade with the PittsburghSteelers last year.

The 49ers, coming off their third con-secutive NFC Championship Game ap-pearance, have two picks in the secondround and three in the third.

For the first time in five years, noteam has forfeited a pick after selecting aplayer in the supplemental draft. Cleve-land was without a second-round pick

last year after taking Josh Gordon in the2012 supplemental draft, a move thathas paid off with the emergence of Gor-don as one of the top wide receivers inthe NFL.

The New Orleans Saints also havetheir full complement of picks after twoyears of having to forfeit their second-round choice as punishment for the“Bountygate” scandal.

The strength of this year’s draft, interms of depth, appears to be at wide re-ceiver, offensive tackle and cornerback.

What follows is a brief position-by-position breakdown analyzing this year’sdraft:

QUARTERBACKS — There are farmore intriguing quarterbacks than lastyear starting with the big three, plus twoor three more who could go in the firstthree rounds.

RUNNING BACKS — It’s very possi-ble that we’ll go a second consecutiveyear without a running back taken in thefirst round, but that doesn’t change thefact there are several quality runnersavailable.

WIDE RECEIVERS — This isn’t justthe best group in this year’s draft, it’samong the best at any position in severalyears. There’s great depth in this groupand the superstar prospect with Watkins.

TIGHT ENDS — While the group ofwide receivers is outstanding, there isquite a drop-off at tight end after the topthree prospects.

OFFENSIVE LINEMEN — Three of-fensive tackles were among the top fourpicks in 2013, but this year’s group isbetter even if the final draft results don’tshow it. There’s also good depth at guard,with a couple of first-round possibilities.

DEFENSIVE LINEMEN — In termsof depth, this group actually might notmatch what the 2013 draft offered. ButClowney is the most physically gifted de-fensive line prospect in a long, long time.

LINEBACKERS — It’s one of thoserare years where there’s a blue-chipprospect at both inside (C.J. Mosley) andoutside (Khalil Mack) linebacker.

DEFENSIVE BACKS — Cornerbackis one of the deepest positions in thedraft, with a half-dozen prospects con-sidered possible first-round picks. Thesafety class offers good depth, led by twopotential first-round selections, Ha HaClinton-Dix and Calvin Pryor.

SPECIALISTS — No kicking special-ist was taken before the fifth round in2013, and it would be a surprise if thesame thing didn’t happen again.

More time, more stars, more questionsDRAFT OVERVIEW

3

GRADING THE DRAFT

Position Grade

Quarterback B-Halfback B-Fullback/H-back CWide receiver A+Tight end C+Offensive tackle AOffensive guard BCenter C+Defensive end BDefensive tackle BOutside linebacker B-Inside linebacker B-Cornerback BSafety B+Kicker/Punter C-

Sammy Watkins

WHAT: 79th Annual NFL Selection MeetingWHEN: May 8-10, 2014TELEVISION: ESPN, NFL NetworkSCHEDULE: Round 1 on May 8;

Rounds 2-3 on May 9; Rounds 4-7 on May 10

FORMAT: Each team has 10 minutes to make its selection in Round 1; seven minutes in Round 2; and five minutes in each roundthereafter.

FACTS & FIGURES

4

QB: 15 (Troy Aikman, Jeff George, Drew Bledsoe, Peyton Manning, Tim Couch, Michael Vick, David Carr, CarsonPalmer, Eli Manning, Alex Smith, JaMarcus Russell, Matthew Stafford, Sam Bradford, Cam Newton, Andrew Luck)T: 3 (Orlando Pace, Jake Long, Eric Fisher)DT: 3 (Russell Maryland, Steve Emtman, Dan Wilkinson)DE: 2 (Courtney Brown, Mario Williams)RB: 1 (Ki-Jana Carter)WR: 1 (Keyshawn Johnson)

2014 D r a f t O r d e r as of March 28

ROUND 11. Houston2. St. Louis

(from Washington)3. Jacksonville4. Cleveland5. Oakland6. Atlanta7. Tampa Bay8. Minnesota9. Buffalo

10. Detroit11. Tennessee12. New York Giants13. St. Louis14. Chicago15. Pittsburgh16. Dallas17. Baltimore18. New York Jets19. Miami20. Arizona21. Green Bay22. Philadelphia23. Kansas City24. Cincinnati25. San Diego26. Cleveland

(from Indianapolis)27. New Orleans28. Carolina29. New England30. San Francisco31. Denver32. SeattleROUND 2

1-33. Houston2-34. Washington3-35. Cleveland4-36. Oakland5-37. Atlanta6-38. Tampa Bay7-39. Jacksonville8-40. Minnesota9-41. Buffalo

10-42. Tennessee

11-43. New York Giants12-44. St. Louis13-45. Detroit14-46. Pittsburgh15-47. Dallas16-48. Baltimore17-49. New York Jets18-50. Miami19-51. Chicago20-52. Arizona21-53. Green Bay22-54. Philadelphia23-55. Cincinnati24.-56 San Francisco

(from Kansas City)25-57. San Diego26-58. New Orleans27-59. Indianapolis28-60. Carolina29-61. San Francisco30-62. New England31-63. Denver32-64. SeattleROUND 3

1-65. Houston2-66. Washington3-67. Oakland4-68. Atlanta5-69. Tampa Bay6-70. Jacksonville7-71. Cleveland8-72. Minnesota9-73. Buffalo

10-74. New York Giants11-75. St. Louis12-76. Detroit13-77. San Francisco

(from Tennessee)14-78. Dallas15-79. Baltimore16-80. New York Jets17-81. Miami18-82. Chicago19-83. Cleveland

(from Pittsburgh)20-84. Arizona

21-85. Green Bay22-86. Philadelphia23-87. Kansas City24-88. Cincinnati25-89. San Diego26-90. Indianapolis27-91. New Orleans28-92. Carolina29-93. New England30-94. San Francisco31-95. Denver32-96. Minnesota

(from Seattle)33-97. Pittsburgh

(compensatory pick)34-98. Green Bay

(compensatory pick)35-99. Baltimore

(compensatory pick)36-100. San Francisco

(compensatory pick)ROUND 4

1-101. Houston2-102. Washington3-103. Atlanta4-104. N.Y. Jets

(from Tampa Bay)5-105. Jacksonville6-106. Cleveland7-107. Oakland8-108. Minnesota9-109. Buffalo

10-110. St. Louis11-111. Detroit12-112. Tennessee13-113. New York Giants14-114. Jacksonville

(from Baltimore)15-115. New York Jets16-116. Miami17-117. Chicago18-118. Pittsburgh19.-119 Dallas20-120. Arizona21-121. Green Bay22-122. Philadelphia

23-123. Cincinnati24-124. Kansas City25-125. San Diego26-126. New Orleans27-127. Cleveland

(from Indianapolis)28-128. Carolina29-129. San Francisco30-130. New England31-131. Denver32-132. Seattle33-133. Detroit


(compensatory pick)35-135. Houston

(compensatory pick)36-136. Detroit

(compensatory pick)37-137. N.Y. Jets


(compensatory pick)39-139. Atlanta

(compensatory pick)40-140. New England


1-141. Houston2-142. Washington3-143. Tampa Bay4-144. Jacksonville5-145. Cleveland6-146. Seattle

(from Oakland)7-147. Atlanta8-148. Minnesota9-149. Buffalo

10-150. Jacksonville (from Detroit)

11-151. Tennessee12-152. New York Giants13-153. St. Louis14-154. New York Jets15-155. Miami16-156. Chicago

17-157. Pittsburgh18-158. Dallas19-159. Jacksonville

(from Baltimore)20-160. Arizona21-161. Green Bay22-162. Philadelphia23-163. Kansas City24-164. Cincinnati25-165. San Diego26-166. Indianapolis27-167. New Orleans28-168. Carolina29-169. New Orleans

(from New Englandthru Phila.)

30-170. San Francisco31-171. Denver32-172. Seattle33-173. Pittsburgh

(compensatory pick)34-174. N.Y. Giants


(compensatory pick)36-176. Green Bay


1-177. Houston2-178. Washington3-179. Jacksonville4-180. Cleveland5-181. Houston

(from Oakland)6-182. Atlanta7-183. Chicago

(from Tampa Bay)8-184. Minnesota9-185. Buffalo

10-186. Tennessee11-187. New York Giants12-188. St. Louis13-189. Detroit14-190. Miami15-191. Chicago16-192. Pittsburgh

17-193. Kansas City (from Dallas)

18-194. Baltimore19-195. New York Jets20-196. Arizona21-197. Green Bay22-198. New England

(from Philadelphia)23-199. Cincinnati24-200. Kansas City25-201. San Diego26-202. New Orleans27-203. Indianapolis28-204. Carolina29-205. Jacksonville

(from San Francisco)30-206. New England31-207. Denver32-208. Seattle33-209. N.Y. Jets



(compensatory pick)36-212. Cincinnati


(compensatory pick)38-214. St. Louis

(compensatory pick)39-215. Pittsburgh


1-216. Houston2-217. Washington3-218. Cleveland4-219. Oakland5-220. Atlanta6-221. Tampa Bay7-222. Jacksonville8-223. Minnesota9-224. Buffalo

10-225. Carolina (fromNew York Giants)

11-226. St. Louis

12-227. Detroit13-228. Tennessee14-229. Dallas

(from Chicago)15-230. Pittsburgh16-231. Dallas17-232. Indianapolis

(from Baltimore)18-233. New York Jets19-234. Miami 20-235. Oakland

(from Arizona)21-236. Green Bay22-237. Philadelphia23-238. Dallas

(from Kansas City)24-239. Cincinnati25-240. San Diego26-241. St. Louis

(from Indianapolis)27-242. San Francisco

(from New Orleans)28.-243 San Francisco

(from Carolina)29-244. New England30-245. San Francisco31-246. Denver32-247. Seattle33-248. Dallas



(compensatory pick)36-251. Dallas

(compensatory pick)37-252. Cincinnati


(compensatory pick)39-254. Dallas



(compensatory pick)

DRAFT HISTORYROUNDS IN THE DRAFTYear Rounds1936 91937 101938-1942 221943-1948 321949 251950-1959 301960-1966 201967-1976 171977-1992 121993 81994-present 7

LAST 25 NO. 1 OVERALL PICKS BY POSITION:

FACTS & FIGURES

5

DRAFT T r a d e s

WR Davante Adams Fresno StateCB Nick Addison Bethune-CookmanTE Jace Amaro Texas TechRB George Atkinson Notre DameWR Odell Beckham LSUWR Kelvin Benjamin Florida StateRB Kapri Bibbs Colorado StateRB Brendan Bigelow CaliforniaRB Alfred Blue LSUC Russell Bodine North CarolinaQB Blake Bortles Central FloridaWR Chris Boyd VanderbiltCB Bashaud Breeland ClemsonWR Martavis Bryant ClemsonRB Ka'Deem Carey ArizonaS Ha Ha Clinton-Dix AlabamaDE Jadeveon Clowney South CarolinaWR Brandon Coleman RutgersWR Brandin Cooks Oregon StateDE Scott Crichton Oregon StateRB Isaiah Crowell Alabama StateS Jonathan Dowling Western KentuckyDE Kony Ealy MissouriTE Eric Ebron North CarolinaWR Bruce Ellington South CarolinaWR Mike Evans Texas A&MDT Ego Ferguson LSUT Cameron Fleming StanfordILB Khairi Fortt CaliforniaWR Austin Franklin New Mexico StateRB Devonta Freeman Florida StateDT Carlos Gray North Carolina StateTE Xavier Grimble USC

T Terrance Hackney Bethune-CookmanDB Victor Hampton South CarolinaRB Jeremy Hill LSUDB Kameron Jackson CaliforniaTE Nic Jacobs McNeese StateDT Timmy Jernigan Florida StateDT Anthony Johnson LSUWR Jamel Johnson Alabama StateRB Storm Johnson Central FloridaRB Henry Josey MissouriT Cyrus Kouandjio AlabamaWR Jarvis Landry LSUWR Cody Latimer IndianaDE Demarcus Lawrence Boise StateWR Marqise Lee USCTE A.C. Leonard Tennessee StateDB Albert Louis-Jean Boston CollegeTE Colt Lyerla OregonDE Aaron Lynch South FloridaQB Johnny Manziel Texas A&MC Marcus Martin USCRB Tre Mason AuburnDE Chris McCain CaliforniaDB Terrance Mitchell OregonDT Viliami Moala CaliforniaWR Donte Moncrief MississippiRB Adam Muema San Diego StateTE Jake Murphy UtahTE Troy Niklas Notre DameDT Louis Nix III Notre DameDE Jeoffrey Pagan AlabamaDE Ronald Powell FloridaS Calvin Pryor Louisville

CB Loucheiz Purifoy FloridaDT Kelcy Quarles South CarolinaRB Darrin Reaves Alabama-BirminghamS Ed Reynolds StanfordT Antonio Richardson TennesseeWR Paul Richardson ColoradoCB Marcus Roberson FloridaWR Allen Robinson Penn StateT Greg Robinson AuburnCB Bradley Roby Ohio StateTE Richard Rodgers CaliforniaRB Bishop Sankey WashingtonRB Lache Seastrunk BaylorTE Austin Seferian-Jenkins WashingtonOLB Ryan Shazier Ohio StateLB Yawin Smallwood ConnecticutQB Brett Smith WyomingRB Jerome Smith SyracuseWR Willie Snead Ball StateRB John Spooney BrownWR Josh Stewart Oklahoma StateG Xavier Su’a-Filo UCLAS Vinnie Sunseri AlabamaRB De’Anthony Thomas OregonDE Stephon Tuitt Notre DameG Trai Turner LSUDE George Uko USCDB Pierre Warren Jacksonville StateWR Sammy Watkins ClemsonRB Terrance West TowsonRB James Wilder Florida StateT David Yankey Stanford

• Washington’s 1st-round pick to St. Louis as part of the 2012 draft-day trade that helped theRedskins draft QB Robert Griffin III.

• Indianapolis’ 1st-round pick to Cleveland in the 2013 trade for RB Trent Richardson.• Kansas City’s 2nd-round pick to San Francisco as part of the 2013 trade for QB Alex Smith.• Tennessee’s 3rd-round pick to San Francisco as part of a 2013 draft-day trade involving picks.• Pittsburgh’s 3rd-round pick to Cleveland as part of a 2013 draft-day trade involving picks.• Seattle’s 3rd-round pick to Minnesota as part of the 2013 trade for WR Percy Harvin.• Tampa Bay’s 4th-round pick to N.Y. Jets as part of the 2013 trade for CB Darrelle Revis.• Baltimore’s 4th- and 5th-round picks to Jacksonville in the 2013 trade for T Eugene Monroe.• Indianapolis’ 4th-round pick to Cleveland as part of a 2013 trade involving picks.• Oakland’s 5th-round pick to Seattle as part of the trade for QB Matt Flynn.• Detroit’s 5th-round pick to Jacksonville for WR Mike Thomas.• New England’s 5th-round pick to Philadelphia for DT Isaac Sopoaga and a 2014 6th-round choice.

Philadelphia then sent that pick to New Orleans for RB Darren Sproles.• Oakland’s 6th-round pick to Houston for QB Matt Schaub.• Chicago’s 6th-round pick to Tampa Bay for T Gabe Carimi.• Dallas’ 6th-round pick to Kansas City for OLB Edgar Jones and a 2014 7th-round choice.• San Francisco’s 6th-round pick to Jacksonville for QB Blaine Gabbert.• N.Y. Giants’ 7th-round pick to Carolina for LB Jon Beason.• Chicago’s 7th-round pick to Dallas for TE Dante Rosario.• Baltimore’s 7th-round pick to Indianapolis for C A.Q. Shipley.• Arizona’s 7th-round pick to Oakland as part of the 2013 trade involving QB Carson Palmer.• Indianapolis’ 7th-round pick to St. Louis as part of a 2012 trade for CB Josh Gordy.• New Orleans’ 7th-round pick to San Francisco for LB Parys Haralson.• Carolina’s 7th-round pick to San Francisco for DB Colin Jones.

Trades involving 2014 picks (as of March 28)

SCHOOLS WITH MOSTPLAYERS INVITED

TO COMBINESchool PlayersAlabama 12LSU 11Florida State 9Notre Dame 9Florida 8Stanford 8Missouri 7North Carolina 7USC 7Baylor 6Ohio State 6Oregon 6Wisconsin 6

UNDERCLASMENT IN THE 2014 DRAFT

The following players in timely fashion underNFL rules officially notified this office thatthey had graduated. Consequently, they areeligible for selection in the 2014 Draft:

Player SchoolS Dion Bailey USCDE Carl Bradford Arizona StateQB Teddy Bridgewater LouisvilleOLB Adrian Hubbard Alabama

6

1 Blake Bortles 6-5 230 Central Florida 1st

2 Teddy Bridgewater 6-2 215 Louisville 1st

3 Johnny Manziel 6-0 205 Texas A&M 1st

4 Derek Carr 6-2 215 Fresno State 1st-2nd

5 Zach Mettenberger 6-5 225 LSU 2nd-3rd

6 Jimmy Garoppolo 6-2 225 Eastern Illinois 2nd-3rd

7 David Fales 6-2 210 San Jose State 3rd-4th

8 A.J. McCarron 6-3 220 Alabama 3rd-4th

9 Tom Savage 6-4 230 Pittsburgh 4th-5th

10 Logan Thomas 6-6 250 Virginia Tech 5th-6th

SCOUTING N O T E B O O K

• Teddy Bridgewater had a tremendous career atLouisville and he’s got all the intangibles necessary to suc-ceed. The only reason he’s not the slam-dunk No. 1 overallpick is that he doesn’t have elite arm strength and he’s gota slight build, which makes durability a concern.

• Derek Carr has all the desired physical attributes, in-cluding a very strong arm, but there are questions abouthis ability to perform under center and he also didn’t helphis cause with a shaky outing in his last bowl game. And,of course, his brother David’s disappointing NFL careerisn’t likely to help his cause, either.

• Johnny Manziel might be the most electrifyingprospect in the draft, but he’s also the most polarizing. Hisshortcomings include lack of size or great speed and thelack of structure in his game, but there is no denying hisplaymaking ability. He’s also someone who can energize afranchise with his style.

• Zach Mettenberger has his share of detractors,stemming mainly from a March 2010 arrest that led to hisdismissal from the University of Georgia, but he’s got moreupside than most quarterback prospects in this class.

Number drafted: 11

Number on the season-ending roster of the team that drafted them: 9

Picks by round: 1 in the first, 1 in the second, 1 in the third, 4 in the fourth, 0 in the fifth, 0 in the sixth, 4 in the seventh

Highest pick: E.J. Manuel, Round 1, 16th overall, by Buffalo

Rookie starters (8 starts or more): Manuel (Buffalo), Geno Smith (2nd round, N.Y. Jets), Mike Glennon (3rd, Tampa Bay)

O V E R V I E W For the second consecutive year,there really isn’t a unanimous topquarterback in the same vein as An-drew Luck in 2012. Blake Bortles, Teddy Bridgewaterand Johnny Manziel clearly standout at the top of a class that defi-nitely is better than last year’s group. Complicating matters this yearwere the late-season injuries sus-tained by SEC stars Zach Metten-berger of LSU and Aaron Murray ofthe University of Georgia.

HEAD OF THE CLASSBlake Bortles

Central Florida

Johnny Manziel probably is the bestplaymaker among this year’s quarterbackprospects and Teddy Bridgewater proba-bly is the most polished passer at thisstage, but Bortles probably has a biggerupside than either of them. Bortles has drawn comparisons to BenRoethlisberger because of his size, but at thispoint he’s not as accomplished as a passerwhile also possessing better foot speed. Bortles helped UCF win seven gamesby seven points or fewer in 2013, includinga three-point victory against Bridgewater’sLouisville Cardinals.

QUARTERBACKS

DRAFT DIGEST’S TOP 10

LAST YEAR’S D R A F T

Teams with biggest need at the position: Buffalo, Cleveland, Jack-sonville, Minnesota, N.Y. Jets

No. Player Ht. Wt. School Projected round

7

1 Tre Mason 5-8 205 Auburn 2nd

2 Carlos Hyde 6-0 230 Ohio State 2nd

3 Ka’Deem Carey 5-9 205 Arizona 2nd

4 Jeremy Hill 6-1 235 LSU 2nd-3rd

5 Bishop Sankey 5-9 210 Washington 2nd-3rd

6 Devonta Freeman 5-8 205 Florida State 3rd-4th

7 Lache Seastrunk 5-9 200 Baylor 3rd-4th

8 Charles Sims 6-0 215 West Virginia 3rd-4th

9 Terrance West 5-9 225 Towson 3rd-4th

10 Andre Williams 5-11 230 Boston College 3rd-4th


• Carlos Hyde is a big, bruising back who rushed formore than 1,200 yards in 2013 despite missing the firstthree games because of a suspension related to an off-the-field incident. He would be ideal for a Marshawn Lynchtype of workhorse role.

• Ka’Deem Carey led the country in rushing yards pergame in 2012 and finished second last fall, so there is noquestioning his productivity. The two potential red flags inhis game are a lack of breakaway speed and the fact heplayed in Rich Rodriguez’s spread offense.

• If not for character red flags as the result of a couple ofoff-the-field incidents, including being caught on videopunching an LSU student outside a bar, Jeremy Hill justmight be the top prospect at running back. He’s a tad biggerthan Hyde but also shows more explosiveness.

• Terrance West is one of the most intriguing prospectsat any position after walking on at Towson and then rushingfor 2,509 yards and an outrageous 41 touchdowns in 2013.Yes, West put up those huge numbers against inferior com-petition and he lacks elite physical attributes, but Westclearly has good running skills.

Number drafted: 23



Highest pick: Giovani Bernard, Round 2, 37th overall, by Cincinnati

Rookie starters (8 starts or more): Le’Veon Bell (2nd round, Pittsburgh), Eddie Lacy (2nd, Green Bay), Zac Stacy (5th, St. Louis)

O V E R V I E W Despite the huge role played byMarshawn Lynch in Seattle’s marchto the Super Bowl title in 2013, thedraft value of halfbacks continues tobe on the downswing. This looks like a pretty good group,but it’s possible — if not likely — thatfor the second consecutive draft norunning back will be taken in the firstround. The halfback prospects in-clude a large number of smaller play-ers, with 14 combine invitees comingin at 5 feet 9 or shorter.

HEAD OF THE CLASSTre Mason

Auburn

Mason, whose father is a member ofhip-hop group De La Soul, was a rock starin his own right toward the end of the 2013college football season. After rushing for 304 yards in the SECtitle game against a good Missouri de-fense, Mason came back with 195 yardsagainst Florida State in the BCS Champi-onship Game. Mason compared his style at the com-bine to that of Marshawn Lynch, but he’snot as big as Lynch. Mason, however, is astrong runner with the ability to break thelong one.

HALFBACKS



Teams with biggest need at the position: Cleveland, Houston, Jacksonville, Miami, N.Y. Giants, Tennessee


8

1 Trey Millard 6-2 245 Oklahoma 4th-5th

2 Jay Prosch 6-1 255 Auburn 5th-6th

3 J.C. Copeland 5-11 270 LSU 6th-7th

4 Ryan Hewitt 6-4 245 Stanford 7th-FA

5 Chase Abram 5-11 230 Florida State 7th-FA

6 Gator Hoskins 6-1 245 Marshall 7th-FA

7 Ray Agnew 5-9 245 Southern Illinois 7th-FA

8 Nikita Whitlock 5-10 250 Wake Forest 7th-FA

9 Kiero Small 5-8 255 Arkansas 7th-FA

10 Chad Young 5-9 240 San Diego State 7th-FA


• J.C. Copeland began his career at LSU as a defen-sive tackle before switching to fullback early in the 2010season. At his size, he could be useful as a goal-line runner,as he showed in the NFLPA Collegiate Bowl when herushed for two touchdowns on two carries.

• It was a surprise to many that Jay Prosch didn’t evenget an invitation to the scouting combine considering hejust might be the best prospect at the position. Prosch isthe classic throwback at the position, even calling himselfa “glorified lineman.”

• Ryan Hewitt played different roles at Stanford, catch-ing 34 passes in 2011 before becoming more of a blockerthe last two seasons. He’s versatile but lacks a special skill.

• Gator Hoskins led all tight ends in touchdowncatches last season when he also saw time at fullback forMarshall. His lack of height (6-1) makes him more suitedfor a fullback/H-back role in the NFL.

• Nikita Whitlock was an All-ACC selection at defen-sive tackle, but he got work at fullback during practices forthe inaugural Medal of Honor Bowl.

Number drafted: 3



Highest pick: Kyle Juszczyk, Round 4, 130th overall, by Baltimore

Rookie starters (8 starts or more): Tommy Bohanon (7th round, N.Y. Jets)

O V E R V I E W If running backs have it toughthese days in the draft, it’s down-right dreadful for fullbacks. Only three fullbacks were taken inthe 2013 draft and that’s exactlyhow many true college fullbackswere invited to this year’s scoutingcombine. As is typically the case, it’s highlyunlikely that any fullback will get se-lected before the third day of thedraft. The big question is whether afullback goes before Round 5.

HEAD OF THE CLASSTrey Millard

Oklahoma

Despite being a fullback, Millard wasconsidered one of the key players on theOklahoma offense because of his versatility.He was used in the roles of running back,fullback and tight end at different times, andalso contributed on special teams. Millard also was a team captain and hewas a two-time All-Big 12 selection de-spite being limited to eight games in 2013because of a torn ACL in October. To illustrate what the NFL thinks ofhim, he was invited to the combine eventhough he couldn’t perform because hestill was recovering from his knee injury.

FULLBACKS/H-BACKS



Teams with biggest need at the position: Chicago, Houston, New England, N.Y. Giants, San Diego, Washington


9

1 Sammy Watkins 6-1 210 Clemson 1st

2 Mike Evans 6-5 230 Texas A&M 1st

3 Marqise Lee 6-0 190 USC 1st

4 Kelvin Benjamin 6-5 240 Florida State 1st

5 Odell Beckham Jr. 5-11 200 LSU 1st-2nd

6 Brandin Cooks 5-10 190 Oregon State 1st-2nd

7 Jordan Matthews 6-3 210 Vanderbilt 1st-2nd

8 Davante Adams 6-1 210 Fresno State 2nd-3rd

9 Jarvis Landry 5-11 205 LSU 2nd-3rd

10 Martavis Bryant 6-4 210 Clemson 2nd-3rd


• Texas A&M’s Mike Evans and Florida State’s KelvinBenjamin are both oversized wide receivers with the abilityto win one-on-one battles for jump balls. Evans, who hasbeen compared to Vincent Jackson, is the better prospectof the two because he’s got more speed.

• LSU has a pair of good prospects in Odell BeckhamJr. and Jarvis Landry. While the two have similar physicaldimensions, Beckham relies more on speed, while Landry’sgame is based more on route-running and toughness.

• USC’s Marqise Lee had a disappointing 2013 sea-son, but that was largely due to injury problems and a lackof dependable quarterbacking. But he looked like the bestwide receiver in college football in 2012 when he put upridiculous numbers (118 catches, 1,721 yards).

• A couple of smallish but explosive playmakers tokeep an eye on are Oklahoma’s Jalen Saunders (5-9, 165)and Michigan’s Jeremy Gallon (5-7, 185).

• Brandin Cooks led all NCAA wide receivers (FBSschools) with 1,730 receiving yards in 2013, then showedoff impressive speed at the combine.

Number drafted: 27



Highest pick: Tavon Austin, Round 1, 8th overall, by St. Louis

Rookie starters (8 starts or more): DeAndre Hopkins (1st round, Houston), Robert Woods (2nd, Buffalo), Aaron Dobson (2nd, New England), Terrance Williams

(3rd, Dallas), Keenan Allen (3rd, San Diego), Kenny Stills (5th, New Orleans)

O V E R V I E W That the wide receiver position isthe strongest in this year’s draft isn’tas big a question as whether there’seven a close second. The infusion of underclassmenhas made this group nothing shortof tremendous, with at least a half-dozen prospects possessing legiti-mate first-round talent. Sammy Watkins leads a groupthat offers everything, from over-sized red-zone threats to diminutivespeedsters.

HEAD OF THE CLASSSammy Watkins

Clemson

Sammy Watkins was viewed as a topNFL prospect from the time he arrived atClemson, and in 2013 he erased anydoubts that might have cropped up aftera disappointing 2012 season. Probably the best wide receiverprospect since Calvin Johnson in 2007,Watkins is a playmaker with speed andtoughness. Watkins had 101 catches for 1,464yards as a junior and capped his collegecareer with 16 catches for 227 yards andtwo touchdowns in the Orange BowlClassic against Ohio State.

WIDE RECEIVERS



Teams with biggest need at the position: Baltimore, Carolina, Indianapo-lis, Kansas City, New England, New Orleans, N.Y. Jets, St. Louis, Seattle


10

1 Eric Ebron 6-4 250 North Carolina 1st

2 A. Seferian-Jenkins 6-5 260 Washington 1st-2nd

3 Jace Amaro 6-5 265 Texas Tech 1st-2nd

4 Troy Niklas 6-6 270 Notre Dame 2nd-3rd

5 C.J. Fiedorowicz 6-5 265 Iowa 3rd-4th

6 A.C. Leonard 6-2 250 Tennessee State 3rd-4th

7 Nic Jacobs 6-5 270 McNeese State 4th-5th

8 Xavier Gimble 6-4 255 USC 4th-5th

9 Crockett Gilmore 6-6 260 Colorado State 4th-5th

10 Joe Don Duncan 6-3 270 Dixon 5th-6th


• Austin Seferian-Jenkins has been seen as a top NFLprospect for a while, but he enters the draft following a dis-appointing 2013 season when an ankle injury played a rolein his number of catches going from 69 to 36. Not helpingmatters was a foot problem that prevented him for workingout at the combine and required surgery.

• Jace Amaro caught only 32 passes in his first twoseasons at Texas Tech before he set a record for NCAAtight ends with 1,352 receiving yards on 106 receptions in2013. He lined up in the slot a majority of the time last sea-son and needs work on his blocking, but there’s no ques-tioning his pass-catching ability.

• The nephew of Hall of Famer Bruce Matthews, TroyNiklas surprised many by entering the draft after only oneseason as a starter at Notre Dame. But Niklas does have anice all-around game and showed better-than-expectedspeed at the scouting combine.

• Tennessee State’s A.C. Leonard was the fastest tightend at the combine, but NFL teams will be weighing char-acter risks after an off-the-field incident led to his departurefrom the University of Florida.

Number drafted: 16



Highest pick: Tyler Eifert, Round 1, 21st overall, by Cincinnati

Rookie starters (8 starts or more): Eifert, Ryan Griffin (6th round, Houston)

O V E R V I E W Jimmy Graham seems to havebecome the standard for NFL tightends, but there doesn’t appear to bea prospect with that kind of game-changing ability. That said, there are blue-chippass-catching prospects available,with Eric Ebron, Austin Seferian-Jenkins and Jace Amaro all possiblefirst-round picks. There also are a couple of all-around tight ends available, al-though it’s a top-heavy group.

HEAD OF THE CLASSEric EbronNorth Carolina

Eric Ebron steadily improved at NorthCarolina and in 2013 he set an ACCrecord for receiving yards in a season fora tight end with 973 yards. Ebron broke a record that belonged toVernon Davis, who went on to becomethe sixth overall pick in the 2006 draft. Ebron won’t go that high in the draftbecause he doesn’t possess Davis’ as-tounding combination of size, strengthand speed, but he should be a first-roundpick because he’s a speedy pass catcherwho still has room for improvement. Ebronalso has special teams experience.

TIGHT ENDS



Teams with biggest need at the position: Atlanta, Buffalo, Green Bay,New England, N.Y. Giants, N.Y. Jets, St. Louis, Seattle, Tennessee


11

1 Greg Robinson 6-5 330 Auburn 1st

2 Jake Matthews 6-5 310 Texas A&M 1st

3 Taylor Lewan 6-7 310 Michigan 1st

4 Zack Martin 6-4 310 Notre Dame 1st

5 Cyrus Kouandjio 6-7 320 Alabama 1st-2nd

6 Antonio Richardson 6-6 335 Tennessee 1st-2nd

7 Jack Mewhort 6-6 310 Ohio State 2nd-3rd

8 Seantrel Henderson 6-7 330 Miami (Fla.) 2nd-3rd

9 Morgan Moses 6-6 315 West Virginia 2nd-3rd

10 Billy Turner 6-5 315 North Dakota State 3rd-4th


• Jake Matthews, the son of Hall of Famer BruceMatthews, is considered by some to be an even betterprospect than Greg Robinson. As one would expect givenhis family tree, his technique is almost flawless.

• For teams who like their offensive linemen to have amean streak, Taylor Lewan is their guy, although he needsto keep his emotions in check (see Michigan State game,2013).

• Notre Dame’s Zack Martin was the talk of the SeniorBowl on the offensive side of things. The dilemma withMartin is whether to play him at tackle, where he should asolid 10-year starter, or move him inside to guard, wherehe has the chance to be a Pro Bowl regular.

• One of the most polarizing players in the draft isSeantrel Henderson. The five-star recruit looks the part andhas all the necessary physical attributes, but he badly un-derachieved at Miami amid questions about his dedication.

• Among the best small-school prospects at any posi-tion is North Dakota State’s Billy Turner, who saw sometime at guard during Senior Bowl week.

Number drafted: 21



Highest pick: Eric Fisher, Round 1, 1st overall, by Kansas City

Rookie starters (8 starts or more): Fisher, Lane Johnson (1st, Philadelphia),D.J. Fluker (1st, San Diego), Justin Pugh (1st, N.Y. Giants), David Bakhtiari (4th,

Green Bay), Jordan Mills (5th, Chicago)

O V E R V I E W Offensive tackles Eric Fisher,Luke Joeckel and Lane Johnsonwere selected first, second andfourth overall in the 2013 draft, butit’s fair to wonder whether any ofthem would even be among the topthree prospects at their positionthis year. That speaks to a lack of elite tal-ent at the top of last year’s draft, buteven more so to the tremendousgroup of offensive tackles availablethis year.

HEAD OF THE CLASSGreg Robinson

Auburn

Unlike some of the other top names inthe offensive tackle class, Greg Robinsonis somewhat of a late bloomer. He arrived at Auburn after havingplayed guard in high school, and that foronly two years because he used to play onthe defensive line. After starting 11 games at left tackle as aredshirt freshman, Robinson had a monster2013 season when he helped pave the wayfor Auburn’s tremendous running game. Robinson, who declared for the draft asa redshirt sophomore, made the SECHonor Roll the past two years.

OFFENSIVE TACKLES



Teams with biggest need at the position: Atlanta, Buffalo, Carolina,Detroit, Houston, Miami, St. Louis, Seattle


12

1 David Yankey 6-6 315 Stanford 1st-2nd

2 Xavier Su’a-Filo 6-4 305 UCLA 1st-2nd

3 Gabe Jackson 6-3 335 Mississippi State 2nd-3rd

4 Cyril Richardson 6-5 330 Baylor 2nd-3rd

5 Brandon Thomas 6-3 315 Clemson 2nd-3rd

6 Trai Turner 6-3 310 LSU 3rd-4th

7 Dakota Dozier 6-4 315 Furman 3rd-4th

8 Jon Halapio 6-3 325 Florida 3rd-4th

9 Anthony Steen 6-3 315 Alabama 3rd-4th

10 Joel Bitonio 6-4 300 Nevada 4th-5th


• Xavier Su’a-Filo started as a true freshman at UCLAbefore going on a two-year Mormon mission, then pickedup where he left off. Su’a-Filo played mostly left tackle in2013, but has a chance to be the first guard taken.

• Gabe Jackson, whose father was his high schoolcoach, is the classic mauler at guard. He’s the largestprospect among our top 10 guards but actually movespretty well for a 335-pounder.

• Cyril Richardson started at left tackle for Baylor be-fore switching inside to guard. Richardson, a two-time All-American selection, has tackle size but his foot quicknesshas come under scrutiny.

• Dakota Dozier, who plays the cello, lined up mostlyat left tackle at Furman but his physical stature makes himbetter suited for guard at the NFL level. He’s a work inprogress and didn’t face great competition in college, buthe has a lot of upside.

• Anthony Steen, one of the lesser-known members ofAlabama’s star-studded offensive line of 2012, is a savvylineman who could wind up at center in the NFL.

Number drafted: 14



Highest pick: Jonathan Cooper, Round 1, 7th overall, by Arizona

Rookie starters (8 starts or more): Chance Warmack (1st round, Tennessee), Kyle Long (1st, Chicago), Brian Winters (3rd, N.Y. Jets), Hugh Thornton

(3rd, Indianapolis)

O V E R V I E W Two guards — Jonathan Cooperand Chance Warmack — wereamong the top 10 picks in the 2013NFL draft, but that was an aberra-tion because guards usually don’tget taken high in the first round. It’s back to normal in 2014, withno guard likely to get selected in thefirst half of the first round. There’s not a lot separating thetop three prospects at the position— David Yankey, Xavier Su’a-Filoand Gabe Jackson.

HEAD OF THE CLASSDavid Yankey

Stanford

Born in Australia, Yankey saw action asa true freshman before his season wascut short by an injury. After starting the last three years andbeing a two-time All-American, Yankeydecided to enter the draft even though hehad a year of eligibility left. Yankey played left tackle in 2012 andallowed only one sack but moved backinside to guard last fall and that’s wherehis NFL future lies. Yankey has room for improvement, buthe possesses of nice blend of strengthand athletic ability.

OFFENSIVE GUARDS



Teams with biggest need at the position: Buffalo, Cleveland, Dallas,Denver, Jacksonville, Kansas City, Miami, Seattle, Tampa Bay


13

1 Marcus Martin 6-3 320 USC 2nd-3rd

2 Travis Swanson 6-5 310 Arkansas 3rd-4th

3 Weston Richburg 6-3 300 Colorado State 3rd-4th

4 Bryan Stork 6-4 315 Florida State 3rd-4th

5 Tyler Larsen 6-4 315 Utah State 4th-5th

6 Gabe Ikard 6-4 305 Oklahoma 5th-6th

7 Jonotthan Harrison 6-3 305 Florida 6th-7th

8 James Stone 6-4 305 Tennessee 6th-7th

9 Corey Linsley 6-3 295 Ohio State 6th-7th

10 Matt Armstrong 6-2 300 Grand Valley State 6th-7th

SCOUTING N O T E B O O K • The younger brother of Baltimore Ravens defensivetackle Cody Larsen, Tyler Larsen started four years atUtah State and then really helped his cause with a strongshowing at the Senior Bowl.

• Travis Swanson has limitations when it comes to ath-letic ability, but he’s got great intangibles (two-time teamcaptain, academic honor roll), is durable (started 50 gamesin college) and faced great competition in the SEC.

• A four-year starter who set a school record with 50career starts, Weston Richburg became the first ColoradoState player since 2004 (tight end Joel Dreessen) invited toplay in the Senior Bowl.

• Bryan Stork was a high school tight end before hemoved to the offensive line at Florida State. After startingat guard, he eventually moved inside and won the Riming-ton Trophy as the best center in the nation in 2013.

• Matt Armstrong, the Division II winner of the Riming-ton Trophy, played every position on the offensive line dur-ing his career at Grand Valley State and became the firstplayer from that school ever invited to the combine.

Number drafted: 5



Highest pick: Travis Frederick, Round 1, 31st overall, by Dallas

Rookie starters (8 starts or more): Frederick, Brian Schwenke (4th, Tennessee)

O V E R V I E W Along with fullback, center re-mains among the most overlookedpositions in the draft. Only five centers were taken inthe 2013 draft, although Wisconsin’sTravis Frederick became a first-round selection when he was cho-sen 31st overall by the DallasCowboys. There very well might be morecenters selected this year, althoughthere doesn’t appear to be a first-round prospect in the group.

HEAD OF THE CLASSMarcus Martin

USC

Marcus Martin wasted little time mak-ing an impact at USC, starting 10 gamesat guard as a true freshman in 2011. Hestarted again at guard in 2012 beforemaking the switch to center last season. In his only season at center, Martinplayed well enough to earn first-team All-Pac-12 honors. His season ended when hesustained a dislocated kneecap and highankle sprain in the finale against UCLA, al-though the injury didn’t require surgery. Martin isn’t quite a finished product atcenter, but possesses the size and athleticability to become a quality NFL starter.

CENTERS



Teams with biggest need at the position: Baltimore, New Orleans, N.Y. Giants, San Francisco


14

1 Aaron Donald 6-1 285 Pittsburgh 1st

2 Louis Nix III 6-2 330 Notre Dame 1st

3 Timmy Jernigan 6-2 300 Florida State 1st

4 Ra’Shede Hageman 6-6 310 Minnesota 1st-2nd

5 Stephon Tuitt 6-5 305 Notre Dame 1st-2nd

6 Anthony Johnson 6-2 310 LSU 2nd-3rd

7 Will Sutton 6-0 305 Arizona State 2nd-3rd

8 Dominique Easley 6-2 290 Florida 2nd-3rd

9 DaQuan Jones 6-4 320 Penn State 2nd-3rd

10 Kelcy Quarles 6-4 295 South Carolina 2nd-3rd


• Louis Nix III had a breakout season in 2012 when heplayed a big role in Notre Dame’s run to the BCS Champi-onship Game, but wasn’t quite as dominant last seasonbefore he had surgery for a torn meniscus. Even then, forteams looking for a nose tackle, he’s the guy.

• Timmy Jernigan, who started only two games atFlorida State before emerging as a game-changer in 2013,is similar to Aaron Donald in that he’s a tad undersized buthas great quickness and tenacity.

• When it comes to looking the part, nobody topsRa’Shede Hageman. He could play inside in a 4-3 or out-side in a 3-4 and has perhaps more upside than any otherdefensive tackle in the draft.

• Stephon Tuitt played defensive end in Notre Dame’s3-4 scheme and had 12 sacks in 2012, barely falling shortof Justin Tuck’s single-season school record. Like Hage-man, Tuitt fits as a 4-3 DT or a 3-4 DE.

• LSU offers a couple of intriguing prospects in AnthonyJohnson and Ego Ferguson, who both have the physicalattributes to become better NFL than college players.

Number drafted: 17


Picks by round: 4 in the first, 2 in the second, 4 in the third, 1 in the fourth,2 in the fifth, 2 in the sixth, 2 in the seventh

Highest pick: Sheldon Richardson, Round 1, 13th overall, by N.Y. Jets

Rookie starters (8 starts or more): Richardson, Star Lotulelei(1st, Carolina), Bennie Logan (3rd, Philadelphia), Akeem Spence (3rd,

Tampa Bay), Chris Jones (6th, drafted by Houston, started with New England)

O V E R V I E W Defensive tackle is one of thosepositions in this year’s draft that ap-pears to have greatly benefited fromthe influx of underclassmen. There were four defensive tacklestaken in the first round in 2013, andit’s easy to envision a scenariowhere that number is topped thisspring. This year’s crop offers blue-chipprospects of all types, from athleticpass rushers like Aaron Donald torun stuffers like Louis Nix III.

HEAD OF THE CLASSAaron Donald

Pittsburgh

The most decorated player in collegefootball in 2013 as the winner of the Out-land, Chuck Bednarik and BronkoNagurski awards, Aaron Donald followedup his sensational season with tremen-dous performances at the Senior Bowland the scouting combine. Donald has drawn comparisons to bothformer Vikings star John Randle and cur-rent Bengals star Geno Atkins. Like thosetwo, he’s an undersized defensive tacklewho relies on tremendous quickness. Because of his stature, Donald needs togo to a team that employs a 4-3 scheme.

DEFENSIVE TACKLES



Teams with biggest need at the position: Chicago, Cincinnati, Dallas,Minnesota, New England, Oakland, Pittsburgh, San Diego


15

1 Jadeveon Clowney 6-5 265 South Carolina 1st

2 Dee Ford 6-2 250 Auburn 1st-2nd

3 Kony Ealy 6-4 275 Missouri 1st-2nd

4 Trent Murphy 6-5 250 Stanford 2nd-3rd

5 Scott Crichton 6-3 275 Oregon State 2nd-3rd

6 Kareem Martin 6-6 270 North Carolina 3rd-4th

7 Marcus Smith 6-3 250 Louisville 3rd-4th

8 Jackson Jeffcoat 6-3 245 Texas 4th-5th

9 Brent Urban 6-7 295 Virginia 4th-5th

10 Ed Stinson 6-3 285 Alabama 4th-5th


• While it was his Missouri teammate Michael Samwho earned SEC Co-Defensive Player of the Year honorsand later attracted all the attention, Kony Ealy clearly isthe better NFL prospect. Ealy, who had 9.5 sacks in 2013,is athletic enough to play OLB in a 3-4. • After three rather quiet seasons at Auburn, Dee Fordemerged as a pass-rushing force in 2013. At 6-2, 250, Fordis undersized, and he could wind up playing outside line-backer in a 3-4 defense. • Stanford has a pair of interesting, albeit different,prospects. Trent Murphy recorded 25 sacks the past twoseasons while playing mostly outside linebacker in a 3-4but probably isn’t athletic enough to play that role in theNFL. Josh Mauro, meanwhile, is a bigger prospect whocould play end in a 3-4 or tackle in a 4-3. • The son of longtime Dallas Cowboys defensive endJim Jeffcoat, Jackson Jeffcoat failed to live up to his ad-vance billing at Texas until he earned the Ted HendricksAward as a senior. • Kareem Martin broke out as a pass-rushing force with11.5 sacks in his senior season, but he might stand outmore as a run-stopping defensive end.

Number drafted: 33



Highest pick: Dion Jordan, Round 1, 3rd overall, by Miami

Rookie starters (8 starts or more): Ziggy Ansah (1st round, Detroit)

O V E R V I E W The 2013 draft was loaded withstud pass-rushing defensive ends,with five going in the first round. Al-though it includes the top defensiveend prospects in many years, thisyear’s class doesn’t come close tomatching it in terms of depth. In fact, Jadeveon Clowney lookslike the only sure-fire first-round pickin this year’s group, even thoughhe’s likely to be joined by one or twoothers. It is, however, a top-heavyclass.

HEAD OF THE CLASSJadeveon Clowney

South Carolina

Probably no prospect has been scruti-nized as much as Jadeveon Clowney, whohas been viewed as the best prospect incollege football for a couple of years now. Clowney would have been the firstoverall pick in the 2013 draft but wasn’teligible because he wasn’t three years re-moved from high school. So he returnedto South Carolina and was knocked fornot having the kind of dominating seasonhis ability suggests he should have had. The bottom line is that Clowney is afreakish kind of athlete with the ability todominate at any level.

DEFENSIVE ENDS



Teams with biggest need at the position: Baltimore, Dallas, Green Bay,Oakland, Pittsburgh, San Francisco, Washington


16

1 Khalil Mack 6-3 250 Buffalo 1st

2 Anthony Barr 6-5 255 UCLA 1st

3 Ryan Shazier 6-1 235 Ohio State 1st-2nd

4 Jerry Attaochu 6-3 250 Georgia Tech 2nd-3rd

5 Kyle Van Noy 6-3 245 BYU 2nd-3rd

6 Carl Bradford 6-1 250 Arizona State 2nd-3rd

7 Adrian Hubbard 6-6 255 Alabama 2nd-3rd

8 Trevor Reilly 6-3 235 Utah 2nd-3rd

9 Telvin Smith 6-3 220 Florida State 2nd-3rd

10 Jordan Tripp 6-3 235 Montana 3rd-4th


• Anthony Barr agreed to switch from running back tolinebacker for his final two seasons at UCLA, and the movepaid off in a big way. He racked up 23.5 sacks over thepast two seasons and only figures to get better with moreexperience on defense.

• Ryan Shazier, whose father has been the Miami Dol-phins team chaplain the past five years, was an active de-fender playing inside and outside at Ohio State, but hemight not have the size to play anything but outside line-backer in a 4-3 scheme. Regardless, Shazier is a play-maker with speed.

• Trevor Reilly, who played defensive end and line-backer at Utah, is one of the most interesting prospects atany position. He’s 26, is married with two children, serveda two-year mission in Sweden, and got into the GuinnessBook of World Records by chowing down a raw onion in 1minute, 35 seconds — 65 seconds better than the oldmark. Oh, and he can rush the passer.

• Telvin Smith is an athletic linebacker and he led na-tional champion Florida State in tackles in 2013, but he hasto play weakside linebacker in a 4-3 or move to safety.

Number drafted: 12



Highest pick: Jarvis Jones, Round 1, 17th overall, by Pittsburgh

Rookie starters (8 starts or more): Jones, Jamie Collins (2nd, New England), Sio Moore (3rd, Oakland)

O V E R V I E W In terms of top-end talent anddepth, this shapes up as a banneryear for this position. Khalil Mack and Anthony Barrboth could or should be top 10picks, and they could be joined inthe first round by two or three otheroutside linebackers. There should be good prospectsavailable through Round 3, evenwithout including college defensiveends who will be moving to outsidelinebacker in 3-4 schemes.

HEAD OF THE CLASSKhalil Mack

Buffalo

It’s really difficult at this time to under-stand how it could be possible that Mackdidn’t receive a scholarship offer from anyDivision I-A school other than Buffalo. Mack became a star at Buffalo, settinga Bowl Subdivision career record with 16forced fumbles and tying the record fortackles for loss with 75. Mack also cameup big in games against Ohio State andBaylor. Mack is a tremendous athlete with agreat size/speed ratio, and he followed upa tremendous college career with a greatshowing at his Pro Day.

OUTSIDE LINEBACKERS



Teams with biggest need at the position: Arizona, Atlanta, Carolina, Dal-las, Jacksonville, Miami, Minnesota, Philadelphia, Tampa Bay, Tennessee


17

1 C.J. Mosley 6-2 235 Alabama 1st

2 Chris Borland 5-11 250 Wisconsin 2nd-3rd

3 Shayne Skov 6-2 245 Stanford 2nd-3rd

4 Preston Brown 6-1 250 Louisville 3rd-4th

5 Max Bullough 6-3 250 Michigan State 3rd-4th

6 Yawin Smallwood 6-2 245 Connecticut 3rd-4th

7 Christian Jones 6-3 240 Florida State 4th-5th

8 James Morris 6-1 240 Iowa 4th-5th

9 Avery Williamson 6-1 245 Kentucky 5th-6th

10 Lamin Barrow 6-1 235 LSU 5th-6th


• Chris Borland recorded 100 tackles or more each ofthe last three years and forced 15 fumbles during his Wis-consin career. Because of his great instincts and lack ofsize, he has been compared to longtime Miami Dolphinslinebacker Zach Thomas.

• Shayne Skov re-established himself in 2013 as abona fide NFL prospect after he sustained a torn ACL in2011 and didn’t play up to standards the following season.Skov is a physical defender who’s a good fit for a 3-4.

• Yawin Smallwood led UConn in tackles the last twoyears and has the athletic ability to conceivably be usedas an outside linebacker in the NFL.

• Christian Jones played outside linebacker at FloridaState before switching inside in 2013. His best fit in theNFL looks like inside linebacker in a 3-4 scheme.

• Max Bullough was a team captain at Michigan State,just like his father, and he’s a hard-nosed defender. He wassuspended for the Rose Bowl after making 40 consecutivestarts but said he addressed the issue with NFL teams atthe combine.

Number drafted: 13



Highest pick: Alec Ogletree, Round 1, 30th overall, by St. Louis

Rookie starters (8 starts or more): Ogletree, Manti Te’o (2nd, San Diego), Kiko Alonso (2nd, Buffalo), Jon Bostic (2nd, Chicago),

Vince Williams (6th, Pittsburgh)

O V E R V I E W With the great success enjoyedby Luke Kuechly with the CarolinaPanthers, the search always is onfor an inside linebacker who canhave that kind of impact. C.J. Mosley just might be thatkind of guy, but the bad news isthat there appears to be a majordrop-off after him. There were six inside linebackerstaken in the first two rounds in2013, and the total won’t comeclose this year.

HEAD OF THE CLASSC.J. Mosley

Alabama

The winner of the 2013 Dick ButkusAward as the nation’s best linebacker,C.J. Mosley is among the safestprospects in this year’s draft. Mosley played four years at Alabamaafter seeing action as a true freshman andhas all the necessary physical attributesplus the intangibles. He’s known as a very quiet guy, andthat can be considered one of the fewknocks on his game. He also battledsome injuries at Alabama, including a dis-located elbow during the 2011 season.Overall, though, he’s a great prospect.

INSIDE LINEBACKERS



Teams with biggest need at the position: Denver, Houston, Indianapolis,Minnesota, New Orleans, Philadelphia, Tennessee, Washington


18

1 Justin Gilbert 6-0 200 Oklahoma State 1st

2 Darqueze Dennard 5-11 200 Michigan State 1st

3 Bradley Roby 5-11 190 Ohio State 1st-2nd

4 Jason Verrett 5-10 175 TCU 1st-2nd

5 Lamarcus Joyner 5-8 190 Florida State 1st-2nd

6 Kyle Fuller 6-0 190 Virginia Tech 1st-2nd

7 Loucheiz Purifoy 6-0 190 Florida 2nd-3rd

8 Stan Jean-Baptiste 6-3 215 Nebraska 2nd-3rd

9 Bashaud Breeland 5-11 195 Clemson 3rd-4th

10 Pierre Desir 6-1 200 Lindenwood 3rd-4th


• Michigan State’s Darqueze Dennard won the 2013Jim Thorpe Award as the best defensive back in collegefootball and is considered by some the best cornerback inthis draft. Dennard is a sound technician who’s also goodin run support, but lacks elite speed.

• On pure talent, Bradley Roby is as good a corner-back as there is in this draft, but he’s coming off a disap-pointing 2013 season that ended with several questionsabout him sitting out the Orange Bowl despite his claimsof a knee injury.

• Lamarcus Joyner played both safety and cornerbackat Florida State and is a dynamic playmaker (he led FSUwith 5.5 sacks in 2013). He’s only 5-8, though, and is verysimilar to Arizona Cardinals DB Tyrann Mathieu.

• Jason Verrett is as good in coverage as any corner-back in this draft but his NFL potential could be limited bya lack of ideal size. He could be an ideal slot corner.

• The wild card at cornerback is Oklahoma’s AaronColvin, who was a likely first-round pick before he tore anACL during Senior Bowl practices.

Number drafted: 28



Highest pick: Dee Milliner, Round 1, 9th overall, by N.Y. Jets

Rookie starters (8 starts or more): Milliner, Desmond Trufant (1st, Atlanta), Johnthan Banks (2nd, Tampa Bay), David Amerson (2nd,

Washington), Dwayne Gratz (3rd, Jacksonville), Tyrann Mathieu (3rd, Arizona)

O V E R V I E W After the success enjoyed by theSeattle Seahawks, oversized cor-nerbacks figure to be in heavy de-mand moving forward, but thosejust aren’t that easy to find. There are a couple available thisyear, most notably Stanley Jean-Baptiste and Keith McGill, but themost talented cornerbacks in thisdraft are closer to the 6-foot range. That said, there is a lot of depthin this year’s class, although thereisn’t a top-10 lock in the bunch.

HEAD OF THE CLASSJustin GilbertOklahoma State

While he’s not a jumbo-sized corner-back like Richard Sherman, JustinGilbert is plenty tall enough to succeedin the NFL. What matters, though, is Gilbert’splaymaking ability, which was evidencedby his seven interceptions in 2013 andhis six career kickoff returns for touch-downs, one shy of the NCAA record heldby C.J. Spiller. Gilbert just might have earned the No.1 spot among cornerback prospects byposting a time of 4.37 in the 40-yarddash at the combine.

CORNERBACKS



Teams with biggest need at the position: Carolina, Chicago, Dallas, De-troit, New Orleans, Oakland, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, San Diego, Tennessee


19

1 Ha Ha Clinton-Dix 6-1 210 Alabama 1st

2 Calvin Pryor 6-2 210 Louisville 1st-2nd

3 Jimmie Ward 5-11 190 Northern Illinois 2nd-3rd

4 Deone Bucannon 6-1 215 Washington State 2nd-3rd

5 Jonathan Dowling 6-2 200 Western Kentucky 3rd-4th

6 Terrence Brooks 5-11 195 Florida State 3rd-4th

7 Dontae Johnson 6-2 200 N.C. State 3rd-4th

8 Ed Reynolds 6-2 205 Stanford 3th-4th

9 Dion Bailey 6-0 200 USC 4th-5th

10 Craig Loston 6-1 215 LSU 4th-5th


• Calvin Pryor had three interceptions in 2013 when hewas a first-team All-American Athletic Conference selec-tion, but his coverage might pale in comparison to hisphysical toughness.

• Dion Bailey played linebacker at USC in 2011 and2012 before moving to safety last fall. Bailey had five picksin 2013, so he has playmaking ability. The question withBailey is whether he’s fast enough.

• Washington State’s Deone Bucannon is one of thebiggest safeties in this draft and he’s also one of thebiggest hitters. Bucannon also showed playmaking skillsin 2013 when he had six interceptions.

• Northern Illinois’ Jimmie Ward lacks ideal size, but heaveraged almost 100 tackles the last three years and hadseven interceptions in 2013. He also blocked three puntsas a freshman in 2010.

• Jonathan Dowling, who wound up at Western Ken-tucky after being dismissed from Florida for a violation ofteam rules, had nine interceptions and eight forced fumblesover the past two seasons.

Number drafted: 23Number on the season-ending roster of the team that drafted them: 21Picks by round: 3 in the first, 2 in the second, 4 in the third, 3 in the fourth, 3 in the fifth, 4 in the sixth, 4 in the seventhHighest pick: Kenny Vaccaro, Round 1, 15th overall, by New OrleansRookie starters (8 starts or more): Vaccaro, Eric Reid (1st, San Francisco),

Matt Elam (1st, Baltimore), Jon Cyprien (2nd, Jacksonville), D.J. Swearinger(2nd, Houston), T.J. McDonald (2nd, St. Louis), Josh Evans (6th, Jacksonville)

O V E R V I E W At a time when certain positions(halfbacks, fullbacks, centers) arelosing value, the importance ofsafeties seems to be increasing. It’s a good thing then that thisyear’s crop of available safetieslooks like a really good one. There’s top-end quality with HaHa Clinton-Dix and Calvin Pryor,who should battle for top spot at theposition, and also good depththrough the first two or three roundsof the draft.

HEAD OF THE CLASSHa Ha Clinton-Dix

Alabama

Ha’Sean Clinton-Dix arrived at Ala-bama as the top high school safety in thecountry, according to several recruitingservices, and he didn’t disappoint. Clinton-Dix got on the field as a truefreshman before leading the 2012 na-tional champions with five interceptions.While Clinton-Dix didn’t have quite asproductive a junior season — he missedtwo games because of a team suspen-sion and finished with two interceptions— he’s got the skills, particularly in cov-erage, to become a Pro Bowl player inthe NFL.

SAFETIES



Teams with biggest need at the position: Atlanta, Carolina, Chicago,Dallas, Detroit, Green Bay, Houston, Indianapolis, N.Y. Jets, Washington


20

1 P Tom Hornsey 6-3 220 Memphis 5th-6th

2 K Chris Boswell 6-2 185 Rice 5th-6th

3 P Cody Mandell 6-2 215 Alabama 6th-7th

4 K Anthony Fera 6-1 210 Texas 6th-7th

5 P Pat O’Donnell 6-4 220 Miami (Fla.) 7th-FA

6 K Cairo Santos 5-8 165 Tulane 7th-FA

7 P Richie Leone 6-3 210 Houston 7th-FA

8 P Steven Clark 6-5 230 Auburn 7th-FA

9 K Zach Hocker 6-0 190 Arkansas 7th-FA

10 LS Marcus Heit 6-3 260 Kansas State 7th-FA


• Chris Boswell ranks as perhaps the best kickerprospect because of his range — he made 13 kicks of 50yards or more at Rice and 54 of his 70 kickoffs in 2013 re-sulted in touchbacks. Boswell, though, made only 74 per-cent of his field goal attempts the past two years.

• Cairo Santos, a native of Brazil, won the Lou GrozaAward in 2012 after being a perfect 21-for-21 on field goalattempts, including a long of 57 yards. Santos wasn’tnearly as good in 2013 but he remains a good prospect.

• Cody Mandell became Alabama’s punter as a walk-on true freshman in 2010 and made dramatic improvementas his college career went on. His average of 47.1 yards in2013 would have put him in a tie for No. 2 nationally hadhe had enough punts to qualify.

• Pat O’Donnell punted one season at Miami after trans-ferring from Cincinnati and averaged 47.1 yards before heput on a show at the combine with a 4.62 40-yard dash.

• Penn State transfer Anthony Fera made 21 of 22 fieldgoals for Texas in 2013, but he attempted only two fieldgoals of at least 50 yards during his college career.

Number drafted: 4



Highest pick: P Jeff Locke, Round 5, 155th overall, by Minnesota

Rookie regulars (8 games or more): Locke, P Sam Martin (5th, Detroit), K Caleb Sturgis (5th, Miami)

O V E R V I E W Every once in a while, a kicker orpunter has enough potential to meritgetting drafted before the fifthround, but it doesn’t appear that willbe the case in 2014. A total of 10 specialists — fivepunters, four kickers and one long-snapper — were invited to thescouting combine, but no one trulystands out. As usual, expect between fourand six specialists to hear theirname called during the draft.

HEAD OF THE CLASSTom Hornsey

Memphis

Hornsey’s nickname is “Aussie,” whichis fitting because he was born and grewup in Australia. He played Australian Rules Footballand tennis in high school and also spenttwo years at an academy that teaches thefundamentals of punting. Hornsey obvi-ously was a good student. Hornsey punted four years for Mem-phis, finished with a career average of43.1 yards and, most impressive, had 101punts inside the 20 compared to only 12touchbacks. Hornsey won the Ray GuyAward last season.

SPECIALISTS



Teams with biggest need at the position: Chicago (P), Cleveland (K), De-troit (K), New Orleans (K), Philadelphia (K), Pittsburgh (P), Tennessee (K)


No. Pos. Name College Ht. Wt.

1. DE JADEVEON CLOWNEY* South Carolina 6-5 265

2. WR SAMMY WATKINS* Clemson 6-1 210

3. T GREG ROBINSON* Auburn 6-5 330

4. OLB KHALIL MACK Buffalo 6-3 250

5. T JAKE MATTHEWS Texas A&M 6-5 310

6. DT AARON DONALD Pittsburgh 6-1 285

7. CB JUSTIN GILBERT Oklahoma State 6-0 200

8. ILB C.J. MOSLEY Alabama 6-2 235

9. T TAYLOR LEWAN Michigan 6-7 310

10. CB DARQUEZE DENNARD Michigan State 5-11 200

11. QB BLAKE BORTLES* Central Florida 6-5 230

12. WR MIKE EVANS* Texas A&M 6-5 230

13. WR MARQISE LEE* USC 6-0 190

14. DT LOUIS NIX III* Notre Dame 6-2 330

15. DT TIMMY JERNIGAN* Florida State 6-2 300

16. QB TEDDY BRIDGEWATER Louisville 6-2 215

17. QB JOHNNY MANZIEL* Texas A&M 6-0 205

18. OLB ANTHONY BARR UCLA 6-5 255

19. S HA HA CLINTON-DIX* Alabama 6-1 210

20. S CALVIN PRYOR* Louisville 6-2 210

21. WR KELVIN BENJAMIN* Florida State 6-5 240

22. WR ODELL BECKHAM JR.* LSU 5-11 200

23. T ZACK MARTIN Notre Dame 6-4 310

24. TE ERIC EBRON* North Carolina 6-4 250

25. CB BRADLEY ROBY* Ohio State 5-11 190

26. DT RA’SHEDE HAGEMAN Minnesota 6-6 310

27. CB JASON VERRETT TCU 5-10 175

28. DE DEE FORD Auburn 6-2 250

29. DT STEPHON TUITT* Notre Dame 6-5 305

30. T CYRUS KOUANDJIO* Alabama 6-7 320

31. DE KONY EALY Missouri 6-4 275

32. WR BRANDIN COOKS* Oregon State 5-10 190

33. G DAVID YANKEY* Stanford 6-6 315

34. RB TRE MASON* Auburn 5-8 205

35. OLB RYAN SHAZIER* Ohio State 6-1 235

36. G XAVIER SU’A-FILO* UCLA 6-4 305

37. CB LAMARCUS JOYNER Florida State 5-8 190

38. CB KYLE FULLER Virginia Tech 6-0 190

39. S JIMMIE WARD Northern Illinois 5-11 190

40. ILB CHRIS BORLAND Wisconsin 5-11 250

41. RB CARLOS HYDE Ohio State 6-0 230

42. TE AUSTIN SEFERIAN-JENKINS* Washington 6-5 260

43. OLB JERRY ATTAOCHU Georgia Tech 6-3 250

44. TE JACE AMARO* Texas Tech 6-5 265

45. T ANTONIO RICHARDSON* Tennessee 6-6 335

46. RB KA’DEEM CAREY* Arizona 5-9 205

47. RB JEREMY HILL* LSU 6-1 235

48. QB DEREK CARR Fresno State 6-2 215

49. CB LOUCHEIZ PURIFOY* Florida 6-0 190

50. OLB KYLE VAN NOY BYU 6-3 245

No. Pos. Name College Ht. Wt.

51. WR JORDAN MATTHEWS Vanderbilt 6-3 210

52. WR DAVANTE ADAMS* Fresno State 6-1 210

53. QB ZACH METTENBERGER LSU 6-5 225

54. S DEONE BUCANNON Washington State 6-1 215

55. OLB CARL BRADFORD Arizona State 6-1 250

56. DE TRENT MURPHY Stanford 6-5 250

57. OLB ADRIAN HUBBARD Alabama 6-6 255

58. CB STAN JEAN-BAPTISTE Nebraska 6-3 215

59. WR JARVIS LANDRY* LSU 5-11 205

60. DE SCOTT CRICHTON* Oregon State 6-3 275

61. T JACK MEWHORT Ohio State 6-6 310

62. T MORGAN MOSES West Virginia 6-6 315

63. RB BISHOP SANKEY* Washington 5-9 210

64. G GABE JACKSON Mississippi State 6-3 335

65. WR MARTAVIS BRYANT* Clemson 6-4 210

66. RB DEVONTA FREEMAN* Florida State 5-8 205

67. ILB SHAYNE SKOV Stanford 6-2 245

68. DT ANTHONY JOHNSON* LSU 6-2 310

69. RB LACHE SEASTRUNK* Baylor 5-9 200

70. WR ALLEN ROBINSON* Penn State 6-2 220

71. C MARCUS MARTIN* USC 6-3 320

72. DT WILL SUTTON Arizona State 6-0 305

73. DT DOMINIQUE EASLEY Florida 6-2 290

74. WR DONTE MONCRIEF* Mississippi 6-2 220

75. TE TROY NIKLAS* Notre Dame 6-6 270

76. CB BASHAUD BREELAND* Clemson 5-11 195

77. CB PIERRE DESIR Lindenwood 6-1 200

78. CB KEITH McGILL Utah 6-3 215

79. ILB PRESTON BROWN Louisville 6-1 250

80. OLB TREVOR REILLY Utah 6-3 235

81. T SEANTREL HENDERSON Miami (Fla.) 6-7 330

82. QB JIMMY GAROPPOLO Eastern Illinois 6-2 225

83. OLB TELVIN SMITH Florida State 6-3 220

84. DT DaQUAN JONES Penn State 6-4 320

85. DE KAREEM MARTIN North Carolina 6-6 270

86. DT KELCY QUARLES* South Carolina 6-4 295

87. RB CHARLES SIMS West Virginia 6-0 215

88. RB TERRANCE WEST* Towson 5-9 225

89. OLB JORDAN TRIPP Montana 6-3 235

90. DE MARCUS SMITH Louisville 6-3 250

91. C TRAVIS SWANSON Arkansas 6-5 310

92. RB ANDRE WILLIAMS Boston College 5-11 230

93. T BILLY TURNER North Dakota State 6-5 315

94. G CYRIL RICHARDSON Baylor 6-5 330

95. G BRANDON THOMAS Clemson 6-3 315

96. WR PAUL RICHARDSON Colorado 6-0 175

97. QB DAVID FALES San Jose State 6-2 210

98. C WESTON RICHBURG Colorado State 6-3 300

99. DE JACKSON JEFFCOAT Texas 6-3 245

100. G TRAI TURNER* LSU 6-3 310

THE TOP 100The following is Draft Digest’s Top 100 ranking of NFL prospects for the 2014 draft, as of March 28. Underclassmen are noted with an asterisk (*).

Prospects are listed in a “best prospect available” order, not as a prediction of where they will get drafted.

21

QUARTERBACKSTajh Boyd, 6-1, 220, ClemsonJordan Lynch, 6-0, 215, Northern IllinoisJeff Mathews, 6-4, 225, CornellA.J. McCarron, 6-3, 220, AlabamaStephen Morris, 6-2, 215, Miami (Fla.)Aaron Murray, 6-0, 205, GeorgiaBryn Renner, 6-3, 230, North CarolinaTom Savage, 6-4, 230, PittsburghConnor Shaw, 6-0, 205, South CarolinaBrett Smith, 6-2, 205, WyomingLogan Thomas, 6-6, 250, Virginia TechDustin Vaughan, 6-5, 235, West Texas A&MKeith Wenning, 6-3, 220, Ball State

HALFBACKSAntonio Andrews, 5-10, 225, Western KentuckyDri Archer, 5-8, 173, Kent StateGeorge Atkinson III, 6-1, 220, Notre DameKapri Bibbs, 5-9, 210, Colorado StateAlfred Blue, 6-2, 225, LSUTim Cornett, 6-0, 210, UNLVIsaiah Crowell, 5-11, 225, Alabama StateTimothy Flanders, 5-9, 205, Sam Houston St.David Fluellen, 5-11, 225, ToledoTyler Gaffney, 5-11, 220, StanfordMarion Grice, 6-0, 210, Arizona StateStorm Johnson, 6-0, 210, Central FloridaHenry Josey, 5-8, 195, MissouriJerick McKinnon, 5-9, 210, Georgia SouthernAdam Muema, 5-10, 200, San Diego StateRajion Neal, 5-11, 210, TennesseeLaDarius Perkins, 5-7, 195, Mississippi StateSilas Redd, 5-10, 210, USCJerome Smith, 5-11, 220, SyracuseLorenzo Taliaferro, 6-0, 230, Coastal CarolinaDe’Anthony Thomas, 5-9, 175, OregonJames White, 5-9, 205, WisconsinJames Wilder Jr., 6-3, 230, Florida StateDamien Williams, 5-11, 220, Oklahoma

FULLBACKS/H-BACKSJ.C. Copeland, 5-11, 270, LSURyan Hewitt, 6-4, 245, StanfordGator Hoskins, 6-1, 245, MarshallTrey Millard, 6-2, 245, OklahomaJay Prosch, 6-1, 255, Auburn

WIDE RECEIVERSJared Abbrederis, 6-1, 195, WisconsinChris Boyd, 6-4, 205, VanderbiltJohn Brown, 5-10, 180, Pittsburg StatePhilly Brown, 5-11, 180, Ohio StateIsaiah Burse, 5-10, 190, Fresno StateTrey Burton, 6-2, 224, FloridaMichael Campanaro, 5-9, 190, Wake ForestBrandon Coleman, 6-6, 225, RutgersKain Colter, 5-10, 200, NorthwesternDamian Copeland, 5-11, 185, LouisvilleMike Davis, 6-0, 195, TexasBruce Ellington, 5-9, 195, South CarolinaQuincy Enunwa, 6-2, 225, NebraskaShaq Evans, 6-1, 215, UCLABennie Fowler, 6-1, 215, Michigan StateAustin Franklin, 5-11, 190, New Mexico StateJeremy Gallon, 5-7, 185, MichiganRyan Grant, 6-0, 200, TulaneMatt Hazel, 6-1, 200, Coastal CarolinaRobert Herron, 5-9, 195, Wyoming

Cody Hoffman, 6-4, 225, BYUJosh Huff, 5-11, 205, OregonAllen Hurns, 6-1, 200, Miami (Fla.)Jeff Janis, 6-3, 220, Saginaw Valley StateT.J. Jones, 6-0, 190, Notre DameCody Latimer, 6-2, 215, IndianaMarcus Lucas, 6-4, 220, MissouriKevin Norwood, 6-2, 200, AlabamaWalt Powell, 5-11, 190, Murray StateTevin Reese, 5-10, 165, BaylorPaul Richardson, 6-0, 175, ColoradoJalen Saunders, 5-9, 165, OklahomaWillie Snead, 5-11, 195, Ball StateJosh Stewart, 5-10, 180, Oklahoma StateDevin Street, 6-3, 200, PittsburghL’Damian Washington, 6-4, 195, MissouriAlbert Wilson, 5-9, 200, Georgia State

TIGHT ENDSRob Blanchflower, 6-4, 255, MassachusettsA.D. Denham, 6-4, 235, UtahJoe Don Duncan, 6-3, 270, DixieC.J. Fiedorowicz, 6-5, 265, IowaCrockett Gilmore, 6-6, 260, Colorado StateXavier Gimble, 6-4, 255, USCNic Jacobs, 6-5, 270, McNeese StateMarcel Jensen, 6-6, 260, Fresno StateReggie Jordan, 6-3, 240, Missouri Western St.A.C. Leonard, 6-2, 250, Tennessee StateColt Lyerla, 6-4, 240, OregonArthur Lynch, 6-5, 260, GeorgiaJake Murphy, 6-4, 250, UtahJordan Najvar, 6-6, 255, BaylorJake Pedersen, 6-3, 240, WisconsinRichard Rodgers, 6-4, 255, CaliforniaD.J. Tialavea, 6-3, 265, Utah State

OFFENSIVE TACKLESJustin Britt, 6-6, 325, MissouriMatt Feiler, 6-6, 330, BloomsburgCameron Fleming, 6-5, 325, StanfordJames Hurst, 6-5, 295, North CarolinaJa’wuan James, 6-6, 310, TennesseeWesley Johnson, 6-5, 295, VanderbiltCharles Leno, 6-4, 305, Boise StateLuke Lucas, 6-8, 315, Kansas StateMatt Patchan, 6-6, 300, Boston CollegeMichael Schofield, 6-6, 300, Michigan

BEST OF THE REST

22

Here’s a look beyond the top 100 at other prospects who should or could get drafted. Players are listed alphabetically by position.

Ja’wuan JamesTim Cornett

23

BEST OF THE REST

GUARDSJoel Bitonio, 6-4, 300, NevadaRussell Bodine, 6-3, 310, North CarolinaConor Boffeli, 6-4, 300, IowaDakota Dozier, 6-4, 315, FurmanKadeem Edwards, 6-4, 315, Tennessee StateZach Fulton, 6-5, 315, TennesseeRyan Groy, 6-5, 315, WisconsinJon Halapio, 6-3, 325, FloridaBrandon Linder, 6-6, 310, Miami (Fla.)Spencer Long, 6-5, 320, NebraskaAnthony Steen, 6-3, 315, AlabamaJohn Urschel, 6-3, 315, Penn StateChris Watt, 6-3, 310, Notre Dame

CENTERSMatt Armstrong, 6-2, 300, Grand Valley StateJonotthan Harrison, 6-3, 305, FloridaGabe Ikard, 6-4, 305, OklahomaTyler Larsen, 6-4, 315, Utah StateCorey Linsley, 6-3, 295, Ohio StateMatt Paradis, 6-3, 305, Boise StateJames Stone, 6-4, 305, TennesseeBryan Stork, 6-4, 315, Florida State

DEFENSIVE TACKLESJay Bromley, 6-3, 305, SyracuseRyan Carrethers, 6-1, 335, Arkansas StateDeandre Coleman, 6-5, 315, CaliforniaJustin Ellis, 6-1, 335, Louisiana TechEgo Ferguson, 6-3, 315, LSUKerry Hyder, 6-2, 290, Texas TechZach Kerr, 6-1, 325, DelawareEathyn Manumaleuna, 6-2, 295, BYUDan McCullers, 6-7, 350, TennesseeTenny Palepoi, 6-1, 300, UtahMike Pennel, Colorado State PuebloKaleb Ramsey, 6-3, 295, Boston CollegeCaraun Reid, 6-2 300, PrincetonShamar Stephen, 6-5, 310, ConnecticutRobert Thomas, 6-1, 325, ArkansasKhyri Thornton, 6-3, 305, Southern MissGeorge Uko, 6-3, 285, USCChris Whaley, 6-3, 270, Texas

DEFENSIVE ENDSWilliam Clarke, 6-6, 270, West VirginiaIK Enemkpali, 6-1, 260, Louisiana TechJames Gayle, 6-4, 260, Virginia TechTaylor Hart, 6-6, 280, OregonDemarcus Lawrence, 6-3, 250, Boise StateAaron Lynch, 6-5, 250, South FloridaCassius Marsh, 6-4, 250, UCLAJosh Mauro, 6-6, 270, StanfordTevin Mims, 6-4, 260, South FloridaZach Moore, 6-5, 270, ConcordiaJeoffrey Pagan, 6-3, 310, AlabamaMichael Sam, 6-2, 260, MissouriChris Smith, 6-1, 265, ArkansasEd Stinson, 6-3, 285, AlabamaBrent Urban, 6-7, 295, VirginiaLarry Webster, 6-6, 250, BloomsburgEthan Westbrooks, 6-3, 265, West Texas A&MKerry Wynn, 6-5, 265, Richmond

OUTSIDE LINEBACKERSMorgan Breslin, 6-1, 250, USCJonathan Brown, 6-0, 240, IllinoisKasim Edebali, 6-2, 255, Boston CollegeKhairi Fortt, 6-2, 250, California

Anthony Hitchens, 6-0, 240, IowaHoward Jones, 6-2, 235, ShepherdDevon Kennard, 6-3, 250, USCChris Kirksey, 6-2, 235, IowaBoseko Lokombo, 6-2, 225, OregonJonathan Newsome, 6-3, 245, Ball StateKevin Pierre-Louis, 6-0, 230, Boston CollegeRonald Powell, 6-3, 235, FloridaPrince Shembo, 6-1, 255, Notre DameTyler Starr, 6-4, 50, South DakotaJordan Zumwalt, 6-4, 235, UCLA

INSIDE LINEBACKERSLamin Barrow, 6-1, 235, LSUMax Bullough, 6-3, 250, Michigan StateJeremiah George, 5-11, 235, Iowa StateDrew Jackson, 6-1, 255, Western KentuckyChristian Jones, 6-3, 240, Florida StateJames Morris, 6-1, 240, IowaYawin Smallwood, 6-2, 245, ConnecticutUani’ Unga, 6-1, 230, BYUAvery Williamson, 6-1, 245, Kentucky

CORNERBACKSRicardo Allen, 5-9, 185, PurdueDeion Belue, 5-11, 180, AlabamaBene Benwikere, 5-11, 195, San Jose StateT.J. Carrie, 6-0, 205, OhioRoss Cockrell, 6-0, 190, DukeAaron Colvin, 5-11, 175, OklahomaChris Davis, 5-10, 200, AuburnBrandon Dixon, 5-11, 205, NW Missouri StateAntone Exum, 6-0, 215, Virginia TechE.J. Gaines, 5-10, 190, MissouriPhillip Gaines, 6-0, 195, RiceMeech Goodson, 5-11, 195, BaylorDre Hal, 5-10, 190, VanderbiltVictor Hampton, 5-9, 195, South CarolinaBennett Jackson, 6-0, 195, Notre DameKendall James, 5-10, 180, MaineNevo Lawson, 5-10, 185, Utah StateDex McDougle, 5-10, 195, Maryland

Terrance Mitchell, 6-0, 190, OregonJabari Price, 5-10, 195, North CarolinaKeith Reaser, 5-11, 190, Florida AtlanticRashaad Reynolds, 5-10, 190, Oregon StateMarcus Roberson, 6-0, 195, FloridaTodd Washington, 5-11, 190, SE LouisianaJaylen Watkins, 6-0, 195, FloridaLavelle Westbrooks, 6-0, 195, Georgia Southern

SAFETIESMo Alexander, 6-1, 210, Utah StateDion Bailey, 5-11, 200, USCNat Berhe, 5-10, 200, San Diego StateTre Boston, 6-0, 200, North CarolinaTerrence Brooks, 5-11, 195, Florida StateA.D. Dixon, 6-0, 205, BaylorJonathan Dowling, 6-2, 200, Western KentuckyMarqueston Huff, 5-11, 200, WyomingDontae Johnson, 6-2, 200, N.C. StateKenny Ladler, 6-0, 200, VanderbiltIsaiah Lewis, 5-10, 205, Michigan StateCraig Loston, 6-1, 215, LSUEd Reynolds, 6-2, 205, StanfordDaniel Sorensen, 6-2, 210, BYUDez Southward, 6-0, 205, WisconsinVinnie Sunseri, 6-0, 210, AlabamaJemea Thomas, 5-10, 190, Georgia TechBrock Vereen, 6-0, 200, Minnesota

SPECIALISTSChris Boswell, 6-2, 185, Rice (K)Steven Clark, 6-5, 230, Auburn (P)Anthony Fera, 6-1, 210, Texas (K)Marcus Heit, 6-3, 260, Kansas State (LS)Zach Hocker, 6-0, 190, Arkansas (K)Tom Hornsey, 6-3, 220, Memphis (P)Richie Leone, 6-3, 210, Houston (P)Cody Mandell, 6-2, 215, Alabama (P)Pat O’Donnell, 6-4, 220, Miami (P)Cairo Santos, 5-8, 165, Tulane (K)Kirby Van Der Kamp, 6-4, 200, Iowa State (P)

Dontae Johnson

There’s obviously a big hurry to getto the NFL these days, and the culpritis the clause in the new CollectiveBargaining Agreement stipulating thatrookie contracts cannot be renegoti-ated until after a player’s third year inthe NFL. A record 73 underclassmen madethemselves eligible for the 2013 draft,but that benchmark was obliteratedthis year when 98 underclassmen de-clared — and that’s not counting fourother players who entered the NFLdraft with a year of eligibility remain-ing after informing the league they al-ready had graduated. While it’s easy to understand themotivation for college players of get-ting into the NFL early to get to theirsecond contract quicker, the trap isthat some of them won’t get as muchinitially because they didn’t maximizetheir draft prospects while in college. Pittsburgh Steelers general man-ager Kevin Colbert said that certainlyapplied to this year’s group of under-classmen in an interview with localwriters before the scouting combine. “Although it’s a talented group, italso has a bigger chance of failing be-cause you’re going to get a lot of kidswho aren’t physically or emotionallyready for (the NFL),” Colbert said.“We’re concerned about how many ofthose players came out prematurelyand won’t be ready for this next chal-lenge. I think that we have to be ableto sort through them, because they’renot all ready for this.” Interestingly, despite having biggernumbers than ever, the impact of un-derclassmen at the top of the 2013draft was minimal, with only threeamong the top 10 selections. As always, some of this year’s un-derclassmen made good football deci-sions to come out early, while otherseither just decided they didn’t want towait any longer or had delusions ofgrandeur about their draft prospects.

THE NO-BRAINERS DE Jadeveon Clowney, SouthCarolina — He would have beenamong the top picks in 2013 and thathasn’t changed even though he had arelatively disappointing college sea-son. WR Mike Evans, Texas A&M —Evans’ gift as a wide receiver is theability to win one-on-one battles andcome down with jump balls, and he’salready mastered those skills.

RB Devonta Freeman, FloridaState — Freeman is a tremendousback whose only shortcoming is alack of size, something that wouldn’tchange with another year at FSU. DT Timmy Jernigan, FloridaState — Jernigan is going to beamong the top defensive tackles takenand he would have been hard-pressedto top his 2013 performance. QB Johnny Manziel, Texas A&M— Manziel’s style isn’t for everybody,but he clearly had nothing left toprove in college. RB Tre Mason, Auburn — Masonis entering the draft at the perfecttime: after a fantastic 2013 season andgreat performances in the SEC titlegame and the BCS ChampionshipGame. T Greg Robinson, Auburn —Robinson falls under the category of agreat prospect coming off a great sea-son whose stock wouldn’t get higher. WR Sammy Watkins, Clemson— A simply phenomenal performanceagainst Ohio State in the Orange Bowlwas the perfect way to end his collegecareer.

RB Terrance West, Towson —The only way West could have im-proved on his 2013 season wouldhave been to do it against better com-petition.

THE QUESTIONABLE

DECISIONS RB Alfred Blue, LSU — Blue wasgranted a fifth year of eligibility as theresult of his 2012 season being cutshort by a knee injury after he postedback-to-back 100-yard games. But heturned it down, even though he mighthave had the chance to replace earlyentry Jeremy Hill as LSU’s featureback. WR Martavis Bryant, Clemson —A receiver with great size, Bryantshould get drafted fairly early, but hemight have been able to put himselfinto first-round consideration had hereturned and thrived after the depar-ture of Sammy Watkins. DT Dominique Easley, Florida —Easley is a stud but a bit of a questionmark after a second ACL tear cut

short his 2013 season. He could haveerased the question mark to some de-gree by coming back. DT Anthony Johnson, LSU —Johnson is a physically gifted prospectwho never was quite as dominant incollege as expected. DT Viliami Moala, California —Moala arrived at Cal as a five-star re-cruit but started only 12 games in col-lege and didn’t so much as earn aninvitation to the scouting combine. DE Ronald Powell, Florida — Aformer No. 1 overall recruit, accord-ing to Rivals.com, Powell never was astar at Florida. He finished with foursacks in 2013 after coming back froma torn ACL that cost him the 2012season. RB James Wilder Jr., FloridaState — The son of the former NFLrunning back never lived up to expec-tations at Florida State and potentiallycould have helped his cause with De-vonte Freeman’s departure to theNFL.

THE SPECIAL CASES

WR Chris Boyd, Vanderbilt — Agood prospect with size and speed,Boyd didn’t play in 2013 after beingkicked off the Vanderbilt team for try-ing to cover up a rape incident al-legedly involving some teammates. TE Mike Flacco, New Haven —The brother of Ravens quarterbackJoe Flacco, Flacco played one seasonof college football after giving baseballa shot. He clearly could use more re-finement at tight end, but he’s 26years old. TE Colt Lyerla, Oregon — Lyerlais a gifted athlete, but was suspendedtwice at Oregon, left the team andthen was arrested for cocaine posses-sion. He still managed to get an invi-tation to the scouting combine.

UNDERCLASSMENDRAFT RESULTS (2003-13)Assessing the underclassmen

24

Year No. Drafted Top 102003 54 32 52004 44 35 52005 57 38 42006 62 34 62007 40 29 42008 53 39 42009 46 41 52010 53 46 52011 56 43 82012 65 44 82013 73 52 3

DRAFT LISTS

10 PROSPECTS W H O S W I T C H E D

S C H O O L S1. Tennessee St. TE A.C. Leonard

(Florida)

2. Sam Houston St. RB Timothy Flanders (Kansas State)

3. McNeese St. TE Nic Jacobs (LSU)

4. Colorado St.-Pueblo DT Mike Pennel (Arizona State)

5. SE Louisiana CB Todd Washington (Memphis)

6. Alabama St. RB Isaiah Crowell(Georgia)

7. Western Kentucky S Jonathan Dowling (Florida)

8. Central Florida RB Storm Johnson (Miami)

9. Delaware DT Zach Kerr(Maryland)

10. Ball St. OLB Jonathan Newsome (Ohio State)

1. North Carolina S Jayestin Boston — Known as Tre Boston2. Louisville ILB Michael Brown — Known as Preston Brown

3. Florida WR Lawrence Burton — Known as Trey Burton4. Northwestern WR Theodis Colter — Known as Kain Colter5. Nebraska WR Onochie Enunwa — Known as Quincy Enunwa6. Auburn DE Donald Ford — Known as Dee Ford7. Baylor CB Demetri Goodson — Known as Meech Goodson8. UCF RB Westleigh Johnson — Known as Storm Johnson

9. Kansas State T Cornelius Lucas — Known as Luke Lucas10. Alabama QB Raymond McCarron — Known as A.J. McCarron

10 PROSPECTS W I T H N F L FA T H E R S

O R B R O T H E R S

1. Bloomsburg DE Larry Webster (father Larry)2. UCLA OLB Anthony Barr (father Tony Brooks)3. Virginia Tech CB Kyle Fuller (brothers Corey, Vincent)4. Baylor CB Meech Goodson (brother Mike)5. Texas DE Jackson Jeffcoat (father Jim)6. Texas A&M T Jake Matthews (father Bruce)7. Stanford S Ed Reynolds (father Ed)8. Arizona State DT Will Sutton (father Mickey)9. Minnesota S Brock Vereen (brother Shane)10. Florida State RB James Wilder Jr. (father James)

10 PROSPECTS B O R N O U T S I D E

T H E U N I T E S S T A T E S

1. Georgia Tech OLB Jerry Attaochu (Nigeria)2. Lindenwood CB Pierre Desir (Haiti)3. Boston College DE Kasim Edebali (Germany)4. Notre Dame WR T.J. Jones (Canada)5. Alabama T Cyrus Kouandjio (Cameroon)6. Utah State CB Nevin Lawson (Jamaica)7. Oregon OLB Boseko Lokombo (Congo)8. Stanford DE Josh Mauro (England)9. Tulane K Cairo Santos (Brazil)10. Stanford G David Yankey (Australia)

10 PROSPECTS NOT KNOWN BY THEIR REAL NAME

10 DIVISION II SCHOOLSR E P R E S E N T E D

A T T H E S C O U T I N G C O M B I N E

1. Bloomsburg (T Matt Feiler, DE Larry Webster)2. Colorado State-Pueblo (DT Mike Pennel)3. Concordia-St. Paul (DT Zach Moore)4. Dixie State (TE Joe Don Duncan)5. Grand Valley State (C Matt Armstrong)6. Lindenwood (CB Pierre Desir)7. Missouri Western (TE Reggie Jordan)8. NW Missouri State (CB Brandon Dixon)9. Pittsburg State (WR/KR John Brown)10. Saginaw Valley State (WR Jeff Janis)Plus two more:11. Shepherd (DE Howard Jones)12. West Texas A&M (QB Dustin Vaughan, DE Ethan Westbrooks)

10 PROSPECTS W H O W E R E F I R S T- T E A M

A L L - C O N F E R E N C ES E L E C T I O N S

B U T N O T I N V I T E D T O T H E

S C O U T I N G C O M B I N E

1. Oklahoma State DT Calvin Barnett

2. Arizona State TE Chris Coyle

3. Arizona State S Alden Darby

4. Nebraska CB Ciante Evans

5. Baylor OLB Eddie Lackey

6. Oklahoma State LB Shaun Lewis

7. Baylor DE Chris McAllister

8. Ohio State G Andrew Norwell

9. Wake Forest DE Nikita Whitlock

10. Kansas State S Ty Zimmerman

25

This year’s talent pool includes afew prospects who were busy withother sports before dedicating them-selves to football.

One such example is Bloomsburgdefensive end Larry Webster. Theson of the former Miami Dolphins andBaltimore Ravens defensive tackle ofthe same name, Webster was a four-year starter on the basketball team atBloomsburg until giving football ashot in 2013.

Webster obviously is raw and hedidn’t face great competition at theDivision II school, but he did finishwith 13.5 sacks in his only footballseason and he’s an intriguing enoughathlete that the idea of him switchingto tight end has been brought up. Re-gardless of the position, he wouldmake an intriguing third-day pick.

Then there’s Baylor cornerbackDemetri Goodson, who also goes bythe name Meech Goodson.

He played three seasons at Baylor,but that came after he spent three sea-sons as a point guard for college bas-ketball powerhouse Gonzaga.Goodson, who hadn’t played footballsince his sophomore year of highschool, was granted a sixth year ofcollege eligibility in 2013 and he en-ters the draft as a mid-round prospect.

Wide receiver Bruce Ellingtonalso played basketball, but he actuallywas a dual-sport athlete at South Car-olina,

Ellington, who led the Gamecocksin receptions in 2013, played threeseasons of basketball at the school be-fore leaving the team to focus on hisfootball career.

Finally, there’s the story of Stanfordrunning back Tyler Gaffney. Gaffney’s2013 numbers of 1,618 yards and 20touchdowns are even more impressivewhen taken into consideration that hedidn’t play football in 2012 because hewas playing Class-A baseball in theNew York-Penn League after beingtaken by the Pittsburgh Pirates in the24th round of the 2013 baseball draft.

STRANGE STORYThere have been some strange pre-

draft stories, but the one involving SanDiego State running back AdamMuema is an all-timer.

After rushing for 1,458 and 1,244yards the past two seasons, Muema de-cided to enter the draft early andheaded to the combine as a likely mid-

to-late-round prospect. But Muema de-cided to leave the combine before tak-ing part in any on-field drill, telling U-TSan Diego that God told him he’d getdrafted by the Seattle Seahawks if heskipped the workouts. Muema thendrew some concern when no one couldget in touch with him for a few daysuntil he resurfaced in Florida wearinghis combine shirt.

Maybe the final twist to the storycame in mid-March when Muematweeted that he was done playing foot-ball, basically, because the world iscoming to an end and there’s not goingto be another football season anyway.

It’s safe to assume Muema isn’t likelyto be drafted.

men from 2013 earned invitations to thecombine — tackles Antonio Richard-son and JaWuan James, guard ZachFulton, and center James Stone. Thefifth starter on Tennessee’s offensive linein 2013, guard Alex Bullard, did not getan invitation to the scouting combinebut did participate in the inauguralMedal of Honor Bowl.

IN THE GENESThat Odell Beckham Jr. became a

big-time prospect at LSU really should-n’t have come as a surprise given hisfamily ties.

Not only did his father, Odell Beck-ham Sr., start at running back at LSUsome 20 years earlier, but his mother,Heather Van Norman, was a six-timeNCAA track All-American when shegave birth in November 1992 halfwaythrough her senior year.

“Odell Jr. always jokes about, ‘I’mgonna make sure I find an athlete who’sfast so I can make one like me,’ ” OdellSr. told the Times-Picayune. “I’m like,

‘Boy, it’s NOT that easy. It’s just sohappened you got blessed.’ ”

The older Beckham didn’tplay in the NFL after his stay

at LSU, but Odell Jr. is a po-tential first-round pick.

WHAT’SIN A NAME

Ohio State had two sen-iors on its 2013 roster

named Corey Brown, and italso happened that both came

from the state of Pennsylvania.It’s why wide receiver Corey

Brown came to be known as PhillyBrown by the time he arrived at the

scouting combine, even though heprefers being called by his real name. Theother Corey Brown actually enjoyed thenickname referencing his hometown,“Pitt.”

There was no confusion at the com-bine, though, because “Pitt” did not earnan invitation.

Philly Brown, for his part, earned thePaul Warfield Award as Ohio State’s out-standing receiver in 2011 and again in2012, and then in 2013 joined DavidBoston as the only two Buckeyes wide re-ceivers with back-to-back 60-catch sea-sons.

BAD LUCKAs is usually the case, a number of

prospects will see their draft status

Sport switch pays off for prospectsODDS AND ENDS

26

Demetri Goodson

TALENTED GROUPSLoucheiz Purifoy, Marcus Roberson

and Jaylen Watkins all started games atcornerback for the University of Floridain 2013, and all three of them impressedNFL talent evaluators enough to earn in-vitations to the scouting combine.

Other college teammates in the sameposition group who went to the combinetogether were Iowa linebackers AnthonyHitchens, Christian Kirksey and JamesMorris, and Alabama defensive backsHa Ha Clinton-Dix, Vinnie Sunseriand Deion Belue.

But the University of Tennessee ac-complished a rare feat this year whenfour of their five starting offensive line-

greatly affected by injuries sustained latein their last college season or even after.

Perhaps the most disappointing in-jury was the torn ACL sustained byOklahoma cornerback Aaron Colvinduring Senior Bowl practices. Colvinhad gotten off to a great start in Mobileand appeared on his way to solidifyinghis status as a first-round pick; instead,he found himself staring at the likeli-hood of being a late-round pick at bestbecause he might not be ready for thestart of the 2014 season.

North Carolina offensive tackleJames Hurst, meanwhile, saw his draftprospects take a hit in the Belk Bowlwhen he sustained a broken leg in a 39-17 victory against Cincinnati. Hurst,who started a school-record 49 gamesfor the Tar Heels, had been given achance of sneaking into the first roundof the draft, a notion that doesn’t seemlikely anymore.

Then there’s the case of two marqueeSEC quarterbacks — Zach Metten-berger of LSU and Aaron Murray ofGeorgia. The two sustained a torn ACLlate in the 2013 season, greatly affectingtheir ability to work out for scouts be-fore the draft.

SECOND CHANCEA couple of highly talented

prospects got invitations to the scoutingcombine despite not being with a col-lege team at the end of the 2013 season.

There was former Oregon tight endColt Lyerla, who left the program backin October after being suspended onegame for violating team rules and laterwas arrested and pled guilty to cocainepossession.

Lyerla earlier had gotten himself introuble by posting a Twitter message(later deleted) suggesting the SandyHook Elementary School shooting wasa government conspiracy perpetrated topush forward anti-gun legislation.

Lyerla didn’t put up big numbers atOregon before leaving the team, but hewas considered a talented athlete withintriguing potential.

Then there’s Vanderbilt wide receiverChris Boyd, who was dismissed fromthe team last July for his after-the-factinvolvement in an alleged sexual assaultincident involving a teammate.

Boyd, who entered a conditionalguilty plea to a misdemeanor charge forhis role in attempting to cover up thecrimes, had 50 catches for 774 yardsand five touchdowns in 2012 and hasgreat size at 6-4, 205. He didn’t help hiscause, though, with a poor showing inthe 40-yard dash at the combine.

WILL PERSEVERANCE

PAY OFF?When it comes to overcoming adver-

sity to put himself in position to getdrafted, it’s really difficult to top offen-sive tackle Matt Patchan from BostonCollege.

Patchan played in the Senior Bowland participated at the combine aftercompleting a sixth year in college in2013. Patchan began his collegiate ca-reer at the University of Florida wayback in 2008 as a backup defensivetackle. He moved to offensive tackle thefollowing year, but then saw his devel-opment slowed by a torn ACL, a frac-tured wrist and a strained pectoralmuscle. Oh, and before he transferred toBoston College after having to sit out allof 2012 with the pectoral injury, he wasshot (in a drive-by shooting at a park inhis hometown of Tampa) and was in-volved in two scooter accidents, includ-ing getting hit by a car.

Patchan, whose father was a third-round pick of the Philadelphia Eagles inthe late 1980s but who never played inthe NFL, has seen his stock drop sincehe arrived at Florida as a highly toutedrecruit. But he’s got enough ability andtoughness to merit getting drafted.

FAMILIAR NAMEIf you’re old enough or are a stu-

dent of college football history, then

you might recognize the nameRichard Rodgers from the Universityof California.

For those who don’t, he was one ofthe players involved in “The Play,” thewild and famous five-lateral finish tothe Stanford-Cal game in JohnElway’s senior season in 1982. Well,there’s a Richard Rodgers from Calavailable in this year’s draft and, yes,it’s his son.

While the elder Richard Rodgers,now an assistant coach with the Car-olina Panthers, was a defensive back,Richard Rodgers Jr. is a tight end andhe was good enough to get invited tothe scouting combine.

The younger Rodgers told re-porters at the combine he’s seen videoof “The Play” about 50 times, but hasnever seen with his father.

ALREADYA HIGH PICK

Defensive lineman Brent Urbansteadily developed into a solid NFLprospect during his career at the Uni-versity of Virginia, but the CanadianFootball League recognized his vastpotential even before his senior sea-son.

Urban, a native of Mississauga, On-tario, was the 15th overall pick in the2013 CFL draft when he was selectedby the Hamilton Tiger-Cats.

At 6-7, 295 pounds, Urban fits the

ODDS AND ENDS

John Urschel

27

mold of a 3-4 defensive end and whilehe likely won’t be a first-round pick inthe NFL draft, he still figures to havea good shot at a productive career inthe United States.

BRIGHT PROSPECTPenn State guard John Urschel was

a first-team All-Big Ten selection thepast two years, so he figures to have alegitimate chance to make it in theNFL.

If it doesn’t work out, though, no-body should worry about his future.

The native of Winnipeg, Canada,also was a two-time Academic All-American and he was the winner of the2013 Campbell Trophy, which goes toan individual who best combines aca-demic success, football performanceand community leadership.

Urschel earned a bachelor's degreein mathematics in May 2012, a master’sin mathematics a year later, and beganworking on a second master’s degree inmath education. Urschel has taughtcollege-level courses, including IntegralVector Calculus and Trigonometry andAnalytic Geometry, and has had severalresearch papers published.

Asked at the combine about his suc-cess as both a student and an athlete,Urschel said: “That’s something I didtake pride in, but I’m officially nolonger a student-athlete and I’m soonto be a professional athlete.”

The annual scouting combine justkeeps getting bigger and bigger in termsof the attention it draws, but NFL per-sonnel would be the first to point outthat it’s only a smart part of the evalua-tion process.

That said, it’s obvious certainprospects solidified or improved theirdraft stock at the combine, while otherssaw their negatives get exposed.

Among the performances that stoodout was defensive end JadeveonClowney running the 40-yard dash in4.53 seconds, a time that was betterthan more than half the running backsat the combine.

Sammy Watkins, meanwhile, ce-mented his status as the top wide re-ceiver in the draft by turning in a timeof 4.43.

The fastest time for any prospect atthe combine was produced by KentState running back Dri Archer, an un-dersized prospect whose role in theNFL should be that of wide receiver andkick returner. Archer ran a 4.26, comingclose to the official combine record of4.24 set by running back Chris John-son in 2008 — the NFL began elec-tronic timing in 1999.

At the other end of the spectrum,LSU wide receiver Jarvis Landry, con-sidered a potential second-round pick,didn’t help his cause by running a 4.77in the 40-yard dash.

Perhaps no one, though, saw his draftprospects negatively impacted like Ala-bama offensive tackle Cyrus Kouand-jio. He came into the combine on theheels of a Sugar Bowl performanceagainst Oklahoma that he admitted was-n’t up to par, then had the slowest 40-yard dash of anybody who ran inIndianapolis with a slumbering 5.59.

But perhaps the most troubling partcame after an NFL Network report that“several teams failed him on his physi-cal. Arthritic knee from failed surgery.”Kouandjio tore an ACL midwaythrough his freshman season in 2011,although he did start 27 consecutivegames over the past two years.

A week later, renowned physicianDr. James Andrews as well as the Ala-bama team doctor told CBSSports.comthere was no major issue with Kouand-jio’s knee.

SENIOR BOWLThe Senior Bowl is a showcase for

draft prospects, but the talent pool took

a dip this year because of injuries or col-lege stars simply turning down an invi-tation.

Four unanimous 2013 All-Ameri-cans — tackle Jake Matthews, line-backer Shayne Skov, and cornerbacksDarqueze Dennard and LamarcusJoyner — were among the nine playerswho turned down invitations, alongwith QB A.J. McCarron, LB C.J.Mosley, CB Justin Gilbert, RB CarlosHyde and Buffalo LB Khalil Mack.

Nineteen other prospects had to bowout of the Senior Bowl because of in-juries and among them were potentialfirst-round picks such as UCLA line-backer Anthony Barr, Michigan offen-sive tackle Taylor Lewan and TCUcornerback Jason Verrett.

The South team recorded a 20-10victory in Mobile, Ala., and the star ofthe game was Auburn defensive endDee Ford, who earned MVP honorswith two sacks and a pass deflection.

Running back James White of Wis-consin earned North Most OutstandingPlayer honors after rushing for a game-high 62 yards and a touchdown; and Al-abama wide receiver Kevin Norwood,who had four catches for 53 yards and

a touchdown, was the South's MostOutstanding Player.

Perhaps as important as the game it-self were the practices leading up to it,and that’s where Pittsburgh defensivetackle Aaron Donald shined. He wasnamed the Most Outstanding OverallPlayer at Reese's Senior Bowl practicesduring the Alabama Power PracticeAwards ceremony at the annual Players’Banquet.

The player who took that honor lastyear was Central Michigan offensivetackle Eric Fisher, who went on to bethe first player selected in the 2013 NFLdraft.

Along with Donald, the other posi-tion winners for their work during theSenior Bowl practices were: Ford (MostOutstanding Defensive Lineman);Northern Illinois’ Jimmie Ward (MostOutstanding Defensive Back); West Vir-ginia’s Charles Sims (Most OutstandingRunning Back); Iowa’s C.J. Fiedorowicz(Most Outstanding Receiver); NotreDame’s Zack Martin (Most OutstandingOffensive Lineman); Wisconsin’s ChrisBorland (Most Outstanding Line-backer); and Auburn’s Cody Parkey(Most Outstanding Specialist).

EAST-WESTSHRINE GAME

The week before the Senior Bowl,the East-West Shrine Game took placein St. Petersburg, Fla., and EasternIllinois quarterback Jimmy Garop-polo took home the William H. Coff-man Award for Most OutstandingOffensive Player after completing 9 of14 passes for 100 yards and onetouchdown.

The E. Jack Spaulding Award forMost Outstanding Defensive Playerwent to West Texas A&M defensivelineman Ethan Westbrooks, who hadtwo sacks, along with a pair of solotackles and an assist, including onetackle for loss. He also caused a fumble.

Before the actual game, Universityof Oklahoma center Gabe Ikard wasgiven the East-West Shrine Game PatTillman Award, which honors perse-verance and talent during practiceweek and also recognizes the recipi-ent’s overall achievements and con-duct.

OTHERALL-STAR GAMES

The East-West Shrine Game and theSenior Bowl are the two postseason col-lege all-star games that attract a lot ofattention, but they’re far from the onlyones.

• At the College All-Star Bowl, Uni-versity of Washington cornerback GregDucre was the star with a 31-yard in-terception return for a touchdown.Clemson running back Rod McDowellled all rushers with 53 yards on justseven carries.

• At the NFLPA Collegiate Bowl,LSU fullback J.C. Copeland earnedMVP honors with two 1-yard touch-downs on his only two rushing at-tempts. Stanford running backAnthony Wilkerson also was impres-sive, rushing for 67 yards and a touch-down.

• At the Medal of Honor Bowl, theinaugural game was marred by weatherthat featured 40-mph winds and a tor-nado watch. Florida wide receiverSolomon Patton was the Americanteam MVP with one carry for 33 yardson a reverse and three catches for 50yards. The National team MVP wasFort Valley State linebacker Deon Furr,who had six tackles with half a sackand a pass breakup.

The stars, stories of the postseasonALL-STAR GAMES, COMBINE REVIEW

28

Dri Archer

By ALAIN POUPARTEditor • @apoupartFins

Ten years after the fact, it remainsone of the most interesting — andbizarre — developments at the top ofan NFL draft.

Truly, watching Eli Manning with aconstipated look on his face and re-fusing to put on a San Diego Chargershat after being the first overall pick inthe 2004 draft provided a different el-ement to the draft telecast.

The drama lasted some 45 minutes— about the length of a good HBOepisode — before the Chargers re-lented and consummated a trade withthe New York Giants after the Giantshad made fellow quarterback PhilipRivers from North Carolina State thefourth overall selection.

Ten years later, it’s easy to concludethat the Giants got the better of thedeal because they’ve won two SuperBowl titles with Manning at quarter-back while the Chargers haven’t re-turned to the big game since StanHumphries was their quarterback inthe 1994 season.

Before examining that question,though, let’s remember that theChargers didn’t have much of a choicebecause Manning, with a lot of inputfrom his famous dad, had made itclear before the draft he wanted nopart of playing for an organization stillreeling from the regrettable decisionto take Ryan Leaf second overall inthe 1998 draft after Indianapolis firsthad taken Manning’s older brother.

It’s also interesting to note that SanDiego’s roster at the time of the 2004draft included a quarterback they hadtaken at the top of the second roundin 2001, a fellow by the name of DrewBrees.

It’s just that Brees wasn’t yet DrewBrees, having struggled the previoustwo seasons after seeing only mop-upduty as a rookie.

So the Chargers entered the 2004draft looking for a franchise quarter-back and had their sights set on Man-ning, who had had a good but notspectacular career at the University ofMississippi.

Then-head coach Marty Schotten-heimer also liked Rivers, who had asplendid senior season at N.C. Statebut also had a rather peculiar shotput-like throwing motion.

Unwilling to let Manning dictatetheir drafting plans, the Chargers

went ahead and took Manning firstoverall. The photo ops that followedwere awkward, to say the least.

The Giants had hoped to somehowbe able to land Manning, but wereprepared to go with their Plan B,which was to select Ben Roethlis-berger from Miami of Ohio with thefourth overall pick.

After Oakland took tackle RobertGallery and Arizona followed withwide receiver Larry Fitzgerald, then-Chargers general manager A.J. Smithcalled then-Giants GM Ernie Accorsito offer Manning if the Giants woulddraft Rivers and send him, defensiveend Osi Umenyiora, and third- andfifth-round picks to San Diego.

Accorsi countered by offering a2005 first-round pick instead ofUmenyiora, who had had one sack as

a rookie in 2003 but who Accorsi saw— accurately, as it turned out — as afuture pass-rushing star.

The Chargers accepted and thedeal was done.

With the 2004 third-round pick,the Chargers took kicker Nate Kaed-ing; with the 2005 first-round choicethey selected outside linebackerShawne Merriman; and they tradedthe 2005 fifth-round pick to TampaBay for veteran offensive tackleRoman Oben.

While the Chargers got some con-tributions from Kaeding (who wastremendous in the regular season butstruggled in the playoffs) and Merri-man (who was a pass-rushing terrorbefore a league suspension sent his ca-reer spiraling), the trade pretty muchcomes down to Rivers and Manning.

And here’s the thing: Both teamshave reason to be happy with thetrade.

For the Giants, they’ve got theirtwo Super Bowl rings, although itshould be pointed out that it was thedefense, more than anything, thatwon those titles. As proof, considerthat the Giants never gave up morethan 20 points in any of their eightplayoff victories during their twoSuper Bowl runs as wild-card teams.

While Manning deserves credit forthe game-winning drive he producedin the Super Bowl victory against NewEngland at the end of the 2007 sea-son, the defense deserves more creditfor the 17-14 victory against a teamthat had averaged a then-record 36.8points during the regular season.

Manning has a career passer ratingof 81.2 and has topped 90 only twicein nine full seasons as a starter.

Rivers, meanwhile, has a careerpasser rating of 96.0 and has topped100 four times in eight seasons as astarter, including the 2013 seasonwhen he matched his career high witha 105.5.

Rivers, however, hasn’t had thekind of phenomenal playoff run thatelevated Manning to elite status in theeyes of many. Rivers has a 4-5 recordin the playoffs and only once has beenable to lead the Chargers to the AFCChampionship Game, that coming in2007 when he played with a torn kneeligament in a 21-12 loss against NewEngland.

The bottom line is that it’s easy toanoint the Giants as the winners ofthe 2004 draft-day deal but the realityis that both teams made out well.

The real winners, perhaps, werefans who like drama in their NFLdraft.

When the top pick played hardballHISTORY LESSON: L o o k i n g b a c k a t 2 0 0 4

Eli Manning and John Elway (in 1983) are not theonly two players selected first overall who refused toplay for the team that drafted them.

In 1979, 25 years before the Manning/Chargerssaga, Ohio State linebacker Tom Cousineau turnedhis back on the Buffalo Bills after they took himfirst overall, instead signing a more lucrative con-tract with the Canadian Football League’s MontrealAlouettes.

Three years later, Cousineau was ready to return

to the NFL and signed with Houston, but the Billsstill held his NFL rights and matched the offer. Thenthey traded him for a first-round pick in the 1984draft.

The pick became the 14th overall in ’84 and theBills used it to select a quarterback by the name ofJim Kelly, the same Jim Kelly who would go on toearn a place in the Hall of Fame.

Guess the Cousineau pick worked out after all forthe Bills.

Another No. 1 gets away ...

29

Eli Manning and Philip Rivers (inset)

POSITION FILLED 1. Running back: The Cardinalsused two draft picks last year onAndre Ellington and Stepfan Taylor,and the two of them showed enoughthat they’re expected to share theload in 2014.

2. Wide receiver: The Cardinals’first-round pick in 2012, MichaelFloyd topped 1,000 yards in his sec-ond season and provided the kind ofoutside complement to LarryFitzgerald that Arizona hadn’t hadsince the days of Anquan Boldin.

ARIZONA c a r d i n a l s

statusre p o r t

2013 record: 10-6

Finish: Third in NFCWest (no playoffs)

Season recap: Becausethey were overshadowed bySeattle and San Franciscoin the NFC West, the Cardi-nals’ impressive seasonwent under the radar. ButArizona was among the bestteams in the league over thefinal nine games (7-2).

Offseason moves: TheCardinals made a couple ofsignificant acquisitions,none bigger than that oftackle Jared Veldheer. Thedefense took a hit, though,when Karlos Dansby left viafree agency.

potential n o . 1 t a r g e t

HELP WANTED 1. Guard: Offensive tackle wasthe biggest issue heading intothe offseason, but that wassolved with the signing ofVeldheer. Arizona nowmust find a guard to re-place the departedDaryn Colledge.

2. Safety: Arizona hadone of the stingiest de-fenses in the NFL in 2013,but it won’t be able to take the nextstep without better safety play. Vet-

eran Yeremiah Bell is a freeagent and has seen his better days.

3. Tight end: The Cardinalshave a solid set of starting

wide receivers after theemergence of formerfirst-round pick MichaelFloyd in 2013, but thepassing game needs to

have a bigger threat attight end than what Rob

Housler was able to provide.

Also: Quarterback, outside line-backer, wide receiver

draft d i t t y : The Cardinals haven’t taken an offensive tackle before the fourth round since 2007

By ending up with the best record among non-playoff teams, Ari-zona wound up with the 20th overall pick, and the Cardinals shouldhave options if they decide to draft for need. Among the prospectswho could/should be available at No. 20 are Notre Dame offensivelineman Zack Martin, North Carolina tight end Eric Ebron, Louisvillesafety Calvin Pryor and Missouri defensive end Kony Ealy, whocould be taken with the idea of moving him to outside linebacker inthe Cardinals’ 3-4 scheme.

30

as of March 28

POSITION FILLED 1. Quarterback: Perhaps thebiggest reason the Falcons can beoptimistic about their chances ofquickly returning to the postseasonis the presence of Matt Ryan, whoturned in another solid performancein 2013.

2. Cornerback: You can neverhave enough cornerbacks in today’sNFL, but the Falcons appear to havetwo keepers in their top two 2013picks, Desmond Trufant and RobertAlford.

ATLANTA f a l c o n s

statusre p o r t

2013 record: 4-12

Finish: Fourth in NFCSouth (no playoffs)

Season recap: The Fal-cons find themselves havingto regroup after a 2013 sea-son that could only be de-scribed as a disaster. It’salmost easy to forget thatthis team was in the NFCChampionship Game justtwo seasons ago.

Offseason moves: TheFalcons went about ad-dressing their defensiveline, signing free agentsPaul Soliai from Miami andTyson Jackson from KansasCity. Atlanta also picked upguard Jon Asamoah, alsofrom Kansas City.


HELP WANTED 1. Offensive tackle: A large partof the Falcons’ offensive prob-lems in 2013 could betraced to mediocre offen-sive line play. Left tackleSam Baker took astep backward lastseason and Atlanta alsocould use an upgradeover Lamarr Holmes onthe right side.

2. Safety: After a difficult season,veteran Thomas DeCoud was re-

leased in the offseason. That left At-lanta with William Moore as the only

proven safety.

3. Tight end: The Falconsgot a reprieve last yearwhen future Hall ofFamer Tony Gonzalezdecided to come backfor one more year, but

he’s gone now and At-lanta somehow must find

a way to replace him.

Also: Center, fullback, outsidelinebacker

draft d i t t y : The Falcons have taken 10 defensive backs in the last five drafts, including five last year

The Falcons have the sixth overall pick, just as they did in 2011after they sent Cleveland multiple picks for the chance to draft JulioJones. This time, the Falcons “earned” that sixth overall pick and attheir positions of biggest need, the prospects who could or shouldfall around this spot are tackles Jake Matthews and TaylorLewan, and linebackers Anthony Barr and Khalil Mack. JadeveonClowney also would be impossible to pass up should he slide that far.

POSITION FILLED 1. Quarterback: Like it or not, JoeFlacco will be the Ravens quarter-back for a while. While he wasn’table to build on his strong 2013playoff performance, it has to bepointed out that Flacco operatedlast season without many weaponsat wide receiver and tight end.

2. Outside linebacker: TerrellSuggs, armed with a contract exten-sion, and Elvis Dumervil form a dy-namic pass-rushing tandem for theRavens’ 3-4 defense.

BALTIMORE r a v e n s

statusre p o r t

2013 record: 8-8

Finish: Third in AFCNorth (no playoffs)

Season recap: TheRavens’ follow-up to theirSuper Bowl title didn’t go asplanned following the de-partures of defensive fix-tures Ray Lewis and EdReed. Baltimore found itselfwith more than its share ofquestions this offseason,particularly after the arrestof running back Ray Rice.

Offseason moves: TheRavens were relatively quiet,but did pick up veteran widereceiver Steve Smith after hewas released from Carolinaand traded for Tampa Baycenter Jeremy Zuttah.


HELP WANTED 1. Wide receiver: After tradinghim last offseason, the Ravensended up missing AnquanBoldin even more thanthey could have imag-ined. After Boldin’s de-parture, the Ravenssimply didn’t have acomplement to starTorrey Smith. SteveSmith could help, but Balti-more really needs an inside pres-ence.

2. Offensive tackle: Michael Ohermoved from left to right tackle after

former Jacksonville first-roundpick Eugene Monroe was ac-

quired in a trade, but nowthe Ravens have to finda replacement for Oher.

3. Tight end: TheRavens re-signed freeagent Dennis Pitta in the

offseason, but he’s com-ing off an injury-shortened

season.

Also: Defensive end, safety

draft d i t t y : The Ravens’ top pick has been spent on a linebacker or defensive back each of the last four years

Baltimore ended up with the 17th overall pick after losing a coin flipwith the Dallas Cowboys at the scouting combine. One option for theRavens at that spot would be to find a replacement for Boldin with an-other physical Florida State wide receiver, in this case Kelvin Benjamin.Texas A&M’s Mike Evans is another oversized wide receiver, buthe’s likely to be gone by this time. Baltimore also could address the of-fensive line with Cyrus Kouandjio or Zack Martin, and upgrading at tightend with Eric Ebron is another intriguing possibility.

31

POSITION FILLED 1. Running back: The Bills havebeen stacked at this position for along time, and C.J. Spiller and FredJackson remain a formidable tan-dem. Imagine if they still had Mar-shawn Lynch.

2. Defensive tackle: Veteran KyleWilliams and former third overall pickMarcell Dareus combined for 18sacks last season and both were se-lected to the Pro Bowl. There mightnot be a better tandem anywhere inthe league.

BUFFALO b i l l s

statusre p o r t

2013 record: 6-10

Finish: Fourth in AFCEast (no playoffs)

Season recap: TheBills started over last yearwith a new head coach(Doug Marrone) and a newquarterback (E.J. Manuel),but the result was a 14thconsecutive season out ofthe playoffs.

Offseason moves: Thebiggest personnel news in-volving the Bills was theloss of safety Jairus Byrdto the New Orleans Saints.Buffalo didn’t make anysplashy acquisitions, butdid pick up CB Corey Gra-ham and LBs BrandonSpikes and Keith Rivers.


HELP WANTED 1. Offensive tackle: The Bills havesolidified their offensive lineover the past couple ofseasons, thanks in largepart to left tackle CordyGlenn. But they needan upgrade on theother side over whatthey’ve gotten from ErikPears.

2. Wide receiver: The Billshave some depth here after 2013draft picks Robert Woods and

Marquise Goodwin showed promiseas rookies; what they don’t have is a

bona fide No. 1 wide receiverbecause Stevie Johnson

never proved consistentenough to be that guy.

3. Quarterback: It’snot as though anyoneexpects the Bills to

draft another quarter-back early, but the posi-

tion clearly remains aquestion mark.

Also: Tight end, safety

draft d i t t y : The Bills have taken two players from Florida State each of the last two drafts

The Bills have the ninth overall pick, just as they did in 2010 whenthey selected C.J. Spiller. They very well might go with another skillposition player this year, particularly if either of the top two wide re-ceivers — Sammy Watkins and Mike Evans — is available. Anotherlogical option would be to go for an offensive tackle, with Michigan’sTaylor Lewan the most likely blue-chip prospect to be availableat this spot. A more remote possibility would be safety Ha Ha Clin-ton-Dix.

POSITION FILLED 1. Defensive end: Greg Hardywas considered the best free agenton the market before the Panthersassured he wasn’t going anywhereby placing the franchise tag on him.He’ll be back to team with CharlesJohnson to give Carolina a tremen-dous pair of bookends.

2. Defensive tackle: Barring in-juries, the Panthers are set in themiddle of the defensive line for awhile after the rookie performancesof Star Lotulelei and Kawann Short.

CAROLINA p a n t h e r s

statusre p o r t

2013 record: 12-4

Finish: First in NFCSouth (lost to San Franciscoin divisional playoffs)

Season recap: Carolinawas perhaps the biggestsurprise in the NFL, particu-larly after starting the sea-son 1-3. A disappointinghome loss in the playoffsshouldn’t diminish theteam’s accomplishments.

Offseason moves: Theoffseason has been toughon Carolina, which losttackle Jordan Gross to re-tirement and released widereceiver Steve Smith. Onthe flip side, the Panthers’most significant acquisitionmight be S Roman Harper.


HELP WANTED 1. Wide receiver: The Panthersreceiving corps has consistedof Steve Smith and littleelse in recent years, butSmith wasn’t much of afactor in 2013 and sub-sequently was re-leased. Three otherwide receivers — TedGinn Jr., Brandon LaFelland Domenik Hixon — leftas free agents.

2. Offensive tackle: This spot be-

came a major priority when Gross, athree-time Pro Bowl selection, re-

tired. His departure created ahuge void. The Panthers

also could use an up-grade on the right side.

3. Cornerback: Oneof the best pass rushesin the NFL was able to

protect what really wasa rather pedestrian group

of cornerbacks. Sooner orlater, that group will be exposed.

Also: Safety, outside linebacker

draft d i t t y : The Panthers have not drafted a tight end before the third round since 2003

The Panthers will pick 28th overall and it’s a pretty good assumptionCarolina will select a player at one of their three positions of majorneed. Among the prospects at those positions would could or should beavailable late in the first round are wide receivers Kelvin Benjamin,Odell Beckham Jr. and Brandin Cooks; cornerbacks Jason Verrett, KyleFuller and Bradley Roby; and offensive tackles Cyrus Kouandjio,Antonio Richardson and Morgan Moses.

32

POSITION FILLED 1. Wide receiver: Alshon Jefferybroke out in a big way in his secondseason and teamed with BrandonMarshall to give the Bears the mostphysically imposing set of wide re-ceivers in the league.

2. Tight end: Martellus Bennetthad a productive 2013 season aftercoming over from the New York Gi-ants as a free agent. The former Dal-las Cowboys draft pick gives theBears yet another huge target in thepassing game.

CHICAGO b e a r s

statusre p o r t

2013 record: 8-8

Finish: Second in NFCNorth (no playoffs)

Season recap: TheBears found themselveswith the task of rebuildingtheir once-proud defenseafter they ranked last in theleague in run defense andallowed 40 points or more infour different games.

Offseason moves: TheBears were involved in aswap of high-profile defen-sive ends after they releasedJulius Peppers and signedJared Allen after the latterwas let go by the MinnesotaVikings. Chicago also lostbackup QB Josh McCown.


HELP WANTED 1. Safety: The Bears had issues in alot of places on defense in 2013,and safety certainly was oneof those. Neither ChrisConte nor Major Wrightdid anything to inspiremuch confidence.

2. Cornerback: TheBears began last seasonwith a solid starting tandemwith Tim Jennings and CharlesTillman, but Tillman sat out the secondhalf of the season with a triceps injury.

And he turned 33 in February.

3. Defensive tackle: Perhaps theBears wouldn’t have been so

porous against the run in2013 if Henry Melton,given the franchise tagsix months earlier, hadn’ttorn an ACL in Septem-ber. Melton signed with

Dallas, so this is a need— even after the signing of

Lamarr Houston.

Also: Fullback, punter, middlelinebacker

draft d i t t y : The Bears have selected at least one player from the Pac-12 (or Pac-10) eight of the past nine years

While it’s always tricky to try to predict the exact pick of a team, itreally seems pretty obvious that the Bears will opt for a defensiveplayer. Narrowing it down further, the expectation is that Chicagowill go for a defensive tackle or a defensive back. That said, prospectswho could/should be available for the Bears at No. 14 include DTsAaron Donald and Timmy Jernigan; CBs Justin Gilbert and Dar-queze Dennard; and safeties Ha Ha Clinton-Dix and Calvin Pryor.

POSITION FILLED 1. Wide receiver: A.J. Green hasbeen an elite player pretty muchfrom the time he joined the Bengalsand Marvin Jones emerged last yearas a terrific complement on the otherside.

2. Offensive tackle: With AndrewWhitworth and Andre Smith, theBengals have two top-notchstarters. Actually, the Bengals havetalent everywhere on what could beconsidered one of the top offensivelines in the NFL.

CINCINNATI b e n g a l s

statusre p o r t

2013 record: 11-5

Finish: First in AFCNorth (lost to San Diego inwild-card playoffs)

Season recap: It’s agood news/bad news situa-tion in Cincinnati, where theBengals have made theplayoffs three consecutiveseasons for the first time infranchise history but wereone-and-done each time.

Offseason moves: TheBengals’ impressive depthtook a hit with the freeagency losses of T AnthonyCollins, DE Michael Johnsonand WR Andrew Hawkins,who left for Cleveland whenCincinnati declined to matchan offer sheet.


HELP WANTED 1. Defensive tackle: GenoAtkins might be the mostdominant DT in the leagueand the Bengals arecounting on a return toform after his 2013 sea-son was cut short by atorn ACL. Still, the Ben-gals could use an up-grade at the otherdefensive tackle spot.

2. Quarterback: Marvin Lewis isa staunch supporter of Andy Dal-

ton, but the reality is the Bengalsnever topped 13 points in any of

their last three playoff lossesand Dalton’s postseason

passer rating is 56.2.

3. Cornerback: TheBengals are loadedwith former first-roundpicks at cornerback,

but there’s a lot of agethere and the one young

guy (Dre Kirkpatrick) hasn’tdeveloped yet.

Also: Middle linebacker, safety

draft d i t t y : The Bengals’ eight first- or second-round picks from 2011-13 were spent on eight different positions

As was the case last year, the Bengals will enter the draft as one ofthe most complete teams around. It could be argued Cincinnati is aquarterback away from being a Super Bowl team, but it looks like AndyDalton will get another shot. Therefore, the Bengals really can go forthe best player available with the 24th overall selection, and topprospects who could/should be available at that spot include DEKony Ealy, DT Ra’Shede Hageman, S Calvin Pryor, G David Yankey,DT Timmy Jernigan and CBs Lamarcus Joyner and Bradley Roby.

33

POSITION FILLED 1. Offensive tackle: The Brownsdon’t have a lot of elite players on of-fense, but Joe Thomas certainly fitsthat description and 2012 second-round pick Mitchell Schwartz is asolid starter on the right side.

2. Defensive tackle: New headcoach Mike Pettine says theBrowns will play a combination of3-4 and 4-3, but either way he’s gottwo solid interior defensive linemenin former first-round pick Phil Taylorand Ahtyba Rubin.

CLEVELAND b r o w n s

statusre p o r t

2013 record: 4-12

Finish: Fourth in AFCNorth (no playoffs)

Season recap: It wasmore of the same for theBrowns, who ran their streakof consecutive seasons withat least 11 or 12 losses tosix. Now it’s Mike Pettine’sturn to get a shot, as he be-comes the team’s third headcoach in as many seasons.

Offseason moves: TheBrowns made some big ac-quisitions, landing line-backer Karlos Dansby,safety Donte Whitner andrunning back Ben Tate. Thebig loss was T.J. Ward leav-ing for Denver.

potential n o . 1 p i c k s

HELP WANTED 1. Quarterback: The Browns wentthrough Brandon Wee-den, Brian Hoyer andJason Campbell last sea-son. That’s not exactly arecipe for success.Hoyer showed somepromise before tearingan ACL, but he’s notlikely a long-term answer.

2. Wide receiver: AndrewHawkins, signed from Cincinnati asa restricted free agent, should fill the

need for a slot receiver, but Cleve-land still needs a complement on the

outside for star Josh Gordon.

3. Cornerback: Formerfirst-round pick JoeHaden is firmly estab-lished as one of the topcorners in the league,but there’s a clear void

on the other side evenafter the free agent sign-

ings of Brandon Hughes andIsaiah Trufant.

Also: Kicker, safety, guard

draft d i t t y : Cleveland’s top pick has come from the SEC three of the past four years

The Browns clearly are in need of a franchise quarterback and logicallywill get a shot with the fourth overall pick at one of the three topprospects in this year’s class — Blake Bortles, Teddy Bridgewater orJohnny Manziel. Another way the Browns could go is wide receiverSammy Watkins to team up with breakout star Josh Gordon and wait untiltheir second No. 1 pick — 26th overall, acquired from Indy in the TrentRichardson trade — and take Fresno State’s Derek Carr. If they go with a QBfirst, a wide receiver or cornerback would be the logical choice at No. 26.

POSITION FILLED 1. Wide receiver: Despite hissometimes controversial nature, DezBryant is a bona fide superstar atwide receiver, and Terrance Williamsshowed enough promise as a rookieto think he’ll become a very goodsecond option.

2. Quarterback: Tony Romo maybe polarizing, but he’s coming off avery good 2013 season. He remainsthe man in charge, although hishealth (back surgery) needs to bemonitored.

DALLAS c o w b o y s

statusre p o r t

2013 record: 8-8

Finish: Second in NFCEast (no playoffs)

Season recap: Afterthree seasons of finishing at8-8 and losing a winner-take-all battle for the NFC East onthe last Sunday night eachtime, the Cowboys were star-ing at a nasty cap situationthat could actually set themback.

Offseason moves: TheCowboys’ cap issues led tothe release of DeMarcusWare along with that of tal-ented but oft-injured wide re-ceiver Miles Austin. The bigacquisition was that of formerChicago DT Henry Melton.


HELP WANTED 1. Defensive tackle: The Cow-boys switched to a 4-3 align-ment last season but weredreadful against the run.Signing Henry Meltonshould help, but he’scoming off a torn ACL.

2. Safety: This hasbeen a position of needfor the Cowboys for sev-eral years now. The starters atthe end of last season were BarryChurch and undrafted rookie Jeff

Heath; an upgrade is needed.

3. Guard: The Cowboys enteredlast offseason with major

needs in the interior oftheir offensive line, andTravis Frederick filledthe void at center. Nowit’s time to address theguard position after

veteran stopgap BrianWaters went down with

an injury.

Also: Defensive end, corner-back, outside linebacker

draft d i t t y : Dallas has taken a player from Oklahoma or Oklahoma State each of the past five drafts

The Cowboys will have the 16th overall selection after winning a cointoss with Baltimore — both teams were 8-8 with identical opponents’winning percentages. It would be a major surprise if that pick wasn’tused on a defensive player. A defensive tackle like Aaron Donald orTimmy Jernigan certainly would make sense at No. 16, or per-haps the Cowboys might opt for a safety like Ha Ha Clinton-Dix or CalvinPryor. Other defensive prospects who could be of interest at that spotinclude Missouri DE Kony Ealy and UCLA OLB Anthony Barr.

34

POSITION FILLED 1. Quarterback: Nobody knowshow long Manning can keep going,but the Broncos have set them-selves up at the position by havingformer second-round pick BrockOsweiler learn behind him.

2. Running back: The Broncoshave invested a lot of high picks atthis position and it gave them theability to watch Knowshon Morenoleave via free agency without muchof an effect because of the presenceof Montee Ball and Ronnie Hillman.

DENVER b r o n c o s

statusre p o r t

2013 record: 13-3

Finish: 1st in AFC West(lost to Seattle in SuperBowl)

Season recap: TheSuper Bowl loss was disap-pointing but certainly could-n’t take away from PeytonManning’s record-settingseason. As long as he canremain productive, Denverwill be an elite team.

Offseason moves: TheBroncos sure appear to bein win-big-now mode, asevidenced by the acquisi-tions of CB Aqib Talib, S T.J.Ward and DE DeMarcusWare after he was releasedby the Dallas Cowboys.

possible n o . 1 t a r g e t

HELP WANTED 1. Guard: The Broncos signedLouis Vazquez in free agencylast year to fill a hole atguard, but this offsea-son they lost starterZane Beadles infree agency and needto add some depth atthe position.

2. Middle linebacker:The Broncos have an estab-lished star outside in the form of VonMiller, but neither Wesley Woodyard

nor Paris Lenon made much of animpact in the middle.

3. Defensive end: TheBroncos filled a major need

for a pass-rushing defen-sive end when they paidbig money to signWare. But the reality isWare will be 32 at the

start of the 2014 seasonand he’s coming off the

worst season of his career.

Also: Cornerback, safety, widereceiver

draft d i t t y : Denver has taken a running back in one of the first three rounds three times in the past five years

Given the Broncos’ record-setting offense in 2013, logic would suggestthat they should go with defense with the 31st overall pick. If that windsup being the case, some of the prospects who could/should be available in-clude defensive ends Kony Ealy and Dee Ford; cornerbacks Kyle Fuller, JasonVerrett and Lamarcus Joyner; and safeties Deone Bucannon and JimmieWard. Another way the Broncos could go is to solidify their guard positionwith someone like Stanford’s David Yankey or go for a wide receiverlike Jordan Matthews or Davante Adams.

35

POSITION FILLED 1. Defensive tackle: NdamukongSuh and Nick Fairley both have theirset of issues, but when they’re attheir best, there isn’t a more domi-nating duo of interior defensive line-men in the league.

2. Running back: The Lions havea nice combination of power andspeed in the offensive backfield withReggie Bush and Joique Bell, whothe Lions re-signed in the offseason.And that’s not even mentioningMikel Leshoure.

DETROIT l i o n s

statusre p o r t

2013 record: 7-9

Finish: Third in NFCNorth (no playoffs)

Season recap: After theLions pounded the Packerson Thanksgiving Day, noone could have foreseen thecollapse that would see De-troit lose its last four games(without scoring more than20 points) and lead to thehiring of Jim Caldwell to re-place the fired JimSchwartz.

Offseason moves: Ithas been a pretty quiet off-season for the Lions, whosebiggest acquisition was thatof former Seattle wide re-ceiver Golden Tate.


HELP WANTED 1. Cornerback: The Lions haveone of the most imposing de-fensive lines in the NFL,but they don’t have theplaymakers on theback end. Chris Hous-ton was the only LionsCB with an intercep-tion last season, and heonly had two.

2. Safety: Starter LouisDelmas was released in the offsea-son, partly because of chronic knee

issues and also because he wasn’tseen as a good fit in the new de-

fense.

3. Kicker: After longtimekicker Jason Hanson re-tired following the 2012season, the Lions wentwith another veteran in2013, but David

Akers had a some-what disappointing sea-

son and he was released inthe offseason.

Also: Wide receiver, tackle

draft d i t t y : The Lions have taken an offensive or defensive lineman with their top pick each of the last four years

The Lions find themselves with the 10th overall pick, the samespot they had in 2005 when they selected USC wide receiver MikeWilliams. Nine years later, it would not be a great shock if the Lionswent with a wide receiver again, with the logical option at that spotthis year being Mike Evans from Texas A&M or perhaps Marquise Leefrom USC. A more logical option would be addressing the major needat cornerback with either Justin Gilbert or Darqueze Dennard.

POSITION FILLED 1. Quarterback: Rodgers hastopped 100 in passer rating each ofthe past five seasons and he turnedonly 30 years old last December. ThePackers aren’t even at the stage tostart thinking about Rodgers’ suc-cessor.

2. Running back: The Packersdoubled up in the draft last year withEddie Lacy and Johnathan Franklinto find an answer at running back,and Lacy responded by earningRookie of the Year honors.

GREEN BAY p a c k e r s

statusre p o r t

2013 record: 8-7-1

Finish: First in NFC North(lost to San Francisco inwild-card playoffs)

Season recap: Given thatAaron Rodgers missed sevengames because of a shoulderinjury, it was quite an accom-plishment that the Packersmade the playoffs last sea-son.

Offseason moves: ThePackers haven’t added manyveterans, but they did make asplash by signing Julius Pep-pers after he was released byChicago. After playing defen-sive end for the Bears, Pep-pers is expected to line up atoutside linebacker in thePackers’ 3-4 scheme.


HELP WANTED 1. Safety: The Packers have is-sues at several different spotson defense, but perhapsnothing is more glaringthan the need for aplaymaker at safetyafter the positionrecorded one intercep-tion all of last season.

2. Tight end: Jer-michael Finley had somebig seasons for the Packers and nowGreen Bay needs to find a bona-fide

threat at the position because a quar-terback like Aaron Rodgers needs to

have as many targets at his dis-posal as possible.

3. Nose tackle: Oppo-nents averaged ahealthy 4.6 yards perrushing attempt againstthe Packers in 2013,

and that serves as an in-dictment on the work of

Ryan Pickett.

Also: Defensive end, inside line-backer

draft d i t t y : The Packers have taken a college offensive or defensive lineman with their top pick each of the last five years

The Packers will have the 21st overall pick, which will be their high-est first-round selection since 2009 when they selected B.J. Raji withthe ninth overall pick. Five years later, it’s entirely possible that thePackers could go with a defensive lineman again, with Notre Dame nosetackle Louis Nix III looking like a good fit. Other options would includesafeties Calvin Pryor or Ha Ha Clinton-Dix or a tight end likeEric Ebron or Austin Seferian-Jenkins. Another possibility would beNix’s college teammate, 3-4 defensive end Stephon Tuitt.

36

POSITION FILLED 1. Wide receiver: The Texans aregoing to have to start thinking aboutreplacing Andre Johnson prettysoon, but it doesn’t rank as a needthis offseason. Besides, they spenttheir No. 1 pick last year on a widereceiver, DeAndre Hopkins.

2. Center: Chris Myers has beena steady performer for the Texans forsix years and he’s coming off an-other solid season even though hisstreak of consecutive Pro Bowl ap-pearances stopped at two.

HOUSTON t e x a n s

statusre p o r t

2013 record: 2-14

Finish: Fourth in AFCSouth (no playoffs)

Season recap: Wasn’t itjust two years ago that the Tex-ans seemed on the cusp ofgetting to the Super Bowl?After a couple of close victoriesto start the 2013 season, thingswent south in a hurry and theTexans were left with a newhead coach (Bill O’Brien) and abunch of questions.

Offseason moves: TheTexans said goodbye to sev-eral veterans, releasing TEOwen Daniels, trading QBMatt Schaub and losing in freeagency RB Ben Tate, DE Anto-nio Smith and DT Earl Mitchell.


HELP WANTED 1. Quarterback: Matt Schaubentered last season sur-rounded by questions as towhether he was capableof leading a team to aSuper Bowl. What fol-lowed were a series ofpick-sixes that leftHouston having to startover at the position.

2. Running back: The Tex-ans used to have the best one-twotandem in the league with Arian Foster

and Ben Tate, but Foster is coming offback surgery and Tate now is a mem-

ber of the Cleveland Browns.

3. Safety: The Ed Reedexperiment didn’t quitepan out for the Texans,and that’s putting itgently. The Texansheaded into another

offseason still lookingfor a difference-maker in

the secondary.

Also: Inside linebacker, nosetackle, fullback, tackle

draft d i t t y : Houston hasn’t taken a QB before the fifth round since making David Carr the first overall pick in 2002

By virtue of their incomprehensible collapse, the Texans inheritedthe first overall pick and will have their choice of any quarterback in thedraft. The question is whether Houston decides that any of the top can-didates — Blake Bortles, Teddy Bridgewater and Johnny Manziel — mer-its the No. 1 overall pick. The other option at No. 1 would be theuber-talented Jadeveon Clowney, even though he’s bettersuited to a 4-3 than the Texans’ 3-4. There’s, of course, always the op-tion of trading down.

..

POSITION FILLED 1. Quarterback: The Colts havemade the playoffs in each of AndrewLuck’s first two seasons and thelikelihood is that Luck will just keepgetting better and better.

2. Running back: After giving uptheir 2014 first-round pick for TrentRichardson last season, the Coltsare likely to give him every opportu-nity to show they were right in mak-ing the trade. With Ahmad Bradshawand Vick Ballard, the Colts also havegood depth at the position.

INDIANAPOLIS c o l t s

statusre p o r t

2013 record: 11-5

Finish: First in AFCSouth (lost at New Englandin divisional playoffs)

Season recap: Aftermaking the playoffs twice inAndrew Luck’s first two sea-sons, it should be prettyclear this is a team that’sgoing to be a factor for along time.

Offseason moves: TheColts made a couple of keyacquisitions to improve theirdefense, signing DE ArthurJones away from Baltimoreand LB D’Qwell Jacksonafter he was released byCleveland. WR HakeemNicks also could help.


HELP WANTED 1. Wide receiver: As good asLuck is, it’s imperative that theColts keep him sur-rounded with playmak-ers on offense. This is amajor need becauseReggie Wayne is35 and has to comeback from reconstruc-tive knee surgery.

2. Center: Samson Satelewas a serviceable center for theColts, but the team was in need of

draft d i t t y : Indy didn’t select a single linebacker in any of the last three drafts

The Colts do not have a first-round pick as the result of their tradewith the Cleveland Browns for the services of running back TrentRichardson, who did little to justify the move. Indianapolis’ first selec-tion in the draft will be the 27th in the second round, the 59th overall.Luckily for the Colts, there’s tremendous depth at wide receiver in thisdraft, which means they still could land someone like JarvisLandry, Martavis Bryant, Allen Robinson, Donte Moncrief or DavanteAdams. Center Marcus Martin also could be a possibility.

37

POSITION FILLED 1. Punter: The Jaguars made thehighly suspect decision to draftpunter Bryan Anger in the thirdround in 2012 at a time when theyhad bigger needs throughout theroster, but at least he has performedup to expectations.

2. Kicker: In his 10th season inJacksonville in 2013, Josh Scobeewas 23-of-25 on field goal attemptsfor the second time in three years. Atleast the Jaguars don’t have toworry about their kicking game.

JACKSONVILLE j a g u a r s

statusre p o r t

2013 record: 4-12

Finish: Third in AFCSouth (no playoffs)

Season recap: TheJaguars doubled their victorytotal in Gus Bradley’s firstseason as head coach in2013, but considering theylost five games by 20 pointsor more, it’s clear there’s stilla lot of work to be done.

Offseason moves: TheJaguars didn’t make anyheadline-grabbing movesearly in free agency, but didpick up a few players whocould help — G Zane Bea-dles, DE Chris Clemons, RBToby Gerhart, LB DekodaWatson, DE Red Bryant.


HELP WANTED 1. Quarterback: The Blaine Gab-bert experiment ended whenhe was traded to San Fran-cisco for a late-roundpick. The Jaguars re-signed Chad Hennein the offseason, but itshould be clear by nowthat Henne is bettersuited for a backup role.

2. Guard: The Jaguarsaveraged only 3.3 yards per rush-ing attempt in 2013 and a big rea-

son was the sub-par performanceof the interior of the offensive line.

Veteran starter Uche Nwanerithen was released in the

offseason.

3. Running back:Maurice Jones-Drewmade the Pro Bowl in2009, 2010 and 2011,

but injuries then de-railed him and there was

nobody to take over.

Also: Outside linebacker, corner-back, center

draft d i t t y : The Jaguars haven’t drafted a tight end before the sixth round since 2006

After picking second overall last year, the Jaguars will have thethird selection this time and it seems likely they’ll want to addresstheir long-problematic quarterback situation. At No. 3, Jacksonvilleis assured that one of the top three passing prospects — Blake Bor-tles, Teddy Bridgewater and Johnny Manziel — will beavailable. The one player who likely would make the Jaguars pass ona quarterback is Jadeveon Clowney, the kind of dynamic defensivedifference-maker the Jaguars simply don’t have on their roster.

an upgrade at the position even be-fore they decided to release him in

the offseason.

3. Safety: The two Coltsstarters from 2013, An-toine Bethea andLaRon Landry, bothhave made the ProBowl during their ca-

reer, but that’s not howthey played last season.

And Bethea left for the49ers in free agency.

Also: Cornerback, inside linebacker

POSITION FILLED 1. Outside linebacker: JustinHouston and Tamba Hali both fin-ished with 11 sacks last season andtheir ability to pressure the quarter-back was a big key to the successof the defense in 2013.

2. Running back: While AlexSmith deserves credit for avoidingthe mistakes that killed the Chiefs in2012, it was Jamaal Charles whomade the offense go. He not onlyrushed for 1,287 yards but also ledthe team with 70 receptions.

KANSAS CITY c h i e f s

statusre p o r t

2013 record: 11-5

Finish: Second in AFCWest (lost at Indianapolis inwild-card playoffs)

Season recap: TheChiefs’ turnaround from 2-14in 2012 to playoff team wasimpressive but perhaps not allthat stunning considering thetalent that had been wastedby shoddy quarterbacking.That said, the question is howfar this team can get.

Offseason moves: Ithas been a tough offseasonfor the Chiefs, who lost sev-eral key contributors in freeagency — T Branden Albert,DT Tyson Jackson, WRDexter McCluster, G GeoffSchwartz, G Jon Asamoah.


HELP WANTED 1. Safety: The Chiefs defensethrived on turnovers last sea-son but also gave up itsshare of big plays. Theone spot in the second-ary that could usesome upgrading is freesafety, where KendrickLewis was merely ade-quate in 2013.

2. Wide receiver:Dwayne Bowe is a bona fide No.1 receiver, but the Chiefs have had

problems finding him a complemen-tary playmaker. Kansas City landed

former first-round pick A.J. Jenkinslast season after he flamed

out in San Francisco, butJenkins is far from aproven commodity.

3. Guard: The offen-sive line took a big hit in

free agency, and two ofthe losses were starting

guard Geoff Schwartz andkey backup Jon Asamoah.

Also: Cornerback

draft d i t t y : The Chiefs have taken five offensive linemen in the first three rounds in the past three drafts

The price of Kansas City’s successful 2013 season will be havingthe 23rd pick instead of the first overall that the Chiefs had last year.At that spot, the Chiefs figure to go for a wide receiver or defensiveback. Among wide receivers who should land around this spot areLSU’s Odell Beckham Jr. and Oregon State’s Brandin Cooks, with aslight chance that USC’s Marqise Lee could fall to 23 as well.Among defensive backs, options here could include CB Bradley Roby,CB Kyle Fuller, CB Jason Verrett or safety Calvin Pryor.

38

POSITION FILLED 1. Defensive end: Olivier Vernonemerged last season to providepass-rushing help for three-time ProBowl selection Cameron Wake. Inaddition, the Dolphins also have2013 third overall pick Dion Jordan.

2. Cornerback: The re-signing ofPro Bowl selection Brent Grimes be-fore the start of free agency was abig priority. The Dolphins also usedpicks in the second (Jamar Taylor)and third rounds (Will Davis) on thisposition last year.

MIAMI d o l p h i n s

statusre p o r t

2013 record: 8-8

Finish: Third in AFC East(no playoffs)

Season recap: The Dol-phins are looking to turn thepage after a season marredby the much-publicized bul-lying scandal and later onthe field by a late-seasoncollapse that kept them outof the playoffs for a fifthconsecutive year.

Offseason moves: TheDolphins have been prettyactive in free agency andthe biggest move easily waslanding tackle Branden Al-bert from Kansas City.Landing Knowshon Morenoalso was a solid move.


HELP WANTED 1. Guard: Last year’s opening-day starters were Richie Incog-nito and John Jerry, both ofwhom were implicated inthe bullying scandal.Jerry has signed withthe Giants and Incog-nito has practically zerochance of returning.

2. Running back: Miamiwent with 2012 fourth-roundpick Lamar Miller and 2011 second-round choice Daniel Thomas

as a tandem last year, but the resultswere less than overwhelming.

3. Offensive tackle: TheDolphins ended last sea-

son with veteransBryant McKinnie andTyson Clabo as theirstarters and mightwant a restart here,

too. Signing BrandenAlbert was a good start,

but more help is needed.

Also: Outside linebacker, full-back

draft d i t t y : The Dolphins haven’t taken a linebacker in the first round since 1984 (Jackie Shipp)

With four of the five starters from an underperforming Dolphinsoffensive line becoming unrestricted free agents, it has been as-sumed that Miami will be targeting that position with the 19th over-all pick. One player whose name has come up often is Notre Dame’sZack Martin, who could play guard or tackle. But Miami hasneeds throughout its lineup and other options could include AlabamaOT Cyrus Kouandjio, North Carolina tight end Eric Ebron, and safetiesHa Ha Clinton-Dix and Calvin Pryor.

39

POSITION FILLED 1. Offensive tackle: With MattKalil on the left side and massive PhilLoadholt on the right, the Vikingshave one of the best tackle tandemsin the NFC.

2. Running back: Adrian Petersonwasn’t able to duplicate his 2,000-yard performance, but he had yet an-other Pro Bowl season. The Vikingswill have to think about a successorat some point, but that time clearlyhas not arrived yet. He should remainthe focal point on offense.

MINNESOTA v i k i n g s

statusre p o r t

2013 record: 5-10-1

Finish: Fourth in NFCNorth (no playoffs)

Season recap: Aftermanaging to make theplayoffs despite shakyquarterback play in 2012,the Vikings had no suchluck in 2013 and the resultwas the firing of Leslie Fra-zier and hiring of Mike Zim-mer as head coach.

Offseason moves: TheVikings’ biggest acquisitionwas that of former GiantsDT Linval Joseph, but thatpaled in comparison tolongtime DE Jared Allenleaving for Chicago as afree agent.


HELP WANTED 1. Quarterback: The Vikings hadtheir most success last seasonwith Matt Cassel at quarter-back and they re-signedhim in the offseason.But it’s not like hesolves the team’s quar-terback issue.

2. Outside line-backer: Chad Green-way has been a starter sincebeing a first-round pick in 2006 andhe led the Vikings with three inter-

ceptions in 2013. That said, he mighthave been the best performer on a

linebacking corps in severe needof a difference-maker.

3. Defensive end: TheVikings were able to re-sign promising EversonGriffen in the offsea-son, but Minnesota still

has to somehow com-pensate for the loss of

Jared Allen.

Also: Middle linebacker, corner-back, guard

draft d i t t y : The Vikings took nine players from Florida schools the past seven years, including three in 2013

The Vikings have the eighth overall pick and logic says that if one ofthe three top quarterback prospects — Teddy Bridgewater, Blake Bortlesand Johnny Manziel — is still on the board, they’ll strongly considergoing that route. Otherwise, Minnesota could instead look at an outsidelinebacker like Anthony Barr or Khalil Mack, although Mack is ex-pected to be selected before then. Cornerbacks Justin Gilbert and Dar-queze Dennard also could be options, and an outside possibility wouldbe Alabama ILB C.J. Mosley.

MY NAME AND ADDRESS:Name:____________________________________ Phone: ( ) _______________Address:______________________________________________________________ City:____________________________________________State:Zip:_____________________E-mail (optional):______________________________

PAYMENT OPTIONS:Check or money order payable to American Sports Media is enclosed. Credit Card: Visa MasterCard Discover Card Amex

Credit Card #: _____________________________________________________Exp. Date:_______________Signature:___________________Sec. Code______

This is a renewal This is a new subscription1 year (12 issues) of Dolphin Digest for $39.95..........$_________2 years (24 issues) of Dolphin Digest for $69.95........$_________BEST DEAL! 3 years (36 issues) only $99.95................$_________First-class delivery available for additional $20 per year...........$__________

TOTAL.................................................................................$__________Mail to: Dolphin Digest

P.O. Box 401 Victor, NY 14564 1-800-932-4557 • FAX: (716) 406-4126

Order online at: www.ASMpublications.comPAPR

POSITION FILLED 1. Offensive tackle: While theskill positions have been in flux inrecent years, the New England of-fensive line has been a steady forceand it starts with young and tal-ented tackles Nate Solder and Se-bastian Vollmer.

2. Outside linebacker: With theemergence of Jaime Collins latelast season, the Patriots have rea-son to feel good about their start-ing tandem of Collins and 2012first-round pick Dont’a Hightower.

NEW ENGLAND p a t r i o t s

statusre p o r t

2013 record: 12-4

Finish: First in AFC East(lost at Denver in AFCChampionship Game)

Season recap: The Patri-ots entered the offseasonafter once again coming upshort in the playoffs, and hadage and cap issues to ad-dress. On the flip side,they’ve also reached doubledigits in victories 11 straightyears and still have Bill Be-lichick and Tom Brady.

Offseason moves: ThePatriots didn’t make manymoves, but signing DarrelleRevis after he was releasedby Tampa Bay might qualifyas the most significant ac-quisition by any team.


HELP WANTED 1. Defensive tackle: The Patriotsopened the season with theirstarters at this positionbeing Vince Wilforkand Tommy Kelly, bothof whom are in their30s and both of whomended the season oninjured reserve.

2. Tight end: With alldue respect to Jimmy Gra-ham, Rob Gronkowski is the besttight end in the league when healthy.

But that’s just the problem —Gronkowski hasn’t been healthy.

Now he has to try to come backfrom a torn ACL.

3. Wide receiver: TomBrady had his lowestpasser rating since2003 and that had a lotmore to do with some

growing pains from NewEngland’s rookie wide re-

ceivers, who remain un-known quantities.

Also: Fullback, safety

draft d i t t y : The Patriots have ended up with four or more picks in the first three rounds six consecutive years

Having a pick late in the first round is nothing new for the Patriots,who will select 29th this year. The Patriots don’t have a glaring needthat must be addressed, so they could go in several directions here.Among the possibilities are Notre Dame nose tackle Louis Nix III, Min-nesota defensive tackle Ra’Shede Hageman, Texas Tech tightend Jace Amaro, Washington tight end Austin Seferian-Jenkins, LSUwide receiver Odell Beckham Jr., Oregon State wide receiver BrandinCooks and Florida State wide receiver Kelvin Benjamin.

40

POSITION FILLED 1. Quarterback: Drew Breesturned 35 in January but he hasshown no signs of slowing down.Last season, he recorded his thirdconsecutive season with at least5,000 passing yards.

2. Defensive end: Whatever suc-cess the Saints defense had in 2013was largely due to the play ofCameron Jordan and Akiem Hicks.Jordan emerged as a pass-rushingforce, while Hicks turned in a strongperformance against the run.

NEW ORLEANS s a i n t s

statusre p o r t

2013 record: 11-5

Finish: Second in NFCSouth (lost at Seattle in divi-sional playoffs)

Season recap: TheSaints rebounded from theBountygate mess just as ex-pected, but were facing awhole new set of issues thisoffseason, namely trying tore-sign Jimmy Graham andtrying to get younger.

Offseason moves: For ateam dealing with cap is-sues, the Saints did well inlanding safety Jairus Byrdfrom Buffalo. Re-signing righttackle Zach Strief also waskey. The one loss of notewas that of Darren Sproles.


HELP WANTED 1. Inside linebacker: Former At-lanta starter Curtis Lofton andDavid Hawthorne handledthe inside linebackerspots in the Saints’ new3-4 scheme last year,and neither of themhad what could be con-sidered a productiveseason.

2. Cornerback: Veteranstarter Jabari Greer was amongthree veterans released in mid-Feb-

ruary, and nickel corner PatrickRobinson is coming off a major

knee injury.

3. Kicker: Garrett Hartleymade only 22 of 30 fieldgoal attempts last sea-son and hasn’t had aconversion rate higherthan 81.8 percent since

2008. That doesn’t cut itin a league where the av-

erage success rate last sea-son was 86.5 percent.

Also: Wide receiver, center

draft d i t t y : The Saints haven’t ended up with at least seven draft picks in any draft since 2007

With the 27th overall pick in the first round, the Saints figure tofocus on defense. If they choose to go with a cornerback, likely optionsat No. 27 could include Bradley Roby of Ohio State, Jason Verrettof TCU, Kyle Fuller of Virginia Tech and Lamarcus Joyner of Florida State.The Saints could use an inside linebacker, but there isn’t a prospect whofalls near the 20-30 range in terms of draft value. So New Orleans couldwind up just looking for depth on defense, with someone like DE/OLBDee Ford or Notre Dame DE Stephon Tuitt.

POSITION FILLED 1. Safety: Opposing quarterbacksmanaged only a 78.2 passer ratingagainst the Giants and a big reasonwas the strong play of starters WillHill and Antrel Rolle, who led the Gi-ants with six interceptions.

2. Guard: This was a position ofneed entering this offseason, but theGiants then signed Geoff Schwartzfrom Kansas City and John Jerryfrom Miami. In addition, the Giantskept starter Chris Snee when heagreed to restructure his contract.

NEW YORK g i a n t s

statusre p o r t

2013 record: 7-9

Finish: Third in NFC East(no playoffs)

Season recap: The Gi-ants have followed up theirSuper Bowl title of 2011 byfailing to make the playoffsthe past two years and nowneed to figure out how toget Eli Manning and the of-fense back on track.

Offseason moves: TheGiants were very active, andamong their key acquisitionswere CB DominiqueRodgers-Cromartie and GGeoff Schwartz. On the flipside, New York said goodbyeto former key contributorsJustin Tuck, Hakeem Nicksand David Diehl.


HELP WANTED 1. Running back: David Wil-son was a first-round pick justtwo years ago, but now hehas become a questionmark after having sur-gery on his neck. Vet-eran Brandon Jacobsannounced his retire-ment. Rashad Jenningswas signed as a freeagent, but is the formerJaguars and Raiders backup re-ally the answer?

2. Defensive tackle: The Giantsdid a good job against the run in

2013, but lost starter LinvalJoseph in free agency.

There’s little depth at thisposition on the roster.

3. Tight end: BrandonMyers had decentnumbers in 2013 in his

first season with the Gi-ants, but he left for Tampa

Bay via free agency.

Also: Fullback, defensive end,outside linebacker

draft d i t t y : The Giants haven’t taken a linebacker before Round 6 since 2009

The Giants currently own the 12th overall pick, which would be theirhighest since the famous 2004 draft when they had the fourth pick andselected Philip Rivers. New York has enough needs to be able to find amatch at No. 12. Options that could be available include TE Eric Ebronfrom North Carolina, DT Louis Nix III from Notre Dame, CB Dar-queze Dennard from Michigan State, CB Justin Gilbert fromOklahoma State, and OLB Anthony Barr from UCLA. An outside possibil-ity would be a wide receiver like USC’s Marquise Lee.

41

POSITION FILLED 1. Defensive end: SheldonRichardson’s ability to make an im-mediate impact gave the Jets a for-midable set of bookends withMuhammad Wilkerson on their 3-4defensive line. In fact, it could be ar-gued that no 3-4 team has better de-fensive ends.

2. Running back: Neither ChrisIvory nor Bilal Powell are particularlyflashy, but they’re both solid and ef-fective backs, and they form a prettygood combo.

NEW YORK j e t s

statusre p o r t

2013 record: 8-8

Finish: 2nd in AFC East(no playoffs)

Season recap: That theJets were able to finish at.500 last season was nothingshort of remarkable giventhe talent level on the roster.It earned Rex Ryan at leastanother year as head coachbut shouldn’t have maskedthe team’s deficiencies.

Offseason moves: TheJets made a couple on of-fense with the signings ofEric Decker and MichaelVick, but that was over-shadowed by the depar-tures of Mark Sanchez,Santonio Holmes and Anto-nio Cromartie.


HELP WANTED 1. Wide receiver: NewcomerEric Decker has become abetter wide receiver thanthe departed Santo-nio Holmes, buthe’s not really a pureNo. 1 target. The truthis the Jets don’t havethat kind of wide re-ceiver on their roster.

2. Quarterback: Let’s faceit, did Geno Smith really do much asa rookie in 2013 to make anyone

think he’s the long-term answer forthe Jets? And Michael Vick signed

only a one-year deal.

3. Safety: The release ofAntonio Cromartie sug-gests a glaring hole atcornerback, but the re-ality is the Jets are inbetter shape there with

former first-round picksDee Milliner and Kyle Wil-

son than at safety.

Also: Guard, fullback, tight end,inside linebacker, cornerback

draft d i t t y : The Jets have not drafted a tight end since 2008 when they took Dustin Keller in Round 1

The Jets have the 18th overall pick in the first round and logic saysthey need to get playmakers on offense, preferably at wide receiver.Among the wide receivers who could or should be available at that spotare Marquise Lee from USC, Odell Beckham Jr. from LSU, Kelvin Benjaminfrom Florida State and Brandin Cooks from Oregon State. A tight endlike Eric Ebron also would help the passing game. If they opt fordefense, logical choices for the Jets here would include safety CalvinPryor and inside linebacker C.J. Mosley.

POSITION FILLED 1. Outside linebacker: SioMoore turned in an impressive per-formance as a rookie third-roundpick in 2013, and the Raiders alsogot solid play from veteran freeagent acquisition Kevin Burnett.

2. Center: The Raiders enteredthe offseason with plenty of ques-tion marks surrounding their offen-sive line, but the one spot wherethey were solid was in the middle,thanks to Stefen Wisniewski.

OAKLAND r a i d e r s

statusre p o r t

2013 record: 4-12

Finish: Fourth in AFCWest (no playoffs)

Season recap: Thereseemed to be some hope inOakland after a 3-4 start, butin the end it was yet anotherdisappointing season for theRaiders, who once againfound themselves staring upat the rest of the division.

Offseason moves: TheRaiders loaded up on estab-lished veterans with the ad-ditions of DE Justin Tuck,OLB LaMarr Woodley, TDonald Penn, DT AntonioSmith, QB Matt Schaub andRB Maurice Jones-Drew.The question is: How muchdo those guys have left?


HELP WANTED 1. Quarterback: The Raiders lastyear traded for Matt Flynn,drafted Tyler Wilson andgave looks to both Ter-relle Pryor and MattMcGloin. Now, they’vetraded for Matt Schaub.The bottom line is Oak-land still doesn’t have adefinitive answer.

2. Defensive end: TheRaiders began the offseason lookinglike a team that could use pass-

rushing help, which made it all themore surprising that they let their

2013 sack leader, Lamarr Hous-ton, leave via free agency.

Justin Tuck will only helpso much.

3. Cornerback:Raiders opponentscombined last season

for a 68.1 completionpercentage and a passer

rating of 105.1.

Also: Wide receiver, safety, de-fensive tackle

draft d i t t y : Oakland has taken at least one wide receiver each of the past eight drafts

The Raiders have a first-round pick for the second consecutiveyear after a three-year run without one, and will pick fifth overall.While the Raiders badly need someone who can make an immediateimpact, they might be hard-pressed to pass up one of the top threequarterbacks — Blake Bortles, Johnny Manziel and TeddyBridgewater — if available. The other prospects considered top-fivetalents are Sammy Watkins, Jadeveon Clowney, Greg Robinson andKhalil Mack, and the Raiders could justify drafting any of them.

42

POSITION FILLED 1. Offensive tackle: The Eaglesgave left tackle Jason Peters a con-tract extension in the offseason andthey should be set on both sides fora few years with Peters and 2013first-round pick Lane Johnson.

2. Running back: LeSean McCoywas the perfect fit for Chip Kelly’swide-open offense, and the addi-tion of Darren Sproles gives Kellyone more weapon to utilize. BryceBrown is a good complementaryback with some power.

PHILADELPHIA e a g l e s

statusre p o r t

2013 record: 10-6

Finish: First in NFC East(lost to New Orleans inwild-card playoffs)

Season recap: Evenafter the disappointing lossagainst the Saints, the out-look is bright in Philadelphiaafter a return to the playoffsin Chip Kelly’s first year ashead coach.

Offseason moves: TheEagles began the offseasonby re-signing several keyplayers, highlighted by OTJason Peters and WR Je-remy Maclin, and thenpicked up Darren Sproles ina trade. The Eagles latercut WR DeSean Jackson.


HELP WANTED 1. Outside linebacker: Eventhough he led the team witheight sacks, converted de-fensive end Trent Coleisn’t seen as a great fit inthe Eagles’ 3-4 scheme.Besides, you can neverhave enough qualityOLBs in a 3-4.

2. Cornerback: Bran-don Boykin has developedinto a quality slot corner, but the Ea-gles could use an upgrade over

starters Cary Williams and BradleyFletcher on the outside.

3. Safety: Signing formerSaints first-round pick Mal-

colm Jenkins as a freeagent was a goodmove, but it didn’tcompletely solve the is-sues at this position.

Earl Wolff started fivegames as a rookie fifth-

round pick in 2013, and thejury is still out on him.

Also: Kicker, inside linebacker

draft d i t t y : The Eagles haven’t taken a cornerback in the first or second round since 2002 (Lito Sheppard, Round 1)

The Eagles seem to have all the elements for a Super Bowl offense;the task now will be to build the defense. With the 22nd pick in thefirst round, the Eagles figure to go for the best prospect in the backseven. Among those who should be available around this spot areAuburn DE/OLB Dee Ford, TCU CB Jason Verrett, Ohio State CBBradley Roby, Missouri DE/OLB Kony Ealy, and safeties Calvin Pryorand Ha Ha Clinton-Dix. One option on offense would be an oversizedwide receiver like Kelvin Benjamin.

POSITION FILLED 1. Quarterback: The biggestreason for the Steelers’ turnaroundin 2013 was the stellar play of BenRoethlisberger, who remainsamong the elite quarterbacks in theNFL.

2. Outside linebacker: Evenafter releasing LaMarr Woodley inMarch, the Steelers should be fineat outside linebacker if 2013 first-round pick Jarvis Jones makesenough of a step to become a solidcomplement to Jason Worilds.

PITTSBURGH s t e e l e r s

statusre p o r t

2013 record: 8-8

Finish: Second in AFCNorth (no playoffs)

Season recap: TheSteelers deserve kudos forovercoming a 2-6 start toend up close to making theplayoffs, but the once-domi-nating defense appears tobe in transition.

Offseason moves: It’sbeen a typical Steelers off-season, which meansthey’ve focused on retainingtheir own free agents whileadding some complementarypieces, such as S MikeMitchell, WR Lance Mooreand NT Cam Thomas. Theone departure of note wasthat of OLB LaMarr Woodley.


HELP WANTED 1. Cornerback: Veteran IkeTaylor will be back afteragreeing to take a pay cut,but he’s not the shut-down cornerback heonce was. And nobodyhas emerged on theopposite side in recentyears to earn that dis-tinction.

2. Nose tackle: It wasn’tthat long ago that the Steelers werealmost impossible to run against,

but that was when Casey Hamptonwas still lining up at nose tackle. The

Steelers need a dominant forceagain in the middle of the

defensive line.

3. Wide receiver: An-tonio Brown hasemerged as one of thebest in the league, but

the Steelers just don’thave much else on the

roster.

Also: Defensive end, punter, full-back, inside linebacker

draft d i t t y : The Steelers selected a running back in each of the past six drafts

Before free agency started, it seemed a popular thought that theSteelers would take a safety with the 15th overall selection, but the ad-dition of former Carolina starter Mike Mitchell might change that view.The Steelers took Casey Hampton at No. 19 in 2001 and it’s certainlyeasy to see them taking nose tackle Louis Nix III this year. Otheroptions should include cornerbacks Darqueze Dennard or Justin Gilbert,if either is available, or a wide receiver such as Marqise Lee or MikeEvans, if the latter should happen to last beyond the first 14 picks.

43

POSITION FILLED 1. Defensive end: Robert Quinnwent to the Pro Bowl last seasonafter leading the league with 19sacks and even though he’s neverbeen selected to the Pro Bowl,Chris Long is a very good defensiveend in his own right.

2. Defensive tackle: Whilethey’re not nearly as spectacular astheir defensive line partners,Kendall Langford and MichaelBrockers form an effective startingtandem inside.

ST. LOUIS r a m s

statusre p o r t

2013 record: 7-9

Finish: Fourth in NFCWest (no playoffs)

Season recap: TheRams definitely have madeprogress in the two yearssince Jeff Fisher took overas head coach, but theyhaven’t been able to keepup in what has become thebest division in the NFL.

Offseason moves: TheRams did very little in termsof adding players. In fact,their biggest move was re-signing guard/tackleRodger Safford after hisdeal with Oakland wasvoided when the Raidersfailed him on their physical.


HELP WANTED 1. Guard: Two players who gotmultiple starts at guard left theRams in the offseason —Harvey Dahl was re-leased and ChrisWilliams left as a freeagent — and they al-most lost a third withSaffold.

2. Wide receiver:While Tavon Austinshowed explosiveness at times lastseason, he’s not a pure wide re-

ceiver but more of an all-purposeback. The Rams actually don’t have

a bona fide No. 1 wide receiveron their roster.

3. Safety: RodneyMcLeod and rookie T.J.McDonald were thestarters in 2013 andthey both had their

share of struggles. Anupgrade clearly is man-

dated.

Also: Cornerback, offen-sive tackle, quarterback, tight end

draft d i t t y : The Rams took 10 wide receivers in the past six drafts, including two last year

Enjoying the last rewards of the big draft trade with Washington twoyears ago, the Rams will hold the second overall pick courtesy of the Red-skins, along with their own 13th overall selection. That gives St. Louis anawful lot of flexibility, assuming they don’t trade out of the second spotagain. If they stay put, logic says they’ll go after Sammy Watkins to filltheir wide receiver need, Jadeveon Clowney because he’s just too good topass up, or tackle Greg Robinson because of uncertainty sur-rounding Jake Long after he tore an ACL in the season finale.

POSITION FILLED 1. Offensive tackle: After tryingseveral alternatives, the Chargersseem to finally have found an an-swer at left tackle with King Dunlap.Over on the right side, first-roundpick D.J. Fluker has the look of a fu-ture Pro Bowl selection.

2. Inside linebacker: The Charg-ers took care of this spot in the off-season when they re-signed DonaldButler, one of their best defensiveplayers. Manti Te’o came on late lastseason and should only get better.

SAN DIEGO c h a r g e r s

statusre p o r t

2013 record: 9-7

Finish: Third in AFCWest (lost at Denver in divi-sional playoffs)

Season recap: MikeMcCoy’s first year as headcoach was a success as theChargers returned to theplayoffs. McCoy’s biggestaccomplishment was get-ting QB Philip Rivers backto elite status.

Offseason moves: Withlittle cap with which to oper-ate, the Chargers wereamong the quietest teamsearly in free agency. Theirbiggest moves involved re-signing their own players,such as LB Donald Butlerand CB Richard Marshall.


HELP WANTED 1. Cornerback: The Chargerssigned Derek Cox as a freeagent last offseason but hestruggled badly enoughthat he was released.You need a lot of qual-ity cornerbacks playingin the same division asPeyton Manning, andthe Chargers might nothave even one.

2. Nose tackle: The Chargersgave up 4.6 yards per rushing at-

tempt in 2013, and that’s an indict-ment on the work of starting nose

tackle Cam Thomas, who woundup leaving for Pittsburgh as

a free agent.

3. Wide receiver: TheChargers could havehad a tremendouswide receiver corps if

not for the significantinjuries sustained by

Malcom Floyd and Da-nario Alexander.

Also: Guard, fullback

draft d i t t y : The Chargers haven’t drafted a safety in the first round since 1991 (Stanley Richard)

Despite their unspectacular 9-7 record, the Chargers will have to set-tle for the 25th overall pick after winning a playoff game. Given theseverity of their need at cornerback, it would seem likely that’s the posi-tion they’ll target and the three prospects who could/should be avail-able at that spot are Bradley Roby, Kyle Fuller and Jason Verrett.At nose tackle, the one prospect considered a first-round pick is LouisNix III and he’s likely to be a top 20 pick. Another option would be awide receiver like Kelvin Benjamin or Odell Beckham Jr.

44

POSITION FILLED 1. Guard: It’s tough to decidewhether the 49ers are in bettershape at guard or tackle, but we’llgo with the inside position withMike Iupati and Alex Boone. Again,the 49ers have two good tackleswith former first-round picks JoeStaley and Anthony Davis.

2. Safety: The 49ers lost starterDonte Whitner in free agency, butactually probably upgraded afterthey were able to land longtimeColts starter Antoine Bethea.

SAN FRANCISCO 4 9 e r s

statusre p o r t

2013 record: 12-4

Finish: Second in NFCWest (lost at Seattle in NFCChampionship Game)

Season recap: The49ers reached the NFCChampionship Game for thethird consecutive season,but that was followed by re-ports of dissension betweenCoach Jim Harbaugh andGM Trent Baalke.

Offseason moves: The49ers pretty much main-tained the status quo, withtheir one big acquisitionbeing longtime Colts safetyAntoine Bethea. He replacesDonte Whitner, who left as afree agent to join Cleveland.


HELP WANTED 1. Cornerback: The departure ofCarlos Rogers has left avoid at this position. The49ers have some youngplayers they’re confi-dent can do the job,but there’s little interms of proven talentand depth is an issueas well.

2. Inside linebacker: Na-Vorro Bowman and Patrick Willis areprobably the best starting tandem

among teams using a 3-4, but re-member that Bowman will be trying

to come back from that nastyknee injury (ACL/MCL) he

sustained in the NFCChampionship Game.

3. Wide receiver:Even after the re-sign-ing of the sure-handed

Anquan Boldin, depthis a bit of an issue here,

as is a lack of speed on theoutside.

Also: Defensive end, center

draft d i t t y : The 49ers drafted a running back each of the last five years

The 49ers once again are armed with a surplus of draft picks in2014, and maybe they’ll do what they did last year and trade up in thefirst round. The reality is that this is one of the most complete teamsin the NFL, a team with practically no glaring hole on the roster. Thebest guess if the 49ers stay put at No. 30 in the first round is they’llgo for a speedy wide receiver like Brandin Cooks or OdellBeckham Jr. or a cornerback like Jason Verrett, Bradley Roby or maybeLamarcus Joyner.

POSITION FILLED 1. Safety: The strength of theSeattle defense very well might beits secondary, and no team in theleague has a better safety tandemthan playmaking Earl Thomas andbig hitter Kam Chancellor.

2. Running back: MarshawnLynch is the pre-eminent powerback in the league, Robert Turbin isa promising backup, and the Sea-hawks also have their top pick fromthe 2013 draft, Christine Michael,waiting for his chance.

SEATTLE s e a h a w k s

statusre p o r t

2013 record: 13-3

Finish: First in NFC West(beat Denver in Super Bowl)

Season recap: A stiflingdefense and punishing run-ning game paved the wayfor the Seahawks’ firstSuper Bowl title. With ayoung nucleus in place, thisis a team that should betough to beat for a while.

Offseason moves: As isoften the case with SuperBowl champs, the offseasonwas about trying to mini-mize losses. Seattle wasable to re-sign DE MichaelBennett, but lost DE ChrisClemons, T Breno Giaco-mini, WR Golden Tate andCB Walter Thurmond.


HELP WANTED 1. Guard: Former No. 1 pickJames Carpenter was draftedas a right tackle beforeeventually moving inside,but he has yet to live upto his draft status. Theother 2013 starter atguard, J.R. Sweezy,also is pedestrian.

2. Wide receiver: Afteroft-injured veteran SidneyRice was released, the Seahawksalso lost Golden Tate, who led

the team in receptions and punt re-turns in 2013, via free agency. Percy

Harvin will be available from thestart in 2014, but he’s not a

true wide receiver.

3. Offensive tackle:The Seahawks don’thave great depth alongthe offensive line, even

before they lost startingright tackle Breno Giaco-

mini to the Jets in freeagency.

Also: Cornerback, tight end

draft d i t t y : The Seahawks haven’t taken a cornerback before Round 4 since 2007

Even after losing some players in the offseason, Seattle still has aSuper Bowl-caliber defense. It’s on offense where the Seahawks needto solidify their roster, and that’s where the focus figures to be withthe 32nd and last pick of the first round. Offensive linemen whocould/should be selected around that spot include guards DavidYankey and Xavier Su’a-Filo, and tackles Cyrus Kouandjio andAntonio Richardson. Another option could be wide receiver BrandinCooks from Oregon State.

POSITION FILLED 1. Running back: Doug Martinhad an injury-marred 2013 season,but he was tremendous as a rookie.Bobby Rainey also emerged as aquality running back last year afterMartin and promising rookie MikeJames both were injured.

2. Defensive end: The Bucs arehoping they filled their need for apass rusher when they signed for-mer Bengals defensive end MichaelJohnson early in free agency. TampaBay has decent depth at this spot.

TAMPA BAY b u c c a n e e r s

statusre p o r t

2013 record: 4-12

Finish: Fourth in NFCSouth (no playoffs)

Season recap: Comingoff a promising start in2012, Greg Schiano’s sec-ond season as Bucs headcoach was a disaster, start-ing with QB Josh Freemanfalling out of favor. LovieSmith has taken over to turnthings around.

Offseason moves: TheBucs made several big ac-quisitions, led by T AnthonyCollins, DE Michael John-son, CB Alterraun Vernerand QB Josh McCown. Theone big loss, of course,came when Darrelle Reviswas released.

potential n o . 1 p i c k

HELP WANTED 1. Guard: The Buccaneers de-cided to release former first-round pick DavinJoseph because hewasn’t performing up tohis contract, but thatleft a void in the start-ing lineup becausethere was no provencommodity behind him.

2. Outside linebacker:The Buccaneers have a tremendousyoung starter at this position with

Lavonte David, but they need some-one on the other side to replace

Dekoda Watson, who moved upthe state to Jacksonville in

free agency.

3. Cornerback: Thesigning of free agentAlterraun Verner was anice coup to help

make up for the depar-ture of Darrelle Revis, but

the Bucs still need morecorners.

Also: Tight end, wide receiver

draft d i t t y : Tampa Bay’s top pick was spent on a defensive player six of the past seven years

For the second time in three years, the Buccaneers have the sev-enth overall pick. In 2012, Tampa Bay selected safety Mark Barron. Ifthey choose a defensive player again this time, the logical options atthat spot would be OLBs Khalil Mack or Anthony Barr, or JadeveonClowney, who simply would be too good to pass up even though de-fensive end isn’t one of Tampa’s biggest needs. The one player on of-fense who would make sense at this spot is playmaking Clemson widereceiver Sammy Watkins.

45

POSITION FILLED 1. Wide receiver: The Titans haveinvested a lot of high picks on widereceivers in recent years, and that’sgiven them a lot of depth. Even withformer No. 1 pick Kenny Britt gone,Tennessee still has Kendall Wright,Nate Washington and 2013 second-round choice Justin Hunter.

2. Guard: Andy Levitre lived up toexpectations in 2013 after beingsigned as a free agent. Chance War-mack had his struggles as a rookie,but there still are high hopes for him.

TENNESSEE t i t a n s

statusre p o r t

2013 record: 7-9

Finish: Third in AFCSouth (no playoffs)

Season recap: After theTitans missed the playoffsfor a fifth consecutive year,they’re starting over againwith former Arizona headcoach Ken Whisenhunt tak-ing over for Mike Munchak.

Offseason moves: TheTitans made two key addi-tions on offense, picking upthe explosive and versatileDexter McCluster fromKansas City and offensivetackle Michael Oher fromBaltimore. The big signingon defense was LB ShaunPhillips.


HELP WANTED 1. Defensive end: The Titans areexpected to switch from a 4-3defense to more of a 3-4,but they don’t appear tohave on their roster aproven commodity withthe ideal physical di-mensions to play defen-sive end in that scheme.

2. Cornerback: The Ti-tans did a good job in passdefense last season, but have to re-place Alterraun Verner, who led the

team with five picks. Blidi Wreh-Wil-son, a third-round pick last year,

should step into a starting role,but depth is an issue.

3. Tight end: DelanieWalker was theteam’s second-leadingreceiver, but he aver-aged less than 10 yards

per catch. The Titansneed a downfield threat at

this position.

Also: Inside linebacker, runningback, quarterback, kicker

draft d i t t y : Five of Tennessee’s last six first-round picks were spent on offensive players

Even though they could use a long-term answer at quarterback, it’sunlikely Tennessee would use the 11th overall pick on that position.Rather, the Titans could have a variety of options to fill one of theirmany needs. They could go for a pass-rushing outside linebackersuch as Anthony Barr from UCLA; or a cornerback like DarquezeDennard or Justin Gilbert. More remote possibilities would include Al-abama inside linebacker C.J. Mosley or perhaps North Carolina tightend Eric Ebron.

POSITION FILLED 1. Tight end: The downfall of for-mer starter Fred Davis would havebeen a lot more problematic for theRedskins had it not been for the playof rookie Jordan Reed. Before hewent down with a concussion, Reedhad the look of a future star.

2. Quarterback: There’s obvi-ously uncertainty as to whether Grif-fin can regain his rookie form, buthe’s the guy for a while. KirkCousins, meanwhile, showed start-ing-caliber ability last season.

WASHINGTON r e d s k i n s

statusre p o r t

2013 record: 3-13

Finish: Fourth in NFCEast (no playoffs)

Season recap: The MikeShanahan era ended on asour note in Washington,where the Redskins took anasty fall in 2013 after theirimprobable run to a divisiontitle the previous year.

Offseason moves: TheRedskins went with volumeearly in free agency, with CBTracy Porter and DT JasonHatcher ranking as the twomost significant acquisitions.The biggest moves actuallyinvolved the re-signing of CBDeAngelo Hall and OLB BrianOrakpo after the team put thefranchise tag on him.


HELP WANTED 1. Inside linebacker: LondonFletcher couldn’t keep play-ing forever, so he finally re-tired after the 2013season. That left a gap-ing hole in the middle ofthe Washington de-fense.

2. Safety: BrandonMeriweather and ReedDoughty started for the Red-skins last season and neither playedwell enough that re-signing them in

free agency should have been muchof a priority. Opposing quarterbacks

combined for a 96.1 passer rating.

3. Guard: Washington hasa very good left tackle in

Trent Williams, but therest of the offensive linewas mediocre at best in2013. Starters Chris

Chester and Kory Licht-ensteiger are both re-

placeable at guard.

Also: Fullback, punter, defensiveend

draft d i t t y : Washington drafted seven players from Florida schools over the past three drafts

The Redskins might have reconsidered trading up from No. 6 to No. 2 in2012 had they known they would have had the No. 2 pick in 2014, but as itis, that pick belongs now to St. Louis. The Redskins instead will have towait until the second pick of the second round (34th overall) to maketheir first selection. At that spot, Washington isn’t likely find an insidelinebacker of value, but they could be in position to land someone likeNorthern Illinois safety Jimmie Ward or Stanford guard David Yankey.Other options could be 3-4 DEs Stephon Tuitt or Ra’Shede Hageman.

46

There’s a little bit of deja vu in the 2014 draft inthat, for the second consecutive year, the bestprospect was not eligible to get selected. It was Jade-veon Clowney last spring — some might arguemaybe it would have been Johnny Manziel, who alsowas ineligible as a redshirt freshman — and this yearit’s Florida State quarterback Jameis Winston. Even more than Clowney, Winston appears a lockto be the first overall pick whenever he decides toenter the draft because he’s got all the necessary at-tributes and also because he plays quarterback,whereas Clowney is a defensive end. The big question, of course, is: When will Win-ston make himself available for the draft? He can doit as early as next year, and history suggests that it’spretty rare for a blue-chip athlete of his caliber to goback for another year of college with a top draft slotall but guaranteed. After winning the Heisman Trophy and leadingFlorida State to the national championship in 2013,Winston already has shown there’s reason to believehe’ll be a franchise quarterback in the NFL. Where it gets complicated is that Winston also isa stud baseball player — an outfielder/pitcher witha fastball clocked around 93-95 mph — and he saidin mid-February his dream was to become anotherdual-sport star like Bo Jackson and Deion Sanders. The road to baseball stardom, though, typicallyis much longer than that in football and it’s easy tosee Winston putting himself in the 2015 NFL draft. And why not? He’s got size, obviously has astrong arm and the ability to make all types ofthrows, and he can move well enough. Withoutquestion, he’s a better NFL prospect than any of thequarterbacks available this year or any of the onesin last year’s draft.

Here are some of the other topprospects to watch in the 2014 college season, including upcomingjuniors and draft-eligible sophomoreswho might enter the draft early: BRYCE PETTY, QB, BAYLOR — Two years afterRobert Griffin III won Big 12 Offensive Player of theYear honors, Petty did the same in his first season asBaylor’s starting quarterback. While not in the sameclass as Griffin — and certainly not Winston —Petty is an accomplished passer with good size. CEDRIC OGBUEHI, T, TEXAS A&M — The Ag-gies tackle pipeline continues. After Luke Joeckel in2012 and Jake Matthews last fall, Ogbuehi is ex-pected to be a force at left tackle. He played guardin 2012 when Joeckel and Matthews were the tack-les, then moved to right tackle in 2013 after Joeckelleft and Matthews moved from right to left tackle.Ogbuehi should be able to make another move withno problem and could be a high first-round pickhimself next spring. MARCUS MARIOTA, QB, OREGON — Mariotaearned first-team all-Pac-12 honors in his two sea-

sons as a starter at Oregon and it was consideredsomewhat of a surprise that he didn’t enter the draftas a redshirt sophomore. Mariota is a dual-threatquarterback with good running ability but also pro-totypical size. RASHAD GREENE, WR, FLORIDA STATE —Yes, it was Kelvin Benjamin who caught the game-winning touchdown pass in the BCS ChampionshipGame and it’s Benjamin who’s the first-roundprospect in this year’s draft. But let’s not forget it wasGreene, and not Benjamin, who was a first-team All-ACC selection and it was Greene who had the biggame against Auburn, with nine catches for 147yards, including a 49-yard catch-and-run on thegame-winning drive. Greene doesn’t have Benjamin’sgreat size or freakish ability to win jump balls, buthe’s a more polished receiver and probably has moreconsistent hands. IFO EKPRE-OLOMU, CB, OREGON — A two-time All-Pac-12 selection, Ekpre-Olomu reportedlygot a second-round evaluation from the draft advi-sory committee, although it’s not unrealistic to thinkhe might have slipped into the first round. He’s a tal-ented cover corner with seven interceptions over thepast two seasons. The only knock on the 5-foot-10Ekpre-Olomu is a lack of ideal height for today’sNFL.

LEONARD WILLIAMS, DE, USC — After earn-ing Freshman All-American honors in 2012,Williams continued to make strides last season whenhe earned first-team All-Pac-12 honors. The 6-foot-5, 290-pound Williams remarkably finished secondon the team in tackles and had six sacks. The biggestdebate among NFL teams might be whether to usehim at defensive end or move him inside to defensivetackle. SHILIQUE CALHOUN, DE, MICHIGAN STATE— The Big Ten Defensive Lineman of the Year as a red-shirt sophomore in 2013, Calhoun was a terror for op-posing quarterbacks as well as an opportunistic ballhawk. He tied a school record with three defensivetouchdowns, including a 56-yard interception return.A bit of a tweener at 6-4, 250, he’s the kind of playerwho might be turned into a outside linebacker by anNFL team using a 3-4. TODD GURLEY, RB, GEORGIA — Gurley ex-ploded onto the scene in 2012 when he rushed foralmost 1,400 yards and 17 touchdowns as a truefreshman, but an ankle injury helped keep him under1,000 yards last fall. That doesn’t matter, though, be-cause Gurley is a remarkable talent with a tremen-dous combination of size (6-1, 230) and breakawayability. With Aaron Murray no longer the QB at Geor-gia, Gurley could be poised for a big 2014. VIC BEASLEY, DE, CLEMSON — After twoyears as a backup, Beasley emerged as a starter in2013 and led the ACC with 13 sacks. At around 6-2,235, there’s little doubt that Beasley will end up as a3-4 outside linebacker in the NFL, but he very wellcould wind up as a first-round pick with another pro-ductive college season. LA’EL COLLINS, T, LSU — LSU seemingly losesmore underclassmen to the NFL than any other col-lege every year, but the Tigers caught a break whentheir All-SEC tackle decided to return. Collins startedat guard in 2012 before he moved to tackle, where heblossomed, particularly as a run blocker.

Get ready for the Winston watchLOOKING AHEAD: W h a t ’ s i n s t o r e f o r 2 0 1 5

47

OTHERS TO WATCH

Seniors in 2014

QB Sean Mannion, Oregon State

DE Trey Flowers, Arkansas

CB Quandre Diggs, Texas

T Cameron Erving, Florida State

RB Ameer Adbullah, Nebraska

QB Braxton Miller, Ohio State

DE Cedric Reed, Texas

Underclassmen in 2014

WR Amari Cooper, Alabama

QB Brett Hundley, UCLA

RB T.J. Yeldon, Alabama

WR Nelson Agholor, USC

Jameis Winston

Seattle Seahawks — The Seahawksbecame Super Bowl champions thanksto some great drafting, but that all hap-pened before last year. The Seahawksgot practically nothing out of their2013 draft class. The only pick withmore than 65 snaps on offense or de-fense the whole season was backuptight end Luke Willson.

Defensive ends — The 2013 draftwas touted for its abundance of passrushers, but of the 10 defensive endstaken in the first three rounds, only one— Ziggy Ansah — started more thanthree games as a rookie.

Round 1: DT Sheldon Richardson,Missouri, 13th overall, by N.Y. Jets — Richard-son started 15 games and was a dominant force in themiddle of the Jets defensive line, both as a pass rusherand against the run. He teamed with 2011 first-roundpick Muhammad Wilkerson to give the Jets a potent1-2 punch on the D-line.

Round 2: RB Eddie Lacy, 61st overall, by GreenBay — After a slow start, Lacy took off and neverlooked back. He finished with 1,178 yards and 11touchdowns while earning Rookie of the Year honorsfrom the Pro Football Writers Association.

Round 3: G Larry Warford, Kentucky,65th overall, by Detroit — Warford started all sea-son for the Lions and ended up as one of the mosthighly rated guards in the NFL by Pro Football Focus.

Round 4: T David Bakhtiari, Colorado, 109thoverall, by Green Bay — Not one fourth-round pickmade the PFWA All-Rookie team and only threestarted more than five games. Bakhtiari earns the nodfor starting all 16 games at left tackle.

Round 5: WR Kenny Stills, Oklahoma, 144thoverall, by New Orleans — An argument could bemade for Rams running back Zac Stacy, who rushed foralmost 1,000 yards as a rookie, but Stills provided aneeded deep threat at wide receiver for Drew Brees ashe averaged 20 yards per catch.

Round 6: RB Andre Ellington, Clemson, 187thoverall, by Arizona — Ellington brought a big-playelement to the Cardinals backfield while rushing for652 yards and catching 39 passes.

Round 7: FB Tommy Bohanon, Wake Forest,215th overall, by N.Y. Jets — Bohanon was the onlyseventh-round pick to average at least 15 snaps onoffense or defense for the team that drafted him.

LOOKING BACK: T h e 2 0 1 3 d r a f t r e v i s i t e d

48

T h e b e s t p i c k s b y r o u n d

T h e e a r l y l o s e r s

Philadelphia Eagles — Six ofthe Eagles’ eight picks ended upmaking the team, including DE JoeKruger, who spent the season on IR.More importantly, three of them be-came starters, led by first-roundpick Lane Johnson at right tackle.Second-round pick Zach Ertz alsolooks like a future star at tight end.

New Orleans Saints — The Saintsonly had the benefit of five picks,but they sure made the most ofthem. First-round pick Kenny Vac-caro started all year at safety until hewent on IR; third-round pick TerronArmstead ended the season as thestarting left tackle; and Kenny Stillswas a steal in the fifth round.

Carolina Panthers — Carolina alsohad only five picks, and only got sig-nificant contributions from their firsttwo. But considering how glaring aneed was shoring up the middle of thedefensive line and improving the rundefense, the Panthers hardly couldhave asked for more than what theygot from first-round pick Star Lo-tulelei and second-round choiceKawann Short, both of whom woundup on the All-Rookie team.

T h e e a r l y w i n n e r s

LOOKING BACK: T h e 2 0 1 3 d r a f t r e v i s i t e d

T h e b i g d i s a p p o i n t m e n t s

2013 NFL ALL-ROOKIE TEAM ... and where they were drafted

OFFENSEQB Mike Glennon, Tampa Bay — Round 3

RB Giovani Bernard, Cincinnati — Round 2

RB Eddie Lacy, Green Bay — Round 2

WR Keenan Allen, San Diego — Round 3

WR DeAndre Hopkins, Houston — Round 1

TE Jordan Reed, Washington — Round 3

T D.J. Fluker, San Diego — Round 1

T Justin Pugh, N.Y. Giants — Round 1

G Kyle Long, Chicago — Round 1

G Larry Warford, Detroit — Round 3

C Travis Frederick, Dallas — Round 1

DEFENSEDL Ziggy Ansah, Detroit — Round 1

DL Star Lotulelei, Carolina — Round 1

DL Sheldon Richardson, N.Y. Jets — Round 1

DL Kawann Short, Carolina — Round 2

LB Kiko Alonso, Buffalo — Round 2

LB Sio Moore, Oakland — Round 3

LB Alec Ogletree, St. Louis — Round 1

CB Tyrann Mathieu, Arizona — Round 3

CB Desmond Trufant, Atlanta — Round 1

S Eric Reid, San Francisco — Round 1

S Kenny Vaccaro, New Orleans — Round 1

SPECIALISTSK Caleb Sturgis, Miami — Round 5

P Sam Martin, Detroit — Round 5

PR Tavon Austin, St. Louis — Round 1

KR Cordarrelle Patterson, Minnesota — Round 1

ST Don Jones, Miami — Round 7

FIRST ROUND EARLY VERDICTINSTANT I M P A C T

Player Pick Games/startsT Lane Johnson, Philadelphia 4 16/16DE Ziggy Ansah, Detroit 5 14/12T D.J. Fluker, San Diego 11 15/15DT Sheldon Richardson, N.Y. Jets 13 16/15DT Star Lotulelei, Carolina 14 16/16S Kenny Vaccaro, New Orleans 15 14/14S Eric Reid, San Francisco 18 16/16T Justin Pugh, N.Y. Giants 19 16/16CB Desmond Trufant, Atlanta 22 16/16WR DeAndre Hopkins, Houston 27 16/16WR Cordarrelle Patterson, Minn. 29 16/6ILB Alec Ogletree, St. Louis 30 16/16C Travis Frederick, Dallas 31 16/16

FUTURE L O O K S G O O D

WR Tavon Austin, St. Louis 8 13/3G Chance Warmack, Tennessee 10 16/16G Kyle Long, Chicago 20 16/16CB Xavier Rhodes, Minnesota 25 13/6

TOO E A R LY T O T E L L

T Luke Joeckel, Jacksonville 2 5/5DE Dion Jordan, Miami 3 16/0G Jonathan Cooper, Arizona 7 0/0CB D.J. Hayden, Oakland 12 8/2OLB Jarvis Jones, Pittsburgh 17 14/8S Matt Elam, Baltimore 32 16/15

REASON F O R C O N C E R N

T Eric Fisher, Kansas City 1 14/13DE Barkevious Mingo, Cleveland 6 15/3CB Dee Milliner, N.Y. Jets 9 13/12QB E.J. Manuel, Buffalo 16 10/10TE Tyler Eifert, Cincinnati 21 15/15DT Sharrif Floyd, Minnesota 23 16/1DE Bjoern Werner, Indianapolis 24 13/1DE Datone Jones, Green Bay 26 16/0 DT Sylvester Williams, Denver 28 13/4

EARLY RETURNSBreaking down every team’s 2013 draft,

with the number of picks still on the ros-ter at the end of the season (ROS); thecombined number of games in which

they appeared (G); and the total numberof starts they made (ST)

Team ROS G STArizona 7/9 62 12Atlanta 8/8 88 23Baltimore 8/8 74 17Buffalo 8/8 85 42Carolina 5/5 56 18Chicago 6/6 75 46Cincinnati 7/10 59 15Cleveland 4/5 49 6Dallas 7/7 98 34Denver 6/7 43 6Detroit 7/9 87 34Green Bay 10/11 98 36Houston 6/8 47 34Indianapolis 4/7 36 13Jacksonville 8/8 82 44Kansas City 7/8 57 16Miami 9/9 102 5Minnesota 7/8 90 13New England 7/7 85 30New Orleans 5/5 52 31N.Y. Giants 7/7 66 17N.Y. Jets 7/7 77 63Oakland 8/10 95 27Philadelphia 6/8 65 33Pittsburgh 7/9 68 35St. Louis 7/7 87 43San Diego 6/6 56 48San Francisco 8/11 60 20Seattle 6/9 26 7Tampa Bay 6/6 75 48Tennessee 8/8 84 27 Washington 7/7 45 15

1. DE Datone Jones, UCLA, Round 1, 26thoverall, by Green Bay — The Packers indicated be-fore the season they were hoping Jones would be anevery-down player on the defensive line. Instead, hedidn’t start one game and averaged a little more than16 snaps a game on defense.

2. DT Sharrif Floyd, Florida, Round 1, 23rdoverall, by Minnesota — The Vikings hit big withtheir other two first-round picks, Xavier Rhodes andCordarrelle Patterson, but got very little from Floyd.He was drafted with the idea that he eventually wouldreplace longtime stalwart Kevin Williams, but hedidn’t show much to suggest he’ll be up to the task.

3. DE Barkevious Mingo, LSU, Round 1, 6thoverall, by Cleveland — Mingo recorded a sack ineach of his first three games, but had only two the restof the way. More troublesome, especially for the sixthoverall pick, he later would admit he probably shouldhave studied the playbook more intensely.

49

No. Team Player School1 Houston QB Blake Bortles Central Florida

This is an awfully tough call between taking a quarterback or taking Jadeveon Clowney. Trading down an option.

2 St. Louis (from Washington) T Greg Robinson Auburn Taking Clowney here would be overkill for the Rams, who need to give QB Sam Bradford as much help as possible.

3 Jacksonville DE Jadeveon Clowney South Carolina Yes, the Jaguars badly need a quarterback, but they just can’t afford to pass up a talent like Clowney at this spot.

4 Cleveland OLB Khalil Mack Buffalo The Browns have a lot of pieces in place to develop a front-line defense and Mack just adds to that.

5 Oakland QB Teddy Bridgewater Louisville Trying to predict what the Raiders will do always is tricky, but their need for a quarterback can’t be ignored.

6 Atlanta T Jake Matthews Texas A&M The Falcons need better play from the O-line to maximize the talents of Matt Ryan, Julio Jones and Roddy White.

7 Tampa Bay WR Sammy Watkins Clemson The Bucs give new quarterback Josh McCown a big-time playmaker to team up with Vincent Jackson.

8 Minnesota DT Aaron Donald Pittsburgh Donald is most often compared to Geno Atkins, who played in Cincinnati for Mike Zimmer, who’s now Vikings head coach.

9 Buffalo T Taylor Lewan Michigan The Bills need to give E.J. Manuel every chance to succeed before they decide if he’s the long-term answer at QB.

10 Detroit CB Justin Gilbert Oklahoma State The Lions have a dominant front four, but they need help for their shaky secondary.

11 Tennessee ILB C.J. Mosley Alabama New coach Ken Whisenhunt needs help in all areas as he tries to rebuild the Tennessee defense.

12 N.Y. Giants CB Darqueze Dennard Michigan State The Giants always have been fond of Big Ten prospects and Dennard fills a need in the secondary.

13 St. Louis WR Mike Evans Texas A&M The Rams drafted WR Tavon Austin in 2013, but he’s not a pure No. 1 wide receiver like Evans has the chance to be.

14 Chicago S Ha Ha Clinton-Dix Alabama The Bears can’t go wrong by going with any position on defense as they start the rebuilding process of that unit.

15 Pittsburgh DT Louis Nix III Notre Dame The Steelers run defense wasn’t quite as dominant in 2013 with Casey Hampton having retired.

16 Dallas DT Timmy Jernigan Florida State The Cowboys’ rebuilding of the defensive line gets an athletic playmaker for the middle.

17 Baltimore TE Eric Ebron North Carolina The re-signing of Dennis Pitta notwithstanding, Ebron brings a new dimension to the Ravens passing game.

18 N.Y. Jets WR Marqise Lee USC The addition of Eric Decker in free agency was a start, but the Jets still need more help for the passing game.

19 Miami T Zack Martin Notre Dame The Dolphins have almost rebuilt their offensive line from scratch this offseason and Martin is just another piece.

20 Arizona S Calvin Pryor Louisville The big-play safety should make an already stout defense even better.

21 Green Bay CB Bradley Roby Ohio State You just can never have enough good cornerbacks, and Roby certainly has a lot of potential.

22 Philadelphia OLB Anthony Barr UCLA Eagles coach Chip Kelly is familiar with this pass rusher from his days in the Pac-10/12.

23 Kansas City WR Kelvin Benjamin Florida State The Chiefs get a much-needed complement for Dwayne Bowe as well as a tremendous red-zone target.

24 Cincinnati DT Ra’Shede Hageman Minnesota The Bengals defense is loaded, but DT Geno Atkins is coming off a torn ACL.

25 San Diego CB Jason Verrett TCU If they hope to build on last year’s surprising playoff season, the Chargers must get better in the secondary.

26 Cleveland (from Indianapolis) QB Johnny Manziel Texas A&M The Browns can’t afford to pass up on Manziel at this spot the way they could at No. 4.

27 New Orleans DE Dee Ford Auburn The Saints will use the pass-rushing specialist as an outside linebacker in their 3-4 scheme.

28 Carolina WR Odell Beckham Jr. LSU After losing Steve Smith, Brandon LaFell and Ted Ginn Jr. in the offseason, the Panthers need to retool at this position.

29 New England DT Stephon Tuitt Notre Dame The versatile Tuitt is a perfect fit for the Patriots’ multiple-look defensive scheme.

30 San Francisco WR Brandin Cooks Oregon State The 49ers don’t have a lot of glaring needs, but a speedy wide receiver might be one of them.

31 Denver G David Yankey Stanford John Elway goes to his alma mater to get some offensive line help.

32 Seattle G Xavier Su’a-Filo UCLA The Super Bowl champions have depth at a lot of positions, but not at guard.

Trying to predict the draft isn’t as simple as just matching a team’s needs with the best prospects at those positions because systems come into play, and a player might be a goodfit for one team and not for another. There’s also the issue of potential trades. That said, here is Draft Digest’s projection for the top two rounds of the 2014 draft, as of March 28.

MOCK DRAFT

No. 33, HoustonCB Kyle Fuller, Virginia Tech

No. 34, WashingtonS Jimmie Ward, Northern Illinois

No. 35, ClevelandCB Lamarcus Joyner, Florida State

No. 36, OaklandT Cyrus Kouandjio, Alabama

No. 37, AtlantaDE Kony Ealy, Missouri

No. 38, Tampa BayOLB Ryan Shazier, Ohio State

No. 39, JacksonvilleQB Derek Carr, Fresno State

No. 40, MinnesotaMLB Chris Borland, Wisconsin

No. 41, BuffaloTE Austin Seferian-Jenkins, Washington

No. 42, TennesseeRB Tre Mason, Auburn

No. 43, N.Y. GiantsRB Carlos Hyde, Ohio State

No. 44, St. LouisTE Jace Amaro, Texas Tech

No. 45, DetroitT Antonio Richardson, Tennessee

No. 46, PittsburghCB Loucheiz Purifoy, Florida

No. 47, DallasRB Ka’Deem Carey, Arizona

No. 48, BaltimoreWR Jordan Matthews, Vanderbilt

No. 49, N.Y. JetsOLB Jerry Attaochu, Georgia Tech

No. 50, MiamiCB Stan Jean-Baptiste, Nebraska

No. 51, ChicagoRB Jeremy Hill, LSU

No. 52, ArizonaQB Zach Mettenberger, LSU

No. 53, Green BayS Deone Bucannon, Washington State

No. 54, PhiladelphiaT Jack Mewhort, Ohio State

No. 55, CincinnatiOLB Kyle Van Noy, BYU

No. 56, San Francisco (from Kansas City)T Morgan Moses, West Virginia

No. 57, San DiegoWR Davante Adams, Fresno State

No. 58, New OrleansWR Jarvis Landry, LSU

No. 59, IndianapolisC Marcus Martin, USC

No. 60, CarolinaCB Bashaud Breeland, Clemson

No. 61, San FranciscoOLB Adrian Hubbard, Alabama

No. 62, New EnglandG Gabe Jackson, Mississippi State

No. 63, DenverWR Martavis Bryant, Clemson

No. 64, SeattleDT Anthony Johnson, LSU

ROUND 2ROUND 1

50

Preorder your copyof 2015 Draft Digest!

1-800-932-4557

Date post:	25-Jul-2016
Category:	Documents
Upload:	dave-jones
View:	223 times
Download:	0 times

Draft Digest 2015

Documents