Slimm's November 2013 NFL Draft Position Rankings (Seniors)

[datruth55]

I've had my eye on Tavarres King but he's been a bit too inconsistent this year. I was hoping he'd step it up a little more coming into the season.

 

[Pachyderm_Wave]

I've always liked King. About as good of a vertical threat as there is in this Senior class.

He typically draws the assignment of the defense's top cover corner and still manages to lead UGA in receiving the last 2 years.... averaging over 20 yards/reception this year.

He's caught 14 TD's in his last 23 games, I watched him light up an outstanding Michigan St. defense for over 200 yards last year in the Outback Bowl on 6 catches (34 yards/reception). He's got a double move that cornerbacks can't resist... including Morris Claiborne.

 

[Pachyderm_Wave]

Safety:


Tier 1 (Top 50-100 Grade)

Kenny Vaccarro / Texas

Robert Lester / Alabama

Dexter McCoil / Tulsa

Shawn Williams / Georgia

Shamarko Thomas / Syracuse

Phillip Thomas / Fresno St.


Tier 2 (Top 125-175 Grade)

Jahleel Addae / Central Michigan

T.J. McDonald / USC

Rashard Hall / Clemson

Bacarri Rambo / Georgia

Cody Davis / Texas Tech

Kemal Ishmael / UCF

Duke Williams / Nevada

Johnathan Cyprien / FIU

Malcolm Bronson / McNeese St.

Javon Harris / Oklahoma

Bradley McDougald / Kansas


Tier 3 (Top 200-250 Grade)

Earl Wolff / N.C. State

Kejuan Riley / Alabama St.

Daimion Stafford / Nebraska

Don Jones / Arkansas St.



*Note*

The main aspect of Vacarro's game that allows him to stick out in this class is his ability to drop down in the slot and play man coverage against slot receivers. He plays with good technique, and did a nice job against one of the tougher assignments a safety can have.... covering Tavon Austin in man coverage from the slot.

I've long considered T.J. McDonald to be 80% overhype and 20% substance. He's a hard hitter with good bloodlines, but he's not Tim McDonald.... or even Dennis Smith for that matter. He's stiff as a board and struggles to break down and tackle in open space....often getting himself out of position and taking bad angles (see Syracuse, Oregon, or number of other games). Misses a lot of easy tackles when the ball carrier isn't already corralled. Has no real ball skills to speak of. McDonald is a draftable player, but he's an average safety in my estimation that comes with a lot of the same flaws that Taylor Mays and Darnell Bing had before him. I've always viewed Dexter McCoil as a similar, but much better player.

Shawn Williams is an extremely physical player who takes proper angles to the action, and is an outstanding leader. Called out his teammates for playing soft, and they responded. A coach on the field and one of Todd Grantham's favorites.

Jahleel Addae is a lot like Shamarko Thomas in terms of athletic ability. Might be the most athletic safety in this draft. Stands out like a sore thumb on tape for Central Michigan.

Don Jones is a kid that I'm familiar with going back to several Friday nights in high school when I watched him play for Hazelwood. Terrific special teams player and another underrated Arkansas St. defender.

 

[SF Dolphin Fan]

I can't see Landry Jones running the WCO, that's not a good fit.

Who do you feel would be a good fit in the middle rounds?

 

[datruth55]

Slimm do you think Bacarri Rambo's off-field issues could see him slip into the 3rd round or later?

 

[SF Dolphin Fan]

It's a good point, on the back up role. It's something we definitely need to address. I'm not sure on Jones though but I do see Devlin as being similar to Tannehill, perhaps they go for a different type of QB, if they are looking at the draft address it, though I do think they will probably look at a vet to back up Tannehill.

Matt Moore will have no trouble finding a home, for his sake I hope it's a starting job.

You know for most of his career Landry Jones has been overrated, but now it seems like he's being underrated. I'm not in love with his skills, but got to believe he could be at least a solid backup and an option if he ends up falling to round 3.

 

[WitheringPlant]

I wouldn't touch McDonald. No situational awareness and seems to have a habit of committing a dumb penalty at the worst possible time. I do wonder how McDonald is considered draftable and Starling is not. Not that Starling is amazing, but he has been much more consistent.

 

[SF Dolphin Fan]

i wouldn't touch landry jones...what a bum...matt barkleys still the best qb prospect in the draft...yeah the physical tools aren't overwhelming but he's got the intangibles off the charts and he's got some terrific feet...if i'm the chiefs gm i'm taking matt barkley over geno smith any day all day...

all that said since we have tanny and he's shown well i haven't paid much attention to the qb crop anymore... don't need to...feels great

I agree. This is the first year in a long, long time that I haven't paid much attention to the quarterbacks. Miami will have to find a backup, though, unless Devlin is better than I think.

 

[Pachyderm_Wave]

Slimm do you think Bacarri Rambo's off-field issues could see him slip into the 3rd round or later?

Absolutely, his tendancy to take disastrous angles and undisciplined play drops him down a little more for me. His playmaking ability and rare ball skills prevents me from dropping him further.

 

[SF Dolphin Fan]

Keep hearing Lester as someone who could fall quite a bit come draft day. Slim and others what are your thoughts on Lester?

 

[datruth55]

Who do you feel would be a good fit in the middle rounds?

I really don't see us taking a QB in the middle rounds. I see us trying to re-sign Matt Moore (if he'll take backup money) and Pat Devlin (who Philbin really likes). If we can't get Moore re-signed then my guess would be we re-sign Devlin and make him the backup and maybe get someone in the 5th-7th round...a developmental player like a Brad Sorensen if he drops that far or Matt Brown from Illinois State.

 

[Pachyderm_Wave]

Keep hearing Lester as someone who could fall quite a bit come draft day. Slim and others what are your thoughts on Lester?

I like him in the late 2nd/early 3rd round area. He doesn't have the mental, discipline, or physical flaws that a lot of these other safeties have. Solid wrap up tackler, which is critical. Great football IQ and actually played CB in high school as a teammate of Julio Jones at Foley. He's a leader for our defense and there aren't enough safeties better than he is to push him down that far. I don't buy that he'll fall quite a bit, in fact, I think he'll go about right where he should to begin with.

 

[Pachyderm_Wave]

Inside Linebacker:


Tier 1 (Top 25-50 Grade)

Manti Te'o / Notre Dame

Arthur Brown / Kansas St.


Tier 2 (Top 75-125 Grade)

Michael Mauti / Penn St.

Shayne Skov / Stanford

A.J. Klein / Iowa St.


Tier 3 (Top 150-200 Grade)

Demetrius Hartsfield / Maryland

Bruce Taylor / Virginia Tech

Kevin Reddick / North Carolina

Jake Johnson / South Alabama

Jon Bostic / Florida

Cameron Lawrence / Mississippi St.

Dwayne Woods / Bowling Green

Nico Johnson / Alabama


Tier 4 (Top 225-250 Grade)

Steve Beauharnais / Rutgers

Greg Blair / Cincinnati

Alonzo Highsmith / Arkansas

Will Compton / Nebraska

Johnathan Stewart / Texas A&M




*Note*

Jake Johnson transferred to South Alabama after originally playing linebacker at Virginia Tech for 2 seasons. I watched him rack up 13 tackles against Alabama in the season opener in 2009. Incredibly instinctual inside linebacker that almost never takes a false step. He's been an absolute wrecking ball on defense this year for South Alabama, who just joined Division-1 football this year. I've enjoyed every minute of scouting South Alabama's games strictly because of him. Big time sleeper in my opinion.

Nico Johnson is probably the best of the group of linebackers that are more than likely 2 down players at the next level. Very well coached kid that understands how to read his keys, which comes from film study.

 

[CO-Gator]

I've watched every Florida game this season and after the first few games I would totally agree with you, recently though he's not been as impressive, that might have something to do with the average play of the OL though. In the mid rounds Gills may be a heck of a pick up. The fins probably don't need another RB, even if we don't resign Reggie, but if things change and it becomes a need would love to see us use one of our 3rds on Mike.

Gillislee has done what he's done this year with 3 serviceable interior linemen and two very sub-par OTs. It baffles me just how poorly some of our 4/5* OL recruits have panned out.

 

[datruth55]

Slimm, just read about a DE named Larry Webster for Bloomsburg (Pa.) College. Son of former Dolphins player Larry Webster. Have you seen this kid play?

Larry Webster, DL, Bloomsburg (Pa.): The 6-7, 240-pound basketball player switched to the gridiron for his fifth year as a senior and has thrived, collecting 10.5 sacks this season for Bloomsburg. People have already started to talk about Webster, whose father, Larry, played in the NFL, but they'll talk about him even more once word gets out.

http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap10...k-doug-martin-among-nfls-best-rookies-of-2012

Webster, at 6-7, decided to concentrate on basketball in his first four years at Division II’s Bloomsburg, becoming the school’s all-time blocks leader with 175 and earning Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference East Defensive Player of the Year honors last season.

Despite his success on the court, the native of Hagerstown, Md. missed the action on the football field. With one year of eligibility in another sport remaining, Webster is back on the gridiron after a four-year hiatus.

“There were a couple of times that I saw the football coaches around campus and they would tell me if I ever wanted to come out for football, they would love to have me,” Webster said. “I decided to actually give it a try.”

“We certainly joked about it but I didn’t know how serious his intentions were and if his friends were trying to talk him into it,” Bloomsburg football coach Danny Hale said. “As we researched more and went through winter and spring workouts, he really impressed us. You can’t coach 6-foot-7, and his speed is in the mid-4.5s. That puts you on a lot of charts. If he has any kind of a year, I would think the next level would want to take a look at him.”

Webster played defensive end at Elkton High School – the same position where his father, Larry, Jr., flourished at Maryland. The elder Webster went on to be selected in the third round of the 1992 NFL Draft by the Miami Dolphins, playing 11 seasons with four different teams and winning a Super Bowl championship ring with Baltimore in 2000. The elder Webster, now a high school football coach in Baltimore, has been cautious yet supportive in his son’s pursuit.

http://www.ncaa.com/news/football/article/2012-08-22/bloomsburgs-webster-shifts-focus