Quote (Randolph @ Feb 11 2013 02:58pm)
I'm going to rank and give a quick analysis of some of the top talents per position in this year's draft. I am going to make a new thread for each position and will keep old threads listed in each new thread.
Keep in mind, this is purely my opinions. I am not saying this will be the order, this will be how players turn out or anything along those lines, it's just simply my own personal thoughts.
If you'd like a specific position to be done next, feel free to post, I don't mind jumping around. If not, I'll go in order (QB, WR, RB, TE, OT, etc...)
Running Backs:1) Stepfan Taylor, RB, Stanford – Taylor has great size, speed, strength, durability and ball security. He’s a major sleeper this year, could blow up more than Doug Martin did.
2) Giovani Bernard, RB, North Carolina – Bernard is an electrifying playmaker who can downright take over a game. He can run, receive and return kicks, whatever a team may need from him. He’ll most likely be the first back off the board in the late first round unless someone else really wows at the combine.
3) Mike Gillislee, RB, Florida – Gillislee is one of my favorite prospects in this draft. He is quick and has very underrated and deceptive power. He can run, catch and block with the best of them. This is going to be one of the few players I continue to follow after the draft even if the Cardinals do not select him.
4) Le’Veon Bell, RB, Michigan State – Bell is an even bigger sleeper than Taylor is imo. He was Michigan State’s offense last year. Bell is the tallest back in this draft at 6’2’’ and is pretty damn physical. He has some quickness and good moves but concern about his speed and ability to burst is there. If he can shave some time off of his 40 and do well in all of the combine drills, he should shoot up draft boards. He’s currently in the 6-10 range in most RB rankings.
5) Eddie Lacy, RB, Alabama – Lacy showed that he has all of the tools and talent to be an NFL caliber running back. But, he ran behind one of the best offensive lines college football has ever seen. He has good size and speed and should do well in the NFL but don’t be surprised if he struggles on a team with a subpar or even just average line. As I said, we’ve only seen him with a top notch offensive line in front of him.
6) Joseph Randle, RB, Oklahoma State – Randle greatest asset is his blitz protection ability. He is very very good in this area of play so that will help him make up for any short comings in his run game. He lost a bit of his power and physicality this past year but more than made up for it with some more elusive and speedy back type play.
7) Jawan Jamison, RB, Rutgers – Ray Rice junior anyone? Jamison is small, quick, powerful and compact. He’s going to be able to dip behind offensive lines, disappear and come bursting through the first hole he sees. If he goes to a team with an established offense (Green Bay is a good fit imo) he’s going to be a stud. If he goes somewhere where he has to be the guy, I can see him struggling at the NFL level.
8) Johnathan Franklin, RB, UCLA – Franklin has good size, speed and very deceptive power. He performed well against some of the better talent he faced this year and could be a major sleeper. It’s hard for me to really judge him at the moment, he could sky rocket up my list after the combine. We’ll have to wait and see.
9) Christine Michael, RB, Texas A&M – WHAT? Most lists have this guy going as an UDFA and he’s in my top 10 running backs? The fuck is up with that? Well, Michael was part of a committee of running backs at A&M and when he was the man, he was the man haha. He did very well this year when he got his hands on the ball. He has ideal size, great speed for his size has more physicality to his game than most think. Whoever grabs Michael late in the draft is going to be getting a steal.
10) Sefphon Jefferson, RB, Nevada – Jefferson has great size and power to go along with his quickness. He was a rarely used backup before this season so he’s fresh and ready to make an impact in the NFL. He could be a major sleeper and a steal for whoever takes him in the later rounds of the draft.
11) Montee Ball, RB, Wisconsin – Ball is the Matt Barkley of running backs. He had a great 2011 campaign and should have entered the draft last year. He didn’t and fell because of it. Ball has some ball security issues that worry me but other than that he has good size and power. He needs to shave some time off his 40 and have a great combine to help his draft stock.
12) Andre Ellington, RB, Clemson – Ellington added weight but needs to bulk up some more without losing his speed to crack day 2 of the draft. He has the skill set but his smaller size could render him a little more fragile (although he hasn’t had any problems staying healthy to this point as far as I know). Time will tell, he can be a solid option for a team not in desperate need of a running back but could use depth/change of pace guy.
13) Ray Graham, RB, Pittsburgh – Another Ray Rice prototype back that could make the same impact as Rice has. Graham had a season ending knee injury in 2011 and was never back to his old self in 2012. If he can shine at the combine, he can easily be one of the top 5-8 backs off the board.
14) Kenjon Barner, RB, Oregon – Oregon…..Oregon….Oregon…..I don’t trust it lol. The only reason Barner is this high is because of the success LaMichael James has had as a complimentary back in the Niners’ system. Barner won’t be the guy on any team imo, but he can be a great #2 option. I’d like to see him in Houston if they can’t hang onto Ben Tate, take some of the load off of Foster.
15) Marcus Lattimore, RB, South Carolina – Lattimore is such a tough one for me to place. He would have easily been the top back in this draft before another season ending knee injury set him back, yet again. Now there is concern that he won’t even be able to play in the 2013 season. With that said, if a team is willing to spend a 5th, 6th or 7th rounder on him, they need to just put him on IR and start him in the NFL in 2014. Don’t risk him coming back too soon, let him heal up and learn from behind the scenes. I’d love to see Lattimore go to a team with an incredible leader for him to learn behind. The first and obvious choice is Minnesota. I doubt they’d take him, in fact, I’d bet money that they don’t even have RB anywhere on their list of concerns, as it should be, they don’t need one. But if Lattimore had someone like AP guiding him, he’d become a superstar running back in the NFL.
Other PositionsQB:
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