Guard/Center

USC

6-3 301

40 time (projected): 5.15

Draft board overall prospect rank: #153

Draft board guard rank: #9

Overall rating: 59*

            Jeff Byers was one of the more highly recruited centers of the decade before he committed to USC, who moved him to guard. He missed significant amounts of time in his first two years, but as soon as he got healthy, from his junior year on, he was every bit the player he was expected to be, making the All-American 3^rd team in 2009 and playing both guard and center on a high level. The issue: somehow, no one noticed, even though he was playing on USC’s massive stage. He gets a bad rap for being undersized, but even when he was playing at 290 in the Senior Bowl, he was stopping nose tackle sized guys one on one. He didn’t have their physical size, but it didn’t matter. At the Combine, he bulked up to 303, more than enough to play left guard in the NFL in most schemes, though he would be best off in a zone blocking scheme. He has an amazing work ethic and he’s extremely tough. His motor never shuts off and he has great footwork, mobility, and smart leverage. He’s a very efficient blocker using every bit of his size to his advantage. He turns 25 later this year, which limits his upside a lot, but he’s a very solid, what you see is what you get guy and what you see is a solid depth guard. He has the smarts to play center as well and I could see him as a starting center in this league, in addition to being a solid depth guy at guard. He is one of my favorite late round prospects and would be a solid addition for any team getting him, assuming the injuriy issues from his past don’t come back.

NFL Comparison: Ben Hamilton

*=For a breakdown of what this means, click here