QB RB WR TE OT G C NT DT 3-4 DE DE RLB OLB MLB CB S K P
Updated: 4/3/10
Scoring System
100 Once in a decade prospect
95-99 Elite talent
90-95 Solid top 10 pick
85-90 Solid first round pick
80-85 Late 1st-early 2nd
75-80 Solid 2nd round pick
70-75 Solid 3rd round pick
65-70 3rd-4th round pick
60-65 4th-5th round pick
55-60 5th round pick
50-55 6th round pick
45-50 7th round pick
40-45 Undrafted, invite to training camp
30-40 Career practice squader
20-30 No NFL future
0-20 No football future
1. Garrett Lindholm (Tarleton State) 58
Normally I don’t give kickers higher than a 6th round grade, because I feel that using a 5th rounder on a kicker who is pretty much going to be completely random and inconsistent anyway is a waste. However, Lindholm is in a class of his own. Don’t be worried by the level of competition. Kickers translate. If you can kick, you can kick anywhere and this guy can kick. He only got 18 attempts last year, but nailed 15 of those, including 7 of 10 from beyond 40 yards. He hit both of his 50+ yarders last year, a 55 yarder and a whooping 64 yarder, and didn’t miss from within 40. At his Pro Day, nailed 3 of out 4 60 yarders with ease and he averaged 63.4 yards per kickoff with 22 touchbacks on 77 tries. Though he was not quite as good as a field goal kicker in 2008, he still did have a 62.9 yards per kickoff average and 25 touchbacks in 64 tries. For my exclusive interview with Lindholm, click here.
2. Leigh Tiffin (Alabama) 52
Your standard 6th round kicker, he hit 30 of 35 last year, including 6 of 8 from 40+ and also had numerous clutch kicks for the National Champion Alabama Crimson Tide. The only concerning thing is his 4 missed extra points this year and the fact that he never hit more than 73.5% before this year, but he appears to be the mentally toughest kicker in this draft class.
3. Brett Swenson (Michigan) 50
Only missed 3 of his 22 tries last year, 2 of those coming from 50+ and he only missed 1 extra point. His leg strength isn’t amazing though as he’s only hit 3 50+ field goals in his career.
4. Hunter Lawrence (Texas) 47
An extremely accurate kicker nailing 34 of his career 39 attempts, including 14 of 16 from 40-49 yards, and he also has only missed 1 extra point in his career, despite having 121 chances to do so, as a result of Texas’ amazing offense. The only concerning thing, he has never hit one longer than 49, though he did only have one chance to do so because Texas’ offense has just been so good.
5. Aaron Pettrey (Ohio State) 44
14 of 20 isn’t great, but in his career he’s 12-13 from 40-49 yards and 6 of 10 from 50+ with a career long of 54.