Middle Linebacker

Auburn

6-2 240

Draft board overall prospect rank: #77

Draft board overall middle linebacker rank: #5

Overall rating: 73 (3^rd round)

40 time: 4.80

3/23/11: Of all the Combine “snubs,” Josh Bynes is my highest rated. He doesn’t get a lot of talk among the draft community, though Todd McShay seems to like him (believe me, I considered lowering my grade on Bynes upon finding out this fact). I don’t know how Bynes got passed over. He doesn’t do anything amazingly, but he played in a power conference, the SEC, as a defensive leader for the National Champion Auburn Tigers, both on the field and off the field, as a vocal locker room guy and an “unofficial team captain” as his teammates have called him.

He’s a 3 year starter and with best statistical year being 2009, where he had 104 tackles. He doesn’t have great athleticism, but he’s got good technique and he drops into coverage with the best of them. He’s best off in a cover 2 scheme where he can drop back into coverage more. He can make plays on the ball as well, with 7 picks in 3 years.

He’s an experienced high character kid, who is vocal in the locker room (boldly predicting the Tigers to go all the way in the preseason, when no one believed they could). He does all the little things and he’s a jack of all traits. His coverage skills are a valuable asset and he’s got experience in a power conference. He could end up a late round steal and one of the next on the list of guys who didn’t get invited to The Combine, but wound up as starters in the NFL. At worst, he’s a special teamer, something he did well in his time at Auburn.

NFL Comparison: Gary Brackett