Center

Baylor

6-3 300

40 time (projected): 5.24

Draft board overall prospect rank: #66

Draft board center rank: #1

Overall rating: 75*

            3/20/10: JD Walton was the best of the best in terms of center last year making the All-American first team. The only issue is that center is not a very necessary position in the NFL and he doesn’t have the athleticism to play another position. In fact, his athleticism, especially his natural athleticism, aren’t great. He makes up for this with a brilliant work ethic, an excellent motor, and smart technique on the field. He is one of those guys who truly loves the game of football and blocks big defensive linemen like he were someone 15-20 pounds heavier because of how he uses his weight. He’s a three year starter at Baylor and really was the leader of that offensive line last year. One of the most important thing for centers is the smooth snap and the conformability factor with the quarterback because if the quarterback is uncomfortable from the moment he gets the ball, bad thing will happen. Walton showed great chemistry and a smooth snap with his quarterback since the day he stepped on the field as a starter in 2007. He doesn’t have huge upside but he’s a 10+ year starter guy at the center position and a guy who can anchor an offensive line, especially a zone blocking offensive line, from the inside out for many years with his toughness, leadership, footwork and leverage.  

NFL Comparison: Jeff Saturday

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

Cornerback/wide receiver 

Alabama

5-9 197

40 time: 4.52

Draft board overall prospect rank: #48

Draft board cornerback rank: #5

Overall rating: 78*

1/23/10: He could be a decent nickelback and showed good abilities at the cornerback position this year in his 2^nd full season at the position, with 70 tackles, 5 sacks, and 5 picks, but his value is as a kick returner. He is one of, if not the best kick returners in the nation so in addition to being a solid nickel corner at the next level, he’ll be a great kick returner as well. He may also pull a Devin Hester and switch over to wide receiver as he’s shown good hands and abilities in the open field.

            9/12/09: Javier Arenas is probably the most gifted punt and kick returner in college football since Devin Hester. He has 6 special teams touchdowns, all on punt returns, in his career, and has averaged an amazing 25 yards per return on kick returns over the past 2 years for Alabama. He did not miss a beat last season on returns, despite playing more at cornerback for the first time in his career. In 2007, he had 27 returns for 657 yards on kickoffs and 25 returns for 323 yards and a touchdown and last year he had 26 returns for 610 yards and 55 punt returns for 650 yards and 3 touchdowns. He has shown that he can play all 3 positions without missing a beat. However, NFL scouts have some reservations about his ability to play cornerback in the NFL. He has struggled some in both man and zone coverage at cornerback and has really only spent 1 full year at the position. He has room to improve with experience, and he’ll have to do that this year if he wants to go in the first round, but if it weren’t for his return abilities, he’d probably be a late round prospect at best. When he gets the ball in his hands, he’s deadly, but he hasn’t shown the best hands, with only 1 interception in his career, though he did return that for a pick-six. Whether his low interception total is a result of bad hands or average skills in man coverage is a bit of a mystery at this point. He did only have 7 pass breakups last season so it may be more of the latter. If he can show he can make catches, he could move to the offensive side of the ball and play wide receiver, which would greatly help him longterm. The more positions he can possibly play, the better his draft stock is, for obvious reason. He’s not small. At 5-9 he weighs 195 pounds which is a pretty big frame for someone of that height so there are no size concerns, with the exception of height. He wraps up really nicely and is a strong helper against the run, part of the reason why Alabama’s run defense was so good on the whole last season. He breaks through the jam at the line of scrimmage well. He had 3.5 tackles for losses and 2 sacks last season. His straight line speed is very average. Its his quickness and agility that makes him so deadly with the ball in his hands. He should run a 40 in the 4.41-4.45 range. His lack of straight line speed hurts him in pass coverage some because he doesn’t have elite recovery speed when caught out of position. He should be a 2^nd round pick because of his ability to change the game on special teams, added with his potential at cornerback, or possibly at wide receiver, but I don’t think he’ll ever be anything other than an amazing special teamer who provides nice depth at either wide receiver or cornerback.

NFL Comparison: Ellis Hobbs

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

I like the idea. Taylor fills exactly what the Jets need, a pass rusher. Their pass rush is their biggest need this offseason and now they can get an upgrade without having to start the rookie that they draft in the first 2 rounds (presumably). Taylor will be able to start until that rookie can step in. BUT and that’s a big but, I don’t know why they had to pay him 13 million over 2 years. Who did they have to outbid? As a football move, this helps their team, but as a financial move, I don’t like it.

Grade: B-

Defensive End/Rush Linebacker

South Florida

6-5 270

40 time: 4.64

Draft board overall prospect rank: #43

Draft board defensive end rank: #6

Overall rating: 79*

            Jason Pierre Paul is one of the more interesting NFL Draft prospects this year and he is also one of the more polarizing. Some people love him. Some think he’s overrated. I don’t think there is anyone out there who would say he’s not gifted athletically, but that’s about where the agreements stop. Jason Pierre Paul was one of the most hyped Junior College transfers in recent history because of how he dominated the JuCo level and because of his freakish athletic ability. He didn’t perform great on the field this year, with only 6.5 sacks, but he got into the backfield quite a bit and definitely showed his freakish athleticism. He showed it again at the Combine running a 4.64 at 6-5 270. However, the tape is extremely inconsistent on him. His pass rushing repertoire is pretty limited at this point and he struggled some against the run last year, possibly even appearing disinterested on run plays. He’s got a good initial explosion and first step, but he lacks elite upper body strength and he doesn’t use great leverage. He’s a bit too finesse and may have more of a future as a rush linebacker despite his size. He certainly has the athleticism and fluidity to play the rush linebacker position, but even there he would be a major project and he didn’t show much in the way of being able to drop into pass coverage and do something productive, with the exception of using his ridiculously long arms to bat down passes and the line of scrimmage. The physical upside is certainly there and getting him in the 2^nd round as a rush linebacker prospect would be a steal in my book, but unfortunately that’s not going to happen. Someone is going to jump on him 15-20 picks too early and make him a mid first round pick. He may even go before Derrick Morgan, who is way more proven than him at an NCAA Division I level, because of his scheme versatility. However, if someone can’t dominant on an NCAA Division I level, how are they are going to able to dominate on an NFL level.        

NFL Comparison: Gaines Adams

I don’t quite know where the Seahawks are going to play Jones. They have two starting caliber defensive tackles and while Jones can be a good nickel rusher inside, 4.5 million (up to 5 million in incentives) over a year seems a little rich for that type of player, especially one coming off a down year playing out of position (61^st ranked defensive end out of 67 on ProFootballFocus). Jones has also never had success outside of the wide nine scheme.

In 2010, Jones had 4 sacks and 34 pressures as a part time defensive tackle, ranking 6^th on ProFootballFocus so that’s his upside, but he probably won’t see the 678 snaps he saw in 2010 in 2012 and he won’t be in a wide nine scheme. For a team like St. Louis, who needed a starting defensive tackle and had a wide nine scheme, he was worth up to 5 million. I don’t think he was for Seattle.

Grade: B

My name is Jason Hannah.  I have a long-time nickname of “Jazz”, so you may have seen me posting around several Minnesota Vikings pages, blogs, and forums as “The Jazzy One”.  I am the writer for a Minnesota Vikings Blog called The Viking Ship, which is at http://www.thevikingship.net, and I also am in the process of starting a network of football blogs called The Football Blog Zone, which you can find at http://www.footballblogzone.com.

I’ve been a Minnesota Vikings fan for as long as I remember.  When I was growing up, my dad never missed a game, and the Vikings addiction eventually rubbed off on me as soon as I was old enough to understand football.  I’ve lived through the dropped TD pass to Darrin Nelson in the NFC Championship game against the Redskins, the missed field goal in the NFC Championship game against the Falcons, the blowout and embarrassment in the NFC Championship game against the Giants, and the heartbreaking 12-men-in-the-huddle in the NFC Championship game against the Saints.  Maybe one day I’ll be able to live through a Super Bowl!

If you like what you read from me, check out my blog.  You can also check out what I’m doing in the following ways:

Twitter:  http://www.twitter.com/TheVikingShip

Email: jazz@thevikingship.net

Facebook:  http://www.facebook.com/thevikingship

Offensive Tackle

Miami

6-7 305

40 time: 5.45

Draft board overall prospect rank: #49

Draft board offensive tackle rank: #7

Overall rating: 78*

            4/1/10: Jason Fox has first round talent and has been the anchor on Miami’s offensive line ever since he stepped on campus, but there are a lot of red flags with him. He’s a bit skinny and isn’t a great run blocker and is therefore limited scheme wise to being a left tackle in a zone blocking scheme. He also has had heart issues in the past and is just coming off of knee surgery. He doesn’t have great athleticism or upside, but he’s a hard worker, a gym rat, and a tape watcher. His pass blocking form and footwork are elite, but he struggles to contain quicker ends and, by that respect, could be seen as a man without a true position. He was extremely dominant at Miami, but he needs to bulk up some and prove he is healthy. He has also had an ankle injury and an elbow injury in the past, though he played through them well and rarely missed a game in his very successful college career. He has a shot of going in the 2^nd round because of this weak left tackle class, but he shouldn’t go after guys like Jared Veldheer, Roger Saffold, and Tony Washington, and he probably will. Most likely he’ll be a late 2^nd round early 3^rd round guy, but he has first round upside and talent and could be anchor at left tackle in a zone blocking scheme (like Indy’s perhaps) for many years because that is exactly what he was at Miami.

NFL Comparison: Duane Brown

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