End-of-Regular-Season Scouting Scuttlebutt
Updated Nov. 29, 2018
By Charlie Campbell. Follow Charlie on Twitter
@draftcampbell.
With the end of college football’s regular season, some draft prospects have finished up all of their games before suiting up in a NFL uniform, but the majority of other prospects for the 2019 NFL Draft have only one more collegiate game. With that being the case, we surveyed some sources around the league to see what are some of the untold debates going around in the scouting community that have not made it out into the NFL media yet. Here are some of the responses, a lot of which focus on some prospects being overrated and overhyped.
Perhaps one of the most overrated and overhyped prospects for the 2019 NFL Draft could be Arizona State wide receiver N’Keal Harry. There are some draft experts who have Harry going as a top-10 pick in their mock drafts, but in speaking with some scouts who have been through Arizona State, they have him much lower than that. Here is what one area scout said to me about Harry last week, “I just don’t see it. I had him in the second [round,] but I’m actually dropping his grade to the third [round]. He does not move like an elite, top-of-the-draft guy.”
Perhaps there are differing opinions with other teams holding Harry higher, but there typically is a big discrepancy in athletic ability from prospects who grade out as mid-second-day players compared to top-10 picks. The combine is going to be important for Harry, but as that scout pointed out, former Sun Devil wideout Jaelen Strong was a similar player who ran fast at the combine, but did not translate to NFL success. Another prospect who multiple team sources feel is very overrated is LSU cornerback Greedy Williams. “He’s extremely overrated, just watch the Georgia tape,” said one general manager. In speaking to a director of college scouting, they said this about Williams, “I have him late [in Round 1]. I like him, but he doesn’t have the speed to get an elite grade.” There are some draft sites that project Williams going in the top-five picks, but team sources aren’t nearly as high on Williams as the larger media believes. Another player who could end up going lower than expected is Clemson defensive end Clelin Ferrell. From his performance this year, one general manager said they thought Ferrell would go in the mid- to late first round. A director of college scouting also said they also projected Ferrell to the mid- to late portion of the opening night of the 2019 NFL Draft. Ferrell improved his run defense this year and looks stronger at the point of attack, but teams do not view him as an explosive edge rusher in the mold of a Myles Garrett or Von Miller. “I don’t think Ferrell was ever that fast and explosive,” said an AFC national scout. Given this strong class of defensive linemen, it could be hard for Ferrell to crack the top 10. Sources from around the league like Boston College defensive end Zach Allen, but the degree to which they like him varies a pretty significantly. One team source said they could see Allen going outside of the top 10 and in the teens, while others felt that he could slip to the second round. But even those who think he could go in the second round really like him. One general manager who said they thought Allen should go in Round 2 said, “He’s a bully and strong as hell. Not a great arsenal of pass-rush moves. I think it’s a stretch to get him in the first [round]. I wouldn’t take him in the first [round].”
Other scouts like Allen more and feel he is a worthy first-rounder, so this is an odd case of a player who is liked by all evaluators but valued at different points.
