*Walt taking 2014 and 2018 |
Charlie Campbell, Senior Draft Analyst |
Survey of Teams Projects Maurice Hurst to Day 2
Updated Feb. 5, 2018By Charlie Campbell. Follow Charlie on Twitter @draftcampbell.
A plethora of mock drafts come out each January as draft season opens around the league. There can be some well-known and expected prospects going high along with some surprising names in the first round. One player who has been included in Round 1 of some mock drafts is Michigan defensive lineman Maurice Hurst. Hurst is an undersized, but fast, defensive lineman who had a quality 2017 season. However in speaking to sources at six different teams, none of them had a first-round grade on Hurst.
A couple of team sources said that Hurst has a shot at going in Round 1 because there aren’t 32 prospects with first-round grades. Therefore, some players with grades for Round 2 will end up getting selected on Thursday night of the 2018 NFL Draft. A couple of team sources thought Hurst shouldn’t go in the first round, but still might sneak in late in Round 1. Sources from four other teams thought he would, and should, go on the second day of the 2018 NFL Draft.
One NFC general manager in the market for defensive line help said this about Hurst, “We graded him in the bottom half of the second [round], and he could go in the third.”
Slipping to the third round would be a surprise considering most projections have Hurst as a first- or second-rounder. However, Hurst is listed at 6-foot-2, 282 pounds, and it will be interesting to see what his real measurements are, because many schools, including Michigan, inflate those numbers. For example, Hurst’s teammate linebacker Mike McCray was listed at 6-foot-4, but at the Senior Bowl weigh-in, McCray checked in at 6-foot-1.
Team sources say that they have concerns about Hurst holding up against the run in the NFL, and he needs to go to the right scheme to maximize his strengths and help cover up his weaknesses. While Hurst has an outside shot at being a first-round pick, the consensus with teams is projecting him to the second day of the 2018 NFL Draft.
