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2010 NFL Draft Stock Up
Bruce Campbell, T, Maryland Campbell made a huge impression on me on game tape against clemson. He has quick feet, was strong at the point of attack, played with a strong base, and mirrored his feet well against the pass rush. I loved his awareness. He picked up a nickle and weakside LB blitz with ease.
He has impressive athletic ability and handled Clemson DE Ricky Sapp’s speed off the edge without any problem. He has very imposing size and looks to have NFL left tackle tools. Once, he did a poor job bending at the waist too much against the run. However, I was extremely impressed with his tape in this game and I think he is a potential top-10 pick.
Stefen Wisniewski, C, Penn State Wisniewski might be the best center prospect in the nation, but he is a junior and will likely not declare. He plays with great leverage, a nice knee bend, and shows great awareness and instincts. He is very strong and can dominate his opponent.
Jeremy Beal, DE, Oklahoma I’m not saying Beal is a first- or second-round pick, but he does look like an intriguing mid-round talent. He showed good closing speed several times in this game and played very well off the edge generating a couple of sacks. I loved it on one play where he did a good job diagnosing the run and had to make a chase tackle limiting the run to four yards as opposed to 10-plus yards.
Jake Locker, QB, Washington I love Locker’s sixth sense for the pass rush in the pocket. He has a great sense of timing in the pocket. He does a great job of making decisions quickly; a couple times he decided to run as soon as he realized nothing was open downfield – this is a rare quality and I think it might translate to the NFL.
Locker had a stronger arm than what I saw in the first three quarters against USC. Occasionally he gets happy feet in the pocket. Locker fumbled the ball, but I have to blame his inept offensive line here.
Locker threw a beautiful deep ball to the receiver; it was long, but it was on line and the receiver should have been at the spot. I really like Locker’s accuracy and overall mechanics. He will likely be the second quarterback taken next April in the first round as long as he is consistent. His wide receivers and offensive line are pitiful, and I will not hold this against him.
Charles Brown, T, USC After this game, there is little doubt in my mind that Brown is a more polished player than Trent Williams. Their footwork is night and day. Brown has quick feet and isn’t heavy on his kick step. He is under control and plays with tenacity. He held is own against Tyson Alualu of California. The question is if teams will see Sam Baker or William Beatty. I love Brown; he’s now a 4-star prospect.
2010 NFL Draft Stock Down
Trent Williams, T, Oklahoma Williams played like anything but a first-round draft pick against Miami. Three times I noticed he bent at the waist far too much, played with poor technique, and ended up on the ground. This is not first-round material tape. He didn’t show very quick feet in pass protection; his steps were wide and slow, as opposed to quick and choppy.
Williams showed poor balance in this game. I didn’t like his hand use – he didn’t lock on. He showed very fluid hips, which I love in an offensive tackle. He did a good job a few times sitting in his stance against the bull rush. He showed good awareness on an X-stunt.
I noticed Williams lacked a mean streak in this game; I want him to play angry; not soft. Miami DE Eric Moncur was in the 7-technique position (out very wide), and he simply blew by Williams for the sack; Williams didn’t have the agility to cut him off here. Another time, Williams’ assignment was to seal off the middle linebacker on a run play, but didn’t get to the spot in time.
C.J. Spiller, RB, Clemson Nobody has been more complimentary this season of Spiller than I, but I noticed a few negatives in this game. Several times, he would just run out of bounds to the sideline instead of fighting up field for a couple more yards; this makes him look soft as a runner. Even though I don’t project Spiller as a No. 1 back in the NFL, I want him to run as physically as possible when he is on the field.
We all know about Spiller’s positives: the hands, the elite speed, the agility, the vision. He took an unimpressive angle on a pass block and his legs went dead on contact a few times when he was carrying the ball.
Ricky Sapp, DE, Clemson Sapp really lacked physicality in this matchup and he was overwhelmed by LT Bruce Campbell (see above). Once, Sapp was blocked easily by a tight end and didn’t show any fight. This really worries me because he is supposed to be this first-round 3-4 outside linebacker, but he played more like a second-round prospect in this game.
Jared Odrick, DT, Penn State I love Odrick’s ability to penetrate using his great motor, hands and quickness. However, Illinois had no problem running right at Odrick in this contest. He really lacked a base and didn’t hold his own against the run. Odrick needs to gain some upper-body strength; he doesn’t seem to have much musculature. Odrick might struggle against bigger linemen in the NFL.
Evan Royster, RB, Penn State I was an Evan Royster fan coming into this game, but he didn’t erase any doubts about his lack of effort. A few times his legs just went dead on contact; he didn’t keep his feet pumping like a Knowshon Moreno or Maurice Jones-Drew. He gave a very lethargic effort a few times. He simply missed his pass blocking assignment once; this has to be a lack of focus.
Royster has very average size and very average speed, and with this kind of effort he is looking more like an average, mid-round prospect.
Corey Wootton, DE, Northwestern I am offically sick of the Corey Wootton hype. I gave him the benefit of the doubt in the preseason and a few weeks into the season, but this is the third game I have seen and the third time I have been severely unimpressed; he is playing like a mid-round draft pick and not the first-rounder he is hyped as of right now.
I am comfortable saying Wootton is pretty unathletic. He is in position to make tackles, but lacks the agility and flexibility to make plays. Wootton is soft and was blocked by vastly inferior tight ends multiple times in this contest against Purdue. He is quick off the ball, but he doesn’t have any closing speed; he’s a stiff athlete. Once, he ran right by an offensive tackle, and the tackle barely slapped him with one hand, and Wootton went to the ground. He might be 6-7, 280, but he plays like he is 6-1, 240.
By my count, Wootton didn’t record his first tackle until 0:37 left in the fourth quarter. Remember, this is Purdue; not USC. Wootton has recorded 8 tackles and zero sacks on the season.
Micah Johnson, ILB, Kentucky The word that best describes Micah Johnson against Alabama is invisible. He didn’t get off the bus. I don’t understand why he doesn’t make more plays. When he runs in a straight line, he looks a little stiff. Johnson does an outstanding job of making open-field tackles and he has better range in zone than most inside linebackers, but I think he is overweight and not the first-round pick I saw last season on film.
Terrence Cody, NT, Alabama I got a lot of heat for saying Cody was a second-round prospect, but maybe I was being nice. At best he looks like a second-rounder. Sure, he is huge, but he has literally no range and doesn’t make much of an impact if teams don’t run right at him. He is very slow and not the same athlete that a Vince Wilfork or B.J. Raji is. Cody lacks stamina and I highly doubt he goes in the first round.
2010 NFL Draft Stock Stable
Trevard Lindley, CB, Kentucky There wasn’t a lot of film to digest on Lindley, and NFL scouts didn’t get to see much of the matchup (Lindley vs. Alabama WR Julio Jones) that they wanted to. On a go route, Lindley was step for step with Jones down the field and played excellent press man coverage. In the early second quarter, he did a great job reading the screen (instincts) and layed a physical, textbook tackle for a big loss. Despite Lindley’s size, he is one of the best corners in the nation against the run and in terms of making open field tackles.
Rolando McClain, ILB, Alabama After this game I convinced myself how difficult it is to evaluate an inside linebacker in the 3-4 at the college level. These players don’t have a lot of space to make plays and they have to fight through a ton of trash. McClain wasn’t lazy, but he didn’t make a ton of plays. At times he flashes brillance with great closing speed. Other times, he takes poor angles against the run. By default, he looks like the No. 1 inside linebacker in the nation, which isn’t saying much.
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