2018 Draft Prospects Thread

Three Favorites, Defense:

EDGE
Harold Landry - BC - Everyone is high on Chubb for good reason (me too), but Landry is a pure EDGE with great bend and athleticism.

Duke Ejiofor - Wake Forest - Injury killed his offseason, but as a mid round prospect he's got great production and motor.

Sam Hubbard - OSU - Never going to be an annual All-Pro, but will be a 10-year starter in the league and be an above average player in a pretty weak DE class.

Ola Adeniyi - Toledo - Another late round sleeper with great motor and bend. Potential for much more, doesn't turn 21 until September.


Not my thing: Marcus Davenport, Arden Key, Kemoko Turay, Marcell Frazier, Lorenzo Carter, Ogbonnia Okoronkwo


DT
Maurice Hurst - Michigan - Don't know what the deal is with his heart, but not taking that into account he's the 2nd or 3rd best defensive player in this draft with Chubb.

Taven Bryan - UF - Elite first step quickness and the best athleticism pound for pound in this class.

Poona Ford - Texas - Crazy undersized and scheme specific, but he is going to play in this league. Great value in the middle rounds.

Harrison Phillips - Stanford - Elite production with tape to match. He's a problem for opposing interior guys.


Not my thing: Tim Settle, Da'Ron Payne, Rasheem Green, Andrew Brown)


LB
Roquan Smith - Georgia - Best defensive player in the draft and 1A behind Nelson. Sideline to sideline ability, flys to the football. Team captain and perennial All-Pro.

Skai Moore - South Carolina - Undersized, but a great fit at WLB in a Cover 2 scheme. Neck injury cost him 2016, idk the medicals, but I'm in if healthy.

Shaquem Griffin - UCF - He's going to make plays in this league in a variety of ways. He's also an emotional and inspirational leader to the entire league and general populace. Sold.

Tegray Scales - Indiana - Character concerns are legit, but if he's got his head right, he'll play for a long time. Great production.

Darius Jackson - Jacksonville St. - Elite production, great blitzer. Think he's a hybrid EDGE/OLB that teams can swing around as a playmaker.

Genard Avery - Memphis - Always around the ball, good athleticism. 22TFL and will be a good mid-rounder.

Joel Lanning - Iowa St. - Not the biggest or fastest, but makes plays everywhere and will be a good special teams players as he develops.

Not my thing: Darius Leonard, Jerome Baker, Mike McCray, Malik Jefferson


CB
Isaiah Oliver - Colorado - Matched the tape with athleticism, I'm in on him as an early second rounder.

Carlton Davis - Auburn - Not very fast, borderline speed. But knows how to cover and press in man with good size and arm length.

Quentin Meeks - Stanford - Not sure why he isn't going higher than 2-3. Great size, athleticism and tape. Not sure what teams aren't seeing.

Not my thing: Josh Jackson (C3 only), Donte Jackson


S
Justin Reid - Stanford - Mid-to-late first rounder. Elite CF type who can play in man coverage adequately as well. Best FS in the draft and pretty equal with Derwin James, IMO.

DeShone Elliot - Texas - Knows how to get himself in position to make plays. Can find the ball in run support. Not big or strong or fast, so that takes him down a few rounds. But he can play.

Damon Webb - OSU - Really a late bloomer to me, but as a middle round pick he probably sticks in this league as a package defender and special teamer.

Quin Blanding - Virginia - Box safety only, but great in run support as a fourth LB. Can't really cover, but a good blitzer and consistent player.


Not my thing: Terrell Edmunds, Armani Watts, Tre Flowers, Marcus Allen

No way I’m passing on Chubb. He’s a top end elite talent. Getting more picks would be nice but I want quality over quantity. Imo there’s a large drop off after him.

Where is Landry projected to go? That guy was a freak in '16

Urban said:

Where is Landry projected to go? That guy was a freak in '16

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Mid-late 1.

FrontPageNews said:

No way I’m passing on Chubb. He’s a top end elite talent. Getting more picks would be nice but I want quality over quantity. Imo there’s a large drop off after him.

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The only reason we have a shot at Chubb is because we traded down last year.

Having two first round picks every year is a monstrous structural advantage in the draft - more valuable than drafting any non-QB. It's even possible that we could get a third first rounder this year plus a first-rounder next year if the right QB is still on the board. There's no way in hell I'd turn that down.

The Human Q-Tip said:

The only reason we have a shot at Chubb is because we traded down last year.

Having two first round picks every year is a monstrous structural advantage in the draft - more valuable than drafting any non-QB. It's even possible that we could get a third first rounder this year plus a first-rounder next year if the right QB is still on the board. There's no way in hell I'd turn that down.

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Julio Jones says hello.

Aside from being down on Orlando Brown Jr, I can't find one thing I disagree with about @AZ_ posts this morning. So, instead of writing about everything I agree on, I'm focusing on the one thing we disagree on. This is RCF and we have a reputation of immaturity to uphold.

Why do I still believe in Orlando Brown Jr? Watch him play. I'm of the belief that he didn't work out like many expected of a pro prospect simply because for a long time, he didn't have to. In pass protection, he didn't get beat all year. In the run game, he rag-dolled players regularly. So what was his motivation to improve in the weight room? Now that he is in the NFL and the competition has stepped it up, I think he's going to hit the weights and take all that technique and God-given ability and max it out.

If the Browns take him in the second round, I'll be a supporter. He's a future starting tackle in the NFL, even if he has to work on his body a bit.

How about Ken Norton Jr in the later rounds?

I know nothing but his name, so lets go.

Binkster said:

Julio Jones says hello.

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A Myles Garrett and Bradley Chubb combo says we're doing fine.

Binkster said:

Julio Jones says hello.

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So do RGIII, Josh Freeman, Blaine Gabbert, and every other time a team traded up and screwed itself, and the team on the other end made out. The Browns got too little in return for trading down, and blew the picks they got in return.

And btw, if we'd followed the "don't trade down" crowd, we wouldn't have the No. 4 overall pick at all.

SuperSurge said:

How about Ken Norton Jr in the later rounds?

I know nothing but his name, so lets go.

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Haven't studied him much, watched this:


Jumped off the page at :40, :50

Swallowed alive at 1:00, 1:05, 1:10, 1:30

Showed a better anchor at 2:30, then gets dominated again the next play.

Nice play at 3:15

Runs right by the play at 3:32

Overwhelmed again in power run at 4:30. Pancaked at 4:40


Overall, not great tape for him. Really gets swallowed up by physical players in the power run game. Needs to establish himself as an anchor against double teams, often getting spun around and washed out.

That's a mid-late round tape, IMO.

Haven't heard a lot of talk about Trumaine Edmunds on the board. He's an athletic freak and projected as a top 10 pick but he doesn't fit as a true ILB or OLB/DE at the NFL level.

The Human Q-Tip said:

The only reason we have a shot at Chubb is because we traded down last year.

Having two first round picks every year is a monstrous structural advantage in the draft - more valuable than drafting any non-QB. It's even possible that we could get a third first rounder this year plus a first-rounder next year if the right QB is still on the board. There's no way in hell I'd turn that down.

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So we should keep acquiring first round picks because we have a shot at drafting an elite player but then trade that pick? Seems like an endless cycle of not taking the best player. That hasn’t worked for us so far.

Phills14 said:

Haven't heard a lot of talk about Trumaine Edmunds on the board. He's an athletic freak and projected as a top 10 pick but he doesn't fit as a true ILB or OLB/DE at the NFL level.

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I believe @jlegg21 brought up Edmunds' name a few pages back (along with Roquan Smith). With the financial investment made in Collins and Kirksey plus Schobert looking solid this past season, I would imagine the FO would be willing to wait until later in the draft to take a LB. Of course, with a new regime, you never know.

Derwin James has somehow turned into a sleeper top 10 pick. He was being mocked in the top 5 before the season ended and now he's flying under the radar. I think he goes top 10 and I can see him getting picked by DEN at 6.

Barkley won't make it past TB

Lama Jackson won't make it past BUF at 12

Nelson won't make it past CHI

No way that Denzel Ward makes it past SF and OAK

Guice going top 20