I still have at least a dozen Bowl Games recorded so you can count on several more prospect reports over the next few weeks until I head over to St. Pete to watch Shrine action. Here are a bakers dozen additional prospects Who Caught My Eye.
MICKEY BAUCUS/T/ARIZONA/6’7/305 #68
BAUCUS recorded his 52nd career start in the Fiesta Bowl loss to Boise. Many of them have been at LT, but I would guess his NFL audition will come on the right side. He’s not really agile enough to protect a QB blindside. But his long arms and legs serve him well in his drops into pass pro. He could use more strength, both upper and lower, for the next level. He uses his experience to work defenders who are more athletic than him. I see him being of value about Round 5/6. He’ll probably have to develop into a starter to hang on in the NFL, because his length could be a liability in any attempt to back-up Interior OL spots. He’s a Shrine Game roster name right now, which could tell us a lot more about his actual pro potential.
STEFON DIGGS/WR/MARYLAND/6’0/195 #1
DIGGS is a solid Top 100 player, who missed some time with injury and suspension this past season. He was the ring leader in the ‘no handshake gambit’ with Penn State. He has to learn the difference between spirit and just acting like a punk. If he doesn’t grow up he’ll be a real pain for some NFL franchise, though not for long despite his talent. DIGGS could make a nice No. 2 WR in the NFL. Coming back from both to play in the Bowl loss DIGGS had an impressive game with 10 catches for 138 yards, but no TD. He’s a nice blend of speed and quickness, who can really pile up yards after catch. He also shows dependable hands. I believe that interviews at the Combine will be vital in his Draft evaluation. I expect him to go in Round 3 despite the present attitude baggage.
ERICK DRAGAN/SS/OREGON/5’11/210 #4
DRAGAN was a Special Teams ace and back-up DB until his senior season. And boy did he step up when his name was called to start at FS this past year. He had a big INT in the trouncing of FSU last week. He is also an aggressive tackler, who can lay the wood. He also specializes at going for the strip on receivers after the catch. His stats for the 2014 season were quite impressive. In 14 games DRAGAN had 90 tackles, 2.5 TFL & 2 FF. He also piled up 7 INT to lead the Ducks. I think he goes in Round 4/5 and is an instant contributor in sub-packages and on Special Teams. But I also see this natural football player as an NFL starting S, not very far down the road.
PAUL DAWSON/LB/TCU/6’1/230 #47
The former Juco star was voted the Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year for his work in 2013. He’s an exceptional athlete who is likely to post some impressive agility and speed numbers at Indy. He broke into the Big 12 with 91 tackles in 2013, then followed it up this season with 136. But he’s not just a tackling machine, as he proved this season. In his tackle total were 20 TFL and 6 sacks. But he also dropped off into coverage to record 9 PD, including 4 INT. He looked every bit the part in the TCU stomping of Ole Miss, flowing to the ball and directing his teammates into their proper spots. He is clearly a big time prospect who should be in every Top 100 prospect list. I doubt his lack of ideal size is going to be any kind of hindrance going forward. Now how can he not be scheduled to appear in either the Shrine or Senior games?!
TAIWAN JONES/ILB/MICHIGAN STATE/6’2/252 #34
JONES was the man to slide over from the outside to replace MAX BULLOUGH after recording 67 stops last season. So how did he respond to the move? He was second on the team with 60 tackles in 14 games and was 2nd Team All Big 10 at MLB. He recorded 6 tackles in the big Bowl win over Baylor including 1.5 TFL. He is also more than adequate at dropping into middle field coverage for his size. But his forte is as a thumper who intimidates runners between the tackles. He is scheduled to play for the West squad in the SHRINE Game. Given his versatility I think it is safe to assume he would be of interest to both 4-3 and 3-4 defensive schemes. Practicing and playing well at the Shrine venue will almost as important as posting some decent numbers in drills at the Combine and/or his pro day. This kind of full sized tough guy appeals to me greatly as a Saturday Draft Pick next May.
MALCOME KENNEDY/WR/TEXAS A&M/6’0/205 #84
Johnny Manziel throwing to MIKE EVANS in 2013 were so dominant that KENNEDY was almost a forgotten piece of the Aggies Offense. But he did catch 60 balls in support to those two guys. This season he took the field in 11 of the Aggies 14 games and caught 53 balls for 611 yds & 6TD. In the Bowl victory over WVU he totaled 7 catches for 82 yards and 2 TD. He is a versatile guy, who was called upon to run the ball multiple times this past year on reverses, to good advantage. He’s not super fast and will need to post a decent 40-time this post-season. He has reliable hands and good overall size. Again he looks to me like a 3rd Day Draftee who can earn a spot at the bottom of an NFL WR group. He should be useful on Special Teams as well. He’s s scheduled to compete in the Medal of Honor Game this weekend.
JARRON REED/DL/ALABAMA/6’4/315 #90
2014 was this JUco transfer’s first season of D1 action. Despite that word has been floating around that he is thinking of going pro. So I watched him diligently in the Sugar Bowl contest. And my response is, WOW! This is a full sized man who is ready to go pro. He was double team blocked on almost every play, pass or run. And he barely budged an inch off the line of scrimmage on run defense. REED stays on his feet and pursues the ball. He uses his hands well to move blockers and disengage from them. Of all the Alabama DL, I think he played the most snaps by far. He even has a knack for disrupting opposing QB passing windows. In ‘Bama’s 12 games he totaled 55 T, 6.5 TFL, 1 Sack and 5 PD. Remember folks that’s in primarily a 3-4 scheme. He played most of his downs at DE, but slid inside on certain sub-packages. He’s ready to move on for Sunday action and should be gone early in Round 2. I’m not convinced he’ll put up crazy work-out numbers to propel him into Round 1, but he has all the tools to play well in the NFL and soon.
BUD SASSER/WR/MISSOURI/6’2/210 #21
It seems like there are always a dozen or more teams in the NFL looking for WR depth once the regular season starts and injuries begin to mount. SASSER may not be an impact player at the next level, but he looks to me to have all the tools to be a solid No. 4 receiving option. He has good size, good hands, runs tight patterns and has enough speed to get open. Critical for SASSER’s draft ranking will be his 40-time at the Combine or his Pro Day. He is not a speedster, but runs with a nice smooth striding style and will fight for the ball with DB. In the MIzzou Bowl win over Minnesota he had 7 catches for 68 yards and 1 TD. He really stepped up as a senior overall with a total of 77 balls for 1003 yards and 12 TD in 14 total games. For the life of me, I cannot understand why he is not listed on an All-Star Game roster at this point. I’d be happy to snag him with a Round 4/5 Pick. He will play in the NFL.
BO WALLACE/QB/OLE MISS/6’4/205 #14
To be truthful I did not intend to profile WALLACE, but I have gotten multiple e-mails asking about him so here we go. WALLACE seems to have two personalities on the football field; Bad Bo/Good Bo. The good side could play in the NFL, but when he’s bad it just gets ugly. He’s just not a great athlete, but all too often he ties to do great things. His arm is average and his mechanics poor. He has running instincts from the pocket, but generally is too slow to produce what he tries to accomplish. And he can get carless with the ball, from an INT and fumbling perspective. TCU was way too much for the entire Ole Miss team and BO took the brunt of criticism for their bad offensive display. For the 2014 season WALLACE completed 60.1% of his throws, for 3194 yards and 22 TD. But he also threw 14 INT. When asked at the half of the Bowl blowout if he had thought of taking WALLACE out of the lineup at some point HC FREEZE correctly pointed out that WALLACE had meant too much to the program to suffer that fate. I agree with those sentiments, but cannot say I see him as being draftable as a potential NFL QB.
TONY WASHINGTON/OLB/OREGON/6’3/245 #91
IN the Oregon D WASHINGTON has been playing a DE spot, even though he only puts his hand on the ground part of the time. For NFL proposes he’s an interesting OLB prospect, with nice size and above average athleticism at that size. He looks to me like a good fit on the outside for either a 4-3 or 3-4 scheme. He had a solid junior season, as a full-time starter, with 60 tackles, which included 7.5 sacks. In case you missed it during the game WASHINGTON was the good looking athlete who scooped up the WINSTON, falling backwards fumble, and ran a smooth 58-yard sprint for a TD that pretty much sealed FSU’s fate. For the 2014 season WASHINGTON appeared in 14 games, had 53 tackles, including 11 TFL & 6 sacks. He also had 3 FF and 2 PD. TONY is also scheduled to appear at Shrine Week in St.Pete, and it looks like he will work out primarily as a LB, not a DE. That could go a long way toward defining how high he may go in the 2015 Draft. He should post some excellent numbers at the Combine. He’s looking more and more to me, like a Top 100 prospect come Draft time.
JERMAINE WHITEHEAD/S/AUBURN/5’11/200 #35
Let’s start by saying that WHITEHEAD is going to have some ‘splainin’ to do in the NFL interview process at the Combine and/or his Pro Day. He missed a big chunk of the 2014 season because of issues with his position coach. But he got back onto the field near the end of the season and demonstrated that he has pro potential. He was all over the field in the Loss to UW, and even had an INT to show for his day’s work. He’s aggressive, but not out of control patrolling large areas of the secondary. He’s a tough guy, who hits big for his size. Right now his overall coverage skills are marginal so he will have to learn how to accept coaching criticism. But he does locate the ball with regularity. In 9 games he had 36 tackles and 6 INT. His bad boy act this Fall will no doubt hurt his Draft status, but unless he implodes in interviews he should be a Day 3 Pick, who will initially have to earn a roster spot with his Special Teams play.
KARLOS WILLIAMS/RB/FLORIDA STATE/6’1/210 #9
The former S is not a natural open field runner. He has limited moves and can dodge a few tackles, but is more likely to run through people than around them. He looks to have a very good burst if his blockers create a good sized hole that he can locate quickly. His NFL value is clearly in his versatility as a solid athlete, who will do whatever is asked of him in a team setting. His pass-pro ability is improving with time at his new position. He has enough power to be valuable in short yardage situations. Right now he’s a poor man’s ANDRE WILLIAMS/R/GIANTS. But he shows better hands than ANDRE as a receiver. The Seminoles younger RB got the spotlight, but perhaps a bit more of WILLIAMS could have been a very good thing for the team against Oregon. KARLOS rushed 12 times for 80 yards and 1 TD. He also caught 5 balls for another 59 yards. He clearly has the temperament to play any Special Teams role an NFL assigns him. WILLIAMS could make a very nice mid-Round (4-5) addition to a team needing another option in their running attack ala the STEELERS.
MAXX WILLIAMS/TE/MINNESOTA/6’4/255 #88
As often happens in life, timing can be everything. MAXX, and his emergence this season as a Gopher TE, comes in a year when the NFL Draft TE group is mediocre, at best. Thus a wise move on his part to announce he’s going pro. He showed both his power and athleticism in the Bowl loss to Missouri. WILLIAMS caught 7 passes for 98 yards and a TD. He’s not a big time deep threat, but he’s got enough athleticism to gain yards after the catch. He likes to hurdle defenders right now, and tho that looks impressive, he won’t like the price he’ll pay for doing that in the NFL. He’s also an adequate blocker, who will be expected to improve under pro coaching. He’s a true TE, not a big WR, and reminds me of the recent Stanford TE prospects like FLEENER & ERTZ. He also has good genes, with his dad, BRIAN, having been a Round 1 Pick by the GIANTS back in 1979. Look for him to be the 1st TE taken in May, probably in Round 2.
