March 12, 2008

1. Chris Long - Virginia 6-4/285

Chris is neck and neck with Glenn Dorsey as the nations top lineman. He is the lunch pail, time card punching, here all day long, type of player that belongs in every conversation concerning the top 10 picks of this draft.

2. Vernon Gholston - Ohio State 6-4/258

He has an incredible upside and with a little coaching Vernon is a top tier defensive end, he has classic pass rushing abilities and the more film I see the thougher he looks to block. He demands attention in the game plan the offense is running and that is all that needs to be said.

3. Phillip Merling - Clemson 6-5/275

Phillip is an animal who has not only the power to get into the backfield but also the quicks to make the play behind the line.

4. Quentin Groves - Auburn 6-3/254

Quentin looks very athletic and does a great job at getting upfield but will need to learn how to fight the urge to pass rush and contain the run better.

5. Derrick Harvey - Florida 6-4/260

Derrick is very athletic and his ability to play in space may lure a 3-4 defense his way. He is as good as Ellis but his open field skills are superior so he ranks a bit higher.

6. Chris Ellis - Virginia Tech 6-5/260

Chris has that pure pass rushing ability and gritty play style that will make some old school players reminisce and it’s what I love. His ability to play OLB will increase his worth ten fold.

7. Calais Campbell - Miami 6-8/280

Calais is a bulldozer and roughhouses on the football filed and while that is soooo fun to watch, he will need to develop more if he stays at end. His upside is far to high for him to slip far at all in April.

8. Lawrence Jackson - Southern Cal 6-5/270

Lawrence is a pure athlete who can cover a lot of field and may make the easiest switch to OLB. His speed plus his sideline to sideline speed may be a perfect fit for the transition.

9. Darrell Robertson - Georgia Tech 6-5/245

If the class was not so top heavy, Darrell would rank much higher and has the talent to out-shine some of the players ranked higher than he is. His ability off the edge is incredible, he has great speed through the line but as a tweener he is hard to guage.

10. Kendall Langford - Hampton 6-6/294

Kendall was a handful at Hampton and his type of power will translat seemlessly to the next level.

11. Chris Harrington - Texas A&M 6-5/268

12. Cliff Avril - Purdue 6-3/247

13. Johnny Dingle - West Virginia 6-3/270

14. Jeremy Thompson - Wake Forest 6/4-264

15. Jason Jones - Eastern Michigan 6-5/270

16. Wallace Gilberry - Alabama 6-4/264

17. Chase Ortiz - Texas 6-3/255

18. Tommy Blake - TCU 6-3/246

19. Kenny Iwebema - Iowa 6-4/267

20. Brian Johnston - Gardner-Webb 6-5/274

Also…

Marcus Howard - Georgia 6-1/237

Jeremy Geathers - UNLV 6-2/248