Tuesday, March 29, 2011

Defensive Tackle Prospect Rankings

After Ndamukong Suh's take over of the NFL last season a lot of teams are looking for this years Suh, who can instantly dominate and change the whole look of a team's defense. While I don't see any one coming close to that kind of immediate success any time soon, there are some guys in this class who should make a splash next year.



1.Marcell Dareus, Alabama
When you think of the perfect run stuffing, hole plugging, d-tackle Marcell Dareus is the type of player that comes to mind. After only starting a mere 8 games during his time at Bama he was able to show the type of stuff that makes him a sure fire top 10 if not top 5 pick. His shinning moment came in last years National Championship game as he was awarded the Defensive MVP of the night.

2. Nick Fairley, Auburn
A lot of hype swarmed around Fairley after an outstanding senior campaign, which came after he played JUCO for his freshmen and sophomore years. Personally, I'm not convinced he isn't more than just a one year wonder on a remarkable Auburn defense where he was surrounded by talent. However, despite my personal point of view you cant argue with numbers. 60 tackles, 24 for less, 11.5 sacks, and 21 QB hurries. Pretty impressive stuff.


3. Stephen Paea, Oregon State
Paea is an absolute monster in the weight room and it translates quite nicely onto the field. The term "Workout Warrior" sometimes worries me as a lot of players coined with the term end up being major busts, but I don't see it happening in this case. Paea put up an insane 49 reps (of 225) on the bench at the combine, and with strength like that he'll force a double team in most situations, which D coordinators obviously drool over.

4. Corey Luiget, Illinois 
In a draft full of mammoth, slow D-tackles, Luiget is a smaller and much quicker prospect which sets him apart from the rest. While he didn't put up amazing numbers at Illinois he did show loads of potential and should be a first round selection. His quickness off the ball makes him one of the premier pass rushing tackles in the draft.

5. Muhammad Wilkerson, Temple 
Wilkerson has the ability to play anywhere on the D-line and has a knack for making plays in the backfield. In his third and final year as a Temple Owl he was able to rack up 70 tackles, 13 tackles for less and 9.5 sacks.



No comments:

Post a Comment