Overall Top 5 Per Position:

QB:
1. Sam Bradford
2. Matthew Stafford
3. Mark Sanchez
4. Josh Freeman
5. Tim Tebow
6. Nate Davis
7. Colt McCoy
8. Curtis Painter


RB:
1. Chris Wells
2. Knowson Moreno
3. Lesean McCoy
4. James Davis
5. C.J. Spiller
6. Javon Ringer
7. Shonn Greene

FB:

WR:
1. Michael Crabtree
2. Jeremy Maclin
3. Percy Harvin
4. Darius Heyward-bey
5. Eric Decker
6. Kenny Britt
7. Mohhamed Massequa
8. Derrick Williams
9. Juaquin Iglesias
10. Brian Robiskie

TE:
1. Jermaine Gresham
2. Brandon Pettigrew
3. Chase Coffman
4. Travis Beckum
5. Shawn Nelson
6. Jared Cook South Carolina

OT:
1. Michael Oher
2. Andre Smith
3. Eugene Monroe
4. Jamon Merideth
5. Jason Smith
6. Phil LoadHolt
7. Russell Okung
8. Eben Britton
9. Ciron Black
10 Fenuki Tapuo

OG:
1. Duke Robinson
2. Herman Johnson
3. Trevor Canfield
4. Sergio Render
5. Rey Feinga

OC:
1. Alex Mack
2. Jonathan Luigs
3. Max Unger
4. Antoine Caldwell
5. Thomas Austin

DEFENSE:

DE:
1. Michael Johnson
2. Greg Hardy
3. Brian Orapko
4. George Selvie
5. Tyson Jackson

DT:
1. Terrrance Cody
2. Sen'Derrick Marks
3. Geno Atkins
4. B.J. Raji
5. Peria Jerry

OLB:
1. Brian Cushing- 6'4 255 4.7
2. Aaron Curry- 6'2 246 4.6
3. Marcus Freeman- 6'1 238 4.55
4. Sean Weatherspoon- 6'1 235 4.55
5. Rico McCoy- 6'1 224 4.55
6. Gerald McRath- 6'3 220 4.55
7. Sergio Kindle- 6'4 238 4.55
8. Antonio Coleman- 6'2 252 4.7
ILB:
1. Rey Maualuga- 6'2 260 4.7
2. James Laurinaitas- 6'2 240 4.55
3. Darry Beckwith- 6'1 235 4.55
4. Brandon Spikes- 6'1 248 4.65
5. Dannell Ellerbe- 6'1 236 4.60
6. Mark Herzlich- 6'1 238 4.65 (OLB)
7. Joe Pawelek- 6'3 236 4.7 Baylor
8. Micah Johnson- 6'2 252 4.7 Kentucky
9. Clinton Snyder- 6'4 235 4.7 Stanford
CB:
1. Malcolm Jenkins- 6'0 200 4.45
2. Vontae Davis- 6'0 205 4.4
3. Alphonso Smith- 5'9 190 4.45
4. Mick Mickens- 6'0 190 4.45
5. Victor Harris- 5'11 194 4.5
6. D.J. Moore 5'10 185 4.45
7. Jairus Byrd 6'0 205 4.55
8. Trevard Lindley- 6'0 205 4.45
9. Sean Smith- 6'3 215 4.55
10. Asher Allen- 5'10 198 4.45
11. Darius Butler- 5'11 187 4.4
12.

DS:
1. Taylor Mays
2. William Moore
3. Kam Chancellor
4. Nic Harris
5. Patrick Chung

Initial 2009 Draft Rankings: Seniors and Junior OT's

Seniors:
1. Michael Oher
School:
Size:
2. Eugene Monroe
School:
Size:
3. Jamon Meredith
4. Phil Loadholt
5. Jason Smith

Juniors:
1. Andre Smith
2. Ciron Black
3. Ebon Britton

Initial 2009 Draft Rankings: Seniors and Junior TE's

Seniors:
1. Brandon Pettigrew
School: Oklahoma St.
Size:
2. Travis Beckum
3. Chase Coffman
4. Cornelius Ingram
5. Shawn Nelson
School: Southern Miss
Size: 6'5 240

Juniors:
1. Jermaine Gresham
2.
3.
4.
5.

Initial 2009 Draft Rankings: Seniors and Junior WR's

Seniors:
1.Brandon Tate
School: North Carolina
Size: 6'1 195
2. Juaquin Iglesias
School: Oklahoma
Size: 6'0 200
3. Brian Robiskie
School: Ohio St
Size: 6'2 195
4. Patrick Turner
School: USC
Size: 6'4 220
5. Demetrius Byrd
School: LSU
Size: 6'2 200

Juniors:
1. Michael Crabtree
School: Texas Tech
Size: 6'4 221
2. Jeremy Maclin
School: Missouri
Size: 6'0 208
3. Percy Harvin
School: Florida
Size: 5'11 186
4. Darius Heyward-Bey
School: Maryland
Size: 6'2 205

Initial 2009 Draft Rankings: Seniors and Junior RB's

Seniors:
1. James Davis
School: Clemson
Size: 5'11 210
2. Javon Ringer
School: Michigan St.
Size: 5'9 202
3. Arian Foster
School: Tennessee
Size: 6'1 215
4. Andre Brown
School: North Carolina St.
Size: 6'0 228
5. Marlon Lucky
School: Nebraska
Size: 6'0 215

Juniors:
1. Chris Wells
School: Ohio St.
Size: 6'1 237
2. Knowshon Moreno
School: Geogia
Size: 5'11 2007
3. LeSean McCoy
School: Pittsburg
Size:
4. C.J. Spiller
School: Clemson
Size: 5'11 195
5. Charles Scott
School: LSU
Size: 5'11 221

Initial 2009 Draft Rankings: Seniors and Junior QB's

Seniors:
1. Curtis Painter
School: Purdue
Size: 6'4 230
2. Chase Daniel
School: Missouri
Size: 6'0 225
3. Cullen Harper
School: Clemson
Size: 6'4 220
4. Hunter Cantwell
School: Louisville
Size: 6'4 230
5. Tom Brandstater
School: Fresno St.
Size: 6'5 220

Juniors:
1. Sam Bradford Soph. Eligible
School: Oklahoma
Size: 6'5 220
2. Matt Stafford
School: Georgia
Size: 6'3 235
3. Mark Sanchez
School: USC
Size: 6'3 220
4. Marcus Freeman
School: Kansas St.
Size: 6'6 230
5. Tim Tebow
School: Florida
Size: 6'3 240

MOCK DRAFT 1.0- 1ST ROUND PROJECTION

1. Miami- Matt Ryan
2. St. Louis- Chris Long
3. Oakland- Glen Dorsey
4. Atlanta- Darren McFadden
5. Kansas City- Jake Long
6. New York Jets- Vernon Gholston
7. New England (from SF)- Aquib Talib
8. Baltimore- Sedrick Ellis
9. Cincinnati- Kentwan Balmer
10. New Orleans- Leodis McKelvin
11. Buffalo- Malcolm Kelly
12. Denver- Ryan Clady
13. Carolina- DeSean Jackson
14. Chicago- Chris Williams
15. Detroit- Calias Campbell
16. Arizona- Jonathan Stewart
17. Minnesota- Kenny Phillips
18. Houston- Rashard Mendenhall
19. Philadelphia- Fred Davis
20. Tampa Bay- Brian Brohm
21. Washington- Phillip Merling
22. Dallas (from Cleveland)- Limas Sweed
23. Pittsburgh- Jeff Otah
24. Tennessee- James Hardy
25. Seattle- Felix Jones
26. Jacksonville- Derrick Harvey
27. San Diego- Dan Connor
28. Dallas- Mike Jenkins
29. San Francisco (from Indianapolis)- Chilo Rachel
30. Green Bay- Justin King
31. New York Giants- Keith Rivers

Top 5 NFL Prospects by Position

QB
1. Matt Ryan- Boston College
2. Brian Brohm- Louisville
3. Chad Henne- Michigan
4. Joe Flacco- Delaware
5. Andre Woodson- Kentucky

RB
1. Darren McFadden- Arkansas
2. Jonathan Stewart- Oregon
3. Rashard Mendenhall- Illinois
4. Felix Jones- Arkansas
5. Jamaal Charles- Texas

WR
1. DeSean Jackson- Cal
2. Malcolm Kelly- Oklahoma
3. Limas Sweed- Texas
4. James Hardy- Indiana
5. Adrian Arrington- Michigan

TE
1. Fred Davis- USC
2. John Carlson- Notre Dame
3. Martellus Bennett- Texas A&M
4. Kellen Davis- Michigan St.
5. Martin Rucker- Missouri

OT
1. Jake Long- Michigan
2. Ryan Clady- Boise St.
3. Chris Williams- Vanderbilt
4. Jeff Otah- Pittsburg
5. Sam Baker- USC

OG
1. Brandon Albert- Virginia
2. Chilo Rachel- USC
3. Robert Felton- Arkansas
4. Roy Schuening- Oregon St.
5. Kerry Brown- Appalachian St.

C
1. Steve Justice- Wake Forest
2. Kory Lichtensteiger- Bowling Green
3. Cody Wallace- Texas A&M
4. John Sullivan- Notre Dame
5. Mike Pollack- Arizona St.

DE
1. Chris Long- Virginia
2. Vernon Gholston- Ohio St.
3. Calias Campbell- Miami
4. Phillip Merling- Clemson
5. Derrick Harvey- Florida

DT
1. Glen Dorsey- LSU
2. Sedrick Ellis- USC
3. Kentwan Balmer- UNC
4. Pat Sims- Auburn
5. Marcus Harrison- Arkansas

OLB
1. Keith Rivers- USC
2. Dan Connor- Penn St.
3. Erin Henderson- Maryland
4. Ali Highsmith- LSU
5. Tavaris Gooden- Miami

ILB
1. Curtis Lofton- Oklahoma
2. Jerod Mayo- Tennessee
3. Jonathan Goff- Vanderbilt
4. Phillip Wheeler- Georgia Tech
5. J Leman- Illinois

CB
1. Aquib Talib- Kansas
2. Leodis McKelvin- Troy
3. Mike Jenkins- USF
4. Justin King- Penn St.
5. Patrick Lee- Auburn
6. Brandon Flowers- Virginia Tech

S
1. Kenny Phillips- Miami
2. Reggie Smith- Oklahoma
3. Thomas DeCoud- Cal
4. Marcus Griffin- Texas
5. DaJuan Morgan- North Carolina St.

Matt Ryan & Brian Brohm- Breakdown

QB RANKINGS:

1. Matt Ryan 6'5 220 Boston College: 2007 stats- 4,507yds. 31td's 19int's 21scks; 2006- 2,942yds 15td's 10int's 19scks
NFL Comparison: Tom Brady- my comparison between Ryan and Brady does not mean that I expect Ryan to become as good of a NFL QB as Brady. Rather, I feel they display a lot of the same qualities which might help to explain why Matty "ice" Ryan is currently considered the #1 QB prospect.

STRENGTHS- The first thing that jumps out at you when watching Ryan is that he displays excellent intangibles, and like Brady, doesn't get fazed as pressure mounts, showing great poise and composure and an ability to make a play with the game on the line- hence matty "ice". He is tall at 6'5 and slender, a similar build to brady, which allows him to servey the entire field. He is by no means fast or nimble but is good at keeping the D honest by scrambling for the occasional 1st down when the opportunity presents itself. He is used to not having a no. 1 receiver so he is adept to spreading the ball around and going through his progressions. He's also trusts (sometimes too much) that his receivers will come open and relies on his anticipation to keep the D off-balance. Great at buying time and making plays when protection breaks down.

WEAKNESSES- When looking at Ryan's weaknesses, the first thing that is apparent is that he does not display the same kind of arm strength that is inherant in most top QB prospects- but in fairness brady wasn't veiwed as someone with great arm strength coming out of college, another reason I compared the two, and that obviously hasn't proved to be a hinderance on route to a hall of fame career. Ryan also is a QB that is gonna throw his fair share of int's, 19 his Sen. season, and might trust himself to much to throw into tight spaces, like a Favre or Cutler, eventhough he simply doesn't have the arm strength to make those throws.... My biggest concern, however, with Ryan is not his arm strength but his slow release in which, on plays where he needs to put velocity on his throws, he drops the ball down to his hips in a windup motion instead of keeping the ball at ear level which helps in having a quicker release.... this gives the D a little extra time to react to the play......

OVERALL- Ryan seems to be the type of QB that displays that "it factor" that scouts can't describe but look for when identifying QB's who are difference makers.... All Ryan's deficiencies seem to be ones that he can either correct or compensate for in order to be a quality NFL QB... However, I question his status as a top-notch QB, being top 5-10 pick, prospect due to these deficiences and it will be interesting to see if he is drafted high simply because he is perceived to be the top QB or whether he ends up dropping like a Brady Quinn or Aaron Rodgers on Draft Day.


2. Brian Brohm 6'3 225 Louisville: 2007 stats- 4,024yds 30td's 12int's 24scks; 2006- 3,049yds 16td's 5int's 16scks
NFL Comparison: Peyton Manning

STRENGTHS- Like Manning, Brohm serves as a second coach on the field who can read defenses and audible correctly based on a feel of what he sees. Brohm is a very efficient passer and good at selling play-action. Like Manning, Brohm holds the ball at a high release point point and displays a very quick throwing motion with good touch, accuracy and adequete arm strength to make all the throws. The biggest similarity I see between Brohm and Manning is their patience and composure. If the Defense drops back and takes away the big play, Brohm, like Manning, will sit back and pick the D apart ten yards at a time never forcing the issue downfield when there is a viable option short. Both go through their progressions as well as anyone at their respective levels.

WEAKNESSES- Like Manning, the best way to fluster Brohm is to get pressure on him as he is not very capable of making a play with his feet... Brohm sometimes seems to willing to just stick to the short passes and is reluctant to force a pass down field even when the game calls for a play to be made... Adequete size at 6'3 but still 2inches shorter than Manning... Arm strength is good but not elite...

OVERALL- In ranking Brohm #2 I might be falling into the trap of trusting the general media's evaluation as Ryan being the superior QB prospect as opposed to trusting my own gut feeling. I think that Ryan has an advantage to Brohm in terms of intangibles. However, I like the polish Brohm has and his approach in terms of managing the game which will serve him well in becoming a starting QB quicker in the NFL... The biggest question surrounding Brohm is can he make plays when he is pressured, something many critics of Peyton saw as something he couldn't overcome.... He did though, and I feel Brohm will too....

2008 NFL Draft Rankings- QB's

Regardless of how the rest of the NFL season unfolds, the full-time NFL fan knows their is plenty to still look forward to as the list of underclassmen entering the Draft has been finalized, as of January 15, officially marking the start of the NFL "draft-season".
To kick off the "draft-season" I will first introduce my pre-Senior Bowl/ Pre- Combine rankings and perspective on the top Quarterback prospects for the 2008 draft....

QB RANKINGS:

1. Matt Ryan 6'5 220 Boston College: 2007 stats- 4,507yds. 31td's 19int's 21scks; 2006- 2,942yds 15td's 10int's 19scks

2. Brian Brohm 6'3 225 Louisville: 2007 stats- 4,024yds 30td's 12int's 24scks; 2006- 3,049yds 16td's 5int's 16scks

3. Joe Flacco- 6'6 230 Delaware: 2007 stats- 4,263yds 23tds 5ints 25scks; 2006- 2,783yrds 18tds 10ints 23scks

4. Andre Woodson 6'4 220 Kentucky: 2007 stats- 3,709yds 40tds 11ints 36scks; 2006- 3,515yds 31tds 7ints 38scks

5. Chad Henne- 6'2 225 Michigan: 2007 stats- 1,938yds 17tds 9ints 16scks; 2006- 2508yds 22tds 8ints 24scks

6. John David-Booty- 6'2 210 USC: 2007 stats- 2,361yds 23tds 10ints 12scks; 2006- 3347yrds 29tds 9ints 14scks

In my first post of the QB rankings I just want to give you a snapshot of the QB's I consider to be the top 6. This does not mean that I believe these will be the first 6 QB's drafted and in that exact order. For instance, I like Flacco better than Woodson for many reasons, but I also think that, if the draft were today, Woodson would be drafted ahead of Flacco. However, to me, I believe these are the top 6 QB's who will go on to have the most successful careers in the NFL- regardless of where they are drafted.

Coming up in my next post.... I will outline my top 6 QB's strengths and weaknesses, and why I ranked one ahead of the other, as well as compare them to a current QB in the NFL....