It is two days until the 2011 NFL Draft, and today I am posting my final DSA Player Rankings for this year. It seems that the prospects at the top have pretty much been solidified in their draft slots, and that is due to the uncertainty of the lockout and labor negotiations. Teams still have not been able to sign free agents, even with the ruling that came down yesterday. So it looks like this is going to be the draft for needs, not just the draft for the best player available. So here is the final DSA Player Rankings for 2011:
DSA Rankings 6.0 4-28-11
1) Cam Newton 1.30
2) Marcel Dareus 1.90
3) Von Miller 3.60
4) A.J. Green 4.20
5) Blaine Gabbert 5.00
6) Patrick Peterson 6.40
7) Robert Quinn 7.00
8) Nick Fairley 7.40
9) Julio Jones 9.20
10) Tyron Smith 9.40
11) Prince Amukamara 12.20
12) Cameron Jordan 13.30
13) Aldon Smith 15.10
14) Corey Liuget 15.40
15) J.J, Watt 16.00
16) Ryan Kerrigan 16.70
17) Anthony Castanzo 17.10
18) Mike Pouncey 17.40
19) Da'Quan Bowers 18.20
20) Mark Ingram 21.00
21) Gabe Carimi 22.60
22) Jimmy Smith 24.50
23) Cameron Heyward 25.90
24) Derek Sherrod 26.60
25) Nate Solder 26.80
26) Muhammad Wilkerson 27.10
27) Akeem Ayers 28.30
28) Phil Taylor 28.50
29) Jake Locker 29.90
30) Danny Watkins 30.30
31) Adrian Clayborn 30.70
32) Aaron Williams 31.10
The biggest upward movers going into the final weeks of the draft has been Cameron Heyward, who moved up seven slots in the latest DSA's. Corey Liuget jumped up six positions, while Tyron Smith and Cameron Jordan shot up five slots each. The players who travelled south the most were Adrian Clayborn, who for some reason dropped ten slots down to #31, and Da'Quan Bowers, who fell another eight spots to #19. Teams are getting nervous about Bowers and just how healthy his knee is, but Clayborn is a bit of a mystery. I believe he is more a victim of the numbers with a deep class at defensive end and could very well go in the mid-first round.
Looking back at the first DSA's I posted back in February compared to the final in late April, there are a number of players who saw their stock rise and fall in the eyes of draftniks during the past two months. Nick Fairley was a unanimous #1 Overall selection, then dropped to a near unanimous #8 pick for Tennessee. Akeem Ayers fell twelve spots to #27, and Adrian Clayborn went south thirteen positions to #31. Brandon Harris was #22 and Ryan Mallett was #23, and both are not anywhere near the top 32 in the final rankings.
Cam Newton started at #8, and moved all the way to the top before the draft. Corey Liuget shot up eleven slots to #14, and Mike Pouncey gained nine spots to #18. Muhammad Wilkerson and Danny Watkins both made the largest jump from outside the first 32 to the final, both moving up ten slots to #26 and #30, respectively.
But nothing compares to the draft odyssey of Da'Quan Bowers. I could do this for another hundred years and not see anything like it again. Bowers was second after the initial DSA Players Rankings, then moved up to the top spot for DSA 2.0. Then the NFL Scouting Combine came around. Bowers did not work out due to knee surgery. Then he had a poor showing at the Clemson Pro Day, mostly due to not being able to work out while rehabbing his knee. Then the rumors circulated. Out of shape. Knee not responding. Arthritic knee. And his stock began to drop. And drop. And drop. All the way to #19 of the final DSA Player Rankings. I'm hoping he proves all the naysayers wrong, is 100% healthy, and hits the field with a whole bags of chips on his shoulder. If that's the case, he will be the biggest bargain of the draft if he indeed falls to the mid-late first round. We will find out Thursday night and in the months ahead.
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