TMG DraftZone Final DSA Player Rankings 2014

The 2014 NFL Draft is tomorrow. Finally. The extra two weeks this year has made it feel like an extra two months. But the time has come for Commissioner Roger Goddell to step up to the podium at Radio City Music Hall and make the announcement that the Houston Texans are on the clock. Mock Drafters have had their say, and the final DSA Player Rankings show that there is not much change in who looks to go where. But one thing it is showing is that what may be termed 'The Safe Pick' is coming back in vogue for 2014. Last year, offensive lineman went with three of the first four picks, and six of the top 11. Now this year, Taylor Lewan looks to be the safest pick garnering the most interest at the top of the draft. Lewan moved up 6 spots in the DSA Rankings, going from 14 to 8 in the Final Rankings. Eric Ebron could be considered the safest pick of the skill players at the top of the draft, and he moved up four positions to #9. The quarterbacks at the top, Johnny Manziel and Blake Bortles, fell 2 and 4 positions respectively as it is beginning to look like teams may take their top position prospects first, then trade back into the end of Round 1 to get the quarterback they want. But for the most part, there was very little movement in the Final DSA Player Rankings. The biggest riser was Kony Ealy, who moved up 8 positions to #20. But two rankings ago he was #21, so Ealy got back the positions he lost previously. Bradley Roby did the same thing, only in reverse. Roby fell seven spots to #28, which is where he was two rankings ago. Louis Nix fell seven spots to #30, which is far and away his lowest position in this years rankings. But the biggest overall fall was completed by Teddy Bridgewater. A horrendous pro day workout has led the one-time top quarterback prospect to fall from #2 in the first rankings, with a score of 3.00, to #3/3.40, then #11/11.40, and the fall was completed in the last two rankings at #17/17.70 and finally #22/24.40. Bridgewater is the leading candidate for the Stone Drop Award for 2014, but it could easily go to Manziel or Bortles, depending on which quarterback falls the furthest in the 2014 NFL Draft. But with the end of the 2014 Mock Draft Season now upon us, it is time to reveal the final TMG DraftZone DSA Player Rankings for 2014, with average score and position up or down from the previous rankings: 1) Jadeveon Clowney 1.20 0 2) Sammy Watkins 3.20 0 3) Greg Robinson 3.90 0 4) Khalil Mack 5.00 1 5) Jake Matthews 5.50 3 6) Johnny Manziel 6.80 -2 7) Mike Evans 7.40 0 8) Taylor Lewan 11.20 6 9) Eric Ebron 12.10 4 10) Blake Bortles 12.60 -4 11) Anthony Barr 12.90 0 12) Justin Gilbert 12.90 -3 13) Ha'Sean Clinton-Dix 13.10 -3 14) Aaron Donald 13.40 -2 15) Darqueze Dennard 16.40 0 16) Calvin Pryor 16.70 0 17) Zack Martin 17.00 1 18) Odell Beckham 18.40 2 19) C. J. Mosley 19.40 0 20) Kony Ealy 22.30 8 21) Brandin Cooks 22.80 1 22) Teddy Bridgewater 24.40 -5 23) Marqise Lee 24.80 2 24) Kyle Fuller 25.10 0 25) Ryan Shazier 25.90 1 26) Derek Carr 28.50 5 27) Tim Jernigan 28.60 0 28) Bradley Roby 28.70 -7 29) Ra'Shade Hageman 29.60 0 30) Louis Nix 29.90 -7 31) Dee Ford 30.10 2 32) Xavier Su'a-Filo 30.50 0 33) Jason Verrett 30.60 -3 34) Morgan Moses 32.00 1 35) Jimmie Ward 33.20 3 If you look at the previous DSA Player Rankings and the Final Rankings, you are going to see a lot of familiar names. 34 in fact. The only player to fall out of the DSA Rankings this time was Cyrus Kouandjio, who could easily go #28 to Carolina, a team in need of offensive line help. But draftniks see the top players being the ones that are most likely going in Round 1, and we will find out tomorrow night. I will be posting my Final Mock Draft right before the Round 1, and tonight I will have my annual Twas The Night Before The NFL Draft. It's been a long draft season, and like everyone else I am anxious to see The Commissh walk up the the podium. Let The 2014 NFL Draft Begin.

TMG DraftZone 2014 DSA Player Rankings 4.0

The 2014 NFL Draft is 2 weeks away, and if it had not been moved into May the first round would be underway right now. As it is, the draft experts now have extra time to overanalyze prospects and make change after change to their mock drafts. But for the most part, the changes are happening after the first 8 picks. The top of the draft is looking to be pretty solid at this time. I mentioned in an earlier posting you could take the top players, put them in a hat, and draw out a mock draft that wouldn't get too many arguments. Take a look at the top eight players in my latest DSA Player Rankings. Jadaveon Clowney, Sammy Watkins, Greg Robinson, Johnny Manziel, Khalil Mack, Blake Bortles, Mike Evans, and Jake Matthews. It would be a surprise if Clowney was picked eighth, but would anyone be shocked if the other 7 players were picked in any order at this time? I'd say no. This is the reason that there can be so much flux in where players are going in mock drafts at this time. One mock had Teddy Bridgewater going #1. Two others did not have him going in Round 1 at all. One mock draft had Derek Carr going at #4 and another going at #8. Seven others did not have him going in the first round. Charles Davis on NFL.com has Carr going as the first quarterback taken, this time by Tennessee at #11. Blake Bortles was a Top 8 pick in nine out of 10, but the tenth had him going to Cleveland at #26. Amazingly, Johnny Manziel was placed no lower then 8th Overall, after a number of mock drafts early in the process had him going to Cleveland at #26 or not in Round 1 at all. Bridgewater is now the leading candidate to win The Stone Drop Award for 2014. The first DSA Player Rankings had Bridgewater at #2. The second at #3. Then a bad pro day dropped the one time presumptive #1 Overall Pick to #11, and now he has fallen all the way to #17. I don't see Bridgewater falling out of the first round for the reason that someone who passed on him earlier will trade back up to get him late in Round 1. Other than Bridgewater, the biggest drops in the DSA Player Rankings was found to be Tim Jernigan and Kony Ealy. Jernigan was placed at #14 in one mock draft, #16 in three others, and not in Round 1 at all in five others, but he fell 10 spots to #27. Ealy fell seven spots to #28 in spite of being listed as high as #16 in one draft and #20 in another. But Jernigan looks to be the second best defensive tackle in the draft behind Aaron Donald, and I don't see him falling out of Round 1. Ealy needs to find a team that needs a pass rusher, and the prevailing thought is that Ealy may fall to round 2. There really wasn't too many big jumps up in the DSA Player Rankings this time. Calvin Pryor, C.J. Mosley, Ryan Shazier,and Kyle Fuller moved up four spots, and Morgan Moses makes his first appearance in the rankings. Eric Ebron gained three positions, and I still see the big tight end as a possible top 10 pick. Brandin Cooks gained three spots as well, moving up to #22. But the biggest jump came near the bottom, as Bradley Roby gained seven spots to #21. Roby took a hit earlier in the draft process but now it looks like the player who was a dominant cornerback in 2012 is the one being judged now instead of the one who seemed to have a setback last year. The extra two weeks before the draft is giving everyone a chance to take a look at players like Roby a little more closely. Why were they not as productive in 2013 as they were in 2012? Why did their production jump so much last year? The extra analysis is going to have players going all over the draft boards. I will post one more mock draft and DSA Player Rankings the week of the draft, and I'm going to have a Hat Draw Mock Draft as well. I'm going to draw out the top 8 players, then 9-18, and 19-32, according to how the players are ranked in the DSA Player Rankings. But for now, here are the TMG DraftZone DSA Player Rankings 4.0 for 2014, with their average score and positions moved up or down in the rankings: 1) Jadaveon Clowney 1.50 0 2) Sammy Watkins 4.00 2 3) Greg Robinson 4.00 -1 4) Johnny Manziel 4.70 3 5) Khalil Mack 5.20 0 6) Blake Bortles 6.50 -3 7) Mike Evans 7.40 1 8) Jake Matthews 7.90 -2 9) Justin Gilbert 11.50 1 10) Ha'Sean Clinton-Dix 12.40 2 11) Anthony Barr 12.90 -2 12) Aaron Donald 13.10 2 13) Eric Ebron 13.90 3 14) Taylor Lewan 15.00 -1 15) Darqueze Dennard 15.70 0 16) Calvin Pryor 17.40 4 17) Teddy Bridgewater 17.70 -6 18) Zach Martin 19.90 0 19) C.J. Mosley 20.30 4 20) Odell Beckham 21.50 -1 21) Bradley Roby 23.20 7 22) Brandin Cooks 24.90 3 23) Louis Nix 25.40 -1 24) Kyle Fuller 25.50 3 25) Marqise Lee 25.60 -1 26) Ryan Shazier 25.70 4 27) Tim Jernigan 27.10 -10 28) Kony Ealy 27.70 -7 29) Ra'Shade Hageman 27.80 4 30) Jason Verrett 30.00 1 31) Derek Carr 30.50 -5 32) Xavier Su'a-Filo 30.50 2 33) Dee Ford 30.60 -4 34) Cyrus Kouandjio 32.30 1 35) Morgan Moses 32.90 3 Every year there is at least one player who is a late riser into the bottom of Round. On the defensive side, I said that Jeremiah Attaochu could be one of the late risers, and now you can add Morgan Moses to the list. Offensive tackles have always been a valuable asset, and the big tackle from Virginia looks to be becoming more valuable as the draft nears. Round 1 is two weeks away on May 8th. The rollercoaster rides through the mock draft season will soon be coming to an end, and who knows where the ride will stop for the prospects going into the 2014 NFL Draft.

TMG DraftZone2014 DSA Player Rankings 3.0

We are a little over one month away from the 2014 NFL Draft, but with the draft now in May it still feels like it is just a couple of weeks away. In compiling the latest edition of the DSA Player Rankings, the top of the draft is settling into place very nicely, with the exception of one player. With the majority of Pro Days completed, the overanalysation of players is in full swing. And no position get the treatment than quarterback. It is starting to remind me of a presidential primary season. When a candidate makes the announcement that they are running, there is excitement aplenty. The early poll numbers go up, and everything looks great. Then all the pundits start to dissect the candidate and all the flaws become exposed. Now take a look at what has happened to Teddy Bridgewater this draft season. To a degree, it started against Central Florida last season for Teddy. He was an early Heisman candidate, then Louisville lost to UCF. His numbers were never as spectacular as Blake Bortles or Johnny Manziel, but he kept winning. A 12-1 season was capped off with a great performance against Miami in the Russell Athletic Bowl, and the full spectrum of his play in college put Bridgewater at the top of the draft charts for quarterbacks going into the 2014 NFL Draft. Then the questions started. He didn't have a big enough body frame. At the combine, his hands weren't big enough and he didn't throw on the field. He had a lousy pro day. Now the doubters are piling on. Bridgewater has taken one of the biggest drops I've ever recorded this late in the draft process with the DSA Player Rankings for a player at or near the top. Other top name prospects have had bigger drops, but those started early, most notably Da'Quan Bowers. Bridgewater dropped eight positions, from #3 to #11, as one mock draft had him at #26 to Cleveland and another had him at #32 in a possible trade scenario. I have written of my support for Bridgewater, and I still believe that he will be the best quarterback of this class. But what I'm seeing is almost a Panic In The Draft Room In Reverse. It's gone from We Need A Quarterback, We Need A Quarterback, to Maybe We Don't Need This Quarterback. If Bridgewater falls past Minnesota at #8 in the upcoming draft, I wonder who will make the move up to get him and I will discuss these possibilities in my next posting. For now, there are two big movers. Mike Evans has moved into the Top 10, moving up five spots to #8, and Tim Jernigan is getting a lot of attention in the middle of the draft as well. Jernigan jumped up nine slots from #26 to #17 as teams are possibly looking to snare the next Geno Atkins for the middle of their defense. Besides Bridgewater, the biggest drops were taken by Jason Verrett, falling eight spots to #31, and Marqise Lee, who dropped seven positions from #17 to #24. Verrett is seen as undersized, and the drop by Lee can be seen as a result of the rise of both Odell Beckham and Brandin Cooks. The player at the top has been there all along this year, and that is Jadaveon Clowney. The St. Louis Rams, in a way, have to be hoping that the Houston Texans take a quarterback at #1 Overall. If Clowney is still there when the Rams pick, they could very easily make a trade along the lines for what they got in 2012 for Robert Griffin III from Washington, and they would still be able to get the offensive lineman they covet to give Sam Bradford some protection. Clowney is far and away the top talent in a very good draft class, and someone is going to break the bank to get him. So here is the 2014 TMG DraftZone DSA Player Rankings 3.0, with the average score and movement up or down from the previous rankings: 1) Jadaveon Clowney 2.10 0 2) Greg Robinson 3.00 2 3) Blake Bortles 4.40 (1) 4) Sammy Watkins 4.80 1 5) Khalil Mack 5.20 1 6) Jake Matthews 6.70 1 7) Johnny Manziel 7.30 1 8) Mike Evans 9.90 5 9) Anthony Barr 11.00 0 10) Justin Gilbert 11.30 0 11) Teddy Bridgewater 11.40 (8) 12) Ha'Sean Clinton-Dix 13.30 (1) 13) Taylor Lewan 14.90 (1) 14) Aaron Donald 15.20 0 15) Darqueze Dennard 16.40 0 16) Eric Ebron 16.70 0 17) Tim Jernigan 19.50 9 18) Zack Martin 19.90 0 19) Odell Beckham 21.70 3 20) Calvin Pryor 21.80 (1) 21) Kony Ealy 22.40 3 22) Louis Nix 22.50 (2) 23) C.J. Mosley 23.10 (2) 24) Marqise Lee 23.70 (7) 25) Brandin Cooks 24.80 3 26) Derek Carr 24.80 0 27) Kyle Fuller 25.50 2 28) Bradley Roby 25.60 4 29) Dee Ford 27.40 5 30) Ryan Shazier 29.00 1 31) Jason Varrett 29.10 (8) 32) Kelvin Benjamin 31.30 3 33) Ra'Shade Hageman 33.00 (6) 34) Xavier Su'a-Filo 33.90 0 35) Cyrus Kouandijo 34.00 (5) 36) David Yankey 35.00 0 37) Jimmie Ward 36.20 0 It will be interesting to see if Tim Jernigan can continue to climb up the draft charts as he has, and if you are looking for a player outside of the Top 32, keep an eye on Jeremiah Attaochu, the talented but raw linebacker from Georgia Tech. He looks to be a solid 2nd Rounder, but a team like New England or Seattle, who can afford to develop a talent like his, might grab him in Round 1. It is 1 month until the 2014 NFL Draft. I should be able to post at least two more DSA Player Rankings, and it will be interesting to see who the late risers are for 2014.

2014 DSA Player Rankings 2.0

The TMG Draft Zone has returned after a time on sick leave. I wasn't just under the weather. I was buried about 3 feet down before digging my way out. I was hoping to post the second DSA Player Rankings of 2014 right after the NFL Scouting Combine and before the start of free agency. But unable to do so, my mock draft research spans both events, so in a way it is an average of the Draft Slot Average. Jadaveon Clowney is once again a solid pick at #1 Overall, and the tide of the first quarterback to go has shifted from Teddy Bridgewater to Blake Bortles. But barely. The surprise among the quarterbacks is that Johnny Manziel is not feeling the love as he once did. Johnny Football dropped 4 spots down to #8, and in a way he has flipped positions with Greg Robinson. The athletic tackle, who wowed at the Combine, looks to be the first lineman to go off the boards instead of Jake Matthews. Robinson made a strong leap up 3 spots to #4, and is a mere three tenths of a point away from #2. Justin Gilbert also made a strong move, leaping 7 positions into the top 10 at #10. The top of the pack has started to separate from the rest, as there is already a nearly 3 point margin between #8 and #9. But the research I performed showed that the first round is getting to be a solid block of players. 20 players were listed in each mock draft I researched, 4 others were left out of one, and 4 others were left out of two of the mocks. Overall, there were 34 players who averaged 30 or better. Teams will be getting first round talent well into the third round of the draft this year. It's going to take a monumental screw-up for a team to get a bad grade on Draft Day this year. The biggest gainer was by far Aaron Donald, who jumped an incredible 17 positions. Odell Beckham was also a double digit gainer, moving up 10 spots. Justin Gilbert also made a strong move, leaping 7 positions into the top 10 at #10. Dropping hard were C.J. Mosley and Cyrus Kouandjio, who both fell 11 spots. I don't see Mosley staying down too long, but the concerns over the knee troubles of Kouandjio could cause him to be the winner of the Stone Drop Award of 2014, the player who started out the highest and who falls the farthest. Another candidate could be Kelvin Benjamin, the highest slotted player in the first DSA's who fell out completely the next time. Benjamin will not fall too far out of Round 2. He is too freakishly talented for someone to let him go too long, even if he has trouble catching the ball. So here is the 2nd 2014 DSA Player Rankings, with the average score and the positions gained or lost from the last DSA Rankings, and I promise to do better to keep my draft postings coming here to the TMG Draft Zone: 1) Jadaveon Clowney 2.10 0 2) Blake Bortles 3.10 1 3) Teddy Bridgewater 3.40 (1) 4) Greg Robinson 3.50 3 5) Sammy Watkins 5.00 0 6) Khalil Mack 6.20 2 7) Jake Matthews 7.90 (1) 8) Johnny Manziel 9.30 (4) 9) Anthony Barr 12.00 0 10) Justin Gilbert 13.00 7 11) Ha'Sean Clinton-Dix 13.40 3 12) Taylor Lewan 14.10 (1) 13) Mike Evans 14.40 0 14) Aaron Donald 15.70 17 15) Darqueze Dennard 15.70 (3) 16) Eric Ebron 16.50 (1) 17) Marquise Lee 19.10 (1) 18) Zack Martin 19.40 5 19) Calvin Pryor 19.70 3 20) Louis Nix 20.80 1 21) C.J. Mosley 21.60 (11) 22) Odell Beckham 22.20 10 23) Jason Varrett 24.60 5 24) Kony Ealy 25.10 0 25) Derek Carr 25.40 (7) 26) Tim Jernigan 25.90 0 27) Ra'Shade Hageman 27.00 (7) 28) Brandin Cooks 27.80 5 29) Kyle Fuller 27.80 5 30) Cyrus Kouandijo 28.90 (11) 31) Ryan Shazier 29.50 4 32) Bradley Roby 29.60 4 33) Xavier Su'a-Filo 29.70 4 34) Dee Ford 30.60 4

2014 DSA Player Rankings 1.0

It is time to reveal the first DSA Player Rankings from the TMG Draft Zone for 2014. Apologies for the delay in bringing the rankings to you as work has delayed my research in the past week. But I have been putting together the mock drafts, and the first DSA's of the year have proved that this year is going to be all about star power at the top of the draft. The Houston Texans have yet to tip their hand as to who they may take with the 1st Overall Pick of the 2014 NFL Draft, and I do not suspect they will any time soon. So mock drafts everywhere have Houston taking any number of players at the top. The Texans need a quarterback, and you can find mocks with Teddy Bridgewater, Blake Bortles, or Johnny Manziel listed first. Or they could go for the best player in the draft, and you will also for Jadaveon Clowney rated at the top. But you will also find the three quarterbacks as far down as #8 to Minnesota, and Clowney no more then 5th to Oakland. Which is why Clowney leads the way in the first DSA Player Rankings of 2014. Sammy Watkins edged out Jake Matthews for the fifth slot, but they took very different paths to get there. Watkins can be found in just about any mock draft in the neighborhood of #5 to #7 for Tampa Bay. Matthews has as many postings at #2 to St. Louis as he does at #11 to Tennessee. The top 9 slots are rounded out by Greg Robinson, Khalil Mack, and Anthony Barr. It would not be much of a stretch to say, even this early in the process, that these nine players will be the first names called going down to Buffalo and their pick at #9. The one player would could easily find his way there is Derek Carr. Carr is #18, but 40% of the mock drafts I researched did not list him in the first round, and the others all had him at #8 to Minnesota. Carr certainly has to talent to compete with the top three QB's, and his performance at the NFL Scouting Combine and pro day at Fresno State will go a long way to determining where he goes in the draft. I have already written about the Jacksonville Jaguars taking Clowney at #3, then getting their quarterback in Round 2. If Carr does get past the Vikings in Round 1, I wonder how frantic the phone lines will be in the Jags draft office to make a trade. I can picture the Cleveland Browns being a likely trading partner with the 26th Pick they acquired from Indianapolis. If the Browns take a QB at #4, they may want to add more draft picks to their already sizable stockpile this year. Jacksonville would be moving up nine spots, and sending their second rounder plus a couple of late round picks, or a higher pick next year, could very well net the Jaguars a top flight signal caller to build around this coming season. So here is the DSA Player Rankings 1.0, exclusive to the TMG Draft Zone, for the 2014 NFL Draft: 1) Jadaveon Clowney 2.60 2) Teddy Bridgewater 3.00 3) Blake Bortles 3.70 4) Johnny Manziel 3.70 5) Sammy Watkins 5.50 6) Jake Matthews 5.80 7) Greg Robinson 6.70 8) Khalil Mack 7.70 9) Anthony Barr 8.80 10) C.J. Mosley 13.00 11) Taylor Lewan 14.40 12) Darqueze Dennard 15.00 13) Mike Evans 15.70 14) Ha'Sean Clinton-Dix 16.10 15) Eric Ebron 16.60 16) Marquise Lee 17.40 17) Justin Gilbert 18.90 18) Derek Carr 19.10 19) Cyrus Kouandijo 20.00 20) Ra'Shade Hageman 22.30 21) Louis Nix 22.80 22) Calvin Pryor 23.60 23) Zack Martin 24.60 24) Kony Ealy 24.80 25) Kelvin Benjamin 24.90 26) Tim Jernigan 26.60 27) Jace Amaro 28.90 28) Jason Varrett 29.40 29) Stephon Tuitt 30.10 30) Allen Robinson 30.60 31) Aaron Donald 30.60 32) Odell Beckham 31.50 Three players I want to keep an eye on up to and just past the NFL Scouting Combine, and where they start to find themselves in mock drafts everywhere, and Eric Ebron, Kelvin Benjamin, and Calvin Pryor. Ebron and Benjamin are both physical marvels, but Ebron has the polish and Benjamin is a work in progress. But teams love to have big targets such as these 2, and I can see both moving up draft boards everywhere. As for Pryor, teams are really starting to go with the physical safeties to play the middle of the field, and though Ha'Sean Clinton-Dix has long been seen as the top player at that position, there are many who see Pryor as one with just as much talent as Clinton-Dix, and the value placed at the position recently could move him up to the middle of the first round, possible to St. Louis at #13. The NFL Scouting Combine is coming up in less than 3 weeks, and it will be interesting to see who is getting some buzz talk going before, and then who will be the biggest winner coming out of Indianapolis later this month.