2010 Draft Prospects: The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly

The Good

Ndamukong Suh, DT, Nebraska
I have a roommate who is a Nebraska fan. And as such, I've seen a lot of "the boy named Suh" this season. And I've yet to see anything I'm not impressed by. He's strong enough to take on double-teams, he's quick enough to shoot the gaps, and he also does as good a job as most linebackers when dropped into zone coverage. I can't remember ever seeing such a sure thing in college. Unless he's juicing.

Eric Berry, S, Tennessee
One thing that has always confused me: Berry is almost unanimously considered the top prospect in the draft, yet almost no mocks have him in the top 4. Does this make sense to anyone? Who says that the Rams have to rebuild with a quarterback? Put it this way: if your choices are a can't-miss safety who is drawing Ed Reed comparisons, or a quarterback who has had a rocky collegiate career and is 10-12 as a starter? And for Clausen, going from Notre Dame to the Rams would probably be a downgrade in supporting cast. Don't you take the sure thing?

Max Hall, QB, BYU
Saw him take down Oklahoma with a limited supporting cast, and I was sold at that moment. There are reasons certain college QBs make it, and others don't. The ones who make it are the accurate ones, the calm leaders, and the guys who can make plays with their arm under pressure. Hall fits all three. He's going to go down as the best QB from this draft class.

Colt McCoy, QB, Texas
Hall will end up being the best QB of the class, but McCoy will end up showing up a few guys taken over him as well. He's the type of mobile quarterback that works--a pass-firster who is comfortable throwing out of the pocket, but who can make things happen on the run as a supplement to this and makes good decisions. Those guys can make it--the run-first types with no accuracy or decision-making are the guys who struggle.

The Bad

Jimmy Clausen, QB, Notre Dame
I covered this above. Put it this way: give me a quarterback who wins ugly over a hype machine who just can't pull it off. Kyle Orton took the Bears to a Super Bowl a few years ago. Clausen has struggled to win surrounded by high-school All-Americans. In this year's NFL, where pretty much anyone in the top 10 is going to a putrid team, Clausen will probably be playing with a weaker supporting cast than he's had at Notre Dame--and, as previously mentioned, he's 10-12 there and that's not against NFL quality opponents.

Carlos Dunlap, DE, Florida
Hmm... sketchy character guy, heavily hyped and has very quietly fallen off the face of the earth this year, questions about his work ethic... this bodes well for long-term success!

And for those who are saying that his free-falling on draft boards will motivate him... all reports say that he's just not the motivatable type. He's a supreme talent with no desire to better himself. Guys like that either mature under a veteran influence (think Randy Moss with Cris Carter) or flame out (think Tony Mandarich... or better yet fellow Packer fans, forget he ever existed). In the right situation, he could be a force. Or not. I'm leaning towards not--only because a dumb front office with an iffy locker room already will almost certainly reach for him on promise alone.

Terelle Pryor, QB, Ohio State
Yes, I know he's a year away from being able to declare, but he's already being talked about as a potential gamebreaker, only he's JaMarcus Russell Lite. Same build, same question marks (accuracy, decision-making, motivation), same iffy stats overshadowed by monster potential. He's miles from being serviceable.

Russell Okung, OT, Oklahoma State
Just watched him get torched by Texas A&M a few weeks ago. He looks like he's gonna have big problems against speed rushers--which should raise red flags if he's projected as a LT.

The Ugly

Sam Bradford, QB, Oklahoma
At this point, the shoulder has to be a question mark, right? You've got to at least think twice about it before you take him, right? Bradford has the talent to be a starter, but the last thing you want to do as an owner is spend fuck-you money on a player who might be on injured reserve more than he's on the field. Unless you're Al Davis, apparently.

Tim Tebow, QB, Florida
Tremendous talent with no clear NFL position. He could become the next Steve Young, he could become the next Kordell Stewart, he could become the next Eric Crouch. I've seen him mocked in the top 5, I've seen him mocked in the 3rd round. Another monster question mark.

Sam Young, OT, Notre Dame
Big name who has had a couple bad seasons, but is riding on the "potential" wave that made him a top recruit and the occasional flashes of said potential. Not like that's never failed before, has it?