Lance's Pre-Combine Positional Top 5s
The Combine plays a BIG part on the Factors and the PSRs (Percent Success Rate) that go into creating my draft board and the subsequent articles and mock drafts that go with that. However, I am able to take away a thing or two here and there with a player’s college production, and now I have the added bonus of using grades a player receives from PFF. So, below you’ll gain a slightly early look at my top 5 rankings by position. You’ll notice some bigger names are missing such as Sam Howell, Drake London, and DeMarvin Leal, these guys have already stumbled into factors that have removed them from my board. And then you might notice names like Isaiah Spiller, Chris Olave and George Karlaftis missing, but they’re not in my top five because their positions are stacked, or they didn’t have a high enough PSR pre-Combine to make me feel comfortable rating them over another player, or I’m not all that impressed with them yet. It might be better to just wait for my draft board articles to be released instead of trying to guess why I don’t have a player rated top 5. For now, enjoy:
Quarterbacks
- Matt Corral (Ole Miss)
- Kenny Pickett (Pittsburgh)
- Malik Willis (Liberty)
- Desmond Ridder (Cincinnati)
- Cole Kelley (Southeastern Louisiana)
This QB class is weak, that’s not a secret. Pickett and Corral are the only ones I currently feel are worth a first round pick, though Willis and Ridder have the potential to get there. I put Willis above Ridder because I think he has the higher ceiling. Coincidentally, I also believe he has the lower floor, he’s basically the epitome of a boom or bust prospect. I really feel like the best option for a team wanting to draft a QB this year is to wait until the third round and target a high upside passer like Kelley, or a dual threat option like Dustin Crum.
Running Backs
- Kenneth Walker III (Michigan State)
- Breece Hall (Iowa State)
- Kennedy Brooks (Oklahoma)
- Rachaad White (Arizona State)
- Tyler Allgeier (BYU)
I don’t think what Walker did for the Spartans this year was a fluke, but given his slightly smaller frame, I want to see him show out at the Combine in order to keep him at 1. Kennedy Brooks is probably my secret favorite. He had a phenomenal career at Oklahoma and is my favorite back they’ve put out since AP. Allgeier isn’t getting enough love in my opinion, I mean all he did was continue to dominate on the ground despite BYU losing their QB, top two Receiving options and their top Offensive Lineman...no big deal.
Wide Receivers
- Jahan Dotson (Penn State)
- Garrett Wilson (Ohio State)
- Treylon Burks (Arkansas)
- Calvin Austin III (Memphis)
- David Bell (Purdue)
Wilson has grown on me, but I really like Dotson and I don’t see him losing the number 1 spot in my rankings. Burks is a freak, if he runs like people are expecting I could see the Megatron comparisons heating up. Calvin Austin isn’t a big guy, but he’s quick, kind of reminds me of Tyler Lockett. David Bell isn’t quick, but he is a big guy and he knows how to be physically imposing.
Tight Ends
- Trey McBride (Colorado State)
- Charlie Kolar (Iowa State)
- Isaiah Likely (Coastal Carolina)
- Greg Dulcich (UCLA)
- Cole Turner (Nevada)
Tight End is a hard position to transition to as a pro and a hard position to get correct if you’re a GM; having said that, I don’t think you can go wrong with McBride, Kolar or Likely. For me, they’re more like 1a, 1b and 1c. As for Dulcich and Turner, they’re middle round, high upside type of guys that you hope develop well.
Offensive Tackles
- Charles Cross (Mississippi State)
- Evan Neal (Alabama)
- Bernhard Raimann (Central Michigan)
- Trevor Penning (Northern Iowa)
- Ikem Ekwonu (North Carolina State)
Cross over Neal surprised me, but the numbers really stood out in Cross’ favor. Raimann and Penning may be from smaller schools but I really like what they are bringing to the table. Ekwonu hasn’t scored as high as the guys above him so far, but I would still consider him a first round pick. This is a pretty stacked OT class, which is good for Tackle needy teams cause I’m having my doubts about next year's class.
Interior Offensive Lineman
- Tyler Linderbaum (Iowa)
- Zion Johnson (Boston College)
- William Dunkle (San Diego State)
- Luke Fortner (Kentucky)
- Blaise Andries (Minnesota)
Linderbaum looks like the real deal so far, I have him as a top ten prospect and would not knock a team for picking him in the top ten. Zion Johnson may be the only other name you see heavily on other analyst’s top fives, he had a solid career at BC and that should land him in the first round. Dunkle, Fortner and Andries are all good day two options at positions that teams tend not to want to spend early picks on, I think we could see all three of their names around for the next 7-10 years. *Note: You’ll see Darian Kinnard in the IOL top five for a lot of other analysts, I still believe Kinnard is an OT (he’s currently 6th in my OT rankings) and barring a short arm length measurement, he’ll likely remain at Tackle for me.*
Edge Rushers
- Aidan Hutchinson (Michigan)
- Kayvon Thibodeaux (Oregon)
- Jermaine Johnson II (Florida State)
- Arnold Ebiketie (Penn State)
- David Ojabo (Michigan)
The Michigan boys bookend my top five and honestly I really like all five of them (Thibodeaux has grown on me). For those teams looking for a pass rusher the question shouldn’t be which guy do I think is more talented? The question should be, which one do I think fits my system better? Hutchinson and Thibodeaux would be my tier 1. Johnson, Ebiketie and Ojabo would be my tier 2. And then there are a plethora of other guys that would make up my tier 3, led by Karlafits and Drake Jackson.
Interior Defensive Lineman
- Eyioma Uwazurike (Iowa State)
- Phidarian Mathis (Alabama)
- Neil Farrell (LSU)
- Zachary Carter (Florida)
- Devonte Wyatt (Georgia)
I’m not impressed with this Defensive Tackle class. There isn’t a player I would currently use a first round pick on. That’s really all I have to say on this position.
Linebackers
- Nakobe Dean (Georgia)
- Devin Lloyd (Utah)
- Chad Muma (Wyoming)
- Leo Chenal (Wisconsin)
- Malcolm Rodriguez (Oklahoma State)
By now you’ve heard about Dean and Lloyd and believe me, my feelings on them matches most of what you’ve read. I think they should both end up in the first round, but team needs may prevent that. Muma is the one to watch out for. Like Dean and Lloyd, he’s a three down backer, and that just isn’t easy to find these days. As long as he performs well in the athletic tests he could give himself a shot at slipping into the end of the first round. Chenal has a nose for the ball, but his pass coverage skills have me a little worried. Rodriguez also has the skills to be a potential three down Linebacker, but his size may be a concern.
Cornerbacks
- Ahmad Gardner (Cincinnati)
- Roger McCreary (Auburn)
- Derek Stingley Jr. (LSU)
- Derion Kendrick (Georgia)
- Mario Goodrich (Clemson)
Gardner and McCreary over Stingley may surprise most people, but I’m not a big fan of Stingley’s. If this class was a little more talented he would’ve been further down my board. Kendrick comes with character concerns that almost caused me to remove him from my top five, but again, weak Corner class. Goodrich probably isn’t the Clemson Corner you expected to see in the top five, but he was the best Corner on the field for them this season and I’ll fight someone on that.
Safety
- Kyle Hamilton (Notre Dame)
- Jaquan Brisker (Penn State)
- Smoke Monday (Auburn)
- Jalen Pitre (Baylor)
- Delarrin Turner-Yell (Oklahoma)
Hamilton is the top guy, you’ll hear no arguments out of me, I’m just not convinced he’s a top ten pick yet. Brisker and Monday both have the potential to be all-around Safeties. Pitre looks like your modern box Safety all the way, my only concern there is that he’ll be too much of a liability in coverage and fail out of the league early. Turner-Yell making my top five surprised me, but he made some serious improvements in both areas of his game and I think he can continue that trend.
